Background Results have been previously presented from a long-term safety trial of ENBREL as monotherapy in adult patients with RA who had failed at least one DMARD. In this ongoing study, 628 patients have been followed for up to 4.3 years (median = 2.4 years) for a total of 1336 patient-years. Objectives Continue to observe the long-term safety and clinical benefit of ENBREL. Methods Patients were evaluated for disease activity using ACR criteria. Adverse event rates were compared with data from controlled studies. Results 479 adult patients have received ENBREL as monotherapy for over 1 year, 420 for over 2 years, 164 for over 3 years, and 12 for over 4 years. Response has been sustained for the duration of therapy. At baseline, the median tender joint count was 31 and the median swollen joint count was 25. At 3.5 years, the median tender and swollen joint counts were 3 each, and 69% of patients had achieved the ACR 20, 50% the ACR 50, and 25% the ACR 70. Also at 3.5 years, 24% of patients had zero tender joints, 26% had zero swollen joints, and 15% had disability scores of zero. In addition, 59% of patients who were receiving corticosteroids at study start have decreased their steroid doses by a mean of 71%, 29% of patients have completely discontinued steroids, and only 5% have increased their steroid dose. Compared to events seen in controlled trials or in the normal adult population, no significant differences in rate or type of adverse events were seen in patients treated with ENBREL over time. Serious adverse events occurred at a rate of 0.13 per patient-year in the long-term database compared to 0.13 in ENBREL-treated patients and 0.20 in placebo patients in the controlled studies. Likewise, serious infections (associated with hospitalisation or IV antibiotics) occurred at a rate of 0.05 per patient-year in the long-term database compared to 0.04 in ENBREL patients and 0.05 in placebo patients in the controlled studies. The number of malignancies reported in ENBREL patients was similar to the expected number calculated from the National Cancer Institute SEER database (9 reported vs. 12.7 expected). No opportunistic infections have been observed. Conclusion ENBREL as monotherapy continues to be safe and effective in patients with DMARD-refractory RA for over 4 years. Reference Moreland LW, et al. Arthritis Rheum. 2000;43:S270


Objective. To describe and measure reliability of a computer-assisted method of case vignette assembly and expert review to assess the appropriateness of antimicrobial therapy for hospitalized adults. Design. Feasibility and reliability analysis of computer-assisted tool used to compare the effects of antimicrobial stewardship interventions. Setting. Public teaching hospital. Patients. Randomly selected adult antimicrobial recipients admitted to inpatient medicine services. Methods. Clinical data abstracted from 504 paper medical records were merged with computerized laboratory and pharmacy data to assemble case vignettes that underwent expert review for appropriateness. We performed 3 validations, as follows: data for 35 vignettes abstracted independently by 2 research assistants were assessed for interrater agreement, expert review of 24 vignettes was compared with review of the corresponding paper medical records, and interrater reliability of antimicrobial appropriateness assessments by 2 experts was determined for 70 case vignettes. Results. Vignette assembly and expert review each required 10–12 minutes per case. Potentially important discrepancies occurred in 0%–32% of clinical findings abstracted independently by 2 research assistants. Expert review of 24 vignettes and the corresponding full paper medical records yielded fair agreement (kappa, 0.30). The 2 experts identified inappropriate initial antimicrobial therapy in 67% and 61% of case vignettes reviewed independently; interrater agreement was improved after sequential case discussion and stringent application of appropriateness criteria (kappa, 0.72). Conclusions. Our case vignette assembly and expert review method is efficient, but improvements in both technical and human performance are needed to be able to yield valid estimates of the prevalence of inappropriate antimicrobial use. Assessments of antimicrobial appropriateness require validation.


Abstract : About one out of every ten cases of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) is inherited. The majority >90% of inherited cases of EOC are the result of mutations in the breast cancer associated gene I (BRCA1). This gene was originally identified based on genetic linkage to families with an increased risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer. It is involved in controlling normal cellular growth and is thought to suppress the growth of tumors. That is if BRCA1 is mutated the risk to develop breast and ovarian cancer increases. Another gene that is important in the development of cancer is p53. It also helps maintain normal cellular growth and is the most commonly mutated gene in all human cancers. The p53gene has been shown to be mutated in at least 50% of all cases of epithelial ovarian cancer. In addition to mutations of BRCA1 mutations of the p53gene are often found in patients with breast and ovarian cancer syndrome. Based on the importance of both of these genes in the development of this type of ovarian cancer we hypothesize that inactivation of BRCA1 and p53in the ovaries of mice will result in epithelial ovarian cancer in the animals.


Locally advanced and metastatic cancers are frequently treated by androgen deprivation therapy. Tumors that recur despite this treatment, termed castration resistant prostate cancer, are highly aggressive and have acquired the capacity to survive and expand in conditions of low circulating androgens. Prostate epithelial cells control the potency and overall availability of androgen hormones in part by inactivation and excretion of excess quantities. The enzymes that catalyze inactivation, specifically by covalently modifying the hormone with a glucuronate adduct, are called UDP-glucuronosyltransferases (UGT). Genetic mutations that reduce levels of the UGT isozymes needed to eliminate excess androgens from the prostate have been correlated with prostate cancer incidence. The ability to alter androgen elimination at the level of individual cells within a tumor is one mechanism by which tumors become heterogeneous with respect to molecular features and therapeutic resistance. UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH) catalyzes the NAD+-dependent oxidation of UDP-glucose to UDP-glucuronate, an essential precursor for androgen inactivation by the prostate glucuronidation enzymes UGT2B15 and UGT2B17. Our laboratory has found that non-metastatic prostate tumor cell lines express UGDH in an androgen sensitive manner, that its expression increases the level of UDP-glucuronate, and that these precursors are then channeled to the UGT-catalyzed glucuronidation pathway. The level of UGDH is androgen controlled and serves to regulate tumor cell growth, inversely to its expression. Loss of androgen stimulated UGDH, or pharmacological antagonism of its activity, translated to increased proliferation rate, specifically of androgen dependent tumor cells. We knocked down expression of UGDH in androgen dependent cells to test the role of UGDH in driving cellular glucuronate levels, intratumoral steroid availability, and response to androgen. Flux of UDP sugar metabolites and levels of androgen glucuronide accumulation were compared in control and UGDH knockdown lines by liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry analysis. Effects on androgen sensitive gene expression were monitored by western analysis. Selection of manipulated cells in decremental DHT levels that simulated androgen deprivation was found to reduce steady state UGDH expression, thereby activating the UGT-driven steroid clearance mechanism, as reflected in increased PSA levels and de-repression of UGT2B17. Whereas restimulation of control transfectants with physiological levels of DHT could only increase UGDH expression and maintain full androgen sensitivity in cells experiencing complete androgen loss, the knockdown of UGDH permitted cells to accumulate UDP-glucuronate pools, and decreased UGT-driven glucuronidation of DHT and androsterone. These results support a model in which maintenance of partial UGDH activity through gradual androgen deprivation facilitates loss of sensitivity in androgen elimination pathways and suggests adjuvant UGDH inhibition could prevent or delay onset of castration resistant recurrence. Citation Format: Michelle Palmer, Linlin Ma, Trevor Romsdahl, Qin Wei, Eileen Loughman, Jonathan Markham, Joseph Barycki, Melanie A. Simpson. Altered control of intracellular androgen availability by glucuronidation contributes to loss of androgen dependence in prostate tumor cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference: Function of Tumor Microenvironment in Cancer Progression; 2016 Jan 7–10; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(15 Suppl):Abstract nr C41.


Specific ion meter studies have shown that ionic transport through bis-GMA fissure sealant films is selective and that dissolved fluoride ions disappear from the solution around tooth sections at a more rapid rate than do calcium and chloride ions. This would indicate that topical fluoridation of pits and fissures can still be effected after placement of a fissure sealant. A causative mechanism for this phenomenon has been postulated. Calcium exchange studies indicate that calcium is removed from the enamel and that the microsolubility of fissure sealed teeth in CaCl2 solution is increased by the preparative and sealing procedure used for the enamel.


An important new study that seeks to establish what Victorian writers said about Greek culture and how their interpretations both molded and reflected the attitudes and values of the Victorian age. "Turner's readable, intelligent, thorough, witty, and magisterial book discovers and narrates a fundamental strain in British intellectual life from the late eighteenth century until the beginning of World War I. It is THE book on its subject...Turner's study has changed, changed utterly, the Victorian landscape."-Richard Tobias, Victorian Poetry


Introduction: Pseudoexfoliation (PXF) is an age-related generalised disorder of extracellular matrix primarily affecting eyes. It is characterised by deposition of pseudoexfoliative material in the anterior segment of eye. Also it is a bilateral condition but can have asymmetric presentation and can be clinically seen only in one eye. Alteration in endothelial cell morphology along with other alteration in anterior segment of the eye can compromise the surgical outcome. Aim: To evaluate the corneal endothelial cell density and morphology in patients with unilateral PXF. Materials and Methods: The present study was hospital-based cross-sectional observational study which included 55 patients with unilateral PXF, who came to the Department of Opthalmology, Acharya Vinoba Bhave Rural Hospital (AVBRH), Wardha, Maharashtra, India between June 2020 to November 2020. Specular microscopy was performed on all eyes to evaluate cell density and morphology, coefficient of variation in cell size and percentage of hexagonal cells in corneal endothelium and compared with fellow normal eye. Statistical analysis was done by using descriptive and inferential statistics using students unpaired t-test, p-value <0.05 was considered as level of significance. Results: The present study included 55 patients, of which 26 were males and 29 were females. Mean age of the patients was 63.85±7.05 years. Majority of patients were in the range of 61 to 70 years (56.36%). The mean corneal endothelial cell density in the PXF eye was 2299.54±84.95 cells/mm2, which was significantly lower as compared to fellow normal eye with p-value <0.001. Mean coefficient of variation of cell size in PXF eye was 35.49±4.62, p-value=0.064 and hexagonality was 51.12±4.91, p-value=0.13. Both the parameters were statistically non significant on comparison of two eyes. Central corneal thickness was thicker in pseudoexfoliative eye of 551.29±33.11 microns (μm), than fellow eye but was statistically non significant. Conclusion: Eyes with PXF had alteration in endothelial cell morphology with decrease in cell density as compared to eyes without PXF clinically.


In this work, two microwave emissivity parameterizations are proposed to estimate the land emissivity at Advanced Microwave Sounding Units (AMSU) frequencies and scanning conditions in order to help processing AMSU measurements over land surfaces. Both parameterizations are derived from previously calculated land emissivities directly from satellite observations and take into account different surface types from bare soil to areas with high vegetation density. The first parameterization uses best-fit functions derived from February 2000 observations whereas the second parameterization is based on the first one with the addition of a mean nadir emissivity map at 23.8 GHz to allow a more precise surface description. The emissivity parameterizations have been evaluated by comparing emissivity and Tb simulations to target emissivity and Tb observations.


are not accessible. The current work demonstrates that the use of activated cyclopropenes subverts this limitation. The reaction does not appear to have required optimization and the substrate scope was modestly examined with regioselectivity issues duly highlighted. The direct synthesis of isoquinolones using monoactivated cyclopropenes was unsuccessful; however, this reaction did generate the interesting compound A , which supports the mechanistic hypothesis. Compound A could be converted into the desired isoquinolone using hydrochloric acid, thereby providing an indirect but quite simple route to these products.


This paper investigates stabilization for a class of nonlinear impulsive switched systems with norm-bounded input constraint. Due to this constraint, it is only enough that the stabilization criteria and assumptions related to the nonlinearities be met on a subspace containing the origin. Certainly, these assumptions are such that they covers most of real-world systems. The purpose of this paper is to design a norm-bounded control that guarantees the exponential convergence of trajectories to a sufficient small ultimate bound in presence of uncertainties. Therefore, firstly, we present the stability criteria for a general model that ensures the convergence of all trajectories starting from a region of attraction to an ultimate bound. These conditions are in terms of a common Lyapunov function candidate and the minimum dwell-time, and it is enough to be valid on the region of attraction. Secondly, using the common quadratic Lyapunov function candidate and using the state-feedback approach, the established conditions are reformulated as a set of linear or bilinear matrix inequalities. Besides, to achieve the control parameters along with the largest convergence area and smallest ultimate bound, we propose an optimization problem. Finally, some illustrative examples are presented to demonstrate the proposed approach.


Published studies have suggested the bias of automated face-based gender classification algorithms across gender-race groups. Specifically, unequal accuracy rates were obtained for women and dark-skinned people. To mitigate the bias of gender classifiers, the vision community has developed several strategies. However, the efficacy of these mitigation strategies is demonstrated for a limited number of races mostly, Caucasian and African-American. Further, these strategies often offer a trade-off between bias and classification accuracy. To further advance the state-of-the-art, we leverage the power of generative views, structured learning, and evidential learning towards mitigating gender classification bias. We demonstrate the superiority of our bias mitigation strategy in improving classification accuracy and reducing bias across gender-racial groups through extensive experimental validation, resulting in state-of-the-art performance in intra- and cross dataset evaluations.


IBM made a business decision to promote an open, secure, interoperable and integrateable environment by embracing the IETF's Public Key Infrastructure (X.509) standards, developing a reference implementation of the core set, and giving it away as freeware. We discuss the architecture of this reference code, emphasizing lessons learned from implementing the standards in an integrated PKI system.


Background and objective:

Learning and memory are necessary for survival. The hippocampus plays a significant role in learning process. GABAA receptors in the hippocampus are effective in learning and memory mechanism. The present study effect of tarragon hydroalcoholic extract and coumarin on memory, tissue index and GABAA receptor gene expression in the hippocampus of male rats.
Methodology:

56 Wistar rats were used and randomized in 7 groups (N = 8). These groups included the intact, receiving DMSO, receiving tarragon hydroalcoholic extract doses of 25, 50 and 100 mg/kg and receiving coumarin dose of 3, 5 mg/kg. They have undergone treatment intraperitoneally once a day for two weeks. The shuttle box was used for the memory retention test. The rats were killed according to the research ethical codes after the tests were done. When the brains of rats were removed, 4 brains in each group were chosen for the histological test using Nissl staining. In the other four brains, the hippocampus was removed immediately. The hippocampus was located in a microtube and was frozen by liquid nitrogen. Finally, a gene expression test was performed using real-time PCR.
Results

the findings of the present study reveal that there was no significant difference between of solvent recipients and the intact group in the memory retention test, the number of healthy hippocampal pyramidal neurons, and the expression of the GABAA gene. The treated groups with various doses of hydroalcoholic extract of tarragon and coumarin showed decreased in the memory retention test and the number of healthy pyramidals neurons as well as a significant increase in GABAA- α5 and GABAA- α2 genes expression compared to the group receiving solvent.
Conclusion

Tarragon hydroalcoholic extract and coumarin affects memory impairment through increasing the GABAA-α5 and GABAA-α2 genes expression and decreasing the number of healthy hippocampal neurons.


Airway foreign bodies continue to be diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for the practicing otolaryngologists and pediatricians. Because foreign body aspiration can mimic other conditions (Pneumonia, croup etc.), particularly without a witnessed event or history of aspiration, there can be delay in management or at times mismanagement of extreme degree with its consequences. In this case report one such, grossly mismanaged case of foreign body aspiration is being presented, who was kept on ATT (Anti tuberculous treatment) for more than 7 months without any significant improvement in the patients condition, additionally the child developed right upper quadrant pain during the course of treatment. Per oral rigid bronchoscopy was performed and foreign body removed after clearing granulation tissue, the patient was relieved.


As the development of business environment, every industry competes to create product and service that can be survived in the competition. No exception in manufacture sector, attempt to be creative and innovative are needed in order to survive. Those efforts are happened if the production
processes run smoothly and supported by the supplier's good performance as raw material supplier for production process.
CV.Primasindo Jaya Abadi is semi manufactures company that located in Surabaya that produce finger joint wood and laminating services. Raw material supplier is critical factor for the company. If the supplier have a bad performance, its impact the production process badly. Until today, CV.Primasindo Jaya Abadi hasn't implement supplier evaluation continuously, so the company doesn't know which potential supplier that can support the company.
This research is applied research, to solve the problem that related with production process, by applied supplier performance, the company can choose which supplier is potential enough to support company. The main research is the application of supplier performance to decide the potential supplier for company. To answer it by mini research question "how to evaluate supplier performance,
what is the production problems that related with the supplier at CV. Primasindo Jaya Abadi". By the result of this research show that supplier performance evaluation strongly related with the company performance. That activity worked by measuring supplier performance continuously so the company know how the supplier's performance. Not every supplier gave their loyalty to the
company so the company must choose which supplier can collaborate with the company.


The dipharmacophore compound 3-cyclopropyl-5-(3-methyl-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-a]pyridin-7-yl)-1,2,4-oxadiazole, C12H11N5O, was studied on the assumption of its potential biological activity. Two polymorphic forms differ in both their molecular and crystal structures. The monoclinic polymorphic form was crystallized from more volatile solvents and contains a conformer with a higher relative energy. The basic molecule forms an abundance of interactions with relatively close energies. The orthorhombic polymorph was crystallized very slowly from isoamyl alcohol and contains a conformer with a much lower energy. The basic molecule forms two strong interactions and a large number of weak interactions. Stacking interactions of the `head-to-head' type in the monoclinic structure and of the `head-to-tail' type in the orthorhombic structure proved to be the strongest and form stacked columns in the two polymorphs. The main structural motif of the monoclinic structure is a double column where two stacked columns interact through weak C-H...N hydrogen bonds and dispersive interactions. In the orthorhombic structure, a single stacked column is the main structural motif. Periodic calculations confirmed that the orthorhombic structure obtained by slow evaporation has a lower lattice energy (0.97 kcal mol-1) compared to the monoclinic structure.


Agroforestry and livestock-keeping both have the potential to promote anthropogenic climate changeresilience, and understanding how they can support each other in this context is crucial. Here, we discuss relevant issues in East Africa, where recent agroforestry interventions to support livestockkeeping have included the planting of mostly-exotic tree-fodders, and where most parts of the region are expected to become drier in the next decades, although smaller areas may become wetter. Wider cultivation and improved management of fodder trees provides adaptation and mitigation opportunities in the region, but these are generally not well quantified and there are clear opportunities for increasing productivity and resilience through diversification, genetic improvement, improved farm-input delivery and better modelling of future scenarios. We relate, and illustrate with the example of currentand future-climate tree species distribution modelling, important areas for future research.


In the period of the 1830s to the 1850s, Mikhail Pogodin (1800-1875) was one of the creators and spokesmen of the doctrine of "official nationality. Detailed analysis of his views on the "Slavic question" reveals not only his thoughts of the Russian policy, but also reconstructs his understanding of "nationality" and the processes of nation building in the southern and western Slavic nations, including Great and Little Russia. Pogodin's intellectual formation occurred from the end of the 1810s to the beginning of the 1820s. The understanding of "people" and of the entire course of history that he developed during these years will remain a stable and characteristic feature of Pogodin's later works. In two letters submitted to the Minister of Education S. Uvarov in 1839 and 1842, and then in a series of letters and notes written during the Crimean War, Pogodin offers a program of active support for the national movement among the Slavic peoples. Pogodin suggested that the Russian empire should adopt a nationalist policy with the key solution being the solution of the "Polish question", the fundamental obstacle preventing the winning over of other Slavic nations. As the decisive criterion of national identity, Pogodin explicitly suggests a linguistic one, that is, the adoption of a language of the "common people". The analysis of Pogodin's views shows that he was far from supporting existing public policy, leading to his proposition of a fundamentally different program.


Songs play a very important role in living beings. Dr. Jagdish Chandra Bose, the pioneer of music impact on plant growth had experimented & shown the results that even plants respond positively to the nice music. We, the people generally tend to hear only the trending songs & listen to sings under peer influence. But people should hear right kind of music suitable to their personality traits in order to bear the musical health benefits. An experiment was carried out where participants were asked to answer personality related questionnaire & were asked about their music preferences. The study shows that among the five traits each trait has got to do something with the Indian music genres. The App has been tested over 70 people. Till date, we knew music has some impact but with this study which music/ song genres are suitable to what kind of personalities has been attempted


INTRODUCTION
The incidence of malaria has increased globally to 500 million cases a year. Imported malaria in travellers comprises only a small fraction, but the disease has become a serious problem in Europe and the United States. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the epidemiological and clinical aspects of patients with imported malaria in Denmark.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
All patients treated for malaria at the Department of Infectious Diseases, Rigshospitalet, in 1999-2000 were evaluated retrospectively. Age, sex, nationality, destination, chemoprophylaxis, symptoms, duration of symptoms, parasitaemia, treatment, and complications were registered.

RESULTS
Seventy per cent of the patients had falciparum malaria. Of these, 95% had been infected in Africa and 46% of these patients were Africans living in Denmark. Only 50% of all patients had been taking chemoprophylaxis and of these only half had been compliant. Chloroquine and proguanile were most commonly used. Seven patients had parasitaemia above 5%, but only one of these developed complicated malaria.

DISCUSSION
The risk of complicated malaria in this series was low and seems to be related to lack of chemoprophylaxis, advanced age, and duration of symptoms.


We have previously reported the effective catalytic decomposition of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) using stoichiometric hydroxyapatite (HAp), making it the most promising alternative catalyst to replace the expensive conventional noble-metal nanoparticles for VOC purification. Here we derive a catalysis mechanism by exploring HAps with various Ca/P molar ratios (1.70, 1.67, 1.57, 1.37) for the catalytic decomposition of VOCs (ethyl acetate, isopropanol, acetone). In particular, the mechanism is discussed with respect to the particle morphology, specific surface area, crystallinity, chemical structure, radical generation, in situ VOC adsorption properties and acidic/basic site population of HAps combined with confirmation of decomposed by-products in different VOCs. The achieved nearly complete decomposition (98.04%) of VOCs and the initially established catalysis mechanism demonstrated in this work not only provide principle information for catalysis science and technology, but also open a new possibility for the design of noble-metal-free catalysts towards environmental cleaning.


Jeffrey King argues that nothing has truth conditions except by being taken to be true or false by rational agents. But – for good reason – King claims that propositions possess truth conditions essentially and intrinsically. I will argue that King cannot have both: if the truth conditions of a proposition depend on the reactions of rational agents, then the possession of truth conditions can't follow from the intrinsic nature or existence of the proposition. This leaves two options. Either, nothing can do the job that motivates positing propositions. Or, there is no need to explain what bestows a truth condition on a proposition.


1363-Pos Board B273 Single Molecule Studies of Nuclear Transport Oliver Otto, Anna Huefner, Lorenz Steinbock, Joanne Gornall, Murray Stewart, Ulrich Keyser. The translocation of single biomolecules through nanopores is one of the most fundamental processes of life. For example, the import of histones into the cell nucleus via the nuclear pore complex (NPC) is crucial for DNA condensation . We aim to gain a deeper understanding of NPC translocation on a single molecule level by combining optical tweezers with patch clamp techniques. This gives us the unique possibility to analyze the interaction forces between a biological macromolecule and the NPC while measuring the relevant time scales by electrophysiological recordings. We present preliminary results on the characterisation of the properties of NPCs concerning mode and duration of macromolecular translocation. Nuclei extracted from the syntactical coconut cocos nucifera are one model system. We demonstrate the selectivity of the NPC using an import signal tagged with GFP.We determine the conductance of a single nuclear pore to be approximately 490pS. Our results allow for estimation of the nuclear pore density to be between one and four per mm. From observations of the ionic current across the pores, we are able to observe gating and to derive the translocation time of cargo across single NPCs . As a technical development towards nuclear pore force spectroscopy we introduce optical fiber illumination for real-time tracking of optically trapped particles. We demonstrate video-based fluctuation analysis of a single colloid at 10,000 Hz in order to study the dynamics of an attached biological macromolecule with microsecond time resolution . References 1. Stewart, M (2007), Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Bio. 8, 195-208 2. Kopito, RB, et al. (2009), HFSP J. 3, 130-141 3. Otto, O, et al. (2008), Rev. Sci. Instr. 79, 023710 4. Otto, O, et al. (2010), J. Opt. A: Pure Appl. Opt. (accepted for publication) 5. Otto, O, et al. (2010), Opt. Express (accepted for publication)


This paper analyses knowledge transfer among clustered firms and its relation to the competitiveness of a tourism destination in southern Brazil. It is assumed that knowledge is a strategic resource transferred among clustered firms. Research methods used were secondary data analysis followed by a survey conducted with 49 respondents. Findings show that the access to resources is more evident for the third sector and public administration than to firms. Besides, it was found that the knowledge transfer happens in different ways, but especially through the periodic meetings among the tourism firms. It was demonstrated that there is a better access and communication and information exchange among tourist firms, but the data have not connected knowledge transfer to destination competitiveness.


We introduce a statistical test for comparing the predictive accuracy of competing copula specifications in multivariate density forecasts, based on the Kullback-Leibler Information Criterion (KLIC). The test is valid under general conditions: in particular it allows for parameter estimation uncertainty and for the copulas to be nested or non-nested. Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the proposed test has satisfactory size and power properties in finite samples. Applying the test to daily exchange rate returns of several major currencies against the US dollar we find that the Student's t copula is favored over Gaussian, Gumbel and Clayton copulas. This suggests that these exchange rate returns are characterized by symmetric tail dependence.


Chlorella-like coccoid green algae are widely distributed in many types of habitats such as freshwater, terrestrial and marine. One group of terrestrial microalgae belonging to the Trebouxiophyceae forms the monophyletic lineage of the Watanabea clade. This clade exclusively comprises of ellipsoid and spherical coccoid green algae, which traditionally have been assigned as different species of Chlorella. Within this clade, seven out of ten genera are described mainly based on phylogenetic analyses of SSU and rbcL sequences. Most of the genera are represented by only one or two species that are rarely found in natural samples. In contrast, the genus Chloroidium is widely distributed across different habitats. We investigated 34 new isolates, which were originally assigned as Chloroidium or Chlorella, using an integrative approach. The phylogenetic analyses of SSU and ITS rDNA sequences revealed nine lineages, eight of which were highly supported in all of our bootstrap and Bayesian analyses. The ITS-2/CBC approach clearly demonstrated that these nine lineages represent individual species. The haplotype network analyses revealed that three out of them were widely distributed and showed no preference for any habitat.                The comprehensive study of SSU and rbcL datasets also revealed that no clear synapomorphy could be found to support the assigned genus Parachloroidium. As a result of our findings, we proposed that both species belonging to Parachloroidium be transferred to Chloroidium. In addition, we re-established two species originally described by Chodat as new members of Chloroidium (C. lichenum, C. viscosum). Two of the nine lineages (C. antarcticum, C. arboriculum) were newly described in this study.


Graduates are expected to be lifelong learners and reflective practice is a key tool to enable allied health professionals to learn from their practice. Reflection enables students to learn from their clinical experiences and develop goals for their future practice but can be difficult for students to learn and develop. Researchers are beginning to explore the use of videos of students with clients as a tool for developing reflective practice and clinical skills. In the speech pathology course at Edith Cowan University third year students were required to bring a video of an interaction with a client for discussion in a peer group during a clinical tutorial. The structured format used a strengths-based format to ensure a safe reflective environment. Twenty students participated in the process. Students were then invited to evaluate their experience of the process by completing questionnaires giving both qualitative and quantitative data. Students were generally positive about feasibility, usefulness and overall satisfaction with the activity. The peer review method and the results of the student evaluations will be presented. Discussion of the feedback and recommendations for future use will be given. This journal article is available in Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice: http://ro.uow.edu.au/jutlp/vol12/iss4/7


In the past few years, bent-core liquid crystals have created immense interest in the scientific community because they show several new liquid crystalline phases along with some known phases of calamitic liquid crystals. Concomitantly efforts are made to synthesize liquid crystals with unconventional shapes like, V, W, T etc. Many physical properties of these new liquid crystals are not yet understood. This book is an attempt to understand the structure-property correlation of some unconventional nematic liquid crystals. We have presented some introduction and experimental techniques to measure various physical properties of those unconventional liquid crystals in the first two chapters. In the subsequent chapters we discuss physical properties of liquid crystal mixture of rod-like and bent-core molecules, pure bent-core molecules, hockey stick shaped (asymmetric bent-core) and T-shaped molecules. Finally we discuss flexoelectric properties in the last chapter.


BACKGROUND
Pulmonary complications after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) include high morbidity and mortality. Experimental data have suggested hepatic ischemia and reperfusion are induced by pro-inflammatory cytokines. The high level of inflammatory cytokines might additionally influence pulmonary capillary fluid filtration. The objectives of this study were to measure the concentrations of tumor necrotic factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) during OLT and to investigate the relationship between these cytokines and postoperative pulmonary complications.

METHODS
Twenty-two patients undergoing OLT were divided into two groups according to whether they had postoperative pulmonary complications: group A consisting of 8 patients with postoperative pulmonary complications, and group B consisting of 14 patients without postoperative pulmonary complications. Enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) was used to determine serum TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-8. Blood samples were taken at the beginning of operation (T0), clamping and cross-clamping of the inferior cava and portal vein (T1, T2), 90 minutes and 3 hours after reperfusion (T3, T4) and 24 hours after operation (T5).

RESULTS
The level of PaO2/FiO2 in group A was lower than that in group B (P<0.05). The concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-8 in the two groups increased rapidly at T2, peaked at T3, decreased rapidly after T3 until 24 hours after operation. The concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-8 in group A were higher than those in group B at T2, T3, and T4 (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION
After un-clamping of the inferior cava and portal vein, the serum concentrations of TNF-alpha, IL-6 and IL-8 increased may be related to pulmonary injury after hepatic ischemic reperfusion.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the values of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) in the diagnosis and treatment of chronic cough.

METHODS
Based on the protocol from The Chinese Respiratory Society guidelines for management of cough, 75 consecutive subjects with chronic cough and normal chest radiographs were recruited from the outpatient clinic of the Department of Respiratory Diseases in China-Japan Friendship Hospital from January to June 2010. All the patients accepted FENO tests, sputum cell counts, pulmonary function tests, bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR), serum IgE, cough symptom scores and Leicester cough Questionnaire (LCQ) before and after treatment of 4 weeks.

RESULTS
The final diagnosis of the subjects included 29 with cough variant asthma (CVA), 19 with eosinophilic bronchitis (EB) and 27 with other causes (Others). FENO levels in CVA (58 ± 26) ppb were significantly higher than those in EB (36 ± 18) ppb and Others (20 ± 7) ppb, and the FENO levels in EB were higher than Others (F = 28.2, P < 0.01). FENO levels showed significant correlations with sputum eosinophils, BHR, cough symptom scores, non-specific IgE, and LCQ scores. The mean baseline FENO level of the subjects whose coughs were relieved after inhaled corticosteroid therapy was (63 ± 42) ppb, higher than those of the non-responders (28 ± 13) ppb (t = 3.91, P < 0.01). There were significant correlations between the percentage of FENO decrease and the percentage of sputum eosinophil decrease or the cough symptom score decrease.

CONCLUSION
FENO could be used as a inflammation marker of chronic cough because of its good correlation with sputum eosinophils, AHR, atopy, and cough symptoms. FENO also has a potential to predict the response of anti-inflammatory therapy because FENO decrease is correlated with the decrease of eosinophilic inflammation and improvement of cough symptoms.


In this paper, we present a novel design of a wavelet based edge detection technique. Edge detection is an important task in image processing. Edges in images can be mathematically defined as local singularities. Until recently, the Fourier transforms was the main mathematical tool for analyzing singularities. However, the Fourier transform is global and not well adapted to local singularities. It is hard to find the location and spatial distribution of singularities with Fourier transforms. Wavelet analysis is a local analysis; it is especially suitable for time frequency analysis, which is essential for singularity detection. The fact motivated us to develop a technique using Haar wavelet to find an edge from an image. The proposed technique has been demonstrated for iris imagery and the reported results have been compared with Daubechies D4 wavelet based edge detection technique.


Considerable investment has been made in the development, construction, and management of water resources projects in the past 150 years. Many of these projects have caused deleterious environmental consequences, such as erosion and sedimentation of reservoirs, water logging, and alkalinization and salinization of irrigated lands. With the rising demand worldwide for quality water, the increasing call for preservation of environmental quality and sustenance of biodiversity, and the simultaneous and growing acceptance that the water use and management strategies of the past have often been unsustainable, there is an urgent need for wide-ranging discussions of past water resources policies and practices.

Scientists, engineers, planners, managers, administrators, and policy makers recently met in Bhopal, India, to discuss problems and exchange ideas pertaining to water, water use, and the environment in arid, semi-arid, subhumid, humid, and tropical regions. More than 400 participants representing 30 countries, including Australia, Canada, India, Germany, France, Italy the United States, and the United Kingdom, among others attended Water and Environment (WE)-2003.


In this paper, a model and algorithm of optimum layout is proposed for blank layout of single pattern on single rectangular sheet. The approach arranges the cutting patterns on rectangular sheet in the typical style of Double Opposite Layout (DOL). The remains of the sheet, which has been left in one direction after arranging patterns, called as "Step Leavings" (SL) is considered while the optimum layout is discussed We make full use of material of the sheet, including the A in x-direction and y-direction, and set up a reasonable mathematical model for the two-dimensional optimum layout. A corresponding algorithm is also provided to work out the optimum layout quickly and automatically. In this way, we can get the best layout scheme to arrange the maximum shapes on the sheet.


The world of spirituality and religion is changing, with increasing numbers leaving religious traditions and adopting a more individual path. This study explored the experience of adults on a spiritual path in the Western World, particularly in the context of the integral transformative practices that recommend a balanced spirituality. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine adult participants, ranging in age from 29 to 63, who were, by their own definition, following a spiritual path. Following thematic analysis conducted from a realist perspective, two major areas were identified. Firstly, the process described could be said to concur with the integral practice theories. Secondly, the findings suggest that, rather than being a pre-conventional spirituality which is later outgrown, the spirituality of childhood may have a validity that
continues into adulthood. These findings highlight a gap in the research into childhood spirituality and spiritual intelligence


We study intraday, market-wide shocks to stock prices, market liquidity, and trading activity on international stock markets and assess the relevance of recent theories on "liquidity dry-ups" in explaining such shocks. Market-wide price shocks are prevalent and large, with rapid spillovers across markets. However, price shocks are predominantly driven by information; they do not revert and are often associated with macroeconomic news. Furthermore, liquidity shocks are typically isolated and transitory. Overall, we find little evidence for liquidity effects fomenting price shocks or non-fundamental contagion, nor for alternative explanations. Market-wide liquidity dry-ups are thus of little concern to international investors. This paper was accepted by Karl Diether, finance.


Fast testing can help mitigate the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite their accuracy for single sample analysis, infectious diseases diagnostic tools, like RT-PCR, require substantial resources to test large populations. We develop a scalable approach for determining the viral status of pooled patient samples. Our approach converts group testing to a linear inverse problem, where false positives and negatives are interpreted as generated by a noisy communication channel, and a message passing algorithm estimates the illness status of patients. Numerical results reveal that our approach estimates patient illness using fewer pooled measurements than existing noisy group testing algorithms. Our approach can easily be extended to various applications, including where false negatives must be minimized. Finally, in a Utopian world we would have collaborated with RT-PCR experts; it is difficult to form such connections during a pandemic. We welcome new collaborators to reach out and help improve this work!


A case of syringomyelia secondary to arachnoiditis associated with arachnoid telangiectasia is reported in a female patient with no other stigmata of hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia. Such a case has not been reported before. She underwent surgical decompression of the spinal cord with successful outcome.


In the past few decades substantial progress has been made in the research and development of treatments for major depression. Many different types of medications and psychotherapy are currently available and rigorous studies have shown that antidepressants are more effective than placebo,1 and several types of psychotherapies are more effective than waiting list or other controls.2 These findings suggest that many patients with depression can be successfully treated. Based on these significant and positive effects, many of these treatments are included in treatment guidelines and are widely used in clinical practice. However, not all patients with depression recover with available treatments and several important challenges need to be resolved to improve existing treatments and to increase the number of patients who benefit from them.


Porous media made of nitrocellulose and glass fiber are common "paper" substrates for lateral flow assays, microfluidic paper analytical devices and other point-of-care diagnostic assays. Such assays commonly use optical labels such as gold nanoparticles, latex beads, or fluorescent nanoparticles to visualize the presence of analytes. Fluorescent labels are commonly used in bioassays to enhance sensitivity, but autoluminescence of the paper substrate worsens signal-to-noise ratios of fluorescence-based assays. To date, there exists no systematic investigation of autoluminescence wavelengths or lifetimes of porous membranes used in lateral flow assays. In response, we quantified the autoluminescence of commonly used porous materials across the visible spectrum via excitation-emission spectroscopy and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy, and demonstrate that autoluminescence is solely due to autofluorescence with lifetimes of about 5 ns in the visible spectrum. Counterintuitively, we found that spectroscopy alone does not provide sufficient information to select candidate paper substrates for fluorophore-labeled assays. Therefore, we developed a simple quantitative framework to select a low-fluorescence substrate that minimizes both the overlap of paper and fluorophore emission spectra and the fluorescence intensity on an imaging system of interest (such as a gel imager). Use of this framework was shown to lower the limit of detection of an influenza A nucleoprotein immunoassay by over 50%. The tools developed in this manuscript enable assay developers to screen appropriate, low-fluorescence porous substrates and enhance the sensitivity of membrane-based fluorescence assays.


Alternative drives have an increasing share in the global, European and Polish market. The city authorities support primarily the de-velopment of electromobility. Progress in these issues is also noticeable in Poland. The increasing number of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) requires increasing energy costs of the country. Therefore, it is necessary to increase energy production. This work estimates how large this energy surplus should be. For this purpose, it was necessary to deter-mine the average energy consumption of an electric vehicle in real traffic conditions, and then to calculate the average energy demand for a selected number of vehicles. Obtained results were related to pollutant emission considered in the well-to-wheel perspective (in-cluding generation of electricity). In the article, the authors also referred to the minimum number of charging stations for electric vehicles on the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) in Poland. This is a necessary condition on which depends the use of BEV vehicles not only on the territory of cities, but also throughout the country.


This article links motorbike use with the work and living conditions of young migrant women in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) to highlight an example of the social and economic consequences of migration-assisted economic development in Southeast Asia. It traces a woman's life from her teenage years in the market of a small seaside town in Vietnam to her purchase of a motorbike, migration to HCMC, move into a rooming house, and work in a major department store as a cosmetics saleswoman. The reflections on urban life by the woman and her roommates lead the author to consider the notion that the condition of the unregistered and temporary migrant is like that of the unrequited wandering ghosts (co hon), which are said to invisibly roam the city's streets. While the author details the political economy of marginalization that situates the migrant saleswoman, he also shows how she struggles within it to constitute herself over time rather than in the present and to free herself from abstraction-producing social categories, both old and new.


The identification of culprits from videosurveillance systems brings about relevant problems for what concerns the reliability of comparison and quantification of the degree of match between the culprit and the suspect. The actual videosurveillance give only 2D images of the culprit, which can be compared to a 3D model of the suspect's face in 2D-3D superimposition. However, in the next future the videosurveillance systems will provide a 3D image of the filmed persons, which may allow the operator to perform 3D-3D superimposition. This study aims at exposing a pilot study based on 10 male subjects: the face from each individual underwent two acquisitions by stereophotogrammetry. On each 3D facial model, 9 landmarks (right and left: en, ex, ch: midline: se, gn, prn) were identified by VAM® software; the acquisitions of each individual were then superimposed with the models of all the other subjects in order to reduce the distance between the corresponding points. The RMS value (Root Mean Square) between the two models was then calculated. When the two superimposed models belonged to the same individual, RMS value was in mean 1.58 mm (SD: 0.61 mm), whereas when the two models were taken from different persons, the same value was 4.54 mm (SD: 2.02 mm) with a statistically significant (p<0.0001). This pilot study shows that the judgment of identification based on 3D-3D superimposition may provide reliable results. The improvement specific methods of 3D-3D comparison may provide in the next future relevant advantages in this field of forensic anthropology.


Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are c-KIT-signaling-driven mesenchymal tumors of the human digestive tract, many of which have c-KIT or PDGFRα activating mutations. The authors studied the immunohistochemical markers, c-KIT and PDGFRα mutations, in GISTs and their association with the clinicopathological and clinical follow-up in 145 GISTs. Tumors were located mainly in the stomach, the median tumor size being 7.5 cm. The mitotic index was ≤5 mitoses per 50 high-power fields in 61% of cases, 96% expressed CD117, and c-KIT or PDGFRα mutations were detected in 68% of cases. The median follow-up of the series was 52 months (range = 1 to 244.9 months). Tumor size, cell morphology, mitotic index, incomplete resection, Fletcher's risk classification, Ki-67 overexpression, and c-KIT mutations were associated with progression-free survival. Incomplete resection and mitotic activity also provide information about overall survival. In conclusion, complete clinicopathological, immunohistochemical, and genetic descriptions are necessary to characterize this disease and optimize its clinical management.


ragnar.andreassen@ nta.no +47 63 84 88 51 +47 63 81 00 76 An investigation of correlation properties of MPEG VBR video based on three different video sequences is presented. It is found that the short range properties of these sources resemble those of uncorrelated sources. To investigate the relative importance of short and medium term correlation properties versus the longer term correlation properties of MPEG sources, analytical source models taking into account the periodic properties of the sources are used. Results from these models are compared with trace driven simulations in which long term properties are inherent. One conclusion of this investigation is that for the ATM cell loss probability, interesting regions in terms of buffer capacity and number of sources exist, where long term correlation properties will not influence multiplexer performance. For a number of 12 multiplexed sources, this region extended to buffer lengths of about 10 times the mean video frame size in high loss regions. In low loss regions, no effect of longer term correlation properties was seen at buffer lengths up to 15 times the mean frame lengths, with the same number of sources.


Explanation. Titles not starred represent new publications announced in the standard publishers' lists since the last issue of the bibliography. A star firefixed to a title indicates that it was taken from a review of the work in the periodical cited after the title. It may or may not be a new announcement. The ari'tkzmetical signs following the citation to a review indicate the tenor of the review: X uncertain; +, favorable ; -, unfavorable; +-, favorable, but with reservations; +, unfavorable, but with commendation; + +, very favorable; -very unfavorable; + + -, very favorable, but with reservations; +, very unfavorable, but with commendation. Absence of any sign indicates that review has not been read. The fiubli'cation date when not given is understood to be the current year. Prtices quoted are usually for volumes bound in cloth in the case of American and English books, in paper in the case of all others. New editions, translations, and new fieriodicals are bracketed. Abbreviations. See at end of Bibliography.


This report discusses the progress work that has been done Foundation Fieldbus
Interoperability Test (FFIT) System Configuration and Loop Design for Emerson
Host. In this report, several researches on fieldbus system and the needs of
interoperability testing and loop design are briefly discussed as well as the
continuation of testing work from FYP l(Basic Test).
Tills project is aligned With the FFIT SKG 14tl\ team project from PETRONAS. All
the standard testing procedures and results is documented for future review. This
project requires a deep understanding on the fieldbus technology which includes the
study on fieldbus technology architecture, wiring, control system and communication
network. From the testing, Foundation Fieldbus system for Emerson Host is found to
be interopembility which means the system can communicate not just within it self
but also with instruments from other vendors. The results of the testing are discussed
briefly in Chapter 4.


Aims Hydrogeomorphic processes operating at watershed, process zone and site scales influence the distribution of riparian vegetation. However, most studies examining the relationships between hydrogeomorphic processes and riparian vegetation are conducted at site scales. We quantified the relative importance of watershed, process zone and site geomorphic characteristics for predicting riparian plant community types and plant species abundances in four small mountain watersheds in central Nevada, USA. Methods We mapped riparian vegetation types and identified process zones (based on dominant geomorphic process and valley fill material) within the watersheds. We sampled sites in each combination of vegetation type and process zone (n = 184 sites) and collected data on watershed scale factors, valley and stream geomorphic characteristics and on plant cover of each geomorphic surface. Plant community types were defined by cluster and indicator species analyses of plant cover data, and related to geomorphic variables using ordination analysis (nonmetric multidimensional scaling). Linear mixed effects models were used to predict abundances of indicator species. Important Findings Variables describing position in the watershed (elevation, contributing area) that are related to gradients of temperature, moisture and stream discharge were of primary importance in predicting plant community types. Variables describing local geomorphic setting (valley width, stream gradient, channel sediments, geomor phic surface height) were of secondary importance, but accurately described the geomorphic setting of indicator species. The process zone classification did not include position in the watershed or channel characteristics and only predicted plant community types with unique geomorphic settings. In small mountain watersheds, predicting riparian vegetation distribution requires explicit consideration of scale and geomorphic context within and among water sheds in addition to site variables.


BACKGROUND
The utility of imaging methods to detect iron content in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) and free water imaging in the posterior substantia nigra (pSN) has the potential to be imaging markers for the detection of Parkinson's disease (PD).

OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to compare the discriminative power of above methods, and whether the combination can improve the diagnostic potential of PD.

METHODS
Quantitative susceptibility mapping (QSM) and diffusion-weighted data were obtained from 41 healthy controls (HC), 37 patients with idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD), and 65 patients with PD. Mean QSM values of bilateral SNc and mean isotropic volume fraction (Viso) values of bilateral pSN (mean QSM|Viso values of bilateral SNc|pSN) were separately calculated and compared among the groups.

RESULTS
Mean QSM|Viso values of bilateral SNc|pSN were significantly higher for RBD and PD patients compared to HC and were significantly higher in PD patients than in RBD patients. The power of the mean QSM|Viso values of bilateral SNc|pSN and combined mean QSM and Viso values was 0.873, 0.870, and 0.961 in discriminating PD and HC, 0.779, 0.719, and 0.864 in discriminating RBD from HC, 0.634, 0.636, and 0.689 in discriminating PD and RBD patients.

CONCLUSION
QSM and free water imaging have similar discriminative power in the detection of prodromal and clinical PD, while combination of these two methods increases discriminative power. Our findings suggest that the combination of QSM and free water imaging has the potential to become an imaging marker for the diagnosis of PD.


ABSTRACT The successful performance of a surgical procedure requires the skills of any craftsman. The interaction of the individual with materials and tools must be integrated in a sequence of steps designed to achieve an ultimate functional result. A comprehensive understanding of the materials and their handling characteristics, the proper use of the tools and their effect on the materials, and the goals of each step in the procedure (along with an understanding of subsidiary goals that relate to the ultimate goals of the procedure) must be combined via feedback mechanisms on the materials by the cognitive processes of the craftsman. Practice, routine performance evaluation, and the goals of continuous improvement will decrease the incidence of complications in any procedure but are especially important in the performance of minimally invasive total knee arthroplasty.


probably until the 1760s. These learned clergymen had begun as advocates of a proper correction of texts but wanted to do it in a truly scholarly fashion by collecting the most authentic manuscripts from the Balkans and the middle east, as well as Russia. What they revolted against was that Nikon, instead of relying on such manuscripts, took the latest Greek and Ukrainian books for his models—the former had been published by Roman-Catholic Eastern Rite monks in Venice; the latter, by the latinized Kievan Academy based on Roman Catholic scholasticism. If we look at the so-called Russian Religio-Philosophic Renaissance of the twentieth century, to which undoubtedly belonged Bishops Mikhail and Andrei, its driving elements likewise included the rediscovery of the pre-seventeenth-century Orthodox patristic tradition. The Old Ritualists preserved parts of it, particularly the theologically correct iconography and music, and the defiance of state control of the Church. The problem with the Old Ritualists, however, has been that, having become a sect preoccupied with self-preservation, they have indulged in a ghetto-like self-conservation, precluding any new theological insights, any probings beyond a strict preservation of the ritual. Thus I think that Roy Robson is wrong in his assertion of a "development and spread of the Old Believer movement" in modern times. There was indeed a rather considerable growth among the lower classes; however, as far as the upper rungs of the Old Believer merchants (the founders of Russian capitalism) are concerned, by the early twentieth century most of them were shifting into the regular Orthodox Church or the edinovertsy, the wing of the established Orthodox Church preserving the Old Ritual. As far as our own days are concerned, the Old Ritualist sects have become tiny and show no signs of significant growth, if any. In contrast to the prerevolutionary situation, those in contemporary Russia who are attracted to the Old Ritualists are the most reactionary, are those who worship the ritual in a pagan fashion as aim-initself. They are also retrograde politically and socially. This is logical: for today, since the only theological treasures preserved by the Old Ritualists, the icon and old Church music (the znamenny chant), have been accepted by the regular Orthodox Church, they have nothing to offer but fiveor six-hour-long, repetitious Church services in poorly understood Church Slavonic; whereas the advanced elements in the Orthodox Church are struggling for the use of spoken Russian in place of Church Slavonic.


The Inventory Routing Problem (IRP) is a problem that can be found in distributing goods. It considers the two important aspect such as inventory management and vehicle routing processes. This paper addresses the IRP multi-period, multi-product, and multi-supplier with capacitated homogenous fleet that housed at depot. Products are transport from supplier to assembly plant in finite horizon. The objective of this study is to minimize inventory and travel cost in distribution processes. A two stage algorithm is proposed. In the first stage, the initial solution is obtained using the least cost insertion algorithm. The results are improved in the second stage with a record-to-record travel algorithm that employ the 1-0 and 2-Opt local search. The algorithm is tested using the data sets from the literature and the data is processed using the software program that has been built. The results obtained are good compare to previous research, and the proposed algorithm produce short computational time.


As natural gas continues to gain widespread usage as a source of cleaner and efficient fossil fuel, while greenhouse gas emission is attracting environmental consequences, the need for a viable method to enhance gas recovery and curtail greenhouse gas emissions, is paramount. The technique of injecting CO2 for Enhanced Gas Recovery (EGR) is deemed one of the efficient methods for simultaneously storing man-made CO2 emissions and improving additional natural gas recovery from depleted gas fields, provided that the gas miscibility in situ (mixing) can be reduced. This can be achieved by a better understanding of the mechanisms of displacement and the factors that affect them, hence providing vital information for further studies aimed at a wider and robust field scale application and establish the economic viability of the process. Connate water saturation and salinities are vital properties of the reservoir and their influence on the displacement efficiency cannot be overemphasised. This experimental study determines the effect of connate water salinity, in sandstone samples, on the displacement efficiency during EGR. This study presents the first novel experimental measurement of dispersion of CO2 in CH4 as a function of salinity in consolidated porous media. A laboratory experiment depicting the detailed process of the CO2-CH4 displacement in sandstone core samples at a temperature range of 30-70°C and at a pressure range of 500-2000 psig, was carried in the investigation, at a CO2 injection rate of 0.25 ml/min to evaluate the displacement efficiency. The findings indicated that salinity of the connate water tends to decrease the dispersion of CO2 in CH4 at the stated conditions. This can be attributed to the increase in density of the connate water with increase in salinity, which occupies smaller pore channels within the porous medium. Also, grain diameter measurements were carried out from Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images of the porous media using equivalent circle diameters to establish the characteristic length of mixing of the medium.


Abstract. We describe a new species of Liolaemus of the L. alticolor-bibronii group of the subgenus Liolaemus sensu stricto. Liolaemus bibronii has a large geographic distribution; however, preliminary studies suggest that it comprises a species complex. The new species is phenetically similar to L. bibronii and was confused with this taxon for many years. Nevertheless, the new species presents a combination of character states that clearly differentiate it. Also, the new taxon is distributed far from L. bibronii type locality (ca. 1,600 km). It differs from other species of Liolaemus in presenting a unique color pattern and a combination of morphological character states from lepidosis and morphometry. The new species inhabits pre-Andean localities in Uspallata, Las Heras department, northwest Mendoza Province, and is an insectivorous and oviparous species. With the description of this new taxon, the number of species of the L. alticolor-bibronii group rises to 30, but many populations still remain undescribed.


In this study, we investigate the relationship between stock market price and crude oil market price using Multivariate GARCH type model. We use daily frequency data of stock price indices S&P500 and NASDAQ composite and the prices of one major Crude Oil products, defined as the US price of West Texas Intermediate Cushing (WTI). Our findings provide strong evidence of asymmetries for both NASDAQ and S&P500 price indices; stock market prices rise faster, than they fall, as a reaction to changes in oil prices, after controlling for volatility and price dynamics in a multivariate GARCH context. In other words, adjustment in mean equations is faster in the presence of positive shocks. In addition, we find that volatility shocks are quite persistent and they will have long memory. This study distinguishes itself from the previous studies within the oil and financial literature by not only examining the asymmetric effects of oil prices on stock returns but also applying multivariate GARCH approach in this literature, whilst others use univariate GARCH structure.


The production of parental, hybrid and reconstituted strains of Pleurotus and Lentinula edodes was evaluated using two agricultural wastes such as wheat straw (WS) and a mixture of sawdust, wheat straw, millet seed, cotton seed hull and CaCO3  (AP). The productivity, morphology parameters and chemical composition of the mushrooms, and also the chemical composition of the substrates before and after harvest were determined. The parental strain Pleurotus djamor (PD) produced on WS showed the highest productivity: total weight (239.41 g), biologic efficiency (141.86 %), production rate (1.95 %) and yield (47.88 %). The hybrid strain Pleurotus djamorxLentinula edodes (PD4xLC3) cultivated on AP presented the highest productivity parameters: total weight (213.18 g), biologic efficiency (120.01 %), productivity rate (2.40 %) and yield (41.10 %). All the strains presented fruit bodies with pileus diameter corresponding to Group 2 (5 - 9.9cm) and length of stipe corresponding to Group 1 (˂ 5 cm). The hybrids PO5xLC2 and PD4xLC3 cultivated on WS presented fruit bodies with highest protein content. The chemical composition of the substrates after harvest and the productivity parameters showing a negative correlation indicating that lignin content decreased when the total weight increased using WS as substrate, while the biology efficiency increased when the cellulose content decreased using AP as substrate in the cultivation of mushroom.


We propose a simple and flexible fabrication approach based on the moiré effect of photoresist gratings for rapid synthesis of apodized structures with continuously varying depth. Minor modifications in a standard laser interference lithography setup allow creating macroscopic, visible by naked eye moiré patterns that modulate the depth of subwavelength diffraction gratings. The spatial frequency of this modulation is easily controlled in a wide range, allowing to create a quasicrystal in extreme cases. Experimental results are confirmed by a theory with clear graphical solutions and numerical modeling. The method is universal and does not depend on a specific choice of photoresist and/or substrate materials, making it a promising choice for structured light applications, optical security elements or as a basic structuring method of complex optical devices.


There is a lack of positively charged nanofiltration (NF) membranes which enable the removal of
multivalent cations such as toxic dyes, calcium or heavy metals from industrial effluents. Positively
charged NF membranes are promising to improve both, separation performance and energy
efficiency compared to common separation techniques used. [1] In this study, hybrid inorganicorganic
polyamide NF membranes were synthesized and investigated with respect to their positive
charge behavior. The hybrid and hyper‐crosslinked nature of these membranes offers outstanding
thermal‐mechanical stability. The membranes were synthesized by interfacial polymerization of octaammonium
polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) and isophtaloyl dichloride. For the
polycondensation reaction POSS molecules were activated by converting unreactive ammonium
groups to primary amine groups with addition of sodium hydroxide. The concept was to change the
pH of the POSS solution in the synthesis and study the effect on charge and cross‐linking.
Characterization by attenuated total reflection infrared spectroscopy and x‐ray photoelectron
spectroscopy showed a trend of more positive charges for lower preparation pH and similarly more
cross‐linking for membranes with higher pH values. Streaming Zeta potential measurements showed
isoelectric points around 8 for all membranes; indicating that all synthesized membranes were
positively charged below pH 8 and that a low amount of carboxylic acid groups was present.


The current dissertation tests whether the long-distance subject-verb establishment is maintained active over the course of the sentence, by maintaining morphosyntactic information such as syntactic category and number features. To this end, we looked at how the maintained representation affects the interpolated elements, focusing on two effects that the maintained features might generate: similarity-based interference and disambiguation. We performed four eye-tracking experiments (reading and visual world paradigm) and showed that subject-verb dependency establishment is characterized by active maintenance of the subject?s category feature (English and Spanish experiments) and number feature (Basque experiments). Our effects, which occur prior to the integration site (the verb), can be ascribed to the top-down pre-activation mechanisms and thus syntactic prediction. Importantly, this implies that subject-verb agreement occurs in real-time sentence comprehension, i.e. it is psychologically real.


Fault detection of shorted turns in the stator windings of Induction Motors (IMs) is possible in a variety of ways. As current sensors are usually installed together with the IMs for control and protection purposes, using stator current for fault detection has become a common practice nowadays, as it is much cheaper than installing additional sensors. In this study, stator currents from the healthy and faulty IMs are obtained and analysed via MATLAB® software. The current signatures from healthy and faulty IMs are conditioned using the inbuilt DSP module of the dSPACE prior to analysis using AI techniques. This paper presents a Growing Curvilinear Component Analysis (GCCA) neural network which is able to correctly identify anomalies in the IM and follow the evolution of the stator fault using its current signature, making on-line early fault detection possible.


[en] In-situ bioremediation is as a green and cheap process to clean soils from pollution compared to other techniques which often imply the excavation of soils. Amongst the bacteria used, Rhodococcus erythropolis appears as one of the best candidates for bioaugmentation. In fact, this species forms biofilms and produces biosurfactants to solubilize hydrocarbons, which are consequently more available for this bacterium and the endogenous oil-degrading flora. Moreover, its large genome allows the degradation of various persistent pollutants, such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons or sulfur-containing hydrocarbons. In addition to these benefits, our strain Rhodococcus erythropolis T902.1, isolated from a dried polluted soil, resists to desiccation during industrial process or drought, and maintains its biodegradation capabilities.To test this strain in field conditions, a bioaugmentation experiment at a pilot scale was initiated in partnership with the Department ArGEnCo, Applied Geophysics of the University of Liege. The pilot contains 2 m3 of sand, in which a vertical lens of highly polluted clayey soil (7200 mg of hydrocarbons/g of dry weight) was inserted. During the first three months, 75% of the hydrocarbons content was degraded, whereas a previous biostimulation experiment with KNO3 and H2O2 did not lead to any depletion of the pollutant. This degradation was correlated with the increase of total and specific microorganisms (by a factor 13 and 10 respectively) and the almost complete NO3- consumption (from 50 to nearly 0 mg/L). Furthermore, electrical resistivity tomography images of the contaminated lens also depicted a switch in the bulk conductivity values that does not correspond to the trend followed by the aqueous conductivity. It could be explained by the implementation of the injected bacteria and their production of hydrophobic biosurfactants desorbing hydrocarbons from soil particles. This assumption is strengthened by the fact that low concentrations of hydrocarbons were detected in piezometers downstream of the contaminated area.Further experiments will be carried out at a smaller scale to validate this hypothesis. On the one hand, we are currently designing a protocol to follow the biofilm formation by Rhodococcus erythropolis T902.1 with spectral induced polarization (SIP) signature in sand columns of 1.5 L. On the other hand, the analysis of biosurfactants will be performed in liquid cultures containing diesel oil, to characterize the hydrophobicity developed by the strain in presence of a common but complex pollutant.To conclude, all these characteristics showed by Rhodococcus erythropolis T902.1 make it an ideal candidate for the production of a bioremediation starter to quickly treat hydrocarbons-polluted soils. . Furthermore, the better comprehension of geophysical signatures associated with such a process may lead in the future to use them as a low-cost monitoring tool for a better visualization of active remediation zones.


Epidemiological evidence has demonstrated the association between dietary factors and non-communicable diseases. Great attention has been payed to the Mediterranean dietary pattern, given its richness in anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory molecules. Numerous reports from the SUN (Seguimiento Universidad De Navarra) cohort have shown that higher adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern may be inversely associated with mortality, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. Likewise, a link with mental health outcomes, such as depressive symptoms, cognitive status and quality of life was also found, suggesting its beneficial effects toward brain health.


Although the gulf between the theory and practice in Information Systems is much lamented, few researchers have offered a way forward except through a number of (failed) attempts to develop a single systematic theory for Information Systems. In this paper, we encourage researchers to re-examine the practical consequences of their theoretical arguments. By examining these arguments we may be able to form a number of more rigorous theories of Information Systems, allowing us to draw theory and practice together without undertaking yet another attempt at the holy grail of a single unified systematic theory of Information Systems.


Nowadays, music demands constantly change respectively to listeners' needs. Owing to this fact, old music genres fade into the background. However, traditional music leaves a mark largely imprinted in not only Chinese music, but also world music. Thus, it is important to investigate contribution of traditional Chinese music to the modern European music. Respondents from various Chinese music departments were surveyed to examine the contribution of traditional Chinese culture to various types of contemporary European music. A list of Chinese folk music identification factors was also compiled to better understand the perception of Chinese traditional motifs in contemporary European music. To study this problem, at the first stage of the study a large number of musical works from different European countries was analyzed (the music of such countries as Great Britain, Germany and France was analyzed within the framework of this work). The finding shows that common features of traditional Chinese motifs are domination of monophonic performance, enormous variation of percussion, "contemplative mood", pentatonic scale without semitones, and availability of stringed instruments. In addition, the second step of investigation shed light on the contribution of Chinese tradition music to music of different European countries. In the last stage, tracks in which respondents thought Chinese folk motifs existed were examined by means of a quantitative analysis of musical scores to identify common characteristics (rhythm, skips, and similar melodies). This analysis helped to better understand the main characteristics of Chinese folk music's contribution to contemporary European music. As the analysis showed, regardless of the country to which this or that track belongs, there are common characteristics - the singing of steady steps and the descending melody with a subsequent rise by one tone or semitone. According to the result, British modern music has more Chinese folk motifs (15 from 50 randomly chosen works), whereas German music contains only 9 from 50 works. At the same time, French music has only 1 out of 50 Chinese folk motifs. Also, all respondents were interviewed to determine common adjectives, which help to characterize Chinese folk music. The finding shows that the most popular adjectives are "mesmerizing", "intriguing", "intricate", "calm", "mysterious", "sublime" and "soothing". Obtained results contribute to the research of Chinese traditional music perception and its contribution to European contemporary music. Furthermore, the framework used in this research is new and can be applied in subsequent works in this area of research.


An emissions study for arsenic was conducted at a 300 MW coal-fired plant equipped with an electrostatic precipitator. The input and output streams such as coal, slag, ESP ash, and flue gas containing the post-ESP particulates were collected. Gaseous arsenic was sampled using EPA method 29 and the arsenic concentrations in the samples were measured using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (HG-ICP-AES). The mass balance recovery of arsenic estimated in this study was 87.2%. Arsenic concentration in stack gas was 2.5 microg/m3. Approximately 0.53% of the coal-derived arsenic was incorporated into slag, 84.6% of the arsenic was found on the fly ash collected by electrostatic precipitators, and 2.16% was found in the vapor phase. The relationship between arsenic concentration and ash particle size was also assessed, and arsenic is significantly concentrated in the small sized particles.


Introduced species constitute a critical bio-security issue worldwide and the precise monitoring of their spread is crucial for their management. For species forming cryptic complexes this may remain difficult. Using integrative taxonomy, we formally report for the first time, well-established populations of the cosmopolitan introduced bryozoan Watersipora subatra in the French Mediterranean Sea and compile worldwide existing genetic data for Watersipora species alongside newly acquired data to establish the most complete phylogeny of the genus to date. This revealed pervasive erroneous identifications in Genbank, which in turn perpetrate further errors in recent studies, primarily misidentifying W. subatra as W. subtorquata. High abundance and geographic spread of W. subatra in our Mediterranean sampling sites suggest that this species has been present for some time but has been misidentified until now. We provide an updated species identification for all current reference sequences in the Watersipora genus, which may help future monitoring of W. subatra and other Watersipora species.


The paper is motivated by a series of wind tunnel experiments, which deal with aeroelastic Single Degree of Freedom (SDOF) and Two Degrees of Freedom (TDOF) section models. Most of them can be mathematically expressed by van der Pol-Duffing type equations or their combination. Excitation due to aeroelastic forces consists mostly of a deterministic periodic part and random components, both of them are applied as additive processes. The lock-in state represents an auto-synchronization of the vortex shedding and basic eigen-frequency of the system. This problem seems to be very polymorphous and, therefore, several isolated regimes have been outlined together with their characterization. Parameter setting with solely random excitation is further investigated in the paper. The strategy of stochastic averaging is then employed to formulate normal form of stochastic system for partial amplitudes of harmonic approximates of the response. The random part of excitation is considered as a Gaussian process with significantly variable spectral density. Hence, a conventional way of investigation based on an idea of white noise excitation is no more applicable. Therefore, the general formulation of diffuse and drift coefficients should be used to construct the relevant Fokker-Planck equation (FPE). Semi-analytical solution of FPE is deduced in the exponential form by means of a probability potential. It is later used for stochastic stability investigation together with consideration about the stationary probability distribution existence. Open problems and further research steps are outlined.


The fixed-bed oxygen absorption processes of the series of Ba1−xSrxCo0.8Fe0.2O3−δ oxides were studied by oxygen partial pressure swing absorption in the temperature range of 300–850°C. The results show that SrCo0.8Fe0.2O3−δ, with the smallest A-site ion radius, has the largest oxygen absorption capacity (0.402 mmol/g) at 500°C. The oxygen absorption and desorption kinetics fit well with the pseudo-second-order kinetics model. Comparing the modeling absorption rate coefficient k2 with the desorption rate coefficient k2′, all the oxides studied had higher oxygen absorption rates than oxygen desorption ones. In addition, the combined results of X-ray diffraction analysis, O2-TPD, room temperature iodometric titration, and thermogravimetric analysis explained the relationship between the oxygen absorption capacities and the average radii of the A-site ions for this series of Ba1−xSrxCo0.8Fe0.2O3−δ in the temperature range of 300–600°C. © 2009 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2009


A series of N-substituted acrylamide monomers and the temperature sensitive hydrogels of their copolymer with N, N'-methylene-bis -acrylamide (Bis) have been synthesized. The effects of monomer structures, composition of the initial monomer mixture, polymerization temperature, the extent of ionization of the network and the presence of acid, base, salt or organic compound on the formation and the swelling characteristics of the temperature sensitive hydrogels have been systematically studied. The mechanism of the temperature sensitive phase transformation of the hydrogels was also investigated.


In this paper, a non-traditional variant nonlinear energy sink (NES) is developed for simultaneous vibration suppression and energy harvesting in a broad frequency band. The non-traditional variant NES consists of a cantilever beam attached by a pair of magnets at its free end, a pair of the so-called continuous-contact blocks, and a pair of coils. The beam is placed between the continuous-contact blocks. The constraint of the continuous-contact blocks forces the beam to deflect nonlinearly. Each of the magnet-coil pairs forms an electromagnetic energy harvester. Different from a traditional way that attaches the coils to the primary mass, the developed setup has the coils fixed to the base. First, the developed apparatus is described. Subsequently, the system modeling and parameter identification are addressed. The performance of the apparatus under transient responses is examined by using computer simulation. The results show that the proposed apparatus behaves similarly as the NES with the following features: 1:1 resonance, targeted energy transfer, initial energy dependence, etc.


To study interactions of head and eye during various motor tasks in a clinical environment, a recording system is needed which should be characterized by high precision and reliability. A computer-assisted optoelectronic method based on the SELSPOT system is described. All the equipment was specially designed for neuro-ophthalmologic purposes and fulfills the requirements. A range of programs was developed using several types of signal processing algorithms, allowing simultaneous one-dimensional and two-dimensional representation of motor acts of the head and eye, including separate analysis of slow and rapid movements. Thus, the method is suitable for analyzing physiologic and pathologic mechanisms of complex interactions. The quality of this novel SELSPOT application is demonstrated by recordings made during induced circular movements.


This article exposes the utopian parallels between scientific management and free market environmentalism as institutional paradigms for governing environmental resources. It shows that just as traditional economic analysis of environmental problems often ignores the imperfections of public institutions, the free market environmentalist perspective reflects a comparably naive view of institutions by focusing narrowly and simplistically upon the delineation and enforcement of property rights. A responsible analysis of institutional choice requires consideration of the broad array of actual and potential public institutions and the many checks and balances available for improving and constraining regulators' behavior.


The generation of surface peptide-MHC (pMHC) complexes from virally infected cells is dependant on the degradation of newly synthesized proteins, with the amount of pMHC complexes generated directly correlating with the amount of protein degraded. pMHC complex generation from cells infected with the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes, on the other hand, is not as well understood. While it is known that the generation of pMHC complexes from Listeria-infected cells is dependant on newly synthesized bacterial proteins, it is not known whether the amount of pMHC on the cell surface correlates with the amount of protein degraded. To determine whether there is such a correlation, we generated Listeria strains that produce model recombinant proteins containing the minimal Kb binding peptide SIINFEKL. These recombinant proteins are nearly identical (1 amino acid difference) yet differ in half-life once in the eukaryotic cell cytosol. By changing the half-life of the recombinant protein and then comparing Kb-SIINFEKL generation, we have found that full-length proteins secreted into the host cell generate similar amounts of Kb-SIINFEKL regardless of their protein half-life. These data suggest that full-length proteins secreted into the host cell by Listeria follow distinct processing pathways for the production of pMHC complexes.


Eggleston PA, Butz A, Rand C, et al. Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol. 2005;95:518–524 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY. To conduct a randomized, controlled clinical trial to test the efficacy of home-based methods to reduce environmental pollutants and allergen exposure in the homes of asthmatic children living in an inner city. STUDY POPULATION. One hundred asthmatic children, ranging in age from 6 to 12 years, with physician-diagnosed asthma, current asthma symptoms, and no other chronic lung disease. METHODS. The families were randomly assigned to a treatment group that received intervention immediately (home-based education, cockroach and rodent extermination, mattress and pillow encasings, and a high-efficiency particulate air cleaner) or to a control group that received intervention at the end of the 1-year trial. In the treatment group, 84% received cockroach extermination, 70% received mouse extermination, and 75% used the air cleaner. Outcomes were evaluated against baseline by home evaluation at 6 and 12 months, clinical evaluation at 12 months, and multiple telephone interviews. RESULTS. Home particulate concentrations were lower at both 6 and 12 months in the treatment group. Home levels of particulate matter ≤10 μm declined by up to 39% in the treatment group as compared with an increase in the control group (P < .001), and cockroach-allergen levels decreased by 51% in the treatment group (P = .04). The proportion of symptomatic children increased in the control group and decreased in the treatment group, with significant differences seen at 6 months and later. In addition, children in the treatment group were significantly less likely to report daytime symptoms during the first 9 months compared with those in the control group. However, the mean difference in daytime symptoms over 12 months was only marginally significant (P = .07). Other measures of participant morbidity, such as nighttime symptoms, emergency department use, and spirometry findings, were not significantly changed during the study period. CONCLUSIONS. A tailored program of environmental and behavioral interventions to reduce indoor particulate matter and other relevant allergen levels in low-income, inner-city homes had a modest effect on asthma morbidity. REVIEWER COMMENTS. It is interesting to note that few of the 69% of the households with smokers in them changed smoking habits. Most likely, the environmental-control measures outlined in this article, implemented as part of a more comprehensive treatment plan including smoking cessation, could contribute more significantly to symptom reduction.


In this paper, we present a new computational method for automatically tracing high‐resolution photographs to create expressive line drawings. We define expressive lines as those that convey important edges, shape contours, and large‐scale texture lines that are necessary to accurately depict the overall structure of objects (similar to those found in technical drawings) while still being sparse and artistically pleasing. Given a photograph, our algorithm extracts expressive edges and creates a clean line drawing using a convolutional neural network (CNN). We employ an end‐to‐end trainable fully‐convolutional CNN to learn the model in a data‐driven manner. The model consists of two networks to cope with two sub‐tasks; extracting coarse lines and refining them to be more clean and expressive. To build a model that is optimal for each domain, we construct two new datasets for face/body and manga background. The experimental results qualitatively and quantitatively demonstrate the effectiveness of our model. We further illustrate two practical applications.


OBJECTIVE: Although resection of isolated pulmonary metastases is a common treatment in other primaries such as colon cancer, the role of lung metastasectomy of breast cancer is still unclear. The objective of the present study was to investigate the clinical outcome of our operated patients with isolated pulmonary breast cancer metastases and discuss the clinical implication of resection with curative intent for them. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed 86 female patients with histologically proven isolated pulmonary metastases from breast cancer who were treated with surgery of curative intent between January 1980 and September 2010 at 7 Japanese hospitals. The mean age of them was 50 years, the median disease free interval (DFI) from the definitive surgery for the primary breast cancer was 4.6 years (range: 0.5−20.4 years) and the median follow-up after lung metastasectomy was 4.1 years (range: 0.3−30.9 years). RESULTS: Lung metastasectomy was performed by thoracotomy in 22 patients and by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgical resection in 64 patients. The number of metastatic foci resected was one for 79 patients, two for 6, and unknown for 1. Lymph node resection was performed for 12 patients, was not done for 69, and unknown for 5. Five-year survival rates after lung metastasectomy were 68% in the patients. The main prognostic factor was the DFI. Five-year survival rates for patients with DFI of longer than 2 years (n = 72) and those with DFI of shorter than 2 years (n=14) were 74.5% and 33.8%, respectively (p = 0.0006). Five-year survival rates after lung metastasectomy were 68% in patients without macroscopic residual pulmonary tumor after lung metastasectomy (n = 69) and 34% in those with macroscopic residual tumor (n = 12) (p = 0.023). Five-year disease free survival after lung metastasectomy for patients without macroscopic residual tumor was 51 %. Five-year survival rates were 78% in patient with endocrine hormonal therapy following lung metastasectomy (n = 51) and 53% in those without endocrine hormonal therapy (n = 35) (p = 0.045). No prognostic influence could be demonstrated for age, number of initial axillary node metastases, primary tumor size. CONCLUSION: The prognosis of the breast cancer patients with isolated pulmonary metastases who underwent metastasectomy with curative intent was good. It was affected by the biological aspects of the primary tumor, "curativity" of the resection, and systemic treatments after lung resection. It may be expected that some of those patients will be cured by surgery with curative intent. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2011;71(24 Suppl):Abstract nr P2-15-04.


Introduction: Patients with COPD are often affected by multiple comorbidities, but it remains unclear which comorbidities are more prevalent in COPD. Aims: The present study aims to objectively and prospectively identify those comorbidities which affect patients with COPD more often than others. Methods: Body composition, metabolic, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and psychological co-morbidities were objectively evaluated in 208 COPD patients (FEV1: 49.5 ± 15.8% pred., age: 62.2 ± 7.1 years, current smokers 33.7%), 130 ever-smoker (current smokers 16.2%) and 70 never-smoker controls included in the ICE-Age (Individual COPD Evaluation in relation to Ageing) study. Means were compared by independent T-test. COPD specificity of comorbidities was assessed by binary logistic regression. Results: On average patients with COPD had more comorbidities (5.08 ± 1.86) than ever-smoker (3.52 ± 1.71, p Conclusion: COPD is associated with increased number of comorbidities, due to comorbidities that are specifically related to COPD, while others are not.


Initial control prototyping in power electronics is often a matter of trial and error because of the complicated mathematics involved in modeling systems based on their internal structure. Moreover, in practice, small changes as the introduction of a measurement filter or the change of the sensing system appear all the time. If the controller design method was based on the internal structure of the system, then these small changes would mean a re-iteration through all the cumbersome equations. This paper presents a simple methodology for fast control prototyping based on the approximation of the Bode plots. As prerequisites, a power electronics simulation software as PSIM is needed. The method is presented by taking as a study case the design of a current control loop of a 30kW three phase interleaved DC-DC converter. Simulations are presented for the different considered controllers, and finally the method is validated by experimental results.