Among closely related taxa, proteins involved in reproduction generally evolve more rapidly than other proteins. Here, we apply a functional and comparative genomics approach to compare functional divergence across a deep phylogenetic array of egg-laying and live-bearing vertebrate taxa. We aligned and annotated a set of 4,986 1 : 1 : 1 : 1 : 1 orthologs in Anolis carolinensis (green lizard), Danio rerio (zebrafish), Xenopus tropicalis (frog), Gallus gallus (chicken), and Mus musculus (mouse) according to function using ESTs from available reproductive (including testis and ovary) and non-reproductive tissues as well as Gene Ontology. For each species lineage, genes were further classified as tissue-specific (found in a single tissue) or tissue-expressed (found in multiple tissues). Within independent vertebrate lineages, we generally find that gonadal-specific genes evolve at a faster rate than gonadal-expressed genes and significantly faster than non-reproductive genes. Among the gonadal set, testis genes are generally more diverged than ovary genes. Surprisingly, an opposite but nonsignificant pattern is found among the subset of orthologs that remained functionally conserved across all five lineages. These contrasting evolutionary patterns found between functionally diverged and functionally conserved reproductive orthologs provide evidence for pervasive and potentially cryptic lineage-specific selective processes on ancestral reproductive systems in vertebrates.


The role of tight junctions in permeability barriers is now well established. Other roles for this junction have been postulated but have not been demonstrated. In both adult and prepubertal dogs, stimulation with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) results in an increased number of pinocytotic vesicles on the membrane faces enclosed by tight junctions within the inter-Sertoli cell junctions of the testis. It is suggested that these membranous regions, protected from the normal flow of intercellular fluids, may act as regions of selective intercellular exchange.


Abstract Human monocytic ehrlichiosis (HME) is a sometimes fatal, emerging tick-borne disease caused by the bacterium Ehrlichia chaffeensis. It is frequently misdiagnosed because its symptoms mimic those of the flu. Current evidence indicates that Amblyomma americanum (L.), the lone star tick, is the major vector of HME. To determine if E. chaffeensis is present in ticks at Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD, questing A. americanum ticks were collected from 33 sites. Nucleic acid was extracted from 34 adult and 81 nymphal pools. Sequences diagnostic for E. chaffeensis from three different loci (16S rRNA, 120-kDa protein, and a variable-length polymerase chain reaction [PCR] target, or VLPT) were targeted for amplification by the PCR. Fifty-two percent of the collection sites yielded pools infected with E. chaffeensis, confirming the presence and widespread distribution of E. chaffeensis at Aberdeen Proving Ground. Analysis with the both the 120-kDa protein primers and the VLPT primers showed that genetic variance exists. A novel combination of variance for the two loci was detected in two tick pools. The pathogenic implications of genetic variation in E. chaffeensis are as yet unknown.


Modern information systems extensively use ontologies to model domain knowledge. With the large amount of already available ontologies, there is a high demand for sharing and reusing the knowledge in existing ontologies. Since ontologies are complex structures, sharing of knowledge coming from various ontologies has become a tedious task. This has resulted in the birth of research area called ontology alignment. There are numerous techniques for the alignment of ontologies, and the field still faces many challenges. Due to the inherent nature of multiple relationships among the ontologies, it postulates that the Multi-Agent System technology is a better technology to automate the ontology alignment with little human intervention. This paper presents multi-agent based approach for ontology alignment, developed as a plugin for the popular ontological modelling environment known as Protégé. It simulates how different processes interactively operate inside the human mind to perform certain activities intelligently. Indeed, the proposed solution uses agent communication, negotiation, and coordination as the primary method of exploring the semantic relationships between the ontologies. The system accepts ontologies maintained in any major form of ontology representation languages as its inputs, and generates ontology with new semantic relationships as its output. The generated ontology could be used as a shared understanding between information systems that are running on input ontologies. The success of the proposed approach was evaluated by using ontologies of conference organizing and agricultural domains. It was evident that the system could discover over 70% accurate relationships, and thus, the authors claim that the proposed approach could resolve the complexity in ontology alignment.


Fresh water shortage is one of the greatest problems of modern society; the explosive increase in world population, along with the unusual socio-economic development have led to an increased water demand, making water shortage a critical issue for countries like Greece. Desalination of seawater is suitable for supplying arid regions of the country with potable water and is becoming the dominant alternative in drinking water production, but may be energy intensive. On the other hand, global warming initiatives push for sustainable alternatives that will produce minimal or negligible quantities of CO2 to prevent climate change conditions. In this paper, a survey of several desalination plants in Greece is conducted, studying their energy usage patterns, in an effort to determine their carbon footprint. Specifically, a questionnaire has been sent out to desalination plants that addresses questions relative to the location and size of the plants, plant equipment condition, water production seasonality, whether energy required is generated on-site, or is purchased by a power plant and possible use of renewable energy sources. A different survey of the Greek Public Power Corporation has been conducted, in order to determine the type of fuel used by the power plants that supply each desalination plant with energy. Taking into account all this information and other energy-related factors, we provide estimates of the carbon footprint of several desalination plants in Greece.


Magnesium (Mg) supplementation has shown to modulate the stress responses to transport in other species. An experiment was designed to evaluate the effect of Mg for alleviating stress associated with road transportation in lambs. Two groups (n = 18 each) of 4-month old male crossbred lambs (24 ± 4.5 kg) were fed a basal diet comprising oaten hay, pellets and barley, that contained 0.17% Mg. One group was supplemented with magnesium oxide, such that dietary Mg was 0.41%. At the end of the 2-week supplementation period, the lambs were transported by road for 8 h. Blood samples were collected before supplementation, 1 h before transport, within 0.5 h post-transport, at 2 h post-transport and 5 days post-transport. Data were analysed using a repeated-measure analysis of variance and linear mixed model with treatment within time interaction. Supplementation with dietary Mg in the form of MgO increased serum Mg concentrations (1.16 mmol/L ± 0.012, compared with 1.09 mmol/L ± 0.013 in the control group; P < 0.05), but had no effect on alleviating stress during transportation. Transport resulted in a significant increase in serum cortisol, which returned to pre-transport levels 2 h after transport. The serum β-hydroxybutyrate was significantly higher 5 days after transport. The post-transport average feed intake and the average daily gain were significantly lower than pre-transport values, suggesting that the stress of transportation resulted in a decrease in feed intake post-transport, which could have implications on liveweight gain of animals after transportation.


Path-tracking control of a wheeled robot is a complex dynamical problem due to the system nonlinearities, external disturbances, and modeled and unstructured uncertainties. The problem is profoundly exacerbated for the robot traversing deformable terrains. This paper mainly addresses this problem by the following contributions: i) path-tracking control of terrain-based robots considering deformable soil dynamics for deriving tractive forces and moments arising from wheel-terrain interactions; ii) a novel modified moving integral sliding surface, where the dynamics of the sliding surface is regulated by an adaptive inverse neural network; and iii) path-tracking controller synthesis considering the terrain-induced uncertainties. For this purpose, a novel adaptive indirect controller is proposed to address the path-tracking control of a wheeled robot in the presence of external disturbances and wheel slippage using an integrated modified Integral Sliding Mode Control (ISMC) and adaptive neural networks (NNs). A compensating controller term is introduced to minimize abrupt variations in control demand that may arise from uncertainties related to terrain properties and the resulting wheel slippage and motion resistance. The adaptive rules are formulated considering the ISMC based control dynamics, while the stability of the closed-loop system is ensured via Lyapunov stability theorem. The effectiveness of the proposed controller is demonstrated considering a typical sandy loam soil for linear and curved trajectories. It is inferred that the proposed adaptive indirect ISMC-NN robust controller has the capacity to reach a satisfactory path-tracking control performance in the presence of disturbance and uncertainties arising from robots interactions with the deformable terrain.


In Carausius morosus Brunn (Phasmidae) the Malpighian tubules are morphologically and physiologically differentiated into 3 distinct types. The appendices are of unknown function, number about 31, and are inserted separately from one another over the posterior third of the mid-gut. The excretory and calciferous tubules are arranged in groups at the extreme posterior end of the mid-gut. There are 20 to 27 groups each consisting of one excretory and 5 calciferous tubules opening into a small ampulla. The tubules arise in 5, occasionally 6, generations; 2 in the embryo and one in the second, third, fourth, and sometimes in the fifth nymphal instars. The first embryonal generation is composed of the 24 to 37 appendices (pre-moult embryonal tubules), the second of the 20 to 27 excretory (post-moult embryonal) tubules. The number of calciferous (nymphal) tubules produced in each generation depends largely on the number of groups; there are usually 2 per group in the second and third instars and one in the fourth. Occasionally a single tubule is added to some groups in the fifth instar. The appendices pass backwards and are attached to the anterior parts of the hind-gut; the excretories first pass forwards, then backwards and are attached to the hind-gut just anterior to the rectum, whilst the calciferous tubules are attached distally to the fat-body. Each tubule is composed of 5 rows of spirally arranged cells which appear as hexagons in surface view. The excretory tubules are differentiated into upper and lower segments and are attached to the gut by a series of short tracheae. The calciferous tubules have a distal region filled with a white crystalline substance and are served by single spiral tracheae. The appendices are not differentiated into segments and have no tracheal supply. The development of any one tubule comprises a period of initiation and elongation by cell-division, and a period of differentiation. The first period is restricted to the first few days of a stadium, i.e. is linked to cyclical development, whilst the second continues through the remainder of the life of the insect. The secondary tubules of any one group are added alternately on either side of the first formed tubule along the line of the posterior interstitial ring, and the arrangement of tubules is a result of curvature of this ring. Tubule buds formed in a particular instar may complete their phase of cell-division in that instar or may remain dormant until the similar period in the succeeding instar. The calciferous tubules undergo a rudimentary metamorphosis in the sixth (last) nymphal stage.


Introduction: Pressor response to laryngoscopy and intubation have been associated with sympathetic and parasympathetic responses like Hypertension, Tachycardia due to increased plasma catecholamine concentrations. Premedication with Dexmedetomidine attenuates pressor response to laryngoscopy and intubation. Aims and Objective: to evaluate and compare effects of 2 different doses of Dexmedetomidine 1mcg/kg and 0.6mcg/kg in attenuating pressor response to laryngoscopy and intubation. Methods: 60 patients aged 18-50 years of either sex of ASA grade I and II scheduled for elective surgery were randomly divided into 2 groups. All patients were uniformly premedicated, 10 mins before induction. Group A received Inj Dexmedetomidine 1mcg/kg and Group B received Inj Dexmedetomidine 0.6mcg/kg iv. After induction with Thiopentone and succinylcholine, laryngoscopy and intubation was done. HR, SBP, DBP were recorded for both groups before premedication, 10min after premedication and 1min, 2min, 3min, 5min, 7min,10min after intubation. Data was analyzed and compared with paired t test. Results: HR and BP levels were lower at 10min after premedication and 5min after intubation than baseline levels in both groups. But in Dexmedetomidine 1mcg/kg group amount of increase in HR, SBP, DBP were lower compared to 0.6 mcg/kg. Conclusion: Dexmedetomidine 1mcg/kg is more effective than 0.6 mcg/kg in attenuating pressor response to laryngoscopy and intubation and provides more stable hemodynamic profile.


Maternal care and maternal aggression are representative maternal behaviors in rodents. These behaviors are displayed alternatively. The dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) regulates both nurturing and aggressive behaviors. In the present study, we examined whether the DRN are involved in regulating alternative display of maternal care and aggression. We first examined the neuronal activity in the the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and lateral habenula (LHb), which send glutamatergic inputs into the DRN, in dams with a retrograde tracer Fluorogold injected into the DRN. The number of c-Fosand Fluorogold-positive neurons in the mPFC and LHb increased in the dams that displayed biting behavior in response to an intruder, but remained unchanged in the dams that displayed nurturing behavior. Injections of N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonists or α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA)/kainate receptor antagonists into the DRN inhibited biting behavior but not nurturing behavior. In contrast, injections of NMDA or AMPA into the DRN inhibited nurturing behavior. These results suggest that glutamatergic signals in the DRN, which may originate from the mPFC and/or LHb, regulate the preferential display of biting behavior over nurturing behavior in dams. Poster Sessions


Daily (circadian) rhythms coordinate our physiology and behaviour with regular environmental changes. Molecular clocks in peripheral tissues (e.g. liver, skeletal muscle and adipose) give rise to rhythms in macronutrient metabolism, appetite regulation and the components of energy balance such that our bodies can align the periodic delivery of nutrients with ongoing metabolic requirements. The timing of meals both in absolute terms (i.e. relative to clock time) and in relative terms (i.e. relative to other daily events) is therefore relevant to metabolism and health. Experimental manipulation of feeding–fasting cycles can advance understanding of the effect of absolute and relative timing of meals on metabolism and health. Such studies have extended the overnight fast by regular breakfast omission and revealed that morning fasting can alter the metabolic response to subsequent meals later in the day, whilst also eliciting compensatory behavioural responses (i.e. reduced physical activity). Similarly, restricting energy intake via alternate‐day fasting also has the potential to elicit a compensatory reduction in physical activity, and so can undermine weight‐loss efforts (i.e. to preserve body fat stores). Interrupting the usual overnight fast (and therefore also the usual sleep cycle) by nocturnal feeding has also been examined and further research is needed to understand the importance of this period for either nutritional intervention or nutritional withdrawal. In summary, it is important for dietary guidelines for human health to consider nutrient timing (i.e. when we eat) alongside the conventional focus on nutrient quantity and nutrient quality (i.e. how much we eat and what we eat).


This study assessed the effects of a single intracoronary injection of autologous stem cells on the cardiac function of dogs with Chagas cardiomyopathy. Bone-marrow-derived stem cells were delivered into the right and left coronary arteries of 5 mature dogs with mildly compromised cardiac function due to chronic Chagas cardiomyopathy. Blood pressure and electrocardiographic and echocardiographic parameters were recorded at monthly intervals for 6 mo in the 3 dogs that survived. Although no changes were observed in the electrocardiogram and blood pressure, there was a significant increase in peak velocity of aortic flow 3 mo after stem cell transplantation. Pre-ejection period, isovolumic relaxation time, and the Tei index of myocardial performance were reduced significantly 4 mo after the procedure. All significant changes persisted to the end of the study. The results suggest that the transplantation of autologous bone-marrow-derived stem cells into the coronary arteries of dogs with Chagas cardiomyopathy may have a beneficial effect but the small number of dogs studied was a limitation.


The ceremonial centers of the Syro-Hittite city-states (1200-700 BC) were lavishly decorated with large-scale, open-air figurative reliefs - an original and greatly influential artistic tradition. But why exactly did the production of such an array of monumental images ever start? This volume explores how Syro-Hittite monumental art was used as a powerful backdrop to important ritual events, and opens up a new perspective by situating monumental art in the context of public performances and civic spectacles of great emotional impact, such as processions, royal triumphs, and dynastic funerals.


BACKGROUND
Porcine small intestine submucosa (SiS) has been introduced as a bioprosthesis in herniorrhaphy. This study evaluates in vivo properties of SiS that would affect clinical use.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Twelve pigs underwent implantation of SiS (perforated and nonperforated) on the peritoneal surface. Gross characteristics were evaluated and random samples harvested for histological study at 2 (n = 6) and 8 (n = 6) weeks. Collagen deposition was determined by polarized microscopy. Neovascularity (percent area blood vessels, %A(bv)) was determined by immunohistochemical staining with a polyclonal CD-31 antibody.

RESULTS
Perforated SiS had a higher density of capillary ingrowth compared with nonperforated at both 2 (5.6%A(bv) versus 1.4%A(bv), P < 0.05) and 8 weeks (6.0%A(bv) versus 1.6%A(bv), P < 0.05). Compared with 2 weeks, 8-week SiS had a larger proportion of incorporation (25% versus 83%, P < 0.05) and new collagen deposition (50% versus 94%, P < 0.05). Significant contraction was observed in SiS 8 weeks after implantation (preimplant area 98 cm2 versus post-implant area 50 cm2, P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
SiS incorporated well 8 weeks after implantation, with deposition of new collagen. Perforated SiS demonstrated a more rapid and greater amount of neovascularity. The degree of contraction suggests that larger areas of SiS should be selected for herniorrhaphy than would be necessary if synthetic materials were used.


The paper is dedicated to one of the oldest scientific and technical periodicals in Russia, scientific agent of the Saint-Petersburg Mining University – «Proceedings of the Mining Institute». In 2017 we shall celebrate the 110-th anniversary of the first issue of the magazine coming from the press. That event gains a particular meaning because  of the growing role of periodicals in operative gaining, storing, translating and practically applying scientific information. Modern society is duly called the information society, in which intense and efficient use of one of its main resources – knowledge – is the chief factor of successful development of all the spheres of the society. «Proceedings of the Mining Institute» – is an exceptionally important fragment of that resource, shaped by all of its history.The paper considers the pre-history and historical stages of establishment of the «Proceedings of the Mining Institute». It stresses the high authority of the majority of participants of that process: starting from the initiators of its publication (professors of the Mining Institute) and all the way to its current authors – outstanding scientists of Russia, the near and the far abroad, as well as the well-known political and economic leaders of the country.Reconstruction of the past of the «Proceedings of the Mining Institute» demonstrates that the magazine has rich and valuable history. Being itself a necessary expression of tribute and gratitude to the magazine forerunners, the re- construction is not the only principal purpose of this study, that purpose consisting in identification and substantiation of ways and means of upgrading the magazine, to support its competitive edge in the extremely complex information space, both global and domestic, saturated with information as never before.


Black currant fruits are recognized as being an important dietary source of health-related compounds, such as anthocyanins and ascorbic acid. In the present study, the biochemical composition (viz., nonstructural carbohydrates, individual anthocyanins, total anthocyanins, total phenolics, and organic acids, including ascorbic acid) from 17 UK-grown black currant cultivars was analyzed. Berry composition was significantly affected by genotype. Nonstructural carbohydrates ranged from 85.09 to 179.92 mg g(-1) on a fresh weight (FW) basis, while concentration for organic acids ranged from 36.56 to 73.35 mg g(-1) FW. Relative concentrations of cyanidin 3-glucoside, cyanidin 3-rutinoside, delphinidin 3-glucoside and delphinidin 3-rutinoside were 3.1-7.9%, 35.4-47.0%, 7.6-12.5% and 36.9-50.9%, respectively. Differences in the biochemical profile among cultivars were emphasized by principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). PCA was able to discriminate between cultivars, especially on the basis of health-related compounds. Initial exploration revealed that individual anthocyanins, total phenolics, and ascorbic acid could be used to characterize and classify different cultivars. HCA showed that the biochemical composition of the different cultivars was related to parentage information.


A very sensitive technique where an electrochemical cell is coupled to a total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy setup is described and applied for the first time to the electrochemical monitoring of the fluorescence of organic dyes in solution. It is shown that this setup basically allows both spatial and time resolution for the recorded fluorescence signal as a function of the electrode potential: indeed the variations of the emission intensity are recorded within the diffusion layer for a classical cyclic voltammetry or chronoamperometry experiment inducing the redox conversion of an emissive form into a non emissive one (and conversely). Simultaneously, the variations of the emissive state lifetime are measured to discriminate between a mechanism involving only the conversion into a non emissive form from one involving a quenching between the emitter and the electrogenerated species. The results concerning the investigation of the electrochemical monitoring of the fluorescence properties for two types of original dyes are presented, demonstrating the possibility to switch on and off the emission in a fully reversible way and to investigate in depth the mechanisms associated to this switch.


Expression of the human TcR beta gene is controlled by an enhancer located 6kb 3' to the C beta 2 gene segment. The activity of this enhancer has been shown to be inducible with phorbol esters. Within the enhancer the beta E2 element is responsible for the major part of the inducibility, multimerised beta E2 alone is also highly phorbol ester inducible. The beta E2 element contains a consensus ets-binding site as well as a core motif, and we have shown that the beta E2 ets site binds both Ets-1 and Ets-2 in vitro and that purified core binding factor (CBF) can bind the core site present in beta E2. Mutations which specifically disrupt Ets-1 and Ets-2 binding abolish inducibility as well as reducing activity, whereas mutants which cannot bind CBF have only reduced basal activity. In Jurkat, which has a high level of endogenous Ets-1, multimerized beta E2 was inactive unless treated with PMA. However when transfected into cells with no detectable Ets-1 the beta E2 multimer was highly active in the absence of PMA. Co-transfection of an Ets-1 expression construct with the full enhancer into Jurkat cells led to a repression of enhancer activity, suggesting a repressive role for Ets-1. Co-transfection of Ets-1 was also able to repress strongly the activity of the beta E2 multimer. Repression of activity from both the full enhancer construct and the beta E2 multimer was most dramatic in the presence of PMA, suggesting that Ets-1 could block TcR beta activation. The Ets-1 expression construct used transactivated the HTLV-1 LTR which has also been shown to bind Ets-1. The repression of beta E2 activity by Ets-1 appears therefore to be specific. In conclusion, the combination of ets and core sites in beta E2 constitutes a novel inducible element, which is specifically transrepressed by Ets-1.


Background
The objective of this study is to explore the association between the pretreatment systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) and prognosis in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients.

Methods
A systemic literature search of PubMed, EMBASE, the Web of Science, the Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang, VIP and SinoMed databases was performed from January 1, 1966 to April 15, 2019, to identify potential studies that assessed the prognostic role of the pretreatment SII in NSCLC. The hazard ratio (HR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were combined to evaluate the correlation of the pretreatment SII with overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), progression-free survival (PFS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) in NSCLC patients.

Results
A total of 9 studies involving 2,441 patients were eventually included. An elevated pretreatment SII indicated significantly poorer OS (HR =1.88, 95% CI: 1.50-2.36; P<0.001) with high heterogeneity (I2=60.6%, P=0.019), DFS/PFS (HR =2.50, 95% CI: 1.20-5.20; P=0.014) with high heterogeneity (I2=58.2%, P=0.092) and CSS (HR =1.852, 95% CI: 1.185-2.915; P=0.007). Subgroup analyses further verified the above results. In addition, compared with the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet to lymphocyte ratio (PLR), the SII showed a much higher prognostic value in NSCLC.

Conclusions
The pretreatment SII may serve as a useful prognostic indicator in NSCLC and contribute to prognosis evaluation and treatment strategy formulation. However, more well-designed studies are warranted to verify our findings.


School nurses have provided routine health screenings of school-age children for decades. During the 1970s, recommendations for school scoliosis screening, which were based upon poor access to health care, led state boards of education to mandate that school nurses screen for scoliosis. The history of mandated scoliosis screening in U.S. schools is reviewed, and current school nurse practices for scoliosis screening are presented. Elevated referral rates for repeat scoliosis examination following school scoliosis screenings have led to questions of efficacy. Further controversy exists regarding school nurses screening for scoliosis due to a lack of evidence indicating a decreased need for scoliosis surgery. This article contains evidence-based recommendations for discontinuing school scoliosis screening to help school nurses refocus their efforts on complex health needs and preventive health issues more likely to impact the majority of their students.


OBJECTIVES :
• To describe the morphology of bone marrow aspirates in acute myeloid leukemia (AML).
• To correlate the bone marrow morphology with results of cytogenetic analysis and mutation
screening.
• To categorize AML using both the French-American-British (FAB) and the World Health Organization (WHO) classification systems
METHODS :
• A total of 156 newly diagnosed cases of AML presenting to Christian Medical College, Vellore over a period of one year from January 2015 to December 2015 were included in this study.
• Bone marrow aspirate smears and peripheral blood smears of 156 patients with AML were studied and findings such as differential count, blast lineage assessment and assessment of dysplasia were noted.
• Laboratory haematological parameters such as haemoglobin, platelet count and total leucocyte
count were assessed for all the patients.
• Cytogenetic analysis using karyotyping was carried out in 142 of the 156 patients.
• Mutation screening for NPM1, FLT3-ITD and FLT3-TKD genes was carried out for 47 patients.
RESULTS :
• The median age of the patients was 32 years (range: 7 months to 76 years).
• Using the FAB classification, the most common subtype was AML-M2 (37%) followed by
AML-M1 (21%). AMl-M6 (1%) was the least common subtype.
• Cytogenetic analysis –
Abnormal karyotypes were seen 62% of our patients.
(15;17)(q22;q12) was the most common recurrent genetic abnormality observed.
t(8;21)(q22;q22.1) was seen in 8% patient. Rest of the abnormalities were seen in ~1-2% of patients.
Other common cytogenetic abnormalities observed were
• Trisomy 8 – 9%
• Monosomy 7 – 8%
• Complex karyotypes (3 or more abnormalities) – 13%
• Monosomal karyotypes – 9%.
• Mutation screening –
• NPM1 mutation was seen in 47% (22/47) patients, and in 74% (20/27) patients with normal karyotype.
• FLT3-ITD mutations were seen in 19% (9/47) of patients.
• FLT3-TKDmutations were seen in 17% (8/47) of patients.
• Concomitant NPM1 and FLT3 mutations were concomitantly seen in 28% (13/47) of patients.
• Using the 2016 revision to the WHO classification of AML–
AML with recurrent genetic abnormalities (AML-RGA) accounted for 42% of patients.
AML, not otherwise specified (AML, NOS) accounted for 37% of patients.
AML with myelodysplasia-related changes (AML-MRC) accounted for 21% of patients.
• AML-MRC based only on morphological evidence of dysplasia - 23%.
• AML-MRC based on morphology and /or cytogenetic changes - 77%.
• Risk classification according to modified European LeukemiaNet (ELN) classification system –
Favorable risk profile was seen in 37% of patients.
• Intermediate risk profile was seen in 38% of patients.
• Adverse risk profile was seen in 25% of patients.


Liver hydatid cysts are known to rupture into the biliary tree, but acute pancreatitis is a rare complication of intra-biliary rupture. Intra-biliary rupture was first reported in 1928 by Dew. Intra-biliary rupture is a serious complication of hepatic hydatid cysts. The incidence varies from 1% to 25% in adult patients. In our case, we aimed to show the migration of the material of a hepatic hydatid cyst to the common bile duct and the impaction of hydatid membrane in the papillary orifice, which may cause acute pancreatitis. Parasitic infections should be considered as a differential diagnosis in patients with acute biliary pancreatitis.


Objective To evaluate circularity as a quantitative shape factor of small renal tumor on computed tomography (CT) in differentiating fat-poor angiomyolipoma (AML) from renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Materials and Methods In 257 consecutive patients, 257 pathologically confirmed renal tumors (either AML or RCC less than 4 cm), which did not include visible fat on unenhanced CT, were retrospectively evaluated. A radiologist drew the tumor margin to measure the perimeter and area in all the contrast-enhanced axial CT images. In each image, a quantitative shape factor, circularity, was calculated using the following equation: 4 × π × (area ÷ perimeter2). The median circularity (circularity index) was adopted as a representative value in each tumor. The circularity index was compared between fat-poor AML and RCC, and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed. Univariable and multivariable binary logistic regression analysis was performed to determine the independent predictor of fat-poor AML. Results Of the 257 tumors, 26 were AMLs and 231 were RCCs (184 clear cell RCCs, 25 papillary RCCs, and 22 chromophobe RCCs). The mean circularity index of AML was significantly lower than that of RCC (0.86 ± 0.04 vs. 0.93 ± 0.02, p < 0.001). The mean circularity index was not different between the subtypes of RCCs (0.93 ± 0.02, 0.92 ± 0.02, and 0.92 ± 0.02 for clear cell, papillary, and chromophobe RCCs, respectively, p = 0.210). The area under the ROC curve of circularity index was 0.924 for differentiating fat-poor AML from RCC. The sensitivity and specificity were 88.5% and 90.9%, respectively (cut-off, 0.90). Lower circularity index (≤ 0.9) was an independent predictor (odds ratio, 41.0; p < 0.001) for predicting fat-poor AML on multivariable logistic regression analysis. Conclusion Circularity is a useful quantitative shape factor of small renal tumor for differentiating fat-poor AML from RCC.


In the Sheridan district, southwestern Tobacco Root Mountains, Montana, Precambrian metasediments and metavolcanics are complexly folded and refolded. The exposed metamorphic bedrock is divided into the following major mappable units: quartzo-feldspathic gneiss, amphibolite-hornblende gneiss, anthophyllite-garnet gneiss, intermediate gneiss, and marble. Mapping delineates a series of slightly overturned, isoclinal antiforms and synforms which plunge N. 10° W., 24° NW. The nose of an earlier recumbent fold is also preserved.

Primarily, all folding occurred during two major deformational episodes; an early episode of recumbent folding around northeast axes and a second, intense period of refolding around nearly north-trending axes that produced the dominant isoclinal folds. During the second folding phase, the nose of a recumbent fold became detached, flowed to the east, and was refolded. The degree of metamorphism produced during recumbent folding is unclear. Progressive regional metamorphism of Barrovian type occurred during the second folding episode and produced mineral assemblages indicative of the amphibolite and granulite facies.

Petrofabric evidence substantiates inferences based on regional analysis. Calcite, dolomite, and quartz petrofabrics also reveal a third, less intense phase of folding which was related to the second phase, but which occurred around a distinct axis.

Joint systems within the Sheridan district are a result of both Precambrian and Laramide deformations. Dominant, nearly vertical, joint planes with average trends of N. 75° W., N. 45° W., N. 2° E., and N. 65° E. are thought to be Precambrian in origin on the basis of close agreement with theoretical trends.

Dominant fracture systems probably controlled the intrusion of the Tobacco Root batholith and the orientations of the Noble and other post metamorphic faults, all of which are associated with the Laramide orogeny.


CMNP (5-chloro-3-methyl-4-nitro-1H-pyrazole) is an abscission agent that is in the process of being labeled as an aid for mechanical harvesting. A mathematical model that incorporates the most important factors affecting CMNP efficacy may be a useful tool for mechanical harvesting companies and growers to schedule abscission sprays and harvests. Previous research has demonstrated that two of the most important factors include CMNP concentration and temperature. Using data from previous research, we developed a model using concentration and air temperature and applied it to 18 treatments from 5 studies that included 10 treatments for 'Hamlin' and 8 treatments for 'Valencia'. Inputs into the model included CMNP concentration, hourly air temperature from time of application to harvest, and fruit detachment force (FDF) at time of application. The model calculated a predicted FDF at time of harvest, which was compared to actual FDF. The average FDF for the 18 treatments at time of application was 92 N. The average FDF at harvest was 51 N and the average predicted FDF was 58 N. Thus, the difference between actual and predicted FDF was about 13%. However, there was considerable variation among treatments, with the range in difference between actual and predicted FDF from –40 to 57 N. There was no difference between cultivars in predictability of the model. Factors causing this high variation between predicted and actual FDF at harvest will need to be included in the model before it will be commercial viable.


The risk of subsynchronous resonance (SSR) is likely in power stations which are connected to power systems through series compensated transmission lines. Wind farms are not exempted from this issue. Recently a new technology of wind turbines, i.e. dual-rotor turbines, has been introduced. The performance of this wind turbine is enhanced compared to a single-rotor turbine in both aspects of energy efficiency and dynamic stability. However, since the number of mechanical components in dual rotor system is higher than the single-rotor case, therefore the risk of SSR in dual-rotor wind turbine is higher. This problem may be considered as a serious drawback for the new technology. This paper, at first, studies transient oscillations of the generator speed in both single and dual rotor systems after a sudden increase in electrical load. The frequency elements of the responses are calculated and compared together. Then, genetic algorithm (GA) is employed to optimize the dual-rotor system parameters for reducing the SSR possibility. This method assists us to lower the risk of SSR in dual-rotor wind turbine and keep it at the same level of single-rotor one.


ABSTRACT The paper presents the study results on chemical composition of the coarse primary M7C3 carbides occurring in the soft annealed NC11LV/D2 tool steel consisting of: 1.53% C; 11.65% Cr; 0.01% W; 0.81% Mo; 0.068% V; (balance iron plus admixtures), used for cold operation. The microanalyzer of type SEMPROBE Su-30, French made by CAMECA Co., equipped with two WDS X-ray spectrometers and an EDS VOYAGER 3 100, NORAN Instruments Co., made in USA. It was found that out of the three alloying elements occurring in the big carbides of the annealed NC11LV/D2 steel, i.e. Cr, Mo, and V, the chromium appears to be the most uniformly distributed. The big carbides vary concerning C, Cr, Mo, V; the greatest differentiation degree of the contents of Mo and Cr, and the least - of vanadium. The average chemical composition of the big/coarse carbides is as follows: C = 9.42±1.28%; Cr = 44.17±2.95%; Mo = 4.48±3.52%; V = 4.53±0.31%; balance Fe.


Web 2.0 technologies have enabled more and more people to freely comment on different kinds of entities (e.g. sellers, products, services). The large scale of information poses the need and challenge of automatic summarization. In many cases, each of the user-generated short comments comes with an overall rating. In this paper, we study the problem of generating a ``rated aspect summary'' of short comments, which is a decomposed view of the overall ratings for the major aspects so that a user could gain different perspectives towards the target entity. We formally define the problem and decompose the solution into three steps. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our methods by using eBay sellers' feedback comments. We also quantitatively evaluate each step of our methods and study how well human agree on such a summarization task. The proposed methods are quite general and can be used to generate rated aspect summary automatically given any collection of short comments each associated with an overall rating.


Chiral discrimination by novel chiral hosts 3 and 4, which consist of an oxyethylene chain and 2,3:5,6di-O-cyclohexylidene-b-9-mannofuranose moieties at both ends, was examined considering several protonated amino acid isopropyl ester guests using fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FABMS) with the enantiomer deuterium-labeled guest method. Host 3 showed chiral discrimination toward several guests but with slightly smaller chiral discrimination abilities than host 2a, which consists of a bis-(oxyethylene) chain and 1,2: 3,4-di-O-isopropylidene-a-9-galactopyranoside moieties at both ends. Host 4 showed no enantioselectivity, possibly because chiral hosts do not show a pseudo-ring conformation having large open spaces in complexations with a chiral guest in regard to the steric e#ects of cyclohexylidene groups. In addition, to understand the chiral recognition mechanisms, the binding sites of hosts 3 and 4 were elucidated by ultraviolet-visible (UV-VIS) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (H-NMR) spectroscopy.


In this paper it is shown that the one-dimensional configuration sums of the solvable lattice models of Andrews, Baxter and Forrester and the string functions associated with admissible representations of the affine Lie algebra A (1) as introduced by Kac and Wakimoto can be exploited to yield a very general class of conjugate Bailey pairs. Using the recently established fermionic or constant-sign expressions for the one-dimensional configuration sums, our result is employed to derive fermionic expressions for fractional- level string functions, parafermion characters and A (1) branching functions. In addition, q-series identities are obtained whose Lie algebraic and/or combi- natorial interpretation is still lacking.


The long-standing idea that astrogliosis acts as a barrier for regenerating axons could be tested if an in vitro model of reactive astrocytes were available. The morphology and intermediate filament content of cultured perinatal astrocytes treated with di-butyryl-cyclic-AMP are reminiscent of reactive astrocytes evoked by injury. Thus, they have been proposed as a reactive astrocyte in vitro model. However, we show here that di-butyryl-cyclic-AMP-treated astrocytes are much closer to untreated neonatal cells than to reactive astrocytes in vivo, when using other immunohistochemical markers of living reactive glia (i.e. EGF receptor or laminin). Furthermore, living di-butyryl-cyclic-AMP-treated astrocytes and untreated, flat, epithelioid cells, as well as their purified plasma membranes, had similar neurite outgrowth promoting properties, whereas membranes from gliotic tissue enriched in reactive astrocytes inhibited neurite outgrowth. Our observations indicate that di-butyryl-cyclic-AMP treatment leads, at best, to a morphological model of reactive cells that does not share many properties of reactive astrocytes in vivo.


Freshwater mysids of the Mysis relicta group are omnivorous macroinvertebrates that form an important link between fishes and lower trophic levels in many north temperate to Arctic lakes, where they exhibit diel vertical migration (DVM) to exploit subsurface food-rich layers at night. Benthic food resources have been assumed to be less important for mysid diets than pelagic zooplankton. Studies have nevertheless indicated that mysids consume benthic sedimented detritus, calling this assumption into question. We conducted a food-choice experiment to evaluate the feeding preferences of Mysis diluviana (Audzijonyte & Väinölä, 2005) by presenting field-caught specimens in individual foraging arenas with multiple choices of food. Experimental food treatments included a preferred pelagic prey (Daphnia), a presumed less desirable benthic resource (detritus), and a combination of both. We hypothesized that M. diluviana 1) prefers Daphnia over detritus and consumes only Daphnia in combination treatments, and 2) would not consume detritus except when detritus was the only food source available. Contrary to our hypothesis, M. diluviana readily consumed detritus in the presence of Daphnia. Mysis diluviana unexpectedly consumed more individuals of Daphnia in the presence rather than in the absence of detritus. Our results demonstrate that mysids take advantage of benthic food resources even in the presence of a presumably preferred zooplankton prey, calling to question the long-held assumption that benthic resources are unimportant when considering the trophic role of freshwater mysids of the M. relicta group.


Nonvenereal syphilis (endemic syphilis) has existed in Europe since the 16th century. Main characteristics of the disease are its presence for a longer time in a specific territory and its transmission regardless of age and sex, mainly extragenitally in unsanitary living conditions. Nonvenereal syphilis was described under different names in almost all regions of Europe. The primary genital chancre was absent, and lesions were most frequently found in the mouth and affected mostly children. The disease spread in rural areas with poor economic and hygienic conditions. The disease was eradicated in Europe in the 20th century, but it is still present in some rural regions of the Arabian Peninsula, Southwest Asia, and North Africa. © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.


Dependency parses are an effective way to inject linguistic knowledge into many downstream tasks, and many practitioners wish to efficiently parse sentences at scale. Recent advances in GPU hardware have enabled neural networks to achieve significant gains over the previous best models, these models still fail to leverage GPUs' capability for massive parallelism due to their requirement of sequential processing of the sentence. In response, we propose Dilated Iterated Graph Convolutional Neural Networks (DIG-CNNs) for graph-based dependency parsing, a graph convolutional architecture that allows for efficient end-to-end GPU parsing. In experiments on the English Penn TreeBank benchmark, we show that DIG-CNNs perform on par with some of the best neural network parsers.


The Nilgiri Biosphere, being one of the critical catchments, a small agricultural watershed of Udhagamandalam has been analysed to show the need to improve the agriculture by reducing the soil erosion. For this study, the land use and land cover classification was undertaken using Landsat images to highlight the changes that have occurred between 1981 and 2019. The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) method and the Geographic Information System (GIS) was used in this study to determine the soil erosion vulnerability of Sillahalla watershed in the Nilgiri Hills in Tamilnadu. This study will help to promote the economic development of the watershed with proper agricultural planning and erosion management. This study focuses on the estimation of the average annual soil loss and to classify the spatial distribution of the soil loss as a map with the RUSLE method and GIS. To estimate the average annual soil loss of the study area, GIS layers of the RUSLE factors like rainfall erosivity (R), soil erodibility (K), slope length and steepness (LS), cover management (C) and conservation practice (P) were computed in a raster data format. The total soil loss and average annual soil loss of the study area for 1981–1990,1991–2000, 2001–2010, 2011–2019 were found to be 0.2, 0.254, 0.3, 0.35 million t/year and 31.33, 37.78, 46.7, 51.89 t/ha/year, respectively. The soil erosion rate is classified into different classes as per the FAO guidelines and this severity classification map was prepared to identify the vulnerable areas.


Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a fungal disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum.L) that causes yield losses and produces mycotoxins which could easily exceed the limits of the EU regulations. Resistance to FHB has a complex genetic architecture and accurate evaluation in breeding programs is key to selecting resistant varieties. The Area Under the Disease Progress Curve (AUDPC) is one of the commonly metric used as a standard methodology to score FHB. Although efficient, AUDPC requires significant costs in phenotyping to cover the entire disease development pattern. Here, we show that there are more efficient alternatives to AUDPC (angle, growing degree days to reach 50% FHB severity, and FHB maximum variance) that reduce the number of field assessments required and allow for fair comparisons between unbalanced evaluations across trials. Furthermore, we found that the evaluation method that captures the maximum variance in FHB severity across plots is the most optimal approach for scoring FHB. In addition, results obtained on experimental data were validated on a simulated experiment where the disease progress curve was modeled as a sigmoid curve with known parameters and assessment protocols were fully controlled. Results show that alternative metrics tested in this study captured key components of quantitative plant resistance. Moreover, the new metrics could be a starting point for more accurate methods for measuring FHB in the field. For example, the optimal interval for FHB evaluation could be predicted using prior knowledge from historical weather data and FHB scores from previous trials. Finally, the evaluation methods presented in this study can reduce the FHB phenotyping burden in plant breeding with minimal losses on signal detection, resulting in a response variable available to use in data-driven analysis such as genome-wide association studies or genomic selection.


We report a case of transitional cell carcinoma of a renal pelvis in a woman discovered after childbirth. A 38-year-old woman, who delivered an immature male infant in cesarean section 29 days prior to hospitalization, was admitted complaining of asymptomatic gross hematuria. Excretory urography and retrograde pyelography showed a filling defect of the right renal pelvis, Spontaneous urine cytology indicated class 5. Renal computed tomographic scan demonstrated a mass lesion in the right kidney. Right total nephroureterectomy and partial cystectomy was performed for diagnosis and treatment. Pathological diagnosis was papillary transitional cell carcinoma (grade 2). This is the first case of transitional cell carcinoma of the renal pelvis occurring in a childbearing woman in Japan.


PNEUMATOSIS intestinalis (PI), ie, the presence of intramural-gas pseudocysts parallel to the long axis of the intestine, is invariably a consequence of intra-abdominal or chronic pulmonary disease. In our patient, pneumatosis coli developed after a mild upper-respiratory-tract infection (URI), which was hallmarked by paroxysms of cough. The case report suggests that recurrent cough in a person with normal pulmonary status can induce the pneumatosis phenomenon. Report of a Case A healthy 14-year-old girl was first seen because of cough, rhinorrhea, and fever. Rales were heard in the right lung base, and a diagnosis of viral URI and viral pneumonitis was made clinically. No evidence of pericarditis or pleuritis was noted. Erythromycin (Erythrocin), 1 gm daily, was prescribed but discontinued by the patient after two days. Nonproductive coughing persisted and often recurred in paroxysms. On the seventh day, nausea and vomiting ensued, and diffuse abdominal pain at times was relieved by


The relationship between law and terrorism has re-emerged recently as a pressing issue in contemporary jurisprudence. Terrorism appears to take law to its limit, whilst the demands of counter-terrorism hold the cause of justice in contempt. At this point the case for engaging alternative intellectual approaches and resources is compelling. Ian Ward argues that through a closer appreciation of the ethical and aesthetical dimensions of terror, as well as the historical, political and cultural, we can better comprehend modern expressions and experiences of terrorism. For this reason, alongside juristic responses to modern expressions of terrorism, Law, Text, Terror examines a variety of supplementary literary texts as well as alternative intellectual approaches; from the drama of Euripides and Shakespeare, to the rhetoric and poetry of Burke and Shelley, the literary feminisms of Lessing and Rame, and the narrative existentialism of Conrad, Coetzee, Dostoevsky and DeLillo.• Grapples with one of the most pressing questions facing contemporary society: how to define terrorism • Draws on evidence from legal, political and literary worlds to promote a measured, appropriate response to terror • Engaging tone guides the scholar and new student alike through complex arguments and hyperbole dominating the field


Abstract:My life as an ethnomusicologist benefited greatly by my critically-minded, musicianly parents and husband, from the excellence of my mentors, colleagues, and students, and from living at a time when scholarships and research grants were becoming available to women, thus enabling me to become an ethnomusicologist. My exposure to diverse ideas and five decades of annual field trips in Southeast Asia, especially Sumatra, guided my choice of research topics, some of which were descriptions of hitherto unexplored music cultures and others mainly theoretical and global in scope. They included searching for cultural meanings in musical instruments and their culturally diverse classifications, including the human body as a percussive instrument and producer of body percussion music in Aceh and beyond. I saw many changes in Australian and overseas universities in the early twenty-first century which became more like corporations than centers of learning, while fragmenting political intrigues, growing class inequality, and proliferation of weapons of war led to threats to the humanities, and not only to culture wars about race, gender, and climate change but also to the calamities of actual war itself. These are the realities that we musicologists need to address in our work.


Abstract : Two studies were done using 3 iP magnetic resonance spectroscopy to examine the separate effects of hypohydration and dietary creatine supplementation on muscle metabolism and performance. Volunteers performed supine single-leg knee extension exercise in a 1.5 Tesla whole body magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) system. For the hypohydration study, exercise was performed to exhaustion when euhydrated and 4% hypohydrated. Hypohydration reduced (P <0.05) time to fatigue 15% (EU =251+67 HY=213 +52 Sec; Isd). Muscle pH and Pi/BATP were similar during exercise and at exhaustion regardless of hydration state. It was concluded that hypohydration reduces muscle endurance and the effects appear independent of H + and Pi concentration. For the creatine studies, 3 repeat bouts of high-intensity exercise were performed before and after 5 days of creatine supplementation (0.3 g'kg-1-day-i). Middle-aged persons (5814 yr) had lower resting PCr/BATP compared to the young group (6.3610.94 vs. 7.18+0.93, p<O.05) and a lower mean PCr resynthesis rate for bouts 1 and 2 (18.1+3.5 vs. 23.2+6.0 mmol'kg wet wt-1'min-1, p<O.05). After creatine supplementation, resting PCr/BATP increased 15% (p<0.05) in the young group and 29% (p<0.05) in the middle-aged group (8.3+1.3 vs. 8.311.0) eliminating the difference between groups. Mean PCr resynthesis rate also increased in the middle-aged group (p <0.05) during the creatine trial to a level not different from the young group (24.3+3.8 vs. 24.2 + 3.2 mmol kg wet wt- 1 min- 1). Time to exhaustion was increased in the young group after creatine supplementation (122136 vs. 162+59 s, p <0.05) but did not improve in the middle-aged group (113 + 31 vs. 144181 s, p = 0.2).


In January 1985, a single protocol consisting of cyclophosphamide, vincristine, tetrahydropyranyl adriamycin, and cis-platinum for the treatment of advanced neuroblastoma was begun nationwide in Japan and was found to improve clinical results significantly in terms of 2- or 3-year survival rate. Between January 1985 and December 1988, 113 eligible patients (7 infants younger than 12 months of age with stage IVA disease and 106 patients aged 12 months or older with stage III or IV disease) were enrolled and followed up for 5 years or more after initiation of treatment, as of March 1994. In this study, the usefulness of the protocol for the treatment of advanced neuroblastoma was evaluated with survival rates in relation to age, tumor site, stage, and N-myc amplification for patients surviving more than 5 years after initiation of the protocol. Fifty of the 113 patients were alive 5 years or more after initiation of the treatment, 39 without any episodes of disease recurrence. Fourteen (70%) of 20 patients with stage III, 6 (50%) of 12 with stage IVB, and 24 (30%) of 81 with stage IVA disease were alive and disease-free 5 years after initiation of the protocol. Twenty (56%) of 36 patients without N-myc amplification were alive at 5 years after initiation of the protocol. Only one patient who was alive without evidence of the disease at 5 years had recurrence afterward.


Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is thought to be strongly associated with the precarcinomatous state cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) and cervical carcinoma. To accurately assess the correlation between HPV detection profiles and CIN, the uniplex E6/E7 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method was used. We detected HPV (37 genotypes) in 267 CIN cases. The detection of a single high-risk HPV genotype occurred in 69.7% of CIN1 and worse than CIN1 (CIN1+) cases whereas other types were detected in 11.6% of cases. Codetection of high-risk HPV genotypes occurred in 4.9% of CIN1+ cases. The high-risk genotype HPV16 was the most frequently detected genotype in CIN1+ lesions; the genotype HPV34 (not a high-risk type) was detected in some CIN3 cases. Furthermore, HPV codetection may not be associated with CIN grades. These results suggest that various HPV genotypes are associated with CIN across all analyzed cases.


Background: Benford's Law referring to the frequency distribution of digits in many real-life sources of data states that there is a naturally occurring set of numbers, which can help alert enterprises to possible errors, potential fraud, manipulation practices, or other irregularities. Aim: The main aim of this paper was to apply Benford's law to the Slovak conditions, and verify its successful implementation in commercial practice. Methods: To identify the manipulation practices, this mathematical principle defining the frequency of occurrence of digits was applied. Benford's law is based on the assumption that the sequences of numbers follow certain formulas that can be predicted. Sample: The law is verified in the agricultural sector, which is often connected with financial fraud. Results: The outputs of the analysis confirm the relevance of this method usage in the process of the detection of earnings management practices in enterprises. Conclusions: Thus, it can be concluded, that researchers and accountants often compare the leading digits of financial transaction data to a Benford curve to spot anomalies that may indicate fraud and discover numerical anomalies. Implications: Analysts can use this law to detect certain fluctuations in data that may signal fraudulent reporting.


In man, acute stress, like extensive surgery, leads to a rapid and prolonged decrease in serum T3 concentrations. The present study was carried out to investigate the mechanisms that underly the abrupt decrease in T3-neogenesis that occurs in response to acute surgical stress. Male Sprague-Dawley rats, surgically thyroidectomized, and treated with 1.2 micrograms T4/100 g BW/day, underwent wide vertical and horizontal incisions extending into the abdominal cavity while receiving light ether anesthesia. Different dietary manipulations were performed to investigate the superimposed influence of reduced carbohydrate and caloric intake on T3-neogenesis. The metabolism of 125I T4 labeled in its outer (phenolic) ring was investigated in liver, kidney, and brain homogenates of animals killed 48 h after surgery. In liver, values for the proportion of T4 degraded and the percent generation of T3 and iodide were unaffected by laparotomy. The percent T3 generation in experiments with 25 nM T4 concentration was 3.7 +/- 1.24% (mean +/- SD) in fed control animals given free access to 5% glucose, 3.4 +/- 0.67% in unoperated controls given a restricted amount of chow and 5% glucose, and 3.8 +/- 0.67% in operated animals given free access to chow and 5% glucose. As expected, T3 neogenesis in livers from unoperated animals was significantly reduced in rats fasted for 48 h and this reduction was similar in laparotomized rats fasted for 48 h after surgery. As in the liver, no effect of laparotomy on T4 metabolism in kidney and brain homogenates was observed. Finally, serum total T4 and T3 concentrations were not affected by surgery. It is concluded that acute surgical stress in thyroidectomized T4 replaced rats does not influence T4 metabolism in liver, kidney, and brain homogenates or affect the serum T4 and T3 concentrations. Since thyroid secretion of T4 (and T3) was eliminated and careful attention was paid to caloric intake in this rat model, previously reported abnormalities in serum thyroid hormone concentrations and T3-neogenesis in various states of nonthyroidal illness in man and rat, including surgery, are probably contributed to by thyroid secretion of T4 (and T3) and caloric deprivation, especially carbohydrate.


Although Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS) provides positioning information with high precision, when DGPS is unavailable in some situations, stand-alone GPS has to be used in vehicle navigation. The accuracy of standard GPS is low due to position measurement errors. This paper presents a frequency domain modelling approach to model GPS errors and increase GPS positioning accuracy. This approach models GPS errors using shaping filter. External sensors are employed to reduce GPS errors. This paper also presents an approach to select external sensors to meet the accuracy requirements of positioning system.


DNA damage including base modifications, loss of base and breaks in DNA strands can occur by exposure to irradiation, smoking and several components of food. Unrepaired DNA damage is known to lead to cellular dysfunction, cell death, cancer, and other diseases such as arteriosclerosis and diabetes. The protective effect of garlic on oxidative stress induced DNA damage has been reported recently. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of garlic extracts prepared by different processing methods (raw garlic extracts, RGE; grilled garlic extracts, GGE; pickled garlic extracts, PGE) on leukocytic DNA damage using comet assay. Human leukocytes were incubated with ethanol and methanol extract of garlic at various concentrations (1, 5, 10, 50 μg/mL), followed by oxidative stimuli (200 μM H2O2 or 200 μM 4-hydroxynonenal (HNE)). The methanol and ethanol extracts of RGE, GGE, and PGE showed inhibitory activities of DNA damage induced by H2O2 or HNE. Especially methanol extract of RGE (ED50; 13.3 μg/mL) had a higher antigenotoxic effect on H2O2 induced DNA damage than those of GGE (23.5 μg/mL) or PGE (24.5 μg/mL). HNE induced DNA damage tended to be effectively inhibited by the lower concentration of all garlic extracts. Therefore, garlic might have protective effects against oxidative DNA damage regardless of processing methods (raw, grilled, pickled) which are the general consumed forms of garlic in Korea.


Since the proliferation of the mass media, society has experienced drastical changes, one of
them in regards of power. In this essay I analize the power relationships between the mass
media and their spectators, as well as their mechanisms and consecuences. I sustain that this mechanism is the narrative understood as a way of deliberately choosing information with
the purpose to provide aesthetic feelings to the events on the world. This manipulation of
reality generates a power relation as far as the citizen lacks alternative ways of knowing
complex social realities, generating an information monopoly, information that can be
manipulated both in its content (facts) and in its form (narrative) to show the spectator
something that is not always the case. This would generate changes in public opinion which
could be easily instrumentalized.


In this paper, a radial basis function neural network based AVR is proposed. A control strategy which generates local linear models from a global neural model on-line is used to derive controller feedback gains based on the generalised minimum variance technique. Testing is carried out on a micromachine system which enables evaluation of practical implementation of the scheme. Constraints imposed by gathering training data, computational load, and memory requirements for the training algorithm are addressed.


The use of capacitively coupled low-voltage signals for stimulation of osteogenesis has been reported in a variety of animal models. Electrically induced osteogenesis was investigated with a capacitively coupled electric field on a radius (distal-lateral orientation) osteotomy model, in conjunction with internal fixation and postoperative loading. Twelve adult horses of either sex were allotted to 2 groups of 6; 1 group was given electrical stimulation and the other served as controls. A low-voltage high-frequency capacitively coupled electrical signal was locally and continuously applied to the electrically stimulated group for 60 days through external, bare stainless steel surface electrodes which were placed on the skin in circuit with a small, portable power source. Harness compatibility and stimulator and battery durability were excellent. However, stainless steel electrodes required a rigid maintenance schedule to maintain consistent current levels. Synovial fluid evaluation demonstrated intra-articular inflammation (decreased viscosity, hyaluronic acid, and increased protein concentration) 1 week postoperatively that generally improved during subsequent weeks and no distinction between groups was observed at 60 days. Radiographically, there was no difference in the appearance of the healing process of control and that of stimulated horses during the 60 days. Angiography showed bridging blood vessels in both groups. Uptake of a bone seeking radiopharmaceutical peaked at 3 weeks in both groups and was 1.92 +/- 0.6 cps/pixel/mCi and 1.26 +/- 0.40 csp/pixel/mCi for control and stimulated horses, respectively. At any given observation period, uptake in the lesion area was greater in the control group. Ultimate strengths of trabecular bone in 60-day control radii and stimulated radii were 12.64 +/- 3.013 and 9.60 +/- 3.95 MN/m2, and the flexural moduli of elasticity were 698.0 +/- 423 and 402.0 +/- 523 MN/m2, respectively. Porosity index was similar for all specimens. Gross, histologic, and microradiographic evaluations indicated that controls healed more efficiently than stimulated horses. A capacitively coupled applied voltage of 2.2 V RMS (mean) producing a current of 17.32 mA (mean) did not stimulate sufficient bone production in a metaphyseal osteotomy model to affect the mechanical properties of the bone or accelerate the healing process.


The rapidly improving price-performance of wireless technologies is providing an unprecedented platform for the development of wireless applications for the business. Such applications are able to take advantage of a new paradigm of mobility for data services, with the ability to sensitize to location, time and personal features. Evidence suggests that New Zealand is becoming one of the more innovative adopters of wireless data communications. Already there are many recent examples of companies that have adopted wireless solutions and employed them for business benefit. This study examines the state-of-the-art of wireless data services in New Zealand. Through a combination of case study and survey it examines the strategic impact of wireless applications in a variety of industries. The paper rounds off with a summary and conclusions on the future direction of such applications.


The purpose of this dissertation is to examine aspects of the representational and computational influences on Bayesian reasoning as they relate to reference dependence. Across three studies, I explored how dependence on the initial problem structure influences the ability to solve Bayesian reasoning tasks. Congruence between the problem and question of interest, response errors, and individual differences in numerical abilities was assessed. The most consistent and surprising finding in all three experiments was that people were much more likely to utilize the superordinate value as part of their solution rather than the anticipated reference class values. This resulted in a weakened effect of congruence, with relatively low accuracy even in congruent conditions, as well as a different pattern of response errors than what was anticipated. There was consistent and strong evidence of a value selection bias in that incorrect responses almost always conformed to values that were provided in the problem rather than errors related to computation. The one notable exception occurred when no organizing information was available in the problem, other than the instruction to consider a sample of the same size as that in the problem. In that case, participants were most apt to sum all of the subsets of the sample to yield the size of the original sample (N). In all three experiments, higher numerical skills were generally associated with higher accuracy, whether calculations were required or not.


Single‐institution series have documented the adverse impact of a 12‐week delay between resection of muscle‐invasive bladder cancer and radical cystectomy. These data are derived from tertiary centers, in which referral populations may confound outcomes. The authors sought to examine the survival impact of a delay in radical cystectomy using nationally representative data.


The life satisfaction literature has boomed in the last decades since economists have access to more accurate databases allowing to test the impact of alternative variables on subjective well-being. A still unexplored issue is the relationship between financial crises and life satisfaction, due to the difficulty of collecting aggregate information at high frequency. Our proxies of life dissatisfaction used to overcome such difficulty are the normalized number of individuals searching the word happiness from Italy and from Germany on Google. We propose a simple model to explain the relationship among life dissatisfaction, Google happiness search and the level of the spread between the 10-year yields of Italian and German government bonds. We empirically find a strongly significant and positive correlation between the spread and happiness, net of the impact of confounding controls, as predicted by our model. We find that the spread Granger causes the Google 'happiness' search, suggesting that financial crises decrease well-being


Astatine-211 (At-211) is a promising alpha particle emitter for targeted radionuclide therapy. Since its daughter isotope (polonium-211(Po-211)) emits characteristic X-rays of about 80 keV, the distribution of At-211 in the body can be imaged by detecting the X-rays with a scintillation camera. However, the isotopes also emit high-energy gamma photons that are collimated with difficulty for a parallel-hole collimator of a clinical scintillation camera system, and thus the selection of a collimator is important. In this study, we compared the performances of low-energy high-resolution (LEHR), low-energy all-purpose (LEAP), medium-energy (ME), and high-energy (HE) parallel-hole collimators for At-211 using Monte Carlo simulation. We simulated a clinical scintillation camera system with the collimators using the Geant4 toolkit. The energy spectra, sensitivities, and spatial resolutions for the point source of At-211 were evaluated. Moreover, we simulated imaging of six sphere sources of At-211 in a 1-cm-thick cylindrical phantom filled with At-211 solution to evaluate image contrast. All of the results in this study are simulation data. The spatial resolution with LEHR was 7.6 mm full width at half maximum (FWHM) and the highest between collimators, while the sensitivity with LEAP was 85 cps/MBq and the highest. The image contrast acquired with the ME collimator was superior to those with the other collimators. We concluded that the LEHR, LEAP, and ME collimators had their advantages, so an optimum collimator should be selected depending on the purpose of imaging of At-211, although there was no advantage in using the HE collimator for the imaging of At-211.


More and more often remotely sensed satellite images are used for monitoring and managing the land surface. Orbiting around the earth, satellites acquire data in short intervals anytime it is necessary. Elaborating satellite's data is possible to recognize the landslides, to know the land use, to help agriculture. Many are the fields in which Remote Sensing is useful, as in image processing. Traditional image processing and image interpretation methods are usually based only on the information extracted from features intrinsic of single pixel: the object's physical properties, which are determined by the real world and the imaging situation – basically sensor and illumination. The pixel-oriented analysis of satellite data has a main limit: the acknowledgment of semantic low level information, as the amount of energy emitted from the pixel, where the context does not assume any role. The application of Object Oriented Image Analysis on very high resolution data allows to obtain, by an automatic or semi-automatic analysis – with a minimal manual participation a good classification also in presence of high and very high resolution data of small cities, where higher is an error possibility. In an object oriented analysis the semantic level is raised: relation rules join space are added, topological information and statistics and so the context is defined. Recognition is so based on concepts of Mathematical Morphology applied to the image analysis and elements of Fuzzy Logic for a human-likely classification. In this application, by using a specific tool, we operate a segmentation of the entire scene on more levels. The segmentation multiresolution obtains the automatic creation of vectorial polygons, directly extracted from the raster, with the remarkable advantage of having therefore a perfect coincidence in the superimposition on raster. The final classification, predisposing an adapted hierarchy of classes that hold account of the relations between the produced segmentation levels, may be highly accurate. In this contribute this methodology is applied (through the proposition of an integrated package we are realizing for a segmentation and the successive NeuroFuzzy classification) to the aim characterizing the detection of burned areas in Landsat and Ikonos images. It is opportune to emphasize that in this note we are not using algorithms and methods (more rigorous for the resolution of the problem in examination) known and tested in literature, i.e. NBR, BAI, NDVI etc., for locating burned areas and optimizing results, methods on which moreover we are working to the aim of integrating them in the package now proposed: the goal of our work is exclusively to test the integrated fast methodology proposed and results obtainable on this application, and it isn't to experiment known resolution methods or algorithms and/or innovative for the application.


Krause's philosophy had a deep and long influence in Spain, where krausism went beyond academia to turn their ideas into reality by means of different associations and institutions. The reception of krausean thought took place in a really hostile context, especially due to the rejection by intransigent Catholicism that vilified Spanish krausism in terms of Religion, morals, politics and education. Despite that fact, krausism proved to be very influential in social theory, politics and education from the second half of the 19th century to the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936. This work is a summary presentation, a revisitation and an updated account of the history of krausism in Spain (with some references to Latin America) focusing on íts practical dimension.


This article is based on a workshop run at AMEE Lisbon, building on work from previous conferences and reported in <emph type="7">Medical Teacher</emph> (Howe, <citeref rid="bib4">2002a</citeref>). The 30 workshop participants were particularly asked to address the question 'What would you consider essential to include in a medical education curriculum that wishes to teach and assess professional development?'. This question was posed without further constraints, i.e. regardless of whether undergraduate or postgraduate, the country or situation of the participant, and the type of setting in which they worked. Participants were invited to consider all aspects of the question, and no assumption was made about the need to reach a consensus. The workshop divided into two groups and shared ideas. This paper presents the main emergent points from discussion, for interest and further collaboration; the level of agreement was considerable, consistent with the peer reviewed literature (Howe, <citeref rid="bib5">2002b</citeref>). The conclusions are therefore shared in the 'Twelve Tips' format as a pragmatic framework for those wishing to review their own curriculum with reference to professional development (PD) issues, or when setting up new opportunities.


An earlier analysis based on second-order closure and the Bray-Moss-Libby model of premixed combustion is applied to infinite, planar turbulent flames which are oblique to the oncoming reactants and which have undeflected mean streamlines. In such flames all three mechanisms, dilatation, Reynolds shear stresses, and mean pressure gradient, contribute to the balance of turbulent kinetic energy. Examination of the appropriate conservation equations in primitive form indicates that the intensity of the fluctuations of the velocity component normal to the flame and the mean flux of product in that direction are independent of obliquity. Thus earlier findings regarding countergradient diffusion and production of turbulence due to the mean pressure gradient prevail in oblique flames. The mean flux of product in the tangential direction and the intensity of the fluctuations of the velocity component in that direction are calculated. It is found that the mean streamlines of parcels of reactants and products are significantly different from one another and from the mean streamline. The intensities downstream of highly oblique turbulent flames are predicted to lead to two-dimension al turbulence in the plane containing the normal and tangential coordinates.


This Article capability in imitation of consigning facts about the impact of inexperienced promoting about class then theirs shopping for conduct. There is a bit explanation in the back of ecological mindfulness; Ecological object includes, Ecological development workout routines and Ecological worth influence charge buying administration of the customers into assured manner. Ecological transformation, practicing environmental awareness, ecological assurance, realistic access over life, thrifty turn regarding events, ensuring our floor yet a bunch extra has grown to be an attribute surprise into our everyday age according to day existence. Ecological Marketing in any other case known as organic showcasing then natural advertising and marketing have come to be an imperative concern of the current quickest rising world. Makers atop the ball are confused upstairs the declining government over the condition or as a result proclaiming the rate over rigid improvement about the economy. In a simple or genuine manner, Ecological marketing does stand characterized namely the showcasing on objects to that amount are dared in conformity with remain naturally sheltered or ground benevolent. This demand bill endeavors after discovering the most perfect ramifications yet significance regarding Ecological promoting. With the end result on that paper, the promoting wish arrives greater secure and the buyers desire to have a safe or situation amicable ingress according to the items. The aftereffect over that resolution delivery note intention help within limiting the wastages then construction circumstance slick, taintless yet safe.


ABSTRACT Abortion, same-sex marriage, gender equality, and LGBTQ rights have become hotly contested topics in Central Europe over the past two decades. Abortion rights have been rolled back, and the expansion of LGBTQ rights has been stalled or reversed. What explains the varieties of illiberal backlash in Central Europe? We argue that the extent of backlash reflects the strength of an alliance between socially conservative advocacy groups and political parties. However, we also show two factors curbing illiberal backlash: public opinion and a pluralistic moderate confessional political party. Both factors constrain illiberal politicians and dampen the radicalization of parties in power.


Abstract Τhis paper revisits the luxurious Palaiologan illuminated manuscript of the New Testament, Codex 31 of the Hagia Lavra monastery in Kalavryta. Iconographic and stylistic characteristics of the miniatures are compared with others and with seals of the early fifteenth century, as well as with the wall-paintings of the Pantanassa Monastery at Μystras (ca 1430). It is argued that the codex was commissioned by Georgios Kantakouzenos Palaiologos, a close collaborator of Konstantinos Palaiologos, Despot of the Morea and subsequent emperor, who lived in Kalavryta and promoted his personal library, which was enjoyed even by Ciriaco of Ancona.


Deficits in fragile X mental retardation 1 protein lead to fragile X syndrome (FXS) with mental retardation and social activity disorder. Until now, the neuronal circuits that mediate the social impairments of FXS were mostly unclear. Accidently, we found fewer c-fos expression in RSG of KO than WT mice after social behavior test. Inactivation of RSG neurons decreased social novelty but not the sociability of naive mice. Interestingly, although the RSG neurons of KO mice had higher background activity, fewer social contact-related Ca2+ neurons were observed during social interaction test via one-photon Ca2+ imaging in freely-behaving mice. Strikingly, enhancing the activity of RSG neurons rescued the abnormal social novelty in KO mice. Further studies proved that the innervations from the subiculum and ACC to RSG contributes to the social behavior. Take together, we found that abnormal activity in the retrosplenial granular cortex (RSG) led to social novelty deficits in Fmr1-knockout (KO) mice. Moreover, selective manipulation of RSG neurons may be an effective strategy to treat the social deficits in FXS. One Sentence Summary Deletion of FMRP leads to lower social-related neuronal activity in the RSG; this causes social novelty deficits in Fmr1-KO mice.


Background Work disability is an important functional outcome among patients with chronic inflammatory diseases such as ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA). Maintenance of patients in the work force and return to employment are important treatment outcomes with implications for both patients and the healthcare system. Objectives The aim of this analysis is to describe the prevalence of unemployment due to disability at baseline and to identify factors associated with work productivity loss in patients with AS and PsA followed in Canadian routine clinical care. Methods Patients eligible for the COMPLETE studies were anti-TNFα naïve adults, with active AS or PsA per the judgment of the treating physician, who required change in their treatment regimen. This interim analysis included patients that were treated with adalimumab or non-biologic DMARDs and, were either employed or on disability at baseline. Work productivity was measured by the Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ). Depression was defined as a Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI) score ≥20 and/or treatment with an antidepressant/anxiolytic at baseline. Multivariate generalized linear models were used to identify determinants of% WLQ productivity loss (WLQ-PL) scores at 6 and 12 months of treatment, along with the respective changes from baseline. Least Square Means (LSM) for the WLQ-PL improvement were reported from the multivariate model. Results A total of 486 AS patients and 292 PsA patients were included in the analysis. The mean (SD) disease duration was 5.2 (8.6) and 12.8 (12.1) years, mean (SD) age was 41.7 (11.6) and 48.3 (10.5) years, and male predominance was 58.4% and 54.5%, in the AS and PsA groups, respectively. At baseline, 13.4% of AS patients and 17.8% of PsA patients were unemployed due to disability. Among employed patients, the mean (SD) WLQ-PL score at baseline was 9.2% (5.7) in the AS patient group and 8.3% (6.0) in the PsA patient group. After 6 months of treatment significant improvement was observed in both patient populations (ΔAS [95% CI]: -2.7% [-3.4,-2.0]; ΔPsA [95% CI]: -2.1% [-2.9,-1.3]) which was maintained until 12 months. Among AS patients, after adjusting for baseline parameters including age, sex, tobacco use, HLA B27 status, treatment group, depression, and baseline scores for BASFI and WLQ-PL using multivariate analysis, presence of depression (LSM: -0.2% vs. -2.5%; p=0.016) and female sex (LSM: -0.7% vs. -2.0%; p=0.047) were identified as significant negative predictors of improvement in work productivity at 6 months, while increased baseline work productivity was a positive predictor of improvement. In the PsA group, other than higher baseline work productivity (positive predictor of improvement), no significant predictors were identified at 6 months. However, a negative trend was observed for the presence of depression (LSM: -0.4% vs. -2.5%; p=0.068). Conclusion We observed a significant proportion of AS and PsA patients unemployed in this real-world Canadian cohort. Treatment with adalimumab or non-biologic DMARDs was associated with significant improvement in work productivity irrespective of potential risk factors. Presence of depression was identified as an independent negative predictor of improvement in work performance/productivity. References N/A. Acknowledgement The authors wish to acknowledge JSS Medical Research for statistical analysis, medical writing and editorial assistance during the preparation of this abstract. Disclosure of Interests Louis Bessette Grant/research support from: Amgen, BMS, Janssen, Roche, UCB, AbbVie, Pfizer, Merck, Celgene, Sanofi, Lilly, Novartis, Consultant for: Amgen, BMS, Janssen, Roche, UCB, AbbVie, Pfizer, Merck, Celgene, Sanofi, Lilly, Novartis, Speakers bureau: Amgen, BMS, Janssen, Roche, UCB, AbbVie, Pfizer, Merck, Celgene, Sanofi, Lilly, Novartis, Valencia P. Remple Shareholder of: AbbVie, Employee of: AbbVie, Samuel Silverberg Consultant for: AbbVie, Janssen, Viktoria Pavlova Grant/research support from: UCB, Consultant for: Amgen, Abbvie, BMS, Janssen, Lilly, Merk, Novartis, Roche, UCB, Pfizer, Speakers bureau: Amgen, Abbvie, BMS, Janssen, Lilly, Merk, Novartis, Roche, UCB, Pfizer, Majed Khraishi Consultant for: AbbVie, Speakers bureau: AbbVie


Computer games have attracted much attention over the years, mostly attention of the less flattering kind. This has been true for computer games focused on entertainment, but also for what for years seemed a sure winner, edutainment. This dissertation's aim to be a modest contribution to understanding educational use of computer games by building a framework that goes beyond edutainment. A framework that goes beyond the limitations of edutainment, not relying on a narrow perception of computer games in education. The first part of the dissertation outlines the background for building an inclusive and solid framework for educational use of computer games. Such a foundation includes a variety of quite different perspectives for example educational media and non-electronic games. It is concluded that educational use of computer remains strongly influenced by educational media leading to the domination of edutainment. The second part takes up the challenges posed in part 1 looking to especially educational theory and computer games research to present alternatives. By drawing on previous research three generations of educational computer games are identified. The first generation is edutainment that perceives the use of computer games as a direct way to change behaviours through repeated action. The second generation puts the spotlight on the relation between computer game and player. Computer games become interesting because they are believed capable of offering a variety of ways to learn with varying degrees of difficulty. The third generation includes the context of computer games and how they facilitate learning environments with peer-collaboration, constructions of knowledge, new teacher role and a changed student role. These three generations all become part of the framework for educational use of computer games avoiding a narrow focus on a few popular elements. In the third part the main empirical study is laid out with the purpose of examining the actual use of computer games in an educational setting from a 3rd generation perspective. The empirical study was conducted at a Danish high-school involving 72 students and two teachers. The study examined the use of a commercial historical strategy game (Europa Universalis II) in a 21⁄2 month history course where the computer game played a significant role. The empirical study aims at examining some key findings around the barriers for educational computer game use, the scepticism towards the historical understanding of computer games, the problems related to linking of experiences with computer games to other domains and the effectiveness of learning from computer games. It is found that we can benefit from looking at teaching with computer games at three levels: Appreciation, exploration and linking with each level having its own problems. Students progressed through these levels with the appreciation as a prerequisite for exploration and linking. The appreciation caused problems for many students as they did not have the necessary knowledge of history and computer games to identify the relevant elements in the game experience. When relevant elements were recognized students failed to explore due to distrust of the value of the game experiences. Finally the linking between the game experience and other areas rarely happened. The last part presents the general framework for understanding educational use of computer games, where the ends from the three previous parts meet. The theory extends from an experiential learning approach, where concrete experiences are the starting point that can be transformed through reflection, instruction and active experimentation. In this process computer games provide rich concrete experience that can be manipulated in the game universe providing more handles for the student compared to other media. It is concluded that in ideal educational use of computer games the student is playing and constructing knowledge through interaction with the game universe. Slowly building on top of existing knowledge from previous experiences arising from inside the game universe and other spheres of life facilitated by instruction. It is an experience-based hermeneutic exploration in a safe rich environment, potentially scaffolding the student while maintaining student autonomy and ensuring a high emotional investment in the activity.


Petrology and major-and trace-element compositions of minerals of the peridotite xenoliths from the Liangcheng,Siziwangqi,Sanyitang and Datong suggest that the lithospheric mantle beneath the northern parts of the Western Block and Central Zone of the North China Craton mainly consists of transitional peridotites.It is the relict of the primitive mantle having experienced initial melt extraction and subsequent metasomatism.The lithospheric mantle beneath the Liangcheng has been subjected to the lowest degree of melt extraction and intermediate metasomatism,which is in accordance with the lower Cr# of spinels and lower Mg# of coexisting clinopyroxenes in the Liangcheng peridotites.The lithospheric mantle beneath the Sanyitang has experienced the highest degree of melt extraction and the strongest metasomatism.The Sanyitang clinopyroxenes,even within one single sample,show large variations in La/Yb and chondrite-normalized REE patterns(from LREE-depleted to LREE-enriched),and the Sanyitang peridotitic minerals show marked enrichment in some trace elements on the rim than in the core.The Datong and Siziwangqi lithospheric mantles have experienced intermediate melt extraction,but weaker metasomatism than the Liangcheng and Sanyitang lithospheric mantles.The lithospheric mantles were mainly affected by silicate melt metasomatism,and only the lithospheric mantle beneath the Sanyitang was probably affected by carbonatite melt metasomatism as well.


The nano-aluminosilicate mineral allophane is common in soils formed from parent materials containing volcanic ash and often contains Fe. Due to its lack of long-range order, the structure of allophane is still not completely understood. In the present study, Fe K-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) was used to examine Fe-containing natural and synthetic allophane and imogolite samples. Results indicated that Fe substitutes for octahedrally coordinated Al in allophane, and that Fe exhibits a clustered distribution within the octahedral sheet. Iron adsorbed on allophane surfaces is characterized by spectral features distinct from those of isomorphically substituted Fe and of ferrihydrite. Fe adsorbed on the allophane surfaces probably exists as small polynuclear complexes exhibiting Fe-Fe edge sharing, similar to poorly crystalline Fe oxyhydroxides. The XAFS spectra of natural allophane and imogolite indicate that the Fe in the minerals is a combination of isomorphically substituted and surface-adsorbed Fe. In the synthetic Fe-substituted allophanes, the Fe XAFS spectra did not vary with the Al:Si ratio. Theoretical fits of the extended XAFS (EXAFS) spectra suggest that local atomic structure around octahedral Fe in allophanes is more similar to Fe in a smectite-like structure than to a published theoretical nanoball structure.


Clinical and pre-clinical trials have established that killer (CD8+) T cells can recognize and destroy tumors. The challenge of our time is to address barriers to T cell infiltration into solid tumors and thereby make cancer immunotherapy a powerful, broadly applicable treatment modality. Bilateral breast cancer represents a unique opportunity to identify those proteins that modulate immune cell entry into solid tumors. Bilateral synchronous breast cancer is when tumors arise independently in separate breasts of the same patient at the same time. Similar to the powerful use of "twin studies" in epidemiology, bilateral tumors provide an opportunity to explore two independent tumorigenic events against a common genetic (and immunological) background. We hypothesise that the sensitivity of breast cancers to T cell infiltration can be predicted on the basis of their molecular profiles. To assess this question, a cohort of bilateral and unilateral breast cancer tissues has been assembled in collaboration with CTRNet-affiliated biobanks. Our objective was to identify 10 tumor pairs with differential T cell infiltration. Here we present the novel protocol for multi-colour brightfield immunohistochemistry (IHC) which was used to quantitate multiple lymphocyte subsets in these precious specimens at the same time. A workflow for automated image collection is presented, which is geared to the analysis of whole-tumour sections. Our results demonstrate that bilateral breast tumors often show differential lymphocyte infiltration despite being exposed to the same level of systemic immunity. Paired tumors will be subjected to whole transcriptome sequencing and lymphocyte receptor spectratyping to identify proteins that distinguish infiltrated from non-infiltrated tumors. Thus, patients with bilateral breast cancer have provided a powerful, translationally-relevant opportunity to study local barriers to T cell infiltration in solid tumors. Citation Format: Sally Amos, Ron de Leeuw, Nikita Kuklev, Juzer Kakal, Sindy Babinsky, Katy Milne, Sara Kost, Doug Freeman, Rob Holt, Peter Watson, Brad Nelson. Identification of factors modulating sensitivity to T cell infiltration in the breast cancer setting via next-generation sequencing. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Tumor Immunology: Multidisciplinary Science Driving Basic and Clinical Advances; Dec 2-5, 2012; Miami, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(1 Suppl):Abstract nr A88.