Estuarine sediments represent important pools of trace metals, released from both anthropogenic and natural sources. Fluctuations in the water column physicochemical conditions, on the other hand, may transfer metals from solid to liquid compartment and resulting in contamination of the surrounding environment. The present research was carried out to evaluate the weakly bounded heavy metal levels in tropical hyper-saline and positive estuaries, in order to quantify its potentially availability. The monitoring includes five metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Pb, Zn) and cover nine estuaries in Rio Grande do Norte state/Brazil, including four hypersaline and five true estuaries. 50 surface sediment samples were collected in each estuary. At the same time, organic matter concentrations were evaluated in order to help explaining possible local variations in heavy metal levels. Organic matter results (0.7% - 7.3%) suggest the positive Potengi estuary as the most critical environmental quality situation. On the other hand, according to heavy metals levels, both Conchas and Potengi estuaries registered the higher concentrations of Cr. The highest concentrations were observed in the hyper-saline estuaries, with the exception of the Zn. The present study revealed that the watershed occupation has significantly influenced the heavy metal concentrations in the estuaries.


Developing cyber security is very necessary and has attracted considerable attention from academy and industry organizations worldwide. It is also very necessary to provide sustainable computing for the the Internet of Things (IoT). Machine learning techniques play a vital role in the cybersecurity of the IoT for intrusion detection and malicious identification. Thus, in this study, we develop new feature extraction and selection methods and for the IDS system using the advantages of the swarm intelligence (SI) algorithms. We design a feature extraction mechanism depending on the conventional neural networks (CNN). After that, we present an alternative feature selection (FS) approach using the recently developed SI algorithm, Aquila optimizer (AQU). Moreover, to assess the quality of the developed IDS approach, four well-known public datasets, CIC2017, NSL-KDD, BoT-IoT, and KDD99, were used. We also considered extensive comparisons to other optimization methods to verify the competitive performance of the developed method. The results show the high performance of the developed approach using different evaluation indicators.


Salicylic acid application prevents deterioration of some foods and also has positive effects on human health. The objective of this study was to the investigation of microbial quality changes during the refrigerator storage of the meatballs after dipping off the meatballs in sterile distilled water and salicylic acid solutions. In this research, the effects of salicylic acid on the microbial loads of the meatballs were investigated. For this purpose, total aerobic mesophilic and total aerobic psychrophilic bacteria counts, total anaerobic mesophilic bacteria counts, and total coliform bacteria counts were analyzed by the classical culture methods on Plate Count Agar, Reinforced Clostridial Agar, and Violet Red Bile Agar, respectively. The bacterial analysis was performed daily until the total aerobic mesophilic bacteria counts of control group reached to the microbiological limit of 7 log CFU g-1. It was found that salicylic acid containing groups had lower total aerobic mesophilic and total anaerobic mesophilic bacteria counts when compared to the control group. As a result, salicylic acid-containing groups generally have approximately 2 logarithmic lower bacterial loads according to the control group.


This paper seeks to expand on two topical strands in Government Finance and Political Science literature, rent-seeking and the soft-budget constraint, so as to bring forth a strong linkage between them in corporate governance environments. It hopes to accomplish this target by setting up a distinctive framework of analysis that hinges on incremental cash flows. Firstly, it claims that both rent-seeking behavior and the soft-budget constraint are worthy of being applied to corporate governance learning and practice. Secondly, the paper contributes to focus on cash-flows reliability and managers' accountability. Thirdly, it is shown how conflicts of interest underlie rent-seeking behavior, and how the latter relates to the soft-budget constraint. JEL: G30, G34, D72, D74, D82


JYloDERN personality theories assign a leading role in personality formation to the events of the preschool years. Altho the need for knowledge and understanding of the important early processes has long been acutely experienced, the relative dearth of sound studies concerned with early personality development is ample testimony to a continuing unbridged chasm between theory and observation. The scarcity of relevant studies is doubtlessly a function of several variables. One of these most certainly is a lack of technical devices for assessment of the behavior of young children comparable to those currently utilized in studies of adults. Perhaps of equal or greater moment is the cultural lag which continues to render efforts in this area less prestigeful than work in the more adequately financed and currently fashionable fields. In view of these considerations, the investigators whose products are reviewed in this article are to be commended for their attempts to extend our empirical knowledge of this crucial period of life.


This study analyses the dynamics of conflict between two youth scenes in the Norwegian city of Kristiansand, commonly described as 'the neo-Nazis', and their counterparts, referred to as 'the anti-racists' or 'the Valla Gang'. The 'neo-Nazis' regularly committed acts of violence against other youths belonging to the multi-ethnic youth scene. As such, many of these incidents could clearly be described as acts of racist violence or hate crime. However, through interviews with 50 participants from both sides it became clear that the acts of violence were part of a more complex set of conflict dynamics between youth groups. This involved processes of polarisation within and between the local youth scenes as well as cycles of generalised revenge based on widely shared notions of 'one for all and all for one'. Youth groups and individual actors switched between political identities and gang identities depending on the situation, and conflicts that initially had nothing to do with racism or anti-racism could easily become politicised. Based on an understanding of the conflict processes, several points of intervention could be identified. Several of the interventions gave positive outcomes.


Techno-economic indicators of renewable (solar and wind) and non-renewable energy sources are systematized, taking into account the interval of their uncertainty for the conditions of the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). The main attention was paid to Russia and the countries of Central Asia (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan), where there are the most favorable conditions for the development of solar and wind energy. A comparison of renewable and non-renewable energy sources by the criterion of the cost of generated electricity has been made. It is shown that the payment for greenhouse gas emissions increases the competitiveness of solar and wind power plants in the energy markets. Under favorable conditions for renewable energy, solar and wind installations in some areas can produce cheap electricity at a cost of 3–5 cents/(kW×h). With such values, they can be competitive without additional measures to stimulate their implementation. Using the mathematical model REM-2 (Renewable Energy Model), energy sources of different types were compared taking into account system effects. The power supply system consists of photovoltaic converters, wind turbines that enable the possibility of short-term accumulation of electricity and power consumption from a backup power source. Modeling of photoelectric converters and wind turbines operating modes was performed by time (hours) for different values of solar radiation arrival and wind speed. The optimal ratios between electricity production by photovoltaic converters and wind turbines, as well as the optimal level of electricity consumption from the network under different climatic and economic conditions, were determined. The economic efficiency of joint use of solar and wind energy in the CIS countries, primarily in Russia (with the exception of the northern regions) and the countries of Central Asia, is shown.


This case report presents treatment of a distally impacted mandibular 2nd premolar having a 90° tilt to the long axis of the tooth. In this 16 year old girl radiological finding described that horizontally impacted mandibular second premolar was positioned below the roots of the mandibular first molar. Due to the abnormal position of impacted premolar, it was planned to be removed surgically. Finally, the horizontally impacted mandibular second premolar was extracted without any injury to the mental nerve.


Partial discharge (PD) measurements in power transformers are a well-known tool for condition assessment of the insulation system. For this purpose, the conventional method according to textbf IEC 60270 is applied; however, the UHF PD technique, which is based on the propagation of electromagnetic waves due to a PD fault in ultrahigh frequency (UHF) range, has advantages, e.g. the possibility of online application due to improved immunity against external noises. In this contribution, the effects of the UHF probe surroundings at the installed position as well as the waveforms of the captured UHF pulses in time and frequency domain are investigated. The effect of the transformer tank on the UHF pulses is studied by measuring the scattering parameters of the probes in regards to their reflection and transmission coefficients in a transformer tank model. Moreover, two PD types, corona and surface discharges, are analyzed concerning their propagated PD pulses in time and frequency domain.


Abstract. Herbivore damage can induce anti-herbivore traits in plants. However, there
is little data regarding how these induced traits
affect a plant's palatability (an important factor in determining the
likelihood and magnitude of herbivore damage) across multiple generations
post-induction, or whether the effect of transgenerational induction differs
between generalist and specialist herbivores. Here we used palatability as a
measure of the effects of transgenerational defensive induction in wild
radish plants. We conducted a greenhouse experiment to determine whether
generalist (slugs) and specialist (caterpillars of the white cabbage
butterfly) herbivores' preference for wild radish differed depending on the
number of previous generations that experienced herbivory. We found lowered
palatability in plants with two or three inductions in their past in the case
of generalist slugs, while palatability to a specialist herbivore was not
affected by transgenerational induction. We conclude that the history of
herbivory experienced by a plant's ancestors over multiple generations may
play an important role in its ability to defend itself against generalist
herbivores, but not against the specialists with whom they have co-evolved.
Our findings suggest that the effects that multiple past inductions may have
on palatability down the family line can be expected to have ecological and
evolutionary implications.


Ecotoxicity of engineered nanoparticles (NPs) has become the focus of considerable attention because of their wide applications. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play important roles in the toxicity mechanisms of engineered metal oxide NPs. This work aimed to understand quantitatively the contribution of photogenerated ROS on metal oxide NPs to their toxicity. The dynamic generation of O2•-, •OH, and H2O2 in aqueous suspensions of photoilluminated metal oxide nano- and bulk particles (TiO2, ZnO, V2O5, CeO2, Fe2O3, and Al2O3) was measured by a continuous-flow chemiluminescence (CFCL) detection system. Superoxides were generated on all six nanoparticles as well as bulk TiO2 and ZnO, with nano TiO2 producing the highest concentration (180 nM). Hydroxyl radicals were detected on both nano- and bulk TiO2 and ZnO, whereas H2O2 was detected only on TiO2 and ZnO nanoparticles. The generation of ROS can in general be interpreted by the electronic structures and surface defects of the NPs and the ROS redox potentials. Furthermore, acute toxicity of the six metal oxide particles to a luminescent bacterium, P. phosphoreum 502 was assessed after photoillumination. The toxicity effect was attributed to the long-lived O2•- radicals on the nanoparticlce, and its potency follows the order of TiO2 > ZnO > V2O5 > Fe2O3 > CeO2 > Al2O3, which is the same as the order of the O2•- concentration measured by CFCL. Our work revealed quantitatively the important role superoxide radicals play in the toxicity of various metal oxide nanoparticles after photoillumination.


The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is seeking investors for 31 hazardous waste sites that EPA determined have the greatest potential for redevelopment. The sites, scattered across the country, feature several former chemical manufacturing sites, including the old Kerr-McGee Chemical company in Jacksonville, Fla., as well as a the BoRit Asbestos site in Ambler, Pa. All 31 have been on EPA's Superfund list of hazardous waste sites for priority cleanup and have undergone remediation. And all have "significant redevelopment potential" because of access to transportation, local land values, previous interest by investors, or other factors, the agency said on Jan. 17. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is pushing hard to get remaining cleanup of Superfund sites completed and the land back into use. He says sites on the list are "ready to become catalysts for economic growth and revitalization." It's unclear whether Pruitt expects those potentially responsible for the contamination to pony


The condition known as a water-hammer problem is a transient condition that may occur as a result of worst-case loadings, such as pump failures, valve closures, etc. in pipeline systems. The pressure in the water hammer can vary in such a way that in some cases it may increase and cause destruction to the hydraulic systems. The pressure in the water hammer can also be decreased to the extent that it can fall under the saturation pressure, where cavitation appears. Therefore, the liquid is vaporized, thus, making a two-phase ow. This pressure decrease can be as dangerous as the pressure rise. As a result of the pressure drop and vaporization of the liquid, two liquid regions are separated, which is referred to as column separation. In almost all standard methods for simulation of column separation, the steady friction factor was used, but in reality, the quantity of the friction factor is variable. In this work, the unsteady friction factor has been applied in the Discrete Gas Cavity Model (DGCM), which is a standard method of column separation prediction. Through comparisons with experimental data, results showed that applying the unsteady friction factor can improve the magnitude of the predicted duration shape and the timing of the pressure pulse in all of the case studies.


PURPOSE
In contemporary society, being unable to take advantage of information and communication technology (ICT) can create barriers to maintaining social relations and, thus, can increase the risk of social exclusion and loneliness. Prior studies have revealed that, among persons with disabilities, customised ICT can contribute to the maintenance and improvement of personal social networks. Nevertheless, there is still a need for knowledge regarding the adaption of ICT of those involved when customized ICT are set up in the residents for persons with disabilities.

METHODS
Through conducting interviews with four residents, as well as their relatives and members of staff this article explores how KOMP, a customised ICT product designed to enhance digital contact among people who are unable to use ICT independently, was applied in four different municipal residences in Norway. Collective qualitative analysis was utilised to perform this investigation.

RESULTS
The analysis show that KOMP can help strengthen relationships, interferes with interactional practices, and underscores the institutionalised lives in the residences. These findings emphasise that applying customised ICT/KOMP in such settings highlights the underlying tensions regarding residents' rights to self-determination and privacy.

CONCLUSIONS
This study provides insights into how formal and informal regulations developed by relatives and staff, with the purpose of both protecting residents and protecting oneself from digital exposure, impacts the residents' ability to take advantage of customised ICT and overcome the digital disability divide.


The content of the collections can be searched, browsed, or read on-line. Certain collections offer the option for downloading the content (entire book, chapter(s), or selected pages).


A polyclonal antibody, CR2, prepared using the C-terminal peptide of the alpha 1 subunit of the rabbit cardiac DHP-sensitive Ca channel, specifically immunoprecipitated the [3H]PN200-110-labeled Ca channel solubilized from cardiac microsomes. The antibody recognized 250 and 200-kDa cardiac microsomal proteins as determined by immunoblotting, and cAMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylated the 250-kDa, but not the 200-kDa protein in vitro. CHO cells, transfected with the cardiac alpha 1 subunit cDNA carried by an expression vector, synthesized a 250-kDa protein which was recognized by CR2. Adding db-cAMP or forskolin to the transformed CHO cells induced phosphorylation of the 250-kDa protein and stimulated the DHP-sensitive Ba current under patch-clamp conditions. These results suggested that the cardiac DHP-sensitive Ca channel was regulated by cAMP-dependent phosphorylation of the alpha 1 subunit.


HER2-enriched tumors are responsible for 20% of breast tumors and have high rates of immune infiltrates in the tumor stroma that respond favorably to neoadjuvant chemotherapy. In the context of tumors, telomeres control cell death and prevent tumor cells from replicating discontinuously, leading to their immortalization. This study aimed to evaluate the presence of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, hTERT expression, hTERT promoter mutation, and leukocyte telomere length in HER2-enriched breast tumors. A total of 103 cases were evaluated, 19 with pathologic complete response. The TILs percentage was above ≥10 in 44 cases (43%) and significantly present in patients ≥50 years of age. hTERT staining positivity was mostly nuclear, significantly present in the non-pCR group, and associated with a lower survival rate. Leukocyte telomeres were elongated for HER2-enriched tumors, and in multivariate analysis, shortening was associated with an increased risk of death. Overall, our results show that the nuclear and cytoplasmic presence of hTERT may indicate a worse prognosis and that leukocyte telomere elongation is a protective factor.


We have studied in detail the extraction of estimates of l = 2 p-mode frequencies from unresolved observations of the visible disc of the Sun. Examples of data of this type include ground-based observations made by the Birmingham Solar-Oscillations Network (BiSON), and space-borne observations made by the GOLF and VIRGO/SPM instruments on board the ESA/NASA SOHO satellite. The fitting of the modes is complicated in practice by the asymmetric arrangement in frequency of the three components (m = -2, 0 and 2) that are prominent in such data. In order to investigate the effect of this we used a series of 10-yr artificial datasets into which varying degrees of asymmetry were introduced. The sets were designed to mimic the characteristics of the BiSON and GOLF data, and were analyzed both with and without the BiSON window function from the period 1992 through 2001. Since reliable estimates of the asymmetry have only recently been extracted from unresolved observations (Chaplin et al. 2003a) it has for a long time been standard practice to fit the l = 2 modes to a model that assumes a symmetrically arranged multiplet. We have tested the impact of this on the accuracy of the extracted frequencies. Furthermore, we demonstrate that asymmetric models can be successfully applied, provided the data are of sufficient length and quality. We also discuss the implications of our simulations for analyses of real solar data.


Intercellular and inter-organ communication is required to maintain homoeostasis in multicellular organisms. Given its life-supporting function, the heart is at the centre of a heavily studied network of interactions. Despite the long-recognized ability to receive and relay inputs to and from far and close neighbours, surprising new networks of interactions as well as new communication factors and mechanisms are currently emerging. The Myocardial Function and the Cellular Biology of the Heart Working groups of the European Society of Cardiology convened during 2–5 May 2013 to discuss emerging data and ongoing studies on intercellular and inter-organ communication, in health and disease.

Cells interact through either direct contact or secreted agonists. The signal transduction machinery inside cells eventually translates interactions with limited numbers of agonists into a cellular response. This process of scanty molecules being pinpointed by high-affinity receptors is now flanked by other emerging mechanisms of communication that involve highly abundant messengers binding to relatively low-affinity detectors. Two novel intercellular communication paths are currently arising: the flooding of cells with secreted vesicles, the so-called exosomes, with various but information-rich contents, and the sensing of different species of circulating RNA, such as miRNAs that, once captured, elicit post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression, and the extracellular RNAs (eRNA) that, from the outside of cells, trigger membrane enzyme activation and generation of classical receptor agonists.

### 2.1 Exosomes and miRNA

An exciting new concept in the field of intercellular and inter-organ communication is the idea that microscopic vesicles may ferry proteins and RNA through interstitial fluid and blood. Building on this concept, miRNA and proteins from plasma microvesicles and exosomes may offer a great potential as biomarkers for cardiovascular risk and cellular injury. Specific miRNAs act as master regulators of angiogenesis, cardiomyocyte proliferation, and regulation of cell survival. In particular, the importance of miR-199, which seems to regulate a …


There have been many learning innovations that have been carried out by lecturers, but there are still many that only emphasize the low-level cognitive domains and not the high-level cognitive domains (analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and creation), the affective and psychomotor domains. The learning model has not been used many facilitate students to learn actively. As a result, learning is more dominated lecturers so that student activities are less than optimal. The purpose of this study is to develop learning tools and textbooks maternity nursing courses with a research-based learning approach. The resulting product are (1) learning tools in maternity nursing and (2) textbooks with research-based applications. The research was conducted on 40 undergraduate students of STIKes Bina Sehat PPNI Mojokerto, who carried out the academic learning process of maternity nursing. The method used refers to the 7 stages of the research-based learning process, with the validation of consultants and education experts. The main framework above is used as a basis for developing learning tools. Then the expert test of theoretical validity was carried out on the implementation of the RBL learning tool, with the result that the value of r = 0.909 (high reliability). The test results are widespread, not much different from the expert test results. While research-based textbooks are the results of research outputs, used as a guide for students to be able to build critical thinking, analysis and structure based on evidence.

Keywords: research based learning; learning tools; maternity nursing


 Abstract — This paper explores the impact that playing a casual game can have on a player's learning and subsequent behavior. A casual mobile game, Container Chaos, was created to teach undergraduate students about the carbon footprint of various disposable beverage containers. Learning was tested with a short quiz, and behavior was tested by observing which beverage containers players choose when offered a drink and a snack. The game was tested multiple times, under a variety of different circumstances. Findings of these tests indicate that, with extended play over time, players can learn new information and sometimes even change their behavior as a result. This has implications for how other casual games can be used to teach concepts and possibly modify behavior.


We present results on the nature of extreme ejective feedback episodes and the physical conditions of a population of massive (M * ∼ 1011 M ⊙), compact starburst galaxies at z = 0.4–0.7. We use data from Keck/NIRSPEC, SDSS, Gemini/GMOS, MMT, and Magellan/MagE to measure rest-frame optical and near-IR spectra of 14 starburst galaxies with extremely high star formation rate surface densities (mean ΣSFR ∼ 2000 M ⊙ yr−1 kpc−2) and powerful galactic outflows (maximum speeds v 98 ∼ 1000–3000 km s−1). Our unique data set includes an ensemble of both emission ([O ii] λλ3726,3729, Hβ, [O iii] λλ4959,5007, Hα, [N ii] λλ6549,6585, and [S ii] λλ6716,6731) and absorption (Mg ii λλ2796,2803, and Fe ii λ2586) lines that allow us to investigate the kinematics of the cool gas phase (T ∼ 104 K) in the outflows. Employing a suite of line ratio diagnostic diagrams, we find that the central starbursts are characterized by high electron densities (median n e ∼ 530 cm−3), and high metallicity (solar or supersolar). We show that the outflows are most likely driven by stellar feedback emerging from the extreme central starburst, rather than by an AGN. We also present multiple intriguing observational signatures suggesting that these galaxies may have substantial Lyman continuum (LyC) photon leakage, including weak [S ii] nebular emission lines. Our results imply that these galaxies may be captured in a short-lived phase of extreme star formation and feedback where much of their gas is violently blown out by powerful outflows that open up channels for LyC photons to escape.


The main goal of my research project is to investigate the social and technological conditions for infrastructuring computer-supported collaboration with the aim to enhancing the life condition of low-income people living on Madeira island. The idea underpinning the project is to foster the connection between high and low-skilled people, trying to find common interests that could lead them to collaborate with mutual advantages. The objective of the resulting ICT tool is to provide those usually considered merely as "low-skilled" with the opportunity to take advantage of their practical skills and informal knowledge. They will benefit from the process of re-thinking their abilities, from the possibility to interact with people belonging to other social networks and from discovering the possibilities provided by technology in terms of communication and


This study examines the local government reforms embodied in the Medical Teaching Institution (MTI) Act of 2015 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province (KP), Pakistan. The aim of the Act was to improve employee performance in the province's public teaching hospitals, and this research explores the reforms from the perspectives of key stakeholders, especially with regard to the introduction of performance-related pay. This research fills gaps in the current body of knowledge on performance-related pay in developing countries and makes a significant addition to the few existing studies on this topic. It addresses the contradictory theoretical stance between the discourses of New Public Management and Public Service Motivation on performance-related pay in the public sector. The theoretical concepts are derived by integrating New Public Management, Institutional Theory, Public Service Motivation Theory and Cross-cultural Theory. The study uses a mico-meso-macro framework of analysis to investigate the actions and reactions of those affected by the reforms in three of the public teaching hospitals. The underlying philosophy is one of critical realism. Following the case study approach, a multiple case study involving three public teaching hospitals was designed. The data were collected in three phases from participants at the Khyber Teaching Hospital (KTH), Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) and Hayatabad Medical Complex (HMC), Peshawar, KP, Pakistan. The respondents were doctors, ward managers, members of the boards of governance and the provincial health minister. The semi-structured interviews, as the main data collection tool, were ii corroborated by participant observation, field notes, memo writing and MTI reforms documents. The MTI reforms were a political initiative by the newly elected government in KP province to address problems of performance, poor service structure and the corrupt appraisal system. Changes included decentralisation, autonomy, a new system of accountability and the introduction of performance-related pay in the case hospitals. Poor communication, conflict of interest, lack of consultation with local actors, poor planning and dismissive behaviour by the higher leadership were the main reasons for doctors' resistance to the reforms. The research findings show that performance-related pay was acceptable to the study participants due to institutional and social realities in KP, Pakistan and that it did not undermine their public service motivation due to high professional standards and strong religious belief. The research makes a number of contributions. First, it provides rich empirical material on employees' reactions to public-sector healthcare reform and offers valuable insight into how policy from a secular individualist culture can successfully integrate with a religious collectivist culture. Second, it addresses the contradictory stances of New Public Management and Public Service Motivation on performance-related pay in the public sector by taking an inter-disciplinary approach. Third, this research adds to the body of empirical research on public healthcare reform in a developing country, and fourth, it yields findings which, we hope, will inform and influence the academic community as well as public-sector policy-makers.


Wearable electrically small loop antennas (ESLAs) are introduced to monitor joint flexion and rotation while overcoming limitations in the state-of-the-art. The reported approach is not restricted to laboratory environments, does not suffer from integration drift and line-of-sight, and does not impede natural movement. Our previous work introduced wrap-around coils that addressed the challenges above but were limited to monitoring joint flexion. In contrast, a new class of ESLAs is herewith proposed, placed longitudinally across the joint, and operated at 34 MHz to monitor both flexion and rotation. An added advantage versus our previous design is a remarkable improvement in flexion angle resolution: the transmission coefficient dynamic range for 0° – 100° flexion improves by 18.8 dB in this article. Two ESLAs are shown to accurately detect flexion/rotation for angular resolutions up to 10°. However, if higher resolution is desired, ambiguities arise. To tackle this, a three-ESLA system with integrated post-processing is proposed that achieves resolution as high as 2°. Simulations and in vitro experiments are in excellent agreement. Guidelines for system design suited to diverse applications are discussed, and conformance with safety standards is ensured. In future, ESLAs can be seamlessly integrated in garments, enabling transformative benefits to healthcare, sports, and beyond.


ABSTRACT The boatwhistle sound produced by male toadfish during the reproductive season attracts females to the nest site. Boatwhistles consist of a series of rapidly produced, amplitude modulated 'pulses' of sound that are generated by specific muscles of the gas bladder. Previous studies have shown that boatwhistle characteristics vary with temperature and geographic location. This study investigated the normal range of variation in boatwhistles produced by males in a northern population of O. tau. Multiple boatwhistles were recorded from individuals at different sites around Waquoit Bay, Massachusetts. Multiple boatwhistles were recorded at different sites to assess the range of variation in boatwhistle production from this population. Pulse repetition rates varied from a low of 125 pulses/sec at 16 °C to a high of 219 pulses/sec at 21 °C. Careful examination of recordings from different sites indicated that individuals vary in the durations of their boatwhistles as well as in the pulse repetition rates during the very consistently produced second segment of the call. In particular, pulse repetition rate (PRR) varied significantly (p < 0.001) among most individuals recorded at the same temperatures. Psychophysical testing as well as behavioral choice experiments are needed to assess the relative importance of PRR and spectral cues in species recognition and/or mate choice.


Osteopontin (OPN), a secreted adhesive glycoprotein, is significantly overexpressed in a variety of experimental models of malignancy. Moreover, increased levels of OPN have been detected in the blood of patients with metastatic carcinoma. To investigate OPN expression and distribution in human carcinomas directly, we studied a wide variety of common tumors by Northern analysis, in situ hybridization, and immunohistochemistry. All 14 tumors studied by Northern analysis showed very substantial increases in OPN messenger (m)RNA when compared to corresponding normal tissues. Moreover, intense labeling for OPN mRNA was detected in 71 of 76 carcinomas studied by in situ hybridization. In most of the carcinomas studied (colon, stomach, duodenum, pancreas, breast, lung, bladder, prostate, ovary, thyroid, and melanoma), tumor cells did not label detectably for OPN mRNA; however, macrophages intimately associated with tumor cells labeled strongly for the OPN transcript. In carcinomas of the kidney and endometrium, both tumor cells and host macrophages labeled strongly for OPN mRNA. The presence of OPN mRNA in macrophages was particularly pronounced at the edge of tumors (ie, the tumor/stroma interface) and in areas of tumor necrosis. Although in most cases tumor cells did not label detectably for OPN mRNA, both tumor cells and macrophages stained for OPN protein, suggesting that OPN secreted by macrophages may bind to tumor cells, possibly through the glycine-arginine-glycine-aspartate-serine cell binding domain in OPN. Collectively, these data suggest that OPN functions in adhesive interactions at the tumor/host interface and thereby may influence processes such as invasion and metastasis.


The fatty acid content of depot fat samples from 15 northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) were determined by gas-liquid chromatography. Callorhinus ursinus has a high proportion of short chain saturated acids; C10, C11, C12, C13, C15. Unsaturated longer chain acids C16:1, and C16:2, and C18:1 also were found. Results obtained are compared to a previously reported milk lipid analysis of the northern fur seal.


The European Union's directive on mandatory sustainability reporting was implemented for the fiscal year of 2017. The directive implies that companies must present common principles and governance models that describe their strategic choices linked to sustainability. To capture corporate sustainability performance in sustainability reporting, the study applies environmental, social and governance (ESG) measures. Being inspired by the increasing societal demand and the absence of empirical studies in the field of research, the purpose of this study is to investigate whether mandatory sustainability reporting has affected European companies' credit ratings. In this way, the study can present a more complete picture of the consequences that the directive entails and thereby assist with possible explanations for the change in creditworthiness.
By studying 669 European companies, two regressions were performed in order to first analyze the relationship between ESG and creditworthiness. Additionally, another regression was performed to demonstrate the impact of mandatory sustainability reporting on creditworthiness. The result of the first regression shows that there is a positive relationship, at a 10 percent significance level, between ESG and creditworthiness. However, the results do not present a causal relationship, which means that it may as well be the credit rating affecting ESG. Regression two presents evidence that mandatory sustainability reporting has had an impact on corporate credit rating, at 1 percent significance level, and that the credit rating of the treated group has increased since the directive was introduced. Hence, the study concludes that the directive has reduced market imperfections by increasing transparency and acted as an incentive for companies to act more sustainable. Thus, credit rating agencies can more accurately estimate corporate credit risk, of which it is easier for credit issuers to distinguish between low- and high-quality borrowers.
Key words: Sustainability, ESG, creditworthiness, Directive 2014/95/EU


Tax disputes frequently imply a certain degree of asymmetry between the taxpayer and the tax authority in terms of resources and power. Accordingly an effective system of tax dispute resolution is essential for the fair, competent and independent determination of such disagreements. However practice in many countries often falls far short of such ideals. This article compares and contrasts the processes of tax dispute resolution in two countries with very different experiences in this area, specifically focusing on administrative aspects of tax dispute resolution within the revenue authorities in Australia and Russia. The article notes that though there are certain similarities between the approaches of the Australian and Russian revenue authorities to the internal review process, there are rather more differences. It argues, however, that a mandatory internal review procedure recently introduced in Russia has certain parallels with the Australian experience and will draw the Russian practice closer to that prevailing in Australia. Using the broader Australian and Russian tax dispute resolution systems as points of reference, the article develops a set of criteria, or 'qualities', which it is argued should underpin any system of tax dispute resolution and evaluates the experiences in those two countries against these criteria. It concludes that neither country is able to fully satisfy the criteria and that each may have lessons to learn from the other.


Indonesian has a word formation variant as an effort to update the vocabulary. However, not many people who use language know the terms transliteration, absorption and equivalent words in Indonesian. This makes a word accepted without knowing the original word form. The purpose of writing this article is to describe vocabulary written in the form of transliteration, absorption, and also equivalent words in Indonesian. The methodology used in this study is content analysis by focusing on the text used as the object of study. The results of research findings conducted by researchers are the existence of vocabulary in the form of transliteration, absorption, and equivalents that are often used in communication. The researcher gives an explanation of a word that is included in transliteration, absorption, and equivalence. Keyword: word form; language update; language terms.


book is to form one of a series, as its subtitle membrane changes. The recognition of artemight suggest. The aim of the book is to fact is important, particularly in electron "aquaint the wide audience of neuromicroscopy, but the restricted topic of postscientists with the current status of knowlmortem change in peripheral myelinated edge of the morphology of the diseased fibres is inappropriate for this publication. myelinated axon under selected conditions". This is a volume of assorted topics whose The emphasis is on electron microscopy. chapters vary as widely in quality as any There are 16 chapters, the majority con"proceedings of a meeting". Nearly a half of cerned with experimental work. The editors the chapters have no references later than have given authors "ample freedom to 1982, probably reflecting an over-long gesorganize and present the fruits of [their] pertation period for publication. It was perhaps sonal studies". The book starts well with an unwise of the editors to encourage descripexcellent description by Rosenbluth, of axotion of the contributors' own studies rather lemmal structure as observed in freezethan to concentrate on pure review articles, fractured preparations of myelinated fibres since this has in some cases led to an unduly from normal nerves, from several mutants biased approach. Of far more value is the with abnormalities of central or peripheral type of well balanced review article to be myelin and from demyelinated nerves. found, for example, in Recent Advances in Mouse mutants are also the subject of three Neuropathology (a third volume must surely further chapters. Comprehensive accounts be due). are given of wobbler (Mitsumoto and BradEven were this book to fill all the scientific ley), an animal with lower motor neuron disrequirements, its extremely high price is ease, and twitcher (Scaravilli), a mouse with likely to prove the ultimate deterrent. globoid cell leucodystrophy. The chapter on JEAN M JACOBS the dystrophic mouse (Nakamura and Okada) is less complete, lacking clinical details and reference to the more recent studies of the basal lamina deficiency. Mutants with abnormalities of CNS myelin are also included by Nagara and Suzuki in a chapter Handbook of Studies on Schizophrenia. on radial components of central myelin. Part 1: Epidemiology, Aetiology and Clinical Three chapters deal with demyelination and Features. Part 2: Management and Research. remyelination in the CNS. Ludwin describes Edited by GD Burrows, TR Norman, G clearly his studies on cuprizone-induced Rubinstein. (Part 1 Pp 260; $72.25. Part 2 Pp lesions; Raine and Traugott give a compre328; $92.50.) Amsterdam: Elsevier Science hensive and superbly illustrated account of Publishers, 1986. EAE, which includes much relatively recent work, and is prefaced by a survey of the These two volumes provide the most compathology of multiple sclerosis. JHM virusprehensive contemporary account of schizoinduced demyelination is well reviewed by phrenia that I know of. The editors are Erlich and Fleming. Saida has surveyed psychiatrists from the University of Melmyelin antigens and immune-mediated bourne, Australia, but the 63 contributors demyelination in the PNS. These nine chapare from around the world, mostly from ters are the best and likely to be the most North America. The first volume is mainly useful. Those remaining include case studies concerned with causal issues, the second in dysglobulinaemic neuropathy and in with treatment. The book is well balanced membranous lipodystrophy (Nasu disease). and all major topics are covered. My main An experimental electron microscope study criticism concerns the price. It is traditional of CNS changes induced by disulfiram is amongst academic reviewers to complain based on immersion fixed material. Another about book prices, but £120 for the two volexperimental study of encephalopathy due umes is really excessive. One wonders if the to thiamine deficiency does not include more marketing director of Elsevier is living on a recent findings on serotoninergic neurons different planet. Is it worth buying, even at which might be relevant to its pathogenesis. this price? I think so, because of its compre(It is surprising in a publication of this qualhensive coverage, its up-to-date conity to find computer-printed graphs.) The tributions and the quality of each chapter. "fruits of their personal studies" have largely It is never easy to review a multi-author dictated the authors' choice of topics for the book because there is no single thesis that chapter on the pathology of the peripheral one can evaluate. Each contributor states his myelinated axon. Likewise, almost a half of own position, emphasises some point or the chapter on diabetic neuropathy is reports a selective series of experiments. I devoted to the authors' studies on basement --think that-the-editors might have grouped 245


My doctorate thesis investigates a particularly controversial issue in both philosophy of economics and philosophy of mind, namely, the problem of interpersonal utility comparisons (IUCs henceforth). As I take utility to be a numerical representation of the intensity of individual preferences, IUCs are judgments about how different people's preferences compare in terms of strength. As factual judgments, IUCs appear to be either underdetermined by the empirical evidence or indeterminate. This casts doubt on whether or not we can have (scientific) knowledge of, or, at least, (scientifically) justified beliefs about, how different people's preferences compare in terms of strength. In general, IUCs can be justified if the assumption of interpersonal similarity, in one of its forms, can be vindicated. I consider two strategies, which attempt to vindicate this assumption by means of, respectively, an inference to the best explanation type of argument and a nativist argument. I argue that both strategies fail. These results suggest that preferences may be interpersonally incomparable with respect to the dimension of strength. I consider four 'possibility' arguments addressing this challenge. I argue that, although some of them may solve the conceptual problem concerning the interpersonal comparability of preference strengths, they all fail to solve the epistemological problem of IUCs. Nevertheless, I argue that a 'modest' transcendental argument shows that IUCs can, at least, be justified, provided that we embrace a coherentist view about the structure of epistemic justification.


Background The ICHIBAN study collects routine clinical data to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of tocilizumab (TCZ) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in real world practice over a period of 2 years. Methods The start of this prospective, non-interventional study was in February 2010. The target recruitment is 4000 patients. Clinical data of RA patients, their therapies, therapeutic responses, patient reported outcomes and adverse events are collected in the process of normal practice using an online database with structured web forms. Results As of 1st December 2012, baseline data for 1895 patients were available. In 490 of these patients the observation period was at least 76 weeks under TCZ treatment, or treatment was interrupted or changed (analysis was performed according to LOCF method). The total TCZ exposure was 2299.8 patient years. 74.9% of the 1895 patients were female, the mean age was 56.3 years. Mean duration of RA was 10.0 years and baseline DAS28 was 5.1. 72.0% of the patients had concomitant diseases. 69.8% were pre-treated with TNF-alpha inhibitors, 28.0% exclusively with synthetic DMARDs. At baseline 40.1% of TCZ-treated patients did not receive any additional DMARD, while 46.0% were treated in combination with MTX. At W76, 34.0% of the patients (n=149/438) achieved DAS28 remission (<2.6). A moderate or good EULAR response was seen in 29.1% or 56.9% of the patients, respectively. The mean tender joint count (TJC) decreased from 9.6 to 3.5, the mean swollen joint count from 6.9 to 2.1. Mean ESR decreased from 35.5 to 10.6 mm/1h and CRP from 3.5 to 0.6 mg/dl. Data on patient reported outcomes (PRO) at week 76 are shown in Tab. 1. In 12.0% of the initially TCZ-treated patients (n=59/490) treatment was changed during the observational period. 1916 adverse events were reported (in 751/1895 patients; 83.3/100 patient years). 404 of these events were infections (17.6/100 patient years). 370 serious adverse events were reported (in 222 patients; 16.1/100 patient years), 219 of which (59.2%) were judged at least "unlikely" in relation to TCZ. Conclusions In daily practice TCZ treatment of patients with moderate to severe RA demonstrates good efficacy also in monotherapy and confirms the known safety profile. The first 490 patients having completed the observational period of at least one and a half years show clear improvements in all recorded RA parameters, as well as further improvements compared to the results after the first year of treatment. Disclosure of Interest C. Specker Grant/research support from: Has received honoraria from Chugai for advising in study design and conduction and fees for talks, in summary less than €10.000/year, J. Kaufmann: None Declared, H. Kellner: None Declared, M. Bohl-Bühler: None Declared, H. Schwenke: None Declared, M. Vollmer: None Declared, A. Kapelle: None Declared, S. Zinke: None Declared, M. Hofmann: None Declared, P. Hellmann: None Declared, G. Fliedner Grant/research support from: Has received honoraria from Chugai for advising in study design and conduction and fees for talks, in summary less than €10.000/year


We report scanning magnets manufactured at the Huazhong University of Science and Technology Proton Therapy Facility for use in pencil-beam nozzles in a fixed beamline. Such nozzles allow us to control the trajectory of proton beams to form the requisite radiation field for tumor therapy. Two AC-excited scanning magnets operate at a maximum frequency of 100 and 50 Hz, respectively, generating significant eddy currents that raise the temperature. We use transient electromagnetic analysis and thermal analysis to study the eddy current effect and control the temperature. In this paper, the maximum temperature rise of the scanning magnets is taken as the criterion to find the appropriate depth, shape, and distribution of slits. After the slits are optimized, the temperature rise of the scanning magnet is significantly reduced. Finally, the results of DC performance tests satisfy the requirements of the magnetic field.


The study was designed to evaluate the antibacterial potential of three plants which are Andrographis paniculata, Durio zibethinus and Psidium guajava. Andrographis paniculata leaves (30mg/ml) and roots (30 mg/ml), Durio zibethinus wood bark (10mg/ml), and Psidium guajava leaves (15mg/ml) extract was obtained through the process called maceration, filtration, evaporation and the paste form was freshly reconstitute in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and tested against Staphylococcus aureus for Andrographis paniculata, Psidium guajava. Streptococcus agalactiae for Durio zibethinus and Psidium guajava and Escherichia coli for Durio zibethinus using Kirby Baur technique and the plates were incubated at 37 oC. The zone of inhibition was measured after 24 hours and recorded in millimeters. The combination study was conducted using extract in combination with Penicillin G (6.25 µg/ ml) and erythromycin (15 µg/ ml; Andrographis paniculata) with the propotion of 1:1 in homogenous condition and incubated at 37 oC for 24 hours. The zone of inhibition was measured and recorded. Mean and standard deviation was calculated. Andrographis paniculata do possesses some antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus. Leaves (17.33 mm), roots (10.67 mm), erythromycin (24.00 mm), leaves and erythromycin (20.67 mm), roots and erythromycin (21.67 mm), leaves and roots (17.33 mm). Wood bark against Streptococcus agalactiae (14.67 mm), Penicillin G (14.00 mm), and combination (16.67 mm). Durio zibethinus showed antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli (11.00mm) and Penicillin G (13.33 mm). Psidium guajava leaves extract were having slightly higher activity than Penicillin G and in combination activity, leaves were having a slightly higher activity than Penicillin G.


BACKGROUND
The primary aim of this study was to examine differences in physiological reactivity (measured via pupillometry) to emotional stimuli between children of depressed versus nondepressed mothers. A second goal was to examine differences in pupil dilation to emotional stimuli between children of anxious versus nonanxious mothers.

METHOD
Participants included 117 mother-child pairs drawn from the community. Children were between the ages of 8 and 14. Pupil dilation was assessed using an eye-tracker while participants viewed angry, happy, or sad faces.

RESULTS
Children of mothers with a history of major depression (MDD) exhibited increased pupil dilation to sad, but not happy or angry, faces compared with children of nondepressed mothers. Second, we found that children of anxious mothers exhibited increased pupil dilation to angry, but not happy or sad, faces compared to youth of nonanxious mothers.

CONCLUSIONS
The current findings add to the growing body of research suggesting that differences in physiological reactivity to depression- and anxiety-relevant cues may represent an important mechanism in the intergenerational transmission of MDD and anxiety.


This report describes a frail 92-year-old woman with dementia who presented with a year's history of chronic watery non-bloody diarrhoea. She had abdominal bloating, weight loss, faecal urgency, nocturnal stools and developed faecal incontinence. Her serum C reactive peptide and faecal calprotectin were elevated. Flexible sigmoidoscopy was macroscopically normal, but demonstrated histological features of microscopic colitis (MC) in sigmoid colon and rectal biopsies. Polypharmacy was reviewed for possible medication-induced MC. Ranitidine, donepezil and simvastatin were discontinued. She was started on oral budesonide with improvement in the abdominal and bowel symptoms. Stool frequency and consistency normalised, and the faecal incontinence resolved with treatment. The outcomes were an improved quality of life, reduced functional dependency, reduced carer strain and avoidance of premature transition from her home into a long-term/institutional care setting. We briefly review terminology, basic epidemiology, notable associations, the importance of establishing a diagnosis and some treatment considerations for MC.


In an investigation of the intermediate stages of the rumen fermentation of wheaten hay in vitro , the proportion of propionic acid in the fatty acid products was shown to decrease during the first few hours, when the rate of production of acid was at a maximum. The composition and the rate of production were uniform over the rest of the fermentation period. Throughout the fermentation the proportion of propionic acid was considerably higher than in the rumen fluid.


Supplemental digital content is available in the text. Objectives The aim of this study was to report a case of levodopa-induced ocular dyskinesia in an early-onset Parkinson disease patient and to investigate the pathogenic gene. Methods We report the case of a 49-year-old male patient with a 13-year history of Parkinson disease. Involuntary eye movements were noticed after treatment with amantadine for limb dyskinesias. Levodopa-induced ocular dyskinesias involving repetitive, transient, and stereotyped rightward deviations of gaze appeared after intake of an antiparkinsonian drug. Limb dyskinesias also occurred simultaneously. We used a next-generation sequencing targeted gene panel and found a heterozygous missense mutation (p.R535H) in GBA. Direct Sanger sequencing verified the missense mutation. Conclusions We report the case of an uncommon early-onset PD patient carrying a GBA mutation presenting ocular dyskinesia. Genetic screening may provide a better mechanistic insight into dyskinesias.


Pervasive environments are composed as spontaneous aggregation of heterogeneous and independent devices, which may seamlessly consume, but also provide, software resources over the network. As result, applications emerge from the dynamic composition of the resources available within the environment. This requires applications of being semantic-aware, to reason about and learn from the environment. However, due to the inherent high degree of dynamism characterizing pervasive environments, semantics cannot be established a-priori, rather it should "emerge" from online negotiations among involved parties. This paper, formalizes emergent semantics principles into formal foundations, and shows, as proof of concept, how to engineer such foundations into a fully distributed semantic service discovery.


The distribution and systematic significance of aluminium accumulation is surveyed based on semi-quantitative tests of 166 species, representing all tribes and subfamilies of the Melastomataceae as well as a few members of related families within the Myrtales. The character is strongly present in nearly all members of the Memecylaceae and in most primitive taxa of the Melastomataceae, while non-accumulating taxa are widespread in the more derived tribes of the Melastomataceae. The variable distribution of Al accumulation in advanced clades of the latter family is probably associated with the tendency to herbaceousness, although it is unclear whether the more herbaceous representatives have developed more specialized Al-response mechanisms that may exclude high Al levels from the shoot. It is hypothesized that Al accumulation is symplesiomorphic for Melastomataceae and Memecylaceae, and that the feature characterizes the most primitive families in the Myrtales. Indeed, Al accumulation is also characteristic of Crypteroniaceae, Rhynchocalycaceae and Vochysiaceae. Crypteroniaceae and Rhynchocalycaceae probably take a basal position in a sister clade of the Memecylaceae and Melastomataceae, while Al accumulation suggests a basal position for Vochysiaceae in the Myrtaceae clade.


The objective of the study is to verify the way and the scope of the impact of resources and competences on the process of entrepreneurial internationalisation. In this paper we have presented a broad review of the literature, which shows that resources and competencies are two fundamental aspects that play vital roles in the internationalisation of firms. The novelty of this article lies in selecting Poland as a post-emerging economy, and such countries as being late comers to international business are still not well explored in the literature. The article uses own primary data based on a survey questionnaire. We used a quantitative approach. We applied simple and multiple logistic regression to verify the impact of resources and competences and their individual components on the creation of an international strategy in the firm. We have proved that resources and competences have a significant impact on the creation of an international strategy in internationalised firms from Poland. The results for specific individual resources and competences are no longer so clear-cut.


I highlight the importance of the notion of falsity for a semantical consideration of intuitionistic logic. One can find two principal (and non-equivalent) versions of such a notion in the literature, namely, falsity as non-truth and falsity as truth of a negative proposition. I argue in favor of the first version as the genuine intuitionistic notion of falsity.


The present investigation was designed to explore the prevalence of depression among single married working women (widow and divorced) to see the relationship between tribal and non-tribal with special focus on their coping strategies. The data was collected from 100 widowed and divorced women (50=divorced; 50=widows). In both the groups of women, 25 were tribal and non-tribal women in each group. The correlational analysis was done to find out the relationship of depression, and coping strategies between the above mentioned groups. The results also indicate that depression is significantly higher among widow than the divorced participants both in case of tribal and non-tribal than the divorce tribal and non-tribal and as well the coping style is significantly better and effective in case of divorced tribal and non-tribal than the widow tribal and non-tribal. Therefore, the results indicate that better the coping style lower the depression.


ABSTRACT Group A rotaviruses (RV), members of the Reoviridae family, are a major cause of infantile acute gastroenteritis. The RV genome consists of 11 double-stranded RNA segments. In some cases, an RNA segment is replaced by a rearranged RNA segment, which is derived from its standard counterpart by partial sequence duplication. We report here a reverse genetics system for RV based on the preferential packaging of rearranged RNA segments. Using this system, wild-type or in vitro-engineered forms of rearranged segment 7 from a human rotavirus (encoding the NSP3 protein), derived from cloned cDNAs and transcribed in the cytoplasm of COS-7 cells with the help of T7 RNA polymerase, replaced the wild-type segment 7 of a bovine helper virus (strain RF). Recombinant RF viruses (i.e., engineered monoreassortant RF viruses) containing an exogenous rearranged RNA were recovered by propagating the viral progeny in MA-104 cells, with no need for additional selective pressure. Our findings offer the possibility to extend RV reverse genetics to segments encoding nonstructural or structural proteins for which no potent selective tools, such as neutralizing antibodies, are available. In addition, the system described here is the first to enable the introduction of a mutated gene expressing a modified nonstructural protein into an infectious RV. This reverse genetics system offers new perspectives for investigating RV protein functions and developing recombinant live RV vaccines containing specific changes targeted for attenuation.


The aim of our study is twofold: i) we examine the effect of aging on public health expenditures; and ii) investigate the fiscal burden of the health expenditures over the period 1965-2012 for selected OECD countries. As empirical methodology, we perform nonlinear unit root test proposed by Kapetanios et al. (2003). Afterwards, we employ Seo (2006) cointegration test based on a threshold vector error correction model (TVECM). We find evidence supporting the impact of aging population on the public health expenditures, thus on the tax burden for all countries with the exception of Japan, Sweden and the US.


— Dungus Regional General Hospital is one of the public hospitals in the city of Madiun. Many patients who visit hospitals, especially physiotherapy clinics, are elderly people who are experiencing degenerative processes. The degenerative process is a decrease in physical function, one of which is musculoskeletal, such as knee pain. There are still many elderly people who do not know the signs and symptoms of knee pain and the right time for treatment. Based on this, education was carried out regarding early detection of pain in the knee. Counseling was presented using PowerPoint media, holding a question-and-answer session, and educating the elderly to seek treatment immediately if they experienced knee pain. The education process is going well, people are starting to understand the signs and symptoms of knee pain. By providing outreach to the public, it is hoped that it can increase the expansion of public knowledge about the signs and symptoms of knee pain, risk factors and early detection of knee pain.


Measurements of the intraocular pressure (IOP) pulse and pulsatile ocular blood flow (POBF) have been made in 22 patients with bilateral low tension glaucoma (LTG) and 29 healthy subjects matched as closely as possible for age, refractive error, IOP, systemic pulse pressure, and heart rate. Recordings were made in both the standing and supine positions. The amplitude of the intraocular pressure pulse was significantly lower in patients with LTG (1.2, SEM 0.1 mmHg standing, and 1.3, SEM 0.1 mmHg lying) than in healthy subjects (1.9, SEM 0.1 mmHg standing, and 2.0 SEM 0.1 mmHg lying): p less than 0.001 standing and p less than 0.002 lying. Measurement of POBF also showed a significant reduction between the healthy subjects (428 (31) SEM microliters/min standing and 345 (28) SEM microliters/min lying) and subjects with LTG (301 (27) SEM microliters/min standing and 249 (24) SEM microliters/min lying), p less than 0.005 standing and p less than 0.02 lying. This represents a difference of approximately 30% between the two groups in either posture. A close non-parametric correlation existed between the level of IOP and the POBF (r = 0.75, p less than 0.001 standing, and r = -0.55, p less than 0.02 lying). Such a correlation was not present in the healthy subjects. A reduction in POBF occurred in both groups on assuming the supine posture (healthy subjects 83 (16) SEM microliters/min, LTG subjects 52 (17) SEM microliters/min). These figures represent reductions of 19% and 17% respectively in comparison with the standing value. The results lend further confirmation to the hypothesis that vascular factors are associated with low tension glaucoma.


Acute toxicity of thirty lectins was tested against the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris) (Homoptera, Aphididae: Macrosiphini). Activity was measured on artificial diets containing moderate concentrations of lectins (10–250 μg/ml) by scoring mortality and growth inhibition over the whole nymphal period (7 days at 20°C). Most of the proteins tested exhibited low toxicity, but some induced significant mortality; these included the lectins from jackbean (Concanavalin A), amaranth, lentil and snowdrop. There was no direct correlation between toxicity and sugar specificity of the lectin; however, many mannose‐binding lectins were toxic towards A. pisum. Concanavalin A was also tested on five other aphid species (Aphis gossypii, Aulacortum solani, Macrosiphum euphorbiae, Macrosiphum albifrons and Myzus persicae) at concentrations between 10–1500 μg/ml. Mortality was very variable from one species to another. Strong growth inhibition invariably occurred within this concentration range, although dose‐response curves differed substantially between aphid species. The peptidase complement of A. pisum's digestive tract was also investigated, as well as the oral toxicity of some protease inhibitors (PIs) to this aphid. Most protein PIs were inactive, and no part of the digestive tract contained detectable amounts of endo‐protease activity. This is in contrast to the strong amino‐peptidase activity which was shown to occur predominantly in the midgut and crop portions of the digestive tract. The potential of lectins in transgenic crops to confer Host‐Plant Resistance to aphids is discussed.


Herein, we demonstrate that very high electromagnetic (EM) shielding efficiency can be achieved by dispersing nanoengineered FeCo anisometric nanostructures in a poly(vinylidene difluoride) matrix in the presence of conductive nanofillers (multiwall carbon nanotubes, MWCNTs). The FeCo nanorods (∼800 nm) and nanocubes (∼100 nm) were fabricated by a facile surfactant and polymer-assisted one-pot borohydride reduction method. The growth mechanism depicted a two-directional growth for cubes, whereas for nanorods, a unidirectional growth pattern across the (110) plane was evident. A total shielding effectiveness (SET) of -44 dB at 18 GHz was achieved for a particular combination of FeCo nanorods and MWCNT, and for nanocube-based composites, it was found to be -39 dB at 18 GHz. It was observed from zero field cooled-field cooled curves that the samples displayed room temperature ferromagnetism. An excellent correlation between high aspect ratio FeCo nanorod and superior EM absorption (89%) was explored, pertaining to the fact that nanorods possessed higher magnetic saturation (177.1 emu/g) and coercivity (550 Oe) in contrast to the nanocubes with similar composition. Furthermore, theoretical insight into the mechanism revealed a high degree of interface scattering between conductive MWCNT and magnetic loss components, giving rise to an excellent synergy between magnetic and dielectric parts.


Subterranean termite infestations occur in every state in the contiguous United States and are responsible for damage to wooden structures in excess of two billion dollars (U.S.) annually. Essential oils have historically been used to repel insects. They have relatively low toxicity and some of them are exempt from regulation by the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). Development of environmentally friendly wood protection systems may benefit from supplemental essential oils. Eight essential oils were evaluated for their ability to protect wood from attack by Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), either in the fumigant toxicity test or by surface treatment in laboratory tests. In a fumigant toxicity test, 5 ml of dill weed or rosemary oil and 10 μl lemongrass oil per 553 cm3 air caused 100% mortality after 24 h in a closed container. The estimated LD50 for dill weed was 2.93 μl/m3. In the surface treatment test, essential oils tested in concentrated form caused 100% mortality after 24 h. Geranium (Egyptian), lemongrass, and tea tree oils caused 95% to 100% mortality after 24 h when diluted 1:50. In light of fumigant toxicity findings, mortality in surface treatment tests can be attributed to the volatility of essential oils. These results suggest that dill weed, lemongrass, tea tree, rosemary, or geranium (Egyptian) essential oils could be used alone or as a co-termiticide fumigant for wood product applications to protect structures from termite attack.


Significant technology progress has been witnessed in the research area of dynamic spectrum access. However, the success of dynamic spectrum access will not be possible without the evolution of an spectrum and service market which is both stable and efficient. In this paper, we investigate the dynamic access spectrum from the economic point of view. We study three-layer spectrum market with spectrum holder, wireless service provider and end users. In a duopoly situation, two wireless service providers participate in bandwidth competition to purchase spectrum and price competition to attract end users, with the aim of maximizing their own profit. We formulate the wireless service providers' competition as a two-stage game. Under general assumptions about the pricing and demand functions, a unique equilibrium is identified as the outcome of the game, which shows the stability of the market. We further evaluate the market efficiency in a special case of symmetric wireless service providers and affine pricing and demand functions. The result shows the efficiency of the equilibrium is of reasonable level even with non-cooperative wireless service providers.


Public policies are based on categories that have a double effect: build eligibility for rights and generate symbolic effects, reproducing or fighting social stigmas. This article aims to analyze the historical setup of categories targeted in mental health policies in Brazil. Based in a study of the legislation from 1841 to 2017, we observed how was the processes of constructing the political categories of mental health - passing from users to citizens or mentally ill. The processes of control of public policies were selected for the respect of users of mental health policy, the social framework of data and the criteria for access to policies and the construction of social stigmas. The analysis shows important changes in these categories over time that tried to remove stigmas based on new conceptions proposed by social movements of mental health, international policies and social changes, such as Brazilian re-democratization. However, we also highlight the difficulty of effectively coping with stigmas due to the lack of consensus in the field itself, resistance to changes in social categories, family members and health professionals.


The frequency-hopping multiple-access (FHMA) approach to digital mobile radio provides diversity gain against frequency selective fading. Optimum combining methods, in the maximum likelihood sense, are derived for FHMA systems with either noncoherent or differentially coherent detection. In the optimum combining structure, the detector outputs are first passed through a nonlinearity and then a linear combiner.


Memory is malleable and open to influence between encoding and retrieval. Information about a past event given to us by, for example, a co-witness can be incorporated into our own memory reports. Pairs of participants were shown 50 photographs of faces, given a power task where one had to be a designer (low-power) and one a judge (high-power), and then given a recognition test where one partner had to answer before the other. The individuals in the low-power group were more influenced by their partner's responses than those in the high-power group. This has important forensic, educational and organisational applications and shows that memory conformity can be manipulated by power. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This introductory essay provides a strategic overview of the threat posed by the largest Mexican drug cartels (The Federation, Gulf, Juárez, and Tijuana), and affiliated mercenary groups and street and prison gangs, to the United States. Cartel areas of operation in both Mexico and the United States are highlighted along with linkages to affiliated enforcers and gangs such as Los Zetas, the Mexican Mafia (La Eme), and Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13). The illegal economies of these threat groups – ranging from narcotics trafficking through commodities smuggling and theft, extortion and kidnapping, weapons trafficking, and street taxation – is discussed. The trans-operational environments involving US engagement with the Mexican cartels, mercenaries, and their Sureños affiliates is then characterized. Lastly, individual contributions to this work are summarized.


Ernest Sternglass determined that a neutral meson, the π0 could be modeled as a relativistic electron-positron pair, and later determined that the muon could be modeled as an electron rotating around a similar electron-positron pair. The author noticed that there is a second higher-energy orbital solution not previously published by Sternglass where the electron-positron pair orbits around the electron's center. A simple computation shows that the mass-energy of this second solution is consistent with the tau particle. Based on these models the mu and tau leptons are not fundamental particles as described in currently popular theories but are instead two excited meta-stable states of an electron and an electron-positron pair.


This Working paper is focused on illness prevalence as well as curative care for children under age of five years across different social groups in rural India, and India human development survey (IHDS) data is used to study these aspects. To capture differentials in illness, different demographic, HH economic and sanitation & hygiene indicators have been included whereas, for curative care, structural component of health care delivery is added. This was done mainly due to the fact that SC and ST are poor on both health outcome and also in accessing healthcare services. Univeriate and bivariate analysis have been used for estimation of IPR and their pattern across the social groups. Odds ratio estimates of Multinomial logistic regression has been used to observe differential in illness and curative care across the caste/social groups. The study reveals that social group having poor socio economic development level are poorly performing on reporting of morbidity/illness as well as on curative care behaviour. Availability of government healthcare facility and providers matters more for ST than any other social group. Poor utilization of government health facilities is still a major concern. There is need to create awareness about incidence illnesses, their possible symptoms & signs at community level mainly in the locality where poor and deprive people are living in rural India


BACKGROUND
Frequent allelic losses on the long arm of chromosome 13 in sporadic breast carcinomas suggest that a tumor suppressor gene(s) on 13q is involved in this type of carcinoma. The presence of a familial breast carcinoma susceptibility gene, BRCA2, and the retinoblastoma susceptibility gene (RB) on the same chromosomal arm implies that one or the other, or both, of these genes may be critically affected by those allelic losses.

METHODS
To investigate the possible involvement of BRCA2 and RB in sporadic breast carcinomas, the authors examined allelic losses in 246 breast carcinomas with 14 polymorphic microsatellite markers on 13q12.q14.

RESULTS
Allelic loss was observed in 95 of the 246 sporadic breast carcinomas (39%). Detailed deletion mapping identified two commonly deleted regions. The more proximal of these two segments was located in a 6-cM interval flanked by marker loci D13S289 and D13S267 and containing the BRCA2 gene; the more distal region was located in a 9-cM interval flanked by marker loci D13S328 and D13S172 and containing the RB gene. Allelic loss on 13q was found more frequently in tumors of the solid tubular histologic type (36 of 66; 55%) than in other types (52 of 146; 36%) (P = 0.0096). Furthermore, a significant association was observed between allelic loss on 13q and the absence of progesterone receptor (P = 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS
The results indicate that BRCA2 and RB are independent targets of allelic loss and that inactivation of either of these genes may play a role in the development of some sporadic breast carcinomas, particularly those of the solid tubular type.


– The whole world is now dealing with the increase in cases of domestic violence. To determine domestic violence, usually each family will be the target of either the perpetrator or the victim. This is an issue that requires special attention from the authorities to identify the causes and the best solution. Thus, this study will discuss issues related to domestic violence in Malaysia and the legal actions based on the provisions as provided by the Domestic Violence Act 1994 in handling such cases. Several factors have been identified for the occurrence of domestic violence and the form of legal action that can protect the victims. This article was written based on qualitative method by looking at official documents and cases that occurred in Malaysia. It can be concluded that domestic violence can happen to family members, spouses, children, and the elderly. In addition, this article also explains the role of the Social Welfare Department in helping victims of domestic violence based on the protections enshrined in the Penal Code, the Domestic Violence Act 1994 and the Child Act 2001.


The purpose of this study is to contribute to the development of the concept and the assessment of Quality in Primary Care, under the perspective of Family and Community Medicine (FCM). The study was based on texts reading, discussion in a working-group, and a survey with the application of a semi-structured questionnaire to FCM and other professionals from 19 countries. Information about PC services, as well as the perception of its evaluation processes, including those related to permanent education, motivation and work overload was obtained. The results suggest that the quality assessment of PC in Iberoamerica is still a very incipient process. In addition, with the exception of a few countries, there is not even a universal PC with FCM in the health teams. Considering the principles and practices of the FCM, it seems that there is a limitation of the instruments commonly used to evaluate the quality in PC. It is concluded that to achieve a better quality assessment in order to conduct continuous improvements in the PC services, it is necessary to include indicators related to the concepts and tools of FCM. Considering the competences of the FCM, a quality concept in PC is proposed and dimensions to be included in the evaluation processes are indicated.


This paper reviews the development of the global navigation satellite system (GNSS) radio occultation (RO) observations assimilation in the Global/Regional Assimilation and PrEdiction System (GRAPES) of China Meteorological Administration, including the choice of data to assimilate, the data quality control, the observation operator, the tuning of observation error, and the results of the observation impact experiments. The results indicate that RO data have a significantly positive effect on analysis and forecast at all ranges in GRAPES, not only in the Southern Hemisphere where conventional observations are lacking but also in the Northern Hemisphere where data are rich. It is noted that a relatively simple assimilation and forecast system in which only the conventional and RO observation are assimilated still has analysis and forecast skill even after nine months integration, and the analysis difference between both hemispheres is gradually reduced with height when compared with NCEP (National Centers for Environmental Prediction) analyses. Finally, as a result of the new on-board payload of the Chinese FengYun-3 (FY-3) satellites, the research status of the RO of FY-3 satellites is also presented.


In the face of unspeakable tragedy, one can find hope. That is the beginning of the story and the journey at our children's hospital, which highlights patient centeredness, safety, and quality.

In 2012, a child was transferred from an urgent care center to our hospital, reportedly in stable condition, without first being assessed in our pediatric emergency department. By the time the child arrived on the pediatric ward, she was in extremis, was immediately transferred to the PICU, and quickly died of a treatable disease.

Although it had been in use for years, the process for bringing children into our hospital was flawed. The outcome for this child may not have been different, but as a result of the event, we began to examine many of our long-held beliefs and processes. We recognized that significant changes needed to be made in our health system related to patient quality and safety. What we learned is that large-scale improvement in a children's hospital within a large academic health center (AHC) requires patience, ingenuity, and the flexibility to shape the goals of the children's hospital to fit within the existing quality structure.

Shands Children's Hospital is a 188-bed, quaternary care children's hospital within a large AHC. We, like most children's hospitals, are clinically very busy and have robust research and education missions. In addition to our pediatric providers, we have hundreds of medical students, physician assistant students, nursing students, residents, and fellows, who all, at various times, interact within our children's hospital. This incredible number of providers, with varied educational backgrounds, was one challenge in developing our quality and safety agenda. Another was our identity as a "children's hospital within a hospital." Although we certainly had established leaders within the children's hospital structure (a Medical Director of Inpatient Services, a Physician Director of …


Since there is a considerable individual difference in bone-marrow disturbances induced by the administration of anticancer agents, the author conducted a series of study on human bone marrow by the clinical tissue culture method devised by Hiraki et al. for the purpose to know the susceptibility of bone-marrow in the individuals bearing cancer, prior to the administration of anticancer agent. The anticancer agents used were Mitomycin C, Cyclophosphamide and Chromomycin A3, and these were added to the tissue culture at varying concentrations. Observations were carried out as to their effects on the growth of bone-marrow in order to find out the tolerance to anticancer agents of human bone-marrow in in vitro. The results of these observations were compared with those clinical examinations such as the extent of bone-marrow disturbances brought about by the clinical application of each of these anticancer agents, histological pictures of the bone-marrow prior to the administration of the agent, the number of peripheral leucocytes, the serum protein contents, and ratio A/G before the administration of the agent. The findings of the present study are briefly presented in the following.
1. By conducting tissue culture of the bone-marrow obtained from noncancer bearing and cancer bearing patients with the addition of various anticancer agents in varying concentrations, the in vitro tolerance of the bone-marrow to these agents was studied.
i) In the case of bone-marrow tissue culture with the addition of Mitomycin C, both the bone-marrow of the patients with stomach-cancer and that of non-cancer bearing patients showed a marked individual difference in the tolerance to the anticancer agents, and the maximum tolerance proved to be about six time that of the minimum.
ii) In the tissue culture with the addition of Cyclophosphamide, likewise the bone-marrow of both non-cancer bearing and stomach-cancer bearing patients showed the difference of as much as three-fold between its maximum tolerance and the minimum. This proves that the range of individual differences in the tolerance is narrower than that observed in the case with the addition of Mitomycin C.
iii) In the tissue culture with the addition of Chromomycin A3 the range of individual differences in the tolerance to it was about two-fold between its maximum and the minimum with the bone-marrow of stomach-cancer bearing patients while it was about three-fold in the case with non-cancer bearing patient. This denotes as in the case with the addition of Cyclophosphamide that the range of the individual differences in the tolerance is narrower than that with Mitomycin C.
2. The range between the maximum tolerance and the minimum observed in the bone-marrow in tissue culture is widest in the addition of Mitomycin C, followed by the range in the case with Cyclophosphamide and Chromomycin A3. However, the decreasing rate of the peripheral leucocytes in the patients after the administration of the agent in clinic proved to be highest with Mitomycin C, followed by that with Chromomycin A3 and Cyclophosphamide. This fact reveals an interesting mutual relationship between the tolerance range observed in the bone-marrow tissue culture just described and the decreasing rate of peripheral leucocytes after clinical administration of these agents.
3. There was recognized a close mutual relationship between the degree of tolerance to the anticancer agents in the bone-marrow tissue culture added with these agents and the decreasing rate of peripheral leucocytes in the patients administered with these same agents. This finding indicates that the bone-marrow tissue culture conducted with anticancer agent prior to its use can predict the tolerance of the bone-marrow to the agent.


This research work employed a simulation study to evaluate six outlier techniques: t-Statistic, Modified Z-Statistic, Cancer Outlier Profile Analysis (COPA), Outlier Sum-Statistic (OS), Outlier Robust t-Statistic (ORT), and the Truncated Outlier Robust t-Statistic (TORT) with the aim of determining the technique that has a higher power of detecting and handling outliers in terms of their P-values, true positives, false positives, False Discovery Rate (FDR) and their corresponding Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves. From the result of the analysis, it was revealed that OS was the best technique followed by COPA, t, ORT, TORT and Z respectively in terms of their P-values. The result of the False Discovery Rate (FDR) shows that OS is the best technique followed by COPA, t, ORT, TORT and Z. In terms of their ROC curves, t-Statistic and OS have the largest Area under the ROC Curve (AUC) which indicates better sensitivity and specificity and is more significant followed by COPA and ORT with the equal significant AUC while Z and TORT have the least AUC which is not significant.


The procedure of detecting any violation or trespass on the level of information in a database depends on placing the normal behaviors and practices of operations done by a transaction Afterwards, any identified pattern or behavior other than those normal patterns could be of high potential of being considered as an intrusion or violation. One of the known problems in this process is that, the accuracy of the process of detecting the frequent patterns in the database, as the algorithm applied may not detect all the patterns and this would affect in two ways. First, the database of the normal patterns would be missing. Second, some new patterns would be missed in the detection process. This paper studies and implements different sequential data mining techniques, and then proposes a new enhanced algorithm. The proposed algorithm increases the accuracy of the process and the number of detected patterns. Finally, the paper proposes a model for database intrusion detection based on the modified algorithm. The paper uses a realistic huge database for evaluating the performance and the accuracy.


Purpose

In exploring the impact of reflective and work applied approaches, the authors are curious how vivid new insights and collective "Eureka" momentums occur. These momentums can be forces for work communities to gain competitive advantages. However, the authors know little of how learning is actively involved in the processing of creating new insights and how such a turning to learning mode (Passila and Owens, 2016) can be facilitated. In the light of cultural studies and art education, the purpose of this paper is to explore how the method of dramatising characters (DC) in a specific innovation culture can be facilitated. In this viewpoint, the authors are suggesting one approach for this type of turning to learning which the authors call Beyond Text, outlining its theoretical underpinnings, its co-creative development and its application.

Design/methodology/approach

In this Beyond Text context, the authors are introducing the method of DC and the method of iStory both of which are the authors' own design based on the theory of the four existing categories of a research-based theatre.

Findings

The findings of this viewpoint paper are that both iStory as well as DC methods are useful and practical learning facilitation processes and platforms that can be adopted for use in organisations for promoting reflexivity. Especially they can act as a bridge between various forms of knowing and consummate the other knowledge types (experiential, practical and propositional) in a way that advances practice-based innovation.

Originality/value

The originality and value of iStory and DC is that they can be utilised as dialogical evaluation methods when traditional evaluation strategies and pre-determined indicators are unusable.


The purpose of this study was to assess vocational teachers` needs toward curriculum of vocational high school and to collect the basic data for curriculum reform. The item contents of questionnaire were the characteristics and objectives of the vocational high school, the composition of vocational department and course, and the guidelines for curriculum organization and operation, etc. Survey was performed by mailing method, and the response rate was 73.2%. Based on the results of this study, the directions for curriculum reform of the vocational high school were proposed as the followings. 1) Curriculum of the vocational high school have to be focused on the basic competency. 2) The subjects of theory and practice have to be integrated. 3) The educational contents have to be selected through job analysis, and Industrialist should participate in curriculum and text development. 4) Academic courses need to be composed to suit with the vocational high school. 5) The guidelines for curriculum organization and operation should be composed in directions to enlarge autonomy of the local board of education and school, and to consider the characteristics of vocational high school. 6) Qualification has to be given after students master the vocational courses.


SUMMARY

Observations were made on Grey and Red-Necked Phalaropes near Chesterfield Inlet, N.W.T., Canada, from the date of their local arrival, 13 June, until 21 July 1967.

The similarity of the colour of the Grey Phalarope nuptial plumage to that of dead seaweed among which the birds often feed is suggested as possibly relevant to the evolution of this plumage.

A mutual Head Up pre-copulatory display, first given by the female, is described in Grey Phalaropes. It is suggested to have the function of assuaging fear in the prospective partner and to be a prelude of only the first copulation between any two birds. Other displays are described and figured.

Three full copulations, including their preliminaries, were observed in this species and two others in which the preliminary actions escaped observation. Three copulations took place on land and two on water. Of the three copulations observed with their preliminaries, two were initiated by some form of display by the female, and one, without any display, by the male. Eight attempted copulations were observed; all were initiated by males and all but one took place while the female was on land. One male which had just copulated was observed to attempt copulation with another female. In the course of three full or attempted copulations, another Grey Phalarope fluttered up against the mating pair.

All Grey Phalarope copulations took place in a collective feeding area; little intra-species antagonism was seen and no evidence of territorial behaviour. All female Grey Phalaropes left the colony under observation on the night of 9–10 July; only two eggs had by then been laid in one nest and the female of one pair had not laid at all.

Six copulations and six attempted copulations were observed in Red-necked Phalaropes; all took place on the water. Only in two of the copulations were the preliminaries observed; one was initiated by a display of the female, the other without any preliminary display by the male.

Preliminary observations suggest specific differences in rate of spinning and in the preferred direction of spin. The functions and factors associated with spinning are discussed. Accelerated spinning with reduced frequency of pecks at the water by both members of a pair of Red-necked Phalaropes was observed once and may have been a form of display.

Head scratching, observed once in a Red-necked Phalarope and several times in Wilson's, is by the direct method, supporting the view, based on the colour pattern of the downy young, that phalaropes are more akin to the sandpipers than to the avocets.


The effects of war on the health of the population have never been systematically studied. The article explores the impact of war on the general health condition of Finnmark's population during the war years. The indicators chosen are infant mortality and the epidemic diseases diphtheria, scabies and acute gastroenteritis. The development of the indicators in Finnmark is compared with the averages in Norway and Finnish Lapland. The findings deserve attention. The article discusses the statistical indicators and findings in a social and historical context with a range of sources. The article is a broad as well as penetrating analysis of the war's impact on the health of the civilian population of Finnmark and on their everyday living and survival.


Purpose: The aim of this paper was to report the outcomes of prophylactic chorioretinectomy in open-globe injuries where a foreign body penetrated the choroid or perforated the globe. Methods: We conducted a retrospective, consecutive, noncomparative, and descriptive study of patients registered in the ocular trauma database between January 2006 and December 2014, who underwent vitrectomy with chorioretinectomy. Results: Thirty-six patients (33 male, 3 female) with a mean age of 40 years and a median of follow-up of 13 months were included. Twenty-one cases had penetrating globe injuries with an intraocular foreign body and 15 cases had perforating globe injuries. A concomitant chorioretinectomy was performed in all eyes, although it was only partial in 8 eyes. At the end of follow-up, proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) rates were 6.5%, anatomical success was 80.6%, and the globe survival rate was 96.8%. Conclusion: Prophylactic chorioretinectomy is a surgical procedure that may decrease posttraumatic PVR, thus improving final visual acuity and increasing globe survival rates.


In this paper we present a novel HMM-based automatic signature verification system where the number of states is estimated from the duration of the signatures. This structural user-dependent approach has allowed to obtain high verification rates with a small number of enrolment samples and using only the two basic local x-y geometric features plus their first time derivatives. The proposed system has been tested with the MCYT database reporting EERs of 2.09% with random forgeries and 6.14% with skilled forgeries using only three signatures for enrolment.


The Internet has turned into an important aspect of our information infrastructure and society, with the Web forming a part of our cultural heritage. Several initiatives thus set out to preserve it for the future. The resulting Web archives are by no means only a collection of historic Web pages. They hold a wealth of information that waits to be exploited, information that may be substantial to a variety of disciplines. With the time-line and metadata available in such a Web archive, additional analyzes that go beyond mere information exploration become possible. In the context of the Austrian On-Line Archive (AOLA), we established a Data Warehouse as a key to this information. The Data Warehouse makes it possible to analyze a variety of characteristics of the Web in a flexible and interactive manner using on-line analytical processing (OLAP) techniques. Specifically, technological aspects such as operating systems and Web servers used, the variety of file types, forms or scripting languages encountered, as well as the link structure within domains, may be used to infer characteristics of technology maturation and impact or community structures.