The livetime of several PET systems has been characterized in terms of a paralysing time after each coincidence event. If part of the deadtime is due to light collection and position encoding in a crystal array, the system deadtime is a function of the singles-to-coincidence-count ratio which in turn depends on the object size and radioisotope distribution. In this case it is necessary to make an independent measurement of the detector livetime. Since both detectors must be "live" to record a coincidence event, the detector contribution to system livetime is more pronounced in tomographs using position encoding schemes. Since "dead" detectors cannot contribute random events, the randoms rate will be less if deadtime is caused by the detectors rather than by the coincidence circuit. After analysing the sources of lost events at each stage in the encoding process we propose that, rather than using empi rical estimates, hardware be used to compute these losses.


This atlas contains 164 SEM photomicrographs of regolith particles from the Luna I6 and 2o missions. The text is in Russian (35 pages) and English (3o pages), followed by 3 pages of references, to I975, with one Russian reference dated i979. Each plate has an explanatory caption. No chemical data are given though the photographs are classified by subject into rocks, glasses, olivines, and plagioclases. The range in magnification used is from 4o ooo x to 48 • with the majority at about IOOO x. The photographs are of reasonable quality and show a variety of surface features. Their appeal, and that of the book, is likely to be limited to those with a particular interest in grain morphology on a fine scale. A. L. GRAHAM


To reduce power, Vdd programmability has been proposed recently to select Vdd-level for interconnects and to power-gate unused interconnects. However, Vdd-level converters used in the Vdd-programmable method consume a large amount of leakage. In this paper, we develop chip-level dual-Vdd assignment algorithms to guarantee that no low-Vdd interconnect switch drives high-Vdd interconnect switches. This removes the need of Vdd-level converters and reduces interconnect leakage and interconnect device area by 91.78% and 25.48%, respectively. The assignment algorithms include power sensitivity based heuristics with implicit time slack allocation and a linear programming (LP) based method with explicit time slack allocation. Both first allocate time slack to interconnects with higher transition density and assign low-Vdd to them for more power reduction. Compared to the aforementioned Vdd-programmable method using Vdd-level converters, the LP based algorithm reduces interconnect power by 65.13% without performance loss for the MCNC benchmark circuits. Compared to the LP based algorithm, the sensitivity based heuristics can obtain slightly smaller power reduction but run 4/spl times/ faster.


Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is characterized by central nervous system perivenular and parenchymal mononuclear cell infiltrates consisting of activated T cells and macrophages. We recently demonstrated that elevated expression of the voltage-gated potassium channel, Kv1.3, is a functional marker of activated effector memory T (T(EM)) cells in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis and in myelin-specific T cells derived from the peripheral blood of patients with MS. Herein, we show that Kv1.3 is highly expressed in postmortem MS brain inflammatory infiltrates. The expression pattern revealed not only Kv1.3(+) T cells in the perivenular infiltrate but also high expression in the parenchyma of demyelinated MS lesions and both normal appearing gray and white matter. These cells were uniformly chemokine receptor 7 negative (CCR7(-)), consistent with an effector memory phenotype. Using double-labeling immunohistochemistry and confocal microscopy, we demonstrated colocalization of Kv1.3 with CD3, CD4, CD8, and some CD68 cells. The expression patterns mirrored in vitro experiments showing polarization of Kv1.3 to the immunological synapse. Kv1.3 was expressed in low to moderate levels on CCR7(+) central memory T cells from cerebrospinal fluid, but, when these cells were stimulated in vitro, they rapidly became Kv1.3(high)/CCR7(-) T(EM), suggesting that a subset of cerebrospinal fluid cells existed in a primed state ready to become T(EM). These studies provide further rationale for the use of specific Kv1.3 antagonists in MS.


A DNA hybridization test was investigated for application to the detection of Campylobacter spp. in poultry samples. The test chemistry involves solution phase hybridization and detection by means of an enzymatically generated colorimetric endpoint. DNA probes used in the test system are targeted to unique sequences of ribosomal RNA and are specific for Campylobacter jejuni , Campylobacter coli , Campylobacter lari , and Campylobacter fetus subsp. fetus . Initial experiments with pure cultures of C. jejuni established the sensitivity limit of the DNA hybridization assay at approximately 106-7 CFU per sample. Experiments were designed to define optimal conditions for recovery and selective enrichment of Campylobacter spp. from chicken carcasses for use in conjunction with the DNA hybridization assay. Following overnight enrichment, cultures were swabbed onto Campy-Cefex agar plates and allowed to incubate for 24 h. This overnight growth was then suspended and assayed with the DNA probe. The remainder of the overnight enrichment was centrifuged and the resulting pellet was analyzed. Thirty-eight chicken carcasses were assayed for Campylobacter spp. by DNA probe and culture methodology employing culture enrichment and selective plating. Culture procedures isolated Campylobacter spp. from 23 carcasses, while the DNA probe assay detected the organism from 21 carcasses. The DNA probe registered five "false" positives and seven "false" negatives relative to the cultural bacteriologic approach.


OBJECTIVE
This paper aims to decode the activity of Human Resources (HR) professionals responsible for evaluating continuing vocational training. It is based on the understanding of the different "time frames" involved in the development of the evaluation process as well as the reasons that justify the options for different implementation methods in the world of work.

METHODS
Document analysis of the training evaluation process implemented in two companies and comparison of the results obtained in the evaluation of a specific training session using two different evaluation methods.

RESULTS
In both cases the companies largely adopted the Kirkpatrick's model to evaluate training, although they hardly exceed the evaluation level reaction to training. One of the two companies offered the opportunity to carry out an evaluation procedure inspired in an alternative model that confirms that different evaluation methods lead to different analysis produced by the trainees regarding the process they have experienced.

CONCLUSIONS
The choice for a specific training evaluation model usually depends on administration "time frames" and options and it usually entails a consensus that considers training evaluation as the fulfillment of previously determined standard procedures. Nevertheless, the use of alternative evaluation methods, as a complement to that already in use, may be the right way to revisit the questions which originated the training course and rethink not only its original design but also the working conditions associated to it.


Abstract Heritiera angustata (Malvaceae) is an evergreen tree distributed in the Chinese provinces of Hainan and Yunnan and in Cambodia. In China, it is listed as 'Endangered' (EN) China Red List of Higher Plants, although it is not protected by law. The complete chloroplast (cp) genome sequence of this threatened species is reported in this study, based on high-throughput sequencing (Illumina). The complete cp genome is 168, 953 bp in length, containing a pair of inverted repeat regions (IRs) of 34,491 bp, a large single copy (LSC) region of 89,054 bp, and a small single copy (SSC) region of 10,917 bp. The cp genome contains 129 genes, consisting of 85 protein-coding genes, 36 tRNA genes and eight rRNA genes. The overall AT content in the cp genome of H. angustata is 63.2%. The phylogenetic analyses indicate that there is a close relationship between H. angustata and Firmiana pulcherrima.


The value of 2 ,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-1)) and its various formulations as phytotoxic agents has been predicated upon their toxicity to the unwanted weeds in relation to their toxicity to the wanted crop plants; but this evaluation is based on only a part of the farmers' plants. No one questions the beneficial roles played by many of the bacteria, actinomycetes, and fungi, the microscopic plants, in maintaining the fertility of our soils; thus it follows that any deleterious effect upon them by the indiscriminate use of the herbicide might be of serious consequence in the continued productivity of the soil. There have been reports (Newman, 1947; Newman, Thomas, and Walker, 1952; Smith, Dawson, and Wenzel, 1945) on the effects of various herbicides upon the diverse organisms which make up the soil's microflora. Because of the role of Azotobacter in the nitrogen economy of the soil, it was thought to be worthwhile to study the effect of 2,4-D, the herbicide commonly used to control weeds in sugarcane, upon these beneficial bacteria.


Immediate feedback assessment technique (IF-AT) are self-scoring answer sheets, based on the concepts of immediate feedback for choosing the correct answer in multiple choice questions (MCQs) during group readiness assurance tests (GRATs) in team-based learning (TBL). IF-AT scratch card system rewards a student with partial credit for proximate knowledge. This technique motivates students to pursue learning with just-in-time feedback and gives them the opportunity for collaborative learning and analytic reasoning among group members. A rubric for partial credit is decided pre-hand depending upon the number of options used in MCQs. In this study, we assessed students' perception about immediate feedback assessment technique before and after the training. To determine students' perception of the IF-AT scratch card system in instruction and assessment. Students perceptions about the IF-AT system has been explored using a 25-item questionnaire administered to 60 students assigned randomly to control and training groups using pre-test and post-test analysis. Paired-sample t-test and independent-sample t-test statistics were employed and the data was analysed. Descriptive statistics observed for mean (SD) was found greater in trained group = 58.48 (4.87) vs. control group = 66.43 (5.81) with t-statistics significant at p = < 0.001. A significant difference in mean (SD) of pre-test minus post-test scores (5.16) of control and trained group = 5.37 (4.85) and 10.53 (8.36) respectively was also found with independent t-test analysis. It was found highly significant with t = –2.92, p < 0.05 and the effect size of 78.1%, established by Cohen's d criteria. The IF-AT system provides an individualised and instantaneous instruction as feedback in an assessment, which is marked with collaborative learning as in team-based learning. The IF-AT system promotes analytic reasoning with problem solving skills through partial credit for proximate knowledge. Students' perceive the concept of immediate feedback and partial credit for proximate knowledge as the most important features of the IF-AT scratch card system.


Synopsis Recent examinations of Lower Ordovician (Arenig) cherts from the Ballantrae Complex, Scotland have resulted in the discovery of a moderately well-preserved radiolarian assemblage. Elements of the fauna are distinctive indicating that even early radiolarian forms have excellent biostratigraphic potential. The abundance of radiolarians in chert and the ease with which they can be extracted suggest that they are a potentially valuable tool for use in investigations into the timing of the development of Early Palaeozoic orogenic systems. A new family of Radiolaria the Proventocitiidae fam. nov., previously informally described from Spitsbergen (Fortey and Holdsworth 1971), is formalized herein. One new species, Proventocitum holdsworthi, sp.nov., is described; Proventocitum sp.A is described under open nomenclature.


The combined techniques of scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and selected area electron diffraction are used to characterise the microstructures of opaque coloured glass mosaics from a mediaeval church in Torcello, Italy. Comparison of MgO/K2O ratios allows distinction between mediaeval and modern glass artefacts to be made. TEM investigation of inclusions indicates that relict silica is responsible for the speckled appearance of an impure mediaeval glass artefact, whilst a fine scale dispersion of elemental Cu nanoparticles is considered responsible for the orange-red colouration of a modern glass artefact.


Robots have been applied in science education for a long time. Inquiry-based learning, as a student-centred method to discover different relations, has been considered as an effective learning approach in science education and robots are often used to apply student-guided inquiry. It is, however, not clear what the effect of inquiry-based scenarios is in learning science when students' motivation and novelty effect are taken into account. In our study, we tested seven inquiry-based scenarios in secondary school physics with a sample of 47 students in the experiment classes and 41 in the control classes. Results revealed that the inquire-based scenarios improved students' inquiry skills and subject knowledge and skills in the case of the experiment classes and also in the case of the control classes. Study motivation did not improve in the study, explained by the fact that the schools have used robots previously in learning and the novelty effect has faded out. Based on our discussion, the use of robots in education needs to focus more on supporting students' thinking activities and on increasing their awareness about their own skills and learning process. Further studies are needed to understand in-depth how teachers' activities in the classroom might have an effect on the usability of robots in education and how students' thinking and awareness of the learning process could be improved in order to have a stronger effect on learning outcomes as well.


Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is used as a food flavor enhancer has many side effects including, damage to liver function. This study examines the effect of ethanol extract of mangosteen peel (EEKM) compared with vitamin E on liver tampered with MSG, using true experimental designs. By using a sample of 20 male mice were divided into 4 treatment groups. Group (P0): control / distilled water 0.3 ml / mice / day (35 days), (P1): MSG 8mg/grBB mice / day (21 days), (P2): MSG 8mg/grBB mice / day (21 days ) followed EEKM 600mg/grBB/mice/hari (14 days), (P3): MSG 8 mg / grBB mice / day (21 days) followed vitamin E 0.2 mg / grBB mice / day (14 days), no significant differences serum levels of AST in P1 than P2, P3 (p <0.05), there was no significant difference between P2 compared to P3 (p> 0.05), for serum ALT levels, no significant differences in P1 compared to P2 (p <0, 05), but no significant difference between P2 compared to P3 (p> 0.05), there was no significant difference between P2 compared to P3 (p> 0, 05). Concluded that vitamin E may be able to reduce levels of serum AST, compared EEKM, whereas serum levels of ALT, EEKM not much different in lowering serum ALT levels compared with vitamin E


We present a review of the historical evolution of software engineering, intertwining it with the history of knowledge engineering because "those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." This retrospective represents a further step forward to understanding the current state of both types of engineerings; history has also positive experiences; some of them we would like to remember and to repeat. Two types of engineerings had parallel and divergent evolutions but following a similar pattern. We also define a set of milestones that represent a convergence or divergence of the software development methodologies. These milestones do not appear at the same time in software engineering and knowledge engineering, so lessons learned in one discipline can help in the evolution of the other one.


Visual Abstract Background and objectives In the CaLIPSO study, intravenous administration of SNF472 (300 or 600 mg) during hemodialysis significantly attenuated progression of coronary artery and aortic valve calcification. SNF472 selectively inhibits formation of hydroxyapatite, the final step in cardiovascular calcification. Because bone mineral is predominantly hydroxyapatite, we assessed changes in bone mineral density in CaLIPSO. Design, setting, participants, & measurements Patients with coronary artery calcification at screening (Agatston score of 100–3500 U) were randomized 1:1:1 to receive placebo, 300 mg SNF472, or 600 mg SNF472 as an intravenous infusion during hemodialysis three times weekly for 52 weeks. Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans were obtained at baseline (screening) and end of treatment, and between-group changes from baseline were compared using analysis of covariance. Results Among 274 randomized patients, 202 had evaluable DXA scans at baseline and postrandomization (the DXA-modified intention-to-treat population). Mean (95% confidence interval) changes in total-hip bone mineral density from baseline to week 52 were −1.5% (−2.7% to −0.3%), −1.5% (−2.7% to −0.4%), and −2.5% (−3.8% to −1.2%) in the placebo, 300 mg SNF472, and 600 mg SNF472 groups, respectively. Mean (95% confidence interval) changes in femoral-neck bone mineral density from baseline to week 52 were −0.3% (−1.6% to 1.0%), −1.0% (−2.3% to 0.2%), and −2.6% (−4.0% to −1.3%), respectively. Regression analyses showed no correlation between change in coronary artery calcium volume and change in bone mineral density at either location. Changes in serum alkaline phosphatase, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, and intact parathyroid hormone levels were similar across treatment groups. Clinical fracture events were reported for four of 90, three of 92, and six of 91 patients in the placebo, 300 mg SNF472, and 600 mg SNF472 groups, respectively. Conclusions Bone mineral density decreased modestly in all groups over 1 year. In the 600 mg SNF472 group, the reduction appeared more pronounced. Reported fractures were infrequent in all groups. Clinical Trial registry name and registration number: Effect of SNF472 on Progression of Cardiovascular Calcification in End-Stage-Renal-Disease (ESRD) Patients on Hemodialysis (HD), NCT02966028


The translational diffusion dynamics of the zwitterionic lipid 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) at a planar phosphorylated support surface containing metal ions (Mg2+, Ca2+, Ba2+, Ni2+, Zn2+, Cd2+, Zr4+) was investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP). Fluorescence recovery curves yielded diffusion constants on the order of 2-5 μm2/s for the chromophore-tagged 12:0 NBD-Lyso-PC. Ionic interactions between the zwitterionic headgroup and metal ions were found to play a secondary role in mediating lipid fluidity. This work provides quantitative insight into the extent to which the fluidity of a supported lipid film is mediated by the ionic interactions between headgroup and surface versus that of the lipid-lipid tailgroup interactions.


We constrain the true spin–orbit alignment of the KOI-89 system by numerically fitting the two Kepler photometric light curves produced by the transiting planets KOI-89.01 and KOI-89.02. The two planets have periods of 84.69 and 207.58 days, respectively. We find that the two bodies are low-density giant planets with radii of 0.45 ± 0.03 Rjup and 0.43 ± 0.05 Rjup and spin–orbit misalignments of 72° ± 3° and 73 − 5 ° + 11 ?> , respectively. Through dynamic stability tests, we demonstrate the general trend of higher system stability with the two planets close to mutual alignment and estimate their coalignment angle to 20° ± 20°—i.e., the planets are misaligned with the star but may be aligned with each other. From these results, we limit KOI-89's misalignment mechanisms to star–disk-binary interactions, disk warping via planet–disk interactions, planet–planet scattering, Kozai resonance, or internal gravity waves.


In thermal spray applications, such as cold spray, an inert gas jet (typically helium or nitrogen) is used to accelerate micron scale particles to supersonic velocities. The complex gas dynamics of these supersonic jets are critical to understand via computational methods for the control of the spray. This work compares supersonic jet waveforms visualized by schlieren imaging with those predicted by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. A supersonic nitrogen jet is produced by a millimeter scale converging-diverging nozzle with inlet pressures as high as 50 bars. The jet Reynolds numbers based on the nozzle exit diameter and stagnation gas properties range between 60,000 to 325,000. A schlieren visualization setup has been built which shows the first spatial derivative of densities within the flow field. The strong density gradients across the oblique shock waves in the jets allow for clear photographs of the flow pattern of the jets using this schlieren visualization setup. Comparisons between the experiments and the CFD results act as a validation technique for the accuracy of the simulations in terms of the positions and orientations of the oblique shock waves. Through this study, the nozzle internal surface roughness is determined to be a critical parameter in millimeter scale nozzles for the development of the boundary layer. The CFD surface roughness parameters inside the nozzle are incremented until the geometry of the oblique shock waves matches the schlieren images. This work validates the simulation techniques which will be used for future jet simulations, in which shock wave locations and orientations are important, such as jet impingement on a flat plate and particle-shock interactions.


Bevacizumab is a biologically and clinically active antineoplastic agent in the management of epithelial ovarian cancer. While phase III trial data have revealed the favorable impact on progression-free survival associated with combining the agent with cytotoxic chemotherapy, at the current time a strong argument can be made (based on both efficacy and cost-effectiveness considerations) that a more rational approach to utilizing bevacizumab in ovarian cancer would be to administer the drug as a single agent in the platinum-resistant setting.


The study examined whether informal and formal social participations may mediate the association between widowhood and depressive symptoms, and whether gender may moderate the mediated associations. The data consisted of men and women 65+ who participated in the 3 rd wave of the Koran Longitudinal Study of Aging (KLoSA ; N = 4,146). Findings suggest that first, widowed older adults experienced significantly higer levels of depressive symptoms compared to their married counterparts. At the same time, the widowed individuals also reported more frequent contacts with family, friends, and neighbors (informal social participation), which contributed to narrowing the depression gap between widowed and married. Second, gender moderated the mediated association such that the mediating effect of informal social participation was significant only for older widowed women. Further, no mediating effect was found of formal social participation (participation in social, leisure, religious groups) for widowed and married regardless of gender. Previous studies indicated that social participation may be an important mediating factor that attenuates the effect of widowhood on depressive symptoms. Building on existing research, the present study highlighted theoretical rationales for potential gender differences in the way social participation may mediate the widowhood-depression linkage and evaluated statistically whether gender may moderate the mediated association.


We introduce a lazy approach to the explanation-based approximation of probabilistic logic programs. It uses only the most significant part of the program when searching for explanations. The result is a fast and anytime approximate inference algorithm which returns hard lower and upper bounds on the exact probability. We experimentally show that this method outperforms state-of-the-art approximate inference.


Microspectrophotometric and electrophoretic methods were used to characterize and quantify the effects of primary damage to hair from chemical and photochemical oxidative processes. The diffusion of molecules proceeding from the fiber surface to the center of untreated and modified (by chemical and photochemical oxidative processes) hair fibers was mapped by fluorescence microscopy and quantified by calculating diffusion coefficients of a fluorescent molecule. In addition, an electrophoretic separation technique, namely, SDS-PAGE (sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis), was used not only to substantiate the results obtained in the microfluorometric study, but also to show how the main classes of proteins of unaltered hair are modified by cosmetic chemical treatments, light exposure, and combinations of these two processes. UV microspectrophotometry is an alternate analytical method to evaluate photo-oxidative damage in hair, and supports the results obtained by microfluorometry.


Given a weighted undirected network with arbitrary node names, we present a compact routing scheme, using a Õ(√n) space routing table at each node, and routing along paths of stretch 3, that is, at most thrice as long as the shortest paths. This is optimal in a very strong sense. It is known that no compact routing using o(n) space per node can route with stretch below 3. Also, it is known that any stretch below 5 requires Ω(√n) space per node.


The experiment was carried out in a greenhouse with samples of Eutroferric Red Latosol. On each of these samples, an amount of 800 mg/kg of N was superficially added in the soil. The experiment consisted of five industrial sources of nitrogen, urea (45% of N), urea plus (45% of N), ammonium sulfate (20% of N and 24% of S), Yarabela® (27% of N) where we assessed the volatilization 1, 2, 5, 7, 10, 14, 18 days after the application of the doses. Two methodologies were tested, semi-open static system and the method developed by Miyazawa (2007). After the volatilization assessment of each source, we cultivated a corn plant on each vase for 30 days to evaluate the residual effect of the fertilizer in the crop development through the plant height, stem diameter, dry biomass production of the aerial part and content of N in the vegetal tissue of the aerial part. The urea and the urea plus showed higher volatilization in both ammonium collecting systems and the ammonium sulfate and Yarabela® had the lower volatilization rate. The spectrophotometer detected low levels of nitrogen in comparison to the distillation method.

 Key words: Nitrogen, volatization, urea, residual effects.


One of the most important aspects of heat shock proteins (HSP) functioning, namely their role in reactions of innate and adaptive immunity, was reviewed in the article. Mechanisms of involvement of HSP in processing and presentation of antigens to T-lymphocytes were described. Principles of construction of prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines on the basis of HSP were set out. Assessment of range of indications for their use and possible risks related with inductive action of vaccines on the development of immunopathologic processes was a specially discussed topic.


Using wide-field narrow-band surveys, we provide a new measurement of the z = 6.6 Lymanα emitter (LAE) luminosity function (LF), which constraints the bright end for the first time. We use a combination of archival narrow-band NB921 data in UDS and new NB921 measurements in SA22 and COSMOS/UltraVISTA, all observed with the Subaru telescope, with a total area of ~5 deg 2 . We exclude lower redshift interlopers by using broad-band optical and near-infrared photometry and also exclude three supernovae with data split over multiple epochs. Combining the UDS and COSMOS samples, we find no evolution of the bright end of the Lyα LF between z = 5.7 and 6.6, which is supported by spectroscopic follow-up, and conclude that sources with Himiko-like luminosity are not as rare as previously thought, with number densities of ~1.5 × 10 -5 Mpc -3 . Combined with our wide-field SA22 measurements, our results indicate a non-Schechter-like bright end of the LF at z = 6.6 and a different evolution of observed faint and bright LAEs, overcoming cosmic variance. This differential evolution is also seen in the spectroscopic follow-up of UV-selected galaxies and is now also confirmed for LAEs, and we argue that it may be an effect of reionization. Using a toy model, we show that such differential evolution of the LF is expected, since brighter sources are able to ionize their surroundings earlier, such that Lyα photons are able to escape. Our targets are excellent candidates for detailed follow-up studies and provide the possibility to give a unique view on the earliest stages in the formation of galaxies and reionization process.


Although it might be too early for a standard model of the mind (SMM), comparison between current cognitive architectures is a useful exercise. This article highlights some of the likely difficulties facing the development of a SMM – both empirical and theoretical. In particular, it follows Newell (1990) by arguing that a viable model of the mind must be constructed taking advantage of experimental constraints, based on comparisons of the model with (human or animal) data. We then describe our proposed methodology for ensuring a tight link between psychological data and a cognitive architecture. We also discuss CHREST, a cognitive model with a particular emphasis on modelling psychological results. CHREST has been applied in several domains, such as language acquisition and expertise. The article concludes by highlighting some of the features that distinguish CHREST from architectures such as Soar and ACT-R. Some of these differences are significant, creating challenges for a SMM.


Based upon Hilbert envelope spectrum and support vector machine (SVM), a method for the fault diagnosis of rolling bearing is proposed in this paper. Targeting the modulation characteristics of rolling bearing fault vibration signals, the Hilbert transform based envelope spectrum analysis is used to extract fault bearing features. In the envelope spectrum, character frequencies are quite clear and can be used as a reliable source of information for bearing diagnosis. Basic SVM is originally designed for two-class classification problem, while bearing fault diagnosis is multi-class case. A new bearing fault diagnosis system based on "one to others" SVM algorithm is presented to solve the multi-class recognition problems. Practical vibration signals measured from rolling bearings with ball fault, inner race fault and outer race fault are analyzed by the proposed method. The results show that the proposed method provides accurate diagnosis and good diagnostic resolution.


This study examined the practices involved in student-teacher relationship vis-a-vis its correlational effect on academic performance of secondary school students in an attempt to proffer a lasting solution to the lingering problems affecting student performance in Nigeria. Descriptive survey research design was adopted and the population comprised all public secondary schools in Nigeria, 300 respondents were selected from the sampled schools using homogeneous sampling. Two self-designed instruments namely; "Student-Teacher Relationship Questionnaire (STRQ) and Students Academic Performance Questionnaire (SAPQ)" were used to collect relevant data from the respondents. The face and content validity were done and the test-retest method of reliability was adopted to test the reliability of the instruments. Data collected were analysed using descriptive and Inferential Statistics and the three hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. The study revealed that there was a significant relationship between the student-teacher relationship and academic performance of students in Secondary schools, the study also showed that classroom engagement and motivation were significantly related to students' academic performance. The study recommended that teachers should be trained and equipped with classroom engagement skills and that teachers should be equipped through development programmes to enable them to develop various motivational strategies for better students' academic performance among others.


Abstract This paper mainly does research and analysis on anti-dispersive performance and anti-nonlinear performance for intensity modulation formats such as NRZ, RZ, CS-RZ, DRZ, MD-RZ in 40 Gbit/s high-speed single-channel optical transmission system. It compares the five pattern modulation formats in dispersion tolerance, nonlinear tolerance, and advantages and disadvantages in transmission distance. Anti-nonlinear effect ability of CSRZ, RZ are stronger than that of NRZ code; in the single-channel transmission system, DRZ and improved modulation format MDRZ have better resistance for anti-nonlinear performance, so they are suitable for long-distance transmission. RZ has the minimum dispersion tolerance. NRZ has higher spectrum efficiency than RZ, and thus a better dispersion tolerance. CSRZ code has higher spectral efficiency, higher dispersion tolerance and nonlinear tolerance than RZ code, making it more suitable for long distance transmission.


The coefficient of consolidation (cv) is often determined by comparing the characteristics of the experimental and theoretical consolidation using empirical curve-fitting procedures which are based on the theoretical U−T curve generated by a layer subjected to a uniform initial excess pore water pressure distribution. However, in cases where settlement–time data are a result of a non-uniform initial pore pressure distribution, these curve-fitting procedures are no longer valid. In this technical note, a generalised procedure for Taylor and Casagrande's popular curve-fitting procedures is proposed, where the user is directed to select appropriate adjustment factors, depending on the type of non-uniform initial excess pore pressure distribution encountered. These factors were determined by approximating separate regions of the U−T curves using simple power and exponential functions. In non-uniform cases where the power approximation only captures a small portion of the U−T curve it may be difficult to use t...


Black aspergilli are among the main causative agents of otomycosis worldwide. In this study, the species assignment of black aspergilli isolated from otomycosis cases in Iran was carried out using sequence analysis of part of the calmodulin gene. The results indicate that Aspergillus niger is not the only black Aspergillus species involved in otomycosis cases in Iran: Aspergillus awamori and Aspergillus tubingensis are also able to cause ear infections. Antifungal susceptibility tests were carried out against five antifungal drugs including amphotericin B, fluconazole, itraconazole, ketoconazole and terbinafine. All isolates were highly susceptible to terbinafine, while they exhibited moderate susceptibilities against amphotericin B, fluconazole and ketoconazole. Aspergillus niger and A. awamori were found to have higher minimal inhibitory concentrations for azoles than A. tubingensis, in accordance with previous findings.


Southeast Asia, one of the most colonized regions in the world, is conspicuously absent in the expanding archive of Postcolonial Studies. This is partly due to the negligence of the many practicing Postcolonial Studies practitioners, including editors of anthologies. It is, however, more significantly a consequence of the preoccupation of Southeast Asian scholars who were otherwise occupied with the more imminent issues that face the Southeast Asian nations that have been caught up with the Cold War and the post independence economic developments. This introduction provides a summary of the seven essays that raise substantive and conceptual issues that bear comparison with postcolonial analyses with the rest of the postcolonial world.


In recent years, we have used many technologies to detect the drowsiness of a driver in the field of accident avoidance system [1]-[3]. To develop such a system we need to install some hardware components like camera inside the car, which can capture the image of the driver at a fixed interval, and an alarm system, which will alert the driver after detecting his/her level of drowsiness. Now apart from these hardware components, we need a software part also, which can detect the level of drowsiness of the driver and is the main concern of our paper. It is believed that, driver's fatigue can be easily detected by monitoring the eye status [5] [7], which is either 'open' or 'closed'. In this paper, we develop a drowsiness detection system that will accurately monitor the open or closed state of the driver's eyes in real-time.


Purpose Impairment of learning and memory processes has been demonstrated by many studies using different stressors. Other reports suggested that exercise has a powerful behavioral intervention to improve cognitive function and brain health. In this research, we investigated protective effects of treadmill running on chronic stress–induced memory deficit in rats. Methods Fifty male Wistar rats were randomly divided into five groups (n=10) as follows: Control (Co), Sham (Sh), Stress (St), Exercise (Ex) and Stress and Exercise (St & Ex) groups. Chronic restraint stress was applied by 6h/day/21days and also treadmill running at a speed 20-21m/min for 1h/day/21days. Memory function was evaluated by the passive avoidance test in different intervals (1, 7 and 21 days) after foot shock. Results Our results showed that: 1) Although exercise alone showed beneficial effects especially on short and mid-term memory (P<0.05) in comparison with control group, but synchronized exercise with stress had not significantly improved short, mid and long-term memory deficit in stressed rats. 2) Short and mid-term memory deficit was significantly (P<0.05) observed in synchronized exercise with stress and stress groups with respect to normal rats. 3) Memory deficit in synchronized exercise with stress group was nearly similar to stressed rats. 4) Helpful effects of exercise were less than harmful effects of stress when they were associated together. Conclusion The data correspond to the possibility that although treadmill running alone has helpful effects on learning and memory consolidation, but when it is synchronized with stress there is no significant benefit and protective effects in improvement of memory deficit induced by chronic stress. However, it is has a better effect than no training on memory deficit in stressed rats.


The article in this issue by Dr. Harry Elam more than makes its point, and the point is more than worth being made at this particular moment in American history. What is more, I regret to say that, though the remarks are heavily psychological in nature, a large number of our psychiatrists also need to understand, as do pediatricians, the evolutionary process that has resulted in what Dr. Elam calls "malignant cultural deprivation." The sad fact is that just about all of us, even some of our best historians, whom one imagines ought to know better, find it hard to think about what went on hundreds of years ago-in Africa, on the high seas between Africa and America, and finally, in this nation of ours, founded in protest against monarchist authoritarianism, yet able for decade after decade to sanction an explicit and devastating kind of slavery.


To effectively cope with increasing customization demands, companies that have developed variants of software systems are faced with the challenge of consolidating all the variants into a Software Product Line, a proven development paradigm capable of handling such demands. A crucial step in this challenge is to reverse engineer feature models that capture all the required feature combinations of each system variant. Current research has explored this task using propositional logic, natural language, and search-based techniques. However, using knowledge from the implementation artifacts for the reverse engineering task has not been studied. We propose a multi-objective approach that not only uses standard precision and recall metrics for the combinations of features but that also considers variability-safety, i.e. the property that, based on structural dependencies among elements of implementation artifacts, asserts whether all feature combinations of a feature model are in fact well-formed software systems. We evaluate our approach with five case studies and highlight its benefits for the software engineer.


Drilling of the northern Barbados accretionary complex transect during Leg 110 of the Ocean Drilling Program provided a unique opportunity to study the effects of sedimentary thickening, overthrusting, and faulting on the evolution of the chemical composition of interstitial waters. The production of low-chloride fluids farther in the complex has enabled evaluation of the main pathways of fluid expulsion from the complex. These are (1) along faults in the accretionary prism itself and (2) along the decollement and through underlying sandstones. In the latter case, methane anomalies, presumably caused by methane production as a result of thermal decomposition of organic matter farther into the complex, accompany the chloride anomalies. Major cation distributions (Ca, Mg, K, Na) are primarily affected by alteration of volcanic ash and exchange with formation waters in underlying basement rocks. However, as a result of tectonic activity in the complex, exchange with the overlying ocean is diminished and concentration-decreases in Mg, S04 2 _ , and K become larger in an arcward direction. Major cation distributions rule out the importance of pervasive advection through the sediments, thus confirming that the main pathways for fluid expulsion are along faults, the decollement, and underlying sandstones.


It is difficult to differentiate between non-complicated acute cholecystitis (NCAC) and complicated acute cholecystitis (CAC) preoperatively, which are two separate pathologies with different management. The aim of this study was to create an algorithm that distinguishes between CAC and NCAC using the decision tree method, which includes simple examinations. In this retrospective study, the patients were divided into 2 groups: CAC (149 patients) and NCAC (885 patients). Parameters such as patient demographic data, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score, Tokyo grade, comorbidity findings, white blood cell (WBC) count, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, C-reactive protein (CRP) level, albumin level, CRP/albumin ratio (CAR), and gallbladder wall thickness (GBWT) were evaluated. In this algorithm, the CRP value became a very important parameter in the distinction between NCAC and CAC. Age was an important predictive factor in patients with CRP levels >57 mg/L, and the critical value for age was 42. After the age factor, the important parameters in the decision tree were WBC and GBWT. In patients with a CRP value of ≤57 mg/L, GBWT is decisive and the critical value is 4.85 mm. Age, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, and WBC count were among the other important factors after GBWT. Sex, ASA score, Tokyo grade, comorbidity, CAR, and albumin value did not have an effect on the distinction between NCAC and CAC. In statistical analysis, significant differences were found groups in terms of gender (34.8% vs 51.7% male), ASA score (P < .001), Tokyo grade (P < .001), comorbidity (P < .001), albumin (4 vs 3.4 g/dL), and CAR (2.4 vs 38.4). By means of this algorithm, which includes low-cost examinations, NCAC and CAC distinction can be made easily and quickly within limited possibilities. Preoperative prediction of pathologies that are difficult to manage, such as CAC, can minimize patient morbidity and mortality.


Analysis of heavy metals was performed in packaged and fresh fruit juices along with powdered fruit drink mixes (Tangs), purchased from different stores of Kathmandu Valley, using Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (FAAS). Selection of Fruit Juices and Tangs was done from five different fruits, viz., apple, orange, pineapple, pomegranate, and mango in an attempt to quantify four heavy metals, i.e., Zinc (Zn), Manganese (Mn), Iron (Fe) and Lead (Pb). The wet digestion technique was employed for the decomposition of samples. Variability in the concentration of heavy metals was observed in various types of fruit juices, thereby verifying that the levels of heavy metals are dependent on the types of fruits as well as fruit juices. The mean concentrations of all the investigated metals (Fe, Pb, Mn, and Zn) were below the maximum permissible limit in the selected juices and tangs. Irrespective of the types of fruits or nature of juices, i.e., either packaged or fresh fruit juices or tangs, the studied samples are safe for human consumption based on studied heavy metals toxicity.


Isolation and biochemical and molecular
identification of 303 strains of Escherichia
coli obtained from diarrheic and healthy young alpacas of Puno-Peru, were
realized. PCR amplification for 7 virulence factor genes associated with STEC,
STEC O157:H7, EPEC: sxt1, sxt2, rfbO157, fliCH7, hlyA, eae y bfp were determined. A total of 39 strains (12.88%) showed amplification for one or more of these
genes. Twenty three strains (59%) were classified as STEC and 16 strains (41%)
as EPEC. An 88.18% (34/39) of STEC and EPEC strains were obtained from healthy
alpacas and only 11.82% (5/39) from diarrheic alpacas considering this specie
as potential zoonotic reservoir of STEC and EPEC.


Environmental surveillance of Sr-89 and Sr-90 following an accident or incident with fission material is particularly important. Most analytical strategies require at least two measurement procedures – one to determine Sr-89 and the other to determine Sr-90 indirectly by measuring the daughter Y-90. However, the Sr-89 and Sr-90 can be determined simultaneously and independently of the state of the Sr-90/Y-90 equilibrium by liquid scintillation counting. Modern LSCs allow the recording of scintillation spectra which facilitates the setting of energy regions for optimal counting of a particular radionuclide. The yield was determined by gamma spectrometry of the tracer Sr-85 added in known activity to the sample prior to analysis. This tracer is not present in nuclear fallout. In the event of a nuclear accident, however, the pressure on gamma-spectrometric capacity may limit the capability to carry out the Sr yield determination by this method.


A review of recent developments in the gas laser field is given which is intended to supplement a previous, more detailed paper by the author on the same subject. In addition, a number of new results have been described. The present paper has six main sections dealing with: a summary of general laser considerations, inversion saturation mechanisms in four-level systems, possible two- and three-level collision lasers, stimulated emission pumping, transient inversions, and ion lasers. Emphasis has been placed on atomic systems in this work and a summary of currently known gas laser transitions is included as an appendix to this paper.


1. Because the inspiratory mechanical advantage of the canine parasternal intercostal muscles is greatest in the third interspace and decreases gradually in the caudal direction, the electromyograms of these muscles in interspaces 3, 5 and 7 have been recorded in anaesthetized, spontaneously breathing dogs. Each activity was expressed as a percentage of the activity measured during tetanic, supramaximal stimulation of the internal intercostal nerve (maximal activity). 2. Parasternal inspiratory activity during resting, room air breathing was invariably greater in the third than in the fifth interspace (62.0 +/‐ 6.0 vs. 41.3 +/‐ 4.6% of maximal activity; P < 0.001) and smallest in the seventh interspace (22.8 +/‐ 2.7% of maximal activity; P < 0.001). This distribution of activity persisted during hyperoxic hypercapnia and during breathing against increased inspiratory airflow resistance. 3. This rostrocaudal distribution of activity also persisted after complete paralysis of the diaphragm as well as after deafferentation of the ribcage. 4. Studies of the distribution of the muscle fibre types indicated that the parasternal intercostals in all interspaces had a higher proportion of slow‐twitch oxidative (SO; type I) fibres than fast‐twitch oxidative‐glycolytic (FOG; type II a) fibres. 5. Thus the topographic distribution of parasternal inspiratory activity along the rostrocaudal axis of the ribcage is precisely matched with the topographic distribution of mechanical advantage. This extraordinarily effective pattern of activation probably results from the unequal distribution of central inputs throughout the parasternal motoneurone pool.


The biomass gasification is a technology which converts any kind of biomass energy which low heat value (such as waste from agriculute and forest and organic waste) into combustible gas. Biomass is combusted im-perpectly by way of controlling the flow of air into gasifier to convert solid state into gas state, generating a combustable gas which mainly consists of H2, CO, CH4 and CnHm. A small gasifier design system with 35 cm in inside diameter and 70 cm of combustion zone was used to gasified agriculture waste of corncorb and coconut shell. About 10 kg of ±3cm corncob and coconut shell was gasified in this gasifier. The operation time of each biomass utilization was about 1.5 hour and 2.2 hour, respectivly. The combustable gas was used as a fuel by direct combustion in an ordinary modified gas stove. The water boiling time method (WTB) was used to determined thermal efficiency of this gasifier. About 2,0 minute was needed to boiled of 5 kg of water and giving thermal efficiency ±23.50% with a fire power of 14-18 kWth. The consumption of biomass and electricity cost was calculated. The price IDR 20,00-25,00 was needed for boiling 1 kg of water.


This paper examines the challenge of reconnecting probation knowledge, theory and practice throughout Europe. It will describe the history and rationale of the Thinking in Practice Seminar Series which was intended to promote thinking and debate about the supervision of offenders. It will consider how a collaborative approach might produce a greater groundswell of opinion and shared vision. The paper will draw upon practice literature and will use the seminar series as a case study to explore ways which allow probation services to continue to develop best practice. The paper will argue that the seminars have had some success in connecting with wider debates and could be replicated and developed further in other European jurisdictions.


Low-frequency elastic modulus, internal friction, tensile stress-strain loops, and thermally-induced strain recovery of single-crystal fibers obtained by pulling-down method from the melts of NiFeGaCo alloys were studied. A minimum of the elastic modulus and the maximum peak of the internal friction were obtained at the martensitic transition temperature. A large super-elastic strain of about 10% was obtained in the fiber of the Ni49Fe18Ga27Co6 alloy. Thermodynamic estimation by the Clausius-Clapeyron equation was consistent with the experimental results.


No systemic therapy has led to prolongation of life in patients with hormone resistant prostate cancer though secondary hormone treatment and chemotherapy have resulted in an about 30% response rate. The main goal of treatment is palliation and improvement of quality of life, the former aim obtained in 50-70% of the patients by radiotherapy of skeletal metastases. The evaluation of response, today assisted by the use of prostate specific antigen, and the understanding of hormone resistance remain principal topics of clinical research in hormone resistant prostate cancer.


The amount of cases of cervical cancer in Indonesia is still quite high. This cancer is a type of cancer that affects most women in Indonesia. Every day new cases estimated to emerge 40-45 and 20-25 women die each day from cervical cancer. The purpose of this study was to determine the perception of women of childbearing age about cervical cancer in RT 4 Mejero hamlet village Jumeneng Mojoanyar District of Mojokerto regency. This research is descriptive. The population in this study were all women childbearing in Village Mejero Jumeneng Mojoanyar District of Mojokerto as many as 30 women childbearing. The sampling technique used is non-probability sampling (total sampling). The variable in this study is the perception of women of childbearing age about cervical cancer. The instrument used in this study was a questionnaire. The results showed that most respondents have a positive perception is as much as 66.67%. A persons perception is influenced by several factors, one of which is a factor of individual characteristics, namely education, the higher ones education it will be easier to receive information. Health workers are expected to improve services through health education so as to improve the perception of women of childbearing age are negative to cervical cancer. Keywords: Perception, women of childbearing age, cervical cancer


A novel mutation in the cystathionine β-synthase (CBS) gene (a 68-bp insertion in the coding region of exon 8: 844ins68) was recently described, but its prevalence in different human populations is unknown. We analyzed the prevalence of the 68-bp insertion in the CBS gene in 405 unrelated individuals (810 chromosomes) of European, African, Asian and Amerindian origins. PCR amplification of a DNA fragment containing exon 8 of the CBS gene was employed. In addition, screening for the T833C CBS mutation by BsrI digestion was carried out in all samples bearing the 844ins68 mutation, since both mutations were previously reported to be associated in cis. The insertion was found in heterozygosity in 14 out of 104 whites (13.5%), was absent among Asians, and was found solely in 1 out of 220 Amerindian chromosomes analyzed, whereas a much higher prevalence was observed among blacks (37.7% of heterozygotes and 4% of mutant homozygotes). Furthermore, the T833C CBS mutation was found to cosegregate in cis with 844ins68 in all carriers of the insertion. The finding of the double mutant among blacks and Caucasians suggests that it antedated the racial divergence between Africans and non-Africans, and provides evidence for a partly or completely neutralizing effect conferred by the 68-bp insertion, since it allows the skipping of the T833C mutation. Our study represents the first analysis of the 844ins68 insertion in the CBS gene in different human populations, and reveals an extensive ethnic and geographic variability associated with this mutation.


Objective: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of the Rydel–Seiffer tuning fork versus the qualitative 128-Hz tuning fork for detecting sensory axonal neuropathy. Methods: One hundred consecutive patients seen at the Neurology Outpatient Electromyography clinic at a major academic center were recruited and consented for this study. Study personnel who were blinded to results of nerve conduction studies collected data on vibratory perception with both tuning forks at bilateral (1) great toe and (2) distal interphalangeal joint on the second digit. Published normative data were used to determine abnormal scores for the Rydel–Seiffer tuning fork and the qualitative tuning fork; axonal neuropathy was determined based on sensory nerve action potential amplitudes as per our electromyography laboratory standards. Results: A total of 186 sensory nerves from 100 patients were tested with tuning forks and nerve conduction studies. The sensitivity and specificity of the Rydel–Seiffer tuning fork to detect axonal neuropathy was 26% and 89%, respectively, and the sensitivity and specificity of the conventional 128-Hz tuning fork to detect axonal neuropathy was 20% and 88%, respectively. The extended McNemar test showed no significant difference in sensitivity or specificity between the 2 tuning forks (&khgr;2 = 1.695; P = 0.43). Conclusions: There is no difference in diagnostic accuracy between the Rydel–Seiffer tuning fork and conventional tuning fork for detecting sensory axonal neuropathies; however, the Rydel–Seiffer is easier to use and may be superior for longitudinal assessments.


Semantic similarity/relatedness measure between two concepts plays an important role in research on system integration and database integration. Moreover, current research on keyword recommendation or tag clustering strongly depends on this kind of semantic measure. For this reason, many researchers in various fields including computer science and computational linguistics have tried to improve methods to calculating semantic similarity/relatedness measure. This study of similarity between concepts is meant to discover how a computational process can model the action of a human to determine the relationship between two concepts. Most research on calculating semantic similarity usually uses ready-made reference knowledge such as semantic network and dictionary to measure concept similarity. The topological method is used to calculated relatedness or similarity between concepts based on various forms of a semantic network including a hierarchical taxonomy. This approach assumes that the semantic network reflects the human knowledge well. The nodes in a network represent concepts, and way to measure the conceptual similarity between two nodes are also regarded as ways to determine the conceptual similarity of two words(i.e,. two nodes in a network). Topological method can be categorized as node-based or edge-based, which are also called the information content approach and the conceptual distance approach, respectively. The node-based approach is used to calculate similarity between concepts based on how much information the two concepts share in terms of a semantic network or taxonomy while edge-based approach estimates the distance between the nodes that correspond to the concepts being compared. Both of two approaches have assumed that the semantic network is static. That means topological approach has not considered the change of semantic relation between concepts in semantic network. However, as information communication technologies make advantage in sharing knowledge among people, semantic relation between concepts in semantic network may change. To explain the change in semantic relation, we adopt the cognitive semantics. The basic assumption of cognitive semantics is that humans judge the semantic relation based on their cognition and understanding of concepts. This cognition and understanding is called `World Knowledge.` World knowledge can be categorized as personal knowledge and cultural knowledge. Personal knowledge means the knowledge from personal experience. Everyone can have different Personal Knowledge of same concept. Cultural Knowledge is the knowledge shared by people who are living in the same culture or using the same language. People in the same culture have common understanding of specific concepts. Cultural knowledge can be the starting point of discussion about the change of semantic relation. If the culture shared by people changes for some reasons, the human`s cultural knowledge may also change. Today`s society and culture are changing at a past face, and the change of cultural knowledge is not negligible issues in the research on semantic relationship between concepts. In this paper, we propose the future directions of research on semantic similarity. In other words, we discuss that how the research on semantic similarity can reflect the change of semantic relation caused by the change of cultural knowledge. We suggest three direction of future research on semantic similarity. First, the research should include the versioning and update methodology for semantic network. Second, semantic network which is dynamically generated can be used for the calculation of semantic similarity between concepts. If the researcher can develop the methodology to extract the semantic network from given knowledge base in real time, this approach can solve many problems related to the change of semantic relation. Third, the statistical approach based on corpus analysis can be an alternative for the method using semantic network. We believe that these proposed research direction can be the milestone of the research on semantic relation.


It has been suggested that physicians, particularly in academic hospitals, are resistant to the hospice approach to palliative care for terminally ill patients. It is of interest, therefore, to assess the attitudes and practices of the physician faculty of an academic hospital where a hospice program has been in existence for more than 10 years. This was assessed with two faculty surveys. All 966 physician faculty that were on staff at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in thefall of 1993 were sent a survey about their opinion of hospice care (Survey A). Then, all physicians who had referred patients to the hospice program between September 1993 and September 1994 at Northwestern Memorial Hospital received a survey letter after the death of their patient (Survey B). Seventy-seven percent of faculty physician respondents to Survey A had either referred patients, or knew of colleagues who had referred patients to a hospice program. Ninetyfour percent of those who answered "yes" to the question about referrals reported satisfaction with their care. Ninety-four percent would refer patients in the future and 96 percent thought the hospice program was a valuable resource to the medical center Of the respondents to Survey B, nearly 100 percent thought the referral had been handled in an "excellent"or "good"fashion, that communication with hospice staff was "excellent" or "good, "that symptom control was "excellent" or "good," that their patients and families had received "excellent" or "good" psychosocial support, and that their patients and families were satisfied with the hospice care they received. When asked if their patients could have benefited from earlier referral, 29 percent said "definitely, " 30 percent said "possibly," 13 percent responded "doubtful" and 26 percent responded "no." When asked if they would refer another patient to the hospice program, 95 percent responded "definitely" and 5 percent responded "possibly." We conclude that a hospice program can be effectively utilized and valued by the attending physician faculty at an academic medical center


The MIT Press 55 Hayward Street Cambridge, MA 02142 TOWARD COMPETITION IN LOCAL TELEPHONY William J. Baumol and ]. Gregory Sidak Local telephone companies have long been extensively regulated as natural monopolies. Technological innovation and the prospect for lifting regulatory barriers to entry, however, now expose at least some portions of the local exchange to competition from cable television systems, wireless telephony, and rival wireline systems. William Baumol and Gregory Sidak examine how telecommunications regulation can be designed to adapt automatically as the market becomes increasingly competitive. If certain parts of local telephony remain naturally monopolistic, how can regulators protect consumers against cross-subsidy, predatory pricing, and price discrimination? How should a local exchange carrier that is a natural monopoly in some activities be permitted to price necessary inputs it sells to its competitors in the market for the final telecommunications products?


During membership, the UK was the leading protagonist of 'disrupted integration' within the Area of Freedom, Security and Justice. Part 3 of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) replaces differentiation with a 'new old' form of intergovernmental cooperation in justice and home affairs. The substance does simulate – to varying degrees – the EU law acquis in areas such as Passenger Name Records, Europol and Eurojust, and extradition. The protection of fundamental rights – in particular on data protection – has been embedded into the provisions. Part 3 also mandates future dynamic development of EU-UK security cooperation. However, the structures for governance and dispute resolution exclude any role for supranational political and legal institutions. Instead, the paradigm of diplomatic intergovernmentalism of the old Third Pillar of the European Community has been resurrected.


Contentious debates over the meaning and appropriate display of Confederate symbols have been waged across the American South for the past three decades (Leib and Webster 2007). While these debates are clearly racialized, they are also imbued with religious arguments and fervor (Webster and Leib 2002, 2012). One major reason is the aggressive religiosity characterizing the South's cultural landscape, in which religion plays a central role in social, economic and political relations (Webster 1997). While less well understood, it is also the case that many white southerners saw the Civil War as a religious conflict against Northern apostasy. As Wilson (1995, 19) states, "Ministers and churches. . . insisted that the Confederacy was a crusade against the evil empire of the Yankee. It was a holy war." As a result, Confederate symbols like the battle flag and heroic figures like Robert E. Lee took on religious overtones that continue to exist today among traditional white southerners.1 The debate over the Confederate flag in South Carolina has been waged for over two decades, with particularly vitriolic arguments about the continued flying of the battle flag over the state capitol dome beginning in the latter part of the 1990s. In 2000, a legislative compromise led the state to move the battle flag off the capitol dome to a Confederate soldier's monument on the state capitol grounds (Webster and Leib 2001, Leib and Webster 2004). The compromise was strongly criticized by many on both sides of the issue, with African American legislators supporting the compromise being characterized as "weak-kneed" and white supporters of the compromise labeled as "turncoats" (Webster and Leib 2001, 294). The debate over whether the battle flag should remain flying on public space on the South Carolina capitol's grounds remained at a standstill for fifteen years, from May 2000 until July 2015. On Wednesday evening, June 17, 2015, a young white racist enamored with Confederate symbols, including the battle flag, joined a Bible study group of African American worshipers at the historic [End Page 29] Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. At approximately 9:00 pm he pulled a Glock 41.45 caliber handgun from his pack and opened fire, killing nine while shouting racial epithets. The shooter used hollow-point bullets to cause the maximum damage to his victims. The shooter's intention was to start a race war (Smith 2015). On July 10, 2015, twenty-three days after the Charleston murders, the Confederate battle flag was removed from the Confederate soldier's monument on the South Carolina state capitol grounds. In this essay we examine the reasons for the battle flag's removal with an emphasis on the South's religiosity. We argue that religion is a central foundation for why the flag debates in the region have been so fervent. We further argue that the fact that the murders occurred in a church during a Bible study on a Wednesday evening was an important reason why South Carolina leaders were successful in removing the battle flag from the grounds of the state capitol. This paper first provides a brief overview of the South's strong religiosity. We then examine the origins of the religious fervor associated with the Confederacy, major Confederate figures such as Robert E. Lee, and Confederate symbols such as the battle flag. The paper then concludes with a discussion of the role of religion in the reaction of political leaders and the removal of the flag from the state house grounds following the Charleston murders. Language: en


The 1:25,000 scale geological map of the Monviso massif encompasses an area of 61 km2, where different tectonic units of the Monviso Meta-ophiolite Complex (i.e. the Basal Serpentinite Unit, the Lago Superiore Shear Zone, the Viso Mozzo Unit, the Forciolline Unit and the Vallanta Unit) and different Quaternary deposits (i.e. alluvial, gravitative, glacial and periglacial deposits) have been distinguished. The Monviso Meta-ophiolite Complex is an important remnant of the Mesozoic Tethyan lithosphere stacked in the Western Alps, and consists of various sequences of serpentinized peridotites, metagabbros, metabasalts and metasediments, that are deformed by syn- to late-metamorphic folds and displaced by syn- to post-metamorphic faults. The geological map presented here provides new detailed lithological, structural and morphological data regarding (i) the tectonostratigraphy of the central sector of the Monviso Meta-ophiolite Complex and (ii) the Quaternary glacial and post-glacial evolution of the Monviso massif.


A total of 324 journalists have been killed in the world in the last decade. In Latin America and the Caribbean, the situation is alarming. Based on these statistics, this work presents an investigation with journalists from 10 countries. Based on in-depth interviews and the Delphi method, the study explores professionals' perspectives about violence against journalists, pointing out the challenges for women, the role of independent media together with journalists' networks and an increasing concern about governmental control over information.


A 22-year-old man, whose mother died at 40 years because of sudden death, came to our observation complaining of palpitations. Physical examination was unremarkable except for an irregular cardiac rhythm, and his clinical history was otherwise uneventful. ECG showed frequent ventricular ectopic beats with normal QRS voltages and repolarization (Figure, A). Holter monitoring registered 7.800 polymorphic ventricular ectopic beats frequently occurring in couplets and triplets. Two-dimensional echocardiography showed normal parameters including thickness of cardiac walls, valvular pattern, and left ventricular ejection fraction (68%), and tissue Doppler imaging registered reduced relaxation and contraction velocities, suggesting some myocardial abnormality. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging failed to show areas of thickened or dysfunctional cardiac wall as well as late-enhancement signals after gadolinium infusion (Figure …


Fluorochromes such as tetracycline have been used to label bone for histomorphometric analysis, measuring bone formation, growth, maintenance, and pathology. More recently, similar fluorescence has been observed in ancient human bone. Attributed to tetracycline (TC) exposure, this phenomenon could affect various aspects of health during life and/or preservation of remains postmortem. Standard epifluorescence microscopy is the most common tool employed in the analysis of these labels. Though valuable, this technique is limited by its inability to penetrate bone threedimensionally and its inclusion of out-of-focus light, possibly disrupting accurate analysis. Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) has been demonstrated as a valuable tool for three-dimensional histology. Its application to the study of compact bone fluorescence has been lacking, especially in archaeological and forensic sciences. In the following two papers, modern TC-controlled bone is compared to well preserved archaeological bone recovered from the Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt, using both standard widefield and more modern confocal techniques for imaging and analysis. Spectral analysis via CLSM shows that both modern and ancient fluorescent labels in bone share the exact same fluorescence emission peak at 525 nm. Differences in the shape of the spectral curve and photobleaching characteristics are discussed. In addition, CLSM's highresolution twoand three-dimensional imaging capabilities (in polarized light, scattered light, and fluorescence light) are found to increase the flexibility and creativity of investigations into the occurrence of tetracycline labels in archaeological bone and could have added benefits for modern medical and anatomical experimentation.


Calcific aortic stenosis (AS) is one of the most common acquired valvular heart diseases in industrialized nations. It is a slowly progressive disease and with the aging population, the prevalence of AS is expected to increase. Doppler echocardiography is used to classify patients based on severity of stenosis. Research efforts on how to better identify and risk-assess these patients are currently underway using advanced imaging modalities and serum biomarkers. Thus far, medications for AS prevention have been unsuccessful. As technology progresses, the assessment of AS will transition from one heavily weighed on echocardiographic gradients to one of active surveillances with multimodality imaging, serum biomarkers and genetic assessment.


The increase in urban population has required cities to rethink their strategies for minimising greenhouse gas impacts and adapting to climate change. While urban design and planning policy have been guided by principles such as walkability (to reduce the dependence on cars) and green infrastructure (to enhance the quality of open spaces to support conservation and human values), there have been conflicting views on what spatial strategies will best prepare cities for a challenging future. Researchers supporting compact cities based upon public Transit Oriented Development have claimed that walkability, higher density and mixed-uses make cities more sustainable (Owen, 2009) and that, while green spaces in cities are necessary, they are dull in comparison with shopfronts and street vendors (Speck, 2012, p 250). Other researchers claim that green infrastructure is fundamental to improving urban sustainability and attracting public space users with improved urban comfort, consequently encouraging walkability (Pitman and Ely, 2013). Landscape architects tend to assume that 'the greener the better'; however, the efficiency of urban greenery in relation to urban comfort and urbanity depends on its density, distribution and the services provided. Green infrastructure can take many forms (from urban forests to street trees) and provide varied services (amended microclimate, aesthetics, ecology and so forth). In this paper, we evaluate the relevance of current policy in Christchurch regarding both best practice in green infrastructure and urban comfort (Tavares, 2015). We focus on the Christchurch Blueprint for rebuilding the central city, and critically examine the post-earthquake paths the city is following regarding its green and grey infrastructures and the resulting urban environment. We discuss the performance and appropriateness of the current Blueprint in post-earthquake Christchurch, particularly as it relates to the challenges that climate change is creating for cities worldwide.


The paper deals with multi-objective Topological Optimum Design (TOD) problems. Considered optimization criteria are the minimization of both the mass of the structure and its maximal displacement under a prescribed loading. Multi-objective evolutionary algorithm using Voronoi representation are applied on the cantilever plate, the popular benchmark problems of TOD. The results are discussed in the light of the single objective approaches used in previous works: whereas the quality of the result is very similar, the number of Finite Element Analyzes needed to obtain a full set of trade-off structures by the multi-objective method is more or less the same that needed to obtain only one solution using a single-objective algorithm with a limit on the maximal displacement: This makes multi-objective approach extremely interesting for solving real life TOD problems where the evaluation cost is usually quite high while the possibility of making of a well justified choice of definitive design is very important.


To identify sensory and motor neurons associated with the sciatic nerve in adult mice, three methods for applying fluorescent tracers (Fluorogold and Dil) were investigated: direct application, intraneural injection and impregnation of a sectioned nerve in a silicone chamber. Most accurate localization of the neurons on the dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord was accomplished by introducing the proximal stump of a transected sciatic nerve into a silicone chamber, filled with tracers and then decalcifying the tissue. Fluorogold was an effective tracing agent, in contrast to Dil, which was not. In addition to associations with cephalic ganglia L4, L5 and L6, as seen in rats, contributory neurons to the sciatic nerve were located in other ganglia in the mouse. These findings show that the silicone chamber-tissue decalcification technique is a viable tool for obtaining comparative neuroanatomical information in the mouse model.


Alzheimer's Research UK commissioned OHE Consulting to model the growing prevalence and costs of dementia in the UK and estimate the impact new treatments could have were they to be introduced beginning in 2020. Based on the latest official UK population projections and the most authoritative estimates of the prevalence of dementia, OHE Consulting built a model to project the number of people with dementia in the UK to 2050. The model then was used to project the health and social care costs of dementia. The results show that unless ways are found to prevent or cure dementia, the number or people in the UK aged 60 and over who will be living with dementia is likelyto double over the next 25 years, reaching two million by 2050. The economic cost to the UK of caring for people with dementia is estimated to grow correspondingly from £24 billion in 2014 to £59 billion, at constant prices, by 2050. Much of this cost is the time given by informal carers to look after loved ones with dementia. By 2050, the UK will need about 1.7 million informal carers, more than twice the estimated 700,000 currently providing care. OHE's model shows how new interventions to prevent and treat dementia could change this picture dramatically. Delaying the onset of dementia by five years in the UK from 2020 could reduce the projected number of people with dementia in 2050 by one third (666,000) and reduce the need for informal carers by 566,000; costs of care would be £21 billion lower in 2050 -- £38 billion rather than £59 billion.


The inhibitory Fc receptor, FcgammaRIIB, provides a signal that aborts B cell antigen receptor activation, blocking extracellular calcium influx. Because the protein-tyrosine phosphatase SHP-1 binds tyrosyl phosphorylated FcgammaRIIB and FcgammaRIIB-mediated inhibition is defective in motheaten (me/me) mice, which do not express SHP-1, it was proposed that SHP-1 mediates FcgammaRIIB signaling in B cells (D'Ambrosio, D., Hippen, K. L., Minskoff, S. A., Mellman, I., Pani, G., Siminovitch, K. A., and Cambier, J. C. (1995) Science 268, 293-297). However, SHP-1 is dispensable for FcgammaRIIB-mediated inhibition of FcepsilonRI signaling in mast cells (Ono, M., Bolland, S., Tempst, P., and Ravetch, J. V. (1996) Nature 383, 263-266), prompting us to re-examine the role of SHP-1 in FcgammaRIIB signaling in B cells. We generated immortalized sIgM+, FcgammaRIIB+ cell lines from me/me mice and normal littermates. Co-ligation of FcgammaRIIB and the sIgM antigen receptor inhibits calcium influx in both cell lines. Inhibition is reversed by preincubation with anti-FcgammaRIIB antibodies, indicating that it is mediated by FcgammaRIIB. The inositol 5' phosphatase SHIP is recruited to tyrosyl-phosphorylated FcgammaRIIB in both cell lines. FcgammaRIIB-mediated CD19 dephosphorylation also occurs in the presence or the absence of SHP-1. Our results establish that SHP-1 is dispensable for FcgammaRIIB-mediated inhibition of sIgM antigen receptor signaling.


This article presents the case study of the Red de Mujeres Sindicalistas. RMSM (The Mexican Trade Union women's network) a network of female trade union activists who is trying to open a space for gender perspectives within several trade union movements in Mexico. Even though this network exemplifies one of the victories of trade union women in Mexico the article shows the many obstacle they still have to confront in order to make their rights recognized and respected. This case study also exemplifies the intersection of class en gender with transnational activism. The latter has helped the RMSM in a significat way to gain a certain independence from their organizations. This study is the result of several interviews with representatives of the network and their sister organization in the South of Mexico.


An excellent conversions of benzaldehyde was obtained under solvent and solvent free conditions by utilizing Co(im)20.5 DMA as catalyst for the synthesis of benzylidene malononitrile. The catalytic prospect of this crystalline porous framework was extended to oxidation reactions involving ethylene glycol (EG) and ethylbenzene (EB). Unexpectedly, EG was totally oxidized to oxalic acid; which demonstrates the catalyst non-selectivity towards glycolic acid. For EB oxidation under a solvent less condition in the presence of oxygen as oxidant (0.8 Mpa), and a 42% conversion was achieved with 78.4% selectivity for acetophenone at 120°C for a period of 2 h.

 Key words: Metal-organic frameworks, zeolitic imidazolate frameworks, ethylene glycol, ethylbenzene.


Not So Private Lives is the first national study to examine same-sex attracted Australians' preferences for various forms of relationship recognition since the introduction of de facto status for same-sex couples at a federal level. It is also the first major study to investigate preferences for relationship recognition while taking into account the current legal status (in Australia or overseas) of an individual's same-sex relationship. Findings from the relationship recognition measures of this survey demonstrate that same-sex attracted individuals, like other Australians, differ in the way they prefer their relationships to be formally recognised. However, the results show that the majority of same-sex attracted participants in this survey selected marriage as their personal choice. A federally recognised relationship documented at a registry other than marriage was the second most popular option, and de facto status was the third. The preference for a relationship without any legal status was selected by only 3% of the overall sample. Interestingly, marriage was still the majority choice irrespective of the current legal status of participants' same-sex relationships (including no legal status). For example, of those currently in a de facto relationship, 55.4% stated they preferred marriage for themselves, 25.6% stated that they preferred a federally recognised relationship other than marriage, 17.7% selected de facto and 1.3% chose no legal status. Participants were also given the opportunity to select which forms of legal relationship recognition they would like to see remain and/or become available in this country for same-sex couples in general. Responses to this measure (which allowed for multiple selections) show that 77.4% would like to see marriage become available as an option, 59.9% would like to see a federally recognised relationship other than marriage be made available and 48% would like to see de facto recognition remain. These numbers indicate that many participants selected multiple options, suggesting that simply having a choice was an important factor. Although the data from this survey indicate that marriage is not for everyone, the majority of same- sex attracted participants in this national survey selected this type of relationship recognition as their personal choice and as a choice to be made available for their fellow same-sex attracted Australians.


It was with some dismay, particularly as an orthopedic surgeon, when last fall I heard Dr. Louis Francescutti, the incoming president of the Canadian Medical Association (CMA), interviewed on the CBC radio program White Coat, Black Art with Dr. Brian Goldman. The topic of the program, which aired on Oct. 1, 2012, was unemployed doctors.1 In the interview, Dr. Francescutti opines on the unemployment problem in orthopedics and other specialties; the potential inadequacies of older doctors who haven't kept their skills up to date; the lack of need for specialists, nurses or surgeons; and, among other things, an impression of a pathway to start an alternative medical system with Canadian students who train overseas and want to come back to Canada. To quote the interview,1 in response to the question of how to fix physician unemployment Dr. Francescutti said, "Do we need doctors and do we need nurses? I mean those are guilds that served us well, you know, 150 years ago, but are they serving us well today?" He added, "So if you have, for example, a cardiovascular surgeon that's doing 4-, 5-, 600 cases a year, are they a surgeon? Or are they a technician?" In response to an earlier question related to the lack of jobs available, he responded, "One other question that nobody talks about is, well, what about older physicians? Maybe it's time for them to retire? Well, they can't retire. Because with the financial crisis of 2008, a lot of them are broke." At the time the interview took place (January 2012), Dr. Francescutti was the president of the Royal College of Pysicians and Surgeons of Canada (October 2010–October 2012); in August 2012 he was named president-elect of the CMA.

The Canadian Orthopaedic Association (COA) executive wrote to the Royal College after the interview aired in October 2012 to express dissatisfaction with Dr. Francescutti's comments and the perception that he was speaking for physicians. The COA was not the only group to complain. The Royal College did not publicly admonish the interview; however, on Oct. 26, 2012, they issued a media release on employment issues,2 and the topic of physician unemployment was the subject of the November Message from the CEO.3 The COA also wrote to the CMA executive, who acknowledged the concerns and reiterated its committment to finding a long-term, lasting solution to the serious challenges faced by Canadian residents.

I write this editorial as an interested specialist in Canada, not as a member of the COA executive. Dr. Francescutti's comments on White Coat, Black Art were out of touch with the ongoing education efforts and employment issue resolution initiatives of the Royal College — the organization for which he was president at the time of the interview. It really sounds like Dr. Francescutti is not representing the Royal College ideals of medical education, lifelong learning and sound health policy and is not speaking for physicians or health care in general.

Dr. Francescutti has obviously spoken his mind in public regarding this subject in a way that did not represent the ideals of the Royal College. He was president of that organization when he spoke and was so far from the base tenets of the organization the reader may wonder how in the future can we trust him to represent the ideals of the CMA and, more broadly, physicians and health care in Canada. He may claim that he was opening the subject for debate or playing the devil's advocate or some other such reason. However, there is a difference between provoking discussion and completely overthrowing the efforts of organizations that advocate for physicians and health care in general.


Fermentation is used since time immemorial for preservation of food. Since its inception, human kind has been practicing fermentation of various food products based on milk, fruits and vegetables, meat products, cereal and legumes, etc. Milk based products constitute of a large portion of our diet primarily in the Asian countries specifically in the Indian subcontinent. India produces about 132 MT of milk every year. Almost 60% of this is converted in traditional products. Fermented dairy products like Dahi (curd), Mishti Doi (sweetened curd), Shrikhand, Lassi and Chhach or Mohi (buttermilk), etc. are consumed frequently by the India population. For long the production of these products was unorganised. Recent technological innovations, research and awareness amongst masses has caused improvement in this scenario. The current paper reviews these products in term of present research advancement in mechanization and standardization of these products to be produced on a large scale, improving its economic value and nutritional significance.


The concept of production sharing contract in Indonesia  has experienced various changes or amendments. However, the implementation of such concept in acts pertinent to petrol and natural gases remain unclear. The detailed regulation on this aspect do not deliver sufficient elucidation, including in some significant clauses.  It is considered therefore that in the near future, the legal framework pertaining to this matter shall encompass clear and detailed provisions. Keywords: Production Sharing Contract, Act on Petroleum and Natural Gases.


Producing accurate crop maps during the current growing season is essential for effective agricultural monitoring. Substantial efforts have been made to study regional crop distribution from year to year, but less attention is paid to the dynamics of composition and spatial extent of crops within a season. Understanding how crops are distributed at the early developing stages allows for the timely adjustment of crop planting structure as well as agricultural decision making and management. To address this knowledge gap, this study presents an approach integrating object-based image analysis with random forest (RF) for mapping in-season crop types based on multi-temporal GaoFen satellite data with a spatial resolution of 16 meters. A multiresolution local variance strategy was used to create crop objects, and then object-based spectral/textural features and vegetation indices were extracted from those objects. The RF classifier was employed to identify different crop types at four crop growth seasons by integrating available features. The crop classification performance of different seasons was assessed by calculating F-score values. Results show that crop maps derived using seasonal features achieved an overall accuracy of more than 87%. Compared to the use of spectral features, a feature combination of in-season textures and multi-temporal spectral and vegetation indices performs best when classifying crop types. Spectral and temporal information is more important than texture features for crop mapping. However, texture can be essential information when there is insufficient spectral and temporal information (e.g., crop identification in the early spring). These results indicate that an object-based image analysis combined with random forest has considerable potential for in-season crop mapping using high spatial resolution imagery.


This manuscript presents a theoretical model for simulating molecular dynamics at electrode-electrolyte interfaces. The novelty of the model is that it combines a method for simulating constant potential electrodes and a method for simulating stochastic interfacial charge transfer. We combine these methods to simulate model electrochemical systems under driven conditions, where charge is flowing across the electrode-electrolyte interface. The manuscript describes the theoretical formalism and applies it to a model battery system. We highlight the ability of the model to support the formation of electrical double-layers and to provide microscopic physical insight the results of potential jump experiments.


Health Law in Australia is Australia's leading text in this area and was the first book to deal with health law on a comprehensive national basis. In this important field that continues to give rise to challenges for society, the book takes a logical, structured approach to explain the breadth of this area of law across all Australian jurisdictions. By covering all the major areas in this diverse field, Health Law in Australia enhances the understanding of the discipline as a whole. The book begins by situating health law in its wider context with chapters on medical ethics, human rights and how the health system as a whole is regulated. It then explores the general principles of health law, including chapters on "Negligence", "Children and Consent to Medical Treatment", and "Medical Confidentiality and Patient Privacy". The book goes on to consider beginning-of-life and end-of-life issues, before concluding with chapters on emerging areas in health law, such as medical research, genetic technologies and biotechnology. The contributing authors are national leaders who are specialists in these areas of health law and who can share with readers the results of their research. Health Law in Australia has been written for both legal and health audiences. It is essential reading for undergraduate and postgraduate students, researchers and scholars in the disciplines of law, health and medicine, as well as health and legal practitioners, private health providers, and government departments and bodies in the health area.


Purpose

This study aims to draw upon research from strategic human resource management (HRM) and strategic management to examine how HRM demands influence the likelihood that chief executive officers (CEOs) will staff top management with a human resource (HR) executive.

Design/methodology/approach

The theory and hypotheses developed in this study are tested on a sample of US initial public offering firms from the calendar year 2007, using logistic regression.

Findings

The results of hypothesis tests suggest that HR executive presence in top management is positively related to the HRM demands faced by a CEO stemming from product/service innovation strategies, the number of HRs employed by the firm and CEO's financial orientation.

Research limitations/implications

The results of this study may not generalize to other settings. This study does not simultaneously consider the role of other structural forms which may increase or reduce the degree of HRM demands faced by the CEO. This study extends prior research on executive job demands by expanding the understanding of factors which give rise to HRM sources of executive job demands. Study results suggest that CEOs with financial orientations are more likely to staff their top management teams with an HR executive, which suggests that in the face of executive job demands stemming from a particular functional area, CEOs delegate responsibility for that function to another member of top management. This finding suggests that CEOs can, and in fact do, recognize the limitations engendered by their experiences and that when confronted with a specific type of executive job demand that does not align with their expertise, they take steps to address their individual limitations by appointing others that are more capable of addressing the particular source of executive job demand.

Practical implications

Study results suggest that product/service innovation strategies, CEO's financial background and the number of HRs employed by the firm increase the likelihood of HR functional representation in top management.

Originality/value

The theory and results of this study extend the focus of extant research on factors giving rise to HRM's functional representation in top management. Although prior research has emphasized the role of ownership characteristics and risk preferences in the adoption of this structural form, this study examines the role of CEO HRM demands. This approach allows for the integration of the upper echelons theory with the strategic HRM literature and provides an empirical examination of CEO job demands arising from the HRM function.


Systems possessing degrees of freedom operating on widely separated timescales, where the effects of those operating on the smaller timescales are relatively unimportant, may be modelled by the use of the Langevin equation. In order to study such systems containing complex polyatomic particles, holonomic constraints may be used. Though there is no lack of published algorithms for the numerical solution of the Langevin equation, few of them have been developed with sufficient rigour to ensure their precision, nor to demonstrate their compatibility with constraints. This study recapitulates an approach based upon Runge-Kutta equations which has the advantage of being perfectible to any desired order in the time-step, and shows how it may be combined with the SHAKE method in order to perform constrained Brownian dynamics simulations. Results are presented for some simple systems with a third order algorithm, and it is found that the correct dynamic and statistical behaviour is recovered.


Short bowel syndrome is defined as the small bowel functional absorptive surface inability to provide adequate nutrition, leading to intestinal failure and chronic malnutrition. In adult individuals the main etiologies for short bowel syndrome are related to extensive or multiple surgical bowel resections secondary to mesenteric ischemia, Crohn's disease and actinic enteritis. Besides evaluating the transit time through the large bowel, barium follow through may be utilized in the measurement of bowel remnants length as well as in the follow-up of structural adaptation phenomena of small bowel and colonic loops. In patients with short bowel syndrome, structural small bowel adaptation consists in hyperplasia of villi and mucosal folds, which become more numerous, deeper and larger in diameter, as well as remnant segment dilation. Such morphological findings are more prominent and best established in the ileal loops, whose remarkable adaptive capacity has been well documented. Therefore, the knowledge of imaging findings regarding morphological and adaptive characteristics of the small bowel is extremely relevant in the multidisciplinary approach to short bowel syndrome.