Internship is the way through which interns get knowledge of the hospitality industry during their internship period. Internship in the hospitality industry helps students to gain better opportunities for placements in the future. Before internship hotel management institutes provide basic idea related internships during hotel management course. The hotel industry is a broad industry that grows day by day. For the growth of the hotel industry, they need fresh graduates in hotel management. For fulfilling the requirement of the hotel industry it is the responsibility of hospitality schools to provide good exposure of the hotel industry during the course period of hotel management. This paper has tried to find out the impact of internship and career perception of hotel management students before and after internship.


Chalcones are the proverbial precursors of many naturally occurring compounds and possess a variety of biological activities and a broad spectrum of pharmacological properties. The interaction mechanism between three chalcones, 2',4',4-trihydroxyflavone (also called isoliquiritigenin, 2',4',4-triHC), 2',4'-dihydroxyflavone (2',4'-diHC), and 4-hydroxyflavone (4-HC) and human serum albumin (HSA) was investigated using fluorescence quenching, fluorescence enhancement and UV absorption spectra. The binding parameters of chalcone-HSA complexes were evaluated by fluorescence quenching measurements, and the results were consistent with those obtained from fluorescence enhancement methods. The binding affinities of three chalcones with HSA at pH 7.4 were ranked in the order (the binding constants in the range 0.28–2.39–10^=5 L mol^=1), 2',4',4-triHC > 2',4'-diHC > 4-HC, indicating that the three chalcones displayed tight affinities for HSA and the hydroxyl group in chalcones played a key role in their binding affinities with HSA. The results of the UV absorption and the fluorescence enhancement elucidated that the chalcones may lead to micro-environmental and conformational changes of HSA. The binding site of the chalcone 2',4',4-triHC on the HSA was explored by the spectroscopic properties of the 2',4',4-triHC-HSA complex at pH 7.4 and 3.5, and the results demonstrated that 2',4',4-triHC bound within the hydrophobic pockets of subdomain IIA of HSA, namely site I, and the electrostatic force and ionic interactions played a crucial role in the binding interaction between chalcones and protein. The obtained results provided scientific evidence for the binding property of the chalcones and protein, which would be helpful for development of novel drugs with the skeleton of chalcones.


This paper presents a decentralized clustering and gateway selection algorithm for wireless ad-hoc sensor networks. Each sensor uses a random waiting timer and local criteria to determine whether to form a new cluster or to join a current cluster and utilizes the messages transmitted during hierarchical clustering to choose distributed gateways such that communication for adjacent clusters and adaptive distributed topology control can be achieved. The algorithm operates without a centralized controller, it operates asynchronously, and does not require that the location of the sensors be known a priori. A performance analysis of the topology management and the energy requirements of the algorithm are used to study the behaviors of the proposed algorithm. The performance of the algorithm is described analytically and via simulation.


The paper deals with the rapid growing twin surpluses and surging foreign exchange reserves in China's international accounts withessed in recent years.It observes the characteristics of the phenomenon against the standard economic theory and empirical experiences.Then it offers explanation factors:the combined effects of processing trade and foreign direct investments,China's opening development model underpinned by the intra-product specialization of the contemporary globalization era,and the undervalued exchange rate for the Chinese currency.


Data from volcanic ash-influenced soils indicates that soil pH may change by as much as 3 units during a year. The effects of these changes on soil chemical properties are not well understood. Our study examined soil chemical changes after artificially altering soil pH of ash-influenced soils in a laboratory. Soil from the surface (0-5 cm) and subsurface (10-15 cm) mineral horizons were collected from two National Forests in northern Idaho. Soil collections were made from two undisturbed forest stands, a partial cut, a natural bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum [L.] Kuhn) glade, an approximately 30-yearold clearcut invaded with bracken fern, and a 21-year-old clearcut invaded with western coneflower (Rudbeckia occidentalis Nutt.). Either elemental sulfur (S) or calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2) were added to the soil to manipulate pH. After 90 days of incubation, pH ranged from 3.6 to 6.1 for both National Forests and all stand conditions. Total C, total N, and extractable base cations (Ca, Mg, and K) were generally unaffected by pH change. Available P increased as pH dropped below 4.5 for both depths and all soil types. Nitrate was highest at pH values greater than 5.0 and decreased as pH decreased indicating that nitrification is inhibited at lower pH. Contrary to nitrate, potentially mineralizable N increased as pH declined. Total acidity and exchangeable aluminum increased exponentially as pH decreased, especially in the uncut and partial cut stands. Data from this laboratory study provides information on the role of pH in determining the availability of nutrients in ash-cap soils.


The experimental is carried out in the normal air atmosphere by calcining CaCO3 and using the scan electricity speculum and N2 adsorption apparatus to research the ventage structure of the calcinate CaO at 860°C.Analyzing on fractal dimension of different calcination temperature, heating rate and residence time. Thorough the pore structure of CaO which is a porous substance, using "dynamic pervasion modulus" to analyse the Calcium-based sorbent's gas-solid pervasion transferring quality reaction when it is calcined in the furnace. Using the "dynamic pervasion modulus" and revising the expression of the SO2 adsorption quality in vulcanizing reaction.


Ammonia—the colorless, sharp-smelling, and eye-watering gas—is getting a closer look from researchers because of its role in producing deadly air pollution. In developed nations, most ammonia comes from farms that use chemical fertilizers or produce heaps of animal manure. In the atmosphere, it combines with other pollutants to form the tiny, dangerous particles that make up smog. Despite its abundance, however, ammonia is poorly understood. In part, that9s because it is notoriously difficult to track. Ammonia molecules are "sticky" and eagerly combine with other compounds, making it difficult for monitoring instruments to capture them. But new ground-, air-, and space-based sensors are helping bring the sources, movements, and fate of ammonia into clearer focus. The improved monitoring comes as some nations, including the United Kingdom, are moving to slash ammonia emissions. But others, including the United States, have not made limiting ammonia a priority, opting instead to target other key smog ingredients. But the focus on ammonia is likely to intensify. Global emissions of the gas have doubled over the past 70 years and are forecast to continue to rise, in large part because of growing demand for chemical fertilizers. That has put pressure on researchers and regulators to better understand the implications.


The rabbit cell line RL-5 was recently found to express only a single detectable major histocompatibility complex class I protein, in contrast to the multiple class I proteins expressed in cells of the mouse (K, D, and L) and human (A, B, and C). To clarify this difference in the rabbit major histocompatibility complex, we have begun an investigation of the class I genes expressed in the RL-5 cell line and here report the construction of 31 class I cDNA clones derived from RL-5 mRNA. Restriction endonuclease mapping has allowed classification of these clones into five groups, apparently representing five distinct class I mRNA transcripts. The sequence of a full-length cDNA from the predominant group (representing 26 of the 31 clones) reveals a typical class I structure, with an amino terminus that exactly matches the 36 amino terminal residues previously determined for the class I protein immunoprecipitated from RL-5. Complete sequence of a second distinct class I mRNA transcript was deduced from cDNA clones of the second largest group (representing two of the 31 clones). Although this transcript corresponds to a complete class I sequence, an anomaly in initiation sequence may preclude its translation in the proper reading frame. Comparison of the rabbit class I sequences to those of mouse and human revealed significantly higher homologies between the rabbit and the human than between mouse and rabbit or mouse and human sequences.


Blood samples were collected from a flock of healthy ewes at a University of Minnesota research station. Sera from these blood samples were tested for antibodies against 7 viruses, using 3 tests (eg, virus-neutralization test for bovine viral diarrhea virus, infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus, bovine adenovirus type 3, and bovine respiratory syncytial virus; hemagglutination inhibition test for parainfluenza virus type 3; and agar-gel immunodiffusion test for lentivirus of ovine progressive interstitial pneumonia and bluetongue virus). The number of seropositive ewes for each antibody type were 1 of 377 (0.3%) for bovine viral diarrhea virus, 2 of 377 (0.5%) for infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus, 29 of 378 (7.6%) for bovine adenovirus type 3, 200 of 378 (52.5%) for bovine respiratory syncytial virus, 273 of 373 (71.7%) for parainfluenza virus type 3, and 210 of 379 (55%) for ovine progressive pneumonia virus. All ewes were seronegative for bluetongue virus antibodies.


Trials are going forward to determine whether intradermal tuberculin testing with 10 TU at yearly intervals after BCG vaccination may prevent waning of BCG-induced allergy in schoolchildren. Meanwhile, two experiments to the same purpose, carried out in guinea-pigs, are described. They show that waning allergy in guinea-pigs can be sustantially enhanced by intradermal injection of either purified tuberculin or Old Tuberculin, the effect lasting for at least 8 weeks, even with so small a dose as 5 TU. It is pointed out that this enhancing effect has been demonstrated only in BCG-vaccinated guinea-pigs and that it is not known whether the same phenomenon would occur in guinea-pigs infected with living human tubercle bacilli.


Background:  Migrant workers have become a major issue for Thailand. Most of the migrants are from Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos. Most are employed in jobs referred to as the "3 Ds"; difficult, dangerous and dirty. However, little is known concerning the living and working conditions, or health-related quality of life of these migrant workers. This study aims to determine factors influencing the quality of life of Cambodian migrant workers in Thailand. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,211 Cambodian migrant workers in Thailand, using multistage random sampling from eight districts of the two provinces (Sa Kaeo and Surin) with a structured questionnaire interview. The WHOQOL-BREF was used to measure Quality of Life (QOL) with Cronbach's alpha of 0.77. Mental health status was assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression (CES-D) scale with Cronbach's alpha of 0.83. Descriptive statistics provide participant characteristics. Multilevel logistic regression (MLR) were used to determine which factors significantly impacted the outcome measures in terms of the adjusted odds ratio (AOR). P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: About one third of these migrant workers had a poor quality of life (34.52%; 95%CI: 31.84-37.20), and had moderate-to-high levels of stress (67.96%; 95%CI: 65.33-70.59), and symptoms of depression (69.69%; 95%CI: 67.10-72.29). After controlling other covariate factors, Open Peer Review


Coming under the spotlight of the world news due to the death penalty verdict against eight drug traffickers announced early 2015, Indonesia made the world pleaded to not proceed the execution. It is interesting to see how the press media viewed this controversial issue and manifested them into linguistic features in their opinion. This paper reported views about the issue from the perspective of English newspapers. Aiming to identify the level of neutrality, certainty and assertiveness in presenting perspective, this study employed mainly qualitative method focusing on the discourse. The analysis was focused on (1) how the participants of the event were referred to, (2) lexical choices used to portray events, players and policies, and (3) modality values, orientation, manifestation and value of modality. Editorials on the issue published in selected English newspapers were collected. By applying van Dijk's method, the level of neutrality was analyzed. The basis of the modality analysis was Halliday's. Both newspaper editorials showed different level of neutrality, certainty and assertiveness. There were formal and neutral choices in naming the participants of the event. The Jakarta Globe delivered their attitude using loaded words, while The Jakarta Post used more neutral and formal words in addition to using less modal forms. The study also showed the dominant use of low modality and implicitly subjective modality in presenting perspectives. This implied that the newspapers were not assertive and not strictly speaking metaphorical in delivering their perspectives to the readers. Keywords : editorial, lexical choice, modality, discourse analysis, death penalty


Detailed numerical study on mode characteristics and light confinement properties of ridge and rib waveguides with vertical, horizontal, and cross types of void configurations is presented. The study starts from the mode analysis for rectangular ridge and rib waveguides. Then, the analysis is extended to semicircular ridge and rib waveguides with and without slots. The percentages of the electric and magnetic field components and light confinement capabilities are compared. We observe that polarization type of the mode and strong field confinement in the low refractive index medium can be achieved by the incorporation of void structures into the regular optical waveguide.


This paper presents a formalization of informal logic using the Carneades Argumentation System (CAS), a formal, computational model of argument that consists of a formal model of argument graphs and audiences. Conflicts between pro and con arguments are resolved using proof standards, such as preponderance of the evidence. CAS also formalizes argumentation schemes. Schemes can be used to check whether a given argument instantiates the types of argument deemed normatively appropriate for the type of dialogue.


Decay dynamics of high Rydberg states above the first ionization limit have been studied. The decay rate to the ionization continuum, due to spin orbit coupling for atoms (Ar), or coupling to the dense manifold of available rovibronic states in polyatomic molecules, was measured. This decay is non-exponential and can be influenced by external fields. The stabilization of very high (ZEKE) states is demonstrated and possible mechanisms accounting for these very long lived stated are discussed.


In perovskite solar cells (PSCs), overlying hole transporting materials (HTMs) are important for achieving high efficiencies as well as protecting perovskite active layers from degradation factors. This study reports the synthesis of a dopant-free HTM based on a D'-A-D-A-D-A-D' (D, D': electron donor, A: electron acceptor) conjugated structure and incorporation of the HTM into a PSC. The resulting PSC exhibits a high efficiency of 17.3%, which is comparable to that of the device based on doped spiro-OMeTAD HTM, and exhibits much improved stability: without encapsulation, the PSC based on the new HTM was found to retain 80% of its initial performance over 500 h under the conditions of 60% relative humidity/1 sun light-soaking without encapsulation. The high performance is attributed to efficient hole-extraction/collection and hole transport. We demonstrate that the extended π-structure of the D'-A-D-A-D-A-D'-type HTM slows moisture intrusion and protects the perovskite layer better than smaller D-A-type molecules. The improved stability is primarily due to the hydrophobic nature of the HTM; the relatively large π-conjugated molecule forms denser films, which effectively decrease the spaces between the molecules and retard water intrusion. The dopant-free D-A-type HTM with an extended π-structure is effective not only in improving device efficiency, but also device stability.


With the fast growth of Internet and a new widespread interest in optical networks, the unparalleled potential of MultiProtocol Label Switching (MPLS) is leading to further research and development efforts. One of those areas of research is Path Protection Mechanism. It is widely accepted that layer three protection and recovery mechanisms are too slow for today's reliability requirements. Failure recovery latencies ranging from several seconds to minutes, for layer three routing protocols, have been widely reported. For this reason, a recovery mechanism at the MPLS layer capable of recovering from failed paths in 10's of milliseconds has been sought. In light of this, several MPLS based protection mechanisms have been proposed, such as end-to-end path protection and local repair mechanism. Those mechanisms are designed for intra-domain recoveries and little or no attention has been given to the case of non-homogenous independent inter-domains. This paper presents a novel solution for the setup and maintenance of independent protection mechanisms within individual domains and merged at the domain boundaries. This innovative solution offers significant advantages including fast recovery across multiple non-homogeneous domains and high scalability. Detailed setup and operation procedures are described. Finally, simulation results using OPNET are presented showing recovery times of a few milliseconds.


Aicardi syndrome is a severe neurodevelopmental disorders mainly affecting females. An X-linked dominant disorder, lethal in males, was postulated. Postnatal diagnosis is based on the triad of corpus callosum agenesis, chorioretinal ''lacunae'' and infantile spasms. However, Aicardi syndrome is now recognised as a more complex and pleiotropic disorder with an expanded spectrum of neurological and somatic features. Diagnosis may be suspected in the presence of the classical triad or in the presence of two classical features in addition to at least two major or supporting features. Prenatal features remain poorly described. Thus, we present here four cases of Aicardi syndromes suspected prenatally with postnatal confirmation of the diagnosis. All cases were sent to our referral centre for ''brain anomaly'' at morphological scan. Advanced neurosonograms and MRI identified, in all cases, inter-hemispheric cysts with agenesis or dysgenesis of the corpus callosum, periventricular and subcortical heterotopias, cortical malformations (polymycrogyria or pachygyria), ocular anomalies (unilateral microphtalmia and/or retinal/optic nerve coloboma), and facial dysmorphism (figure 1). Vertebral abnormalities were found by prenatal ultrasound in one case, and by postnatal radiography in another case. Three cases underwent termination of pregnancy. The last case exhibited focal seizures at birth, already suspected in utero. Evolutions in prenatal imaging lead to the possibility to suspect Aicardi syndrome in case of inter-hemispheric cyst associated with callosal dysgenesis, migration or cortical disorders, and eye abnormalities in female fetuses.


The paper describes the effectiveness of treatment of myasthenia with thymectomy in 136 patients operated on, observed in hospital and 107 examined by questionnaire on late results after 10 years. Exclusive of myasthenia with thymoma, cures were obtained in 26.4%, marked improvement in 19.6%, moderate improvement in 21.4%, improved motor strength in 27.1%, and deterioration was observed in 3.8%. The assessment was based mainly on the amount of cholinergic drugs taken. Early mortality rate was 2,4%, and late mortality 1,9%. Relation of postoperative complications/respiratory and crisis of both kinds to mortality and intraoperative pleural injury also surgical approach and anatomic variants of the thymus were discussed. An influence of the number of proliferating centers on prognosis in myasthenia after thymectomy was nor demonstrated. Thymectomy in a generally accepted and most effective method of treatment in myasthenia.


The damage costs of climate change have the potential to cause the breakdown of governmental structures. The paper focuses on how climate change impacts the state's fragility and how the government should intervene. The paper chooses temperature and rainfall as climate change indicators and establishes a comprehensive evaluating model. The weighting method of the model is determined by combining coefficient of variation method and improved entropy method. The model will output the objective comprehensive evaluation of state's fragility. The state's fragilities are quantitatively divided into three levels consisting of the fragile, the vulnerable and the stable in the model. For validation, this paper selects six representative countries and analyzes the degree and the approach of climate change's impacts on state's fragility. The fragile values by the model are consistent with the situation in these countries. The state's fragilities are also predicted by back propagation (BP) neural network. This paper analyzes the impacts of human interventions on improving state's fragility. The results indicate that the paper could provide reasonable suggestions for the government in the aspects of when and how to take what kind of interventions to improve state's fragility.


The article considers the historical development of the securities market in Ukraine and world. A comparison of the domestic and the world securities market has been done. Main features and characteristics of this are discovered. The author\'s definition of securities is offered according to the results of the content analysis of the points of scientist's view to the nature of securities. Also the basic requirements for the securities on the Ukrainian stock market are determined and substantiated.


We report the synthesis of a new conjugated polymer composed of isoindigo (IID) and 2,3-bis[thiophenyl-2-yl]thiophene acrylonitrile (CNTVT) subunits for high-performance n-type organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). To realize high electron mobility for the IID-based conjugated polymer, an electron-withdrawing nitrile group is incorporated into the vinylene unit, thereby shifting the energy of the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital for efficient electron injection from Au electrodes without disrupting the backbone planarity. Uniaxially aligned IID24-CNTVT-conjugated polymer films for efficient intramolecular charge transport are achieved by off-center spin-coating from preaggregated solutions. To obtain its stable preaggregation in solution, a binary solvent system (a mixture of good and bad solvents) chosen with the assistance of Hansen solubility parameter simulation is used. Through this process, highly aligned IID24-CNTVT films are obtained by off-center spin coating from a solvent mixture of 9:1 dichlorobenzene/2-methoxyethanol as the good and bad solvents, respectively. The properties of the aligned IID24-CNTVT films are characterized with various analytical techniques, including UV-visible absorption spectroscopy, angle-resolved near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy, and grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering. Top-gate/bottom-contact OFETs with IID24-CNTVT films aligned in the direction of charge transport exhibit a high-electron field-effect mobility of 0.83 ± 0.13 cm2/V·s.


The stomach is the expanded part of the digestive tract between the esophagus and the small intestine. It acts as a reservoir and has chief function in enzymatic digestion. Several types of glands provide different types of secretions in the alimentary tract most of which act as lubricant and to protect the stomach mucosa from excoriation. The pathophysiology of peptic ulcer disease (PUD) is often described as an imbalance between aggressive factors and mucosal protective mechanisms. Helicobacter pylori, a gram-negative organism that has been identified as a potential causative agent in the pathogenesis of peptic ulcer disease, which is diagnosed by invasive or non-invasive methods. Three classes of drugs have been shown to have a direct effect on Helicobacter pylori: antibiotics, bismuth salts, and proton pump inhibitors. Because Helicobacter pylori is difficult to eradicate, most treatment regimes combine agents from two or even all three of these cases. In all of them, patients with active peptic disease should also receive a total of 6 weeks of acid suppression with an H2-receptor antagonist. The discovery of Helicobacter pylori as a gastrointestinal pathogen has had a profound effect on current concepts of the pathogenesis and treatment of peptic ulcer disease.


Summary During the development of resistance to 5-azacytidine, AKR mouse leukemic cells incorporated significantly less cytidine and 5-azacytidine into nucleic acids than their wild-type counterparts. At the same time, 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine-resistant mutant cells showed a decline in the uptake of 2′-deoxycytidine. This impairment was closely associated with the gradual development of resistance in both cases. Whereas 5-azacytidine inhibited the synthesis of pyrimidines de novo and the hormonal induction of tryptophan pyrrolase, no similar effect was observed with its 2′-deoxyderivative. Leukemic cells resistant to 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine retained their sensitivity toward 5-azacytidine almost completely. In contrast, their 5-azacytidine-resistant counterparts were practically cross-resistant to 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine.


Abstract. Black carbon (BC) aerosol has strong radiative forcing and plays an important role in global climate change and human health. A generator with low levels of BC-air is developed in this study for researchers to calibrate BC monitors. Ultrasonic nozzle is applied to atomize BC suspension to produce quantificational BC-air samples which can be used directly as a standard source of BC. Membrane test conducted by balance is used to check up its feasibility. Results show that the relationship of weight increment of membrane and target concentration of BC-air have very good linearity. This confirms that the ultrasonic spray system is a good source to generate standard concentration of BC-air. The device has good feasibility in the BC concentrations range of 0–200 μg m−3. Multi Angle Absorption Photometer (MAAP) is used to detect the concentration of BC-air generated by the ultrasonic spray of suspension. Target concentrations generated by the device accord with the measured data of MAAP.


Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics and a proprietary sample of semi-skilled production workers, this paper investigates the reasons for the discontinuous increase in wages associated with graduation from high school. Associated with graduation from high school, we find a discontinuous decrease in a worker's propensities to quit or be absent. However, we do not find that high school graduates have a comparative advantage on production jobs requiring more training, nor, in the PSID sample, are high school graduates assigned to jobs requiring more training. Finally, we find that the wage premium associated with graduation from high school vanishes during severe slumps, periods in which employers are likely to be hoarding labor and in which quits and absences are least important to firms. We conclude from this evidence that the sorting model of education provides a better explanation for the higher wages of high school graduates than does the human capital model.


A new era in particle physics is being spurred on by new data from the Large Hadron Collider. Non-vanishing neutrino masses represent firm observational evidence of new physics beyond the Standard Model. An extension of the latter, based on a SU(3)C × SU(2)L × U(1)Y × U(1)B-L symmetry, incorporating an established Baryon minus Lepton number invariance, is proposed as a viable and testable solution to the neutrino mass problem. We argue that LHC data will probe all the new content of this model: heavy neutrinos, an extra gauge boson emerging from spontaneous breaking of the additional gauge group at the TeV scale, onset by a new heavier Higgs boson, also visible at the CERN proton-proton collider. An even more exciting version of this model is the one exploiting Supersymmetry: firstly, it incurporates all its well-known benefits; secondly, it alleviates the flaws of its more minimal realisations. Finally, this model provides a credible cold Dark Matter candidate, the lightest sneutrino, detectable in both underground and collider experiments.


The generalized Einstein Maxwell field equations which arise from a truncated bosonic part of the low energy string gravity effective action in four dimensions (the so called Einstein-Maxwell axion dilaton theory) are considered. The integrable structure of these field equations for D = 4 space-times with two commuting isometries is elucidated. We express the dynamical part of the reduced equations as integrability conditions of some overdetermined 4 × 4-matrix linear system with a spectral parameter. The remaining part of the field equations are expressed as the conditions of existence for this linear system of two 4× 4-matrix integrals of special structures. This provides a convenient base for a generalization to these equations of various solution generating methods developed earlier in General Relativity.


High doses of T3 are mitogenic in liver, causing hyperplasia that has numerous differences from the compensatory regeneration induced by partial hepatectomy (PH). T3 binds to the thyroid hormone receptor (TR), which directly regulates transcription, while PH acts indirectly through signal transduction pathways. We therefore carried out a proteomic analysis to compare early effects of the two treatments. Transcriptome analysis by DNA microarray also confirmed the observed proteomic changes, demonstrating that they were caused by transcriptional regulation. Among the differentially expressed proteins, many are directly or indirectly involved in energy metabolism and response to oxidative stress. Several enzymes of lipid metabolism (e.g., Acaa2, Acads, Hadh, and Echs1) were differentially regulated by T3. In addition, altered expression levels of several mitochondrial proteins (e.g., Hspa9, Atp5b, Cps1, Glud1, Aldh2, Ak2, Acads) demonstrated the known increase of mitochondrial biogenesis mediated by T3. The present results provide insights in changes in metabolic balance occurring following T3-stimulation and define a basis for dissecting the molecular pathways of hepatocyte hyperplasia.


Negotiations regularly take place on the business-to-business side of two-sided markets. However, little is known about the consequences of these negotiations on a platform's design, pricing, participation, and welfare. In this paper, we propose a model where platforms choose between the standard design (offering posted prices to both sides) and the bargaining design (offering a posted price to consumers and negotiating with firms). We find that platforms implement the bargaining design only when its bargaining position is strong. We also find that (i) greater platform bargaining power increases welfare and (ii) that a platform's optimal design can coincide with the design that maximizes welfare. These findings suggest that platforms and policy makers often align. Finally, we extend our model to consider platform competition and show that an implemented bargaining design generates sub-optimal welfare only when platforms are competitive. This suggests that platform behavior that may be considered exploitive, is only implemented in a manner that is detrimental to welfare in markets where platform market power is already limited.


The estimated Per-capita Energy Consumption (PEC) in India has increased from 1204 KWh in 1970-71 to 4816 KWh in 2010-11, with a CAGR of 3.44%, as per Energy Statistics 2012, a government of India report [1]. Petroleum based energy consumption contributes to more than 25% of the PEC, and hence there has always been a strong emphasis on any research that leads to cleaner, alternate fuels, keeping in view the diminishing fossil fuels and the environmental concerns associated with these fuels. Bio-diesel is recognized as a clean alternative fuel or as a fuel additive to reduce pollutant emissions from combustion equipment. Bio fuel (termed as B100) refers to a vegetable oil or animal fat-based fuel. Biodiesel (termed as Bxx, where xx is the percentage of bio fuel mixed) refers to a mix of bio fuels and diesel, often through a chemical reaction forming fatty acid esters consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Extensive research has already been done using both edible and non-edible vegetable oils as bio-fuels. As cultivated land is too precious to grow bio-fuel plants such as Pongamia or Jatropha alongside food grain production, recent research focus has been on non-landbased oleaginous materials as source of biofuel production, such as water borne living beings. As per a recent study by Alaska Energy Authority [2], processing of Fish oil (for health supplements like Omega 3 Fatty acids etc.), involves discarding nearly 2/3rd of the Fish oil. The scope of the current paper is to bring out the observations on usage of Fish Oil Blends as bio-diesel and compare the performance of Fish Oil Blended Bio fuel with pure diesel. Biodiesel with Fish Oil blends ranging from B10 to B100 by volume, were used to study the performance on a diesel engine test bed.


An experimental method of measuring current distribution and time-phase relations in short-wave single-turn rectangular loops is described and the results used to classify these antennas in three groups according to the ratio of their perimeter to the wavelength. The space characteristics of these loops are discussed and it is shown that in the first of these groups radiation may be calculated by ordinary loop theory; in the second, radiation may be calculated from information given in this paper; and in the third, radiating characteristics are best obtained by measurement. It is also shown that loops in the third group have unidirectional characteristics which, when accentuated by loading, give the loop some signal gain over other types of antenna of comparable dimensions.


Background and aims: Colonoscopy without sedation costs less and is more convenient than sedated colonoscopy and is the main mode of examination in our settings. The aims of the present study is to determine the percentage of patients who can successfully undergo unsedated colonoscopy and the factors contributing to patient satisfaction following the examination. Material and Methods: Demographic, clinical, and colonoscopy related data were prospectively evaluated in 113 patients undergoing unsedated colonoscopy by an experienced endoscopist during the period of October 2015 to January 2016 at a single hospital based endoscopy setup. All colonoscopies routinely began without sedation and was curtailed if the patient or physician desired. Age, sex, prior abdominal operation, pain during examination and the time required to complete the colonoscopy were recorded. The patients were asked to rate their pain on scale of 0 to 10, their satisfaction and willingness to undergo colonoscopy without sedation in future if required. Results: In a total of 113 patients (mean age of 54.01 years) undergoing sedation free colonoscopy, 108 (95.5%) required no sedation. Complete colonoscopy was done in 106 of the 108 and 110 of the 113 patients. The mean pain score was 2.58 in an average time taken of 11.9 minutes. Average time for intubation taken in post-operative patients (n=20) was 12.24 minutes. 96(84.9%) of the patients were completely or well satisfied with the examination and 7(6.2%) were not satisfied with the procedure. There was not much difference in pain perception or satisfaction based on gender. Conclusion: Colonoscopy without sedation can be completed successfully in a vast majority of patients with proper technique by experienced endoscopist. The practice saves time and money and patients are willing to return for future examinations if required. The facility of sedation should be present if required for any reason.


Acne is a chronic, common disease that poses a significant therapeutic, psychological and social problem. The etiopathogenesis of this disease is not fully understood. Drugs used in general and external therapy should have anti-seborrhoeic, anticomadogenic, bactericidal, bacteriostatic, and anti-inflammatory properties. Acne treatment is often associated with the long-term use of antibiotics, contributing to the global antibiotic resistance crisis. In order to solve this problem, attention has been paid to essential oils and their terpene components with potent antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. Research shows that certain essential oils effectively reduce inflammatory acne lesions through mechanisms related to the sebaceous glands, colonization of Cutibacterium acnes, and reactive oxygen species (ROS). An example is tea tree oil (TTO), a more commonly used topical agent for treating acne. TTO has antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activity. The paper presents the latest scientific information on the activity and potential use of specific essential oils in treating acne. Evidence of antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activity of several essential oils and their main components was presented, indicating the possibility of using them in the treatment of acne.


This paper investigates a SRGM (Software reliability growth model) based on NHPP (non-homogeneous Poisson process) which incorporates the 4p-Kappa testing effort function. Testing Software reliability is generally a key factor in software quality. Reliability is an essential ingredient in customer satisfaction. In software development process reliability conveys the information to managers to access the amount of testing effort and time at which software release into the market. Many papers are published in this context. Performance application of proposed model is demonstrated through real datasets. The experimental results shown that the model gives an excellent performance compared to other models. We also discuss the optimal release time based on reliability requirement and cost


Nanocomposites (NCs) of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) and carbon quantum dots (CQDs) have been received increasing attention for diverse applications including sensing, photocatalyst, surface enhanced Raman scattering detection and anti bacterial. Herein, we report a unique photosynthesis of Ag NPs-CQD using CQDs as photo-reducing agent. Highly luminescent CQDs were prepared by a hydrothermal method using a mixture of citric acid (CA) and ethylenediamine (EDA) as starting precursors. X-ray diffraction pattern (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), infrared (IR) and Raman spectroscopies confirmed the formation of NCs. We have demonstrated that the formation of Ag NPs accompanied with the degradation of surface fluorophores, which responded for the resolved absorption peak at ca. 346 nm and high luminescence of pristine CQDs. The NCs showed excellent antibacterial affinity to Escherichia coli. The results provide new understandings on the interactions between CQDs and silver ions as well as potential applications of Ag NP – CQD nanocomposites. Material Science Research India www.materialsciencejournal.org ISSN: 0973-3469, Vol.16, No.(2) 2019, Pg. 118-124 CONTACT Xuan-Dung Mai firstname.lastname@example.com Department of Chemistry, Hanoi Pedagogical University, Phuc, Yen City,


The aim of study was to verify the specificity and usefulness of the Ottawa Ankle Rules in trauma patients. Prospective observations were made on 103 adult patients (48 males and 55 females aged 16 to 74 years). Clinical examination was subsequently verified by radiography. According to Ottawa Rules pain in the posterior aspect of distal 6 cm of tibia or fibula or pain at fifth metatarsal or navicular bone occurring immediately after injury suggests bone fracture. In 78 cases (75%) no fracture was seen on X-ray; ankle sprain and midfoot sprain was diagnosed in 49 (63%) and 19 (37%) patients respectively. Fractures have been found in 26 patients (25%); 19 in the ankle area and 7 within tuberosity of the fifth metatarsal. Diagnosis set according to Ottawa Ankle Rules was confirmed radiologically in 89 patients (86%). Clinically diagnosed fracture was ruled out radiologically in 14 cases (13%) and only once (1%) radiogram revealed fracture missed clinically. In our material specificity of the method was 86% and the risk of misdiagnosed fracture was less than 1 percent.


In the twenty-first century, the rapid growth of information technologies has transformed the capacity of educational institutes to deliver educational and training programs. New technologies provide public accessibility to a vast variety of educational resources and learning opportunities. Technology integration in education can enhance learning and teaching. The quality of teaching, learning, researching, and course offerings must be considered in Taiwan teacher education. The learner's self-efficacy could undermine a valuable program if not recognized and dealt with in advance. The overall purpose of this paper is to discuss the application of self-efficacy in Taiwan teacher education. It should be considered and planned for before initiating programs to avoid potential roadblocks and to maximize returns in Taiwan teacher education toward computer technology.


Organic ferroelectrics are attracting tremendous interest because of their mechanical flexibility, ease of fabrication, and low acoustical impedance. Although great advances have been made in recent years, topological defects such as vortices remain relatively unexplored in the organic ferroelectric system. Here, from [quinuclidinium]ReO4 ([Q]ReO4), we applied the molecular design strategy of H/F substitution to successfully synthesize the organic ferroelectric [4-fluoroquinuclidinium]ReO4 ([4-F-Q]ReO4). Through H/F substitution, the Curie temperature and spontaneous polarization are respectively increased from 367 K and 5.83 μC/cm2 in [Q]ReO4 to 466 K and 11.37 μC/cm2 in [4-F-Q]ReO4. Moreover, under mechanical stress fields, three kinds of stripelike domains with various polarization directions emerge to form a windmill-like domain pattern in the thin film of [4-F-Q]ReO4, in which intriguing vortex-antivortex topological configurations can exist stably. This work provides an efficient strategy for optimizing the properties of organic ferroelectrics and exploring emergent phenomena.


Abstract Ongoing habitat loss and fragmentation result in rapid population size reductions, which can increase the levels of inbreeding. Consequently, many species are threatened by inbreeding depression, a loss of individual fitness following the mating of close relatives. Here, we investigated inbreeding effects on fitness‐related traits throughout the lifetime of the mustard leaf beetle (Phaedon cochleariae) and mechanisms for the avoidance of inbreeding. Previously, we found that these beetles have family‐specific cuticular hydrocarbon profiles, which are likely not used as recognition cue for precopulatory inbreeding avoidance. Thus, we examined whether adult beetles show postcopulatory inbreeding avoidance instead. For this purpose, we determined the larval hatching rate of eggs laid by females mated sequentially with two nonsiblings, two siblings, a nonsibling, and a sibling or vice versa. The beetles suffered from inbreeding depression throughout their entire ontogeny, as evinced by a prolonged larval development, a decreased larval and adult survival and a decreased reproductive output of inbred compared to outbred individuals. The highest larval hatching rates were detected when females were mated with two nonsiblings or first with a sibling and second with a nonsibling. Significantly lower hatching rates were measured in the treatments with a sibling as second male. Thus, the results do not support the existence of postcopulatory inbreeding avoidance in P. cochleariae, but revealed evidence for second male sperm precedence. Consequently, an alternative strategy to avoid inbreeding costs might exist in this beetle, such as a polyandrous mating system, potentially coupled with a specific dispersal behavior.


The investigation of the effects of sorption in a gas thermometer used to realize the Thermodynamic Kelvin Temperature Scale has been continued. By eliminating sorbable material more completely from the gas thermometer, we attained higher gas purity. So little contaminant remained that further cleanup produced no significant effect on the values of thermodynamic temperatures measured between 0 °C and 142 °C. The results are presented by giving the differences between the values on the thermodynamic scale and the International Practical Temperature Scale of 1968. The value of the steam point was determined to be 99.970 °C(therm) with an uncertainty of ±3.5 mK at the 99 percent confidence level (based on 3 times the estimate of the standard deviation).


This laboratory has previously postulated that bromobenzene-induced hepatic necrosis results from the formation of a reactive metabolite that arylates vital cellular macromolecules. Accordingly, the severity of liver necrosis has been compared with the formation of metabolites of bromobenzene and with covalent binding of metabolites in vivo and in vitro after various pretreatment regimens that alter hepatotoxicity. These data provide direct kinetic evidence that 3,4-bromobenzene oxide is the reactive hepatotoxic metabolite. The studies also demonstrate that the hepatotoxic metabolite is preferentially conjugated (detoxified) with glutathione, thereby depleting glutathione from the liver. Liver necrosis and arylation of cellular macromolecules occur only when glutathione is no longer available. Thus, a dose threshold exists for bromobenzene-induced hepatic necrosis.


Hepatitis B and C are the most common causes of liver disease worldwide. The two infections share many similarities such as a global distribution, the same routes of transmission, hepatotropism, and the ability to cause chronic infection. The consequences of HBV/HCV coinfection are still being studied. The aim of this study is to describe and compare the epidemiological and laboratory profile and the degree of hepatic fibrosis between HCV-monoinfected and HBV/HCV-coinfected patients in the Brazilian Amazon region. ELISA tests were used for the investigation of HBV and HCV serological markers, and molecular tests were used for the detection and genotyping of these viruses. Additionally, transaminases were measured, and a FibroScan was performed for the analysis of liver function. A total of 328 patients with HCV participated in the study. The serological prevalence of HCV/HBV coinfection was 10.77%. A comparison of risk factors between the monoinfected and coinfected groups showed that illicit drug use, sharing sharp instruments, and tattooing/piercing are significantly associated with coinfection. The monoinfected patients had a higher HCV load than the coinfected patients. A viral interaction was observed in this study in which the presence of a coinfection with HBV appears to influence HCV replication. Further studies are necessary to better understand this interaction.


Sub-Saharan Africa represents 69% of the total number of individuals living with HIV infection worldwide and 72% of AIDS deaths globally. Pulmonary infection is a common and frequently fatal complication, though little is known regarding the lower airway microbiome composition of this population. Our objectives were to characterize the lower airway microbiome of Ugandan HIV-infected patients with pneumonia, to determine relationships with demographic, clinical, immunological, and microbiological variables and to compare the composition and predicted metagenome of these communities to a comparable cohort of patients in the US (San Francisco). Bronchoalveolar lavage samples from a cohort of 60 Ugandan HIV-infected patients with acute pneumonia were collected. Amplified 16S ribosomal RNA was profiled and aforementioned relationships examined. Ugandan airway microbiome composition and predicted metagenomic function were compared to US HIV-infected pneumonia patients. Among the most common bacterial pulmonary pathogens, Pseudomonas aeruginosa was most prevalent in the Ugandan cohort. Patients with a richer and more diverse airway microbiome exhibited lower bacterial burden, enrichment of members of the Lachnospiraceae and sulfur-reducing bacteria and reduced expression of TNF-alpha and matrix metalloproteinase-9. Compared to San Franciscan patients, Ugandan airway microbiome was significantly richer, and compositionally distinct with predicted metagenomes that encoded a multitude of distinct pathogenic pathways e.g secretion systems. Ugandan pneumonia-associated airway microbiome is compositionally and functionally distinct from those detected in comparable patients in developed countries, a feature which may contribute to adverse outcomes in this population.


Magnetoresistive (MR) and magnetic properties of Co-Ag alloy films evaporated in ultrahigh vacuum were studied. The measured MR ratios were 24.7% at room temperature (RT) for Co40Ag60 (at%) alloy film and 48.6% at 77 K for Co32Ag68 alloy film. In addition, the MR profile shows an anistropy between two applied field directions, transverse and normal to the current in plane. This anisotropy is caused by the pancake-shaped Co clusters.


The study examines the technical efficiency, pure technical efficiency, and scale efficiency ofco-operatives in Malaysia. Data ofco-operatives listed in 100 best Malaysian co-operatives from 2010 to 2017wasanalyzed. To construct the efficiency model forthe co-operatives, this studyemployed Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). In DEA,one input (total assets) and two outputs (net income and dividend)were utilized. The results indicate that Malaysian co-operatives exhibited 62.3% overall technical efficiency during the study period where scale efficiency dominated the overall technical efficiency. Hence, we can suggest that Malaysian co-operatives had been performing better because of the scale of its operation instead of good managerial performance.The result also shows that most co-operatives were operating at non-CRS so that co-operatives need to make improvement in order to recover overall efficiency if pure technical inefficiency lead to the pure technical inefficient co-operatives could be undertaken.The result also demonstrates that scale efficiency (SE) dominated pure technical efficiency (PTE), which means that the scale and size of co-operatives are significant in raising the level of scale efficiency.The management of co-operatives in Malaysia should enhance their managerial performance because the PTE was found to contribute less to overall technical efficiency (OTE).


1. A late inward current following the initial sodium current is sometimes observed on frog single skeletal muscle fibres studied in voltage‐clamp conditions by the double sucrose‐gap method. 2. The late inward current is time and voltage dependent; it is sensitive to extracellular sodium concentration and inhibited by tetrodotoxin. Therefore, it is very probably carried by sodium ions. 3. It is assumed that the late current reflects a regenerative increase of sodium conductance in the tubular membrane. The main argument favouring this assumption is that the late current is never observed on detubulated fibres. 4. Inactivation studies show a marked difference between the evolution of the two inward currents when the membrane resting potential is increased by previous hyperpolarizations in a high range of values: the late current is decreased while the initial current remains constant. The decrease of the late current is suppressed by tetraethylammonium ions or in a potassium‐free medium. On detubulated fibres, the sodium current is never decreased by conditioning hyperpolarizations. 5. It is postulated that a fast transient potassium current, located in the bubular membrane, should develop contemporaneously with the sodium current. 6. The decay of the sodium inactivation is anaylsed on semilogarithmic plot: on normal fibres, it runs in two phases while on detubulated fibres, one phase only is found.


Abstract Objectives Review the effectiveness of a modified gasket seal technique utilizing a porous high-density polyethylene plate/rectus sheath fascia construct without fat grafting for primary closure of anterior defects following endoscopic skull base surgery. Design Retrospective review (2011–2012). Setting Single academic medical center. Methods A retrospective review of five patients who underwent expanded endoscopic endonasal surgery for various pathologies (two craniopharyngiomas, two tuberculum meningiomas, and one planum meningioma) was performed. Skull base closure was performed using a one-piece modified gasket seal technique. Primary outcome measures included postoperative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks and donor site morbidity. Results There were no postoperative CSF leaks. Two patients experienced aseptic meningitis treated with a 14-day course of steroids. Two patients experienced new postoperative chronic/recurrent sinusitis treated with oral antibiotics and topical nasal therapy. There was no donor site morbidity such as infection, hematoma, or hernias. Conclusions The one-piece modified gasket-seal closure is a safe and effective method for reconstruction of endonasal defects of the anterior skull base. Rectus sheath fascia is an appropriate dural substitute for free tissue grafting with low donor site morbidity. The construction of the one-piece graft significantly decreases operative time and lowers the learning curve for multilayered closure.


Background Thirty-five million Latinos live in the United States. With 14% of the total population, Latinos form the largest ethnic minority group in the United States. They are less healthy than the general population, in part due to lack of culturally-competent care. Latino populations are increasing nationwide, often in areas beyond historical concentrations in border and agricultural regions. This is increasing the need to understand and overcome barriers to care for Latinos nationwide. The present study was designed to identify health care issues of importance to members of the rapidly-growing Latino population of Salt Lake County, Utah. Methods Patients of a Spanish-speaking clinic operated by the University of Utah described their health care experiences in Utah, other regions in the US, and other countries. Seventeen participants in 5 focus groups discussed barriers and other concerns about health care in the US. Investigators analyzed transcripts of the sessions for recurring themes. Discussion Culturally sensitive care for Latino patients should address these five areas of concern. Future research will be necessary to identify the relative importance of these concerns to Latino patients of varying ethnic and demographic backgrounds.


The paper examines the Philippines' performance in relation to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8: promoting "sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all". In addition to examining SDG target 8.6 on reducing the proportion of young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs), the paper also discusses macroeconomic developments, labour market conditions, labour productivity growth and relevant policy updates. The paper seeks to provide some insights in addressing constraints on economic growth, reducing the number of NEETs and promoting full and productive employment.


The surface crude oil viscosity of the first ultra-heavy oil field in Bohai Oilfield is more than 50,00mpa·s, which is unable to be developed under the condition of original formation temperature and requires steam stimulation. In the first period of steam huff and puff well, due to sufficient formation energy, steam injection pressure is high in the process of steam injection. The measures to reduce the steam injection speed are mostly adopted in the field, but it will lead to the problem of large wellbore heat loss and affect the steam stimulation heat injection effect. In this paper, based on the oil characteristics of the first ultra-heavy oil field in Bohai Oilfield, the evaluation of oil soluble surfactant was carried out, and the experimental study of pre-injection of oil soluble surfactant to reduce steam injection pressure was carried out. It has been successfully applied in the development of the first ultra-heavy oil in Bohai oilfield. The results show that the oil soluble surfactant with asphaltene dispersibility has better temperature resistance and viscosity reduction effect, and the viscosity reduction effect is more than 95% before and after aging. Laboratory experiments show that the oil soluble surfactant can reduce the steam displacement resistance of the displacement front and the affected area. When the injection amount of oil soluble surfactant is 0.2PV, the maximum steam injection pressure can be reduced by 22.9% and the steady steam injection pressure by 10.8%. The design treatment radius of oil soluble surfactant is 0.15m, and the field test shows that the steam injection pressure decreases by 1.1MPa during steam injection.
 After adopting the depressurization and increase injection volume technology, the field injection pressure is effectively reduced, the steam injection effect of ultra-heavy oil is guaranteed, and the technical guarantee for the subsequent development, promotion and application of ultra-heavy oil is provided.


During the last decade significant research has been carried out related to use of fiber ropes as moorings lines for offshore vessels. Most of this research work has been related to use in deep waters as taut mooring systems. The advantages of using fiber ropes include better station keeping, reduced vertical load on vessel, small footprint on seabed compared with conventional chain/wire systems. Due to very congested seabed at some drilling locations Norsk Hydro decided to use polyester fiber rope inserts for crossing of pipelines instead of wire segments and uplift buoys. Fiber rope inserts were used at seven drilling locations in water depths ranging from less than 100 m to 330 m. The mobile drilling units were Scarabeo 6 and Transocean Arctic. Two to four mooring lines had polyester inserts with lengths of approximately 800 m. The corresponding breaking strength was 1000 tons. With the use of modern anchor handling vessels (AHT) there was no rig time lost using the fiber inserts. No modifications were done to any of the AHTs. The crews were briefed onboard the AHTS and no problems occurred during installations. The only precautions taken was to clean the AHTS deck before spooling/unspooling the polyester rope. In addition two 5–7 ton spring buoys were used on each mooring line to avoid seabed contact with the rope. The ropes were inspected by DNV before installation. Our experience was only positive and fiber ropes inserts are now considered a proven tool for mooring of drilling rigs in congested seabed areas.Copyright © 2002 by ASME


Background: The development and progression of prostate cancer may be influenced by systemic inflammation. Environmental influences, such as dietary factors and genetic polymorphisms mediate chronic inflammation. Particularly, high fructose corn syrup, which is associated with elevation of uric acid and metabolic syndrome, and single nucleotide polymorphisms in immune response and inflammatory pathways may promote prostate cancer by promoting systemic inflammation. Methods: The current analysis utilized a hospital-based case-control study of 241 prostate cancer patients and 155 controls recruited from 1994 to 1997 at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Using genotyping results of CRP rs1205 and 1800947, FGFR2 rs1219648 and rs2981582, and IFNGR1 rs11914, the associations of high fructose corn syrup and inflammation-related polymorphisms with prostate cancer susceptibility and overall survival were analyzed. Adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated using unconditional logistic regression models. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to generate estimates of survival among prostate cancer patients. Results: No polymorphisms were found associated with prostate cancer susceptibility. However, the CRP rs1205 CT genotype was associated with poorer prognosis among prostate cancer patients with a primary diagnosis (HR: 2.99; 95% CI: 1.06-8.44). FGFR2 rs1219648 and rs2981582 polymorphisms were associated with more favorable survival (HR: 0.07; 95% CI: 0.01-0.43 and HR: 0.04, 95%CI:0.01-0.28), with the latter more pronounced in nonsmokers. High fructose corn syrup was not associated with prostate cancer susceptibility, but correlated with reduced survival among smokers when considering all patients with a prostate cancer diagnosis (HR: 2.31, 95% CI:1.12 - 4.76). No interaction was observed between high fructose intake and inflammation-related SNPs. Conclusion: The results of this study highlight potential inflammation-related polymorphisms associated with poorer prognosis of prostate cancer, and provide a basis for which to confirm and identify inflammation-related polymorphisms in larger studies of prostate cancer risk and progression.


This study focus on the specific character of the public housing lease business and accompanying accounting problems `accounting rule 56-90` based on operating or capital lease concepts does not work well in public housing lease contract and can not faithfully present. To improve existing accounting rule, this study analyses whether the revenue recognition principles were met by installment sales accounting under cost recovery method.


ABSTRACT
 Mounting scientific evidence indicates that pathogens can regulate insect populations. However, limited dispersal and sensitivity to abiotic conditions often restricts pathogen regulation of host populations. While it is well established that arthropod biological vectors increase pathogen incidence in host populations, few studies have examined whether arthropod mechanical vectors (an organism that transmits pathogens but is not essential to the life cycle of the pathogen) influence host—pathogen dynamics. The importance of mechanical dispersal by ant scavengers, Formica fusca (L.), in a grasshopper—fungal entomopathogen system was investigated. We examined the ability of ants to mechanically disperse and transmit the pathogen, Entomophaga grylli (Fresenius) pathotype 1, to its host, the pest grasshopper Camnula pellucida (Scudder), in a series of laboratory experiments. Fungal spores were dispersed either externally on the ant's body surface or internally through fecal deposition. In addition, a third of all grasshoppers housed with fungal-inoculated ants became infected, indicating that ants can act as mechanical vectors of E. grylli. The effect of ant mechanical vectors on E. grylli incidence was also examined in a field experiment. Ant access to pathogen-exposed experimental grasshopper populations was restricted using organic ant repellent, thereby allowing us to directly compare mechanical and natural transmission. Ants increased grasshopper pathogen mortality by 58%, which led to greater pathogen reductions of grasshopper survival than natural transmission. Taken together, our results indicate that ants enhance E. grylli reduction of grasshopper pest numbers. Therefore, mechanical transmission of pathogens may be an important overlooking component of this grasshopper—fungal pathogen system.


The present paper focuses on the development of children's representations about social life at school context, specifically on relationships of power. The epistemic and theoretical framework of this research is anchored in the approach of Genetic Social Psychology through the Theory of Social Representations. It presents one study, conducted with 153 primary school children (1 and 4 grades), with interviews, which aimed not only at analyzing the social constructions elaborated around that topic, but also the processes of development which underlie it. Results clearly show the role of school social participation and gender processes in the development of social knowledge. The ideas about power show the influence of gender relationships and gender representations, namely through its ideological dimensions, and also from the symbolic regimes of schools. This research has highlighted the relationship between collective and individual processes and its impact on the genesis and development of children's social representations.


Supervisory Committee James W. Tanaka, Psychology Co-Supervisor D. Stephen Lindsay, Psychology Co-Supervisor J. Don Read, Psychology Departmental Member This set of studies used event-related potentials (ERPs) to investigate the electrophysiology of face recognition as it may occur in real-life circumstances including eyewitness identification. Research using photographs has identified two ERP components as being associated with memory function, the N250 (an early indicator of perceptual recognition) and the P300 (associated with stimulus evaluation, taskrelevance, and probability), however, there is no published research examining the relationship between these components and memory for live events, and recognizing a face seen briefly in real-life is somewhat different than recognizing a face only seen in a photograph. The present set of three studies employed a "target / non-target" paradigm that used a live interaction at each encoding stage. In Experiment 1, participants were introduced to and asked to identify their study experimenter as the target. In the second experiment, participants were introduced to the same experimenter and asked to imagine that they witnessed her committing a convenience-store robbery. Participants were asked to "cover" for the experimenter by choosing a different photo from the line-up to accuse as the culprit – they are asked to lie. In Experiment 3, participants witnessed a live simulated theft and were asked to identify the culprit from a line-up. In all three iv experiments the line-up paradigm was identical – participants were shown a repeated series of sequentially-presented photographs and were asked to correctly identify one target among nine foils (non-targets), while brainwaves were recorded. Results showed that across all three studies, both the N250 and P300 were attenuated for the person selected as the target, in comparison to correct rejections of foils. Additional results from Experiment 2 showed that, compared to rejections of foils, both the N250 and P300 were enhanced for rejections of the experimenter-photo when participants were "covering" for her. In Experiment 3, participants who were unable to correctly identify the culprit showed that the N250 to incorrect rejections of the culprit was larger than correct rejections of foils. Finally, a comparison of participants who correctly identified the culprit and those who incorrectly identified a foil showed that the amplitude of the N250 and P300 to the selected culprit were equivalent regardless of eyewitness accuracy. Collectively, results from Experiments 1, 2 and 3 provide support that the memory effects indicated by the N250 and P300 components reported in laboratory studies generalize to person memories acquired during live interactions.


A new model for electron temperature gradient (ETG) modes is developed as a component of the multi-mode anomalous transport module [Rafiq et al., Phys Plasmas 20, 032506 (2013)] to predict a time-dependent electron temperature profile in conventional and low aspect ratio tokamaks. This model is based on two-fluid equations that govern the dynamics of low-frequency short- and long-wavelength electromagnetic toroidal ETG driven drift modes. A low collisionality NSTX discharge is used to scan the plasma parameter dependence on the ETG real frequency, growth rate, and electron thermal diffusivity. Electron thermal transport is discovered in the deep core region where modes are more electromagnetic in nature. Several previously reported gyrokinetic trends are reproduced, including the dependencies of density gradients, magnetic shear, β and gradient of β [Formula: see text], collisionality, safety factor, and toroidicity, where β is the ratio of the plasma pressure to the magnetic pressure. The electron heat diffusivity associated with the ETG mode is discovered to be on a scale consistent with the experimental diffusivity determined by power balance analysis.


The plant model is able to be constructed by the neural networks, i.e., by identifying the plant model using the neural networks. But it is somehow difficult to obtain a control law from the plant model based on this neural network. The iterative inverse method has been proposed for this problem, but for this method it is necessary to determine two parameters (convergence coefficient and iterative number) and calculate the equations iteratively for obtaining a control law. The fact mentioned above is a big drawback for on-line control. This paper is related with improvement of the iterative inverse method using Jacobian of neural networks. It is shown that the proposed method is effective to control the thermal power plant by simulations.


equity of care for ovarian cancer patients residing in Piedmont. This A&F is part of the activities of the EASY-NET network program (https://easy-net.info/). Methodology All consecutive patients treated for newly diagnosed EOC were included by 34 centres from May 2016 to September 2020. Clinical data were entered in a dedicated web database and data quality was centrally monitored. During the audit, 14 feedback meetings were organized with the participating centres to discuss data quality and preliminary results. The treating hospitals were classified according to the mean yearly volume of surgical activity ( 35; 34-18; <18 patients). Adherence to previously selected structure, process and outcome indicators were analysed by volume of activity of the centre and semester of enrolment. Adherence was classified as: high (>75%), medium (75-60%) and low (<60%). Overall survival (OS) was analysed with a multivariable Cox model including prognostic factors, hospital volume of activity and level of adherence to process indicators. Result(s)* The present analysis includes 905 patients with EOC diagnosed until December 2019 (23.4% early stages, 76.6% advanced). Out of 12 analysed indicators, 4 showed a high level of adherence (e.g., Completeness of diagnosis and staging: 83%), 3 a medium level (e.g., Adherence to surgical guidelines: 65.5%) and 5 a low level (e.g., Timing and number of cycles for NACT: 57.1%). In general, there was a lower adherence to guidelines by centres with a low volume of activity. For most of the indicators there was an improvement over time. Adherence to guidelines was associated to better OS after adjustment for prognostic factors. Conclusion* The A&F intervention was useful to support the identification of reference centres, to promote centralization, to reduce variability among regional hospitals and to increase the appropriateness of treatment. Adherence to guideline recommendations was associated to a better outcome. The EASY-NET project was funded by Ministry of Health and participating Regions (NET-2016-02364191).


Biodetection is one of the most important challenges for the twenty-first century: many fields are concerned, mainly environmental and medical. The quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) may offer great possibilities for this purpose: a direct response signal, which characterizes the binding event between a sensitive layer, immobilized onto the surface transducer, and the analyte to be detected, can be obtained. However, for the detection of small biomolecules such as antigens, it is quite difficult to obtain an observable signal that corresponds directly to the binding event. In general, this is owing to the lack of mass sensitivity of the commonly used QCM, with 5- to 10-MHz quartz crystals. For improving this mass sensitivity, a 27-MHz quartz resonator was developed and incorporated in a flow-through microcell. Two biospecies, IgG rabbit and peroxidase enzyme, were studied with this ultra-sensitive QCM in terms of specificity, detection limit, and calibration curve.


Modified discrete cosine transform (MDCT) is used in many audio coding standards for time-to-frequency transformation of digital signals. It is one of the most computationally intensive operations in audio compression and decompression processes. In this study, optimised dedicated hardware architectures utilised in a highly scalable MDCT IP core are proposed to accelerate the forward/backward MDCT computation in MP3 audio coding standard. The MDCT IP core is pipelined, capable to compute both the forward and backward MDCT on the same hardware and it is optimised with field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA) and application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) technologies. The MDCT IP core is implemented to FPGA and ASIC, whereby the FPGA implementation used Xilinx Virtex-4 FPGA, while the ASIC implementation used AMS 350 nm CMOS standard cell library. The MDCT IP core is further optimised and implemented utilising UMC 90 nm CMOS low-power digital libraries and clock gating technique. As a result, power consumption and the area are reduced significantly. The proposed hardware architectures are optimised to achieve high computational speed with high precision, and therefore they are suitable for a lossless audio compression. In particular, high computational speed permits multichannel real-time acceleration of the forward and backward MDCT computation.


A. Burns described thyroid cancer in 1811. History of surgical treatment of thyroid cancer is presented in the article. N. I. Pirogov was the first in the world who performed thyroid resection under general anesthesia in 1847. A. A. Bobrov was the first who started to perform thyroid operations under recurrent nerves visual control since 1893. V. I. Razumovsky was the first who described anaplastic and medullary thyroid carcinomas in 1903. Tactics in thyroid cancer treatment in different country are presented.


Based on exhaustive studies of herbarium specimens held at the National Herbarium of Mexico (MEXU), as well as of the literature, an updated list of the native species of trees of the Mexican portion of the Yucatan Peninsula is provided (Campeche, Quintana Roo y Yucatan). For each species the state(s) in which it occurs is cited. The list includes 437 species belonging to 246 genera and 68 families. An appendix listing 376 excluded species, including 68 of dubious occurrence in the peninsula is provided, clarifying the reason for their exclusion as members of the flora of the Peninsula. The richest families are Mimosaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Fabaceae, Rubiaceae, and Myrtaceae; the richest genera are Acacia, Eugenia, Coccoloba, Croton and Lonchocarpus. The percentage of endemism is around 12.3% (54 taxa in 26 families); the families with more endemic species are Cactaceae, Fabaceae, Mimosaceae, Polygonaceae and Rubiaceae. At the state level, Quintana Roo harbors the most species (351). The use of five different similarity coefficients (Braun-Blanquet, Dice, Drive & Kroeber, Jaccard and Simpson) to analyze both the total number of species and the endemic ones, supports the idea of considering the states as part of the same floristic province. Finally, the need to intensify the floristic and taxonomic work, aimed at evaluating in the near future more properly the floristic richness in the Peninsula is pointed out. This will allow a more precise definition of its floristic subdivisions, its degree of endemism and its floristic relationships with neighbouring regions.


We show here that cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (CDK5), a known regulator of migration in neuronal development, plays an important role in prostate cancer motility and metastasis. P35, an activator of CDK5 that is indicative of its activity, is expressed in a panel of human and rat prostate cancer cell lines, and is also expressed in 87.5% of the human metastatic prostate cancers we examined. Blocking of CDK5 activity with a dominant-negative CDK5 construct, small interfering RNA, or roscovitine resulted in changes in the microtubule cytoskeleton, loss of cellular polarity, and loss of motility. Expression of a dominant-negative CDK5 in the highly metastatic Dunning AT6.3 prostate cancer cell line also greatly impaired invasive capacity. CDK5 activity was important for spontaneous metastasis in vivo; xenografts of AT6.3 cells expressing dominant-negative CDK5 had less than one-fourth the number of lung metastases exhibited by AT6.3 cells expressing the empty vector. These results show that CDK5 activity controls cell motility and metastatic potential in prostate cancer.


In the five decades after World War II, diverse non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have proliferated in different parts of the world to address a variety of issues ranging from humanitarian aid to human rights. At the same time, the volume of vitriolic criticisms levelled against them have also risen. This paper seeks to identify the types of changes NGOs are able to bring about in society. By adapting and applying David Korten's (1990) typology of NGOs, the author undertakes a comparative analysis of NGOs in Hong Kong that are involved with the improvement of foreign workers' rights and welfare. The argument is that the different strategies adopted by the NGOs have wrought social changes in diverse ways, from the provision of welfare assistance to the mass mobilisation of workers, in both sending and receiving countries. This is an example of the catalytic role of NGOs in contributing to a trans-border "community of sentiment" (Appadurai, 1990).


The present case series aimed to explore the potential clinical benefits of the application of dental pulp stem cells (DPSCs) in the regenerative treatment of deep intrabony defects. A total of 11 isolated intrabony defects in 11 chronic periodontitis patients were accessed with a minimally invasive flap and filled with DPSCs loaded on a collagen sponge. A tooth requiring extraction for impaction or malpositioning was used as an autologous source for DPSCs. An average clinical attachment level gain of 4.7 ± 1.5 mm associated with a residual mean probing depth (PD) of 3.2 ± 0.9 mm and remarkable stability of the gingival margin was observed at 1 year. Complete pocket closure (PD < 3 mm) was achieved in 63.6% of the experimental sites. Clinical outcomes were supported by the radiographic analysis showing a bone fill of 3.6 ± 1.9 mm.


A dominant narrative of the past decade is that algorithms contribute to a misinformed and segregated society. Perhaps paradoxically, algorithms are often sought as solutions to such problems. We describe a significant emerging trend away from this techno-solutionist approach that seeks to create and understand a new paradigm: a productive interplay between algorithms and people. Two relevant test cases are being explored in our region: the first addresses a new framework to tackle misinformation by assisting fact-checkers with computational methods; the second seeks new models to understand how search engines deliver personalised search results when little or no algorithmic personalisation exists.


70% of breast cancer patients are diagnosed after menopause where the ovaries cease androgen production. Maintaining functional androgen receptor (AR) has been reported to correlate with good prognosis and better survival among breast cancer patients. We and others have shown that AR inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis in breast cancer cells. However, the mechanism of AR9s anti-tumor effect in breast cancer is still not fully understood. KLLN is a newly identified gene whose function has never been studied in tumorigenesis. KLLN and tumor suppressor gene PTEN, both located in 10q23.31, share the same promoter region but are transcribed in opposite directions. To perform in silico comparisons of KLLN expression between normal breast and breast cancer tissues, we selected 56 normal breast and 1170 tumor tissues from patients without exposure to any treatment using publicly available whole genome transcriptome datasets. We found that KLLN is significantly downregulated in breast carcinomas and that loss of KLLN expression is associated with increasing histological grade in invasive carcinomas. By using MCF-7 and MDA-MB-453 breast cancer cell lines as our models, we show that AR activates this bi-directional promoter, resulting in the upregulation of both KLLN and PTEN expression. For the first time, we identified KLLN as an AR-activated tumor suppressor, inhibiting breast cancer cell proliferation and suppressing tumor cell invasiveness in both cell lines. In MCF-7 cells, overexpression of KLLN directly activates TP53 expression as a transcription activator, accompanied by significant increase of PARP cleavage and apoptosis. We also found that KLLN could promote TP73 expression in both MCF-7 (p53-wildtype) and MDA-MB-453 (p53-null) cells at the transcriptional level, resulting in p53-independnt apoptosis. Therefore, we discovered a new pathway, which mediates AR-induced growth inhibition and apoptosis in breast cancer cells. Our study also indicates KLLN as a potential prognostic marker and novel therapy target for breast carcinomas. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 4855. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-4855


A new low-energy negative-ion induced luminescence setup was recently developed at the injector of the GIC4117 2 × 1.7 MV Tandem accelerator in Beijing Normal University. In situ luminescence measurements are performed on silica glass by using 20keV H− ions at room temperature. Gauss fitting of the spectra revealed six overlapping components at about 2.7 eV, 2.4eV, 1.9eV, 1.8eV, 4.2eV, and 3.6eV, which except for the new observed emission band at 3.6 eV are assigned to the creation of type II oxygen-deficient centers, E' centers, non-bridging oxygen hole centers with different precursor states, and type-I oxygen-deficient centers. The fitted results of the saturation concentration show that self-trapped exciton recombination at type-II oxygen-deficient centers is the main luminescence emission process. The evolution of the luminescence intensity and full width at half maximums as a function of ion fluence is also discussed. It is found that the number of recombination centers reaches its maximum at lower fluence, and the area ratio between blue bands and red bands is much lower than that under high energy H+ ion irradiation.


In this paper, we review the suitability of diamond as a semiconductor material for high-performance electronic applications. The current status of the manufacture of synthetic diamond is reviewed and assessed. In particular, we consider the quality of intrinsic material now available and the challenges in making doped structures suitable for practical devices. Two practical applications are considered in detail. First, the development of high-voltage switches capable of switching voltages in excess of 10 kV. Second, the development of diamond MESFETs for high-frequency and high-power applications. Here device data are reported showing a current density of more than 30 mA mm−1 along with small-signal RF measurements demonstrating gigahertz operation. We conclude by considering the remaining challenges which will need to be overcome if commercially attractive diamond electronic devices are to be manufactured.


BACKGROUND
Perilla (Perilla frutescens Britton) leaf comprises many types of active components, mainly flavonoids, and acts as an anti-inflammatory agent in in vitro and in vivo atopic dermatitis (AD) models.

OBJECTIVE
We investigated the effects of orally administered perilla leaf extract (PLE) on the symptoms of AD induced by Dermatophagoides farinae extract (DFE) in NC/Nga AD model mice.

METHODS
The mice were allowed free intake of 0.5% PLE. Skin lesions were assessed, and blood was sampled from the caudal vein on days 0, 7, 14, 21, and 31. On day 31, all mice were sacrificed to obtain blood, skin, spleen, and intestinal tissue samples.

RESULTS
The assessment scores of the skin lesions and total serum IgE levels of PLE-treated mice (PLE group) were significantly lower than DFE-treated mice (DFE group) on days 7, 14, and 21. On day 31, the serum periostin and thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC) levels in the PLE group were significantly lower than those in the DFE group. Histological analysis of the skin revealed that hyperplasia of the epidermal and dermal layers and infiltration of inflammatory cells (cell infiltration in corium tissues) were suppressed by PLE. Periostin deposition was observed in the skin tissue obtained from the DFE group. Moreover, the CD4+/CD8+ ratio of splenic T cells was suppressed in the PLE group but not in the DFE group.


Abstract The paper describes the discovery of a species of genus Chara, hitherto unknown in France. The morphological features of the plants and oospores are shown and identify the plant as Chara fibrosa ssp. benthamii, a tropical taxon, non-native to the European Charophyte flora. The ecological conditions of this particular find correspond to an artificial temporary pond located in the Crau plain, north of the Camargue. In contrast to the normal hydrological cycle ruled by local precipitation during winter, the studied pond is flooded from irrigation water in late spring and during summer. This context allowed C. fibrosa to out-compete the indigenous Chara species, Chara vulgaris and Chara globularis. The accidental introduction of C. fibrosa is attributed to original contamination from rice seed material imported to the nearby Camargue, rather than to dispersal by migratory water birds. Although the species has formed a very large population in that pond within a few years, it might not be classified as "invasive" because this occurrence is linked to a particular man-made habitat. However, spread of the species in the future, as a function of global warming related to climate change, cannot be excluded.


clear-cut example of the viewer's involvement with the art-work. Different stories could be told about the history of Greek art at work. Another version of this book might have examined more systematically the functions and contexts of art in Greek society, the complexities of its production and the patterns of its deployment through the Greek world (compare E. Welch's Renaissance volume in the same series, partially in the tradition of Baxandall). O. opts for an equally legitimate but rather different, more textual, approach. He is concerned above all with iconography (or iconology) and with modal aspects of works of art—with the ways in which images pitch their messages at a posited 'viewer'. For some, the conclusions here will be best read alongside more factual introductions, but they are no less engaging and stimulating for that.


Epistemic duties would be duties to believe, disbelieve, or withhold judgment propositions, and they would be grounded in purely evidential considerations. I o ff er a new argument for the claim that there are no epistemic duties. Though people may have duties to believe, disbelieve, or withhold judgment from propositions, those duties are never grounded in purely epistemic considerations. Rather, allegedly epistemic duties are a species of moral duty.


This paper describes a theoretical study to investigate the heat transfer characteristics of porous radiant burners. A one dimensional model is used to solve the governing equations for porous medium and gas flow before the premixed flame to the exhaust gas. Combustion in the porous medium is modeled as a spatially dependent heat generation zone. The homogeneous porous media, in addition to its convective heat exchange with the gas, may absorb, emit and scatter thermal radiation. The radiation effect in the gas flow is neglected but the conductive heat transfer is considered. In order to analyze the thermal characteristics of porous burners, the coupled energy equations for the gas and porous medium based on the discrete ordinate method are solved numerically and the effect of various parameters on the performance of porous radiant burners are examined. Comparison between the present results with those obtained by other investigators shows a good agreement.


I thank Dr Vordermark for his interest in our articles and useful comments. I agree with his analysis of our report that concluded that the cisplatin-based arm was less effective for local control and lead to a higher rate of colostomy than the mitomycinbased arm. At the present time, I am unable to supply the KaplanMeier survival curve that he requests but agree that it would be of considerable interest. I am, however, intrigued by his views that in certain patients, the treatment intensity can be reduced. This compliments the concept of individualization of therapy and a need for understanding the factors that mediate chemoradiotherapy resistance. We have previously suggested that understanding the molecular biology of anal canal cancer by studying pretreatment tissue for various relevant biomarkers could allow optimization of therapy. However, Dr Vordermark makes a point that takes such concepts to a higher level. By knowing in advance whose cancer is highly chemoradiotherapy sensitive, not only we can optimize therapy but we can also reduce its intensity (and thereby reduce toxicity). This type of concept building will benefit our future patients.


Background Treatment efficacy of conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) is insufficient in some patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). These patients require TNF-a antagonists that demonstrate excellent remission rates confirmed by clinical scores and conventional radiographs. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a more detailed diagnostic tool and furthermore, the 3 Tesla technique provides a higher spatial resolution compared to 1.5 Tesla. Especially early and thus prognostically relevant subchondral bone lesions might be detected more precisely using 3 Tesla MRI.1 Objectives The aim of this study was to evaluate a reduction of joint inflammation in RA patients treated with DMARDs as compared to etanercept (ETA) over a period of 12 months. Methods This epidemiologic clinical pilot MRI study examined 10 ACR/EULAR-positive RA patients with inadequate response to two DMARDs with an indication for ETA using the RA MRI system (RAMRIS). The control group consisted of 10 patients adequately responding to DMARDs. 3 Tesla MRI (PDSPAIR; T1 with and without contrast agent) using a multi-channel hand coil was performed at baseline, four (only ETA) and 12 months following initiation of ETA. RAMRIS scoring included analysis of synovitis, effusion, subchondral erosion, and also bone marrow edema. Additional analysis consisted of the visual analogue scale (VAS) and the Disease Activity Score 28-joint count (DAS28) at baseline and after 12 months in DMARD patients and at baseline, four and 12 months in ETA-patients. Results In DMARD-patients, the VAS averaged 21.0±11.3 and 20.2±24.6 (p=0.9). In ETA-patients, the VAS decreased from 46.3±7.9 (baseline) to 23.9±7.1 (p=0.04) and 24.0±6.3 (p=0.04). In DMARD-patients, the DAS28 remained at 2.1±0.6 and 2.9±1.0 (p=0.06). In ETA-patients, however, it decreased from 3.8±0.4 (baseline) to 2.8±0.3 (p=0.08) and then significantly to 2.5±0.3 (p=0.01). In DMARD-patients, the RAMRIS did not change between baseline and 12 months (11.0±2.3 vs. 11.8±2.8, respectively, p=0.8). Similarly, in ETA-patients, the RAMRIS did not change significantly (28.9±5.0 vs. 25.8±4.7, p=0.7 and 24.6±4.5, p=0.5). In contrast, the RAMRIS was significantly higher at baseline in ETA-patients as compared to DMARD-patients (28.9±5.0 vs. 11.0±2.3 p=0.005) and after 12 months (24.6±4.5 vs. 11.8±2.8, p=0.03). Separate analysis of synovitis, erosion and bone marrow edema did not change after 12 months. Conclusions The data show a significant higher RAMRIS and thus more actively diseased patients prior to ETA treatment as compared to DMARD-patients at baseline and after 12 months despite of adequate DAS28 remission (<2.6). Persistence of 3 Tesla MRI synovial inflammation and DAS28 remission are thus separate entities. MRI scoring before starting a treatment may indicate the requirement for anti-TNF-a agents. References Wieners G, et al. Eur Radiol. 2007; 17(8):2176–82 Acknowledgement In part supported by Pfizer. Disclosure of Interest M. Oleszowsky Grant/research support from: In part supported by Pfizer., M. Marinova: None declared, W. Willinek: None declared, M. Seidel: None declared


ABSTRACT The aim of this paper is to investigate the changing relations between individuals and public authorities within the Swedish crisis management system from 1995 to 2017. After the end of the Cold War, Sweden adopted a broader understanding of security that utilizes alternative governance strategies beyond sovereign means and focuses upon domestic security and the protection of vital systems. This has resulted in the emergence of collaborative arrangements involving public and private actors and as well as the extensive responsibilization of individuals. The latter has taken place since emergency and exceptionalism persist as vital concepts also in domestic security management. The present discussion argues that these two concepts restrict possibilities for democratizing security management and provides the means for harnessing the inclusion of volunteers while not granting them due voice in collaborative governance arrangements. However, responsibilization strategies include 'activation' which in turn may invoke critical agency and reflection as well as enable resistance toward the current apolitical notion of crisis management.


Numerous cases of checkpoint inhibitor–triggered cancer hyperprogression have been documented. A previous hypothesis attributes cancer onset to the local buildup of hydrogen chloride, jointly mediated by hydrogen bond donors and acceptors and basic amino acids. The anti-PD1/PD-L1 immunotherapies may have caused a surge of protons or chloride ions for the effective treatment of neoplasm, thus giving rise to the local formation of hydrogen chloride and subsequently cancer hyperprogression in some susceptible individuals. It was postulated that the local strength of acidity is critical for tumor growth and metastasis, as the intake of weak organic acids reduces cancer risks. The anti-PD1/PD-L1 immunotherapies can be integrated with weak organic acids to reduce adverse reactions and generate better anticancer outcomes.


[EMBARGOED UNTIL 12/1/2023] INTRODUCTION: For the past decade, many educational institutions have launched initiatives to provide services and funding for professors to adopt, adapt, and create OER for enhancing student success. The initiatives could initially encourage faculty to use OER in their courses, but the continued effort to sustain proved difficult. GOAL: The research goal is to explore how higher education institutions sustain OER initiatives by examining the experiences and perspectives of the key players: faculty, administrators, librarians, and instructional designers who work on the front line of OER initiatives as OER users, educators, and advocates. METHODS: Exploratory two-case studies with qualitative methods including interviews, focus groups, and documents. FINDINGS: The findings indicate that student success, people's ideology, and interest in OER are the driving forces behind OER initiatives. A combination of efforts was needed from grassroots and top-down to sustain the initiatives. Successful practices include a combination of institutional incentives and support, connecting key players, and implementing faculty outreach strategies. Themes are also identified for successes and challenges of sustaining initiatives. Successes include: (1) reducing costs for students; (2) helping faculty rethink courses and seek new ways of teaching; and (3) providing faculty freedom to customize for teaching as they desire. Challenges include: (1) experiencing difficulty in getting faculty on board; (2) needing a master database to increase OER discoverability; and (3) experiencing personnel turnover.


This paper presents a publicly available corpus of French encyclopedic history texts annotated according to the Berkeley FrameNet formalism. The main difference in our approach compared to previous works on semantic parsing with FrameNet is that we are not interested here in full text parsing but rather on partial parsing. The goal is to select from the FrameNet resources the minimal set of frames that are going to be useful for the applicative framework targeted, in our case Information Extraction from encyclopedic documents. Such an approach leverages the manual annotation of larger corpora than those obtained through full text parsing and therefore opens the door to alternative methods for Frame parsing than those used so far on the FrameNet 1.5 benchmark corpus. The approaches compared in this study rely on an integrated sequence labeling model which jointly optimizes frame identification and semantic role segmentation and identification. The models compared are CRFs and multitasks bi-LSTMs.