We explore the structures immediately surrounding the high-mass young stellar object S140 IRS 3 within the L1204 molecular cloud. We have obtained a bispectrum speckle interferometric K-band image with a resolution of 150 mas and a seeing-limited molecular hydrogen line emission image of IRS 3. Our speckle image resolves IRS 3 into three point sources, a close binary with separation 0:63 00 and a third component 1:3 00 away. A rough assessment of the system stability suggests that the IRS 3 triple system is unstable. Our speckle image also reveals extended diuse emission of very complex morphology around IRS 3. An extended diuse feature north-east of IRS 3 displays a remarkable S-shaped structure. This feature is the innermost part of an at least 15 00 long extended structure, which is pointing towards a bow-shock like patch located 90 00 away from IRS 3. We nd strong H2 line emission associated with this feature, suggesting the presence of shocks, caused by the collision of outflowing material with the ambient medium. The S-shaped structure of this feature can be well reproduced by a model assuming a precessing outflow from IRS 3a. Furthermore, we nd several elongated features pointing away from IRS 3 in a southern direction. Some of these features also exhibit strong H2 line emission, demonstrating that IRS 3 drives outflows in several directions.


We present results for Vela C obtained during the 2012 flight of the Balloon-borne Large Aperture Submillimeter Telescope for Polarimetry. We mapped polarized intensity across almost the entire extent of this giant molecular cloud, in bands centered at 250, 350, and 500 μm. In this initial paper, we show our 500 μm data smoothed to a resolution of 2.′5 (approximately 0.5 pc). We show that the mean level of the fractional polarization p and most of its spatial variations can be accounted for using an empirical three-parameter power-law fit, , where N is the hydrogen column density and S is the polarization-angle dispersion on 0.5 pc scales. The decrease of p with increasing S is expected because changes in the magnetic field direction within the cloud volume sampled by each measurement will lead to cancellation of polarization signals. The decrease of p with increasing N might be caused by the same effect, if magnetic field disorder increases for high column density sightlines. Alternatively, the intrinsic polarization efficiency of the dust grain population might be lower for material along higher density sightlines. We find no significant correlation between N and S. Comparison of observed submillimeter polarization maps with synthetic polarization maps derived from numerical simulations provides a promising method for testing star formation theories. Realistic simulations should allow for the possibility of variable intrinsic polarization efficiency. The measured levels of correlation among p, N, and S provide points of comparison between observations and simulations.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the changes of serum programmed cell death 5 (PDCD5) levels in patients with critical illnesses including systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS, except sepsis), sepsis (except severe sepsis) and severe sepsis.

METHODS
A total of 78 patients were enrolled in this study, of whom, 28 were with SIRS, 23 with sepsis and 27 with severe sepsis. Twenty-two healthy individuals were included as controls. The levels of serum PDCD5 were evaluated by enzyme-linked immune sorbent assay. And the correlation analyses were made in the levels of sreum PDCD5 and acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II(APACHE II), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein(hs-CRP), white blood cell count, neutrophil count and age factors.

RESULTS
Serum PDCD5 levels in the SIRS, sepsis and severe sepsis groups were (19.07 ± 8.91), (29.03 ± 13.27) and (42.83 ± 17.32) μg/L respectively, which were significantly higher than that in the healthy control group (0.32 ± 0.02) μg/L. Serum PDCD5 levels in SIRS, sepsis and severe sepsis groups were gradually increased with significant difference at any in-between comparison (P<0.05). Moreover, serum PDCD5 levels were positively correlated with the acute physiology and chronic health evaluation II (APACHE II) score (r=0.572, P<0.05).

CONCLUSION
The serum PDCD5 levels in the critically ill patients with sepsis were progressively increased with the worsened condition. The up-regulated expression of PDCD5 may play an important role in the development and progression of sepsis.


Representative bureaucracies are associated with economic development, improved organizational performance, and increased institutional trust and cooperation, amongst minorities. Nonetheless, the extent to which such representation shapes majority attitudes towards minorities is unclear. Building on the representative bureaucracy and intergroup contact literatures, I develop a theory of prejudice reduction through bureaucratic representation, which I
test with a natural experiment leveraging the random assignment of patients to doctors across 21 medical clinics in Israel. Doing so, I demonstrate that representative
bureaucracies which facilitate brief intergroup contact between Arab doctors and Jewish patients can improve majority-group perceptions of minorities. Contact with
an Arab doctor reduces Jewish patients' social distance by approximately a fifth of a standard deviation, and increases Jewish patients' perceptions about the feasibility of peace by approximately a tenth of a standard deviation. My theory and evidence demonstrate how representative bureaucracies improve intergroup relations through a mechanism of positive intergroup contact.


Isolated superfused field stimulated biopsy specimens of human peripheral arteries and veins, preincubated with 3H-( - )-NOradrenaline (NA) to label the neural stores of NA, were used to study the potency of dopamine (DA) and of NA as triggers of alpha-adrenoceptor mediated negative feedback control of sympathetic neurotransmitter secretion, evoked by stimulation with trains of 300 shocks at 1 Hz. In this preparation DA was found to be only slightly less potent than NA in depressing both the secretion of 3h-na, and the contractile response, evoked by nerve stimulation. DA depressed the contraction evoked by exogenous NA as well, but to a very much smaller extent. On the other hand, DA was a very weak agonist on the alpha receptors of the smooth muscle; nearly 1000 times higher concentrations of DA were required to mimick contractions evoked by exogenous NA. The results show that the neural alpha-receptor function involved in control of NA secretion differs considerably from the alpha-receptors of e.g. smooth muscle, with respect to sensitivity to DA. It seems possible that the observed depressing effect of DA on NA secretion may be of pharmacological and clinical interest; it may at least in part explain the vasodilating effect of DA infusions in man.


Counterfeit medications are known as the medications that were manufactured for the purpose of deceptively representing as authentic, effective and original in the market. Such medications cause severe health issues for patients. Counterfeited drugs have an inimical effect on the human health. The legal manufacturing companies also face threats to their revenue loss due to these counterfeited medicines. In this paper, we introduce a novel authentication protocol for anti-counterfeited drugs systems based on Internet of Things (IoT) to help checking the validity of drugs ''unit dosage''. Our protocol uses the near-field communication (NFC) as it is convenient for mobile environment. The protocol also offers reliable update phase for NFC. Furthermore, our scheme is complemented with performance evaluation along with the use of random oracle model for formal security analysis.


BACKGROUND
Practice guidelines (CPGs) provide informed treatment recommendations from systematic reviews and assessment of the benefits and harms that are intended to optimize patient care. Review of CPGs addressing rehabilitation for people with moderate/severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), has not been fully investigated.

OBJECTIVE
Identify published, vetted, clinical practice guidelines that address rehabilitation for people with moderate/severe TBI.

METHODS
Six data bases were accessed using key word search terms: "Traumatic Brain Injury" and "Clinical Practice Guidelines" and "Rehabilitation". Further inclusions included "adult" and "moderate or severe". Exclusions included: "mild" and "concussive injury". Three reviewers read abstracts and manuscripts for final inclusion. The AGREE II template was applied for additional appraisal.

RESULTS
There were 767 articles retrieved using the search terms, 520 were eliminated because of content irrelevance; and 157 did not specify rehabilitation treatment or did not follow a process for CPGs. A total of 17 CPGs met all criteria and only 4 of these met all AGREE II criteria.

CONCLUSION
There are few CPGs addressing rehabilitation for people with moderate/severe TBI. More interventional trials are needed to determine treatment effectiveness. Timely and methodologically sound vetting of studies are needed to ensure CPG reliability and facilitate access to quality, effective treatment for people with moderate/severe TBI.


Correct disulfide bond formation is a prerequisite for the structural integrity and biological activity of many proteins. Consequently, assessing a protein's native disulfide linkage pattern is of critical importance in understanding its structure–function relationship. The need to ensure efficacy and safety both in biological drug development and in academic research have helped to develop several analytical strategies to cope with this sometimes cumbersome task. Despite the availability of spectroscopic and electrophoretic methods, mass spectrometry-based analysis has become the predominant method used today. This chapter is intended to give researchers in all areas, academic and industry, a comprehensive overview of common degradation pathways of disulfide bonds and to serve as a starting point for setting up state-of-the art analytical methods to analyze the disulfide integrity and linkage patterns.


Blogs and formal news sources both monitor the events of the day, but with substantially different frames of reference. In this paper, we report on experiments comparing over 500,000 blog postings with the contents of 66 daily newspapers over the same six week period. We compare the prevalence of popular topics in the blogspace and news, and in particular analyze lead/lag relationships in frequency time series of 197 entities in the two corpora. The correlation between news and blog references proved substantially higher when adjusting for lead/lag shifts, although the direction of these shifts varied for different entities.


SETTING
It is challenging to differentiate between intestinal tuberculosis (ITB) and Crohn's disease in areas where TB is still prevalent. The use of diagnostic tools and verifying the drug resistance patterns of ITB can be helpful for its correct diagnosis.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the diagnostic sensitivity of a culture assay using colonoscopic biopsy specimens and the drug resistance patterns of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolated from ITB.

DESIGN
Data from 400 patients diagnosed with ITB were retrospectively analysed.

RESULTS
Of the 400 patients, 170 (42.5%) were males; the median age at diagnosis was 40 years. The sensitivity of culture was 44.1% (145/329). Resistance to at least one anti-tuberculosis drug was identified in 13 (17.6%) and multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) was diagnosed in two (2.7%) of the 74 patients for whom drug susceptibility testing was performed. Including M. tuberculosis isolated from respiratory specimens, the proportion of MDR-TB was 4.4% (5/113); previous anti-tuberculosis treatment was an independent risk factor for MDR-TB (26.7% vs. 1.0%, P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION
Culture of colonoscopic biopsy specimens shows substantial diagnostic sensitivity; the frequency of MDR-TB is higher in previously treated cases than in new cases.


Al:LiF/PTQBT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS/ITO/glass organic-based diode is fabricated with different weight ratios in PTQBT:PCBM active layer. The diodes D1, D2 and D3 are prepared using the precursor solution for spin coating process as 1:2, 1:3 and 1:4, respectively. Under dark, main diode parameters are extracted by conventional thermionic emission theory using the results of I−V measurements. Parasitic resistance contribution, non-ideal barrier height formation and high values of ideality factor indicate possible effects of space charge limited current flow mechanism on forward biased I−V characteristics. At saturated voltage region, series resistances are calculated and the results are evaluated according to Cheung's method. The possible voltage sharing between interface layer and depletion region are also investigated by analysis of density of interface states. In addition, field effect is found in a major role on the reverse current flow and the mechanism is evaluated according to Schottky-Richardson model.


Recognition of spoken names has traditionally been a difficult task for speech recognition systems because of the large variations in speaking styles, linguistic origins and pronunciation found in names. The linguistic nature of names makes it difficult to automatically generate pronunciation variations. For many applications the list of names tends to be in the order of several thousand names, making spoken name recognition a high perplexity task. Use of multiple pronunciations to account for the variations in names further increases the perplexity of the recognition system substantially. In this paper we propose the use of the syllable as the acoustic unit for spoken name recognition and show how pronunciation variation modeling by syllables can help in improving recognition performance and reducing the system perplexity. We present results comparing systems using context dependent phones with syllable based systems, and demonstrate that a significant increase in recognition accuracy and speed, can be achieved by using the syllable as the acoustic unit for spoken name recognition. With a Finite State Grammar network for spoken name recognition, the observed recognition error rate for the syllable-based system was 30% less than the phoneme-based system. For a phone/syllable level bigram based recognition networks the observed recognition error rate for syllable-based system was about 40% less than the phoneme system.


Humankind has developed many different ways to remember and to be remembered. ranging from the simple and modest to the grand, the unusual and the bizarre. Cemeteries provide superb examples of individual monuments, and the total cemetery enyironment can in itself be a monument worth preserving. It is a mistake to view only the graves and memorials as historic elements worthy of preservation: buildings, structures, fences and gates, gutters and paths, plantings, layout and landscape qualities are also important elements of cemeteries.


The ultrathin sectioning technique, developed since the invention of the electron microscope, made it possible to study the finer structures of microorganisms. Cytological studies using the electron microscope have been made by Hillier et al. (1949), Robinow (1953), Chapman and Hillier (1953), Tsujita et al. (1954), Maal0e et al. (1953a, 1953b), Higashi (1953), Tsuda et al. (1954), and Tsuda (1955a, 1955b). Some of the results of the present author's investigations of the fungi have been published (Tsuda, 1953, 1954, 1955a, 1955b). They showed that the cytoplasm and nuclear materials of these organisms have a more or less reticular structure. The present paper deals with additional observations of ultrathin sections through the vegetative mycelia of Penici1ium chrysogenum.


Macrostomum is a diverse genus of turbellarians with more than 180 species described from around the world. However, the Macrostomum fauna in China is poorly known. In this study, three new species of freshwater Macrostomum were described from southern China based on morphology of the penis stylet, an important character for species identification in this genus. In M. heyuanensis n. sp., the penis stylet bends 108° leftwards at its 1/2 length then backwards besides the distal opening, and the terminal region is thicker than other parts of penis stylet. In M. dongyuanensis n. sp., the penis stylet is J-shaped, with the opening at the tail end. In M. bicaudatum n. sp., the penis stylet is C-shaped, with the upper margin of the distal end longer but slimmer than the lower margin. In addition, molecular phylogenetic analyses were conducted to aid the classification of the novel species. Finally, their habitat and taxonomic status are compared and discussed.


The analysis of P waves recorded at seismological observatories and seismic arrays at teleseismic distances and strong motion seismographs located at Koyna Dam suggest the Koyna earthquake of December 10 1967 to be a complex multiple event. Six of the events could be identified, and the second and third events are located with respect to the initiation using the Gutenberg sine-curve method at distances of 6 and 17 km due south, the average rupture velocity being 3.4 km/sec. The findings are consistent with the field observations and the different origin times, epicenters and magnitudes reported for the earthquake. Seismic array records are found to be very useful in examining the multiplicity of seismic events.


The authors present a tight-binding model of cohesion and interatomic forces which exploits the variational principle of density functional theory. The binding energy of a solid is expressed as a sum of four terms, each of which has a clear physical meaning. The first two terms are the covalent bond and promotion energies, which are found by solving the electronic Hamiltonian to obtain the density matrix. The remaining two terms describe changes in the total electrostatic and exchange-correlation energies on forming the solid from isolated atoms. The variational principle allows these two terms to be expressed as functionals of a superposition of frozen atomic charge densities. The authors show that they may then be approximated by a sum of pair potentials. The importance of self-consistency in tight-binding models is discussed with particular attention to the evaluation of the bulk modulus and certain interatomic force constants by frozen-phonon calculations. It is shown that serious errors may arise in non-self-consistent models due to the violation of charge conservation and the neglect of variations in the potential caused by charge flow. The authors advocate local charge neutrality as the simplest approximation to self-consistency which overcomes these problems. This assumption leads to a remarkably simple expression for the force on an atom due to its neighbours, which is both physically transparent and computationally efficient. These concepts are illustrated for three-dimensional solids by calculations of covalent bond energies in BCC, FCC and HCP transition metals using a canonical d-band model. Model one-dimensional calculations are also presented which illustrate the computation of covalent bond energies and interatomic forces at surfaces and interfaces, and the importance of local charge neutrality in the model.


The presence of middle-latency evoked auditory potentials allows for integrity evaluation of both peripheral and the central auditory systems, and also, that of the nucleus and auditory pathways of sub-cortical region. They have also been used to study alterations of these structures in different neurological diseases. AIMS: the aim of this study is to verify the latency of the middle-latency evoked auditory potentials and detect the presence of any deflections in subjects with neurological diseases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a clinical and prospective trial, 20 patients having central neurological diseases of various etiologies were evaluated and, positive and negative deflections produced by the middle-latency evoked auditory potentials in these patients were analyzed. RESULTS: Data was statistically analyzed and showed significant modifications in middle-latency evoked auditory potentials. CONCLUSION: The authors concluded that patients with neurological disorders have either wave suppression or enlarged latency periods in relation to normal subjects.


The article presents the conception of positioning politicians based on a three-stage approach to political branding. The main assumption is that a political brand—and politician's image as its crucial component—is conceptualized as consisting of a node in memory to which a variety of associations are linked. These associations—positive, negative, or neutral—must be shared with other rival candidates as well as with an prototypical ideal candidate, understood as a model and standard of comparison while developing detailed marketing strategies. One of the most valuable methods that has been used to measure these associations is associative overlap technique developed by Szalay. This measure is based on free verbal associations and it expresses the degree of similarity among objects (words, persons, groups) based on the number of similar responses (associations) they elicit in common. The first stage of branding, candidates' positioning in various segments of voters, focuses on such affinity between politicians and is based on multidimensional scaling techniques. At the second stage, mutual relationships between particular elements (positive and negative, common and distinctive), of which a politician's image consists, are defined. The third level of political branding links the results of positioning to voters' decisions. This framework of branding political candidates is presented on the basis of empirical research focused on Polish presidential candidates' perception and evaluation in the 2005 presidential election. The results of the performed research show that it is not only the strengthening of politicians' positive features but also neutralizing the negative ones that contributes to his higher expected quality.


The goal of our studies was to develop liposomes containing antiviral drugs and targeted with antiviral antibody (immunoliposomes) that would be effective at inhibiting replication of herpes simplex virus (HSV) in vitro. To achieve this, a monoclonal antibody to glycoprotein D of HSV was derivatized with palmitic acid and was incorporated into the lamellae of dehydration-rehydration vesicles. The gD containing immunoliposomes were shown to bind specifically to HSV-infected rabbit corneal cells in vitro, whereas control immunoliposomes prepared with a monoclonal antibody of the same class as the anti-gD failed to preferentially bind to virus-infected cells. The gD immunoliposome binding was inhibitable by pretreatment with rabbit anti-HSV serum but not by aggregated normal serum. Thus liposome binding was judged to represent an antigen-antibody reaction not binding to Fc receptors expressed by cells infected with HSV. Immunoliposomes loaded with iododeoxyuridine (IUDR) leaked drug rapidly at 37 degrees C, whereas acyclovir (ACV)-loaded liposomes still contained 48% of drug after 24 hr at 37 degrees C. The ACV-liposomes retained 44% of drug after 14 days at 4 degrees C. The ability of immunoliposomes to inhibit virus replication was compared with that of untargeted and empty liposomes by means of virus yield assays in vitro, Immunoliposomes loaded with either IUDR or ACV inhibited virus replication, although ACV-containing immunoliposomes were the most efficacious. The implications of our in vitro results for the development of immunoliposomes suitable for the treatment of ocular herpes infection are briefly discussed.


Southern U.S. states such as Texas experience high temperatures and intense solar radiation during the summer production season. Use of shadecloth is common in Spain and otherMediterranean countries and is becoming popular with homeowners or small-acreage farmers in Texas. Little information is available on the applicability of using shadecloth on tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and chili pepper (Capsicum annuum) in the warm climate of Texas. The effects of two shade nets differing in shading intensity on growth, chlorophyll fluorescence, and photosynthesis of 'Celebrity' tomato and 'Sweet Banana' chili pepper was investigated fromMay to Aug. 2014. Plants were grown in 50% shade, 70% shade, or full sun. Compared with the unshaded control, tomato grown in 50% shade had similar yield and shoot fresh and dry weight and less photochemical stress. The 50% shade reduced number and weight of unmarketable tomato fruit. Similar results were obtained with chili pepper except for lower numbers of marketable fruit. The 70% shade significantly reduced yield parameters of both tomato and chili pepper. Both 50% and 70% shadecloth reduced leaf temperatures of tomato and chili pepper with variable results in June and July. Growth index [(heightDwidth 1Dwidth 2) O 3] of tomato and chili pepper was the highest with 50% shade, the lowest with full sun, and intermediate with 70% shade. The maximum net photosynthetic rates (Pn) of tomato determined from a Pn to light response curve supported the results on growth and yield. However, the maximum Pn of chili pepper was higher in full sun treatment comparedwith 50% or 70% shade. The latter twowere almost identical. This one growing season study indicated that shading at 50% benefits tomato and chili pepper production in west Texas by reducing heat stress; however, a shading percentage below 50% may be better.


Background: Treatment of atopic dermatitis and psoriasis in children is difficult due to lack of standardized treatment guidelines and few FDA-approved treatment options. Treatments approved for adults may be used off-label in pediatric patients. Objective: This review evaluates the topical and oral treatment options available, including off-label uses, and provides a basic therapeutic guideline for pediatric atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Methods: A PubMed review of topical and systemic treatments for pediatric psoriasis and atopic dermatitis with information regarding age, efficacy, dosing, contra-indications, adverse events, and off-label treatments. Results: The search identified seven topical and five systemic treatments that are routinely employed to treat pediatric atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Limitations: Standardized guidelines regarding treatment choice, dosing, and long-term safety are scarce. Reviews may be subject to ascertainment bias. Conclusions: Current treatment guidelines are based on clinical experience and expert advice with few treatments officially approved for atopic dermatitis and psoriasis in children.


Clusters are treated in the microcanonical ensemble. Two classical choices for the partition function are used in Boltzmann's assumption for entropy: Phase space volume and phase space density. For both definitions, exact statistical analogs are derived for energy derivatives of entropy to arbitrary order. The analogs are used in rigorous microcanonical Monte Carlo simulation to measure entropy derivatives up to order three for systems of three and four atoms. All simulation results are confirmed by direct numerical integration of the statistical analogs.


The glycosphingolipid (GSL) storage diseases have occupied a position of importance in biochemistry, intermediary metabolism, genetics, and gene product therapy disproportionate to their frequency in the population. In this issue of the JCI, Liu et al. (1) extend this history by providing "proof-of-principle" for potential new therapies of lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) and raise general issues relevant to phenotypic expression. In essence, Liu et al. show that "nonessential" metabolic intermediates — selected GSLs with singular major synthetic and degradative pathways — can be eliminated and thereby decrease storage without apparent adverse effects. Although genetically based, Liu et al.'s approach is conceptually identical to the successful dietary restriction therapies for amino/organic acid disorders and to the inhibitor therapies for dyslipidemias.

With a few notable exceptions, GSL storage diseases result from single gene–single enzyme defects, and the consequent accumulation of hallmark substrates for specific phenotypes. Radin (2) suggested that the phenotypes developed from substrate flux disruptions that in turn depend on the inflow and outflow rates of intermediates, and directed attention to the supply side (Fig. (Fig.1).1). If either rate is altered beyond a threshold level, intermediates will accumulate and produce phenotypes. This threshold model (3) implies that the flux through the metabolic pathway can be altered by increasing the amount of residual enzyme (increase the trickle) or by decreasing the substrate input (drop the supply). This model encompasses the regional, organ, and cell levels, because of specific differential metabolism. Also, the degree of tissue involvement is affected by the specific substrate flux rates in various cellular types. A good correlation exists between the level of in situ residual enzymatic activity in cell cultures, and the phenotypic severity of LSDs (4). Simplistically, the less residual enzyme activity, the more rapid the accumulation of substrate and the more severe the phenotype. Augmentation of the deficient enzyme to levels above threshold should correct substrate flux, and, if reversible, the phenotype. The approaches of gene-based and enzyme therapies have focused nearly exclusively on the outflow side.

Figure 1

Substrate flux is determined by various input and output rates including substrate synthesis, but other factors, including alternative metabolic pathways, environmental exposures, cell type, or tissue region, etc., can significantly influence this rate. ...

The β-hexosaminidases are essential for degradation of the GSLs, GM2 ganglioside and globoside. Mutations in the α-chain lead to β-hexosaminidase A (α2β) deficiencies and the Tay Sachs variants with CNS GM2 ganglioside storage. Mutations of β-chains produce deficiencies of β-hexosaminidases A and B (β3) and the "Sandhoff phenotypes" with CNS GM2 ganglioside and visceral globoside storage (5). The CNS phenotypes result from the cellular effects, albeit poorly characterized, of the accumulated GM2 ganglioside. Sandhoff mice have progressive motor behavior loss and shortened life span (6). Liu et al. substantially, but not completely, obviated this Sandhoff phenotype by breeding in an amorph for the enzyme β1-4-N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase (GalNAcT) that is essential for GM2 ganglioside and globoside synthesis. Except for male sterility and late CNS storage of oligosaccharides, the double homozygous mutants (Hexa/b–/– GalNAcT–/–) attained a nearly normal phenotype at the functional, histological, and biochemical levels.

These remarkable results offer a classic example of genetic epistasis, i.e., a secondary genetic change completely obscuring the genetic propensity to develop the primary phenotype. Surprisingly, the GalNAcT–/– mice lack complex GSLs throughout all of development and are nearly normal. Given the apparent role of complex GSLs as membrane components in cellular interaction and recognition as well as other major biological phenomenon (5), the implication that these lipids are just decorative gives one pause. Perhaps the behavioral or biochemical tests are too insensitive or are inappropriate to detect abnormalities. Nevertheless, gross dysfunction might have been anticipated. Such a free lunch seems doubtful. Are there alternative, compensatory pathways? The alternative explanation that mice are mice and men are men is not without merit, but it must be viewed in the context of the great genetic and complex GSL similarities between these two species. The preservation of complex synthetic machinery for such apparently "non-essential" metabolites would have profound evolutionary and biologic implications.

In human GM2 gangliosidoses, storage is readily observed by 6 weeks of gestation. Thus, postnatal therapy for GSLs could be seriously limited by pre-existing irreversible disease. Liu et al.'s Hex a/b–/– GalNAcT+/– mice had significant clinical and biochemical abnormalities. This suggests the need for continuous, complete inhibition of the synthetic pathway that may not be achievable by drug therapy, and complete prevention of progressive CNS disease may not be possible in postnatal humans. So, the postnatal approach may lead to late onset variants. Institution of prenatal substrate deprivation therapy involves two patients, the fetus and the mother. Therapy would be initiated shortly after conception, and maternal exposure would exist throughout the pregnancy. The prenatal strategy presents the ethical conundrum of potential harm to the mother for benefit to the fetus.

The greatest therapeutic effects of substrate deprivation for GSLs as well as more general applications could be in the hypomorphs, i.e., affected patients with significant residual enzyme and a late (milder) phenotype. Decreasing substrate inflow might allow for less aberrant flux, further delaying the phenotype, and permitting longer-term functionality. Addition of enzyme replacement and/or gene-based therapies could provide additional corrections. The latter approaches are formidable challenges for CNS diseases, because delivery of functional macromolecules to the brain has proved difficult. Such effective therapies may provide hope to the families affected by substrate overload diseases.

The basic implications and opportunities also are great. Development of a cadre of animals with specific defects in GSL or other synthetic pathways would provide critical reagents for dissecting and understanding metabolic pathophysiology and would be important additions to their functional genomics. Although amorphs provide "proof of principal," hypomorphs may provide greater biological insight. The use of conditional expression systems for willful modulation of the relative expression of various genes in vivo (7) provide extraordinarily powerful tools to examine the biology of GSL and many other metabolic intermediates. More generally, a fundamental issue in genetics is the interaction of hypomorphic/allelic variants at several loci whose combined effects lead to differential phenotypes as a result of genetic epistasis or other poorly defined gene–gene interactions. Conditional expression systems allowing independent titration of gene expression would provide exquisite tools for critical analysis of gene–gene interaction at an organismal level. These broader applications to a variety of pathways provide potential links between statistical and functional genomics and are the fundamental implications of Liu et al.'s work.


1 will be open for general user access. TOPAZ will be a time-of-flight Laue diffractometer using a polychromatic incident beam to collect a full data set of Bragg peaks in a matter of tens of minutes rather than hours. The instrument will be optimized for high through-put small molecule crystallography of moderately sized and complex unit cells (up to around (50 Å)). To achieve this goal, custom designed focusing optics are employed for incident beam transport to the sample. Highly pixilated Anger detectors have been developed, and a novel sample positioning and loading scheme will be presented. The combination of innovative development in all areas of the instrument will enable TOPAZ to measure data from standard X-ray size crystals with an order of magnitude decrease in measurement time compared to current instruments. Various sample environments will be available including cryogenic cooling, heating, and magnetic fields. The magnetic field environment coupled with the planned polarized neutron option will allow for future experiments investigating magnetic structure and phase transitions in materials. This research is supported by UT Battelle, LLC under Contract No. DE-AC0500OR22725 for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science.


OBJECTIVE
To compare goal attainment scaling (GAS) and standardized measures in evaluation of person-centred outcomes in neurorehabilitation.

DESIGN
A prospective cohort analysis from a tertiary inpatient neuro-rehabilitation service for younger adults with complex neurological disability.

SUBJECTS/PATIENTS
Consecutive patients (n = 164) admitted for rehabilitation following acquired brain injury (any cause) over 3 years. Mean age 44.8 (standard deviation 14.4) years.

DIAGNOSIS
66% strokes, 18% trauma, 16% other. Male:female ratio 102:62.

METHODS
GAS-rated achievement of 1-6 patient-selected goals was compared with the Functional Assessment Measure (UK FIM+FAM), and Barthel Index (BI), rated on admission and discharge. Personal goals were mapped retrospectively to the FIM+FAM and International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF).

RESULTS
Median (interquartile range; IQR) GAS T-scores were 50.0 (44.2-51.8) and moderately correlated with changes in FIM+FAM and BI (both rho 0.38 (p < 0.001)). Standardized response means were 2.2, 1.6 and 1.4 for GAS, FIM+FAM and BI, respectively. Of 667 personal goals set, 495 (74%) were fully achieved. Although 413 (62%) goals were reflected by changes in FIM+FAM, over one-third of goals were set in other areas.

CONCLUSION
GAS appeared to be more responsive, and captured gains beyond the FIM+FAM, thus providing added value as an adjunct to outcome measurement in patients with complex disability.


Purpose: The study aims to compare the credit risk minimization between Islamic and conventional banks in Yemen.

Approach/Methodology/Design: This paper is limited to a homogeneous sample that includes the Islamic and conventional banks' coverage as they represent the most significant part of the Yemeni banking sector. Using a descriptive-analytical method, data has been collected by a questionnaire sent by post to each Islamic and conventional bank separately located in Yemen's capital city.

Findings: The study concludes that credit risk is the most critical risk facing banks, and there is a significant difference in credit risk minimizing between Islamic.

Originality/value: The result showed that the banks' most critical risks are credit risks, and there is a significant difference in credit risk minimisation between Islamic and conventional banks. Also, conventional banks possessed a credit risk minimizing system better than Islamic banks. Several recommendations identified where the Yemeni banks, whether Islamic or conventional, should use advanced methods to measure and analyze credit risks.


We define a distance metric between partitions of a graph using machinery from optimal transport. Our metric is built from a linear assignment problem that matches partition components, with assignment cost proportional to transport distance over graph edges. We show that our distance can be computed using a single linear program without precomputing pairwise assignment costs and derive several theoretical properties of the metric. Finally, we provide experiments demonstrating these properties empirically, specifically focusing on its value for new problems in ensemble-based analysis of political districting plans.


Executive Summary Conducting ethical international business is particularly challenging given diverse countries and societies with different moral foundations and beliefs. Child labor is, understandably, an emotional issue. Many international businesses, including those involved in cocoa production and the chocolate industry, confront issues of child labor in their own operations and those of suppliers in their value chain. Culture, laws and regulations, and international and industry protocols provide some areas of common approach, although differences in practice across countries and cultures must be respected when addressing child labor. Ethical perspectives and theories such as value driven management will help businesses make better decisions about child labor. Introduction Business Ethics Business ethics considers the morality of business activities. Morality is a broad term that encompasses what a society or group believes is "good or bad, right and wrong, just or unjust, fair or unfair" (De George, 2005, p. 19). Morality can be formalized through customs, laws, and mores that the society or group accepts (De George, 2005). International business poses a particular challenge for business ethics, as practices that are accepted as just and right in one country may be prohibited in another. The concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has emerged as a buzzword that links business and ethics. CSR considers how a business acts in the interests of society. In a classic business approach, a business analyzes its activities and results from the perspective of shareholders first and foremost. This perspective is sometimes boiled down to the essential question: Is the business making money for shareholders? This classic approach embraces the phrase attributed to Milton Friedman that "the business of business is business" (Davis, 2005, p. 70). Detractors argue that CSR is misguided, expensive, displaces other "corporate priorities such as research and development, and is rarely valued by Wall Street" (Grow, Hamm, & Lee, 2005, p.77). Some, including Milton Friedman, go even further to declare that CSR efforts are '"fundamentally subversive' because they undermine the profit-seeking purpose of public companies and waste shareholders' money" (Grow, Hamm, & Lee, 2005, p.77). Under a CSR approach, however, a business complies with "prevailing social norms, values, and performance expectations" (Sethi, 2003, p.71). Adopting a CSR approach requires businesses to analyzes their activities and results beyond the immediate shareholders to consider society more broadly including media, consumer groups, "suppliers, customers, employees, community members, even social activists" (Grow, Hamm, & Lee, 2005, p.76). CSR proponents argue that social issues are fundamental to business: ...social pressures can also operate as early indicators of factors core to corporate profitability: for example, the regulations and public-policy environment in which companies must operate; the appetite of consumers for certain goods above others; and the motivation (and willingness to be hired in the first place) of employees (Davis, 2005, p. 69). Advocates for CSR cite the "growing gap between societal expectations and corporate performance" that could lead to greater government regulation, reputation loss, and weakened market position (Sethi, 2003, p.xi). Child Labor in the Context of International Business Child labor is, unfortunately, not a new topic. During the agricultural and industrial revolutions in Europe and North America, child labor was common. More recently, over the period 1994 to 2002, there were more than 330 news articles raising concerns about child labor (Sethi, 2003). Recent cases of international companies and alleged child labor include Nike's production of soccer balls in Pakistan in 1996, numerous cacao plantations and chocolate factories in Cote d'Ivoire in 2001, Monsanto, Unilever, and national seed companies in India in 2003, sugar plantations supplying Coca-Cola in El Salvador in 2004, and Walmart and garment factories in Bangladesh in November 2005. …


SUMMARY: The paper examines the origins of kraevedenie (local studies), as a distinctive form of public mobilization for regional studies in the early 1920s, and traces its links to the conceptual shift in Russian geography as an academic discipline, which defined itself as a science concerned with the spatial characteristics of natural regions. The paper focuses on the first conference for regional studies (1921) and analyzes the visions of regional studies, as they were offered by the key figures who defined these studies in the 1920s, particularly in the earlier years of the decade – Vladimir Bogdanov and his colleagues from the school of geography at Moscow University, Alexander Fersman, Veniamin Semenov-Tyan-Shansky, and others. The author argues for a further need to examine the connections between new forms of public science, a conceptual shift in geography and related disciplines, and debates about the principles of administrative-territorial organization of the Soviet state, which were directly related to the making of the Soviet Union in the 1920s.


Introduction Portal vein embolisation (PVE) is now an established technique to increase the future liver volume/remnant (FLR) prior to liver resection. For those patients where hypertrophy is still considered insufficient complete uni-lateral embolisation incorporating both portal and hepatic artery embolisation (HAE) has been less frequently reported. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of sequential PV/HA embolisation to increase the FLR prior to liver resection. Methods All HPB patients are discussed at a weekly MDT meeting to decide on appropriate management decisions including the necessity for FLR augmentation. PVE is performed by initially obtaining a portogram by percutaneous trans-hepatic puncture. Selective embolisation of the necessary portal veins are then performed using a combination of coils and glue etc. Embolisation of Segment 4 PV branches are performed on a selective basis. HA embolisation is performed by mapping arterial inflow and selectively embolising the desired segments planned for resection while carefully preserving the FLR. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility/safety of PVE with sequential HAE over a 5-year period (January 2006–May 2011). Results 50 patients (M:F = 38:12) underwent a right PVE; 33 (66%) progressed to liver resection. Reasons for inoperability (34%) following PVE (n=17) were (1) Small FLR, (n=6) all underwent HAE (with five proceeding to liver resection) (2) extra-hepatic disease (n=7) (3) progression of hepatic disease (n=4). The median FLR of those who progressed to resection following PVE, by CT volumetry, was 384.5 cc (330–490), significantly more than those who did not 237 cc (110–280) p=0.03. HAE increased the FLR by a further 99.8 cc (range 80.5–130 cc). An R0 resection was achieved in 25 patients (76%), including 4/5 (80%) of sequential patients. Following PVE and sequential embolisation; 9/33 (27%) and 3/5 (60%) suffered serious complications (Clavien-Dindo 3 or 4). There were six post operative deaths including 5/33 (15%) after PVE and 1 (20%) following sequential embolisation respectively. Conclusion PVE is an increasingly used technique to increase the FLR allowing a significant proportion of patients an R0 resection despite initially being considered inoperable. Nevertheless at least 20% of patients will also have progression of disease. Patients who do not achieve adequate hypertrophy can potentially have HA embolisation to increase the FLR by a further 100 cc but perhaps at the expense of increasing post-operative complications. Competing interests None declared.


This study was carried out to assess effects of wood harvesting on the livelihood of forest communities in Ibarapa region, southwest, Nigeria. The  study was conducted to identify the various livelihood activities engaged in by forest communities in the region; to assess how wood harvesting in the forests has affected the livelihood of the people in the region as well as to determine the factors influencing wood harvesting in the region. Three hundred copies of structured questionnaire were used to elicit information from the respondents. Focused Group Discussion and Key Informant Interview were also used. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression. Results show that various livelihood activities were engaged in by the respondents, prominent among which were food crop production, cash crop production, charcoal production, among others. Among the factors that were responsible for wood harvesting in the region, only age, occupation, household size and the distance of respondent's house to the forest were significant at 5%. It was observed that excessive wood harvesting has negatively affected the forests in the study area as most of the forests have been greatly degraded. This study recommends that the activities of forest communities should be regulated by local authorities and governments, at different levels, in order to sustain the forests in the region.
Key words: timber, charcoal, lumbering, regression, fuelwood


Sural nerve lesions in patients with clinically manifest diabetic neuropathy were investigated electron microscopically. Myelinated nerve fibers were reduced in all the diabetic patients. Axonal degeneration of both myelinated and unmyelinated nerve fibers was most conspicuous finding in the diabetic sural nerves. Structural changes of the axons were represented by axonal dwindling, depletion of axoplasmic organelles, vacuolarization and an increase in neurofilaments. Accumulation of glycogen-like particles and deposition of electron homogeneous amorphous materials were noted within a few axons. On the other hand, there could also be found degenerative changes of myelin sheaths, various kinds of cytoplasmic inclusion bodies (crystalloid, lamellar inclusion bodies and lipids-like droplets), aggregates of glycogen particles in the Schwann cell cytoplasm and basement membrane hyperplasia of Schwann cells in all the subjects. Furthermore, multiplication and thickening of the basement membrane of vasa nervorum were constant findings of the diabetic sural nerves. The vascular changes, demyelination and axonal degeneration of the cases were not apparently correlated with each other. There was no special relationship between nerve tissue changes and clinical symptoms or laboratory findings. These results indicated that the peripheral nerve lesions in human diabetics were mainly due to metabolic impairment of nerve fibers, accompanying dysmetabolism of Schwann cells and diabetic microangiopathy, and that these changes proceeded independently.


Data is a valuable resource. Proper use of high-quality data can help people make better predictions, analyses and decisions. However, no matter how much effort we put into collecting a good dataset, errors will inevitably creep into the data, making it necessary for data cleaning. This becomes a concern particularly when large-scale heterogeneous data from multiple sources are integrated for other purposes. Data cleaning can be complicated, time consuming, and expensive, but it is a necessary step in any data-related system since poor-quality data may not be suitable to achieve the intended purposes. The core of our data cleaning system is data association and repairing. Association aims to identify the same object and link with the most associated objects, and repairing is to make a database reliable by fixing errors in the data. For big data applications, we don't necessarily need to use all the data. In most situations, we only need a small subset of the most relevant data. So the goal of association is to convert big raw data into a small subset of the most relevant data that are most useful for a particular application. After we obtain a small amount of relevant data, we also need to further analyze the data to help people digest the data and turn the data into knowledge. We use a number of techniques to associate the data to get useful knowledge for data repairing. Our research shows that data association can effectively help with data repairing. To capture the interaction, we provide a uniform framework that unifies the association and repairing process seamlessly based on context patterns, usage patterns, metadata, and repairing rules.


The automation of posterior inference in Bayesian data analysis has enabled experts and nonexperts alike to use more sophisticated models, engage in faster exploratory modeling and analysis, and ensure experimental reproducibility. However, standard automated posterior inference algorithms are not tractable at the scale of massive modern datasets, and modifications to make them so are typically model-specific, require expert tuning, and can break theoretical guarantees on inferential quality. Building on the Bayesian coresets framework, this work instead takes advantage of data redundancy to shrink the dataset itself as a preprocessing step, providing fully-automated, scalable Bayesian inference with theoretical guarantees. We begin with an intuitive reformulation of Bayesian coreset construction as sparse vector sum approximation, and demonstrate that its automation and performance-based shortcomings arise from the use of the supremum norm. To address these shortcomings we develop Hilbert coresets, i.e., Bayesian coresets constructed under a norm induced by an inner-product on the log-likelihood function space. We propose two Hilbert coreset construction algorithms---one based on importance sampling, and one based on the Frank-Wolfe algorithm---along with theoretical guarantees on approximation quality as a function of coreset size. Since the exact computation of the proposed inner-products is model-specific, we automate the construction with a random finite-dimensional projection of the log-likelihood functions. The resulting automated coreset construction algorithm is simple to implement, and experiments on a variety of models with real and synthetic datasets show that it provides high-quality posterior approximations and a significant reduction in the computational cost of inference.


IC manufacturers have stated that the price of 300 mm process equipment should be no more than 1.3 times the 200 mm equivalent equipment. Further, simultaneous technology advances are required for sub 0.25 /spl mu/m processing, creating challenges for the equipment industry. Economic and technical issues differ among process equipment and must be addressed within the context of the process. This paper discusses the aspects of a cost of ownership methodology for wafer size increase and applies the method to high energy ion implantation processes. Depending on the productivity factors related to the number of chips per wafer, significant die cost reductions are available to IC manufacturers over a wide range of 300 mm equipment prices.


Plasma formation from thick Al rods ohmically heated during the diffusion of pulsed multimegagauss magnetic field is examined experimentally. Rods in the Z-pinch configuration are driven to 1.0-MA peak current. The evolution of the resultant surface plasma is complex yet highly reproducible. Surface plasmas first form at discrete hot spots. As the pulsed current grows, plasma filaments form, first along the current, and then transverse to it. As the plasma temperature rises, emissions become increasingly uniform until instabilities grow and modulate the surface.


Despite the cognitive and physiological decrements observed in old age, older adults are emotionally resilient, even showing improved emotion regulation capacity compared with their young counterparts. This age-related improvement in emotion regulation translates into a preference for positive and avoidance of negative information in cognition, known as the positivity effect (PE). The thesis focuses on investigating the physiological underpinnings of emotion-cognition interactions in ageing and, specifically, the role of glucose availability and overall Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) functionality. Experiments 1a and 1b found that although the age-related PE disappeared under high cognitive load, glucose allowed older adults to retain their positivity preference. Whereas young adults used the extra glucose resources to improve their overall performance when cognitive load was high, older adults preferentially allocated them to the encoding/recall of positive over negative material. Experiment 2 showed that glucose availability can increase both young and older adults' ability to engage in demanding cognitive tasks. However, whereas young adults did not experience any additional cognitive or affective facilitation, glucose improved cognitive performance and increased positive affect in older adults while mitigating their subjective effort perceptions. Experiment 3 found that ANS functionality is related to the magnitude of older adults' PE. Specifically, higher ANS capacity was associated with stronger negativity avoidance in older, but not young, adults. Finally, a meta-analysis revealed that carbohydrate (CHO) administration does not lead to any improvements in mood. Instead, CHO ingestion was associated with higher fatigue and decreased alertness within the first hour post-CHO consumption. In summary, the thesis presents important evidence of an association between aspects of physiological functioning and emotion-cognition interactions in ageing, and provides answers to heavily debated topics such as the CHO-mood relationship. Uncovering the physiological profile of emotion-cognition interactions could allow researchers and clinicians to create interventions to improve well-being in older age.


Recent accumulating evidences suggest that genetic mutations in tumor cells cause several unique metabolic phenotypes that are critical for cancerous cell proliferation. Mutations in the tyrosine kinase epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) induce oncogenic addiction in lung adenocarcinoma (LAD). However, the linkage between oncogenic mutated EGFR and cancer metabolism has not yet been clearly elucidated. In this study, we measured extracellular lactate production, glucose consumption and the glucose-induced extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) after the inhibition of EGFR signaling in LAD cell culture. Using capillary electrophoresis time-of-flight mass spectrometry (CE-TOFMS)-based metabolomic techniques, the major intracellular metabolites in EGFR-mutated LAD cells were quantified in the absence or presence of the tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKIs) erlotinib. The molecular profile regulating the metabolic enzymes at the transcriptional and post-translational levels was characterized by RT-PCR, Western blotting and flow cytometry. We demonstrated that EGFR signaling was required for lactate production, glucose consumption and glucose-induced ECAR, indicating that EGFR signaling promoted the Warburg effect in LAD cells. Moreover, comprehensive metabolomic analysis revealed that the levels of key intermediate metabolites in glycolysis and the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) were decreased after treatment with EGFR inhibitors. The glucose transport carried out by GLUT1 and GLUT3 was the most rapid and critically regulated function of glucose metabolism linked to EGFR signaling, although the expression of MYC-dependent glycolytic genes and the phosphorylation of pyruvate kinase muscle (PKM2) were down-regulated by EGFR inhibition at a later time point. A modest down-regulation of both total and membrane-bound GLUT3 was also observed after EGFR inhibition. Despite an equivalent total amount of GLUT1 in LAD cells, the levels of membrane-bound GLUT1 was decreased by EGFR-TKI treatment, suggesting that EGFR signaling controlled GLUT1 function through post-translational modification. We concluded that EGFR signaling regulated aerobic glycolysis in EGFR-mutated LAD cells. Our data suggests that the glycolytic pathway plays a central role in the pathogenesis of EGFR-mutated lung cancer. This regulatory pathway could be an attractive target for the development of targeted therapies to better treat patients with EGFR-mutated LAD. Citation Format: Hideki Makinoshima, Masahiro Takita, Shingo Matsumoto, Atsushi Yagishita, Satoshi Owada, Hiroyasu Esumi, Katsuya Tsuchihara. EGFR signaling regulates aerobic glycolysis in EGFR-mutated lung adenocarcinoma. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 3361. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-3361


The authors propose a novel methodology for the combined solution of the topological identification, observability analysis and bad data processing problems in power systems. The idea is to provide, in a very fast way, a reliable input database for the state estimator, without interacting with it. The solution is based on a pattern analysis approach. An efficient framework for solving data acquisition and processing problems, joining pattern analysis and analytical procedures, is suggested. Two different techniques of pattern analysis are combined to produce a classifier and an estimator with unique characteristics to deal with noisy environments. The patterns required for the training process can be acquired from the SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) system and/or from load-flow simulations. Test results have been obtained for the IEEE 24-bus reliability test system.<<ETX>>


We study the growth of AlxGa1−x N epilayers on (0001) sapphire by low-pressure MOCVD, using a low-temperature AlN buffer. By varying the input flow rates of trimethylgallium (TMGa), we obtain crack-free AlGaN films in the whole range of composition. A linear relationship between gas and solid Al content is observed. The structural properties of the layers (x = 0−1) are investigated by x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is found that a two-direction growth appears along the c-axis and the (101̄1) directions for x⩾0.45. From the results of Raman spectroscopy, we suggest that the compressive stain and the lack of mobility of Al adatoms can induce the formation of (101̄1) grains.


OBJECTIVE
To characterize the health risk of enrollees in California's state-based insurance marketplace (Covered California) by metal tier, region, month of enrollment, and plan.

DATA SOURCE/STUDY SETTING
2014 Open-enrollment data from Covered California linked with 2012 hospitalization and emergency department (ED) visit records from statewide all-payer administrative databases.

DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS
Chronic Illness and Disability Payment System (CDPS) health risk scores derived from an individual's age and sex from the enrollment file and the diagnoses captured in the hospitalization and ED records. CDPS scores were standardized by setting the average to 1.00.

PRINCIPAL FINDINGS
Among the 1,286,089 enrollees, 120,573 (9.4 percent) had at least one ED visit and/or a hospitalization in 2012. Higher risk enrollees chose plans with greater actuarial value. The standardized CDPS health risk score was 11 percent higher in the first month of enrollment (1.08; 99 percent CI: 1.07-1.09) than the last month (0.97; 99 percent CI: 0.97-0.97). Four of the 12 plans enrolled 91 percent of individuals; their average health risk scores were each within 3 percent of the marketplace's statewide average.

CONCLUSIONS
Providing health plans with a means to assess the health risk of their year 1 enrollees allowed them to anticipate whether they would receive or contribute payments to a risk-adjustment pool. After receiving these findings as a part of their negotiations with Covered California, health plans covering the majority of enrollees decreased their initially proposed 2015 rates, saving consumers tens of millions of dollars in potential premiums.


Background and Purpose- Hypercoagulable states in migraine patients may play a role in the pathophysiology underlying the association between migraine and ischemic stroke. This study aims to provide more insight into the potential association of headache, ischemic stroke, and the intrinsic coagulation pathway. Methods- We included patients from the RATIO study (Risk of Arterial Thrombosis in Relation to Oral Contraceptives), a Dutch population-based case-control study including young women (age <50) with ischemic stroke and healthy controls. We defined a headache group based on a questionnaire on headache history. Intrinsic coagulation proteins were measured through both antigen levels (FXII, FXI, prekallikrein, HK [high molecular weight kininogen]) and protein activation, determined by measuring activated protein complex with C1esterase-inhibitor (FXIIa-C1-INH, FXIa-C1-INH, Kallikrein-C1-INH) or antitrypsin-inhibitor (FXIa-AT-INH). We calculated adjusted odds ratios and performed an interaction analysis assessing the increase in stroke risk associated with high levels of intrinsic coagulation and history of headache. Results- We included 113 ischemic stroke cases and 598 healthy controls. In total, 134 (19%) patients had a history of headache, of whom 38 were cases and 96 controls. The combination of headache and high intrinsic coagulation protein levels (all but FXII antigen level and both FXIa-inhibitors) was associated with an increase in ischemic stroke risk higher than was expected based on their individual effects (adjusted odds ratio FXI antigen level alone: 1.7, 95% CI, 1.0-2.9; adjusted odds ratio headache alone: 2.0, 95% CI, 1.1-3.7; combination: 5.2, 95% CI, 2.3-11.6) Conclusions- Headache and high intrinsic coagulation protein levels may biologically interact, increasing risk for ischemic stroke.


Abstract. Rain-on-snow (ROS) melt events reduce the amount of water stored in the snowpack while also exacerbating flooding. The hydrologic implications of changing ROS events in a warming climate, however, are still uncertain. This research used a calibrated and validated Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) hydrologic model, modified with energy budget equations to simulate ROS melt and forced with a climate model ensemble representing moderate greenhouse gas concentrations, to simulate changes to ROS melt in the North American Great Lakes Basin from 1960–2069. The changes to ROS events between the historic period (1960–1999) and mid-century (2040–2069) represent an approximately 30 % reduction in melt in warmer, southern subbasins but less than 5 % reduction in melt in colder, northern subbasins. Additionally, proportionally more rainfall reduces the formation of snowpacks, with area-weighted combined winter and spring rain-to-snow ratios rising from approximately 1.5 historically to 1.9 by the mid-21st century. Areas with historic mean combined winter and spring air temperatures lower than −2 ∘C have ROS regimes that are resilient to mid-21st century warming projections, but ROS occurrence in areas that have mean combined winter and spring temperatures near the freezing point are sensitive to changing air temperatures. Also, relationships between changes in the timing of ROS melt and water yield endure throughout spring but become weak by summer. As the influence of ROS melt events on hydrological systems is being altered in a changing climate, these conclusions are important to inform adaptive management of freshwater ecosystems and human uses in regions of the globe that are sensitive to changes in ROS events.


This paper studied the efficiency of electrocoagulation/electroflotation
in removing colour from real textile wastewater by using aluminum and iron
electrodes in an innovative pilot external-loop airlift reactor of 150 L. The reactor was designed to operate in
batch and continuous modes. The real effluent contained 90% of disperse dye and
10% of reactive dye. A complete flotation of pollutants with acceptable mixing
was achieved in this reactor using only the overall liquid recirculation
induced by H2 microbubbles. The treatment of these discharges was
easier using electrodes of iron rather than aluminum. The optimal initial pH
was 10 for both aluminum and iron electrodes. By using iron electrodes, the
maximum decolourisation efficiency and COD reduction efficiency reached respectively
96% and 65% for 90 minutes of treatment. Similarly, by using aluminum
electrodes, the maximum decolourisation efficiency reached 90%, COD reduction
reached 51% for 120 minutes of treatment. In the case of an initial pH slightly
different to 10, the required time to reach 90% ranged from double to triple.


Phenacylimidazolium ions have the capacity to promote hepatic glycogen synthesis in vitro via activation of glycogen synthase and inactivation of phosphorylase. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether these compounds alter net hepatic substrate balance in vivo. Following a control period somatostatin was infused into 42h-fasted, conscious dogs and insulin (3X-basal) and glucagon (basal) were replaced intraportally. The glucose load to the liver was doubled with a peripheral glucose infusion and the phenacylimidazolium compound, 254236 (EX; n = 5) was infused intraportally at varying rates in four separate periods (0 (P1), 0.5 (P2), 1.0 (P3), 2.0 (P4) mumol kg-1 min-1). In a separate group of animals (C; n = 5) saline was infused intraportally during P1-P4 to match the volume rate of delivery that occurred in EX. In C net hepatic glucose uptake was 8.5 +/- 1.7 mumol kg-1 min-1 during P1 and did not change significantly throughout the study. In EX net hepatic glucose uptake increased (p < 0.05) from 9.0 +/- 2.5 during P1 to 16.2 +/- 3.1 mumol kg-1 min-1 during P4. Whereas net hepatic lactate output was evident throughout P1-P4 in C, the liver consistently switched to net lactate uptake during P3 (1.2 +/- 1.7 mumol kg-1 min-1) and P4 (2.2 +/- 1.0 mumol kg-1 min-1) in EX. Sympathoadrenal activation (increased catecholamines) was evident in EX during period 4. The increased hepatic retention of carbon (glucose and lactate) coincident with 254236 infusion in conscious dogs is less than that observed in vitro but is consistent with a role for phenacylimidazolium ions in promoting hepatic glycogen synthesis.


AIM
To determine the frequency of anaphylaxis in an allergy outpatient department, allowing a better understanding regarding aetiology, clinical manifestations and management, in children and adolescents.

METHODS
From among 3646 patients up to 18 years old observed during one-year period, we included those with history of anaphylaxis reported by allergists.

RESULTS
Sixty-four children had history of anaphylaxis (prevalence of 1.8%), with mean age 8.1±5.5 years, 61% being male. Median age of the first anaphylactic episode was 3 years (1 month-17 years). The majority of patients had food-induced anaphylaxis (84%): milk 22, egg 7, peanut 6, tree nuts 6, fresh fruits 6, crustaceans 4, fish 4 and wheat 2. Food-associated exercise-induced anaphylaxis was reported in 2 adolescents. Drug-induced anaphylaxis occurred in 8%: 4 non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and 1 amoxicillin. Three children had cold-induced anaphylaxis, one adolescent had anaphylaxis to latex and one child had anaphylaxis to insect sting. The majority (73%) had no previous diagnosis of the etiologic factor. Symptoms reported were mainly mucocutaneous (94%) and respiratory (84%), followed by gastrointestinal (42%) and cardiovascular (25%). Fifty-one patients were admitted to the emergency department, although only 33% were treated with epinephrine. Recurrence of anaphylaxis occurred in 26 patients (3 or more episodes in 14).

CONCLUSIONS
In our paediatric population, the main triggering agent of anaphylaxis was IgE-mediated food allergy. Epinephrine is underused, as reported by others. Often, children have several episodes before being assessed by an allergist. We stress the importance of systematic notification and improvement of educational programmes in order to achieve a better preventive and therapeutic management of this life-threatening entity.


Introduction: Wheat is one of the major agricultural crops with respect to human nutrition. It is cultivated over a wide range of environments, because of wide adaptation to diverse environmental conditions. In Iran, 6.2 million hectares are under wheat cultivation, of which 33% is irrigated and 67% is rain-fed, the irrigated wheat growing areas (2 million hectares) are located mostly in southern, central and east of Iran Production of crops is under the influence of plant genetic structure, environmental conditions and their interactions. Biotic and abiotic stresses are considered to lower production. Among the biotic stress, the fungal disease is the main factor limiting production of crop plants in hot and humid regions. Stripe rust was not a serious economic concern to the wheat industry for most of the 1990's due to the use of resistant varieties. However, by 2003 it had developed into a significant issue, particularly as new path types evolved. Even in the dry years of 2003 and 2004, stripe rust cost growers significant income. Provide country's need for wheat as a strategic product, meanwhile, production is free from chemical fungicide is a high but achievable goal. So in order to achieve fertilizer and fungicide resources that in addition to having no adverse effects on consumers and the environment, has been economically able to provide nutrition need of crop plant, is very important.
Materials and Methods: With this approach, to survey the effect of Mycorrhiza and Azospirillum in resistance to yellow rust in wheat cultivars, an experiment was conducted at the research station of the Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Iran in 2012-13. The experimental design was factorial based on a randomized complete block design with three replications. The treatments include of Mycorrhiza fungi in three levels (without application of Mycorrhiza strain and using strain Glomus intraradices and Glomus mosseae), Azospirillum lipoferum bacterium in two-levels (non-inoculated seeds and inoculated seed) and wheat cultivars in three levels, Chamran (bread wheat), Dena and Behrang (durum wheat) varieties. In this experiment evaluated, to yellow rust disease, the intensity of infection, the average coefficient of infection, type of infection and area under disease progress curve (AUDPC). Infection type and disease severity were also recorded at flag leaf stage using modified Cobb's scale. First symptoms of yellow rust were observed in middle January of 2013. Analysis of variance was performed using PROC ANOVA of SAS (version 9.1.3, 2004The comparison of the means was done by Duncan test at a probability level of 5 percent.
Results and Discussion: Survey on the resistance to yellow rust in wheat cultivars treated with Mycorrhiza and Azospirillum showed that seed inoculation with Azospirillum traits reduced between 10 percent to 13 percent and the use strains of Mycorrhiza fungi intensity of infection 45-51 percent, the average coefficient of infection and AUDPC 74-85 percent respectively for G. intraradices and G. mosseae strains have been reduced compared with control and Chamran cultivar between 40-70 percent showed more Sensitivity to disease from durum varieties. Generally, the lowest of infection intensity (18.33) was obtained from inoculation of C.V Dena seeds with Azospirillum and G. mosseae strain. According to the result, we found yellow rust in all experiment field also the incidence varied between 10-70 percent. Therefore, it is concluded that, given the climatic conditions favorable to the spread of yellow rust, the incidence of yellow rust in the region that have a high degree of pathogenicity. In general the results of this test, mycorrhiza application has a significant role in enhancing wheat resistance to yellow rust. The seed inoculation with Azospirillum although did not have significant role in disease control, but increased at an acceptable level resistance to wheat rust. But the important point was the combined use of fungi and bacteria the synergistic effect of the two substances for all traits were assessed, leading to an increase of more than 20 percent in the wheat varieties resistant to rust.
Conclusion: Generally associated with resistance to yellow rust in wheat cultivars inoculation with A. lipoferum and usage of G. mosseae in Dena cultivar that was durum wheat, showed the highest resistance to yellow rust, probably this has been due to the Dena cultivar which is durum wheat. It seems, use of the biofertilizers can be the perfect solution to eliminate the nutritional requirements of wheat, in addition, it has been an important effect in enhancing resistance to yellow rust.


An adaptation of the standardization approach to assessing differential item functioning that applies to all item responses, including omits and not reached, is described. Applications of this method to evaluate differential speededness show that there is evidence of differential speededness for Blacks and Hispanics, but not for Asian-Americans. There may be a dependency between differential speededness and test section location: Differential speededness may be more noticeable when the test section is located at the beginning of the test. Implications of these findings for evaluations of content-related differential item functioning and on differential test-taking strategies are described.


Pyloric duplication is the rarest duplication in gastrointestinal
tract. Only seven cases have been reported so far in the English
literature. In most cases pre-operative diagnosis was not made. We
present such a case in a 9-day-old baby, presenting with non-bilious
vomiting since birth. The diagnosis was made pre-operatively by
ultrasonography, which is a good investigation for pre-operative
diagnosis. The case was operated successfully without opening the
pyloric canal.


The computer-aided warpage computation system is considered in the paper as applied to technological process optimization for manufacturing of aviation parts. The authors give recommendations on technological process optimization for the aviation part frame


In spite of the slow convergence, stochastic gradient descent (SGD) is still the most practical optimization method due to its outstanding generalization ability and simplicity. On the other hand, adaptive methods have attracted much more attention of optimization and machine learning communities, both for the leverage of life-long information and for the deep and fundamental mathematical theory. Taking the best of both worlds is the most exciting and challenging question in the field of optimization for machine learning. In this paper, we take a small step towards such ultimate goal. We revisit existing adaptive methods from a novel point of view, which reveals a fresh understanding of momentum. Our new intuition empowers us to remove the second moment in Adam without the loss of performance. Based on our view, we propose a new method, named acute adaptive momentum (Acutum). To the best of our knowledge, Acutum is the first adaptive gradient method without second moments. Experimentally, we demonstrate that our method has a faster convergence rate than Adam/Amsgrad, and generalizes as well as SGD with momentum. We also provide a convergence analysis of our proposed method to complement our intuition.


Abstract The experiment reported in this research communication aimed to determine the effects of post-weaning feeding level after early weaning on mammary parenchyma development in Alpine goats. Thirty Alpine female goat kids were weaned early (at around 9.8 kg and 32 d of age) and fed different levels of concentrate: Control (C, 730 g DM/d, n = 10), Low (L, 365 g DM/d, n = 10) or High (H, 1090 g DM/d, n = 10) until 235 d of age with ad libitum hay and water. Half of the goat kids were slaughtered before puberty (at around 208 d of age) and half at midgestation (at around 308 d of age and 70 d of gestation) for mammary parenchyma sampling. A histological analysis, Western blot and DNA quantification were performed. Blood samples were taken before puberty and at midgestation to determine plasma levels of IGF-I and prolactin. The mammary gland weights before puberty and at midgestation were positively and significantly associated with concentrate level. However, the organization of the mammary parenchyma and protein expression and quantity of DNA in the parenchyma were similar among the three groups. Before puberty, prolactin and IGF-I concentrations were significantly increased by the feeding level. In conclusion, feeding level after early weaning did not impact mammary parenchyma structure although it modified the weight of the mammary gland. The establishment of the mammary gland was not impacted by rearing management before puberty. Hence, increasing the feeding level during the rearing period could be an interesting way to increase the body development of goats without impairing mammary development whilst having a positive impact on reproductive parameters such as litter weight.


The Gakara Rare Earth Elements (REE) deposit is one of the world's highest grade REE deposits, likely linked to a carbonatitic magmatic-hydrothermal activity. It is located near Lake Tanganyika in Burundi, along the western branch of the East African Rift. Field observations suggest that the mineralized veins formed in the upper crust. Previous structures inherited from the Kibaran orogeny may have been reused during the mineralizing event. The paragenetic sequence and the geochronological data show that the Gakara mineralization occurred in successive stages in a continuous hydrothermal history. The primary mineralization in bastnaesite was followed by an alteration stage into monazite. The U-Th-Pb ages obtained on bastnaesite (602 ± 7 Ma) and on monazite (589 ± 8 Ma) belong to the Pan-African cycle. The emplacement of the Gakara REE mineralization most likely took place during a pre-collisional event in the Pan-African belt, probably in an extensional context.


We evaluated the diagnostic accuracy of two broadly reactive rapid immunochromatographic tests (ICTs) for detection of IgM and IgG against Orientia tsutsugamushi by using archived acute-phase serum samples from 102 patients with laboratory-confirmed scrub typhus, and from 62 archived serum samples from patients with other causes of fever as a negative control. These ICTs were constructed by using a mixture of recombinant proteins: 1) C1, a chimeric protein containing epitopes of the 56-kD antigen from Karp and TA763 strains; 2) Ktr56; and 3) Gmr56. Sensitivities of the ICTs for detection of IgM and IgG were 90.2% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 84.4-96.0%) and 86.3% (95% CI = 80.9-93.8%), respectively. Specificities were 85.5% (95% CI = 73.9-92.2%) and 96.8% (95% CI = 90.3-100%), respectively. Both assays were more sensitive and specific than the standard immune immunofluorescence assay for the early diagnosis of scrub typhus.


Despite the widespread use of IEEE 802.11 Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) protocol, not much analysis has been done on modeling its performance, to determine what amount of users such a network can accommodate. This paper introduces one approach to such a model, assisting with capacity determination of WLAN networks. We introduce a model to estimate the number of users that such a WLAN can accommodate. The model applies to unsaturated traffic conditions and to all traffic arrival patterns. Further, the model tries to emulate such a network as accurately as possible with moderate simplifications. The model provides an improved method of practical WLAN performance estimation.


Effectors play an important role in host–pathogen interactions. Though an economically significant disease in rice, knowledge regarding the infection strategy of Rhizoctonia solani is obscure. In this study, we performed a genome-wide identification of the effectors in R. solani based on the characteristics of previously reported effector proteins. A total of seven novel effectors (designated as RS107_1 to RS107_7) in the disease mechanism of R. solani were identified and were predicted to be non-classically secreted proteins with functionally conserved domains. The function, reactivity, and stability of these proteins were evaluated through physiochemical characterization. The target proteins involved in the regulation of rice defense mechanisms were identified. Furthermore, the effector genes were cloned and RS107_6 (metacaspase) was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli to obtain a purified protein of ~36.5 kDa. The MALD-TOF characterization confirmed that the protein belonged to a metacaspase of the Peptidase_C14 protein family, 906 bp in size, and encoded a polypeptide of 301 amino acids. These findings suggest that the identified effectors can potentially serve as a virulence factor and can be targeted for the management of sheath blight in rice.


We derive a closed-form expression for the mutual impedance due to eddy-current induction for a pair of cylindrical air-core coils with arbitrary position and orientation above a planar conductor. By extending a recently devised model for individual coils with an arbitrary tilt with respect to the surface, we obtain a remarkably simple result. We validated our model with measurements on a conductive plate. The results should be useful for designing new probe configurations and for evaluating the signals in eddy-current inspections when driver-pickup coil configurations are utilized.


This paper presents an intelligent-based control strategy for tip position tracking control of a single-link flexible manipulator. Motivated by the well-known inverse dynamics control strategy for rigid-link manipulators, two feedforward neural networks (NNs) are proposed to learn the nonlinearities of the flexible arm associated with the inverse dynamics controller. The redefined output approach is used by feeding back this output to guarantee the minimum phase behavior of the resulting closed-loop system. No a priori knowledge about the nonlinearities of the system is needed and the payload mass is also assumed to be unknown. The network weights are adjusted using a modified online error backpropagation algorithm that is based on the propagation of output tracking error, derivative of that error and the tip deflection of the manipulator. The real-time controller is implemented on an experimental test bed. The results achieved by the proposed NN-based controller are compared experimentally with conventional proportional-plus-derivative-type and standard inverse dynamics controls to substantiate and verify the advantages of our proposed scheme and its promising potential in identification and control of nonlinear systems.


The degree of choice households have over their consumption expenditure is critical in deciding their economic class. Applying our measure to Egyptian household budget surveys, we estimate the population size of the middle class in Egypt and assess their well-being in the period 1995-2011. Our findings show that if economic growth is pro-poor and inclusive, more people at the lower end of income distribution will graduate into the middle class category. The increase in poverty rates and decline in the size of the middle class since 2005 indicates that the growth process in Egypt was anti-poor and anti-middle class.


Facebook is today the most popular social network with more than one billion subscribers worldwide. To provide good quality of service (e.g., low access delay) to their clients, FB relies on Akamai, which provides a worldwide content distribution network with a large number of edge servers that are much closer to FB subscribers. In this article we aim to depict a global picture of the current FB network infrastructure deployment taking into account both native FB servers and Akamai nodes. Toward this end, we have performed a measurement-based analysis during a period of two weeks using 463 Planet- Lab nodes distributed across 41 countries. Based on the obtained data we compare the average access delay that nodes in different countries experience accessing both native FB servers and Akamai nodes. In addition, we obtain a wide view of the deployment of Akamai nodes serving FB users worldwide. Finally, we analyze the geographical coverage of those nodes, and demonstrate that in most of the cases Akamai nodes located in a particular country service not only local FB subscribers, but also FB users located in nearby countries.


For personal and work relationships to be successful, a number of different psycho-social qualities are required. It is postulated that all qualities exist in dual form, i.e., as pairs of opposite and complementary aspects which are further differentiable into two typical classes. In ancient philosophies, these are known as yin/yang and they appear in neuropsychology as the laterality of the brain's hemispheres. Using yin/ yang classes enables us to keep the discussion largely non sex-specific. Both neuro-psychology and philosophy consider the full development and proper synthesis of both aspects to be required for an individual to fully exploit his/her creative potential. Focusing on science and engineering, relevant pairs of qualities and their ideal synthesis are discussed and a model of fractal Yin/Yang nesting is proposed, which can be explained by personal differences and sex-relatedness.


The Brazilian Government has made available on the Web a massive volume of public data. This data may be structured, semi-structured or non-structured in order to turn the administration as transparent as possible. Thus, we notice the great challenge in providing applications capable enough to handle this Big Data environment, and to make information available for decision making. In this environment, data processing is done via new approaches from Information Science and Computer Science areas, by involving Technologies and processes for collecting, representing, storing and disseminating information. This paper presents a conceptual model, the technical architecture and the prototype implementation of a tool DBgoldbr, designed to classify government public information with the help of ontologies, by transforming open data into open linked data. To fulfill the purpose of the solution, we used Soft System Methodology to identify problems, to collect users needs and to design solutions that fit the purpose of specific groups. The DBgoldbr tool was designed to ease up the search for open data made available by many Brazilian Government institutions, so that this data can be reused to support the evaluation and monitoring of social programs, in order to support the design and management of public policies.


Background: Posttraumatic osteoarthritis (PTOA) is a common sequela of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, even when surgical treatment is selected. The effect of patient sex on cartilage health after ACL injury and surgical treatment has been less studied. Purpose/Hypothesis: The study objective was to compare the macroscopic cartilage damage that develops after ACL surgery in male and female Yucatan minipigs. It was hypothesized that after ACL surgery, the macroscopic cartilage damage of the tibiofemoral joints from female animals would be greater than that from male animals. Additionally, it was hypothesized that the effect of sex on the macroscopic cartilage damage would depend on surgical treatment. Study Design: Controlled laboratory study Methods: Twelve-month follow-up data were obtained for 55 adolescent Yucatan minipigs (22 female/33 male) that were randomized to 1 of 3 experimental groups: no treatment (ACL transection [ACLT]), ACL reconstruction, and bridge-enhanced ACL restoration. The Osteoarthritis Research Society International guidelines were used to determine a standardized macroscopic cartilage damage score on 5 surfaces of the knee joint. Results: Females had significantly worse mean total macroscopic cartilage damage scores on the surgical side (adjusted P value [P adj] = .04) and significantly better scores on the contralateral side (P adj = .01) when compared with males. The trochlear damage scores were also significantly worse in females for surgical limbs (P adj = .009) and significantly better for the contralateral limbs (P adj < .001) when compared with males. Although there were no significant differences in total macroscopic cartilage damage scores between sexes within treatment groups on the surgical limbs (ACLT, P adj = 0.45; ACL reconstruction, P adj = .56; bridge-enhanced ACL restoration, P adj = .23), the mean trochlear scores on the surgical limb of females were significantly worse than those of the males in the ACLT group (P adj = .003). Conclusion: Mean total macroscopic cartilage damage scores of Yucatan minipigs were significantly worse in females than males, regardless of treatment. These differences were predominantly found in the trochlear scores across all treatment groups. Clinical Relevance: These data suggest that patient sex could be more influential in the progression of PTOA than surgical treatment after ACL injury. Identifying factors responsible for this discrepancy may prove valuable to identify targets to slow PTOA progression in male and female ACL-injured populations.


Some observations are made concerning the source and nature of shape parameters. It is then described how Bezier curve segments can be stitched together with G/sup 1/ or G/sup 2/ continuity, using geometric constructions. These constructions lead to the development of geometric constructions for quadratic G/sup 1/ and cubic G/sup 2/ Beta-splines. A geometrically continuous subclass of Catmull-Rom splines based on geometric continuity and possessing shape parameters is discussed.<<ETX>>


This article is of a descriptive nature. It goes into the new framework as far as food is concerned. Feed will not be discussed. This article is published in 2 parts. Part 1 deals mainly with the new authorisation procedure. In this context some attention will first be given to the developments that led to the new framework and at the end of part 1 to administrative review. The main topics discussed in part 2 are the traceability requirements and labelling. Further some attention will be given to emergency measures, legal protection and transitory measures


A substantial increase of photovoltaic (PV) power generators installations has taken place in recent years, due to the increasing efficiency of solar cells as well as the improvements of manufacturing technology of solar panels. These generators are both grid-connected and stand-alone applications. We present an overview of the essential research results. The paper concentrates on the operation and modeling of stand-alone power systems with PV power generators. Systems with PV array-inverter assemblies, operating in the slave-and-master modes, are discussed, and the simulation results obtained using a renewable energy power system modular simulator are presented. These results demonstrate that simulation is an essential step in the system development process and that PV power generators constitute a valuable energy source. They have the ability to balance the energy and supply good power quality. It is demonstrated that when PV array- inverters are operating in the master mode in stand-alone applications, they well perform the task of controlling the voltage and frequency of the power system. The mechanism of switching the master function between the diesel generator and the PV array-inverter assembly in a stand-alone power system is also proposed and analyzed. Finally, some experimental results on a practical system are compared to the simulation results and confirm the usefulness of the proposed approach to the development of renewable energy systems with PV power generators.


Textural qualities of porous rigid foods, such as biscuit, cookie, cracker, rice cracker etc., were evaluated organoleptically. Five fundamental textural characteristics of porous rigid foods and the sensory parameters corresponding to each characteristic were established as follows; characteristic I hardness and/or chewiness (primary parameter "hardsoft, " secondary "crumbly-not crumbly"), II adhesiveness (primary "sticky-not sticky"), III wetness/moistness (primary "dry-wet"). IV oiliness (primary "oily/greasy-not oily/not greasy") and V fineness (primary "coarse-fine"). In addition to these descriptive scales, the onomatopoeic words "kari-kari" (crisp) and "boro-boro" (crumbly) were also effective in describing the texture of porous rigid foods.


We analyzed the magnetospheric global response to dynamic pressure pulses (DPPs) using the Heliophysics System Observatory (HSO) and ground magnetometers. During northward Interplanetary Magnetic Field (IMF) Bz conditions, the magnetosphere acts as a closed "cavity" and reacts to solar wind DPPs more simply than during southward IMF. In this study we use solar wind data collected by ACE and WIND together with magnetic field observations of Geotail, Cluster, Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS), Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (MMS), Van Allen Probes, GOES missions, and ground magnetometer arrays to observe the magnetosphere (dayside, nightside, inner magnetosphere, magnetotail, magnetosheath, etc.) and ionosphere response simultaneously in several local time sectors and regions. A total of 37 events were selected during the period between February 2007 to December 2017. We examine the global response of each event and identify systematic behavior of the magnetosphere due to DPPs' compression, such as MHD wave propagation, sudden impulses, and Ultra Low Frequency waves (ULF) in the Pc5 range. Our results confirm statistical studies with a more limited coverage that have been performed at different sectors and/or regions of the magnetosphere. We present observations of the different signatures generated in different regions that propagate through the magnetosphere. The signature of the tailward traveling DPP is observed to move at the same solar wind speed, and in superposition of other known magnetospheric perturbations. It is observed that the DPP also generates or increases the amplitude of Pc4‐5 waves observed in the inner magnetosphere, while similar waves are observed on the ground.