In my study, I focus on the events that took place in the short period after the Great War ended (1918) and before the consolidation of Romanian power in the Hungarian-Romanian Border Commission (1922) from the point of view of the artificially created ethnic category: the Satu Mare Swabians or Sathmar Swabians. The historiography related to the "ethnographic" aspects of these events have appeared multiple times and in several contexts and forms in the years since. However, the question of ethnicity has not arisen in relation to the population of German descent, but rather in relation to the Hungarian-speaking Greek Catholic communities of Romanian and Rusyn/Ruthenian origin who were treated by the Romanian side as Magyarized Romanians. Following this example, the Romanians later began to collect data on the Magyarized Germans, which they then presented to the Border Commission. Germans living in the territory witnessed a strong competition between identity politics and discourse supported by rival Hungarian and Romanian states. One of the key features of this rivalry was the intensive propaganda activity promoted by both the Romanian and the Hungarian authorities to gain territories to the detriment of the other.


This study was conducted to estimate the fraction of Intercepted Photosinthetically Active Radiation (fIPAR) in an olive orchard. The method proposed to estimate fIPAR in olive canopies consisted of a coupled radiative transfer model that linked the 3D Forest Light Interaction Model (FLIGHT) and the Orchard Radiation Interception Model (ORIM). This method was used to assess the estimation of instantaneous fIPAR as a function of planting grids, percentage cover, and soil effects. The linked model was tested against field measurements of fIPAR acquired for a commercial olive orchard, where study plots showing a gradient in the canopy structure and percentage cover were selected. High-resolution airborne multispectral imagery was acquired at 10 nm bandwidth and 15-cm spatial resolution, and the reflectance used to calculate vegetation indices from each study site. In addition, simulations of the land surface bidirectional reflectance were conducted to understand the relationships between canopy architecture and fIPAR on typical olive orchard planting patterns. Input parameters used for the canopy model, such as the leaf and soil optical properties, the architecture of the canopy, and sun geometry, were studied in order to assess the effect of these inputs on the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and fIPAR relationships. FLIGHT and ORIM models were independently assessed for fIPAR estimation using structural and ceptometer field data collected from each study site, yielding RMSE values of 0.1 for the FLIGHT model, while the specific olive simulation model by ORIM yielded lower errors (RMSE = 0.05). The reflectance simulations conducted as a function of the orchard architecture confirmed the usefulness of the modeling methods for this heterogeneous olive crop, and the high sensitivity of the NDVI and fIPAR to background, percentage cover, and sun geometry on these heterogeneous orchard canopies. The fIPAR estimations obtained from the airborne imagery through predictive relationships yielded RMSE error values of 0.11 when using FLIGHT to simulate both the canopy reflectance and the fIPAR of the study sites. The coupled FLIGHT+ORIM model yielded better results, obtaining RMSE = 0.05 when using airborne remote sensing imagery to estimate fIPAR.


Several typological universals of sound systems of human language are assumed to be a result of self-organization in a population's communication performance. This has been shown for human vowel system in diverse studies (c.f. de Boer, 2000b; Jäger, 2008). In these studies computational models were designed of agents communicating with single vowel sounds. In our study we present a computational model where agents communicate with concatenations of single sounds forming complex expressions. The goals of this study are i) to examine decisive factors that contribute to the emergence of realistic sound systems in artificial societies of interacting agents, and ii) to discuss ways to evaluate artificially emerged sound systems.


Satellite observations of the oceans have great potential to improve the quality and predictive power of numerical ocean models and are frequently used in model skill assessment as well as data assimilation. In this study we introduce and compare various measures for the quantitative comparison of satellite images and model output that have not been used in this context before. We devised a series of test to compare their performance, including their sensitivity to noise and missing values, which are ubiquitous in satellite images. Our results show that two of our adapted measures, the Adapted Gray Block distance and the entropic distance D2, perform better than the commonly used root mean square error and image correlation.


Oral ulcers are common occurrences in animals for many reasons, including accidental injuries that occur during the consumption of feed or food, and may be bacterial and fungal or viral causes such as foot-and-mouth disease, which is usually accompanied by ulcers in the mouth, udder and foot (FMD), which leads to the animal's abstinence from food and then death so to find ways that solve this problem a pharmaceutical formula had been prepared from extract oils mint, thyme and cloves called it (mint vet). The oils were extracted by water evaporation then examined by GC-MS and attended many formulations until reaching the until reaching the perfect consistency and stability where the pharmaceutical form was white emulsion kept inside a spray bottle given in the form of a mouthwash. The biological test stability was conducted on the product for six months at two temperatures one of them cold degree 4°C and the other is room temperature 25°C to determine the expiration   date and the best storage conditions, it has been compare with stander Gentamicin and Nystatin the inhibition zone of formula was higher than stander inhibition zone, high temperature was avoided because the product contains essential oil, the expiry date was calculated two years and store at less 15°C. The formula has been tasted in veterinary hospitals in Al-Rashedia and Baghdad, the report had proved the efficiency of the mouth wash and there are significant responses, when it's used to treat Foot and Mouth Disease FMD without any side effect.


Eu3+-doped Lu2O3 phosphors typically have an emission wavelength in the red region. The transition of Eu3+ is due to the 5D0 → 7F2 transition at 610 nm. To produce the Lu2O3:Eu3+ phosphors, we used a co-precipitation method with lutetium nitrate hydrate (Lu(NO3)3·6H2O), europium nitrate hydrate (Eu(NO3)3·6H2O) and diethanolamine (C4H11NO2). The phosphors were sintered at temperatures from 1,100 °C to 1,700 °C by using an electric furnace in an air atmosphere. Then, we obtained the luminescence properties of the phosphors, such as emission and excitation spectra, Field-emission scanning electron microscopy images, X-ray diffraction patterns, radiation hardness, etc. Lu2O3:Eu3+ showed the highest efficiency when sintered at 1,600 °C with a 6%Eu3+ concentration. For the radiation hardness test, a 45-MeV, 10-nA proton beam (MC-50 cyclotron at the KIRMS) was used. Three samples were irradiated with the proton beam: 10, 20, and 40 minutes. The total irradiation dose was approximately 105 ∼ 106 Gy. We did not observe any remarkable changes in the intensity of the luminescence or in the range of the emission wavelength. Hence, we conclude that Lu2O3:Eu3+ phosphors are radiation hard.


Hydrogen is a high quality, low polluting fuel, which could replace oil and natural gas for transportation, heating, and power generation. If hydrogen is generated via solar photovoltaic (PV) powered water electrolysis, it would be possible to produce and use energy on a large scale with essentially no greenhouse gas emission and very little local pollution. In previous studies, we investigated some of the implications of projected advances in thin film PV technologies for PV hydrogen production. Here we summarize our findings on the design and economics of PV hydrogen systems, and discuss potential long term applications of PV hydrogen as a transportation fuel for ''zero emissions'' fuel cell vehicles.


The overall aim of the investigation presented has been to design and develop an intelligent planning system for assisting sales engineers and project planners in the preparation of a co-ordinated set of detailed information for a flight simulator, consisting of a product document, master production schedule, product tree structure together with a set of activity, material, time and cost estimates. The first stage of work on PIPPA (professional Intelligent Project Planning Assistant) involved an analysis of the planning function together with the knowledge which is employed during the preparation of a bid, providing the information required for the development of the system's knowledge base. There then followed the development of a prototype product configuration system. The next phase was to acquire additional knowledge from senior sales engineers and project planners from the industrial collaborator. A major strand of recent work has been the development of a range of graphically-oriented interfaces for knowledge engineering, employing modelling techniques such as semantic or associative networks. Further refinements to the knowledge based project model developed for the PIPPA system have involved an analysis of the semantics of the representational system employed to produce the model, particularly with regard to the various 'inclusion relations' for representing engineering structures and systems in a symbolic manner. This has resulted in modifications to the inference engine of the knowledge based system. >


This paper investigates the effects of pre-IPO banking relationships on a firm's IPO. Using a new and unique data set, which compares the firm's pre-IPO banking relationships to the underwriters managing the firm's new issue, I test whether banking relationships established before the firm's IPO ameliorate asymmetric informa tion problems behind high IPO underpricing. The results show that firms with a pre-IPO banking relationship with a prospective underwriter face about 17% lower underpricing than firms without such banking relationships. These results are robust to controlling for the firm's endogenous selection of the pre-IPO banking institution. Copyright 2004 by The American Finance Association.


The sympagic fauna (= ice fauna) of the Barents Sea was investigated on nine different cruises in 1982-1988. Each cruise lasted from two to five weeks. Sampling techniques were based on scuba diving. The abundant sympagic organisms were the polar cod (Boreogadus saida) and the three amphipods Apherusa glacialis, Onisimus sp. and Gammarus wilkitzkii. Mean biomass-values (wet weight) of the invertebrate sympagic fauna ranged from 0 to 2 g/m2. Values above 0.001 g/m2 were not recorded in five of the nine cruises. This is orders of magnitude lower than mean values recorded in multi-year ice north of Svalbard and in the Fram Strait where values between 1-10g/m2 are quite common. Apherusa glacialis seemed to have the best spreading capacity of the three most conspicuous amphipods. Gammarus wilkitzkii was most dependent on a passive transport with the ice. Sympagic amphipods play an important part in a food chain from microalgae to polar cod and marine birds in areas covered with ice, especially in areas with multi-year ice.


MEMBERS OF the public are invited to nominate a nurse, midwife, health visitor or healthcare assistant who they feel deserves thanks for the care they have given. The Claire Rayner Patient's Choice Award 2011 is part of the Nursing Standard Nurse 2011 awards and supported by the Patients Association.


Abstract. On the basis of selected osteological markers, Patterson (1936) identified two pathways (here designated A and B) along which the internal carotid artery in notoungulates was said to travel in order to enter the skull and supply the brain. The existence of these pathways, at least as Patterson defined them, has been disputed but no substantive alternatives have been proposed. Using comparative embryological and morphological evidence based on conditions in extant mammals, we find that pathway A (intratympanic) is not supported. Pathway B (enclosed extratympanic) is supportable, but as far as is now known applies only to a small number of notoungulate taxa. On the basis of new evidence, we propose another route, pathway C, briefly mentioned by Scott (1912) but subsequently ignored, that may apply to the majority of notoungulates. In pathway C (unenclosed extratympanic) the internal carotid passed directly into the endocranium via a naturally unossified area of the basicranium, the piriform fenestra, rather than coursing through or alongside the middle ear in a canal. The absence of a separate, bony carotid foramen on the basicranium's ventral surface may explain the hesitancy of previous workers to consider this routing. There is no evidence that the function of the internal carotid artery was supplanted by another vessel (e.g., external carotid artery) in any notoungulate. Conditions in other major clades of South American native ungulates are poorly investigated, but some clearly differed from notoungulates in carotid patterning, pointing to the existence of substantial intertaxon disparities.


The increasing complexity of systems has enhanced the use of simulation as a decision-support tool. Often, simulation is the only scientific methodology available to practitioners for the analysis of complex systems. However, only a small fraction of the practical benefits of simulation modeling and analysis have reached the potentially large user community because of the relatively high requirement of time, effort and cost needed to build and successfully use simulation models. We describe a model-based approach that seeks to address these problems via the implementation of MODELSIM, a comprehensive modeling and analysis architecture that includes: application of the IDEF3 and IDEF5 methods for simulation modeling and analysis specification; automatic generation of executable component-based simulations from IDEF-based descriptive models; and reusable libraries of modeling components to facilitate rapid configuration of models as needed over extended periods of time.


The electrochromic properties of a polythiophene polyrotaxane film consisting of a polythiophene backbone wrapped by the tetra-cationic cyclophane, cyclobis(paraquat-p-phenylene), were characterized. A naked reference polythiophene film, i.e., polythiophene without tetra-cationic cyclophane, was also characterized. The surface morphology and thickness of the film (L) were observed by atomic force microscopy. The surface of the naked reference polythiophene film has micrometer-scale polythiophene aggregates, which causes the darker color of the film and smaller color contrast in the electrochromic process. The polythiophene polyrotaxane gives a more homogeneous and brighter colored film owing to the suppression of molecular interactions between the polythiophene chains by the tetra-cationic cyclophanes. Potential-step chronoamperometric measurement provided the area density of the oxidizable sites (Γ) and the apparent diffusion coefficient of the charge transport in the film. From linear relationship between L and Γ, the concentrations of the oxidizable sites in the polythiophene polyrotaxane and naked reference polythiophene films were calculated to be 1.3 and 2.4 mmol cm(-3), respectively. Interestingly, the polythiophene polyrotaxane film afforded a significantly larger apparent diffusion coefficient than the naked reference polythiophene film. This result suggests that the rate-determining step of the charge transport is not the electron hopping between the polythiophene chains but the transport of charge-compensating counterions from the solvent into the polythiophene. We believe that the counteranions of the tetra-cationic cyclophane provide a pathway allowing the charge-compensating counteranions to migrate from the solvent to polythiophene. The polythiophene polyrotaxane film showed faster color change than the naked reference polythiophene film in the electrochromic reaction. These results indicate that our polythiophene polyrotaxane is a better electrochromic material than the naked reference polythiophene.


Although trunk compensation during stroke rehabilitation is widely studied, the proposed solutions primarily include a trunk constraint, which has several disadvantages. In this study, we have proposed a haptic feedback-based system for postural training during upper-limb motor rehabilitation. We have tested the proposed system on six healthy people in this preliminary study. Participants performed a simple 1-dimensional reaching task while their posture was being monitored. They received haptic feedback based on their trunk posture. Preliminary results revealed a significant decline in postural error (p<0.05) after the haptic-based training. The reduction in error was maintained even after haptic feedback was turned off. This study shows that haptic feedback could be a viable alternative to the traditional constraint-based methods for postural adaptation. Additional studies need to be conducted to further evaluate the influence of using such feedback strategies.


Gastroenterology and cardiology services are common and costly among Medicare beneficiaries. Episode-based payment, which aims to create incentives for high-quality, low-cost care, has been identified as a promising alternative payment model. This article describes research related to the design of episode-based payment models for ambulatory gastroenterology and cardiology services for possible testing by the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The authors analyzed Medicare claims data to describe the frequency and characteristics of gastroenterology and cardiology index procedures, the practices that delivered index procedures, and the patients that received index procedures. The results of these analyses can help inform CMS decisions about the definition of episodes in an episode-based payment model; payment adjustments for service setting, multiple procedures, or other factors; and eligibility for the payment model.


The present invention aims to expedite the replacement of parts of the processing apparatus of the substrate than the prior art. The present invention consists of a plurality of components, a processing device for a predetermined process for the substrate, and each component, respectively, and the identifiers are attached, part of each component part necessary when placing an order for the components an input unit for inputting a storage unit corresponding to thereby record information on the identifier, the identifier of the component that order, and has a display unit for displaying the part information storing unit corresponding to the input identifier.


The efficiency of partial doses of nitrogen applied to poppy ( Papaver somniferum L.) plants, cv. Opal, was followed in a pot experiment. The ammonium nitrate was applied either in a single dose at the beginning of growing season or in two split doses with the second application at the stage of flowering. With the increasing dose of nitrogen the number of capsules per a plant during the harvest and their volume increased irregularly. The separated application of an optimum dose of N (i.e. 0.9 g N/pot) showed a statistically highly significant positive effect on the yield of poppy seeds compared to the same single dose of N made this figure increased by 25.6%. The morphine content in the capsules in creased with the increasing supply of N from 0.85 to 1.01%. The term of nitrogen application influenced the number of capsules per a plant and their volume and morphine content irregularly.


Cyclophosphamide, a potent alkylating agent, is effective therapy for some rheumatic diseases. Despite primary hepatic activation of the drug, hepatic toxicity has been reported only in one case. We have reported two episodes of hepatic dysfunction associated with oral cyclophosphamide administration in patients with systemic rheumatic diseases.


Agrochemical contamination in groundwater is an increasing problem that poses a significant long term threat to water quality and is of concern for legislators, water utilities and consumers alike. In the dual porosity aquifers common in the UK, movement of pesticides and their metabolites through the unsaturated zone to groundwater is generally considered to be through one of two pathways; a rapid by-pass flow and a slower 'piston-flow' route via the rock matrix. However, the dissolved form or 'colloidal species' in which pesticides move within the water body is poorly understood. Following heavy rainfall, very high peaks in pesticide concentration are often observed in shallow UK aquifers. These concentrations might be well explained by colloidal transport of pesticides.

We have sampled a Chalk groundwater beneath a deep (30 m) unsaturated zone known to be contaminated with the pesticide diuron. Using a tangential flow filtration technique we have produced colloidal fractions from 0.45µm to 1kDa. In addition, we have applied agricultural grade diuron to a typical chalk soil and created a soil water suspension which was also subsequently fractionated using the same filtration system. The deep groundwater sample showed no evidence of association between colloidal material and pesticide concentration. In comparison, despite some evidence of particle trapping or sorption to the filters, the soil water clearly showed an association between the <0.45µm and <0.1µm colloidal fractions which displayed higher pesticide concentrations. Degradation products were also observed and found to behave in a similar manner to the parent compound. Although colloids can be generated in the Chalk soil zone, it appears transport to depth in a colloidal-bound form does not occur. Comparison with other field and monitoring studies suggests that rapid by-pass flow is less likely to occur beneath 5 m. Therefore, shallow groundwaters are most at risk from rapid transport of high concentrations of pesticide-colloidal complexes. The presence of a deep unsaturated zone will mean that most of the colloidal-complexes will be filtered by the narrow chalk pores and the majority of pesticide transport will occur in a 'dissolved' form through the more gradual 'piston-flow' route.


Experiments on laser-rock-fluid interactions have been carried out by using pulsed CO and CO2 lasers which irradiated rocks typical for oil field: sandstone, limestone, shale and granite. Energy fluence and laser intensity on rock surface were up to 1.0 kJ/cm2 and 107 W/cm2, respectively. The dependencies of specific energy consumption (i.e. energy per volume needed for rock excavation) on energy fluence, the number of pulses, saturated fluid, rock material and irradiation conditions have been obtained for various rock samples. The dependencies of momentum transferred to the rock on energy fluence for dry rocks and rocks with surface saturated by water or mineral oil have been measured. High-speed photography procedure has been used for analyzing laser plasma plume formation on a rock surface. Infrared spectra of reflectivity and absorption of rocks before and after irradiation have been measured.


Summary Vulture populations are declining steeply worldwide. Vulture 'restaurants' or feeding stations are a tool for maintaining and monitoring numbers, but individual species may be disadvantaged by the effects of carcass distribution, carcass size and interspecific aggression. To test the degree to which restaurants give opportunities for each species to access the food provided, we studied behaviour and morphology in three Critically Endangered species of vulture in Cambodia: the gregariously breeding and feeding White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalensis and Slender-billed Vulture G. tenuirostris, and the solitary Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus. We video-recorded attendance time, attendance order and dominance behaviour at different-sized carcasses. Interspecific aggression at carcasses was least frequently shown by the 'small' White-rumped Vulture. The relatively 'large' Slender-billed and 'medium' Red-headed Vultures showed aggression more regularly and at similar levels. However, the latter avoids conflict by waiting until Gyps vultures are no longer crowding at the carcass, although its arrival at carcasses was correlated with total number of vultures present. While more numerous than Red-headed, the two Gyps vultures are more dependent on large carcasses, which increases their vulnerability to further declines in wild large ungulate species. Body size, number of individuals, hunger levels and carcass size and availability all influence carcass attendance behaviour. An increase in the number and spatial distribution of restaurants as well as of carcass size range could boost numbers of all vulture species.


This paper presents the theory, development, and results for a temperature sensing system that employs a wireless sensor with powering and communications based on inductive coupling. The theory of inductive coupling is presented along with a methodology that has been developed to determine the system elements in order to fulfill communication range and bandwidth requirements in a certain class of applications. A miniaturized wireless sensor was built (volume 3.2 cm3), and the whole system was validated by means of an experiment where the sensor was immersed in a water bath, in which the temperature was varied during 69 h in a cycle covering a span of 30°C. Measurements had a high correlation with an accurate reference thermometer. It is shown that the interruption of the radio frequency (RF) field during the measurements is a useful method to improving the measurement quality. In the course of the validation experiment, this method reduced the standard deviation of the measures up 0.01°C.


The service history of medium-voltage power cables on the US plant sites of a major industrial manufacturer from 1961 through 1990 is summarized. In past years this company tended to be reactive, using specifications, diagnostic testing, and maintenance practices to manage the reliability of their cable distribution systems. Several new technologies in insulation systems, terminations, splices, and installation techniques, introduced in recent years, have allowed a more proactive stance to be taken. In addition, because of some specific failure problems, a highly qualified in-house team has been formed to evaluate existing and future technologies and new insulation materials to assure a reliable cable system. It is concluded that the combination of materials and engineering technology has brought a new dimension to the process of installing and maintaining reliable cable systems.<<ETX>>


The efficacy and safety of recombinant alpha-interferon (IFN) therapy for chronic hepatitis C (CHC) was assessed in 57 HIV-infected individuals with CD4+ T cells above 200/mm3 and compared to the response obtained in 21 HIV-negative patients with CHC. IFN 5 megaU was given three times a week subcutaneously for 3 months. In responding patients, IFN 3 megaU three times a week was additionally administered for 9 months. After 8 months follow-up in HIV-infected patients, 38% (22/57) achieved normal (complete response, CR) alanine aminotransferase (ALT) values. Partial response (PR) was seen in 21% (12/57), and 40% (23/57) did not respond. Patients with CD4+ cells above 500/mm3 achieved CR in 58% (14/24) of cases compared to 24% (8/33) among those having a lower CD4+ count (P < 0.01). Females attained CR in 60% (9/15) of cases, and men in only 30.9% (13/42) (P < 0.01). No serious side effects or opportunistic infections were observed during the study period. However, three (5.2%) patients showed a dramatic fall in total CD4+ T cell count after beginning IFN therapy. Among 21 HIV-negative patients, after 8 months follow-up, CR was achieved in 10 (47%), PR in four (19%), and seven (33%) did not respond. We concluded that IFN therapy seems to be well tolerated and useful in HIV-infected patients suffering CHC. The rate of CR was not significantly different compared to that observed in HIV-negative patients (38% vs. 47%), relative risk (RR) = 0.67 (0.19-2.37).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security suggests three plans for reforming Social Security. These plans divert various amounts of the payroll tax to a personal account if the worker chooses to participate in the account. In return, Social Security benefits are offset using accounts with real returns ranging from 2% to 3.5%. In addition, the second and third plans proposed by the Commission include features that are designed to balance the finances of the system by reducing the rate of growth of benefits relative to the levels prescribed under current law, to make the system more redistributive, and to make other changes. The measures to increase redistribution and resolve the solvency of the system are relatively separate from the personal accounts. When 'personal accounts' are mentioned, most people think of accounts that are in some sense separate and shielded from the uncertainties of the Social Security system. That is not the case for the personal accounts proposed by the Commission. Because the participating individual is not entitled to the principal in the account, participating in the account does not shield the individual from the political risks of being in the Social Security system. The offset to the plan essentially taxes away the principal in the account, but leaves intact the full Social Security benefit, so that any change in retirement income due to the account reflects the difference in interest earned on the portfolio beyond a stated real rate of interest offset. Thus our analysis describes the account as a financial instrument equivalent to a bet that the real return will exceed the level of offset specified in the plan, ranging from 2 percent to 3.5 percent real. As a result, the reduction in political risk fostered by the Commission's proposals comes mainly from the improvement in the financial status of the system fostered by other provisions of the recommended plans. Measures to improve the benefits of low income individuals, widows and widowers and to enhance the rewards to retirement all create incentive effects that are also discussed in the paper.


The complex trans-[Pt(F)(SF3 )(PCy3 )2 ] (1) shows a diverse reactivity pattern at the SF3 ligand towards ethanol and Me3 SiOEt. This led by deoxyfluorination or alcoholysis to the generation of platinum complexes bearing a metal-bound S(O)F or S(OEt)2 group. For the latter reaction trans-[Pt(F){S(F)(OEt)2 }(PCy3 )2 ] is suggested as an intermediate. In reactivity studies of trans-[Pt(F)(SF2 )(PCy3 )2 ][BF4 ] the complex [Pt(F){S(F)(OEt)}(PCy3 )2 ][BF4 ] was prepared, which does not react with ethanol.


The influence of feed allowance during rearing was investigated in male-line Large White breeder hens. A flock of 200 poults was reared from 4 to 28 wk of age under four treatments as follows: full-fed controls (FF), low-protein diet (12% CP from 12 to 28 wk; LP), and reduced BW (10 or 20% lower BW than FF; R10 and R20). At photostimulation (28 wk), all birds consumed a commercial breeder diet ad libitum for the remainder of the study (48 wk of age). Body weight differed among treatments during most of rearing. The LP birds were similar in BW to the R10 birds at 28 wk of age. By 40 wk of age, growth curves of all treatments became similar, with the R20 group having lower BW. Feed restriction reduced frame size during rearing. Flock uniformity in the R10 and R20 treatment hens was reduced during rearing, but improved early in the breeder period. Feed restriction reduced breast muscle and abdominal fat pad weight early in lay, except for the LP group. Liver lipid content increased throughout the breeder period. Changes in liver weight followed the pattern of BW changes. Total carcass protein content changes in time reflected breast muscle mass changes. In R20 hens, carcass lipid content was reduced and protein content increased. Sexual maturity was delayed in the R20 hens. Body weight at first egg was negatively correlated with settable egg production (r = -.37, P < or = .0015). The R20 treatment is recommended for male-line turkey breeder hen candidates during rearing.


Background To explore the effect of paroxetine combined with probiotics in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus with gastrointestinal dysfunction and liver cancer and its effect on nutritional status. Materials and Methods 96 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus combined with gastrointestinal dysfunction and liver cancer were selected as subjects from March 2018 to March 2021. They were randomly divided into control group and observation group, with 48 cases in each group. The control group was treated with probiotics, and the observation group was combined with paroxetine on the basis of the control group. After 4 weeks of treatment, the gastrointestinal mucosal function, nutritional status, Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD) and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) score, and the safety were compared between the two groups. Results The levels of D-lactic acid, PCT, and endotoxin in the observation group were (1.75 ± 0.38), (4.39 ± 0.79), and (0.20 ± 0.06), respectively, which were significantly lower than those in the control group (2.69 ± 0.46), (7.84 ± 1.32), and (0.29 ± 0.08) (P < 0.05). Moreover, the nutritional status TP, ALB, Hb, PA, and TLC levels of the observation group were higher than those of the control group (P < 0.05). The HAMA and HAMD scores in the observation group were (5.76 ± 1.06) and (8.94 ± 1.26), respectively, which were significantly lower than those in the control group (10.69 ± 2.21) and (13.42 ± 2.34) (P < 0.05). However, there was no statistical significance in the incidence of nausea and vomiting, blurred vision, chest arthralgia, palpitation, anaesthesia, dizziness, and drowsiness between the two groups (P > 0.05). Conclusions Paroxetine combined with probiotics could help to improve the gastrointestinal mucosal function of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with gastrointestinal dysfunction and liver cancer, improve the nutritional status of patients, and reduce anxiety and depression, and the drug was safe and worthy of promotion and application.


Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is a tumor that is uncommon in children and adolescents. Presenting symptoms may be subtle and may include epistaxis, neck pain, hearing impairment, otorrhea, rhinorrhea, and, most likely, painless cervical adenopathy. The tumor is curable, but late diagnosis makes this possibility much less likely. Diagnosis of this tumor requires a high index of suspicion on the part of clinicians treating the pediatric population.


This paper presents a thermal flow sensor based on the calorimetric principle realized by using low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) technology, where the tapes and flow channel have been structured by laser machining. A standard configuration of a calorimetric sensor consists of a heater placed above the flow channel and temperature sensitive elements arranged symmetrically downstream and upstream. The temperature difference between temperature sensitive elements (at the upstream and downstream position) acts as a measure of flow velocity. The structure and the characteristic of the sensor are demonstrated.


A reusable cinchona alkaloid derivative ligand, which could be easily synthesized by two step transformation with cheap 3,6-dichloropyridazine and quinine as materials, was applied to homogeneous asymmetric dihydroxylation of olefins with NMO as co-oxidant in Me2CO-H20 system and the products could be extracted with Et2O from the recyclable catalyst system. 80%---93% yield and 51%-99% ee have been obtained. When trans-stilbene was chosen as the substrate for recycling experiment, 88%-92% yield and >99% ee have been obtained for ten recycles.


The fast transmission rate of COVID-19 worldwide has made this virus the most important challenge of year 2020. Many mitigation policies have been imposed by the governments at different regional levels (country, state, county, and city) to stop the spread of this virus. Quantifying the effect of such mitigation strategies on the transmission and recovery rates, and predicting the rate of new daily cases are two crucial tasks. In this paper, we propose a hybrid modeling framework which not only accounts for such policies but also utilizes the spatial and temporal information to characterize the pattern of COVID-19 progression. Specifically, a piecewise susceptible-infected-recovered (SIR) model is developed while the dates at which the transmission/recover rates change significantly are defined as "break points" in this model. A novel and data-driven algorithm is designed to locate the break points using ideas from fused lasso and thresholding. In order to enhance the forecasting power and to describe additional temporal dependence among the daily number of cases, this model is further coupled with spatial smoothing covariates and vector auto-regressive (VAR) model. The proposed model is applied to several U.S. states and counties, and the results confirm the effect of  "stay-at-home orders" and some states' early "re-openings" by detecting break points close to such events. Further, the model provided satisfactory short-term forecasts of the number of new daily cases at regional levels by utilizing the estimated spatio-temporal covariance structures. They were also better or on par with other proposed models in the literature, including flexible deep learning ones. Finally, selected theoretical results and empirical performance of the proposed methodology on synthetic data are reported which justify the good performance of the proposed method.


ABSTRACT Brain barrier is effective barrier in drug delivery to brain. For effectiveness drug delivery need be desaigned a delivery with nanoparticle technology. Nanoparticles are solid colloidal particles ranging in size from 1 to 1000 nm that are utilized as drug delivery agents. The primary advantages of nanoparticle carrier technology is that nanoparticles mask the blood – brain barrier limiting characteristics of the therapeutic drug molecule. Furthermore, this system may slow drug release in the brain, decreasing peripheral toxicity. The method which elaboration in manufacture nanoparticles are emulsion polimerization, interfacial polimerization, desolvation evaporation and solvent deposition. Currently, report evaluating nanoparticles for brain delivery have studied anesthetic and chemoterapeutic agent. These studies are reviewed for efficacy and mechanisms of transport. Physiological factors such as phagocytic activity of the reticuloendothelial system and protein opsonization may limit the amount of brain delivered drug. Nanoparticle technology appears to have significant promise in delivering therapeutic molecules across the blood-brain barrier. Key Word : Drug Delivery System, Nanoparticle, Blood-Brain Barrier


Leprosy is a disabling chronic infection, with insidious onset that often evades early detection. In order to detect new leprosy cases in a timely manner, we conducted surveillance visits in some difficult-to-reach mountain areas in South West China where the disease is still prevalent. Our data confirm that Chinese multibacillary (MB) leprosy patients have strong antibody responses against Mycobacterium leprae antigens ND-O-BSA and LID-1. Contacts of clinically diagnosed patients were then monitored at regular intervals by both physical examinations and the laboratory determination of antibody responses in sera collected during these examinations. Elevations in antibody titers indicated the onset of MB leprosy in one of the contacts, and diagnosis was subsequently confirmed on physical examination. Our data indicate that rising antibody titers can be used as a trigger for physical examination or increased monitoring of particular individuals in order to provide early leprosy diagnosis.


Solid particle erosion has been a long-standing concern in oil-and-gas production and transportation systems, particularly in elbows of pipelines. Since it is difficult to exactly reproduce field conditions in the laboratory to study erosion, it is necessary to develop similarity criteria which ensure that lab results are representative of field conditions. Building on a previous work by the authors on similarity criteria that cover flow-field properties and particle-following behavior in gas and gas-mist flows, this work adds a similarity criterion for particle-rebounding and target material hardness. This new expanded set of criteria is validated using computational fluid dynamics by mapping five classic model tests to field cases—at different pipe diameters and pressures, with duplex stainless steel as the target material—and then comparing dimensionless maximum penetration rates and their angular locations. The analysis of errors demonstrates that the proposed criteria perform well in mapping laboratory data to field conditions.


Abstract:  Two oral antifungal agents, griseofulvin and terbinafine, have regulatory approval in the United States, but it is unknown whether one has superior overall efficacy. Genus‐specific differences in efficacy are believed to exist for the two agents. It is not clear at what doses and durations of treatment these differences apply. The goals of this meta‐analysis were to determine whether a statistically significant difference in efficacy exists between these agents at a given dose and duration of each in tinea capitis infections overall and to determine whether a genus‐specific difference in efficacy exists for these two treatments at a given dose and duration of each. We performed a literature search for clinically and methodologically similar randomized controlled trials comparing 8 weeks of griseofulvin (6.25–12.5 mg/kg/day) to 4 weeks of terbinafine (3.125–6.25 mg/kg/day) in the treatment of tinea capitis. A meta‐analysis was performed using the Mantel–Haenszel method and random effects model; results were expressed as odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. Meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials did not show a significant difference in the overall efficacy of the two drugs at the doses specified, but specific efficacy differences were observed based on the infectious species. For tinea capitis caused by Microsporum spp., griseofulvin is superior (p = 0.04), whereas terbinafine is superior for Trichophyton spp. infection (p = 0.04). Our results support species‐specific differences in treatment efficacy between griseofulvin and terbinafine and provide a clinical context in which this knowledge may be applied.


Viterbi (1964) has given ratios (SNRs) after demodulation in digital lower bounds on maximum signal-to-noise communication systems. He computes the SNRs according to Yates-Fish and Fitch, and Mayer (his references [7] and [8]), namely, the signal energy as the variance of the signal in the absence of channel noise; the noise energy as the variance of the difference between the signal actually demodulated (perturbed by noise) and the desired output (as received in the absence of noise). This communication is intended to give another possible definition of SNR, which has been previously used by Battail (1962 & 1964) and looks more realistic from a certain point of view. Pointing out and discussing the discrepancy of both definitions involves, in fact, basic problems, which are of interest for digital, and even analog, communication systems.


The main purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between audit firm tenure and auditor reporting quality in Malaysia. This study employs well-established going concern model of logistic regression. Our findings show that audit firm tenure is positively significant relationship with auditor reporting quality. Future research should consider other importance variables that may affect the auditor reporting quality such as non-audit services, and audit partner tenure. However, in sum, this study is in line with the recent decision by the regulators not to regulate a mandatory audit firm rotation in Malaysia. This study provides a very importance implication and as a cornerstone to the regulators and policy makers in a developing country as the issue continues to be strong interest among them in improving the auditor independence.


Organic semiconductors have many favourable and plastic-like optical properties that are promising for the development of low energy consuming laser devices. Although optically-pumped organic semiconductor lasers have been demonstrated since the early days of lasers, electrically-driven organic lasers have not been realized and have become one of the greatest challenges in the fields of physics, chemistry and materials science. This article highlights the recent progress in the development of electroluminescent devices, as well as new types of materials with the aim of realizing the first electrically-driven organic semiconductor laser.


We investigate the informativeness of dividends and franking credits with respect to earnings persistence. We find strong evidence that dividend paying firms have more persistent earnings than non-dividend paying firms. Firms that pay franked dividends have significantly more persistent earnings than firms that pay unfranked dividends. Consistent with higher levels of franking identifying more mature firms, fully franked dividend paying firms have significantly less persistent losses than firms that pay partially franked dividends. Market pricing tests show that investors do rationally price earnings persistence once we control for profit compared with loss observations. Our results are robust to alternative model specifications and controlling for dividend size and firm age.


This artifact is related to our Research Track paper that is accepted at ICSME 2019 [1]. Metamorphic relations (MRs) describe the invariant relationships between program inputs and outputs. We propose AutoMR, a novel method for systematically inferring and cleansing MRs. AutoMR can discover various types of equality and inequality MRs through a search method (particle swarm optimization). It also employs matrix singular-value decomposition and constraint solving techniques to remove the redundant MRs in the search results. Our experiments on 37 numerical programs show that AutoMR can effectively infer accurate and succinct MRs and outperform the state-of-the-art method. Furthermore, we show that the discovered MRs have high fault detection ability in mutation testing and differential testing.


MIMO capacity of waveguide and cavity channels is analyzed in details in this paper. The rationale for this is three-fold: (i) waveguide/cavity models can be used to model corridors, tunnels and other confined space channels, (ii) this is a canonical problem; its analysis allows to develop appropriate techniques, which can be further used for more complex problems, (iii) it allows to shed light on the relation between information theory and electromagnetism and, in particular, to establish the limits imposed by the laws of electromagnetism on achievable channel capacity. It is demonstrated that the number of degrees of freedom of the electromagnetic field inside of waveguides, which can be used for MIMO communication, is determined by the waveguide cross-sectional area expressed in terms of the wavelength. A system architecture is proposed, which allows using these degrees of freedom.


The properties of a stationary massive string endowed with intrinsic angular momentum are investigated. The spacetime is generated by an "improper" time translation combined with uniform rotation. The mass per unit length of the string is proportional to the angular velocity ω. The spacetime is Minkowskian geometrically but the topology is nontrivial thanks to the event horizon located on the surface r = 0 (similar with Rindler's spacetime) and the deficit angle generated by rotation. The Sagnac time delay is calculated. It proves to be nonvanishing even when ω = 0 due to the intrinsic spin of the string.


Strategic Objectives:

E1. Increase the participation of women in conflict resolution at decision making levels and protect women living in situations of armed and other conflict or
under foreign occupation.

E2. Reduce excessive military expenditures and control the availability of armaments.

E3. Promote non-violent forms of conflict resolution and reduce the incidence of human rights abuse in conflict situations.

E4. Promote women's contribution to fostering a culture of peace.

E5. Provide protection, assistance and training to refugee women, other displaced women in need of international protection and internally displaced women.

E6. Provide assistance to the women of the colonies and non-self governing territories


A graphic simulator can be a useful tool for planning gaits or dynamic behaviors to a walking pet robot. Microsoft describes robotics developer studio (MSRDS) as an end-to-end robotics development platform including simulation engine based on dynamics. In this paper, we propose a pet robot simulator (PRS), based on MSRDS, which supports interactively controlled two walking robots connected over network. To be pet robot simulator, modeling a commercial pet robot is performed and gait planning is also implemented. By using concurrency and coordination runtime (CCR) and decentralized software services (DSS) of MSRDS software platform, we connect two robots which are displayed together but controlled separately over network. The two walking pet robots can be simulated interactively by joysticks. It seems to be an internet game for pet robots.


A flat complex vector bundle (E,D) on a compact Riemannian manifold (X,g) is stable (resp. polystable) in the sense of Corlette [C] if it has no D-invariant subbundle (resp. if it is the D-invariant direct sum of stable subbundles). It has been shown in [C] that the polystability of (E,D) in this sense is equivalent to the existence of a so-called harmonic metric in E. In this paper we consider flat complex vector bundles on compact Hermitian manifolds (X,g). We propose new notions of g-(poly-)stability of such bundles, and of g-Einstein metrics in them; these notions coincide with (poly-)stability and harmonicity in the sense of Corlette if g is a K\"ahler metric, but are different in general. Our main result is that the g-polystability in our sense is equivalent to the existence of a g-Hermitian-Einstein metric. Our notion of a g-Einstein metric in a flat bundle is motivated by a correspondence between flat bundles and Higgs bundles over compact surfaces, analogous to the correspondence in the case of K\"ahler manifolds [S1], [S2], [S3].
1991 Mathematics Subject Classification: 53C07


The interest for various multimedia services accessed via the Internet has been growing immensely along with the bandwidth available. A similar development has emerged in the 3G mobile network. The focus of this master thesis is on the speech/audio part of a 3G multimedia application. The purpose has been to implement a traffic generating tool that can measure QoS (Quality of Service) in 3G networks. The application is compliant to the 3G standards, i.e. it uses AMR (Adaptive Multi Rate), SIP (Session Initiation Protocol) and RTP (Real Time Transport Protocol). AMR is a speech compression algorithm with the special feature that it can compress speech into several different bitrates. SIP signalling is used so that different applications can agree on how to communicate. RTP carries the speech frames over the network, in order to provide features that are necessary for media/multimedia applications. Issues like perception of audio and QoS related parameters is also discussed, from the perspective of users and developers.


The simulation of rolling texture with "minimum shear principle" and the strengthening of cube recrystallization texture by inhomogeneous rolling, low strain deformation and multistage annealing, of the formation and evolution of texture in high purity Al were presented. The plastic anisotropy of crystalline materials were also summarized, including determination of the co yield surfaces and condition of slipping as well as mechanical twinning, prediction of plastic anisotropy of deep drawing with modified Tuckers method, evolution of earing behavior of Al alloy sheets for deep drawing with CMTP approach, and construction of texture balance design and some technologies to suppress plastic anisotropy in practical production.


In the 1980's and 1990's many African countries liberalised their trade policy, although since the mid 1990s there are countries that did not alter tariffs. This allows us to analyse the effects of trade liberalisation on the change in imports using Difference-inDifferences techniques that allow us to evaluate the impact on imports of trade liberalisation at the general and sector-specific level. During the period of study (19962004), Algeria (in 1997), Ethiopia (2001), Egypt (1998), Tanzania (2000) and Uganda (2000) all liberalised their tariffs. These countries act as a 'treatment' group. In comparison, Cameroon, Gabon and Madagascar all left their tariffs unchanged. These countries act as our 'control' group or counterfactual. We compare the effects on imports for liberalising countries relative to non-liberalising countries, controlling for the timing of liberalisation, trends in import capacity (country effects) and in sector imports across countries (product market effects). Overall, using three methods of measuring imports, there is little evidence that suggests imports increased for the treatment group countries relative to the control group countries. This is true at the general and sector-specific levels. JEL Classification:


We use the gravitational instability formation scenario of cometesimals to derive the aggregate size that can be released by the gas pressure from the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko for different heliocentric distances and different volatile ices. To derive the ejected aggregate sizes, we developed a model based on the assumption that the entire heat absorbed by the surface is consumed by the sublimation process of one volatile species. The calculations were performed for the three most prominent volatile materials in comets, namely, H_20 ice, CO_2 ice, and CO ice. We find that the size range of the dust aggregates able to escape from the nucleus into space widens when the comet approaches the Sun and narrows with increasing heliocentric distance, because the tensile strength of the aggregates decreases with increasing aggregate size. The activity of CO ice in comparison to H_20 ice is capable to detach aggregates smaller by approximately one order of magnitude from the surface. As a result of the higher sublimation rate of CO ice, larger aggregates are additionally able to escape from the gravity field of the nucleus. Our model can explain the large grains (ranging from 2 cm to 1 m in radius) in the inner coma of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko that have been observed by the OSIRIS camera at heliocentric distances between 3.4 AU and 3.7 AU. Furthermore, the model predicts the release of decimeter-sized aggregates (trail particles) close to the heliocentric distance at which the gas-driven dust activity vanishes. However, the gas-driven dust activity cannot explain the presence of particles smaller than ~1 mm in the coma because the high tensile strength required to detach these particles from the surface cannot be provided by evaporation of volatile ices. These smaller particles can be produced for instance by spin-up and centrifugal mass loss of ejected larger aggregates.


The current epidemiologic profile of Brazil includes both the diseases of underdevelopment and those associated with modern life. Consequently, the country faces the difficult task of carrying out health promotion and protection activities aimed at controlling communicable diseases as well as noncommunicable chronic diseases (NCDs). This study sought to describe the epidemiologic situation of Brazilian adults with regard to NCDs and to present available data on the quality of care provided for these diseases and their social impact. To these ends, a literature review was conducted for the period 1964-1995--that is, since the beginning of the production and dissemination of data on cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes. Of the 153 bibliographic references that were discovered, 97 were used. The social, political, economic, and health inequities that exist among Brazil's geographic regions are reflected in the national scientific production, which is concentrated in the Southeast and South. Most of the studies based on primary data come from those regions. Information is scarce from the North-east, except the city of Salvador. Therefore, the health profile of adults--including risk factors and morbidity and mortality--can be better delineated for residents of the South and Southeast of the country, whereas for the other regions the necessary information is practically nonexistent. Risk factors linked to life-style are as widespread and important in Brazil as they are in industrialized countries. Prevalence and mortality rates among persons with or without certain socio-environmental risks (such as low level of schooling or unskilled occupations) indicate that NCDs predominate in the lowest social strata. Inter-regional differences in the prevalence of arterial hypertension and diabetes mellitus, the most common fatal cardiovascular causes, and the predominant cancers, as well as morbidity and mortality in both sexes, illustrate the political, social, and economic inequities of development in each region. Comparisons with other countries of the incidence of cardiovascular diseases in a capital in the Northeast or mortality from cardiovascular diseases in the capitals in the South and Southeast show, in the first case, that Salvador has the highest incidence among the Western countries analyzed and, in the second case, that the mortality data rank among the top seven. Cardiovascular diseases and diabetes show increasing trends, with the exception of a small decline for ischemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease in the municipality of São Paulo. Deaths rates in hospitals from specific cardiovascular diseases and avoidable complications of diabetes are high, especially among indigent patients as opposed to private patients. Premature mortality, as measured by productive years of life lost, reflects the poor quality of medical care and the absence of targeted control programs. These data, combined with other sources of information, such as consents for treatment and pensions paid for illness, give some idea of the impact of NCDs on the society. The authors point to the basic research that could be done in all the country's regions to serve as a basis for planning and implementing populational strategies to reduce risk factors and to treat and control chronic noncommunicable diseases in Brazil.


This report presents the results of a survey of electric utilities to determine the fault withstand requirements of a failed distribution surge arrester. Electric utilities were asked to supply the magnitude and duration of the maximum fault current at 0, 1, 2 and 5 miles from the substation. They were also asked questions concerning the failure mode of distribution arresters. Analysis of the utilities response to whether or not corrective action was needed indicates that 47% of utilities felt a need for corrective action withthe porcelain breakage mode. The replies to this questionnaire have resulted in a proposed standard test, titled, "Procedure for Testing the Capability of Distribution Surge Arresters to Withstand Fault Current."


The combination of a carotid-basilar and a vertebro-vertebral collateral circulation was verified directly in a patient with a complete subclavian steal by means of transcranial Doppler ultrasonography. The patient showed permanently reversed blood flow in the basilar artery. The subclavian steal influenced the hemodynamics of the circle of Willis at rest and during functional tests of the collaterally supplied arm. Our investigation provides the first direct experimental evidence of increased blood flow velocity in the carotid artery after decompressing the collaterally supplied arm.


DEMENTIA WITH LEWY BODIES: A CASE REPORT Following the description of Lewy body spectrum disorders by Kosaka in 1980, dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) which was considered as a rare cause of dementia before, is much more frequently recognized. DLB can be considered as being a member of spectrum of disorders which also includes Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. The prevalence of DLB has been estimated between 10-26 % by using clinical diagnosis consensus criteria. DLB presents with cognitive, motor and psychiatric symptoms and most of the patients are elderly. Depression, anxiety and psychotic symptoms which are characterized by hallucinations and persecutory delusions are very common and the clinical presentation routinely includes one of the psychiatric symptoms. The diagnosis and management of DLB must be recognized by psychiatrists by the fact that its prevalence is estimated to be very common among the psychiatrically ill elderly patients. Here we report a DLB case with depressive symptoms and discuss the diagnosis and different diagnosis under the light of current literature.


This paper presents a developed algorithm for optimal placement of thyristor controlled series capacitors (TCSC"s) for enhancing the power system static security and minimizing the system overall power loss. Placing TCSC"s at selected branches requires analysis of the system behavior under all possible contingencies. A selective procedure to determine the locations and settings of the thyristor controlled series capacitors is presented. The locations are determined by evaluating contingency sensitivity index (CSI) for a given power system branch for a given number of contingencies. This criterion is then used to develop branches prioritizing index in order to rank the system branches possible for placement of the thyristor controlled series capacitors. Optimal settings of TCSC"s are determined by the optimization technique of simulated annealing (SA), where settings are chosen to minimize the overall power system losses. The goal of the developed methodology is to enhance power system static security by alleviating/eliminating overloads on the transmission lines and maintaining the voltages at all load buses within their specified limits through the optimal placement and setting of TCSC"s under single and double line outage network contingencies. The proposed algorithm is examined using different IEEE standard test systems to shown its superiority in enhancing the system static security and minimizing the system losses.


Plasmonics can dramatically improve the radiative properties of fluorescent materials by precisely tailoring the local density of states, but has largely been dismissed for practical optoelectronic applications due to losses and lack of scalability to macroscopic areas. Here, we demonstrate a low-loss plasmonic metasurface that can collect fast-modulated light with a 3 dB bandwidth exceeding 14 GHz and a 120o acceptance angle and convert it to a directional source with, to the best of our knowledge, a record-high overall efficiency of ∼30%. This large-area metasurface composed of fluorescent dye coupled to nanopatch antennas, exhibits a 910-fold increase in the overall fluorescence and a 133-fold emission rate enhancement—values previously only observable for isolated, highly optimized single nanostructures. Critical for future applications ranging from optoelectronics to biosensing, this metasurface was created over macroscopic areas with scalable techniques and the performance was validated over centimeter-scale regions. In particular, we believe this approach shows promise for the burgeoning field of visible/near-infrared wireless communications, where radical new designs and materials are needed for ultrafast, efficient, omnidirectional detectors and incoherent sources.


While making investment decisions, investors use different reference points that change their values dynamically. In this paper we investigate the impact of the deviation of the portfolio value from different reference points on the investment activity of participants of the investment game, as measured by the turnover volume during the day. We consider the following reference points: (1) the portfolio value before the previous transaction, (2) the initial portfolio value (3) the highest portfolio value and (4) the lowest portfolio value noticed during the time of the game, (5) the best result and (6) the worst result in the game during the transaction day, and (7) the value of the Warsaw Stock Exchange Index (WIG20). The strongest effects on the investment decisions appear to be the highest and the lowest portfolio value noticed during the time of participation in the game.


Abstract Using the analytical tools of broadening, burrowing and storying and restorying, this narrative inquiry examines a middle school teachers' knowledge of her pedagogical practices through the strand of pearls' metaphor that she employs to explain her teaching to herself, a beginning teacher whom she mentors and ourselves as researchers. Throughout the discussion, careful attention is paid to the pearl metaphor's emergent, novel qualities and how the metaphor is held and expressed in the teacher's unfurling practice. In the final analysis, four significant themes are unpacked: (1) the image of teacher as curriculum maker; (2) the idea of pearls, non-pearls and yellowed pearls; and (3) the concept of metaphors and the nature of metaphorical truth. Finally, a discussion of the veracity of the strand of pearls as way to understand teaching practice concludes the article.


Purpose. Effective Helicobacter pylori eradication requires delivery of the antibiotic locally in the stomach. High dose of amoxicillin (750 to 1000 mg) is difficult to incorporate in floating tablets but can easily be given in liquid dosage form. Keeping the above facts in mind, we made an attempt to develop a new floating in situ gelling system of amoxicillin with increased residence time using sodium alginate as gelling polymer to eradicate H. pylori. Methods. Floating in situ gelling formulations were prepared using sodium alginate, calcium chloride, sodium citrate, hydroxypropyl methyl cellulose K100, and sodium bicarbonate. The prepared formulations were evaluated for solution viscosity, floating lag time, total floating time, and in vitro drug release. The formulation was optimized using a 32 full factorial design. Dissolution data were fitted to various models to ascertain kinetic of drug release. Regression analysis and analysis of variance were performed for dependent variables. Results. All formulations (F 1–F 9) showed floating within 30 s and had total floating time of more than 24 h. All the formulations showed good pourability. It was observed that concentration of sodium alginate and HPMC K100 had significant influence on floating lag time, cumulative percentage drug release in 6 h and 10 h. The batch F 8 was considered optimum since it showed more similarity in drug release (f 2 = 74.38) to the theoretical release profile. Conclusion. Floating in situ gelling system of amoxicillin can be formulated using sodium alginate as a gelling polymer to sustain the drug release for 10 to 12 h with zero-order release kinetics.


The further depolarization of a muon captured in the ls Bohr orbit by hyperfine interaction with a nucleus of spin j is calculated. The main result is that the asymmetry parameters of the decay electrons from the J = j± (cid:9) states are multiplied by respective asymmetry reduction factors . (cid:9)


The Zama area of northwestern Alberta is in the Middle Devonian Black Creek basin. At the beginning of late Elk Point deposition, open-marine conditions prevailed and organic reefs of the Keg River Formation grew to thicknesses of 350 ft. Reef growth was terminated abruptly during a period of uplift and marine regression, and the basin was partly filled with halite of the Black Creek Member of the Muskeg Formation. With the renewal of subsidence, the Black Creek basin ceased to exist and the Zama area became part of the more extensive Elk Point evaporite basin. With two exceptions evaporitic conditions represented by the cyclical anhydrite and dolomite of the Muskeg Formation prevailed through most of the remaining time of Elk Point deposition. During early Muskeg deposition, a well-laminated, nonreef calcarenite, the Zama Member, developed as a shoal over the dormant Keg River reefs, and a second, more widespread nonreef calcarenite, the Bistcho member, was deposited in a final transgressive phase. Deposition of green, brackish-water shale of the Watt Mountain Formation was succeeded by the transgressive limestone sequence of the Slave Point Formation. Contemporaneous solution of the Black Creek salt resulted in thickening of post-Keg River units in reef-flank and offreef positions. Structural draping of the Slave Point, Watt Mountain, and Muskeg Formations across the Keg River reefs reflects the continued removal of Black Creek salt during Late Devonian time. The upper reef member of the Keg River Formation and the Zama Member of the Muskeg Formation are oil bearing. Above full-reef buildups there is no separation between the two reservoirs. In reef-flank positions the Zama Member is separated from the Keg River by a lower anhydrite member of the Muskeg Formation. The Bistcho member of the Muskeg Formation and thin calcarenite units in the Slave Point Formation are gas reservoirs.


Previous data suggest that Salvador, the capital of the State of Bahia, a northeastern
state of Brazil, has the highest prevalence of HTLV infection in blood donors among
Brazilian cities. The aim of this case-control study was to identify the determinants
of risk for HTLV infection among blood donors in the city of Salvador. Between
January 2000 and December 2003, 504 blood donors with positive screening tests
for HTLV infection (unconfirmed prevalence of 0.48%) were invited to participate in
our study. A total of 154 had performed a Western Blot (WB) test, 139 were of which
found to be positive (false positive screening rate 9.9%). Using a standardized
questionnaire, a single interviewer obtained information on demographic, socioeconomical
and educational characteristics, as well as sexual behavior from 91 out
of the 139 positive by WB and from 194 HTLV-negative blood donors. Prevalence of
HTLV infection was 0.48%. Multivariate analysis revealed women (OR 3.79 [1.61-
8.88], p=0.002), low family income* (OR 3.37 [1.17-9.66], p=0.02), self-reported
history of sexual transmitted diseases (OR 6.15 [2.04-18.51], p=0.001), 2 or more
sexual partners during life (OR 9.29 [2.16-39.94], p=0.0020) and inconsistent use
of condoms (OR 4.73 [1.98-11.26], p=0.0004) as risk factors for HTLV infection. In
accordance with previous published data, our results point to an association between
low socio-economical level, poor education and unsafe sexual behavior with HTLV
infection. We observed a lower prevalence of HLTV infection when compared to
previous data


Modeling charge transport in DNA is essential to understand and control the electrical properties and develop DNA-based nanoelectronics. DNA is a fluctuating molecule that exists in a solvent environment, which makes the electron susceptible to decoherence. While knowledge of the Hamiltonian responsible for decoherence will provide a microscopic description, the interactions are complex and methods to calculate decoherence are unclear. One prominent phenomenological model to include decoherence is through fictitious probes that depend on spatially variant scattering rates. However, the built-in energy-independence of the decoherence (E-indep) model overestimates the transmission in the bandgap and washes out distinct features inside the valence or conduction bands. In this study, we introduce a related model where the decoherence rate is energy-dependent (E-dep). This decoherence rate is maximum at energy levels and decays away from these energies. Our results show that the E-dep model allows for exponential transmission decay with the DNA length and maintains features within the bands' transmission spectra. We further demonstrate that we can obtain DNA conductance values within the experimental range. The new model can help study and design nanoelectronics devices that utilize weakly-coupled molecular structures such as DNA.


Rationale Myosin light chain kinase (MLCK), a central cytoskeletal regulator encoded by MYLK gene, regulates muscle contraction, cell migration, endothelial cell–cell adhesion, and barrier function, thereby playing key pathophysiological roles in lung inflammatory diseases. We previously identified that MYLK single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) as well as haplotypes are significantly associated with severe sepsis, acute lung injury and asthma in African Americans (AA) and European Americans (EA). Here we examined genetic and epigenetic regulation of the MYLK promoter as well as the effects of SNPs on MLCK expression and activity, thereby influencing cytoskeletal balance and cell integrity. Methods A series of nested deletions from the ∼2.5 kb putative promoter fragment were fused to luciferase reporter vectors, and transfected into human lung endothelium. We next evaluated the influence of ARDS and asthma associated SNPs on transcription factor (TF) binding and promoter activity. Exon SNP rs2700408 and intronic SNP rs11714297 were associated with ARDS in AA (GWAS) and EA (Gao et al, 2006), respectively. Rs57186134 has high LD with rs936170, one asthma associated SNP in AA (Gao et al, 2007). The DNA fragments containing SNPs were generated by site-directed mutagenesis. Transcription factor binding to the MYLK promoter was detected by protein-DNA electrophoretic mobility shift assay. Genetic regulation of MYLK and influences of disease-associated SNPs from previous studies were measured by luciferase promoter activity assays following challenge with inflammatory factors and mechanical stretch. Results Deletion construct luciferase reporter analysis revealed that the MYLK promoter for nmMLCK contains distal inhibitory and proximal enhancing regulatory regions. Human endothelial cell challenge with either 18% cyclic stretch, demethylation agents (5-Aza), or inflammatory factor TNFα and IL-4 significantly up-regulate MYLK promoter activities (p<0.05). rs2700408 and rs11714297 altered MYLK binding to TFs GCM and ISX, respectively, and two SNPs significantly increased MYLK promoter reporter activities by 1.8- and 1.3-folds, respectively (p<0.05). Rs57186134 interrupted MYLK binding to transcription repressor GFI1, and significantly increased MYLK promoter activity in endothelial cells (p<0.05). Finally, we evaluated MYLK SNP rs78755744 (-261G/A) that resides directly within a CpG island within the MYLK promoter, significantly interrupted demethylating agent 5-aza- induced up-regulation of MYLKpromoter activity (p<0.05). Conclusion These findings suggest that the MYLK gene is transcriptionally regulated by mechanical stress and inflammatory factors, and modulated by SNPs associated with lung inflammatory diseases. These functional insights further strengthen the concept that MYLKcontributes to inflammatory disease susceptibility and represents a molecular target in complex lung disorders.


The vortex matter phase diagram of BSCCO crystals is analyzed by investigating vortex penetration through the surface barrier in the presence of a transport current. The strength of the effective surface barrier, its nonlinearity, and asymmetry are used to identify a possible new ordered phase above the first-order transition. This technique also allows sensitive determination of the depinning temperature. The solid phase below the first-order transition is apparently subdivided into two phases by a vertical line extending from the multicritical point.


Lenin's name has been coupled with that of Marx as the co-founder of the theory of 'Marxism-Leninism'. However, despite his emphasis on the role of revolutionary theory, Lenin's original theoretical contributions to the development of Marxism were very limited. His talents were those of a determined revolutionary, in the populist tradition of Chernyshevsky, and a brilliantly effective propagandist and political organiser. His contribution to 'Marxism-Leninism' was to modify Marxist orthodoxy in such a way as to integrate the political and organisational principles of revolutionary populism into Marxism, on the basis of Plekhanov's 'dialectical materialism', whose distinctive interpretation of Marxism was Lenin's constant guide and inspiration. In this paper I want to argue that Lenin never broke from the theoretical and political traditions of Russian populism, but completed Plekhanov's project by assimilating Marxism to the very different theoretical framework of populism.


A subset of the neurodegenerative disease frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is caused by mutations in the progranulin (GRN) gene. In this issue of the JCI, Marsan and colleagues demonstrate disease-specific transcriptional profiles in multiple glial cell lineages — astrocytes, microglia, and oligodendroglia — that are highly conserved between patients with FTLD-GRN and the widely used Grn–/– mouse model. Additionally, the authors show that Grn–/– astrocytes fail to adequately maintain synapses in both mouse and human models. This study presents a compelling argument for a central role for glia in neurodegeneration and creates a rich resource for extending mechanistic insight into pathophysiology, identifying potential biomarkers, and developing therapeutic approaches.


Extravasation of doxorubicin and its derivative epirubicin, cause severe progressive tissue necrosis that requires early excision of all affected tissues. Doxorubicin and epirubicin are autofluorescent and this characteristic can be used to demonstrate and delineate extravasation by the aid of fluorescence microscopic study. In a rat model doxorubicin was injected intradermally in declining concentrations and the minimal detectable concentration was found to be 0.02 mg/ml. Skin necrosis developed in rats injected with doxorubicin concentrations ranging from 0.02 mg/ml to 2 mg/ml. Clinically, fluorescence microscopic analysis of frozen sections was used in eight patients to assess whether doxorubicin or epirubicin extravasation had taken place. When all fluorescing tissue was removed, no necrosis ensued, but in one patient, where a slightly fluorescing area was ignored, necrosis developed later and excision of the tissue had to be performed.


Using vapor transport equilibration (VTE) technique we succeeded in the fabrication of single-phase γ-LiAlO2 layer on (0001) sapphire substrate. X-ray diffraction indicated that the as-fabricated layer was highly textured with [100] orientation at proper VTE treatment temperature range from 1050°C to 1100°C. The main factors affecting the quality of the γ-LiAlO2 layer were investigated by SEM and transmission spectra. These results reveal the possibility of fabricating γ-LiAlO2 (100)// sapphire (0001) composite substrate for GaN-based epitaxial film by VTE.


The paper describes the development of a MATLAB course as part of a first-year introductory engineering course 'Perspectives of Vehicle Engineering' in the MSc programme in Vehicle Engineering at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Stockholm, Sweden. This course is intended to give core engineering knowledge and experience, and to prepare the students for their studies in engineering mechanics and vehicle engineering. The expectation is that the students, upon completion of the MATLAB course, will have acquired the ability to use MATLAB in later courses in the curriculum where MATLAB is chosen to be the primary computational and visualisation tool. The development work was divided into three parts. The first part contained a preparatory phase in which the work was planned, the purpose and objectives formulated, the course content and implementation planned, and suitable instructional materials identified. The next step was to select a student test group to go through a trial run of the course, using the different options available for instructional materials. The experiences obtained from the test group's efforts, and their results, were the basis for carrying out the first year of regular instruction of the MATLAB course. In the third and final phase of the course development, it was given for the first time as an ordinary part of the curriculum for first-year students in the KTH vehicle engineering program. The results and experiences obtained from that 1st year will serve as a basis for modifications to the MATLAB course to be given in later years.


ABSTRACT OBJECTIVE To analyze the association between race/skin color and the occurrence of prematurity. METHODS Meta-analysis with observational studies, selected by a systematic review in the bibliographic databases Medline and Biblioteca Virtual da Saúde with the descriptors: "Race or ethnic group" and "ethnicity and health" associated with the words "infant premature" and "obstetric labor premature". Articles published in the period from 2010 to 2014, of the observational epidemiological type, in Portuguese, English and Spanish, were included. Articles that did not have abstracts or that were review articles, theses, dissertations, and editorials were excluded. We adopted the relative risk and their respective confidence intervals (95%CI) as measures of effect, obtained through the random effect model and represented by the forest plot type graph. The Egger test and the Newcastle-Ottawa scale, respectively, were used to analyze possible publication biases and the quality of the studies. RESULTS Of the 926 articles identified, 17 were eligible for the study. Of the 17 full texts published, seven were retrospective cohort studies, nine were cross-sectional studies, and one was a case-control study. Except for one study, the others reported a positive association between race/color of skin and prematurity. Compared with full-term newborns, the relative risk of the combined effect in those born preterm was 1.51 (95%CI 1.39-1.69). The funnel chart suggested publication bias. CONCLUSIONS The present meta-analysis indicated a positive association for the risk of prematurity according to race/skin color.


This paper reports on ongoing research investigating more expressive approaches to spatial-temporal trajectory clustering. Spatial-temporal data is increasingly becoming universal as a result of widespread use of GPS and mobile devices, which makes mining and predictive analyses based on trajectories a critical activity in many domains. Trajectory analysis methods based on clustering techniques heavily often rely on a similarity definition to properly provide insights. However, although trajectories are currently described in terms of its two dimensions (space and time), their representation is limited in that it is not expressive enough to capture, in a combined way, the structure of space and time as well as the contextual and semantic trajectory properties. Moreover, the massive amounts of available trajectory data make trajectory mining and analyses very challenging. In this paper, we briefly discuss (i) an improved trajectory representation that takes into consideration space-time structures, context and semantic properties of trajectories; (ii) new forms of relations between the dimensions of a pair of trajectories; and (iii) big data approaches that can be used to develop a novel spatial-temporal clustering framework.


ABSTRACT Low-stress mechanical properties of spacer fabrics are investigated from the six polyester warp-knitted spacer fabrics and have been tested on Kawabata instrument. Three different types of spacer fabrics with a thickness of 2, 3.1 and 4 mm were prepared using three different face layer structures, namely locknit, rhombic mesh and hexagonal net and the influences on fabric properties were studied. The fabric with secured locknit structure and higher fabric thickness shows the high values in the compression, bending and shear properties. However, in case of tensile strength, the fabric of open mesh structure with higher fabric thickness decreases the tensile properties. The 3.1 mm fabric thickness along with hexagonal net structure shows the fine response on compression properties and reasonable effects on the other low-stress mechanical properties.


This paper describes the rural community participation within the context of an integrated early childhood development program initiated by the government of Indonesia in partnership with UNICEF and AusAID in Central Lombok (2008 – 2010). Based on purposive interviews with relevant stakeholders, as well as an analysis of past documents, researchers' involvement, and current policies and practices, both at the local government and rural community levels, the paper draws key good practices for possible application in other similar programs for rural settings.
Central Lombok is situated in West Nusa Tenggara Province, which according to the National Statistics Bureau's 2010 Report, holds the lowest Human Development Index in Indonesia. Among ten districts within the province, Central Lombok has the third lowest index. Rural population, which accounts for more than half of the total district population, contributes to this overall low quality of human development. Over the past five years, rigorous development programs including early childhood education and health have been directed towards rural areas, both in land and around the coasts. The integrated early childhood development partnership targeted a far-south coastal area called Kuta, which the local government endeavours to transform into a major tourism destination.
The partnership program sought to empower early childhood health centres by inserting early childhood education programs for toddlers and their parents. The centres were established by the District Health Office, but irregular DHO's follow up support and lack of community's engagement had caused most centres to a non-functioning status. Throughout the life of the program, community participation was progressively placed at the centre of implementation and monitoring. The partnership drew three key good practices that enabled program ownership and sustainability. The first good practice was rigorous investment in grass root leadership through participatory selection, training, close mentoring, and small incentive scheme. The second good practice was formation of a sub-village cluster system that answered the issues related to distance and unavailability of public transport, and in turn allowed non-costly and more intensive community engagement. The third good practice was facilitating the establishment of a micro cooperative that generated income for the centres' stakeholders, and provided financial support for centres' daily operation. Today, two years after the partnership program concluded, the centres owned fully by the community continue to serve the children of Kuta. Beyond that, District Health and Education Offices have worked together to replicate some components of the program to other rural areas in Central Lombok.


Polyethylene glycol (PEG) and killed Staphylococcus aureus cells (S. aureus) were used as agents to separate free insulin from antibody-bound insulin in diabetic sera. Insulin was determined by conventional double antibody radioimmunoassay. The free insulin values after PEG treatment were almost half of those after S. aureus treatment. The free insulin levels in high-antibody containing sera preincubated at 37 degrees C, 2 h were double the value of fresh sera. PEG treatment caused about 40% loss of total serum protein. The addition of bovine serum albumin (BSA) to the PEG-treated serum greatly increased the immuno-reactive insulin values. This may suggest that protein concentration plays a role in insulin radioimmunoassay. PEG treatment may also enhance the interaction between free insulin and free antibodies resulting in underestimation of free insulin level.


In the last decades, there has been an increased awareness of the importance of neuropsychiatric symptoms in dementia, as they are highly frequent, put a large burden on the caregiver, and often may lead to early institutionalization. Whereas dementia is still principally defined as a cognitive disorders, neuropsychiatric symptoms are now regarded as an intrinsic aspect of dementia and neurodegenerative processes. The question to be addressed here is what neuropsychiatric assessments should be used in long term trials adhering a disease modifying approach to Alzheimer's Disease (AD). An ideal marker should be valid, be measured reliably, be highly sensitive to change, have a clear correlation with the progression of disease, and have a clear relationship with the neuropathological substrate. In addition, the marker should address particularly the early stages of AD, preferably the prodromal predementia stages.


The purpose of this research is to develop an active-control mechanism and its control law, to reduce the deformation of the relief bridge and weight of construction materials and improve the effective span of the bridge. The counter-force (control force) mechanism, provided by Neutral Equilibrium Mechanism, NEM, is applied to exert a counter-force at the selected position of the bridge and maintain the deflection at this selected position to be zero. This proposed NEM is used as a counter-force mechanism, which is an automatic control device consisting of a pair of pressed steel strands, rotary cantilever arm mechanisms, a displacement sensor and a controller to form as a virtual pier. In this study, these proposed counter-force mechanisms are installed at the positions of 1/3 and 2/3 span of the bridge: the effective span is only 1/3 of the original span, the maximum bending moment and maximum deflection is only 1/9 and 1/27 of the original bridge, respectively. The experimental results display that the ideal behavior of this NEM can be fully achieved in the dynamic moving load test. The deflection and the bending moment of the bridge at the position of installing these NEMs are near zero. The goals of reducing deformation and improving the carrying capacity of the bridge are realized.


In this paper, we consider nonparametric finite translation hidden Markov models, or more generally finite translation mixtures with dependent latent variables. We prove that all the parameters of the model are identifiable as soon as the matrix that defines the joint distribution of two consecutive latent variables is non-singular and the translation parameters are distinct. Under this assumption, we provide a consistent estimator of the number of populations, of the translation parameters and of the distribution of two consecutive latent variables, which we prove to be asymptotically normally distributed under mild dependency assumptions. We propose a nonparametric estimator of the unknown translated density. In case the latent variables form a Markov chain, we prove that this estimator is minimax adaptive over regularity classes of densities.


Altered neuromuscular processing and motor output as both a risk and perpetuating factor for chronic neck pain is a relative new area of study. The cervical flexion relaxation response (FRR) is a reproducible and reliable marker of differences in neuromuscular function between neck pain patients and controls. Change in joint position sense (JPS) of upper limb joints has also been linked to chronic neck pain. Studies in this thesis sought to develop an experimental model in humans to investigate whether the FRR and JPS can be altered by fatigue and/or postural stress. Additionally a pilot study on the effect of three months of chiropractic treatment on the FRR was conducted. The studies revealed that muscular fatigue is a modulator of the FRR and may play a large role in spine stabilization. Minor postural alterations in the neck can impact joint position error at the elbow and 12 weeks of chiropractic care is a useful therapy to improve chronic and recurrent neck pain as well as improving the cervical FRR.


From a library of DNA fragments associated with Ultrabithorax protein in vivo, we have isolated nessy, a new Drosophila gene that encodes a putative transmembrane protein conserved in evolution from Caenorhabditis elegans, to human. Zygotic expression occurs transiently in mesectodermal cells at gastrulation, proceeds in mesoderm and endoderm lineages during germ band movements and becomes then restricted to anterior and posterior domains in the visceral mesoderm. The Hox proteins Ultrabithorax, Antennapedia and AbdominalA are likely acting simultaneously to repress nessy in the other parts of the visceral mesoderm. q 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.


Objectives To inform the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic by providing an ongoing analysis of the learning loss and recovery experienced by pupils in England after the cancellation of national statutory assessments. Our aim was to use data from a commercial assessment product linked to large administrative datasets.
Methods We constructed a pupil level dataset of assessments in reading and mathematics. The assessments covered multiple time points in the pandemic period and in the years before. We matched this to the National Pupil Database to give a wide range of pupil characteristics information – including eligibility for free school meals, the area they lived in, and information about their school.
By constructing a regression model of pupil outcomes in the pre-pandemic period, we produced a counterfactual of what we would have expected each pupil to achieve had the pandemic not occurred and hence estimate the extent of learning loss.
Results National lockdowns and restrictions to in-person learning were associated with pupils in England making less progress than normal. By the summer of 2021, learning losses in reading amongst primary-aged pupils amounted to around 0.9 months of learning, and learning losses amongst secondary-aged pupils amounted to around 1.8 months. Learning losses in mathematics were even greater, at 2.8 months. We found that the pandemic's effects were not felt evenly with larger losses for those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and larger losses in parts of the north and midlands than in London and the south. Indeed, by the start of the 2021/22 academic year, results in reading for primary aged pupils in London and the south-west were broadly in line with pre-pandemic levels.
Conclusion The project demonstrated the power of combining commercial products with administrative datasets to shape policy. The analysis informed the government's education response to the pandemic including the targeting of additional support to pupils from low-income backgrounds who, as subsequent national tests have confirmed, were disproportionately affected by the pandemic.


This paper studies regional differences in students' educational performance and inequality in Portugal. Despite the centralized nature of the Portuguese educational system, there are signifi cant differences across regions. We consider fi rstly the role of school and family factors. Results suggest that individual and family backgrounds play an important role in explaining both achievement and inequality. School characteristics are also important but only in terms of performance, while the role of "pure" regional effects is limited. From a policy perspective there is scope for school intervention, namely regarding school organization and teachers' responsibilities. Nevertheless, to target educational inequality, educational policy needs to take into account the schoolfamily-community context and should not focus exclusively on schools.


Abstract More than thirty complete specimens of Carcineretes planetarius Vega, Feldmann, Ocampo, and Pope, 1997, a member of the extinct decapod family Carcineretidae, have been collected from the upper part of the Ocozocuautla Formation in Chiapas, southeast Mexico. Stratigraphic occurrences of Carcineretes in the Caribbean Province suggest that this crab should be regarded as an index fossil for the early Maastrichtian. Six samples of this species may represent individuals that died during molting. The sudden disappearance of this family at the end of the Maastrichtian and its restricted paleobiogeographic distribution in the vicinity of the impact site suggest that the Carcineretidae may have been affected by the Chicxulub impact. Other decapod specimens collected from the same localities were assigned to the Xanthidae; Parazanthopsis meyapaquensis new genus and species, and Megaxantho zoque, new genus and species, are described. They constitute the second and third reports of Cretaceous xanthid crabs from Mexico. A lagoonal paleoenvironment is suggested, based on associated fauna and flora. Occurrences of index species of benthic and planktic foraminifera along with that of diagnostic rudist species confirm an early Maastrichtian age.