This study aimed to examine the relationships among various stepping parameters, sex, and age in the elderly. Healthy elderly Japanese individuals 60-85 years old (50 males and 61 females) performed 4 types of stepping motions for 20 s. Stepping motions included bilateral stepping (back/forth and right/left) and unilateral stepping (back/forth and right/left). The number of steps, the average connecting time of a foot during one step, and the average time of both feet touching the floor at the same time (bilateral connecting time) were measured with a foot switch sheet. The trial-to-trial reliability was very high (above 0.86) except for the bilateral connecting time in the bilateral stepping back/forth test for 70-85 year olds (males: 0.67, females: 0.68). With age, the number of steps was significantly smaller, and the average connecting time and the bilateral connecting time were shorter in all stepping tests. There were significant sex differences in bilateral connecting time for bilateral stepping right and left and the number of steps for the bilateral stepping back and forth and the unilateral stepping right and left tests. The number of steps and average connecting time showed high correlations between bilateral stepping right/left and back/forth (r=0.71-0.94) and between unilateral stepping back/forth and right/left (r=0.87-0.99). There were significant correlations of the average connecting time between bilateral and unilateral stepping motions (r=0.51-0.83), but both stepping motions are considered to have different motion properties from the viewpoint of center of gravity sway. The correlations between the bilateral connecting time and the number of steps in bilateral stepping were relatively low (males: /r/<0.70, females: /r/<0.57). The bilateral connecting time was near 0 s in many males; thus, it may depend greatly on individual or sex differences in stepping strategy. These results suggest that the stepping motions used in this study can evaluate dynamic balance ability, and that the unilateral test may be useful for the elderly who cannot walk independently with ease.


An 18‐year‐old female presented with primary amenorrhea and progressive cyclic abdominal pain, which prompted emergency exploratory laparotomy. Intraoperative findings revealed absent cervix and vagina, partial bicornuate uterus, hematometra, left tubal endometriosis, ruptured left endometrioma and left renal agenesis. Left salpingectomy, left oophorocystectomy, hysterotomy, evacuation of menstrual blood and transverse loop colostomy were performed. Depo‐medroxyprogesterone acetate was administered to suppress menses. On re‐exploration, utero‐rectovestibular fistula anastomosis was described with the distal rectovestibular fistula functioning as a neovagina. Cyclic menses occurred thereafter. Endorectal pull‐through with anoplasty was performed after the fistulous tract healed. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first reported case of cervico‐vaginal agenesis associated with imperforate anus and rectovestibular fistula. Early diagnosis and surgery are necessary to avoid complications such as endometriosis. The aim was to preserve fertility with conservative management.


This paper studies several topics related with the concept of "fractional" that are not directly related with Fractional Calculus, but can help the reader in pursuit new research directions. We introduce the concept of non-integer positional number systems, fractional sums, fractional powers of a square matrix, tolerant computing and FracSets, negative probabilities, fractional delay discrete-time linear systems, and fractional Fourier transform.


ABSTRACT This article considers how we might receive Émile Zola's Germinal (1885) in the Anthropocene. Recent Anthropocene literary criticism has frequently turned to various forms of reception when presenting new accounts of texts written prior to general public knowledge of anthropogenic climate change, but it seldom considers how this reception might be enriched by debates in Philosophy of History. Zola himself anticipates how Anthropocene Reading might be paired with Philosophy of History in a review essay that is known today as 'La géologie et l'histoire' (1865), where the catastrophism of geological time is granted an elevated agency. In Germinal, the text's catastrophism is used to reveal Zola's Naturalist account of mining life and concomitant chronic illnesses. Nevertheless, it is perhaps in the account of populism that the novel proves most prescient of the uptake of coal politics in the present. My article will consider how Germinal anticipates these problems in its historiosophy.


Wearables have been applied in the field of fitness in recent years to monitor human muscles by recording electromyographic (EMG) signals. Understanding muscle activation during exercise routines allows strength athletes to achieve the best results. Hydrogels, which are widely used as wet electrodes in the fitness field, are not an option for wearable devices due to their characteristics of being disposable and skin-adhesion. Therefore, a lot of research has been conducted on the development of dry electrodes that can replace hydrogels. In this study, to make it wearable, neoprene was impregnated with high-purity SWCNTs to develop a dry electrode with less noise than hydrogel. Due to the impact of COVID-19, the demand for workouts to improve muscle strength, such as home gyms and personal trainers (PT), has increased. Although there are many studies related to aerobic exercise, there is a lack of wearable devices that can assist in improving muscle strength. This pilot study proposed the development of a wearable device in the form of an arm sleeve that can monitor muscle activity by recording EMG signals of the arm using nine textile-based sensors. In addition, some machine learning models were used to classify three arm target movements such as wrist curl, biceps curl, and dumbbell kickback from the EMG signals recorded by fiber-based sensors. The results obtained show that the EMG signal recorded by the proposed electrode contains less noise compared to that collected by the wet electrode. This was also evidenced by the high accuracy of the classification model used to classify the three arms workouts. This work classification device is an essential step towards wearable devices that can replace next-generation PT.


Synopsis Data are presented from a study of acculturation and psychiatric disorder in 291 Greek Cypriot immigrants from the general population of Camberwell, south London. We hypothesized that 'pre-acculturation' would protect against mental disorder, that difficulties in the period immediately after migration would increase the risk of disorder, and that disorder would be least common among those in the middle range of the acculturation spectrum. Of pre-acculturation factors, only previous knowledge of English was associated with reduced prevalence. Difficulties in the settling-in period were clearly related to current disorder. No relationship was apparent between present acculturation and disorder, but this disguised an interesting but unpredicted gender effect: in males, disorder was most prevalent in the highly acculturated; in females, in the least acculturated.


We realize that this type of article is a departure for FNN readers but feel that it is important for forest, conservation, and native plant nurseries to be good environmental stewards. In addition, establishing a pollinator garden at your nursery can be good for business, too. Demonstrating the role and beauty of native plants and their pollinators, particulary in a small garden setting, might be a way to improve sales. The plight of pollinators has been in the news a lot lately, and many species of bees, butterflies and other insect pollinators, as well as bats and birds that pollinate, are in serious trouble.


Persistent endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in neurons is associated with activation of inflammatory cells and subsequent neuroinflammation following traumatic brain injury (TBI); however, the underlying mechanism remains elusive. We found that induction of neuronal-ER stress, which was mostly characterized by an increase in phosphorylation of a protein kinase R-like ER kinase (PERK) leads to release of excess interferon (IFN)β due to atypical activation of the neuronal-STING signaling pathway. IFNβ enforced activation and polarization of the primary microglial cells to inflammatory M1 phenotype with the secretion of a proinflammatory chemokine CXCL10 due to activation of STAT1 signaling. The secreted CXCL10, in turn, stimulated the T-cell infiltration by serving as the ligand and chemoattractant for CXCR3+ T-helper 1 (Th1) cells. The activation of microglial cells and infiltration of Th1 cells resulted in white matter injury, characterized by impaired myelin basic protein and neurofilament NF200, the reduced thickness of corpus callosum and external capsule, and decline of mature oligodendrocytes and oligodendrocyte precursor cells. Intranasal delivery of CXCL10 siRNA blocked Th1 infiltration but did not fully rescue microglial activation and white matter injury after TBI. However, impeding PERK-phosphorylation through the administration of GSK2656157 abrogated neuronal induction of IFNβ, switched microglial polarization to M2 phenotype, prevented Th1 infiltration, and increased Th2 and Treg levels. These events ultimately attenuated the white matter injury and improved anxiety and depressive-like behavior following TBI. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT A recent clinical study showed that human brain trauma patients had enhanced expression of type-1 IFN; suggests that type-1 IFN signaling may potentially influence clinical outcome in TBI patients. However, it was not understood how TBI leads to an increase in IFNβ and whether induction of IFNβ has any influence on neuroinflammation, which is the primary reason for morbidity and mortality in TBI. Our study suggests that induction of PERK phosphorylation, a characteristic feature of ER stress is responsible for an increase in neuronal IFNβ, which, in turn, activates microglial cells and subsequently manifests the infiltration of T cells to induce neuroinflammation and subsequently white matter injury. Blocking PERK phosphorylation using GSK2656157 (or PERK knockdown) the whole cascade of neuroinflammation was attenuated and improved cognitive function after TBI.


The public health significance of schistosomiasis is often underestimated for two reasons. First, like all helminthic infections, the distribution of worms in any community is widespread but uneven, i.e., few have heavy infections and severe disease, while many have lighter infections and fewer symptoms. Some people with very few worms may have no symptoms. Secondly, severe disease usually follows after many years of silent or mildly symptomatic infection. Even if only 10% of those 200 million infected with schistosomiasis have severe clinical disease, this still represents 20 million seriously ill people. Of the remaining 180 million infected people, an estimated 50-60% also have symptoms--a public health problem of enormous proportions. The impact on public health can be assessed in terms of the frequency and severity of schistosomiasis-related disease, incapacity and premature death. This article presents extracts from the Expert Committee's recently published second report and deals with morbidity and mortality, as well as the links between schistosomiasis and cancer, nutrition and intercurrent infections, and the immune response to schistosomiasis.


Introduction and Purpose: We compared propofol and ketofol for sedation in patients who underwent shoulder arthroscopy under anesthesia with interscalene and suprascapular blocks. We evaluated both of agents the intraoperative hemodynamic effects, sedation efficiency, postoperative recovery times and the time to discharge to the service. We aimed to achieve an effective sedation with stable hemodynamics, resulting in rapid recovery with early onset. Methodology: The study was carried out prospectively in a double-blind randomized study on ASA I and II patients aged 18-65, total of 42 shoulder surgeries planned. Anesthesia was provided to the patients by performing interscalene and suprascapular nerve block with USG. Group 1 (Propofol group), 1 mg/kg propofol iv, in Group 2 (Ketofol group), a mixture of ketamine-propofol was prepared in a 1:1 ratio, 1 mg / kg ketofol iv was administered. Processing was started in both groups when Ramsey Sedation Scale (RSS) was 3. SBP, DBP, MBP, heart rate, O2 saturation, RSS, Faces scale were recorded throughout the case. The patients with an Aldrete score of 9 were discharged and sent to the service. Results: A total of 42 patients undergoing planned shoulder surgeries were enrolled. No statistically significant was determined between the groups in respect of demographic data (age, gender, height, weight, ASA), operating time and postoperative length of stay in hospital. More patients required esmolol in the ketofol group compared to propofol group; 15 (71.4%) vs. 7 (33%) patients (p < 0.05). Significant higher mean values of hemodynamic findings in the ketofol group were noted; SBP at 55 min, DBP at 60 min, MBP at 60 min and MBP on discharge (p < 0.05). In the absence of esmolol, the pulse measurements at 0, 1, 3, 25, and 30 min were determined to be statistically significantly higher in the ketofol group than the propofol group (p < 0.05). The mean values of the SpO2 measurements were significantly lower in the ketofol group (p < 0.05). No statistically significant difference was determined in respect of the postoperative modified Aldrete Scores (MAS) at any of the time points (p > 0.05). Conclusion: While a deeper and higher quality sedation was provided with ketofol, we achieved rapid onset and short-acting sedation with propofol. Both agents have different superior properties and can be used safely for sedation.


The use of simulation tools for reasoning about human societies formalizes their analysis and reduces the related costs, but it demands a high level of expertise in the design and programming of complex systems. This paper presents the SCAT framework aimed at bringing these tools closer to their end users, the researchers in social sciences. For this purpose, it adopts an approach with domain-specific languages based on the activity theory and the situation calculus. The Activity Theory is a paradigm from social sciences to analyze the behaviour of societies through activity systems, which are groups of tasks performed by actors in a social and historical context. SCAT uses the formalism of the Situation calculus to define an operational semantics for these systems. On this basis, SCAT provides a modelling language to describe interconnected activity systems, and an environment for the simulation of these systems and the verification of their properties. An example on human relations organizes this presentation of SCAT.


South-western Mauritania is located in a semi-arid environment exposed to large rainfall variations and affected by a severe drought since the mid-1960s. The studied area includes the right bank of the Senegal River and the southern extension of the Saharan sandy dunes and is based on the analysis of climatic data, field studies, and four aerial surveys realized since 1954. The climatic analysis shows that, after a strong decline of yearly rainfall started in the mid-1960s, a significant increase is observed from the early 1990s. In the meantime, dust storms frequency has dramatically increased while the threshold wind speed declined as a result of vegetation contraction. The comparison of the four mosaics of aerial photos reveals the major impact of both drought and human on recent environment changes with the strong decline of the forest, the reactivation of sandy soils and the apparition of large rice fields. If the increase of active dunes activity is likely to be a consequence of the persisting drought, forest decline is more likely to be attributed to fuel wood collection in a first time, then to the creation of rice fields since the late 1980s. Although the 2003 aerial photos show a timid return of vegetation in very limited and specific areas, field surveys show that wind erosion is still very important and water erosion is developing very rapidly because of the absence of vegetation cover. r 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.


Considering queuing systems with multiple servers, this chapter is devoted to present multi-server queues in which packets are served by multiple packets in parallel. There exist various models for multi-server queues depending on the system capacity and population size of the sources. In this chapter, the author will first introduce M/M/c queue with infinite system capacity and infinite population in Section 17.1. Its variant models with finite system capacity and finite population will be sequentially discussed in Sections 17.2 and 17.3. For every queuing model, its behaviors will be presented along with detailed analyses of relevant performance measures.


The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) is chartered as a federal advisory committee to provide expert external advice to CDC and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) on the use of vaccines in the civilian population of the United States. This report summarizes the evolution of ACIP over the 50 years since its establishment in 1964 by the Surgeon General of the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS).


OBJECTIVES
This study aims to estimate the association between repeated measures of occupational risk factors and the incidence of lateral epicondylitis in a large working population.

METHODS
A total of 3710 workers in a French region were included in 2002-2005, and among them 1046 had a complete follow-up in 2007-2010. At both stages, occupational health physicians assessed the presence of lateral epicondylitis and workers self-reported their occupational exposures. Poisson models were performed to assess the incidence rate ratios (IRR) separately by sex using multiple imputed data.

RESULTS
The annual incidence rate of lateral epicondylitis was estimated as 1.0 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.7-1.3] per 100 workers among men and 0.9 (95% CI 0.6-1.3) among women. Workers aged >45 years had higher incidence than those aged <30 years (significant at 10%). Among men, high physical exertion combined with elbow flexion/extension or extreme wrist bending (>2 hours/day) was a risk factor, with an age-adjusted IRR of 3.2 (95% CI 1.5-6.4) for workers exposed at both questionnaires [3.3 (95% CI 1.4-7.6) among women].

CONCLUSIONS
This study highlights the importance of temporal dimensions for occupational risk factors on the incidence of lateral epicondylitis. Further research should evaluate the risk associated with the duration and repetition of occupational exposure on the incidence of lateral epicondylitis.


The Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) construction is progressing steadily towards completion in 1999 when beams will circulate in both collider rings. One of the major tests of the RHIC project was the commissioning of the first sextant with gold ion beams in early 1997. This is a report on preparation of the RHIC accelerator systems for the first sextant test. It includes beam position monitors, timing, injection correction through the magnetic septum and kickers, current transformers, "flags" and the ionization beam profile monitors, beam loss monitors, beam and quench permit link system, power supply controls, and the configuration database system. The software and hardware development and coordination of the different systems before commissioning were regularly checked during bi-weekly, and (later) weekly, progress report meetings.


Technical agility refers to the ability to quickly change the type and flow of information within an enterprise. Technical agility parameters are affected by enterprise architecture. IT advance has not yet satisfied business requirements due to improper software architectures. SOA addresses technical agility requirements by presenting composability, modularity, and loose coupling concepts as services that wrap underlying IT infrastructure, databases, and legacy systems and present them via standard interface. There is a need to stabilize IT infrastructure rather than developing new ones and SOA enables this stabilization. Enterprises should balance IT to become better positioned and more agile. Services are the building Blocks of an agile enterprise. This paper discusses the importance of enterprise architecture in meeting systems' non-functional requirements and examines different software architecture paradigms, driving and restraining forces for each one in meeting systems integration as one of the most desirable requirement. Integration has different techniques, and different software architecture paradigms can address different techniques. This paper presents a proposed mapping of different software architecture paradigms to different integration techniques while highlighting driving forces that encourages software architects to utilize it and restraining forces that discourages architects from utilizing them.


We present a large-scale study of content reuse networks in a large and highly hierarchical organization. In our study, we combine analysis of a collection of presentations produced by employees with interviews conducted throughout the organization and a survey to study presentation content reuse. Study results show a variety of information needs and behaviors related to content reuse as well as a need for a personalized and socially-integrated networking tool for enabling easy access to previously generated presentation material. In this paper we describe our findings and outline a set of requirements for an effective content reuse facility.


Monensin shifts the microbial population in the rumen towards more gram negative bacteria, consequently changing rumen volatile fatty acid concentrations towards propionate and away from acetate and butyrate. Since the late 1980's there have been many papers published on the effects of monensin in lactating dairy cattle. Recently, approvals for use on monensin have been obtained in Canada and the United States, while the product has been available for dairy cattle in countries such as Mexico, Australia and New Zealand for many years. The impacts of monensin on energy metabolism, including effects on serum ketones, NEFA, glucose, and urea have not always been consistent. Meta-analysis is a useful tool that can be employed to both summarize effects across studies and to investigate factors explaining potential heterogeneity of response.


Marilynne Robinson, in her novels and essays, sets out to retrieve a foundational strain of religious experience, one that has been minimized or even repressed in most branches of the Protestant tradition. This is what, following Paul Ricœur, American theologian David Tracy calls "the manifestation orientation" in religious expression. Building on Tracy's distinction between "manifestation and proclamation" within Christianity, I identify and analyze a shift of emphasis from the "proclamation orientation" of Robinson's first novel, Housekeeping, with its presentation of human existence as radically homeless and alienated, to "manifestation" in Robinson's later work. In the Gilead novels, while preserving the proclamation orientation of Protestantism through an indictment of social injustice, she corrects the one-sided Protestant emphasis on divine transcendence and human sin, affirming a fundamental "at-home-ness" (Tracy) in the universe. Through her fictional Protestant minister and a creative rereading of classical Protestant theologians, Robinson offers an imaginative alternative to Weberian accounts of Protestant spirituality.


BACKGROUND
Although it has been 30 years since the first automation systems were introduced in the microbiology laboratory, total laboratory automation (TLA) has only recently been recognized as a valuable component of the laboratory. A growing number of publications illustrate the potential impact of automation. TLA can improve standardization, increase laboratory efficiency, increase workplace safety, and reduce long-term costs.

CONTENT
This review provides a preview of the current state of automation in clinical microbiology and covers the main developments during the last years. We describe the available hardware systems (that range from single function devices to multifunction workstations) and the challenging alterations on workflow and organization of the laboratory that have to be implemented to optimize automation.

SUMMARY
Despite the many advantages in efficiency, productivity, and timeliness that automation offers, it is not without new and unique challenges. For every advantage that laboratory automation provides, there are similar challenges that a laboratory must face. Change management strategies should be used to lead to a successful implementation. TLA represents, moreover, a substantial initial investment. Nevertheless, if properly approached, there are a number of important benefits that can be achieved through implementation of automation in the clinical microbiology laboratory. Future developments in the field of automation will likely focus on image analysis and artificial intelligence improvements. Patient care, however, should remain the epicenter of all future directions and there will always be a need for clinical microbiology expertise to interpret the complex clinical and laboratory information.


Socio-economic improvement of rural people especially women is one of the challenges in Bangladesh. While integrated farming system is the potential area of working opportunity of the women to improve their socio-economic conditions. Considering this issue, this paper was to examine the improvement of socio-economic status of women with increased participation in so-called "Integrated Farming Systems (IFS)". Using a structured interview methodology, 100 women in the REGION involved with IFS practices were surveyed. Descriptive statistics and student's t-test were used to analyze and interpret the collected data. A significant improvement of different socio-economic indicators like income, food consumption, housing, source of drinking water, sanitation, family asset, education and access to health facilities' of women have found due to farming system involvement. This improvement may be significantly influenced to reduce the rural poverty and this findings might be good example for another region. Less extension contact by SAAOs of DAE regarding involvement with integrated farming system was the most severe problem while non-cooperation of family members was the least problem of involvement with integrated farming system. These results may provide policy makers and development service providers with important insight, which can be used for sound policy generations for better women's socioeconomic improvement.


We present a new network model accounting for multidimensional assortativity. Each node is characterized by a number of features and the probability of a link between two nodes depends on common features. We do not fix a priori the total number of possible features. The bipartite network of the nodes and the features evolves according to a stochastic dynamics that depends on
three parameters that respectively regulate the preferential attachment in the transmission of the features to the nodes, the number of new features per node, and the power-law behavior of the total number of observed features.
Our model also takes into account a mechanism of triadic closure. We provide theoretical results and statistical estimators for the parameters of the model.
We validate our approach by means of simulations and an empirical analysis of a network of scientific collaborations.


Replacing a real process which we are concerned in with other more convenient for the study is called modeling. After the replacement, the model is analyzed and the results we get are expanded on that process. Mathematical models being more abstract, they are also more general and so, more important. Mathematical programming is known as analysis of various concepts of economic activities with the help of mathematical models


The 2012 Havre eruption evacuated a crystal-poor rhyolite (∼3–7% crystals) producing a volumetrically dominant (∼1.4 km3) pumice raft, as well as seafloor giant pumice (5–8%) and lavas (12–14%) at the vent (∼0.1 km3), both of which have subtly higher phenocryst contents. For crystal-poor rhyolites like the Havre pumice, it can often remain ambiguous as to whether the few phenocrysts present, in this case, plagioclase, orthopyroxene, clinopyroxene, Fe-Ti oxides ± quartz, are: (a) autocrysts crystallizing from the surrounding melt, (b) antecrysts being sourced from mush and the magma plumbing system, or (c) xenocrysts derived from source materials or chamber walls, or (d) possibly a combination of all of the above. In crystal-poor magmas, the few crystals present are strongly relied upon to constrain pre-eruptive conditions such as magmatic temperatures, pressures, water content and fO2. A detailed textural and compositional analysis combined with a range of equilibrium tests and rhyolite-MELTS modeling provide the basis for distinguishing autocrystic vs inherited crystal populations in the Havre eruption. An autocrystic mineral assemblage of andesine plagioclase, enstatite and Fe-Ti oxides constrains the pre-eruptive conditions of the Havre rhyolite magma: magmatic temperatures of 890 ± 27°C, crystallization pressures at 2–4 kbars, oxygen fugacity of NNO + 0.4 and water concentrations (5.6 ± 1.1 wt.%). Inherited phases not in equilibrium with the host melt composition are clinopyroxene, An-rich plagioclase (> An53) and quartz. Rhyolite-MELTs modeling indicates the clinopyroxene and quartz have most likely been sourced from cooler, silicic mush zones in the Havre magmatic system. This study demonstrates that even in crystal-poor rhyolites it cannot be assumed that all crystals are autocrystic and can be used to constrain pre-eruptive magmatic conditions.


Administrative design of research funding processes in the Australian Research Council and the National Health and Medical Research Council vary and subtle differences have impacts on the ways that decisions are made. Views from outside and inside the black box of selection reveal the consequences of process design on judgements of excellence and decision-making capacity. The dominant discriminator between applicants in Australian selection processes is track record of the applicant. Reliance on track record to determine the outcomes of all but the very best applications is very like awarding prizes for past work and is significantly different from the models of grant selection that operate in comparable international research councils.


Networked control systems (NCSs) provide many benefits, such as higher control accuracy and better robustness with the successively increasing computational complexity and communication burden. This results in the traditional adaptive dynamic programming control method having difficulty meeting the real-time requirements of industrial systems. In this paper, a novel event-triggered globalized dual heuristic programming method is proposed to reduce the required samples while guaranteeing the stability of the system. In the proposed method, the NCSs can communicate and update the control law only when the designed event-triggered condition is violated. Furthermore, the Elman neural network, which is a dynamic feedback network with a memory function is implemented to reconstruct the state variables as an approximator, and it depends only on the input and output data. To obtain fewer event-triggered times, two optimization methods, i.e., the unscented Kalman filter and the multiobjective quantum particle swarm optimization, are used to optimize the initial weights of the networks and the positive constant in the event-triggered condition, respectively. The simulation results on industrial system of aluminum electrolysis production are included to verify the performance of the controller.


Livestock slurry is an important source of methane (CH). However, depending on the dry matter content of the slurry, a floating crust may form where methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) and CH oxidation activity have been found, suggesting that surface crusts may reduce CH emissions from slurry. However, it is not known how MOB in this environment interact with inorganic nitrogen (N). We studied inhibitory effects of ammonium (NH), nitrate (NO), and nitrite (NO) on potential CH oxidation in a cattle slurry surface crust. At headspace concentrations of 100 and 10,000 ppmv, CH oxidation was assayed at salt concentrations up to 500 mM. First-order rate constants were used to evaluate the strength of inhibition. Nitrite was the most potent inhibitor, reducing methanotrophic activity by up to 70% at only 1 mM NO. Methane-oxidizing bacteria were least sensitive to NO, tolerating up to 30 mM NO at 100 ppmv CH and 50 mM NO at 10,000 ppmv CH without any decline in activity. The inhibition by NH increased progressively, and no range of tolerance was observed. Methane concentrations of 10,000 ppmv resulted in 50- to 100-fold higher specific CH uptake rates than 100 ppmv CH but did not change the inhibition patterns of N salts. In slurry surface crusts, MOB maintained activity at higher concentrations of NH and NO than reported for MOB in soils and sediments, possibly showing adaptation to high N concentrations in the slurry environment. Yet it appears that the effectiveness of surface crusts as CH sinks will depend on inorganic N concentrations.


Rare-earth orthovanadates are being used as substitutes for traditional solid-state laser hosts, such as YAG. While the most common of these is yttrium orthovanadate, other rare-earth vanadates, such as lutetium vanadate and gadolinium vanadate, are being used for their special properties in certain applications. We report new measurements of the refractive indices and thermo-optic coefficients of these materials, which will aid in the design of laser cavities and other nonlinear optical elements.


With its seismometer and heat probe instruments, InSight will investigate the deep dynamics of Mars, helping scientists discover what lies within its core and learn more about how rocky bodies form throughout the solar system.


The degree of contamination by helminths of some common vegetable and fruits sold in markets in Enugu metropolis was assessed between January and April 2002. The vegetables and fruits were bought directly from the rural farmers and checked for helminthes and larvae by the formalin-ether concentration method. All the vegetables and fruits were found contaminated by helminth eggs of larvae or both, with the vegetables being more highly contaminated than the fruits (P Talinum triangulare (water leaf) a low-growth vegetable frequently found growing wild around sewage systems recorded the highest contamination rate4 (25.7%) while the fruit Psidium guajava (guava) was the least contaminated (1.4%). Helminth eggs recovered were Ascaris lumbricoides , hookworms, Strongyloides stercoralis , and T richuris trichiura with Ascaris lumbricoides being the most frequently encountered (76.4%). The vegetables Amaranthus cruentus ("green"), Telferiria occidentalis (fluted pumpkin) and Solanum marcocarpon (garden egg leaves) are low-growth vegetables usually cultivated during the dry season on land fertilized animal dung and human excreta. Attention is drawn to contamination with Strongyloides strecoralis , which also naturally infects the dog and may be acquired as a zoonoic infection. The study re-emphasizes the need to compos human excreta and animal dung before hey can be used as manure. Thorough washing of vegetables is recommended prior to consumption. The Nigerian Journal of Parasitology Vol. 24 2003: 123-128


BACKGROUND
In analogy to tricyclic antidepressants, serum concentrations of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are frequently measured in order to optimize treatment results. However, clinical evidence for this approach is sparse.

METHODS
Forty patients with major depression were treated with paroxetine 20 mg/day for 14 days and with 40 mg/day for further 49 days. Treatment response measured by Hamilton depression rating scales (HAMD) was correlated with paroxetine plasma concentrations.

RESULTS
There was a significant difference between paroxetine plasma levels at 20 and 40 mg/day, respectively [20 mg/d: median 24 (range 4-358); 40 mg/d: 92 (30-398)]. However, the interindividual variance was very large. 18 out of 40 patients responded to paroxetine treatment.

CONCLUSIONS
Receiver operated characteristic (ROC) analysis suggested no upper or lower limit of response. Responder had significantly higher paroxetine levels at day 7 [responder: 33 (4-107); non-responder: 13 (3-77)] but not at the end of the study [responder 93 (30-361); non-responder: 94 (59-398)]. Furthermore, plasma levels were not related to adverse events, age, body weight or severity of depression. These findings do not support any need for a routine screening of paroxetine plasma concentrations in clinical practice.


A crystallization rate coefficient (CRC) parameter is introduced which has allowed a direct comparison of the crystallization rates of various polymers on a single scale for the first time. Basically, CRC represents a change in cooling rate required to bring about 1°C change in the supercooling of the polymer melt. For the polymers studied, this value varies between 35 h−1 (polyethylene terephthalate) and 155 h−1 (poly(tetrafluoroethylene)) and jumps to 295 h−1 for indium metal; the precision being better than ±5 percent. The reliability of CRC has been tested against the established trends e.g., (i) a large decrease in the crystallization rate of polyethylene terephthalate with increase in molecular weight, (ii) a lower crystallization rate of the "virgin" nylon 6 as compared to the processed nylon 6 resin, (iii) an increase in the crystallization rate of nylon 6 in the presence of nucleating agents, and (iv) a dramatic increase in crystallization rate as we go from poly(ethylene terephthalate) to poly(tetrafluoroethylene) and then from poly(tetrafluoroethylene) to the metals. The significance of the CRC barometer is discussed in the light of prior difficulties in directly comparing the crystallization rates of polymers.


Characteristics of a SrBPO5:Eu 2+ material have been investigated as a neutron storage phosphor. The authors found this phosphor shows photostimulated luminescence by illumination with 635 nm laser light after neutron irradiation. The neutron sensitivity was proportional to E -0.5 , where E is neutron energy. The Sγ/Sn ratio of the phosphor using enriched boron was better than that of a commercially available imaging plate, where Sγ and Sn are the gamma and neutron sensitivities, respectively. A collimated neutron beam image was clearly obtained with the phosphor sample by scanning focused laser light on it.


Trauma is one of the most common causes of teeth loss. Assault with a gunshot and bullet shot is life threatening, and for patients who survive the injury, it results in hard and soft tissue loss in the tissues and organs crossed by the bullet. The tissue loss results in the loss of structure and function. Rehabilitation of these patients to function and aesthetics requires surgical and prosthodontic procedures over time. This report is of a 24-year-old male patient who had a bullet injury resulting in hard and soft tissue deficiency. The ridge deficiency was augmented with iliac bone graft, and 3 months later, implants were placed. Five months later, hybrid prosthesis was delivered. At 3-year follow-up visit, the hybrid prosthesis was replaced with porcelain fused to a metal bridge. The bone levels on all the implants were stable.


The oligomerization of four peptide sequences, KFFE, KVVE, KLLE, and KAAE is studied using replica-exchange molecular dynamics simulations with an atomically detailed peptide model. Previous experimental studies reported that of these four peptides, only those containing phenylalanine and valine residues form fibrils. We show that the fibrillogenic propensities of these peptides can be rationalized in terms of the equilibrium thermodynamics of their early oligomers. Thermodynamic stability of dimers, as measured by the temperature of monomer association, is seen to be higher for those peptides that are able to form fibrils. Although the relative high and low stabilities of the KFFE and KAAE dimers arise from their respective high and low interpeptide interaction energies, the higher stability of the KVVE dimer over the KLLE system results from the smaller loss of configurational entropy accompanying the dimerization of KVVE. Free energy landscapes for dimerization are found to be strongly sequence-dependent, with a high free energy barrier separating the monomeric and dimeric states for KVVE, KLLE, and KAAE sequences. In contrast, the most fibrillogenic peptide, KFFE, displayed downhill assembly, indicating enhanced kinetic accessibility of its dimeric states. The dimeric phase for all peptide sequences is found to be heterogeneous, containing both antiparallel beta-sheet structures that can grow into full fibrils as well as disordered dimers acting as on- or off-pathway intermediates for fibrillation.


We investigated the effects of adenosine on prolactin (PRL) secretion from rat anterior pituitaries incubated in vitro. The administration of 5-N-methylcarboxamidoadenosine (MECA), an analog agonist that preferentially activates A2 receptors, induced a dose-dependent (1 nM to 1 microM) increase in the levels of PRL released, an effect abolished by 1,3-dipropyl-7-methylxanthine, an antagonist of A2 adenosine receptors. In addition, the basal levels of PRL secretion were decreased by the blockade of cyclooxygenase or lipoxygenase pathways, with indomethacin and nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA), respectively. The stimulatory effects of MECA on PRL secretion persisted even after the addition of indomethacin, but not of NDGA, to the medium. MECA was unable to stimulate PRL secretion in the presence of dopamine, the strongest inhibitor of PRL release that works by inducing a decrease in adenylyl cyclase activity. Furthermore, the addition of adenosine (10 nM) mimicked the effects of MECA on PRL secretion, an effect that persisted regardless of the presence of LiCl (5 mM). The basal secretion of PRL was significatively reduced by LiCl, and restored by the concomitant addition of both LiCl and myo-inositol. These results indicate that PRL secretion is under a multifactorial regulatory mechanism, with the participation of different enzymes, including adenylyl cyclase, inositol-1-phosphatase, cyclooxygenase, and lipoxygenase. However, the increase in PRL secretion observed in the lactotroph in response to A2 adenosine receptor activation probably was mediated by mechanisms involving regulation of adenylyl cyclase, independent of membrane phosphoinositide synthesis or cyclooxygenase activity and partially dependent on lipoxygenase arachidonic acid-derived substances.


Ethological observations of maternal and infant behaviors of nine vervet monkey pairs (Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus) showed the effects of differential styles of early maternal responsiveness on later infant competence. Those infants receiving the least amount of maternal responsiveness and the most time-off the mother in the first 3 months of development were more socially competent at 6 months of age. The results are discussed within current ethological "attachment" theories. The detachment or separation process of mother-infant interaction is considered as important a factor during infant development as the primary maternal bond.


Technology is now among the factors that make a place competitive. State-of-the-art economic development no longer focuses on "chasing" high technology companies, but has given way to building knowledge, networks, and collaboration. Newer, "fourth wave" of policies that have emerged since the mid-1990s now comprise a mix of public-sector policies to integrate local economies into global markets, develop local human capital resources, and increase use of telecommunications as a development tool (Clarke and Gaile 1998).


Aortic arch abnormalities manifesting at birth are rare. Most reported cases present with symptoms later in life with features of respiratory obstruct ion presenting much earlier than those of oesophage al obstruction. Patients with significant airway compr ession may die as a result of respiratory compromise, but such events are said to be extremel y rare. We report the case of a baby with double aortic arch who manifested with features of severe upper airway obstruction from birth and succumbed to the effect of severe hypoxia before any surgical intervention could be effected. This report is intended to create awareness of the condition in Ni geria and highlight the importance of early recognition of newborns with double aortic arch so that appropriate measures to overcome airway obstruction could be initiated to avert significant hypoxia-related complications.


Sturgeons are valued as specialty black caviar, which is very expensive. Only females are used in the technology of caviar aquaculture. Universal method of sex determination has not yet been developed. Most of known methods are not sufficiently accurate, or used at a relatively late age, or difficult to use. Perfect early determination of sex is considered to be impossible. Because of the dark color of most sturgeon, important morphological differences, which fish of almost all ages have, were overlooked. We first found that the scute structure of Sterlet and Siberian sturgeon depends on the sex, such a pattern is typical for sturgeon of all ages. We found that sex determination is possible at very early stages. Dependencies found with the help of machine learning method open a possibility for creation of sex determination equipment using the artificial intelligence. Our results open a perspective for creation of the sex determination methods for other 23 sturgeon species, which can increase the efficiency of caviar aquaculture and sturgeon restoration in natural waters.


Conservation and ecological monitoring programmes often estimate animal densities over time, but in wooded and forested areas practical techniques are still poorly developed. Here I have examined five simple methods of deriving densities of large and medium‐sized mammals using line transects driven through miombo woodland habitat in Africa. These methods calculated area by dividing the number of individuals seen by (i) an average of each species' sighting distances, (ii) a fixed 200 m belt width, (iii) the area visible from the centre of the transect, (iv) visible area weighted by species' vegetation preferences, and (v) by dividing the number of groups seen by area visible from the transect. Individual‐based methods produced quite divergent estimates of species' densities and overall biomass with belt transects giving the lowest values. The group method and corresponding individual‐based method gave similar values, however. Most of these calculations yielded considerably higher density estimates than aerial surveys conducted in the same area over a similar time period. Sightings of species were not distributed evenly across vegetation types although the majority of mammal species were observed more often in open habitat. These findings indicate that ground‐based conservation monitoring programmes should set transects through several vegetation types, restrict comparisons to those studies that use the same methodology, and refrain from comparing ground and aerial surveys.


Excavated fabrics from Yeoheoung-Min's tomb totals at 131 in their numbers. The following is detailed numbers and percentage out of total for each item, sorted by characteristics of the fabric. There are made up Ju 51%, Cho 9%, fM.amundan) 11%, Mumundan 1%, hWamunju 3%, fM.amunneung 8%, Ra 1%, A1Yeonix 5%, and Ma,oo 1%. k3 shown in the preceding list, 94% of all the items from the particular site is weaved silk. Though, the six fabrics itemized as Myeonpo and the one sheet of Mapa were not used for the purpose of everyday-dothing but were used as parts of cuffs of Jangui as inner linings. Thus, exempting these items, 31 fabricated itmes excavated out of 131 were made out of weaved silk.
To note, names of the fabrics used in this artide are based on the information from the Womens' costumes of the Uigwe in 17C and are as following Dan, Neung, Ju, Ra, Cho, Myeonpo, Mapo. Patterns fabrics are used common and generic names as fM. mundan, hWamunju, fM.amunneung with the exception of Doud pattems. Names of the plain weaved silk fabrics - Seju, Toju, Ju, Ch Sukcho are sorted by types of silk yarn.


Gastrointestinal complications may follow organ transplantation. A patient who underwent heart lung transplantation due to patent ductus arteriosus and Eisenmenger's syndrome had an episode of acute cardiac rejection and was treated with a bolus injection of methylprednisolone followed by a high oral dose of prednisone. On the 22nd postoperative day, the patient complained of acute abdominal pain with muscular rigidity and a plain chest x-ray showed free air in the right subdiaphragmatic area. Under the suspicion of bowel perforation, an emergency laparotomy was performed and the perforated stomach had a wedge-shaped resection that included the perforation. Following the laparotomy, the postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged on post-laparotomy day 10.


A major dental problem confronting persons with mental retardation/developmental disabilities (MR/DD) is poor dental hygiene, which can result in an increased incidence of gingivitis and periodontal disease. Studies indicate that the most obvious reason for the poor oral hygiene of such persons is their inability to clean the oral cavity adequately. The objective of this study was to determine whether there was a difference in the oral health between a group of residents with MR/DD using the Interplak and a group using manual toothbrushes. Fifty-six residents from four Franklin County group homes completed the study. Each group home was divided into two study groups, one using the Interplak and the second using manual toothbrushes. Each subject was seen for initial recording based on the Gingival Index (Löe) and Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (Greene and Vermillion), followed by a thorough prophylaxis. These measurements were recorded again at three, six, and nine months, with a final recording at 12 months. At the conclusion of the study, analysis of the data indicated significant improvement in the Gingival Index over a 12-month period for the residents using the Interplak compared with a manual toothbrush.


Multimodal named entity recognition (MNER) is a critical step in information extraction, which aims to detect entity spans and classify them to corresponding entity types given a sentence-image pair. Existing methods either (1) obtain named entities with coarse-grained visual clues from attention mechanisms, or (2) first detect fine-grained visual regions with toolkits and then recognize named entities. However, they suffer from improper alignment between entity types and visual regions or error propagation in the two-stage manner, which finally imports irrelevant visual information into texts. In this paper, we propose a novel end-to-end framework named MNER-QG that can simultaneously perform MRC-based multimodal named entity recognition and query grounding. Specifically, with the assistance of queries, MNER-QG can provide prior knowledge of entity types and visual regions, and further enhance representations of both text and image. To conduct the query grounding task, we provide manual annotations and weak supervisions that are obtained via training a highly flexible visual grounding model with transfer learning. We conduct extensive experiments on two public MNER datasets, Twitter2015 and Twitter2017. Experimental results show that MNER-QG outperforms the current state-of-the-art models on the MNER task, and also improves the query grounding performance.


According to the"Twenty-five key requirements to prevent serious accident and failure in electric power operation"issued by State Power Company and combined with the operating conditions of Jiangsu power network,th e"Technical countermeasures against accidents of relay protection and secure automechanism"is compiled.Eight aspects are expounded and regulated,they are electrical misoperation,generator damage,relay protection incident ,system stability collapse,power transformer damage,ground net failure,important substation outage and power plant outage.It is used to cooperate with the requirements to ensure the secure electric power operation.


It is important to understand the role of polypills on medication adherence and clinical outcomes in patients with or at high risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) to help decision-makers make robust guidelines on using polypills in these people. Therefore, the current meta-analysis was conducted to assess the impact of polypills on medication adherence and clinical outcomes in patients with or at high risk of CVD. The present meta-analysis was performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. We searched the electronic databases PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for randomized control trials (RCTs) from inception to January 1, 2023. The outcomes assessed in the present meta-analysis were adherence to prescribed drugs at the study end, the incidence of cardiovascular events, and change in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) from baseline to the study end in mmol/l. A total of six studies were included in the present meta-analysis, with a total sample size of 13139 (6577 in the polypill group and 6562 in the control group). Meta-analysis showed that medication adherence was significantly higher in patients receiving polypills compared to the control group (relative risk (RR): 1.38, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.22-1.56, p-value: 0.001). The risk of a cardiovascular event was significantly lower in the polypill group (RR: 0.72, 95% CI: 0.63-0.82, p-value: 0.001). No significant differences were found in the changes in LDL-C and total cholesterol between the two groups. This meta-analysis shows a significant impact of polypills on medication adherence. We also found that polypills can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events in patients with or at high risk of CVD. Our study has also shown that regardless of the history of CVD, polypills play an important role in promoting medication adherence in patients with and without a history of CVD.


Based on the data from China's third,fourth and fifth national census,this paper analyses the spatial distribution change of total population in Guangzhou city.It is exposed that since 1980s Guangzhou city has been in a stage that urbanization and suburbanization exist together.In one hand the total population of metropolis has increased rapidly because of the entrance of a large quantity of non-native population,in the other hand the population of central city has suburbanized obviously since 1990s.However,compared with Beijing and Shanghai,Guangzhou's population suburbanization has emerged more lately and the main reasons are the limitation of natural condition,the restriction of administrational region and the effect of urban development strategy.


We reported an autopsy case in which premortem and postmortem radiographs of the spine were available for comparison and provided a basis for making an identification. As the elderly often lives alone and has no relatives, one of our tasks is sometimes ascertaining the personal identity of him or her. Osteophytes of the vertebra are valid for establishing a positive personal identification in human remains.


The presence of cracks has a negative impact on the durability of concrete by providing paths for corrosive materials to the embedded steel reinforcement. Cracks in concrete can be closed using shape memory polymers (SMP) which produce a compressive stress across the crack faces. This stress has been previously found to enhance the load recovery associated with autogenous self-healing. This paper details the experiments undertaken to incorporate SMP tendons containing polyethylene terephthalate (PET) filaments into reinforced and unreinforced 500 × 100 × 100 mm structural concrete beam samples. These tendons are activated via an electrical supply using a nickel-chrome resistance wire heating system. The set-up, methodology and results of restrained shrinkage stress and crack closure experiments are explained. Crack closure of up to 85% in unreinforced beams and 26%–39% in reinforced beams is measured using crack-mouth opening displacement, microscope and digital image correlation equipment. Conclusions are made as to the effectiveness of the system and its potential for application within industry.


CASE A 20-year-old primigravida, who was in the 39th week of gestation, was admitted to the maternity ward in labour. She had been well throughout pregnancy and her antenatal foetal ultrasound scans had shown a normal developing foetus. The amniotic membranes ruptured spontaneously and the liquor was clear. However 15 h following membrane rupture she was still in the first stage of labour. She had developed a fever of 38◦C and the liquor was noted to have become foul smelling. The cardiotocogram did not reveal any signs of foetal distress. In view of evidence of chorioamnionitis she was started on intravenous co-amoxiclav, and was taken urgently to the operating theatre where a female neonate was delivered by an emergency Caesarean section. At birth the newborn was floppy and pale, and needed bag and mask ventilation with oxygen for a few minutes due to a poor respiratory effort. Apgar scores were 7, 8 and 9 at 1, 5 and 10 min, respectively. Following resuscitation she was noted to be tachypnoeic and hypotonic, and was transferred to intensive care. She weighed 3.56 kg (P50th) and her occipitofrontal circumference measured 36 cm (P90th). Her core temperature was 37.5◦C. Blood investigations, including blood cultures, were taken from a peripheral vein at 1 h of age; however, no antibiotics were initiated. Her full blood count showed a total white cell count of 35.6 × 109/l, a neutrophil count of 23 × 109/l, a haemoglobin concentration of 12.3 g/dl with a haematocrit of 36.2% and a platelet count of 301 × 109/l. Her acid base balance and renal function were within normal limits. She required oxygen supplementation via nasal prongs and was given nasogastric feeds. Due to recurrent vomiting and irritability on handling, a chest X-ray and lumbar puncture were performed at 18 h of age. Blood-stained cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was obtained from the traumatic spinal tap. Biochemical and cytological analyses could not be performed on the small volume of CSF; however, there was sufficient amount that could be sent for culture. Following the lumbar puncture she was started on intravenous co-amoxiclav (30 mg/kg twice daily) and cefotaxime (50 mg/kg twice daily), according to the unit's standard protocol for treatment of ill newborns with a history of chorioamnionitis at birth, and was supported with intravenous fluids. Her chest X-ray showed clear lung fields with a small right basal pneumothorax, which was treated conservatively. She did not sustain a rise in her Creactive protein taken at 1 h of age and 24 h later. No organisms were cultured from the CSF. However, on the fifth day Gram-negative coccobacilli were isolated from her blood cultures. At this time she was off oxygen and feeding orally, with no further signs of sepsis or cardiorespiratory compromise. Identification of the microorganism isolated from this neonate's blood was surprising as it is usually found as an oral commensal in cats and dogs. A careful reassessment of the maternal history revealed that two weeks prior to the delivery she had taken care of a puppy for a couple of days. She was not bitten by the dog but was licked several times on the hands. What is the diagnosis?


To the Editor:— Since Meckel's description of the congenital diverticulum of the small intestine in 1809, 1 the medical literature discussing this anomaly has increased steadily. We report the case of a 36-hour-old premature infant with a giant Meckel's diverticulum visualized as a gas shadow on the roentgenogram of the abdomen. Report of A Case:— This 1,830-gm premature male infant was born spontaneously (breech presentation) to a gravida 2, para 1, 33-year-old Negro mother on Dec 10, 1965, at Charity Hospital, New Orleans. The date of the mother's last menstrual period was unknown. Serologic tests for syphilis performed on blood obtained at delivery showed a positive VDRL slide test at one dilution and a weakly positive Kolmer's test. The amniotic sac leaked for approximately 24 hours prior to delivery. After birth, the Apgar score was 6 at one minute and 8 at five minutes. On admission to the Premature Center, this


We present rotational light-curve data for Saturn's satellite Phoebe taken over the observing period prior to the Cassini mission's encounter with that moon. We find a rotation period of 9.2735 ± 0.0006 hr, a factor of 25 improvement in the rotation period's uncertainty over previously published data. This improved rotation period measurement allow s us to correlate previously observed spectral features and colors with albedo features observed by Voyager and to predict which side of Phoebe will be observed by Cassini during its 2004 June 11 encounter. The light curve, sampled at subobserver latitudes farther south than achieved by Voyager, shows evidence of surface features that cannot be explained by previously published shape models or albedo maps and that may be located in the regions in Phoebe's southern hemisphere that were unobserved by Voyager.


Architectures that implement the Common Model of Cognition - Soar, ACT-R, and Sigma - have a prominent place in research on cognitive modeling as well as on designing complex intelligent agents. In this paper, we explore how computational models of analogical processing can be brought into these architectures to enable concept acquisition from examples obtained interactively. We propose a new analogical concept memory for Soar that augments its current system of declarative long-term memories. We frame the problem of concept learning as embedded within the larger context of interactive task learning (ITL) and embodied language processing (ELP). We demonstrate that the analogical learning methods implemented in the proposed memory can quickly learn a diverse types of novel concepts that are useful not only in recognition of a concept in the environment but also in action selection. Our approach has been instantiated in an implemented cognitive system \textsc{Aileen} and evaluated on a simulated robotic domain.


Abstract Software architecture design plays the key role for logistics and transport software engineering. One of the design approaches is to reuse the architectural patterns, which express a fundamental structural organization of software systems and its behaviour. The usage of the proven and tested solutions allows us to increase the software quality and reduce potential risks. In this paper the technique that allows selecting and evaluating suite of architectural patterns is proposed. It can be used for logistics and transportation software, which is constructed using Multi-tier architecture. The technique allows us to consistently evaluate the impact of specific patterns to software characteristics with a given functionality. Effectiveness and efficiency of the described method is confirmed by a case study.


Dung beetles are insects that provide a large-scale ecosystem service worldwide through their role in the decomposition of manure from livestock, thereby providing a series of environmental services, such as nutrients recycling, control of internal parasites of livestock whose eggs are in the feces, soil aeration, spreading of seeds and maintenance of ecological balance. Dung beetles are broadly classified according to their nesting behavior in three categories as telecoprids, paracoprids and endocoprids. Telecoprids are the rollers that make balls from feces and roll them into the ground; paracoprids are the tunnellers that bury the dung balls at different depths, forming galleries in the ground below or next to the food source and endocoprids, who are the dwellers that raise their larvae inside feces. There are 10 native species of dung beetles recorded in Chile, apart from 10 species of Aphodiinae, plus two introduced species, such as Onitis vanderkelleni and Onthophagus gazella. Dung beetles species were prospected in La Araucania Region and registered Homocopris torulosus, Frickius variolosus, Podotenus fulviventris and Aphodius pseudolividus. We found that species from genus Homocopris, Podotenus and Aphodius were distributed from 0 to 2000 m above sea level, while F. variolosus was distributed over an altitude of 350 m.


In this paper I want to analyze a problematic aspect of the Carachupeada dance of the kichwa Native Community, named Wayku (Peruvian Amazon). This ritual generates a confusion around two opposing concepts: some young people, dressed with platano leaves, seem to symbolize (at the same time) the armadillo prey (carachupa) and the hunter. Moreover, several children represent dogs and carachupa puppies. Through some reflections presented by Claude Levi-Strauss in the essay The Story of Lynx, I'll give a possible solution based on the philosophical sources of Amerindian dualism. I'll also theorize the concept of fluidity, as an interpretative model of unstable human beings.


Abstract Objective: To describe possible correlations between incidence of postpartum depression and the following patient characteristics: age, breastfeeding status, tobacco use, marital status, history of depression, and method of delivery. Study Design: Data gathered at routine 4-week postnatal visits were obtained from the patient records of 209 women who gave birth between June 1, 2001, and June 1, 2003, at three university medical clinics in Tulsa, Okla. Inclusion criteria required that the records of potential study subjects contain data on the characteristics noted as well as patient-completed Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale forms. Results: Formula feeding in place of breastfeeding, a history of depression, and cigarette smoking were all significant risk factors for an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale score of 13 or higher, indicating probable postpartum depression. Conclusion: The authors' findings corroborate the results of previous investigators. To facilitate prophylactic patient education and intervention strategies, a larger study is recommended to determine risk factors for postpartum depression.


Monolithic integration of electronic systems is one of the major techniques to reduce cost, size and power consumption in state-of-the-art consumer applications. Integration of transceivers and other mixed-signal building blocks has proven to be a very successful approach to build low cost, compact and portable systems [1]. Remarkably a certain building block remains discrete in commercial applications: the switched-power supply. This paper will demonstrate how recent research efforts cleared the path to develop fully integrated DC-DC converters in standard CMOS.


Abstract Aims. We examined the prevalence and prognostic impact of poor R-wave progression (PRWP) in a standard electrocardiogram (ECG) in a general population. Methods. Data and standard resting ECG recording were collected from a large nationally representative (random sample) health examination survey conducted in Finland in 2000–2001. The final study population consisted of 5613 individuals. Results. The prevalence of PRWP (defined as RV3 ≤ 3 mm and RV2 ≤ RV3) was 7.0% in women and 2.7% in men (P≤ 0.001 for difference). During follow-up of 70 ± 9 months (mean ± SD), 317 patients died (5.6%). Both all-cause and cardiovascular mortality was higher in the group with PRWP than in those without PRWP in both women and men. In Cox regression analysis after adjustment for age, hypertension, diabetes, previous myocardial infarction, and coronary heart disease, the relative risk for all-cause mortality for PRWP was 1.69 (95% CI 0.89-3.22, P=0.112) for men and 2.00 (95% CI 1.28-3.13, P=0.002) for women. For cardiovascular mortality the relative risk for individuals with PRWP was 1.85 (0.74-4.65, P=0.19) for men and 3.02 (1.54-5.93, P=0.001) for women. Conclusions. PRWP is a common ECG finding and predicts risk for total and cardiovascular mortality in women in a general population.


BACKGROUND
Rice stripe tenuivirus is one of the most destructive pathogens of rice and other cereal crops. The virus is transmitted by the small brown planthopper (SBPH, Laodelphax striatellus) in a circulative-propagative manner. Thus, blocking transmission by the insect vector would provide an effective strategy to prevent epidemic outbreaks of the disease.

RESULTS
In this study, we explored the effect of ribavirin on acquisition and transmission of the virus by specifically inhibiting the expression of sugar transporter 6 (LsSt-6), which was recently reported as a key vector component for RSV transmission. Ribavirin at the highest concentration tested (250 μM) significantly reduced RSV acquisition and transmission efficiency by SBPHs through inhibiting LsSt-6 mRNA level. Survival of the model insect cell line Sf9 was 95.0 ± 2.2 and 85.6 ± 2.1% after exposure to 250 μM ribavirin or 8-azaguanine, respectively. Further study confirmed that 250 μM ribavirin also significantly reduced LsSt-6 mRNA and protein levels in Sf9 cells. However, 8-azaguanine did not significantly inhibit viral infectivity and LsSt-6 mRNA levels in SBPH or the Sf9 cell line.

CONCLUSION
This result provides evidence that ribavirin has the potential to disrupt LsSt-6 expression but not others like viral RNAs to prevent acquiring RSV, which leads to less viral accumulation in SBPH tissues and thereby lower transmission efficiency. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


Knowledge management in offshore outsourcing projects is a very important topic, but this area of research has got limited academic attention leading to lack of studies exist on the management of both client's and service provider's knowledge for developing embedded software. The main goal of this study is to fill in this gap by analyzing client's generic and specific knowledge as well as the service provider's generic and specific knowledge and how this knowledge could be effectively managed in this endeavor. We conducted an extensive literature review on the major topics related to this field. From the analysis, an integrative model of knowledge management for embedded software development through offshore outsourcing is developed which deals with both parties' generic and specific knowledge. We posit that through the provision of adequate training, where outsourcing client takes the main responsibilities in planning and conducting what kind of distinctive knowledge types should be delivered to service provider and how it should be performed, it is possible to facilitate effective knowledge transfer and management for the development of high quality embedded software through offshore outsourcing.


A novel method to limit the short-circuit current in the distribution network is introduced in this study. The short-circuit limiter is a part of cascade H-bridge distribution-static synchronous series compensator (D-SSSC), which is placed in series with the line to manage the power flow in the loop distribution network. Hence, the short-circuit limitation and power flow management is achieved using only one power converter. During the fault, the D-SSSC inverter is changed to a rectifier by turning off the converter switches and using the anti parallel diodes. The transient thermal analysis of the converter verifies that the components operate within the safe operation area during the fault. The appropriate selection of the DC bus capacitors are discussed both, to limit the fault current below the diode surge current, and to prepare adequate reactive power for normal power flow control. Simulation studies are based on a model inspired by a part of the Tehran electrical distribution network. Moreover, a seven level cascade H-bridge is implemented to control the power flow and to limit the short-circuit in the simple line model.


In this excerpt of the chapter we outline the economic, sociological, environmental and legal approaches with respect to water conflicts in Spain. These approaches are a necessary condition for a due debate on the current state of the art in water management. In summary, we show that Spain is a semiarid country with very rigid water management institutions. These institutions allocate water disregarding both recent European legislation and very basic tenets of economic rationality.


Abstract Purpose: To investigate if final year medical students undertaking an OSCE station at a later stage during examination diet were advantaged over their peers who undertook the same station at an earlier stage, and whether any such effect varies by the student's relative academic standing. Methods: OSCE data from six consecutive final year cohorts totaling 1505 students was analyzed. Mixed effects logistic regression was used to model factors associated with the probability of passing each individual station (random effects for students and circuits; and fixed effects to assess the association with day of examination, time of day, gender and year). Results: Weaker students were more likely to pass if they took their OSCE later in the examination period. The odds of passing a station increased daily by 20%. Overall, the mean number of stations passed by each student increased over the 5 days. Conclusions: Students undertaking the same OSCE stations later in examination period statistically had higher chances of passing compared to their peers, and the weaker students appear to be particularly advantaged. These findings have major implications for OSCE design, to ensure students are not advantaged by examination timing, and weaker students are not "passing in error".


OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of exposing wounds during low-level laser therapy (LLLT) by transillumination of the wound dressings.

BACKGROUND DATA
LLLT has been associated with accelerated wound healing in chronic ulcers. The usual approach is to remove wound dressings prior to exposure and to treat three to five times weekly. Frequent change of wound dressings is time consuming and costly; it disrupts the healing process, increases the risk of wound infection, and may be traumatic for the patient.

METHODS
A double integrating sphere setup was employed to quantify the diffuse transmittance and reflectance of various wound dressings. Differences in transmittance for large area sources and point sources were demonstrated through the use of a diode laser and an incoherent light source.

RESULTS
There were a number of gels and membrane style wound dressings with diffuse transmittance of more than 50%. Hence, for these dressings the prescribed radiant exposure to the wound surface could be achieved by increasing the exposure duration, while maintaining reasonable overall treatment times.

CONCLUSIONS
Although LLLT by transillumination of wound dressings is feasible for a variety of wound dressings without significant commitments in additional treatment time, the specific transmission of products not included in this study needs to be determined at the intended treatment wavelength. A transillumination approach may facilitate a faster rate of wound healing than LLLT applied to exposed wounds by reducing trauma and the risk of infection.


In this paper, we introduce and provide a short overview of nonnegative matrix factorization (NMF). Several aspects of NMF are discussed, namely, the application in hyperspectral imaging, geometry and uniqueness of NMF solutions, complexity, algorithms, and its link with extended formulations of polyhedra. In order to put NMF into perspective, the more general problem class of constrained low-rank matrix approximation problems is first briefly introduced.


In many marine organisms, biomineralization—the crystallization of calcium-based ionic lattices—demonstrates how regulated processes optimize for diverse functions, often via incorporation of agents from the precipitation medium. We study a model system consisting of l-aspartic acid (Asp) which when added to the precipitation solution of calcium carbonate crystallizes the thermodynamically disfavored polymorph vaterite. Though vaterite is at best only kinetically stable, that stability is tunable, as vaterite grown with Asp at high concentration is both thermally and temporally stable, while vaterite grown at 10-fold lower Asp concentration, yet 2-fold less in the crystal, spontaneously transforms to calcite. Solid-state NMR shows that Asp is sparsely occluded within vaterite and calcite. CP-REDOR NMR reveals that each Asp is embedded in a perturbed occlusion shell of ∼8 disordered carbonates which bridge to the bulk. In both the as-deposited vaterites and the evolved calcite, the perturbed shell contains two sets of carbonate species distinguished by their proximity to the amine and identifiable based on 13C chemical shifts. The embedding shell and the occluded Asp act as an integral until which minimally rearranges even as the bulk undergoes extensive reorganization. The resilience of these occlusion units suggests that large Asp-free domains drive the vaterite to calcite transformation—which are retarded by the occlusion units, resulting in concentration-dependent lattice stability. Understanding the structure and properties of the occlusion unit, uniquely amenable to ssNMR, thus appears to be a key to explaining other macroscopic properties, such as hardness.


A guide to information associated with the human dimensions of natural resources. These include the political, social, economic, philosophical, recreational and policy aspects of conservation, sustainability and environmental sciences.


The ethanolic extracts obtained from the macrofungus Xylaria polymorpha (Pers.) Grev. (Ascomycetes) have been investigated for their antimicrobial activity. Growth inhibition using agar disc diffusion assays was determined against Escherichia coli ATCC 11230, S. aureus ATCC 6538P, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853, Proteus vulgaris ATCC 8427, Bacillus cereus ATCC 7064, Micrococcus luteus CCM 169, Candida albicansATCC 10231, Rhodotorula rubra DSM 70403, Geotrichum capitatum ATCC 28576,Debaryomyces hansenii DSM 70238, Kluyveromyces fragilis ATCC 8608 andCryptococcus neoformans ATCC 90112. As a result of study, we have found that X. polymorpha revealed antimicrobial activity against all tested microorganisms. Especially,G. capitatum is more susceptible to the extracts.

 Key words: Xylaria polymorpha, antimicrobial activity.


Slow pulsatile movements of Schwann cells in vitro were studied quantitatively by using time-lapse cinemicrography. Schwann cells from peripheral nerves of 3-day-old rats were cultured in serum-free medium. Most Schwann cells showed intermittent episodes of pulsatile movement; each episode consisted of one or several contractile pulses. About half of the episodes consisted of a single pulse, and episodes with more than four pulses were rare. The average episode of activity lasted 2.6 min, while the average duration of a single pulse was 1.5 min. The mean quiescent interval between episodes of activity was 3.7 min. Some cells showed no pulsatile activity. Active cells averaged 6.6 episodes/h. The fraction of time which a Schwann cell spent in pulsatile activity varied widely, with an average of 28%. Behavior of Schwann cells in HEPES-buffered Hanks saline was generally similar to that in the complete medium. Raising K+ to 40 mM or Ca++ to 10 mM did not markedly affect the time course of the pulsatile motility, although the contractions were more vigorous in the high Ca++. Pulsatile movement was reversibly inhibited by cytochalasin B and appeared to be potentiated by drugs that disrupt microtubules.


The IEEE 802.16 standard of wireless mesh networks includes various scheduling algorithms, both centralized and distributed, to determine the proper time slot that each wireless node can transmit its data. In this paper, we introduce a new scheduling scheme to improve scalability and resource utilization in wireless mesh networks where all nodes compete to gain access to the transmission time slot. In our proposed method, the transmission time of a node is modified according to the transmission status of its neighbors, resulting in a shorter holdoff time, and consequently, reducing the transmission delay and throughput. The simulation results confirm the efficiency and performance of the proposed algorithm over the IEEE 802.16-mesh standard in terms of throughput and delay.


We consider the design of phase II trials evaluating combinations of experimental therapies. In the modern era, many immunotherapy and targeted therapy regimens are being developed as combination regimens, including combinations consisting only of experimental agents. In some clinical/drug development scenarios, it may be difficult to isolate the effect of the individual agents making up a combination of this type, which makes the evaluation of the combination challenging. One such scenario arises when none of the agents making up the experimental combination have demonstrated single-agent activity in the clinical setting of interest. One solution to this problem is to employ a randomized comparative trial in which the combination of interest is compared with one or both of its component agents, but because all arms in such a trial would be experimental, some modifications to more traditional randomized comparative phase II trials must be made. In this manuscript, we present sensible modifications to randomized phase II trial designs that can be employed in two common drug development scenarios of this type and provide a detailed discussion of the practical aspects of designing these trials. We also include two worked examples to further illustrate how to design such a trial.


A key challenge for Machine Translation is transfer selection, i.e. to find the right translation for a given word from a set of alternatives (1:n). This problem becomes the more important the larger the dictionary is, as the number of alternatives increases. The contribution presents a novel approach for transfer selection, called conceptual transfer, where selection is done using classifiers based on the conceptual context of a translation candidate on the source language side. Such classifiers are built automatically by parallel corpus analysis: Creating subcorpora for each translation of a 1:n package, and identifying correlating concepts in these subcorpora as features of the classifier. The resulting resource can easily be linked to transfer components of MT systems as it does not depend on internal analysis structures. Tests show that conceptual transfer outperforms the selection techniques currently used in operational MT systems.


Multitask learning, i.e. learning several tasks at once with the same neural network, can improve performance in each of the tasks. Designing deep neural network architectures for multitask learning is a challenge: There are many ways to tie the tasks together, and the design choices matter. The size and complexity of this problem exceeds human design ability, making it a compelling domain for evolutionary optimization. Using the existing state of the art soft ordering architecture as the starting point, methods for evolving the modules of this architecture and for evolving the overall topology or routing between modules are evaluated in this paper. A synergetic approach of evolving custom routings with evolved, shared modules for each task is found to be very powerful, significantly improving the state of the art in the Omniglot multitask, multialphabet character recognition domain. This result demonstrates how evolution can be instrumental in advancing deep neural network and complex system design in general.


Background Chinese herbal medicines (CHMs) have been widely used in the treatment of cervicogenic dizziness (CGD) based on their empirical effectiveness and safety. Herein, we reviewed and evaluated the clinical evidence of the efficacy and safety of CHMs for CGD. Methods Among the relevant studies published in 11 electronic databases up to December 2021, only randomised controlled trials were included. Methodological quality was assessed using the revised Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials, and the strength of evidence for the main outcomes was evaluated using the grading of recommendations assessment, development, and evaluation system. Results All 35 included randomised controlled trials with 3,862 participants were conducted with six types of modified CHM and four types of active controls. More than half of the included studies were of low quality because of the high risk of bias due to deviations from intended interventions. CHM plus active control was more effective in the treatment of CGD than active control alone. CHM plus anti-vertigo drugs, CHM plus manual therapy, CHM plus acupuncture therapy, and CHM plus manual and acupuncture therapy were all effective in treating CGD, with CHM plus manual and acupuncture therapy showing the most reliable effect. All CHMs were effective for specific patterns of CGD when administered with active controls, with Dingxuan Tang and Yiqi Congming Tang demonstrating the most reliable effects. No serious adverse events were reported in any of the included studies. Conclusion The current evidence suggests that CHM may enhance the treatment of CGD when combined with other treatments without serious adverse events. Further high-quality evidence is needed to draw definitive conclusions.


In most of the literatures up to the sixties, we could see how important the role of teachers was. For instance, it was told how a student would rush to take over his teacher's bike and stuff once he saw the teacher came in to the school. We could read from the literatures of the past where teachers had always the authority that they were highly respected by the students. In the stories, we could frequently encounter a student would do the lawn mowing for his teacher's sake. Once a student saw a teacher from a distance, he or she would instantly come towards the teacher and greet. On the contrary, in today's literatures, teachers become the object of fun, intimidation, and even insult. It is terribly ironic. Teachers have lost their authority and credibility. In this particular research, the teacher's authority is compared. The study uses descriptive-comparative analysis. The data have been taken from the literatures of the 60s and the era of 2000s and collected through the literature review and interviews. It is expected that this study would regain the snuffed out authority of the teachers. The authoritative teachers are ultimately required so that they can lead a more effective and quality teaching and learning process. The authority of the teachers should be inserted to today's literatures. It is the obligation of the duty of the man of letters to return the teachers to the higher respected human beings. Key words: Teachers' authority, the literature of the 60s and 2000s, comparative analysis


Intraperitoneal adhesions remain a costly, long-term sequela of abdominal surgery. They cause significant postoperative morbidity and difficult reoperative surgery. Although adhesions have been recognized for more than 250 years, a uniformly effective method of adhesion prevention does not exist. In recent years, research has become more focused on understanding the biochemical and cellular processes involved in adhesion formation--a necessary step in the development of safe and effective means of adhesion prevention. Studies suggest that events critical to adhesion outcome begin within hours of an abdominal operation with the balance between fibrin deposition and degradation being of central importance. A pharmacologic agent administered at the time of surgery that could tip the fibrinolytic balance in favor of fibrin degradation without interfering with postoperative wound healing would be an ideal candidate in the prevention of adhesion formation. Further research into the molecular and cellular events that underlie adhesion formation is essential and undoubtedly will lead to successful adhesion prevention.


This study aimed to determine the existence of blood vessels within ganglia of the myenteric plexus of the human esophagus and colon. At necropsy, 15 stillborns, newborns and children up to two years of age, with no gastrointestinal disorders, were examined. Rings of the esophagus and colon were analyzed and then fixed in formalin and processed for paraffin. Histological sections were stained by hematoxylin-eosin, Giemsa and immunohistochemistry for the characterization of endothelial cells, using antibodies for anti-factor VIII and CD31. Blood vessels were identified within the ganglia of the myenteric plexus of the esophagus, and no blood vessels were found in any ganglia of the colon. It was concluded that the ganglia of the myenteric plexus of the esophagus are vascularized, while the ganglia of the colon are avascular. Vascularization within the esophageal ganglia could facilitate the entrance of infectious agents, as well as the development of inflammatory responses (ganglionitis) and denervation, as found in Chagas disease and idiopathic achalasia. This could explain the higher frequency of megaesophagus compared with megacolon.


Cutaneous lichenoid drug eruptions (LDE) are adverse drug reactions (ADR) characterized by symmetric, erythematous, violaceous papules reminiscent but rarely fully characteristic of lichen planus (LP). We aimed to analyse the literature describing cases of LDE within the last 20 years to provide additional insight into culprit drugs, typical latency to onset of the eruption, the spectrum of clinical presentations, severity and management. A literature search was conducted in MEDLINE between January 2000 and 27 January 2021. The keywords 'lichenoid drug rash' and 'lichenoid drug eruption' were used. Cases were included if LDE diagnosis was made, and culprit drugs were identified. A total of 323 cases with LDE were identified from 163 published case reports and studies. The mean patient age was 58.5 years (1 month to 92 years), and 135 patients (41.8%) were female. Checkpoint inhibitors (CKI) were the most frequently reported culprit drugs (136 cases; 42.1%), followed by tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) (39 cases; 12.0%) and anti‐TNF‐α‐monoclonal antibodies (13 cases; 4.0%). The latency between initiation of the drug and manifestation was 15.7 weeks (range: 0.1–208 weeks). After discontinuing the culprit drug, the median time to resolution was 14.2 weeks (range: 0.71–416 weeks). One hundred thirty‐six patients (42.1%) were treated with topical, and 54 patients (16.7%) with systemic glucocorticoids. Overall, we conclude that, albeit rare, LDE is challenging to diagnose ADR induced by mostly CKI, TKI, and biologics. Treatment modalities resemble that of lichen planus, and the culprit drugs had to be discontinued in only 26%, which is low compared with other types of adverse drug reactions. This is probably due to the low risk of aggravation (e.g. toxic epidermal necrolysis) if the drug is continued and the benefit/risk ratio favouring the drug, as is often the case in cancer therapy.


Amyloidosis is a plasma cell dyscrasia that leads to the excessive production and deposition of mutant protein fragments in various organs. Cardiac amyloidosis is often implicated in two main subtypes: transthyretin (ATTR) and light chain (AL). While both subtypes increase the risk of restrictive cardiomyopathy, cardiogenic shock, and arrhythmias, poorer outcomes are seen in those with cardiac infiltration secondary to AL amyloidosis. Prognosis depends on the timing of diagnosis and the extent of the disease burden prior to recognition and treatment. The following case report describes a young patient who was admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) for concerns of decompensated heart failure of unknown etiology, later determined to be due to amyloidosis. We describe her clinical course prior to and during hospital admission, along with the proposed physiologic factors that may have contributed to her poor outcome.


Multinational corporations are increasingly mindful of the significance of sustainability transitions and the need for operations that are energy efficient and environmentally sound. Achieving sustainability under conditions of uncertainty entails the involvement of multiple stakeholders in initiating and carrying out sustainability-focused initiatives. Using longitudinal analysis of Royal Dutch Shell's sustainability policies, we developed an integrated model to elucidate how uncertainty influences sustainability policies in the specific context of multinational corporations (hereinafter – MNCs). We identified three phases in the evolution of Shell's sustainability innovation: a self-reflective phase (2000–2003) characterized by intense pressure from climate advocacy groups, an investment phase (2004–2006) for which the MNC attempted to rise to the waste disposal and pollution challenge through renewable sources of energy, and a reorganization phase (2007–2010) to streamline operations. We also uncovered themes that influence how regulatory policies are crafted: responding positively to the "community's voice", risk spreading through joint ventures, revenue transparency for government accountability and reporting innovation that confronts hard truths. The practical implications are outlined.


OBJECTIVES
To study patients' perceptions and knowledge about total joint replacement surgery. DESIGN; Cross-sectional survey. SETTING; University teaching hospital, Hong Kong.

PATIENTS
Three hundred consecutive patients with the diagnosis of osteoarthritis or inflammatory arthritis attending the out-patient clinic from June 2010 to May 2011.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Patients' knowledge and how they got the knowledge about total joint replacement surgery, and concerns about the outcome of such operations.

RESULTS
Whilst 94% of the patients knew about total joint replacement surgery, 77% obtained such knowledge from their friends and relatives. The three most common concerns related to this type of operation were whether they might: be wheelchair bound after surgery (64%), need to be taken care of by others for more than 3 months (61%), and have post-surgery complications (54%). Most of them recognised the advantages of the surgery, 82% knew about good pain relief after surgery, and 87% realised that total joint replacement surgery could improve their mobility. Patients did not have a realistic idea regarding the survival of the prosthesis; 41% thought the prosthesis might last for less than 10 years and 34% had no idea about its longevity. CONCLUSION; Patients did recognise the advantages of total joint replacement surgery in treating arthritis. However, they had many concerns about its outcome that warrant clarification. Public education on these aspects is necessary to address concerns, and may be achieved in cooperation with the media.


This study was carried out to investigate how Elementary School pre-service teachers used instructional media in TEYL class. The investigation was conducted to reveal perspectives of both lecturer and pre-service teachers related to challenges in using instructional media for microteaching practices. The challenges were discussed in the light of pedagogical aspects and non-pedagogical ones. The method of this research was a case study as this research was particularly targeted for the TEYL class of Elementary Teachers Education Program at STKIP PGRI Banjarmasin. The data were obtained through observations and interviews. The results of this study suggested that based on the lecturer's perspective, there were five challenges related to the use of Media in TEYL microteaching practices. These challenges were (1) the lack of understanding regarding the importance of media, (2) low English proficiency, (3) low creativity, (4) low motivation, and (5) limited time allotment. Furthermore, based on pre-service teachers' perspective, four issues related to the usage of media were found. These issues were (1) low English proficiency, (2) high cost in developing media, (3) burden from other subjects, and (4) confidence issues.


Glacier fluctuations can yield climatic information. However, the relationship between climate and calving glaciers is not straightforward. Iceberg calving introduces instability to the glacier system causing glaciers to oscillate asynchronously with each other and with noncalving glaciers, and out of phase with climate change. Calving rates are controlled primarily by water depth, but, for any given depth, are an order of magnitude greater in tidewater than in freshwater. Calving dynamics are poorly understood, but differ between temperate and cold glaciers, and between grounded and floating termini. Nonclimatic behaviour of calving glaciers has been documented in a large number of locations, both in historical time and during the Late Glacial and Holocene. Interactions between calving dynamics, sedimentation and topographic geometry can partially decouple calving glaciers and marine ice sheets from climate, initiating independent advance/retreat cycles; it is therefore rarely possible to make reliable inferences about climate from their oscillations.