Abstract. The purpose of this study is to create a new dataset of spatially interpolated monthly climate data for South Korea at high spatial resolution (approximately 30m) by performing various spatio-statistical interpolation and comparing with forecast LDAPS gridded climate data provided from Korea Meterological Administration (KMA). Automatic Weather System (AWS) and Automated Synoptic Observing System (ASOS) data in 2017 obtained from KMA were included for the spatial mapping of temperature and rainfall; instantaneous temperature and 1-hour accumulated precipitation at 09:00 am on 31th March, 21th June, 23th September, and 24th December. Among observation data, 80 percent of the total point (478) and remaining 120 points were used for interpolations and for quantification, respectively. With the training data and digital elevation model (DEM) with 30 m resolution, inverse distance weighting (IDW), co-kriging, and kriging were performed by using ArcGIS10.3.1 software and Python 3.6.4. Bias and root mean square were computed to compare prediction performance quantitatively. When statistical analysis was performed for each cluster using 20 % validation data, co kriging was more suitable for spatialization of instantaneous temperature than other interpolation method. On the other hand, IDW technique was appropriate for spatialization of precipitation.


Nanopipettes are finding increasing use as nano "test tubes", with reactions triggered through application of an electrochemical potential between electrodes in the nanopipette and a bathing solution (bath). Key to this application is an understanding of how the applied potential induces mixing of the reagents from the nanopipette and the bath. Here, we demonstrate a laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM) approach to tracking the ingress of dye into a nanopipette (20-50 nm diameter end opening). We examine the case of dianionic fluorescein under alkaline conditions (pH 11) and large applied tip potentials (±10 V), with respect to the bath, and surprisingly find that dye ingress from the bath into the nanopipette is not observed under either sign of potential. Finite element method (FEM) simulations indicate this is due to the dominance of electro-osmosis in mass transport, with electro-osmotic flow in the conventional direction at +10 V and electro-osmosis of the second kind acting in the same direction at -10 V, caused by the formation of significant space charge in the center of the orifice. The results highlight the significant deviation in mass transport behavior that emerges at the nanoscale and the utility of the combined LSCM and FEM approach in deepening understanding, which in turn should promote new applications of nanopipettes.


The fluxes and average levels of trace gases such as ammonia, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur compounds are important inputs to atmospheric chemistry and radiative transfer models. A semi-portable fast chemical sensor (FCS) has been developed and tested that uses frequency modulation spectroscopy with mid-infrared lead-salt diode lasers to perform highly sensitive measurements of these gases. The sensor`s design features include an open path, multiple-reflection optical arrangement whose axis is automatically kept normal to the horizontal wind vector. Mounting of mirrors atop two vertical masts avoids any upwind or downwind flow perturbations. Sensitivity depends significantly on the power and beam quality of the laser sources. When used with a sonic anemometer, fast thermometer, and appropriate signal processing and software, the sensor measures vertical fluxes as the covariance of the ambient concentration and the vertical wind velocity. The FCS was tested in California`s Central Valley, where it successfully measured fluxes of ammonia (NH{sub 3}) and nitrous oxide (N{sub 2}O) over a cotton field. Based on these results, the system is considered ready for application to flux characterization studies. Volume 1 of this report describes the development and testing of the FM sensor; Volume 2 is an operator`s manual for the FCS.


In order to study the influence of the diaphyseal distraction upon further growth of the lengthening side physis. We applied the modified Ilizarov-type external fixator to the left tibiae of thirty-five goats. Diaphyseal corticotomies were performed, and distraction was carried out by using the Ilizarov's method. A group of 5 goats each was sacrificed 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 49 and 63 days postoperatively. Specimens of the lengthening side epiphysis for DNA quantitation VIDAS were decalcified with 5% EDTA and Feulgen stained. There was little influence subject to the Tension-Stress in lengthening side epiphysis as the mean DNA content corroborated its cell nuclei in 3C-4C region. The hypertrophic layer of physis on the lengthened side was thicker than that on the control side while the lines of epiphysis in roentgenography was still observable after removal of external fixator at 35 days post lengthening. Although lengthening by metaphyeal osteotomy was safe, the damage to the physis by Tension-Stress should be minimized.


M onkey B usiness : E motion and C onsciousness in P rimates Manisha Rai Figure 1. Perhaps it is not so far-fetched to see animals with emotions as people have ascribed it to be. In fact, the possibilities described in the Rise of the Planet of the Apes may be closer to reality than today's notions. The above picture is a scene from the Rise of the Planet of the Apes. "There's calm since Hamlet's return, but it is mostly an uneasy peace between the … orangutans. Stirring up trouble, delicate outsider Mangis zeros in on an unsuspecting Jordan for his food sack, but Jordan isn't afraid to defend what is rightfully his. Conflict between the two communities transforms into a perilous contest in which Jordan could lose his life" (Discovery Communications 2008). Pet owners, zoo goers, and Animal Planet fans alike have all experienced a moment where they felt it was very clear what an animal was feeling. A gorilla beating its chest in anger, a rhesus monkey furrowing its eyebrows in confusion, and a chimpanzee calling out in fear are all common occurrences of animal emotion in primates. Animal Planet's interpretation of Jordan's bravery would be considered blatantly anthropomorphic by many scientists. Anthropomorphism is the false projection of human capabilities onto animals, such as in the Betty Thomas' Doctor Dolittle (1998), Andrew Stanton's Finding Nemo (2003), and the vast majority of all Disney movies. Yet, if science is the study of the natural world, why do many scientists reject observations of animal emotion rather than using them as a starting point in the investigation of animal consciousness? The question of animal consciousness has such deep implications into the human psyche that for some, conceding animal consciousness blatantly undermines the will of god. Consciousness and emotion, to some people, are uniquely human traits that can only be generated in the process of human development—a claim that is, for the most part, substantiated by the fact that human minds are far superior to those of the world's most intelligent primates. "Why do many scientists reject observations of animal emotion rather than using them as a starting point in the investigation of animal consciousness?" Studies in evolution suggest, however, that because emotion and consciousness are such complex and advantageous mechanisms, it is likely that their origins can be traced farther back than the phylogenic split between primates and humans. Studies in animal empathy also support the suspicion of consciousness in primates, because they demonstrate that primates have "theory of mind," or the ability to conceive of the mental faculties of other beings. Theory of mind is a good indicator of B erkeley S cientific J ournal • S cience F iction • S pring 2011• V olume 15 • I ssue 2 • 1 B S J I couldn't help but smile in the final scene of the 1968 sci-fi classic, Planet of the Apes. The female chimp asks, "What will he [the astronaut] find out there, doctor?" and the doctor chimp answers in a slight British accent, "His Destiny." In today's world, how far are chimps from conceiving of a "destiny?" Very far. But primates may be at a distinct advantage over other mammals on their journey to becoming philosophers. Primates show us time and time again that they at least have emotions, if not the consciousness to recognize them. The following is an episode summary from Animal Planet's Orangutan Island, a unique show detailing the lives of 32 captive orangutans. Hamlet is a dominant male on the island:


Hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (HaNP) modified pencil graphite electrodes (PGEs) were developed for the first time in the literature, and accordingly they were applied for electrochemical monitoring of sequence-selective DNA hybridization. The experimental conditions for HaNP modification of PGE, and DNA hybridization related to Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) DNA sequence were optimized. The microscopic and electrochemical characterization of HaNP-PGE in contrast to the unmodified one was utilized. Under optimized experimental conditions, the selectivity of HBV DNA probe immobilized biosensor was tested against to non-complementary (NC), mismatch (MM) sequences and the mixture of target:NC (1 : 1) or target: MM (1 : 1).


Additive manufacturing is a recent revolution in the construction field since cementitious materials became printable. This extrusion technique has enabled the construction of very complex geometry with a reduction in costs, time and labour interventions. This study aims to evaluate the possibility of reinforcing 3D printable cementitious composites with the use of nano and micro materials, particularly nano silica, micro silica and microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) which are known for their ability to enhance the fresh and hardened properties of cement-based composites. Rheology property test, flowability and mechanical properties are the types of tests performed to evaluate the fresh and hardened properties of mortar modified with the rested additives. The results show the addition of MFC of 0.4% (of total solid matter) can significantly enhance the mechanical property. In addition, the presence of MFC (at 0.4% of total solid matter) can reduce the pressure required to extrude the mortar, enabling a steady state extrusion. It was also found that 1% nano silica addition significantly improves the mechanical properties and minimizes segregation in the failure surface. Recent Progress in Materials 2020; 2(4), doi:10.21926/rpm.2004022 Page 2/14


The question about socio-political conditions in Islamic states, which may affect the activities of terrorist organizations is considered. The countries of the Middle East are most often faced with terrorist activity. The population of these countries may be ethnically diverse or homogeneous, but the overwhelming majority professes Islam - a religion that has spiritual, legal and socio-political principles, offers an alternative approach to the foundations of the state system and the principles of its functioning. Islamism as a political trend has its supporters among both moderate and radical social groups in these countries. The ruling elites of some countries proclaims Islam the state religion with the appropriate preferences for it. However, Islamic states no less, and sometimes more than other countries in these regions, suffer from the activities of terrorist groups.

A number of socio-political characteristics that take place in Islamic states is highlighted, and their possible connection with the emergence and further activities of terrorist groups in any direction (from collecting information and recruiting local people to preparing and conducting a terrorist attack) is considered. Attention is paid to the relationship between the stability of the political system in Islamic states and their controllability of the territory within their own borders with the presence and type of the activities of terrorist organizations. The mutual importance of the problems of security, education, living conditions and features of the political regime in the issue of the risk of the emergence and further existence of terrorist groups in the Islamic state is accented.

The necessity of a complex of factors for the existence of a terrorist group is emphasized. It is noted that this complex is different for the constant or short-term activities of terrorists. The deterioration of the situation regarding the existence and activities of terrorists in the country is the greater, the more threatening factors appear, the less important will be the features of the political regime. The priority of individual factors in the presence of various situations is established type.


Snow and sea ice surface albedo feedback is evaluated in models from the World Climate Research Program Coupled Model Intercomparison Project phase 3 using the radiative "kernel" technique. A comparison is carried out between feedbacks at climate change timescales and those operating under seasonal, interannual, and decadal variability. A primary motivation is to examine possible relationships across these timescales. Similarities are found in the mean model meridional distribution of feedback, although uncertainties are large due to model spread and uncertainties from regressions. Climate change feedback appears stronger over the Arctic north of 75°N. Consistent with findings elsewhere, climate change feedback strengths over Northern Hemisphere (NH) snow and sea ice are uncorrelated, although a weak correlation is found between NH and Southern Hemisphere (SH) sea ice. By contrast, at other timescales, moderate positive correlations are found between NH snow and sea ice albedo feedbacks, as well as between NH and SH sea ice albedo feedbacks. Statistically significant correlations are not found between surface albedo feedbacks at climate change and other timescales, either for global feedback or for NH and SH sea ice. Notably, however, correlations are found for NH snow albedo feedback against both seasonal and interannual feedbacks. This suggests that NH snow albedo feedback is a "special case," potentially revealing short‐term analogues appropriate for close comparison with climate change, with such relationships not holding for other components of the surface albedo feedback.


The RET protooncogene is constitutively activated by point mutations in hereditary medullary thyroid carcinomas (MTCs). RET somatic point mutations have also been reported in 40-50% of sporadic MTCs. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms of the RET gene have been described in the general population as well as in patients with MTC. These allelic variants do not seem to confer any transforming activity to the tyrosine kinase domain of the RET gene. Because the exon 11 RET polymorphism determines an important aminoacidic variation (G691S), we studied its frequency in 212 subjects, 106 sporadic MTC patients and 106 normal age-, sex-, race-, and geographic origin-matched controls. In 46 cases of sporadic MTCs, we also studied the cosegregation of somatic RET gene mutation and G691S polymorphism as well as the linkage of the polymorphism with RET germline mutation in 60 members of eight multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 families. The influence of this polymorphism on the RET gene transcription has also been studied. In parallel we analyzed the frequencies of another three neutral polymorphisms (L769L, S836S, S904S). We found a statistically significant (P = 0.029) higher allelic frequency of G691S polymorphism in MTCs (27.83%) than that found in normal controls (18.86%), at variance with the three neutral polymorphisms whose frequencies were not different in patients and controls. With this study we excluded the influence of the G691S polymorphism on RET mRNA expression, the development of the somatic RET mutation, the linkage with the germline RET mutation, the younger onset of the MTCs, and the clinical outcome of the disease. A putative role of the G691S polymorphism as genetic modifier in the normal subjects remains to be established.


Modern electronic microprocessors use semiconductor logic gates organized on a silicon chip to enable efficient inter-gate communication. Here, arrays of communicating DNA logic gates integrated on a single DNA tile were designed and used to process nucleic acid inputs in a reusable format. Our results lay the foundation for the development of a DNA nanoprocessor, a small and biocompatible device capable of performing complex analyses of DNA and RNA inputs.


It is often assumed that contemporary physics is more hospitable to divine action (and human freedom) than classical mechanics. The article criticizes this assumption on the grounds of both physics and theology. Most currently discussed models do not challenge the physicalist assumption that physics provides a true and complete description of nature's causal web. Thus they resemble physicalism-plus-God. Taking up suggestions from Michael Polanyi, Herman Dooyeweerd and Henri Blocher, I propose an alternative framework for divine action in the world. It takes creation as the starting-point to understand the world and leads to a non-reductionist, multidimensional picture of reality. 1. Divine action in the contemporary science-and-theology literature


We describe an approach for developing explanation facilities for cognitive architectures based on techniques drawn from object- and aspect-oriented software engineering. We examine the use of responsibility-driven design augmented with scenario-based techniques and classresponsibility-collaboration (CRC) cards to identify explanation behaviors for cognitive model elements, and discuss the explanation benefits derived from encapsulating model behaviors within aspects. Soar is used an example cognitive architecture, but the methods and results as illustrated would apply to any of the other architectures commonly used to development psychologically plausible intelligent systems.


OBJECTIVE
To study the influence of long-term volume therapy with different solutions and continuous administration of pentoxifylline on plasma concentrations of circulating adhesion molecules.

DESIGN
Prospective, randomized study.

SETTING
A surgical intensive care unit (ICU) of a university hospital.

PATIENTS
Forty-two patients with sepsis secondary to major surgery were included.

INTERVENTIONS
The patients were randomly separated into three groups. In group 1 (n=14), volume therapy was exclusively carried out with 10% low-molecular-weight hydroxyethyl starch solution. In group 2 (n=14), patients exclusively received 20% human albumin for volume therapy. In group 3 (n=14), volume therapy was not defined and pentoxifylline was continuously given (1.4 mg/kg/hr iv).

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
From arterial blood samples, plasma concentrations of soluble adhesion molecules (endothelial leukocyte adhesion molecule-1 [soluble ELAM-1], intercellular adhesion molecule-1 [soluble ICAM-1], vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 [soluble VCAM-1], and soluble granule membrane protein-140) were serially measured on the day of admission to the ICU ("baseline" value) and during the next 5 days at noon. No significant differences between the three groups were found for macrohemodynamics. Soluble ELAM-1, soluble ICAM-1 and soluble VCAM-1 plasma concentrations were markedly higher than normal values at baseline in all groups. In the hydroxyethyl starch group, soluble ELAM-1 plasma concentration decreased to the normal range, whereas it further increased in the human albumin group and was almost unchanged in the pentoxifylline group. During the study period, soluble ICAM-1 and soluble VCAM-1 plasma concentrations remained unchanged in the hydroxyethyl starch group. However, these concentrations increased in the other groups. Soluble granule membrane protein-140 increased significantly only in the human albumin group (483 +/- 103 to 683 +/- 94 ng/mL). In the hydroxyethal starch-treated patients, Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score decreased significantly (from 24.3 +/- 3.4 at baseline to 17.0 +/- 3.3 at the end the study period). Only PaO2/FIO2 was correlated to plasma concentrations of adhesion molecules.

CONCLUSIONS
Sepsis is associated with markedly increased plasma concentrations of adhesion molecules, indicating endothelial activation or damage. By long-term volume therapy with hydroxyethal starch solution, these concentrations remained unchanged or even decreased, whereas in patients in whom human albumin was infused or pentoxifylline was given continuously, plasma concentration of soluble adhesion molecules further increased.


Abstract Bent-double sources, sometimes referred to as wide- or narrow-angle tails, are most likely the result of ram pressure from either the motion of the source through a dense medium or the "cluster weather." These unusual sources have long been associated with high density, high velocity dispersion, and turbulent environments of massive clusters, however a surprising number have been found in lower mass systems. We focus our attention on a sample of such sources in galaxy groups where the velocity dispersion is significantly lower. We have acquired multi-frequency radio continuum observations using the GMRT of our bent-double sample and new optical spectroscopy to measure the velocity dispersion of groups hosting these bent-double sources. Our goal is to derive an estimate of the density of the intergalactic medium in these groups. Here, we present GMRT data for one source in our sample.


The paper is focused to the properties of cementitious composites such as: mortar, ordinary concrete and self-compacting concrete made by means of recycled rubber granulate as a partial replacement for commonly used aggregate. This paper, together with the results of authors' own experimental research on rubberized cementitious composites is presented in detail. The comprehensive conclusion suggests that this type of material can be successfully applied in many fields of engineering practice, thanks to its sustainability, elasticity and durability.


Automated distribution systems offer new opportunities for improved control of voltage and reactive power at the distribution substation and feeder level. Digital processor algorithms which can have the objective functions of controlling voltage and reactive power and minimizing feeder losses in an integrated fashion according to specified priorities are described. Simulation results using a representative simplified distribution feeder configuration are presented based on the algorithms developed in connection with the PROBE [1] substation and feeder automation research project. This work is being advanced as a part of the development of the Integrated Distribution Control and Protection System engineering prototype for EPRI in Project RP 1472-1.


This paper examines the community formed by the Twitter users that used a city-level hashtag. In particular, we provide a network perspective of the city of Athens, Greece, as demonstrated by the analysis and visualization of the relevant Twitter hashtag data, in order to present both an overview and deeper insights at the microblogging practices of this geographic local network. Further analysis suggests that the Twitter community defined by the members of the network shows strong signs of a real-life community.


Background

Health literacy refers to an individual's capacity to access, understand, evaluate and use health information to make well informed health-related decision to maintain and promote optimal health. Low health literacy is linked with worse health outcomes and is more common in people from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds and from non-English speaking backgrounds and among people with limited education. Peri-menopausal and postmenopausal health behaviour predicts health in later life. This qualitative study was conducted in Melbourne, Australia. The aim of this study was to explored menopause-related health literacy and experiences with menopause-related health care among Vietnamese-born women who had immigrated to Australia as adults.

Methods

A qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted with women aged between 45 – 60 years and peri or postmenopausal. Transcripts were analyised thematically.

Results

A total of 12 women were interviewed. Participants viewed menopause as a natural event and obtained most of their menopause-related information from family and friends. Limited English language proficiency affected their capacity to access, understand, evaluate and use menopause-related health information. They identified their Vietnamese speaking General Practitioners (GPs) as a reliable source of health information, but 'shyness' prevented them from asking questions about menopause and they suggested that GPs need to initiate menopause-related health conversations.

Conclusion

Low menopause-related health literacy among immigrant Vietnamese-born women may limit their opportunities to access information about and benefit from menopause-related health promoting behaviours. Access to menopause-related health information in relevant community languages is essential to support immigrant women to make well informed menopause-related health decisions.


This article examines the possibilities and challenges in turning a top-down action research project led by high-level public authorities into a shared and collaborative, multi-site and multiprofessional bottom-up action research project. For this purpose, the article explores the initial stages of a European level action research project called 'Linguistically Sensitive Teaching in All Classrooms' that aimed to help teacher education systems better acknowledge linguistically diverse student populations in seven European countries. The analysis of the data sought to identify how to promote linguistically sensitive initial teacher education by incorporating reflection tasks into existing courses, and how to transform a top-down research project into a shared and collaborative bottom-up action project. The primary data consisted of 19 video-recorded online research meetings. Qualitative analysis was used to identify 'critical moments' in the data; these included a moment of major insight where transformation of project related ideas took place. The findings showed that linguistically sensitive teaching as a phenomenon is complex and the related terminology challenging to translate between languages and contexts. Furthermore, a European level action research requires negotiating a joint understanding of the roles of the participants and the individual perceptions of project ownership in each context. This suggests that a deeper understanding of the processes of participation and the partnerships involved in the action research may be as valuable as the actual reflection tools developed in the project in securing a systematic change towards linguistically sensitive teacher education. ARTICLE HISTORY Received 12 August 2020 Accepted 2 April 2021


This paper presents the results of investigations of the spectral responsivity in terms of radiant power within the infrared spectral range. Large-sized InGaAs photodiodes of 10 mm × 10 mm and an InGaAs trap detector were studied within the spectral range 500 nm to 1900 nm. The spectral responsivity of this reflection trap detector with three photodiodes is compared with that of a single InGaAs photodiode (photodiodes all of the same type). The temperature effect on the spectral responsivity is measured within the temperature range 10 °C to 30 °C. The results, which are important for calibration of transfer standards for optical communication, are discussed in terms of spectral quantum efficiency.


Rabies virus glycoprotein play a critical role in the pathogenesis of the disease by enabling binding of the virus to the potential receptors at site of inoculation, entry into the neurons, fusion of virus with endosomal membrane, transcription and translation of viral genome, replication , its retrograde transport to higher neurons and production of neutralizing antibodies. The ability of glycoprotein to activate the immune system and subsequent production of neutralizing antibodies have been exploited for the production of recombinant vaccines which may turn out in future to be an effective choice than the available alternatives for immunization of both human beings and animals. Oral bait vaccines for wildlife currently under use is based on this technology which proclaims the practical utility and field application of this technology. Monoclonal antibodies against glycoprotein are being utilized for epitope marking in various rabies virus isolates and it can also be a superior choice for post exposure prophylaxis in human beings. Retrograde transport property warranted by glycoprotein is utilized in brain research to unveil the complex neuronal connections to explore the normal functions of brain which may also improve our understanding of brain disorders and the possible treatment alternatives. Also, glycoprotein based peptides and pseudotyped viral vectors can be a better choice for drug or gene delivery to brain in various nervous disorders which have the advantage of overcoming the BBB in non-invasive way. Thus rabies glycoprotein has both detrimental as well as beneficial effects. Received date: 18/06/2015 Accepted date: 25/07/2015 Published date: 28/07/2015


We present an empirical investigation of video-mediated free play between 13 pairs of friends (ages 7 and 8). The pairs spent 10 minutes playing with each of four different prototypes we developed to support free play over videoconferencing. We coded each interaction for the types of play and the amount of social play observed. The children in our study were largely successful in playing together across videoconferencing, though challenges in managing visibility, attention, and intersubjectivity made it more difficult than face-to-face play. We also found that our prototypes supported some types of play to varying degrees. Our contribution lies in identifying these design tradeoffs and providing directions for future design of video-mediated communication systems for children.


ABSTRACT In this retrospective study the outcomes of two protocols of controlled ovarian hyperstimulation and natural cycle in poor ovarian responders defined according to the Bologna criteria were compared to elucidate which approach is more suitable for the treatment of these patients. We comparatively analyzed 142 cycles of GnRH antagonist (GnRH-ant) protocol, 53 cycles of GnRH agonist (GnRH-a) protocol, and 36 natural cycles. The mean number of oocytes (2.8±1.8) and embryos (1.6±1.2) per aspiration was significantly higher in GnRH-a protocol in comparison to GnRH-ant protocol and natural cycle, but the proportion of immature, fertilized oocytes, and embryos, including the quality of transferred embryos, was very similar in all treatments. The proportion of pregnancies per oocyte aspiration did not differ significantly between treatments (18.9% after GnRH-a, 10.6% after GnRH-ant, 5.6% after natural cycle), but the live birth rate per aspiration was significantly higher after GnRH-a protocol than after GnRH-ant protocol (15.1% vs. 4.2%; p=0.024).


[structure: see text] Herein we describe an efficient synthesis of cyclophanes comprised of intra-annular nitrogen functional groups through a template-promoted cyclization by ring-closing metathesis (RCM). The synthesis proceeds through condensation of meta-styryl anilines with acenaphthenequinone to form the templates, followed by RCM with Grubb's second-generation catalyst to afford cyclophanes with internal alpha-diimine functionality. Prolonged hydrogenation efficiently removes the template to provide a macrocycle containing the diamine functionality.


BACKGROUND
Hemostasis can be difficult to achieve after blunt abdominal trauma, especially if the patient is coagulopathic. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has recently approved a hemostatic dressing for treating bleeding after extremity trauma (RDH bandage; Marine Polymer Technologies, Cambridge, MA). It has not been evaluated for internal bleeding after trauma. We redesigned this dressing for internal use, and then tested whether this modified bandage (Miami-modified Rapid Deployment Hemostat) could achieve hemostasis when used as an adjunct to standard laparotomy pad packing in a pig model of severe liver injury with coagulopathy.

METHODS
Anesthetized swine (35-45 kg) received an isovolemic 45% blood volume replacement with refrigerated Hextend (6% hetastarch). Core body temperature was maintained at 33-34 degrees C with intra-abdominal ice packs. A coagulopathic condition was documented by thromboelastography. At this point a severe liver injury was induced by the avulsion of the left lateral hepatic lobe, then the pigs were randomized to treatment with either standard abdominal packing (control) or packing plus Miami-modified Rapid Deployment Hemostat. Two series of experiments were conducted. In series one (n = 14), the abdomen was closed and the animals were observed with no resuscitation. After one hour, the abdomen was opened, the packing was removed and the presence of bleeding was noted. In series two (n = 10), the abdomen was closed and the animal resuscitated with one unit of blood plus as much lactated Ringers intravenous fluid (IVF) as required to maintain a mean arterial pressure (MAP) > 70 mm Hg. After one hour, the packing was removed, the abdomen closed, and data were collected for an additional two hours.

RESULTS
Series one: 6/7 animals in the control group had continued bleeding at one hour; 1/7 animals in the treatment group had active bleeding (p = 0.0291). Series two: With control vs. Miami-modified Rapid Deployment Hemostat, the three-hour survival was zero vs. 80% (p = 0.0476). The total blood loss was 1.2 +/- 0.1 vs. 0.3 +/- 0.1 mL/kg/min (p = 0.001) and the IVF requirement was 1.6 +/- 0.3 vs. 0.6 +/- 0.3 mL/kg/min (p = 0.026).

CONCLUSIONS
The Miami-modified Rapid Deployment Hemostat bandage significantly reduced mortality, blood loss, and fluid requirements when used as an adjunct to standard abdominal packing following severe liver injury in coagulopathic pigs [corrected].


We describe the principle of a novel quantization scheme for all-optical analog-to-digital conversion. The proposed quantization is realized by slicing the supercontinuum spectrum with an arrayed waveguide grating. We conducted a proof-of-principle experiment of an optical three-level thresholding process and successfully demonstrated a two-bit optical quantizer, which shows the feasibility of the proposed scheme.


Abstract In this study, a simple, adjustable, bidirectional tilt sensor was designed using a pair of linear Hall effect sensors and magnets. Theoretical analysis and experimental results of the sensor system were presented. The working principle of the designed sensor is based on sensing the magnetic field of a mobile magnet which displaces with respect to the tilt angle. Two magnet sets were placed at the two ends of the system to apply repulsive restoring forces on the mobile magnet. The mobile magnet was coated with a light hydrocarbon based ferrofluid as a lubricant to reduce friction. Fixed Hall effect sensors were placed face to face at the two sides of the mobile magnet to monitor the magnetic field of the mobile magnet. It was shown that both experimentally and theoretically, it is possible to measure the approximate tilt angle linearly and quadratically by calculating the sum and difference of the Hall sensor voltages for the relatively small movements of the mobile magnet. Moreover, the system was also examined for the different sets of side magnets. For three different side magnet configurations, approximately 0.7, 1.1 and 1.68 V/rad sensitivity values were observed in the linear range.


The metamorphic rocks of Ecuador, once thought to constitute a uniform and ancient basement, belong to several distinct units of widely differing ages, compositions, and metamorphic histories. The largest area of metamorphic rocks constitutes an unbroken belt on the eastern Andean slope from the Colombian to the Peruvian border. The bulk of the rocks in this belt are of Cretaceous age, and were metamorphosed in the greenschist facies under a barrovian facies series. Rocks in the extreme north, and those south of lat. 3° 15′S are different, and may be of Paleozoic age. A smaller terrain, on the western Andean slope in southwestern Ecuador, is yet more varied. It includes four metamorphic terrains: the polymetamorphic Piedras Group of Precambrian age; the low-pressure Tahuin Group of Paleozoic age; the high-pressure Raspas Formation of Cretaceous age; and a low-pressure terrain of uncertain age north of the La Palma fault. Several isolated outcrops of metamorphic rocks in Ecuador are of uncertain significance.


Developing an industry-complaint Virtual Reality (VR) CAD application is a difficult task mainly because computer human interaction using 3D input is still an open issue. Six degrees of freedom (6DOF) devices and stereo vision are often reported in literature for general tasks such as navigation and selection, but not for the specific modelling activity. For this reason a VR experimental test bed called SpaceXperiment has been developed and a statistical study has been carried out. Speed, limbs position and direction have proven to affect the user's interaction performances during pointing, picking and lines sketching. Average values of precision, reliability and speeds have been extracted in order to serve as reference for future interface design. The presented results offer a significant contribution for developers of modelling applications in Virtual Reality.


Article history: Received January 20, 2014 Accepted 5 July 2014 Available online August 18 2014 This research presents an empirical investigation to study the relationship between communication models and crisis management in city of Tehran municipal firefighting department. The study develops a questionnaire with 21 questions, distributes it among 400 people who worked for firefighting department associated with municipality of Tehran, Iran. Crobnach alphas for all components of the survey were well above the minimum acceptable level of 0.7. Kolmogorov–Smirnov test has indicated that all components of the survey were normally distributed. Using a t-student test, the study determined that there were meaningful relationships between communication models and crisis management (sig: 0.000), between vertical model and crisis management (sig: 0.000), between ring model and crisis management (sig: 0.000), between star model and crisis management (sig: 0.000) and between Y model and crisis management (sig: 0.000) in Tehran municipal fire department. © 2014 Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Crisis management Municipality Firefighting Ring model


The rapid deployment of Internet of Things (IoT) applications leads to massive data that need to be processed. These IoT applications have specific communication requirements on latency and bandwidth, and present new features on their generated data such as time-dependency. Therefore, it is desirable to reshape the current IoT architectures by exploring their inherent nature of communication and computing to support smart IoT data process and analysis. We introduce in this paper features of IoT data, trends of IoT network architectures, some problems in IoT data analysis, and their solutions. Specifically, we view that software-defined edge computing is a promising architecture to support the unique needs of IoT data analysis. We further present an experiment on data anomaly detection in this architecture, and the comparison between two architectures for ECG diagnosis. Results show that our method is effective and feasible.


This investigation examined the prevalence and nature of grief in response to patient suffering, loss, or death among healthcare workers employed at a general hospital and a skilled nursing facility. A questionnaire was constructed for this purpose. Approximately two-thirds of the skilled nursing facility personnel remembered experiencing bereavement as a reaction to the crises of their geriatric patients. Mourning occurred among virtually all of the general hospital personnel who usually serve younger patients. Healthcare personnel mourned most often for those persons who suffered or died of cancer. A selected sample of respondents recalled that psychological symptoms of grief were more evident than physical. Both symptom types often persisted for more than 1 month. Since grief is common among nurses and aides employed at the two medical settings, bereavement counseling is suggested for those healthcare personnel who require this service.


Effective stuckpipe prediction becomes more challenging and requires real-time advanced analysis of all available drilling data. This paper presents an innovative model to predict stuckpipe incidents. A machine-learning model based on intensive feature-engineering integrated with physical models has been developed. It automates real-time drilling data collection, analysis, and detects the patterns for the most dominating drilling parameters values to achieve the success criteria of early warning signs of stuckpipe incidents. It has been applied on two equal sets of wells either stuck or non-stuck incidents. The model triggers alarms reliably and early before the stuckpipe incidents happen and therefore corrective actions could be taken properly in advance.


The objective of the study is to determine the effect on emissions of multi cylinder internal combustion engines due to ethanol blending .The exhaust emissions of multi cylinder serviced engine were tested and evaluated by using blends containing 5%,10%,15% ethanol, the gasoline in multi cylinder engine could be replaced with higher blend. The results showed that there is substantial reduction in exhaust gases like, Carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbon. The complete combustion resulting from use of ethanol increases carbon dioxide emission.


Recently, recommender systems play a pivotal role in alleviating the problem of information overload. Latent factor models have been widely used for recommendation. Most existing latent factor models mainly utilize the interaction information between users and items, although some recently extended models utilize some auxiliary information to learn a unified latent factor for users and items. The unified latent factor only represents the characteristics of users and the properties of items from the aspect of purchase history. However, the characteristics of users and the properties of items may stem from different aspects, e.g., the brand-aspect and category-aspect of items. Moreover, the latent factor models usually use the shallow projection, which cannot capture the characteristics of users and items well. Deep neural network has shown tremendous potential to model the non-linearity relationship between users and items. It can be used to replace shallow projection to model the complex correlation between users and items. In this paper, we propose a Neural network based Aspect-level Collaborative Filtering model (NeuACF) to exploit different aspect latent factors. Through modelling the rich object properties and relations in recommender system as a heterogeneous information network, NeuACF first extracts different aspect-level similarity matrices of users and items, respectively, through different meta-paths, and then feeds an elaborately designed deep neural network with these matrices to learn aspect-level latent factors. Finally, the aspect-level latent factors are fused for the top-N recommendation. Moreover, to fuse information from different aspects more effectively, we further propose NeuACF++ to fuse aspect-level latent factors with self-attention mechanism. Extensive experiments on three real world datasets show that NeuACF and NeuACF++ significantly outperform both existing latent factor models and recent neural network models.


A method of common earth, which is proposed by French Railway(SNCF) and is applied to high speed railway, minimizes the effect of the traction return current from tracks so that trackside electric devices can be protected and operation and maintenance staffs are kept out from injury in an electric railway environment. According to it, all the new domestic electric railway lines are replaced from existing individual earth method to the common earth method. In this paper, we analyze the correlation between common earth method and traction return current to prove whether the common earth has surely contributed to minimize the effect of the traction return current. The analysis was done based on the measurement of the traction return current at the domestic high speed railway line


Healthcare experts and researchers have been promoting the need for IoT-based remote health monitoring systems that take care of the health of elderly people. However, such systems may generate large amounts of data, which makes the security and privacy of such data to become imperative. This paper studies the security and privacy concerns of the existing Healthcare Monitoring System (HMS) and proposes a reference architecture (security integration framework) for managing IoT-based healthcare monitoring systems that ensures security, privacy, and reliable service delivery for patients and elderly people to reduce and avoid health related risks. Our proposed framework will be in the form of state-of-the-art Security Platform, for HMS, using the emerging Software Defined Network (SDN) networking paradigm. Our proposed integration framework eliminates the dependency on specific Software or vendor for different security systems, and allows for the benefits from the functional and secure applications, and services provided by the SDN platform.


Background and Purpose: Isotonic strength training can result in neuromuscular improvements evidenced in other forms of muscular effort, ie, isokinetic or isometric, especially in young subjects; however, it is unclear if older muscle maintains this same adaptive ability. Additionally, it is not known if the benefits of resistance training can be augmented by creatine and protein supplementation in older men. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess changes in isokinetic parameters at varying speeds in men aged 48 to 72 years (mean = 57 ± 2.1) following 16 weeks of isotonic resistance training and creatine and/or protein supplementation. Methods: Forty‐two male subjects were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 training groups: (1) resistance training placebo (n = 10), (2) resistance trained creatine supplemented (n = 10), (3) resistance trained protein supplemented (n = 11), and (4) resistance trained creatine and protein supplemented (n = 11). The program consisted of progressive overload resistance training (3 d/wk) and supplement consumption following the workout. Results: There were significant time effects (P ≤ .05) for peak torque (PT), time to PT, and average power for both the knee extensors and flexors at all velocities. However, no significant group or group by time interactions were noted, indicating that the supplementation protocols had no added benefits. Conclusions: Men aged 48 to 72 years maintained their ability to improve isokinetic muscle function following isotonic training, however, supplementation did not enhance muscle adaptability.


In this work, for the first time, were analyzed mulberry genotypes grown in Apulia (Southern Italy, Salento region) were analyzed. Two local varieties of Morus alba (cv. Legittimo nero and cv. Nello) and one of Morus nigra were characterized for content in simple sugars, organic acids, phenols, anthocyanins; fruit antioxidant activity (AA) was also evaluated by three different methods (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl, DPPH; 2,2′-Azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid), ABTS; and Ferric reducing antioxidant potential, FRAP test). The results showed that the sugars amount ranged between 6.29 and 7.66 g/100 g fresh weight (FW) while the malic and citric acids content was low, at about 0.1–1 g/100 g FW. Mulberries are a good source of phenols which are present in higher values in M. nigra and M. alba cv. Legittimo nero (485 and 424 mg Gallic Acid Equivalent (GAE)/ 100 g FW, respectively). The high performance liquid chromatography/diode array detector/mass spectrometry (HPLC/DAD/MS) analysis identified 5 main anthocyanin compounds present in different concentrations in each variety of mulberry: cyanidin 3-sophoroside, cyanidin 3-glucoside, cyanidin 3-rutinoside, pelargonidin 3-glucoside, pelargonidin 3-rutinoside. The highest concentration of anthocyanins was determined in Morus alba Legittimo (about 300 mg/100 g FW) while the lowest content (about 25 mg/100 g FW) was measured in M. alba cv. Nello. Morus nigra showed a good AA in comparison with the different M. alba genotypes with all the used methods; its AA was equal to 33, 26 and 21 μmols Trolox/g FW when using DPPH, ABTS and FRAP tests, respectively. All genotypes showed an anti-inflammatory activity (measured by cyclooxygenase (COX) inhibitory assay) which was also compared with two commercial anti-inflammatory drugs. The data obtained support the high biological qualities of mulberry fruits and their diffusion in human nutrition.


Purpose Little is known about the natural history of spinal deformities in Coffin-Lowry syndrome (CLS). Our goal was to evaluate the spinal deformity progression and clinical impact. Methods In this institutional review board-approved study, we performed a multinational retrospective review of six male CLS patients, aged 13 to 22 years at final follow-up, for a mean of 7.25 years (3 to 13). Results All showed delayed skeletal maturity. Three had calcifications of their lower cervical ligamentum flavum, all experienced neural axis abnormalities, including lower extremity weakness, numbness and tingling and in one, quadriparesis. Only two were ambulatory at final follow-up. All had significant spinal abnormalities, including severe progressive thoracic lordosis, thoracolumbar kyphosis and scoliosis. All had undergone spinal fusion or were being evaluated for surgery. Conclusion CLS is a rare X-linked mutation in the RSK2 gene, affecting between 1/50 000 to 100 000 people. There are two reports in the literature of patients with calcifications of their ligamentum flavum. Both had neural axis abnormalities and one had acute onset quadriplegia. Analysis of their ligamentum flavum found abundant central calcifications. Despite our small cohort we found 50% had calcifications and 100% had neurologic consequences associated with those calcifications. There was a 100% rate of deformity progression. They all exhibited delay in skeletal maturity, which mandates longer follow-up and has implications for surgical planning. From our cohort and literature review, the natural history of CLS supports frequent patient evaluation and a lower threshold for correction of spinal deformities. Aiming to avoid spinal cord compression and improve or avoid neurological deterioration. Level of Evidence IV - retrospective study


Abstract. The estimation of terrestrial water storage variations at river basin scale is among the best documented applications of the GRACE (Gravity and Climate Experiment) satellite gravity mission. In particular, it is expected that GRACE closes the water balance at river basin scale and allows the verification, improvement and modeling of the related hydrological processes by combining GRACE amplitude estimates with hydrological models' output and in-situ data. When computing monthly mean storage variations from GRACE gravity field models, spatial filtering is mandatory to reduce GRACE errors, but at the same time yields biased amplitude estimates. The objective of this paper is three-fold. Firstly, we want to compute and analyze amplitude and time behaviour of the bias in GRACE estimates of monthly mean water storage variations for several target areas in Southern Africa. In particular, we want to know the relation between bias and the choice of the filter correlation length, the size of the target area, and the amplitude of mass variations inside and outside the target area. Secondly, we want to know to what extent the bias can be corrected for using a priori information about mass variations. Thirdly, we want to quantify errors in the estimated bias due to uncertainties in the a priori information about mass variations that are used to compute the bias. The target areas are located in Southern Africa around the Zambezi river basin. The latest release of monthly GRACE gravity field models have been used for the period from January 2003 until March 2006. An accurate and properly calibrated regional hydrological model has been developed for this area and its surroundings and provides the necessary a priori information about mass variations inside and outside the target areas. The main conclusion of the study is that spatial smoothing significantly biases GRACE estimates of the amplitude of annual and monthly mean water storage variations and that bias correction using existing hydrological models significantly improves the quality of GRACE estimates. For most of the practical applications, the bias will be positive, which implies that GRACE underestimates the amplitudes. The bias is mainly determined by the filter correlation length; in the case of 1000 km smoothing, which is shown to be an appropriate choice for the target areas, the annual bias attains values up to 50% of the annual storage; the monthly bias is even larger with a maximum value of 75% of the monthly storage. A priori information about mass variations can provide reasonably accurate estimates of the bias, which significantly improves the quality of GRACE water storage amplitudes. For the target areas in Southern Africa, we show that after bias correction, GRACE annual amplitudes differ between 0 and 30 mm from the output of a regional hydrological model, which is between 0% and 25% of the storage. Annual phase shifts are small, not exceeding 0.25 months, i.e. 7.5 deg. It is shown that after bias correction, the fit between GRACE and a hydrological model is overoptimistic, if the same hydrological model is used to estimate the bias and to compare with GRACE. If another hydrological model is used to compute the bias, the fit is less, although the improvement is still very significant compared with uncorrected GRACE estimates of water storage variations. Therefore, the proposed approach for bias correction works for the target areas subject to this study. It may also be an option for other target areas provided that some reasonable a priori information about water storage variations are available.


We present the results of a BeppoSAX observation of the Z source GX 349]2 covering the energy range 0.1È200 keV. The presence of Ñares in the light curve indicates that the source was in the Ñaring branch during the BeppoSAX observation. We accumulated energy spectra separately for the nonÑaring intervals and for the Ñares. In both cases, the continuum is well described by a soft blackbody (kTBB D keV) and a Comptonized spectrum corresponding to electron temperature keV, optical 0.5 kT e D 2.7 depth qD 10 (for a spherical geometry), and seed-photon temperature keV. All temperatures kTWD 1 tend to increase during the Ñares. In the nonÑaring emission, a hard tail dominates the spectrum above 30 keV. This can be Ðt by a power law with photon index D2, contributing D2% of the total source luminosity over the BeppoSAX energy range. A comparison with hard tails that are detected in some soft states of black hole binaries suggests that a similar mechanism could originate these components in black hole and neutron star systems. Subject headings : accretion, accretion disks È stars : individual (GX 349]2) È stars : neutron È X-rays : general È X-rays : stars


The seed germination and seed vigor of eight Pioneer Hi-Bred maize hybrids were evaluated immediately after harvesting and a year later. The aim was to determine whether the seed showed loss of germination and vigor when shelled mechanically. The seed was cleaned but not dressed, and then germinated according to the ISTA standard procedure in four seed analysis laboratories. In addition, the seed of two randomly chosen hybrids was divided into four fractions based on size and shape, and the germination of each fraction was examined separately. All the germination results were acceptable according to the ISTA (2010) standard (over 90%), but a higher germination percentage was observed after manual shelling than after mechanical shelling. The number of abnormal seedlings, however, was higher for mechanically shelled seeds than for those harvested as whole ears. When the seed of separate seed fractions was tested, the germination percentage was lowest for the medium-sized round fraction and highest for the large flat fraction. The seed vigor of three of the hybrids was highest when maize seeds were harvested shelled rather than on the ear. For all the hybrids the germination percentage was lower for both groups when analyzed a year after harvesting. Better germination results were obtained for all the hybrids after whole ear harvesting than in the shelled group, but the difference was not significant. In the vigor tests the results obtained for mechanically shelled seed were superior to those for whole ear harvesting for the same three hybrids, but again the difference was not significant. The experiments should be repeated over several years to determine whether mechanically shelling maize seed negatively affects seed germination and vigor.


. This study was aimed to find out the relationship between shooting knowledge and anxiety on marine soldiers self-confidence. In the last 20 years, the researchers have not found a research report related to the effect of shooting knowledge and anxiety on students' self-confidence especially research conducted in Indonesia. Knowledge of shooting is the subject matter that is presented to students while attending basic military education. One of the factors that influence the success of a student soldier in completing military education is the level of anxiety of students themselves. This study is to obtain variable data on shooting knowledge using the written test method, while the variables of anxiety and self-confidence use the questionnaire method.Furthermore, knowledge of shooting and anxiety were set as independent variables while self-confidence was set as a dependent variable. Furthermore, the results of the study showed that: shooting knowledge has a significant positive direct influence on the self-confidence of marines soldier students; anxiety has a significant negative direct effect on the self-confidence of marines soldier students.


Background As a major regulator of local vascular
homeostasis, the endothelium maintains vascular tone
through the balance between vasodilatation and vasoconstriction.
Upsetting this tight balance leads to endothelial
dysfunction . The latter is thought to be a marker of future
cardiovascular events in hypertensive patients.
The purpose of this research was to assess endothelial vasomotor
function with relation to heart rate variability in
adolescents with arterial hypertension.
 Material and methods 56 adolescents (33 males, 23 females,
aged 22 ± 2 years) were subdivided into equal
groups (regarding gender, age, body mass index and genetic
burden) according to hypertension appearance and
smoking habits. All of them underwent forearm
rheovasography with measurements of reactive hyperemia
test heart rate variability being taken (a five-minute recording).
As reliable values for evaluating endothelial function,
relative changes in the peak blood flow velocity (DdZ/
/dT) and pulse blood volume (DdV) at the 1st min after
reperfusion were used. The following parameters of the
time (RRNN, SDNN, RMSSD, pNN50, CV) and frequency
(TP, VLF, LF, HF; LF/HF) domain analysis were
used for assessing heart rate modulation. Results Our analysis elicited a significant difference in both
velocity and volume characteristics between hypertensive
smokers and healthy individuals. Endothelial function in
hypertensive non-smoking patients and normotensive smokers
was also impaired. Heart rate variability was decreased
and sympathetic tone prevailed in hypertensive adolescents.
Both are associated with endothelial dysfunction.
 Conclusions Endothelial function is likely to be impaired
in hypertensive adolescents, particularly among those who
smoke. Moreover, heart rate variability is decreased and
sympathetic tone prevails with relation to endothelial dysfunction
towards the autonomic imbalance.


� Abstract— Tubular linear induction motor (TLIM) can be used as a capsule pump in a large pneumatic capsule pipeline (PCP) system. Parametric performance evaluation of the designed 1-meter diameter PCP-TLIM system yields encouraging results for practical implementation. The capsule thrust and speed inside the TLIM pump can be calculated from the combination of the PCP fluid mechanics and the TLIM equations. The TLIM equivalent circuits derived from those of the conventional three-phase induction motor are used as a model to predict the static test results of a small-scale PCP-TLIM system. In this paper, additional dynamic tests are performed on the same small-scale PCP-TLIM system with two capsules of different diameters. The behaviors of the capsule inside the pump are observed and analyzed. The dynamic performances from the dynamic tests are compared with the theoretical predictions based on the TLIM equivalent circuit model.


In the group of II-VI compound semiconductor, zinc sulphide (ZnS) has numerous potential applications in optoelectronic devices. In this effort, we have prepared ZnS thin films on glass substrates by Successive Ion Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) method. Zinc acetate and sodium sulphide were used as cationic and anionic precursors for the films. The crystal structure and surface morphology of the films were studied by X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and Scanning electron microscope (SEM). The deposited ZnS thin films showed polycrystalline with cubic phase. The increment in grain size is an effect of the increase in thickness of the films in accordance with the immersion cycles. The SEM images of the films confirmed that films were uniformly distributed in substrates and pin hole free. The band-gap of the films was estimated.


The rapidly evolving electricity system with increasing variable renewable energy (VRE) resources provides both opportunities and challenges for the power sector. With the significant ramps and intermittency associated with VRE resources, the requirements and need for additional flexible resources increase. Pumped storage hydropower (PSH) provides flexibility to the electricity grid to replace fossil fuel plants, which are responsible for 25% of U.S. emissions. PSH projects support various aspects of power system operations, including flexibility, ramping capability, energy, ancillary service, black start, and others. The significant potential of hydropower requires understanding the different value drivers to the electricity system specific to the location of a project and then optimizing the plant for the different system values. Thus, determining the value of PSH projects and their many services and contributions to the electricity system can be a challenge for potential developers, system owners, regulators, policy makers, and consultants.


Mussel production generates losses and waste since their commercialisation must be aligned with target market criteria. Since mussels are rich in proteins, their meat can be explored as a source of bioactive hydrolysates. Thus, the main objective of this study was to establish the optimal production conditions through two Box–Behnken designs to produce, by enzymatic hydrolysis (using subtilisin and corolase), hydrolysates rich in proteins and with bioactive properties. The factorial design allowed for the evaluation of the effects of three factors (hydrolysis temperature, enzyme ratio, and hydrolysis time) on protein/peptides release as well as antioxidant and anti-hypertensive properties of the hydrolysates. The hydrolysates produced using the optimised conditions using the subtilisin protease showed 45.0 ± 0.38% of protein, antioxidant activity via ORAC method of 485.63 ± 60.65 µmol TE/g of hydrolysate, and an IC50 for the inhibition of ACE of 1.0 ± 0.56 mg of protein/mL. The hydrolysates produced using corolase showed 46.35 ± 1.12% of protein, antioxidant activity of 389.48 ± 0.21 µmol TE/g of hydrolysate, and an IC50 for the inhibition of ACE of 3.7 ± 0.33 mg of protein/mL. Mussel meat losses and waste can be used as a source of hydrolysates rich in peptides with relevant bioactive properties, and showing potential for use as ingredients in different industries, such as food and cosmetics, contributing to a circular economy and reducing world waste.


The penalty type education mode for safety production is lack of systematic and comprehensive education thought, education system and education measures, which leads to frequent safety accidents. To promote the safety education level of China's coal mining enterprises, in this study, the government, coal mine enterprises and employees are included in the evolutionary game model to explore the game relation and evolutionary path of the decision-making behavior among the three stakeholders in the safety management and education. It is proved by decision-making dynamic replication analysis, strategy evolution stability analysis and numerical simulated experiment verification that: the decision-making behavior of the government, coal mine enterprises and employees is the result of the mutual game playing among the three stakeholders. It is impossible for the government to leave alone the enterprises adopting the penalty type education mode for safety production. The incentive type education mode for safety production takes active education thought, education system, education measures and so on. It has become an effective driving factor to promote safety education level and motivate employees' safety initiative. When certain conditions are met, the decision-making behavior of three stakeholders of the government, coal mine enterprises and employees can evolve into an ideal state. The evolution process of decision-making behavior of three stakeholders to the ideal state is influenced by many factors. The range of different factors has a differential effect on the convergence rate of the three stakeholders to the ideal state.


Cytotoxic lymphocytes, including natural killer cells, lymphokine-activated killer cells, and cytotoxic T lymphocytes, adhere to and lyse cancer cells by recognizing cell surface antigens. Among the cell surface antigens, intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) and HLA class I antigen are important for the cytotoxic activity of lymphocytes. The ICAM-1 and HLA class I antigen were examined in gastric cancer cell lines MKN-28 and MKN-45 by flow cytometry to determine whether their expression on the cell surface is enhanced by interferon gamma (IFN-gamma). The cell expression rate [stained cells/10(4) cells x 100(%)] was only 10% in ICAM-1 and about 20% in HLA class I antigen without IFN-gamma, but reached 70% in ICAM-1 and up to 60% in HLA class I antigen after incubation with IFN-gamma for 24-96 h. This enhanced expression of cell surface ICAM-1 and HLA class I antigen by IFN-gamma might increase sensitivity for cytotoxic lymphocytes.


This article examines the autobiographical narrative and polemical treatise of a twelfth century Jewish convert to Islam. Samaw'al al-Maghribī's writings contend with the problems of reconciling exilic Jewish identity during the diaspora with the dominant Muslim high culture in which Jews participated. In particular, his autobiography reveals the profound importance for his conversion of his identitification with Muslim history as represented in historical literature that promoted an ideological vision of the past. Similarly, his polemic articulates a critique of Judaism and Jewish religious identity in remarkably historicist terms that associate the integrity of religious culture with an independent political power. Educated in Islamicate scientific and philosophical culture, Samaw'al privileges a culturally defined conception of "reason" over genealogical links and identifies with the political success of Islamic civilization. His writings exemplify the dynamic tension within Jewish exilic identity between conversion and messianism as resolutions to the conflicts of minority status. In choosing conversion, he denied the endless wait for the Messiah as an irrational failure to recognize the judgments of history.


A major incident involving phthalates-contaminated foodstuffs occurred in Taiwan in May 2011, leading to the quick removal of tainted food items from store shelves. We investigated changes in urinary oxidative di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP) metabolites, our proxy for exposure to DEHP-tainted foodstuffs in children ≤10 years, during the six months following withdrawal of the tainted food. Our hospital screened 60 possibly exposed children between May and June 2011. The children's food intake information was collected, and they were administered one-spot urine samples at baseline and at the two and six month follow-ups. All three samples were measured for four oxidative DEHP metabolites, mono-(2-ethyl-5-hydroxyhexyl) phthalate (5OH-MEHP), mono-(2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl) phthalate (5oxo-MEHP), mono-(2-ethyl-5-carboxypentyl) phthalate (5cx-MEPP), and mono-(2-carboxymethylhexyl) phthalate (2cx-MMHP) by triple quadrupole liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Fifty-two children had been exposed. After excluding those without a full set of urine samples or adequate food intake information, 23 exposed children were studied. We found significantly positive correlations between DEHP daily intake and urinary 5OH-MEHP, 5oxo-MEHP, and 5cx-MEPP (p < 0.05). At the six month follow-up, all four metabolite concentrations had significantly decreased compared to the baseline. In conclusion, urinary DEHP metabolites decreased progressively in children after tainted food withdrawal, indicating that the main sources of phthalate contamination for children had been successfully controlled.


Earlier fluid dynamical calculations with QGP show a softening of the directed flow while with hadronic matter this effect is absent. On the other hand, we indicated that a third flow component shows up in the reaction plane as an enhanced emission, which is orthogonal to the directed flow. This is not shadowed by the deflected projectile and target, and shows up at measurable rapidities, y CM=1−2. To study the formation of this effect initial stages of relativistic heavy ion collisions are studied. An effective string rope model is presented for heavy ion collisions at RHIC energies. Our model takes into account baryon recoil for both target and projectile, arising from the acceleration of partons in an effective field. The typical field strength (string tension) for RHIC energies is about 5–12 GeV/fm, what allows us to talk about "string ropes". The results show that QGP forms a tilted disk, such that the direction of the largest pressure gradient stays in the reaction plane, but deviates from both the beam and the usual transverse flow directions. The produced initial state can be used as an initial condition for further hydrodynamical calculations. Such initial conditions lead to the creation of third flow component. Recent v 1 measurements are promising that this effect can be used as a diagnostic tool of the QGP.


The potential risk of pesticide exposure in developing countries needs further study as data are limited and simple tools to assess the risks on human health and the environment caused by pesticides are lacking. This article introduces a potential pesticides exposure index (PPEI) as a modeling tool to assess the risk of human and environmental pesticide exposure in agricultural basins. The PPEI is based on a number of factors including: human population centers and their proximity to agricultural crops, the toxicological properties of pesticides, and their application frequency. The index was applied to a region in southern Ecuador (approximately 7200 km2) where corn, rice, and sugarcane are the predominant crops, and where hot spots with the highest vulnerability to pesticide residues were identified. Of the total of 5326 neighborhoods for the entire study area, 1030 had high, 1124 had medium, and 1009 had low PPEI scores. Among the practical uses of PPEI are to help to assist regulatory agencies and academics evaluate the effects of land use policies on pesticide vulnerability. Also, it can be easily expanded to include other parameters, such as data from other agricultural crops, or frequency of pesticide application. The PPEI can be a valuable indicator of risk of pesticide exposure, as it is reliable and applicable to developing countries, where data and resources are limited. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2022;18:187–197. © 2021 SETAC


This analysis examines whether the unique mix of traditional and modern institutions in the Gulf region structures educational opportunity. We begin with a theoretically comparative framework, which emphasizes the blending of cultural capital differentiation with the cross-national adoption of similar models of schooling. We then use historical and cultural data to contextualize our analyses through mini-case studies aligning Gulf State-Islamic ideology within Iran and Kuwait's educational systems, specifically. Using cross-national data, we empirically test these assumptions in comparative context for Iran and Kuwait. Initial results for the hypothesized relationships rely on both descriptive analyses of resource availability and level of curricular influence in each country, as well as measures of students' expectations and attitudes towards schooling. We then expand these initial cross-national comparisons with multilevel regression models that estimate the effects of educational opportunity indicators on the technical processes and outcomes of schooling. In other words, our analyses not only indicate whether this intersection of traditional and modern institutions influences students' opportunity to learn but also provide preliminary empirical indicators of how this might happen by estimating the degree of penetration of Gulf State culture and religious ideology into schools' organizational environments.


Background Both early and long-standing rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients have a low prevalence of work participation, 60% and 40% respectively. Not only is this an economic loss for society, it is also a burden for patients. Studies demonstrate that paid work is associated with better health-related quality of life in patients with RA. TNF blocking agents have a proven effectiveness in the treatment of RA but are expensive. For reasons of cost-effectiveness it is important to know whether the use of TNF blocking agents is associated with increased work participation and to know how it can be predicted. Objectives The objectives of our study were: 1) To analyze the disease related determinants of work participation at the start of TNF blocking agents 2) To verify whether treatment of RA patients with TNF blocking agents leads to changes in work participation 3) To analyze the determinants for changes in work participation in patients who changed in working status after two years of treatment with TNF blocking agents. Methods Data were used from 2002-2011 of a large observational cohort of RA patients on biologics (DREAM). Patients were included when starting a TNF blocking agent (t=0) and were <65 years of age at t=2 years. This age was selected because it is the legal retirement age in the Netherlands. Work activity was registered as: paid work, retirement pension, work disability pension or voluntary work. Work participation was defined as having paid work and/or doing voluntary work. Disease related determinants analyzed were: age, gender, disease duration, number of previous DMARDs, rheumatoid factor, presence of erosions, number of co morbidities, HAQ-DI and DAS28. Additional analyzed determinants at 2 years were HAQ-DI response and DAS28 response. To explore influencing determinants, first univariate analyses (excluded if p-value >0.2) were performed followed by multivariate analyses with logistic regression (excluded if p-value >0.1). Results N=1259 patients started on TNF blocking agents and their work participation status was available. N=537 patients were also <65 years at t=2 years and therefore included. Determinants relating to the work participation at baseline were: having a better HAQ-DI (OR=0.36, p=0.000), not having co morbidities (OR=0.65, p=0.081), and being male (OR=0.62, p=0.042). After two years of TNF blocking therapy 12.1% (n=65) started to work and 13.2% (n=71) lost work. Influencing determinants for starting or stopping work are shown in Table 1. Table 1 Variable OR P-value Variable OR P-value Starting work (R2=0.131) Stopping work (R2=0.118)  Constant 3.70 0.134  Constant –2.08 0.000  HAQ-DI baseline 0.59 0.084  HAQ-DI baseline 0.93 0.002  Rheumatoid factor 2.58 0.024  Co morbidity 0.95 0.009  Age 0.95 0.002  HAQ-DI response –1.20 0.002 Conclusions It did appear that in this RA cohort work participation on average did not change during treatment with TNF blocking agents: equal proportions of patients lost or gained work. Work participation increased most in younger, better functioning RA patients without co morbidities. Disclosure of Interest S. Manders Grant/Research support from: the Dutch affiliation of Abbott Pharmaceuticals, W. Kievit: None Declared, A. Braakman: None Declared, L. Hendriks: None Declared, H. Brus: None Declared, J. Fransen: None Declared, M. van de Laar: None Declared, P. van Riel: None Declared


Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) is a newly identified coronavirus which has spread from China to the rest of the world causing the pandemic coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). It has fatality rate that floats from 5 to 15% and the symtoms are fever, cough, myalgia and/or fatigue up to dyspnea, responsible for hospitalization and in most of the cases of artificial oxygenation. In the attempt to understand how the virus spreads and how to pharmacologically abolish it, it was highlighted that SARS-CoV2 infects human cells by means of angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) and 3-chymotrypsin-like protease (3CLpro), also known as Mpro. Once bound to its receptor ACE2, the other two proteases, in concert with the receptor-mediated signaling, allow virus replication and spread throughout the body. Our attention has been focused on the role of ACE2 in that its blockade by the virus increases Bradykinin and its metabolites, well known to facilitate inflammation in the lung (responsible for cough and fever), facilitate both the coagulation and complement system, three mechanisms that are typical of angioedema, cardiovascular dysfunction and sepsis, pathologies which symptoms occur in COVID-19 patients. Thus, we propose to pharmacologically block the kallicrein-kinin system upstream bradykinin and the ensuing inflammation, coagulation and complement activation by means of lanadelumab, which is a clinically approved drug for hereditary angioedema.


Three strains (AP19, AP19-4 and AP19-6) of a novel yeast species were isolated from soil from the Singareni coal mines, Andhra Pradesh, India. They were morphologically, physiologically and phylogenetically identical and produced one to four spherical ascospores per ascus. Phylogenetic analysis using the D1/D2 variable domain of the large-subunit rRNA gene indicated that the closest relative of these strains is Debaryomyces etchellsii (2.6% divergence). Other species related to these strains are D. mycophilus (5.1% divergence) and species of the D. hansenii cluster (4.9-5.6% divergence). The novel species differs by 20 and 15 physiological tests from D. etchellsii and D. mycophilus, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region also indicated that strains of the new species are related to D. etchellsii (7.7% divergence), followed by species of the D. hansenii cluster (9-10% divergence). In the small-subunit rRNA gene sequences, they differed from D. etchellsii by seven substitutions and one insertion or deletion of a base in a sequence (indel) and from D. mycophilus by 17 substitutions and 1 indel. The physiological, biochemical and molecular data suggest that these strains belong to a novel species, for which we propose the name Debaryomyces singareniensis sp. nov. The type strain of AP19(T) (=MTCC 7061(T)=CBS 10405(T)). The Mycobank number of the new species is MB510046.


When accurately performed, bedside glucose monitoring (BGM) is a prompt, reliable, and cost- effective method of managing patients who require a high degree of glucose control. However, regulatory agencies have criticized the quality-control deficiencies of most existingBGMprograms. A new generation ofmulti-user reflectance meters enables the various regulatory directives to be more easily satisfied. These meters provide computer-assisted quality control analysis and facilitate operator feedback for each control test. New York State Department of Health regulations state that the ultimate responsibility for BGM belongs to the chemistry laboratory director. We believe that nursing personnel should retain their patient care prerogative to perform glucose monitoring. Implementation of our successful BGMprogram required the collaboration ofnursing, medical, laboratory, and administrative personnel. These departments combined theoretical and practical expertise with material and financial management. During the first 5 months of operation, our program has shown a steady increasefrom 78% to 89% ofcontrol tests performed correctly. This model can be used by other hospitals to achieve a successful BGM program.


The relationship between diabetes and root caries has not received much attention in the literature; therefore the objectives of the present study were to assess the root surface caries among type 2 diabetic patients and the factors affecting root surface caries. A hospital based cross-sectional study was done among type 2 diabetics visiting a medical hospital in Bangalore. Those who had been diagnosed from at least past 5 years and were above 35 years of age were included. Among the 400 study subjects, root caries were present among 42% of the subjects. There was a statistically significant association for the presence of root caries and age (p = 0.00023), presence of periodontal pockets (p = 0.0004) and presence of loss of attachment of more than 3 mm (p < 0.0001). These findings indicate that there is a need for implementation of caries preventive measures with increasing age, and among those with compromised periodontal status among those suffering from type 2 diabetes mellitus.


BACKGROUND
Previous animal studies have shown that vitamins may prevent age-related hearing loss. However, no concrete conclusions have been reached about the association between vitamin intake and presbycusis in humans.

OBJECTIVE
We investigated the association between dietary vitamin intake and hearing thresholds in adults between 50 and 80 y of age by using data from a large population-based survey.

DESIGN
We used data from the 2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. A pure-tone audiogram and physical examination of the ear were performed, and vitamin intake was calculated by using the 24-h recall method. Data from 1910 participants were analyzed through univariate and multivariate linear regression analyses.

RESULTS
After adjustment for age, sex, smoking, and exposure to occupational and explosive noise, intake of vitamin C correlated with better hearing at midfrequency (2000 and 3000 Hz) (coefficient: -0.012; 95% CI: -0.022, -0.002). Dietary supplement use was positively associated with better hearing at all frequencies. The univariate analysis indicated that dietary intakes of retinol, riboflavin, niacin, and vitamin C were positively correlated with better hearing at most frequencies. In contrast, serum concentrations of vitamin D were associated with worse hearing at mid and high (4000 and 6000 Hz) frequencies.

CONCLUSIONS
Dietary intake of vitamin C was associated with better hearing in the older population. Because less than one-half of elderly participants in this study consumed a sufficient amount of vitamins, and vitamin intake decreased with age, we should consider proper diet counseling to prevent hearing decline.


Introduction
Aim of this study was to evaluate our results from conventional and minimally invasive thyroidectomy and compare their outcomes.
Materials and Methods
137 patients undergone conventional and minimally invasive thyroidectomy (video-assisted and open technique with mini-cervicotomy) were reviewed. Demographic data, blood loss, operative time, postoperative pain, cosmetic outcome and complications were examined and compared.
Results
Minimally invasive group consists of 53 cases(39%) and conventional group is composed of 84 cases(61%). No conversion from minimally invasive to conventional techniques was observed. In minimally invasive group, 25 patients(47%) had differantiated thyroid carcinoma and 28 patients(53%) had benign pathologies. Postoperative complications include transient hypocalcemia in 5 patients(3.6%) (4 in conventional, 1 in minimally invasive group), permanent hypocalcemia in 4 patients(3%) (3 in conventional, 1 in minimally invasive group), unilateral vocal cord paralysis in 2 patients(2%) (1 in conventional, 1 in minimally invasive group). Operative time was similar in both groups; however blood loss during surgery, postoperative pain was significantly lower in minimally invasive group.
Conclusion
Minimally invasive techniques could be implemented on selected carcinoma patients and results in equal safety and less surgical morbidity.
Keywords: minimally invasive thyroidectomy, thyroid cancer, MIVAT


For bipedal robots to walk over complex and constrained environments (e.g., narrow walkways, stepping stones), they have to meet precise control objectives of speed and foot placement at every single step. This control that achieves the objectives precisely at every step is known as one-step deadbeat control. The high dimensionality of bipedal systems and the under-actuation (number of joint exceeds the actuators) presents a formidable computational challenge to achieve real-time control. In this paper, we present a computationally efficient method for one-step deadbeat control and demonstrate it on a 5-link planar bipedal model with 1 degree of under-actuation. Our method uses computed torque control using the 4 actuated degrees of freedom to decouple and reduce the dimensionality of the stance phase dynamics to a single degree of freedom. This simplification ensures that the step-to-step dynamics are a single equation. Then using Monte Carlo sampling, we generate data for approximating the step-to-step dynamics followed by curve fitting using a control affine model and a Gaussian process error model. We use the control affine model to compute control inputs using feedback linearization and fine tune these using iterative learning control using the Gaussian process error enabling one-step deadbeat control. We demonstrate the approach in simulation in scenarios involving stabilization against perturbations, following a changing velocity reference, and precise foot placement. We conclude that computed torque control-based model reduction and sampling-based approximation of the step-to-step dynamics provides a computationally efficient approach for real-time one-step deadbeat control of complex bipedal systems.


DOI:10.15414/afz.2015.18.03.53-55 Received 30. June 2015 ǀ Accepted 10. August 2015 ǀ Available online 14. October 2015 The aim of the study was to continuosly monitored reticuloruminal pH in 7 dairy cows of Holstein breed during 45 days at school experimental farm in Oponice. The bolus which was implemented through Esophagus measured pH and temperature values every 15 minutes (96 data points per day) with accuracy +/- 0.1 pH. Data were downloaded and collected with HathorHBClient v. 1.8.1 and statistically evaluated with IBM SPSS v. 20.0 (One-way ANNOVA). We found statistically significant differences between average values of pH from all dairy cows every hour (p<0.05). Overally was average pH 6.28±0.32. The lowest pH which we recorded was 5.30 and the highest 7.39. During 24 hours of day were dairy cows on average 6 hours and 51 minutes (28.6 % of a day) between pH interval 6.2 – 6.4. The second longest period of pH values were between 6.4 – 6.6 and took on average 6 hours and 8 minutes (25.6 % of a day). ). The smallest part of a day was pH over 6.8. It was only 0.6 % representing 8 minutes and 34 seconds.


Excimer lasers are finding increasing use in the electronics manufacturing industry. In contrast to other types of laser processing in which material is removed by localised heating, excimer laser processing involves a non‐thermal ablative material removal mechanism. This is due to the ultra‐violet output and short pulse duration of these unique light sources. The result is a high precision means of patterning thin dielectric films, removing such films from metal substrates, or removing thin metal films from underlying dielectrics. Through proper selection of operating parameters it is possible to achieve smooth sidewall profiles with selectable amount of taper while leaving the surrounding and, in the case of film removal, the underlying material virtually untouched. This paper will review the growing use of excimer lasers in applications such as the skiving of access holes and windows in flexible wiring, the drilling of via holes for multilayer boards, the stripping of microwires and other chip bonding applications. The differences between excimer laser processing and conventional laser based techniques will be highlighted.


In recent times, the vast amount of textual information available in electronic form is growing at staggering rate. This increasing number of textual data has led to the task of mining useful or interesting frequent itemsets (words/terms) from very large text databases and still it seems to be quite challenging. The use of such frequent itemsets for text clustering has received a great deal of attention in research community since the mined frequent itemsets reduce the dimensionality of the documents drastically. In the proposed research, we have devised an efficient approach for text clustering based on the frequent itemsets. A renowned method, called Apriori algorithm is used for mining the frequent itemsets. The mined frequent itemsets are then used for obtaining the partition, where the documents are initially clustered without overlapping. Furthermore, the resultant clusters are effectively obtained by grouping the documents within the partition by means of derived keywords. Finally, for experimentation, the Reuter-21578 dataset are used and thus the obtained outputs have ensured that the performance of the proposed approach has been improved effectively.


February 12, 1983 encourage the appearance of others of the same genre" (p 6). There is a grave danger for the development of sociology and social anthropology in geuneral and for the method of participant observation in particular, if books of this kind are to pass off as serious research monographs under the stamp of one of the greatest social anthropologists of the world. In fact, students of research should emulate Evans-Pritchard who is known for his systematic fieldwork, rich ethnography and theorising.


Greigite (Fe3S4) is a ferrimagnetic iron‐sulfide mineral that forms in sediments during diagenesis. Greigite growth can occur diachronously within a stratigraphic profile, complicating or overprinting environmental and paleomagnetic records. An important objective for paleo‐ and rock‐magnetic studies is to identify the presence of greigite and to discern its formation conditions. Greigite detection remains, however, challenging and its magnetic properties obscure due to the lack of pure, stable material of well‐defined grain size. To overcome these limitations, we report a new method to selectively transform lepidocrocite to greigite via the intermediate phase mackinawite (FeS). In‐situ magnetic characterization was performed on discrete samples with different sediment substrates. Susceptibility and chemical remanent magnetization increased proportionally over time, defining two distinct greigite growth regimes. Temperature dependent and constant initial growth rates indicate a solid‐state FeS to greigite transformation with an activation energy of 78–90 kJ/mol. Low and room temperature magnetic remanence and coercivity ratios match with calculated mixing curves for superparamagnetic (SP) and single domain (SD) greigite and suggest ∼25% and ∼50% SD proportions at 300 and 100 K, respectively. The mixing trend coincides with empirical data reported for natural greigite‐bearing sediments, suggesting a common SP endmember size of 5–10 nm that is likely inherited from mackinawite crystallites. The average particle size of 20–50 nm determined by X‐ray powder diffraction and electron microscopy accords with theoretical predictions of the SP/SD threshold size in greigite. The method constitutes a novel approach to synthesize greigite and to investigate its formation in sediments.


Two new alkaloids, cuspidatin ( 1) and cuspidatinol ( 2), were isolated from Antidesma cuspidatum M.A. (Euphorbiaceae). The structures were determined by means of spectroscopic analysis (IR, MS, and NMR spectroscopy). The results of cytotoxicity evaluation showed that compounds 1 and 2 were inhibitory to L1210 cells, with IC 50 values 8.41 and 6.36 µg/mL respectively.


Background: Apart from pharmacotherapy, also a combination of physical activity (PA), diet, and cognitive-behavioral therapy is recommended for obesity treatment.
Objective: This research study verified the effectiveness of the recommended complex intervention in treating overweight and obesity via an evaluation of changes in anthropometric indicators.
Methods: The intervention included a guided physical activity, a diet and cognitive-behavioural therapy. PA was realized via endurance exercise with guided exercise intensity (machine exercise, Nordic walking and group aerobic exercise) and via resistance training. Included in the study were 328 patients (233 women and 95 men) aged 19 - 79 years, undergoing a treatment stay focused on weight reduction in the Dolni Lipova Spa. The length of the stay varied between 6 to 49 days, which is 21 days on average. Anthropometric indexes from bio-impedance measuring were monitored, as well as the volume of PA via sport-testers in minutes and via pedometers in steps.
Results: The multifrequency bio-impedance analysis proved a significant loss of overall weight of 6.18 kg in men and 4.28 kg in women, body fat reduction of 4.50 kg in men and 3.52 kg in women and a reduction of the visceral fat of 13.42 cm2 in men and 10.41 cm2 in women. A relationship was demonstrated between the volume of guided PA and a reduction of the fat weight and the visceral fat amount. For women, the relationship between fat reduction and the volume of PA within the training heart rate (HRt) is stronger, while for men, the reduction of fat depends more on the overall volume of PA while exercising with a focus on reaching the HRt. Another relationship was demonstrated between the volume of habitual PA a reduction of their fat's weight and their visceral fat amount.
Conclusions: Complex intervention positively influenced the patients' health by reducing their overall weight and the weight of their fat. Guided PA within theit HRt has proven to be connected with changes in anthropometric indicators.


An Electrokinetic Chromatography (EKC) method was developed in this work enabling for the first time the separation of the four stereoisomers of the acetamide herbicide dimethenamid. A screening of different anionic cyclodextrins (CDs) revealed that the use of a single CD system did not allow the separation of the four dimethenamid stereoisomers while dual systems improved the chiral separation. The combination of 15 mM (2-carboxyethyl)-β-CD (CE-β-CD) with 10 mM methyl-γ-CD (M-γ-CD) originated the partial separation of dimethenamid stereoisomers. To obtain the baseline separation between all consecutive peaks, the effect of the addition of ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents to the CDs dual system was investigated. While ionic liquids did not improve the chiral separation obtained with the CDs dual system, the addition of deep eutectic solvents showed generally beneficial effects on the separation in terms of resolution. The influence of the nature of the deep eutectic solvent was studied and the effects of the ready-made deep eutectic solvent and its components on the separation were compared. Choline chloride-D-fructose (ChCl-D-fructose) when added to the CDs dual system under optimized conditions (15 mM CE-β-CD, 10 mM M-γ-CD, 1.5 % ChCl-D-fructose (2:1) in a 100 mM borate buffer (pH 9.0), a separation voltage of 25 kV and a temperature of 20 ˚C) enabled separating the four stereoisomers of dimethenamid in 21 min with resolutions between consecutive peaks of 6.0, 2.1 and 1.5. The analytical characteristics of the developed method were evaluated and considered adequate to achieve the stereoselective analysis of dimethenamid-P in commercial agrochemical formulations. Results demonstrated the potential of the method to control the quality of these formulations and to determine the stereoisomeric purity of dimethenamid-P in these products.