Hexamethylene bisacetamide inducible protein 1 (HEXIM1) is best known as the inhibitor of positive transcription elongation factor b (P-TEFb), which is composed of cyclin-dependent kinase 9 (CDK9)/cyclin T1. P-TEFb is an essential regulator for the transcriptional elongation by RNA polymerase II. A genome-wide study using human embryonic stem cells shows that most mRNA synthesis is regulated at the stage of transcription elongation, suggesting a possible role for P-TEFb/HEXIM1 in the gene regulation of stem cells. In this report, we detected a marked increase in HEXIM1 protein levels in the differentiated human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) induced by LY294002 treatment. Since no changes in CDK9 and cyclin T1 were observed in the LY294002-treated cells, increased levels of HEXIM1 might lead to inhibition of P-TEFb activity. However, treatment with a potent P-TEFb inhibiting compound, flavopiridol, failed to induce hPSC differentiation, ruling out the possible requirement for P-TEFb kinase activity in hPSC differentiation. Conversely, differentiation was observed when hPSCs were incubated with hexamethylene bisacetamide, a HEXIM1 inducing reagent. The involvement of HEXIM1 in the regulation of hPSCs was further supported when overexpression of HEXIM1 concomitantly induced hPSC differentiation. Collectively, our study demonstrates a novel role of HEXIM1 in regulating hPSC fate through a P-TEFb-independent pathway.


Microwave absorbers generally consist of a filler material inside a polymer matrix. The filler contains one or more elements that do most of the absorbing. Absorbers are used in a wide range of applications to eliminate stray or unwanted radiation that could interfere with a system's operation. Ferrites is the most common shielding material in the development of absorbing composites. However, ferrites are heavy, corrosive, non-biodegradable and expensive. This project investigates the application of oil palm empty fruit bunch fibres (OPEFB) as an alternative to ferrite fillers for microwave absorbing applications with PLA as the host matrix. OPEFB offer various advantages such as low cost, low density, better thermal, insulating properties and biodegradability. Also PLA has significant advantages including ease of fabrication, zero toxicity, biodegradability, high mechanical strength and thermal plasticity. Different compositions of filler were doped and blended to produce OPEFB-PLA and OPEFB-PLA-Fe2O3 composites via Brabender Plastograph EC blending machine operating at 170°C with rotor speed of 50 rpm for 20 minutes. The total mass of each blended composite was 45g and contained 200 μm size OPEFB fibres. The crystalline structure of the composites was analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) machine. The elemental compositions were examined using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) techniques. Thermal analyses were carried out using TGA and DTG. The dielectric properties and S-Parameters, were measured using a PNA (N5227) Network Analyzer from 8GHz to 12 GHz for rectangular waveguide and 0.01 GHz to 12 GHz for microstrip at room temperature. The theoretical calculations of the S-Parameters coefficients of the samples were computed using Finite Element Method (FEM) in conjunction with the COMSOL software. The comparison between the measured and calculated scattering parameters was also investigated. The permittivity of the composites was found to be dependent on the mixing ratio between OPEFB, PLA, and Fe2O3. At 10 GHz in the X-band frequencies, the dielectric constants of OPEFB-PLA and OPEFB-PLA-Fe2O3 composites were found to be between 3.04 to 3.36 and 3.14 to 3.7 respectively while the loss factor values were from 0.3 to 0.4 and 0.3 to 0. 346. Both the dielectric constant and loss factor of the OPEFB-PLA OPEFB-PLA-Fe2O3 composites increased with increasing percentages of OPEFB and Fe2O3 fillers. Furthermore, the results obtained from the scattering parameters |S11| and |S21| were used to determine the absorption loss of the different percentages of OPEFB-PLA and OPEFB-PLA-Fe2O3 composites samples, the absorption loss were found at 10 GHz to be from 0.049 to 0.105 and 0.045 to 0.062 respectively. Finally, the effect of the different percentages of OPEFB and Fe2O3 filler on the electric field was investigated by visualizing the electric field distribution pattern of the OPEFB-PLA and OPEFBPLA-Fe2O3 composites samples placed in the rectangular waveguide and placed on the top of microstrip using finite element method.


The world of sensing technology is expanding into new horizons owing to its exceptional selectivity and sensitivity-based applicability. This remarkable sensing progress has been positively influenced by the conjugation of biology, material sciences, and nanotechnology into an advanced sensing technology. The combination of biology with nanotechnology has allowed sensing technology to enable faster, cheaper, and more reliable evaluations and applications in various scientific domains. Thus, a new era in sensing has been developed into nano biosensing technology. Environmental monitoring, various processes assessment, contaminates detections, and complex environmental forensics are among the most promising applications of nanobiosensors and thus a thrust area of research. In this regard, the nanobiosensors containing non-carbon nanomaterials such as metals, metal oxides, their composites, non-metals other than carbon, and their conjugations, etc. have been flocking significant attention to remarkable potential in this thrust area of environmental science and research. Thus the present chapter highlights the role and importance of non-carbon-based nanobiosensors, their recent advancements, and the major factors that made the non-carbon-based nanobiosensors a preferential and successful choice in nano biosensing technologies. The chapter highlights the environmental applications of non-carbon-based nanobiosensors and the key future challenges associated with this technology.


This article estimates the premium in ETFs' trading prices and assesses the impact of the premium on returns. Results indicate that ETFs trade, on average, at a slight daily premium to their net asset value amounting to 0.015%. However, this premium is not persistent, which means that the premium on one day basically disappears the next day. Seasonal analysis on premium indicates that the average premium of iShares during December is higher relative to other months. Finally, it is revealed that the return is positively affected by the contemporaneous premium and negatively by the lagged premium, reflecting violence to the efficient-markets hypothesis.


Automotive parts modification in domestic market has not been activated due to the restrictions in laws and illegal recognition, as well as the safety and environmental issues. In order to overcome this situation, we need a relaxation of regulations in law and change of recognition in car modification market. Thereafter, a systematic education for cultivating the specialized technician of automotive parts modification should be introduced at government level and the facilities for the program are also required. The project group for Center for car modification in Daegu is getting ready for providing general and professional support services for performance prediction and modification information services with a Car-vatar system. Especially Keimyung University team is planning to make ready for the educational program. We would like to introduce the educational program with car tuning manual for cultivating the specialized technician of automotive parts modification.


The "super-relaxed state" (SRX) of myosin represents a 'reserve' of motors in the heart. Myosin heads in the SRX are bound to the thick filament and have a very low ATPase rate. Changes in the SRX are likely to modulate cardiac contractility. We previously demonstrated that the SRX is significantly reduced in mouse cardiomyocytes lacking cardiac myosin binding protein–C (cMyBP-C). Here, we report the effect of mutations in the cMyBP-C gene (MYBPC3) using samples from human patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Left ventricular (LV) samples from 11 HCM patients were obtained following myectomy surgery to relieve LV outflow tract obstruction. HCM samples were genotyped as either MYBPC3 mutation positive (MYBPC3mut) or negative (HCMsmn) and were compared to eight non-failing donor hearts. Compared to donors, only MYBPC3mut samples display a significantly diminished SRX, characterised by a decrease in both the number of myosin heads in the SRX and the lifetime of ATP turnover. These changes were not observed in HCMsmn samples. There was a positive correlation (p < 0.01) between the expression of cMyBP-C and the proportion of myosin heads in the SRX state, suggesting cMyBP-C modulates and maintains the SRX. Phosphorylation of the myosin regulatory light chain in MYBPC3mut samples was significantly decreased compared to the other groups, suggesting a potential mechanism to compensate for the diminished SRX. We conclude that by altering both contractility and sarcomeric energy requirements, a reduced SRX may be an important disease mechanism in patients with MYBPC3 mutations.


Concerns pertaining to one's physical appearance or specific body parts is not uncommon in the community. Whether such dissatisfaction is related to superior (or inferior) face perception abilities, or interacts with related constructs, such as perfectionism, is unknown. The current study aimed to investigate whether multidimensional perfectionism (e.g. involving concern over mistakes or doubts over actions) and facial ratings differed in those with high versus low dysmorphic concerns (i.e. excessive preoccupation about perceived physical flaws). Respondents (N = 343) from the community took part in an online study, comprising questionnaires assessing dysmorphic concerns and perfectionism. They also completed a face perception task involving symmetry, attractiveness and approachability ratings for a series of faces, some of which had been digitally manipulated to yield differing degrees of symmetry. Respondents were divided into those with high (n = 147) versus low (n = 196) dysmorphic concerns. Group comparisons using analyses of variance were conducted. Those with high dysmorphic concerns exhibited significantly elevated overall perfectionism (as well as on facets involving concern over mistakes, personal standards, parental perceptions and doubts over actions). No significant group differences were uncovered for the face perception task, involving ratings of symmetry, attractiveness and approachability. Perfectionism differences existed in a non-clinical sample with high dysmorphic concerns, though further work is needed to elucidate consistent patterns regarding perfectionism facets. More research examining face perception deficits on the clinical end of the body image spectrum, such as in those with body dysmorphic disorder, as well as utilising alternate task versions involving self-referential stimuli, are recommended.


DR-3355, the S-(-)-isomer of ofloxacin, possessed generally twice higher activity than ofloxacin, and its action was bactericidal. The difference in antibacterial activity of these compounds was attributable to their inhibitory activity against DNA gyrase. DR-3355 was characterized by its higher potency against gram-positive cocci and obligate anaerobes than ofloxacin and ciprofloxacin. DR-3355 was somewhat less potent than ciprofloxacin against Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but was active against organisms resistant to cefteram, ceftazidime, and amikacin. The activity of DR-3355 was decreased by gyrA mutation, like that of the other quinolones, although it did not alter significantly by deficiency of outer membrane protein F or lipopolysaccharide. Moderately norfloxacin-resistant isolates of Staphylococcus aureus remained susceptible to DR-3355, but not to ciprofloxacin.


The DNA of adenovirus type 2 was cleaved by restriction endonuclease R.RI into six fragments. These fragments were separated by electrophoresis on composite agarose-polyacrylamide gels. Their molecular weights ranged from 1.1 x 10(6) to 13.6 x 10(6), as measured by electron microscopy. Each fragment represented a unique segment of adenovirus type 2 DNA since: (i) the fragments were obtained in equimolar amounts; (ii) the sum of their molecular weights was equal to the molecular weight of complete adenovirus DNA; and (iii) each fragment exhibited a rate of renaturation that was inversely proportional to its size.


I show that endogenously persistent output dynamics are not a puzzle for the standard sticky-price model once openness of the economy is taken into account. I make this point using a two-country, monetary model of macroeconomic interdependence under internationally incomplete asset markets with stationary net foreign asset dynamics. If asset markets are incomplete, price stickiness generates endogenous persistence in the cross-country GDP differential by introducing persistence in the dynamics of the relative price differential between the two economies. This results in the dependence of the current real GDP differential on its past value, as well as on the stock of net foreign assets accumulated in the previous period. The elasticity of the current GDP differential to its past value is sizable for standard parameter values, implying a quantitatively significant persistence effect through this channel. Endogenous persistence yields hump-shaped responses of GDP to productivity and monetary policy shocks.


In parallel to the increase of internet usage worldwide, phishing attacks incidents have increased analogically. One of the ways with which phishing attacks are initiated is through sending phishing emails. In this thesis an attempt at creating a novel technique for detecting phishing emails is presented. For that purpose, a solution using machine learning algorithms is explored. In order to design a machine learning model that properly identifies emails as phishing or benign, the following directions were studied: (a) The most widely used machine learning algorithms, with their representative parameters, advantages and disadvantages that their usage provides, (b) Developing an algorithm to test different combinations of machine learning feature inputs, (c) Different performance evaluation metrics of the created machine learning models and developing an algorithm for them and (d) The structure of the emails, their different characteristics and anything that can be used as a feature input for the machine learning models to be able to efficiently detect the pattern of phishing emails. To that end, two different fundamental feature categories were created: (i) Properties-based features, which are retrieved from the different characteristics of the emails, such as the number of URLs or attachments in the emails and (ii) Text-based features, which are retrieved from the text part of the email which is to be read by the receiver. Today, with the increase of computer processing power, efficient machine learning solutions are developed for an increasing number of problems. Although there is related work towards phishing email classification using machine learning techniques, this work proposes a novel hybrid technique using the two aforementioned types of features. To that end, two architectures were proposed: (a) A hybrid "assembled" architecture, which assembles the properties-based and the text-based features as one consistent feature vector which is then used as input for the classification process and (b) A hybrid "stacked" architecture, which has two classifiers: the first one classifies the email using text-based features and the second one (which outputs the final classification) uses the properties-based features and one additional feature which is the classification output of the first classifier for the to-be-classified email. The most widely used tools for developing machine learning based programs were explored and Apache Spark with its MLlib library were used. All the algorithms were written using the Python programming language. After developing an algorithm for testing every combination of classifier, their different hyperparameter values and the different architectures, it was found that, compared to the classification using only one type of features, the hybrid "assembled" architecture has an improved performance but the hybrid "stacked" architecture has a slightly reduced performance.


Marijuana offers a low cost alternative to traditional medical treatment for a variety of health conditions. We use the legalization of medical marijuana in the U.S. to study the effect of a quasi-exogenous reduction in the cost of medical care on personal bankruptcy rates. We find that following legalization, bankruptcy rates decline by approximately 6 percent. Larger declines occur in populations facing higher out-of-pocket medical costs, such as those with high uninsurance rates or those residing in concentrated hospital markets, where medical costs are higher and quality is lower. Consistent with this medical cost channel, we find no effect of legalization on business bankruptcies, and no support for alternative explanations for the reduction in personal bankruptcies, such as an increase in economic activity, a decrease in marijuana-related arrests, or substitution away from other hard drugs following legalization.


Background: To report the complexity and richness of study variables within biological nursing research, authors often use tables; however, the ease with which consumers understand, synthesize, evaluate, and build upon findings depends partly upon table design. Objectives: To assess and compare table characteristics within research and review articles published in Biological Research for Nursing and Nursing Research. Method: A total of 10 elements in tables from 48 biobehavioral or biological research or review articles were analyzed. To test six hypotheses, a two-level hierarchical linear model was used for each of the continuous table elements, and a two-level hierarchical generalized linear model was used for each of the categorical table elements. Additionally, the inclusion of probability values in statistical tables was examined. Results: The mean number of tables per article was 3. Tables in research articles were more likely to contain quantitative content, while tables in review articles were more likely to contain both quantitative and qualitative content. Tables in research articles had a greater number of rows, columns, and column-heading levels than tables in review articles. More than one half of statistical tables in research articles had a separate probability column or had probability values within the table, whereas approximately one fourth had probability notes. Conclusions: Authors and journal editorial staff may be generating tables that better depict biobehavioral content than those identified in specific style guidelines. However, authors and journal editorial staff may want to consider table design in terms of audience, including alternative visual displays.


Using channelling analysis the authors investigated the depth distributions of residual defects in arsenic-implanted silicon wafers (1*1016 cm-2,100 keV) annealed at 800 degrees C for 10 s, employing different heating rates of the samples (5-280 degrees C s-1). They observed that both the density and depth distribution of residual defects located at a depth corresponding to the arsenic projected range are markedly affected by the heating rate. They interpret this result by assuming that trapping of self-interstitials occurs during regrowth of the implantation-induced amorphised layer and that its efficiency is dependent on the regrowth rate.


An emerging approach in biofabrication is the creation of 3D tissue constructs through scaffold-free, cell spheroid-only methods. The basic mechanism in this technology is spheroid fusion, which is driven by the minimization of energy, the same biophysical mechanism that governs spheroid formation. However, other factors such as oxygen and metabolite accessibility within spheroids impact on spheroid properties and their ability to form larger-scale structures. The goal of our work is to develop a simulation platform eventually capable of predicting the conditions that minimize metabolism-related cell loss within spheroids. To describe the behavior and dynamic properties of the cells in response to their neighbors and to transient nutrient concentration fields, we developed a hybrid discrete-continuous heuristic model, combining a cellular Potts-type approach with field equations applied to a randomly populated spheroid cross-section of prescribed cell-type constituency. This model allows for the description of: (i) cellular adhesiveness and motility; (ii) interactions with concentration fields, including diffusivity and oxygen consumption; and (iii) concentration-dependent, stochastic cell dynamics, driven by metabolite-dependent cell death. Our model readily captured the basic steps of spheroid-based biofabrication (as specifically dedicated to scaffold-free bioprinting), including intra-spheroid cell sorting (both in 2D and 3D implementations), spheroid defect closure, and inter-spheroid fusion. Moreover, we found that when hypoxia occurring at the core of the spheroid was set to trigger cell death, this was amplified upon spheroid fusion, but could be mitigated by external oxygen supplementation. In conclusion, optimization and further development of scaffold-free bioprinting techniques could benefit from our computational model which is able to simultaneously account for both cellular dynamics and metabolism in constructs obtained by scaffold-free biofabrication.


This article proposes a standard methodology to implement a detailed energy audit as a tool to quantify the efficiency, executed in four phases: visual inspection, data collection, measurement on the electrical equipment, interpretation of results and analysis and comparison of data with the Ecuadorian Construction Standard NEC-11. The methodology is presented as an academic practice, to teach the engineering student to perform an energy diagnosis in any place or sector where electricity is consumed to encourage an environmental conscience associated with consumption. As part of the proposed method an audit in a Faculty's engineering laboratory is performed, to adjust the proposed steps and verify their ability to detect the energy consumption, electrical distribution facilities and luminaries' types. The audit application allowed to effectively determine the possible improvements that can be made to reduce the power consumption by means of capacitor bank installation to regulate the power factor, redistribution and change of lighting, fixed shade elements placement to avoid natural light glare, maintenance planning of electrical installations in poor conditions, and placing an insulator on the main switchboard. This is an example of some simple improvements for reducing electricity consumption and to optimizing the comfort for lab users. This exercise shows that the proposed methodology can quantify energy efficiency and is a good guide to consumption alternatives. Keyword: energy audit, energy efficiency, consumption optimization.


Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is one of the most exciting joint diseases. The clinical appearance of PsA is very diverse, involving the spine, sacroiliac joints, peripheral joints and entheses. Consequently, also imaging findings vary and in many cases only the combined interpretation of X-rays, ultrasound, CT and MRI will lead to the correct diagnosis. Research teams have tried to use MRI for further differentiation from rheumatoid arthritis or hand osteoarthritis, e.g. with the help of dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI, pattern recognition or single-joint high-resolution MRI. Those studies so far did not reveal distinct features for PsA to differentiate it from other inflammatory arthritides. The lecture will highlight typical findings in PsA on MRI from a clinical radiology perspective and will correlate these with X-ray findings and differential diagnoses as appropriate. The participants will learn how to use MRI in distinct situation in the diagnostic workup of patients with suspected PsA. Furthermore, new developments in quantifying disease activity will be presented. Disclosure of Interest K. G. Hermann Paid instructor for: Pfizer, MSD, AbbVie


The drawbacks of organizational and technical means of bridge construction and operation in Ukraine are presented. A problem of the primary impact of hydroisolation and water-disposal on occurrence of defects in loadcarrying bridge structures is raised.


Our previous preclinical study demonstrated that both visible diffuse reflectance and autofluorescence spectroscopy, each of which yields a different set of physiological information, can predict skin flap viability with high accuracy in a MacFarlane rat dorsal skin flap model. In this report, we further evaluated our technique for the early detection and differentiation of venous occlusion and arterial occlusion in a rat groin flap model. We performed both diffuse reflectance and autofluorescence measurements on the skin flap model and statistically differentiated between flaps with and without occlusions as well as between flaps with venous occlusion and those with arterial occlusion based on these non-invasive optical measurements. Our preliminary results suggested that visible diffuse reflectance and autofluorescence spectroscopy can be potentially used clinically to detect both venous and arterial occlusion and differentiate one from the other accurately at an early time point.


Interest in minimal-incision total knee arthroplasty has increased in recent years. We compared a group of 30 patients who had total knee arthroplasty with a mini-incision to a similar group of 30 patients who had total knee arthroplasty with a standard length incision. The minimal-incision group had some minor early advantages (less pain medication use, earlier improvement in range of motion), but these advantages dissipated by 3 months followup. Radiographic evaluations showed that four of the 30 patients with minimal incisions had tibial component varus malalignment (< 87°), whereas no patients with the standard length incision had malalignment. Although total knee arthroplasty performed using a minimal incision may provide some early advantages, minimal incisions can impede a surgeon's vision and may influence component alignment and possibly compromise long-term outcome. Level of Evidence: Therapeutic study, Level III-1 (retrospective comparative study). See the Guidelines for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.


Lichens, composite organisms resulting from the symbiotic association between the fungi and algae, produce a variety of secondary metabolites that exhibit pharmacological activities. This study aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory activities of the secondary metabolite atraric acid produced by Heterodermia hypoleuca. The results confirmed that atraric acid could regulate induced pro-inflammatory cytokine, nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, induced nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 enzyme expression in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Meanwhile, atraric acid downregulated the expression of phosphorylated IκB, extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK) and nuclear factor kappa B (NFκB) signaling pathway to exhibit anti-inflammatory effects in LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 cells. Based on these results, the anti-inflammatory effect of atraric acid during LPS-induced endotoxin shock in a mouse model was confirmed. In the atraric acid treated-group, cytokine production was decreased in the peritoneum and serum, and each organ damaged by LPS-stimulation was recovered. These results indicate that atraric acid has an anti-inflammatory effect, which may be the underlying molecular mechanism involved in the inactivation of the ERK/NFκB signaling pathway, demonstrating its potential therapeutic value for treating inflammatory diseases.


Abstract : The U.S. Army and Marine Corps are in search of more satisfactory shelf stable, egg-based breakfast entry for group or individual military rations. The provision of combat ration egg products with a fresh, familiar home-style taste, especially as breakfast food, has been a significant challenge for the military, as commercial retort processing typically results in foods with undesirable flavors, greenish-grey discoloration, and detrimental changes in texture and syneresis. In this project, High Pressure Thermal Sterilization (HP/TS), also known as pressure assisted thermal processing (PATP), is presented as an alternative to commercial sterilization techniques, as a promising approach to providing commercially sterile precooked egg products that can be stored at room temperature. The team focused on identifying the effect of HP/TS conditions on commercial and modified egg patty formulations. Two processing strategies were initially proposed for egg-based product commercial sterilization: a) to facilitate FDA approval, a standard thermal sterilization treatment at process temperature 121 C accelerated by the application of 700MPa with holding time 3 min was evaluated; b) thermal HP/TS treatment using lower temperature than in a) with increased holding time. Furthermore, inactivation studies, incubation tests, packaging identification, and compression heating studies gave a deeper understanding of the process.


PURPOSE
To measure several components of immune changes related to walking 30 min with or without an exercise assist device compared with sitting.

METHODS
Fifteen healthy and nonobese female subjects (37.5 +/- 3.1 yr of age) accustomed to regular walking were recruited and tested for aerobic power (VO(2max) 34.4 +/- 1.4 mL.kg(-1).min(-1)). During three randomly assigned 30-min test sessions, subjects functioned as their own controls and either sat in the laboratory, walked at approximately 60% VO(2max), or walked at the same treadmill speed using the BODY BAT Aerobic Exerciser. This exercise assist device resembles a pair of baseball bats seamlessly joined together and is held with both hands and swung to shoulder height across the body in a natural side to side pendulum motion. Saliva and blood samples were collected pre- and postexercise, and 1 h postexercise, with the data statistically analyzed using a 3 x 3 repeated measures ANOVA.

RESULTS
Walking with the exercise assist device increased oxygen consumption 11 +/- 2% and heart rate 8 +/- 2 beats.min(-1). The pattern of increase in blood counts for neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and natural killer cells, plasma interleukin-6 concentration, and PHA-induced lymphocyte proliferation differed significantly when comparing walking with sitting, but no differences were found between walking with or without the exercise assist device. No significant increases over time or interaction effects were measured for plasma cortisol concentration, salivary IgA output, or plasma interleukin-1 receptor antagonist concentration.

CONCLUSIONS
The use of an exercise assist device increased oxygen consumption 11% during walking, but did not alter the pattern of change in several components of immunity measured during walking alone in comparison to sitting. Walking caused modest and short-lived changes in immune parameters, most notably for neutrophil and natural killer blood cell counts.


The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) at LHC intends to use a high rate trapezoid MRPC for the muon system upgrade, but the size of the MRPC is limited by the dimensions of low resistivity glass. We have designed a prototype of a large MRPC in which the electrodes are developed by gluing two pieces of glass plates. Simulation of the weighting field and cosmic ray test shows that the efficiency of the glued MRPC is higher than 96% and the time resolution is better than 71 ps.


We study the Hubbard model in infinite dimension d= infinity within an approximation reproducing simultaneously the atomic limit and the weak-coupling limit up to second order in the interaction strength U. Depending on U we find a paramagnetic metal, a paramagnetic insulator, or an antiferromagnetic insulator. The stability of the antiferromagnetic phase is investigated by calculating the grand canonical potential. We present the phase diagram in the T-U plane and results for the magnetization m as a function of temperature T. For small values of U the antiferromagnetic phase transition is continuous, but for larger values of U the approximation yields a first-order magnetic phase transition. Results for the density of states N( epsilon ) are presented; it either exhibits one single band or an upper and a lower Hubbard band separated by the Mott gap. The upper and lower Hubbard band may exhibit additional magnetic structure, depending on the value of T and U.


Socially anxious individuals have been shown to exhibit altered processing of facial affect, especially expressions signaling threat. Enhanced unaware processing has been suggested an important mechanism which may give rise to anxious conscious cognition and behavior. This study investigated whether individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are perceptually more vulnerable to the biasing effects of subliminal threat cues compared to healthy controls. In a perceptual judgment task, 23 SAD and 23 matched control participants were asked to rate the affective valence of parametrically manipulated affective expressions ranging from neutral to angry. Each trial was preceded by subliminal presentation of an angry/neutral cue. The SAD group tended to rate target faces as "angry" when the preceding subliminal stimulus was angry vs. neutral, while healthy participants were not biased by the subliminal stimulus presentation. The perceptual bias in SAD was also associated with higher reaction time latencies in the subliminal angry cue condition. The results provide further support for enhanced unconscious threat processing in SAD individuals. The implications for etiology, maintenance, and treatment of SAD are discussed.


Agrobacterium tumefaciens has been used to transfer its T-DNA to filamentous fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium. A DNA fragment containing recombinant hygromycin B phosphotransferase gene (rhyg(r)) which is controlled by a promoter from P. chrysosporium and the lignin peroxidase gene terminator was cut out from pCH6, and inserted into a plant binary plasmid pCAMB1300, resulted in the recombinant plasmid pCH6-1300. The plasmid pCH6-1300 was then transformed into Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain A208, which was used to infect conidia or protoplasts of P. chrysosporium. Sixteen hygromycin B-resistant P. chrysosporium colonies were obtained. The transformation frequency is about 8 - 9 transformants per 106 conidia or protoplasts, which had no significant difference with the values obtained from conidia or protoplasts. One of the transformants named AT18, whose colony morphology was different from the wild-type strain. The results from both PCR and Southern blot analysis of transformants demonstrated that the rHyg(r) gene was integrated into the host genome with single copy. This approach may not require any instrument and digestion of fungal cell walls. A . tumefaciens-facilitated transformation should be very useful for further studies of the molecular genetics of P. chrysosporium.


Boron nitride thin films have been grown by both laser-assisted, and conventional atomic layer deposition (LALD/ALD) at temperatures in the range 250-750 °C. Both the NH3 and BBr3 precursors were appreciably dissociated by the ArF excimer laser, and up to 600 °C, the growth rate was 100 % higher for the LALD process than for ALD. The films consisted of hydrogen-terminated turbostratic BN grains. H2 was theoretically found to bind as strongly as BBrX and NHX (X = 0-2) to hBN(100) edges. The fresh films were stoichiometric with respect to B and N, and contained low degrees of contamination, but oxidized easily in air.


In this study, a shaking-table test was performed to verify a proposed discrete-time modal control method that is suitable for seismic control of structural systems and also easy for digital control implementation. The computation of the feedback gain is formulated in a discrete-time domain and is given in a concise matrix form. A method for generating the best achievable eigenvectors that are most consistent with the target values is also proposed. The test involves a full-scale three-story building model that is actively controlled by an active bracing system. The test results show that the proposed discrete-time modal control can be a very efficient and promising method for mitigating the seismic response of building structures. For the building model tested, the performance of the proposed method with only two feedback signals can be as effective as that of full state feedback control.


Non heart beating organ donation (NHBD) occurs when a patient donates organs following the determination of death by cardiorespiratory criteria. It is also know as Donation after Cardiac Death (DCD) or Donation after Circulatory Death (DCD). This is distinct from Donation after Brainstem Death (DBD), which until 2011, accounted for all cadaveric organs (organ from deceased persons) donated within the Republic of Ireland. NHBD is an important initiative that has the potential to be life-saving. When compared to international protocols, the NHBD protocol at Beaumont Hospital is both conservative and restrictive. It offers an alternative when conditions of brainstem death (BSD) cannot be satisfied and, since implementation a number of successful transplants have been performed from NHB donors.


plying by its reciprocal). To use that value for microplate samples, absorbance values must be normalized to a 1 cm path length. This can be done by determining a conversion factor for a given sample volume and microplate. Alternatively, several microplate spectrophotometers use infrared absorbance measurements to determine path length on a well-by-well basis, and absorbance values can be normalized automatically. The A-1 value for double-stranded DNA at 260 nm is commonly approximated as 50 cm μg/mL for a 1 cm path length (2,5). The dependence of nucleic acid absorbance on ionic strength has been reported previously (1,6), but is not generally recognized. Figure 3 illustrates the difference in absorbance of DNA prepared in water, Tris (TE) buffer and Tris-buffered saline (TES). A260 values were approximately 15% lower in TE and 23% lower in TES when compared to the same concentrations in water. The calculated A-1 values are 38, 45 and 50 cm μg/mL for DNA in water, TE and TES, respectively (Figure 3). Thus, the commonly used value of 50 is correct only for relatively high ionic strength solutions. A lower detection limit for DNA by A260 measurement may be achieved if the samples are dissolved in deionized water rather than a salt solution. With attention to technique, accurate and reproducible DNA measurements can be made easily in microplates. The lower limits of detection and quantitation are comparable to those obtained with semi-micro cuvettes in conventional spectrophotometers.


Management of the vast volume of documents and data that must be maintained in an EPRS requires well designed architecture that can manage the complexities involved in allowing secure, long-term storage of the information combined with speed of access necessary to please users. This calls for a tightly integrated platform of hardware and software components that are optimized to work in the health information environment.


The aim of this study was to test plasma lipoprotein Lp(a) and other lipkj and lipoprotein levels for association with the Incidence of myocardial Infarction. Total plasma cholesterol, trlglycerides, low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and Lp(a) were measured In 1486 men at the age of 18 years. In addition, the Broca Index (a measure of relative body weight) and other data were recorded. The sample was divided Into probands whose mothers or fathers suffered a myocardial Infarction (case group, n=52) and Into probands whose parents had no myocardial Infarction (control group, n = 1434). In the case group, 32% had Lp(a) plasma concentrations greater than 25 mg/dl, but only 13.4% of the control group had this level of concentration, a highly significant difference (p<0.01). In addition, there was a statistically significant difference In the ratio of LDL cholesterol/HDL cholesterol (p<0.05) and the Broca Index (p<0.01) between cases and controls. The parents of the case group were significantly older than the parents of the control group; however, when a control group was matched for parents' age, the result* were similar. These data suggest that parents of male children with Lp(a) plasma concentrations greater than 25 mg/dl have a 2.5-fold higher Incidence of myocardial Infarction. Considering the familial aggregation of elevated Lp(a) levels, we conclude that increased levels of this lipoprotein may be a significant risk factor for myocardial infarction.


Global land cover data plays an important role on the global change research. At present, there are a variety of global land cover datasets. Those datasets are based on different classification systems and employ different methodologies. The inconsistencies may be a problem for studies of global change. This study analyzes the consistency of MCD12Q1 and Globcover datasets using type area consistency and spatial consistency at a national level and regional level. The results show that at the national level, the correlation coefficient of the type area totals of the two datasets is 82.98% and Kappa coefficient is 27.21%. Correlation coefficient of the type area totals of the two datasets at Northeast region, North China, Southwest region, Northwest region, Central and Southeast region and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are 43.84%, 69.30%, 18.53%, 92.98%, 42.40%, 91.10%, respectively and Kappa coefficient are 7.41%, 20.45%, 6.33%, 32.63%, 16.37%, 26.15%, respectively.


Downloads are available for individual metropolitan regions in CSV or Shapefile format. Combined ZIP files containing the data for all metropolitan regions are also available in CSV and Shapefile format, and are labeled as "All Metropolitan Regions".


Velocity distribution plays a fundamental role in understanding the hydrodynamics of open-channel flow. Among a multitude of approaches, the entropy-based approach holds great promise in achieving a reasonable characterisation of the velocity distribution. In entropy-based methods, the distribution depends on a key parameter, known as the entropy parameter (a function of the time-averaged mean velocity and maximum velocity), that relates to channel characteristics, such as channel roughness and channel bed slopes. The entropy parameter was regarded as constant for lack of experimental evidence, which would otherwise demonstrate if it had any correlation with channel properties. A series of experiments were conducted to collect velocity data in the laboratory flume for seven different values of the channel bed slope. The experimental data analysis revealed dissimilar fluctuations in entropy parameter values with varying bed slopes, with the lowest coefficient of variation in Renyi's (∼0.5%) and the highest in Shannon's case (∼10%). Performance evaluation of the predicted results substantiated good accuracy for all three entropies with the best results of Renyi entropy and lent strong support for using a constant (overall average) value of the entropy parameter for a specific channel cross-section rather than separate values for each channel bed slope.


A three-dimensional (3D) videography study was performed to clarify the mechanical effects of a change of pitching motion from an overhand throw (OH style) to a three-quarter throw (TQ style). Two collegiate pitchers (subjects A and B) who normally used the OH style participated. They were requested to change their original OH style into the TQ style. To do this, they were subjected to a one-year skill training program based on biomechanical principles and on knowledge such as the stretch-shortening cycle theory, muscle force-velocity relationship, and the motions of skilled pitchers (e.g., shoulder positioning at 90 degrees of abduction-adduction during the acceleration phase). Four pitches for subject A (two in pre-training, one during training and one in post-training), and three for subject B (one each in pre-training, training and post-training) were videotaped with the 3D DLT procedure using two high-speed cameras, and then analyzed. We then examined the mechanical differences between pre- and post-training. The speed of the ball at release increased progressively with every successive pitch for both subjects (Subject A : 1st : 130.3km/h ; 2nd : 133.2km/h ; 3rd : 135.7km/h ; 4th : 142.2km/h. Subject B : 1st : 131.0km/h ; 2nd : 135.0km/h ; 3rd : 139.3km/h). The pitching styles of both subjects changed from their original OH style to the TQ style, both qualitatively and quantitatively. The time-dependent patterns and peak values of the angular velocities of shoulder internal-external rotation and elbow flexion-extension of the throwing arm did not change very much. However, the peak value of the angular velocity of shoulder internal rotation occurred immediately after ball release for the OH style, while for the TQ style it occurred at ball release. As a result, the angular velocity of elbow extension at ball release was larger in the OH style than in the TQ style. On the other hand, the angular velocity of shoulder internal rotation at ball release was larger in the TQ style than in the OH style. These findings suggest that the increase in the speed of the ball is dominated by elbow extension in the OH style, and by shoulder internal rotation in the TQ style.


Functional State Indices of football players from various age groups were computed, based on measurements performed with the «Omega-S» testing equipment. The majority were rated as «excellent» and «good». The proportion of «excellent» and «good» indices was highest in 16-25 age old group. High vegetative nervous system indices indicate greater capacity for emotional adjustment in more experienced football players.


Technology advances in complimentary-metal-oxide-silicon (CMOS) process offer some interesting possibilities for radio frequency (RF) circuit designers. Some circuits that would have to be done with GaAs monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs), for instance, are now possible in CMOS. While the transistor speed has been improving significantly, fuller integration of RF integrated circuits (RFICs) is often retarded by the absence of high quality, high rangebility and efficient on-chip passive components. This thesis presents the possibilities of improving the characteristics of an RF capacitor having interdigital configuration. Modifications in the form of combline structure were introduced into the conventional configuration to improve the capacitor characteristics. Performance in the form of capacitance and Quality, Q, factor were investigated through simulations using electromagnetic simulation software, Ansoft HFSS. The analysis and comparison between conventional and the proposed interdigital capacitor (IDC) with combline structure were discussed in detail. It can be concluded that the proposed IDC with combline structure improves the capacitance of an IDC. The optimum combline configuration which achieved useful capacitance with sufficiently high Q factor is the design with 110 mils effective finger length. It produces 5.48 pF capacitance at first resonance of 2 GHz, with sufficiently high Q factor of 13.88. This is a factor of 1.72 higher than the corresponding conventional IDC having 3.18 pF at first resonance of 3 GHz albeit 10 % slightly higher Q factor of 15.41.


Based on a method used to calculate the magnetic field in a thin clearance between superconducting blocks, this paper analyzes the force characteristics of the superconducting suspension system. The superconducting suspension system is stable even without feedback control. Linear feedback control is still introduced to improve the suspension stiffness. Then, the corresponding controller is designed, and many details about the operating conditions are also analyzed. Simulation results show the feasibility of this model. This paper provides a theoretical guidance for the next experiment and also has reference meaning to the supporting system of the superconducting accelerometer, gradient meters, flywheel, and so on.


The present review provides a clearer picture of the effect of C1584 on the level and properties of von Willebrand factor (VWF). The C1584 variant is associated with decreased VWF levels (especially in combination with blood group O) and VWF function, and with slightly enhanced VWF proteolysis, and there is evidence to support its association with enhanced VWF clearance. These properties help explain the enrichment for C1584 in mild type 1 VWD and the observed marked association of the variant and blood group O in this mild bleeding disorder. It has been proposed that the mildly enhanced VWF proteolysis associated with C1584 (and also with blood group O) may compromise clot formation, offering a further rationale for the enrichment of the variant in type 1 VWD. C1584 shows variable penetrance and this is still not fully understood. It reflects the interaction of C1584 with other variables, one of which is clearly blood group O. Genome-wide association studies aimed at identifying loci involved in the control of the VWF level may provide further insights into C1584 penetrance and, more generally, into mechanisms underlying type 1 VWD and also cardiovascular disease.


One of the biggest problems students face in team projects is social loafing, a situation in which students may view team projects as a free ride. Social loafers let others do the work, knowing that the professor will only grade the completed project. This research examined the performance of students grading other student team members on a group project. Team members' evaluations were part of the grade, worth 10 to 20% of the project grade. All evaluations were confidential, and other students never saw the evaluations. A behaviorally anchored scale was designed and used to discourage ratings based merely on personality. A behaviorally anchored scale is an approach to evaluating performance that encourages the rater to evaluate a subject's performance, rather than irrelevant characteristics such as personality or liking. The scale developed for this study was based on student opinions about the important task and social behaviors in team work. The sample included 3 psychology classes and 1 aeronautical engineering class, for a total of 142 students in teams ranging from 3 to 6 members. Results indicate that students can make evaluations of team members and give them grades other than all "A's". The distribution of grades given by the students was somewhat high for the psychology students, but was more typical for the engineering students. Ratings by students did make sense, and the correlations between the behaviorally anchored scales and the overall teams ratings were significant. Student ratings of team work were different and independent from their project grades. The value of the team work rating scales is to improve both the accuracy of grading and to give the teams a way to control social loafing. (Contains three tables and nine references.) (SLD) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ******************************************************************************** EVALUATING TEAM WORK ON STUDENT PROJECTS: THE USE OF BEHAVIORALLY ANCHORED SCALES TO EVALUATE STUDENT PERFORMANCE PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY


The development of artificial intelligence systems assumes that a machine can independently generate an algorithm of actions or a control system to solve the tasks. To do this, the machine must have a formal description of the problem and possess computational methods for solving it. This article deals with the problem of optimal control, which is the main task in the development of control systems, insofar as all systems being developed must be optimal from the point of view of a certain criterion. However, there are certain difficulties in implementing the resulting optimal control modes. This paper considers an extended formulation of the optimal control problem, which implies the creation of such systems that would have the necessary properties for its practical implementation. To solve it, an adaptive synthesized optimal control approach based on the use of numerical methods of machine learning is proposed. Such control moves the control object, optimally changing the position of the stable equilibrium point in the presence of some initial position uncertainty. As a result, from all possible synthesized controls, one is chosen that is less sensitive to changes in the initial state. As an example, the optimal control problem of a quadcopter with complex phase constraints is considered. To solve this problem, according to the proposed approach, the control synthesis problem is firstly solved to obtain a stable equilibrium point in the state space using a machine learning method of symbolic regression. After that, optimal positions of the stable equilibrium point are searched using a particle swarm optimization algorithm using the source functional from the initial optimal control problem statement. It is shown that such an approach allows for generating the control system automatically by computer, basing this on the formal statement of the problem and then directly implementing it onboard as far as the stabilization system has already been introduced.


This text is about the former inner-German state border between Thuringia and Bavaria inside the border regions of the "Eastern Franconian" language area and its effect on the spoken dialectic varieties. The main focus is not to research dialectgeographical dissimilarities between the border areas in former East Germany and West Germany as already explored (Losch 2000, Fritz-Scheuplein 2001, Harnisch 2015) but to show perceptual linguistic concepts in the minds of linguistic laymen. The central question in this article is which salient dialect markers do the informants discern and use to locate a speech sample to a certain area inside the "Eastern Franconian" language area. Which salient dialect markers exist in informants perception about the varieties in former East German and West German border areas? Do they perceive a new linguistic variety border at the former political border between German Democratic Republic and Federal Republic of Germany?


This book offers new insight on how key historical texts and events in Korea's history have contributed to the formation of the nation's collective consciousness. The work is woven around the unifying premise that particular narrative texts or events that extend back to the premodern period have remained important, albeit transformed, over the modern period and into the contemporary period. The author explores the relationship between gender and nationalism by showing how key narrative topics, such as tales of virtuous womanhood, have been employed, transformed, and re-deployed to make sense of particular national events. Connecting these narratives and historic events to contemporary Korean society, Jager reveals how these "sites" - or reference points - were also successfully re-deployed in the context of the division of Korea and the construction of Korea's modern consciousness.


BACKGROUND/AIMS
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is known to be closely associated with various metabolic abnormalities including metabolic syndrome. However, there are few data available on the association of metabolic syndrome with the sonographically fatty liver and normal range of liver function test. The purposes of this study were to find the incidence of ultrasonographic fatty liver with normal range of liver function test and to evaluate the association with metabolic syndrome in apparently healthy Korean adults.

METHODS
We examined 538 men and women, aged 30-80 years, who participated in a health screening test. Among the people with normal ALT level, we compared clinical characteristics and prevalence of metabolic disorders according to the presence of nonalcoholic sonographyally fatty liver, and then they were subdivided into upper normal range and lower normal range of ALT level.

RESULTS
Compared to the people without sonographic fatty liver, people with sonographic fatty liver and normal range of ALT level had odds ratios for metabolic syndrome of 4.53, insulin resistance 4.83, hypertension 2.69, dyslipidemia 6.90, and obesity 5.39, respectively. Furthermore, the prevalence of metabolic syndromes and other metabolic disorders were increased in both sonographically fatty liver group or ultrasonographically normal liver group with upper normal range of ALT level compared with lower normal ALT level (p<0.01).

CONCLUSIONS
The nonalcoholic sonographically fatty liver was strongly associated with metabolic syndrome and common metabolic abnormalities even with normal liver function test.


This paper proposes a statistical downscaling model to directly describe the linkage between large-scale climate variables and annual maximum daily rainfalls (AMDR) at a local site. The proposed downscaling model is based on principal component analysis (PCA) of global climate variables using singular value decomposition (SVD). The SVD technique is robust and efficient for calculating the standardized principal components (SPC) of the climate variables. The model has been tested with two popular general circulation models, GCMs, (HadCM3 and CGCM3) and available 41-year (1961 - 2001) AMDR data at 6 sites in the Chi and Mul River Basins (Thailand). The PCA of all possible climate predictors has shown that surface divergence is the most important one for HadCM3 while the airflow movement, humidity, and pressure variables of CGCM3 are equally significant. Further, the tested results have indicated that the proposed method can links the simulated climate predictors given by the GCMs with the local AMDR indices because it adequately reproduces the observed frequencies of the AMDRs in calibration and validation periods. In addition, the scenarios (HadCM3A2, HadCM3B2, and CGCM3A2) of the 50-yr AMDRs have demonstrated that the largest values of AMDRs of most stations are approximately unchanged. Principal Component Regression Model of Extreme Daily Rainfall for Climate-Related Impact Studies Keywords: Climate variation and change, statistical downscaling, principal component analysis (PCA), singular value decomposition (SVD)


As part of the CMDP 2008 program the project proposal put forward by the program sponsor, Ruth Patterson from the National Portrait Gallery was entitled "Are we speaking the same language – defining and measuring performance in the cultural sector". This proposal focussed on what, when and how we measure performance within cultural institutions and whether these measures are able to be benchmarked – is it possible to speak the same language? Following subsequent discussions between the project team and project sponsor, it was agreed that the scope of the project would be extended to also cover investigation of additional quality measures such as long-term social benefit or impact measures. The principle aims of the project were to: 1. Increase understanding and transparency of how cultural institutions measure performance; 2. Determine material benefits of benchmarking key performance measures across cultural institutions; 3. Identify within cultural institutions areas of potential performance measurements in relation to the social benefits and the feasibility of reporting these benefits/impacts; 4. Enable team members to develop skills to be effective at level and ready for higher management and leadership roles The first stage of the project centred on reviewing current literature in relation to performance measurement within the cultural sector. This section was divided into three parts: - First a review of the work currently being undertaken by the ABS in relation to performance management within the cultural sector; - Second, a review of existing statistics being collected across peak bodies or 'like' cultural institutions; and - Third, a review of existing literature in relation to attempts to measure social benefits/impacts across the cultural sector. The second stage involved drawing together these reviews to identify and determine the feasibility and benefits of benchmarking key performance measures across cultural institutions and whether it was possible to include additional social benefit/impact measures within existing reporting frameworks. Cultural Management Development Program Report


This paper explores the Nazi view of nature as violent but orderly, contrasted with what the Nazis took to be the chaos and confusion of human society. In imposing strict authoritarian controls, the Nazis strove to emulate what they viewed as the natural discipline of instinct. They saw this as embodied in wild animals, especially large predators such as wolves, while the opposite were domesticated mongrels whose instincts, like those of overly civilized peoples, had been ruined through careless breeding. Those who anticipated this view included Nietzsche and Kipling. The author finds the Nazi perspective best articulated by Nobel-laureate Konrad Lorenz, a member of the Nazi party and its Office for Race Policy, who believed that traits indicating genetic decline crossed species lines. He advocated correcting the alleged damage done to animals and people by civilization through eugenic controls.


The purpose of this study was to test the integration of two motivational theoretical models (self-determination theory and the achievement goal theory) to analyze the impact of motivational climate in the regulation of motivation and athletes´ effort perception. Participated in the study 460 athletes (male football players at both regional and national level, on the categories of beginners, youth, juniors and seniors, with 17.42 ± 4.37 years-old). The quality of the structural equation model was examined by the Chi-square value and some complementary model fit indices. The results support the model fit (S-B χ ²= 288.84, df = 147, p < 0.001, S-B χ ²/ df = 1.96, SRMR= 0.049, NNFI= 0.912, CFI= 0.924, RMSEA= 0.046, 90%IC RMSEA= 0.038−0.054), suggesting that a motivational task-oriented climate has a significant positive effect on autonomous motivation, which in turn has a significant positive effect on athletes' effort perception. On the other hand, an ego-oriented environment had a positive effect on the controlled motivation, which in turn had a negative effect on athletes' effort perception, although not significant.


Rufinamide is a novel antiepileptic agent recently approved in the United States for adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. To help inform clinical decision making, the authors analyzed safety and tolerability data from the entire pediatric population in the rufinamide epilepsy clinical development program. The analysis population comprised 212 rufinamide-treated (age range 3-16 years) and 197 placebo patients (age range 4-17 years) in the double-blind studies, and 391 patients receiving rufinamide in the double-blind and/or open-label extensions. The most common adverse effects observed in rufinamide-treated patients in the double-blind studies were somnolence, vomiting, and headache. Changes in laboratory values, vital signs, and weight were generally clinically insignificant. This pooled analysis of data from pediatric patients in clinical studies of rufinamide for the treatment of seizures, mainly as adjunctive therapy, suggests a favorable safety and tolerability profile in this patient population.


This study presents a year-long comprehensive performance analysis of four distinct solar photovoltaic (SPV) system configurations with central inverter, micro inverter, fixed axis structure and dual axis sun tracker (DAST) structure installed at the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, West Bengal, India. Technical and economic performance indices are used to analyse the impact of inverter technology and DAST structure using field data of one year. Specifically, technical parameters specified by IEC 61724 are used to compare simulated results with field data from June 2017 to May 2018. The difference between the simulated and measured values of all the configurations is mostly attributed to the variation in solar irradiance and module temperature data. For simulation study, daily and monthly average values are considered while daily instantaneous data are used for measured values. Comparison of measured values through energy yield, capacity factor and performance ratio (PR) indices has confirmed the superiority of dual axis micro inverter system configuration. Additionally, the impact of seasonal variation on PR values for all four system configurations is also analysed. Economic performance for 25 years of project life using payback period, net present value and levelised cost of energy indices concludes dual axis central inverter system configuration as the most economical.


Artin's Primitive Root Conjecture represents one of many famous problems in elementary number theory that has resisted complete solution thus far. Significant progress was made in 1967, when Christopher Hooley published a conditional proof of the conjecture under the assumption of a certain case of the Generalised Riemann Hypothesis. In this survey we present a description of the conjecture and the underlying algebraic theory, and provide a detailed account of Hooley's proof which is intended to be accessible to those with only undergraduate level knowledge. We also discuss a result concerning the qx +1 problem, whose proof requires similar techniques to those used by Hooley.


The plans of Sukamahi dam and Ciawi dam construction for Jakarta flood risk reduction purpose had been proposed as feasible solutions to be implemented. However, the risk of the dam outlets clogging, caused by the sediment, is important to be anticipated. The prediction of the max sediment concentration in the reservoir is crucial for the dam operation planning. It is important to avoid the flood outlet tunnel clogging. This paper present a hydrologic sediment budget model of The Upstream Ciliwung River Basin, with flood control dam existence scenarios. The model was constructed within SWAT (Soil and Water Assessment Tools) plugin and run inside the QGIS framework. The free hydrological data from CFSR, soil data from FAO, and topographical data from CGIAR-CSI were implemented as the model input. The model resulted the sediment concentration dynamics of the Sukamahi and Ciawi reservoirs, on some suspended sediment parameter ranges. The sediment trapping efficiency was also computed by different possible dam capacity alternatives. The research findings will give a scientific decision making base for the river authority, in term of flood control dam planning, especially in The Upstream Ciliwung River Basin.


OBJECTIVE
A first report of 3 patients who developed hypofibrinogenemia due to long-term administration of hemocoagulase.

METHODS
The clinical data of three patients with hypofibrinogenemia due to long-term administration of hemocoagulase were analyzed, and the related literature was reviewed.

RESULTS
Case 1, a two-year old girl, had liver traumatic rupture and then treated with massive transfusion and fibrinogen infusion in addition to intravenous recombinant factor VIIa (two times) and hemocoagulase (2 U/d). The liver wound bleeding was soon stopped. However, her plasma fibrinogen level decreased to 0.12 g/L after continuous administration of hemocoagulase for 18 days. Case 2, a three-year old boy, had liver traumatic rupture and was treated with surgical repair, and then received hemocoagulase (2 U/d). On the 8th day, a large amount of blood was found to exude from abdominal cavity drainage tube and indwelling venous catheter, and his fibrinogen dropped to 0.24 g/L. Case 3 was a 45 year-old man who underwent a total mandibular resection because of malignant tumor, and he was given hemocoagulase (4 U/d). A continuous blood oozing was noted from his operation incision, and his fibrinogen level decreased to 0.25 g/L. All the three patients'plasma fibrinogen levels and coagulation tests returned to normal ranges after discontinuation of hemocoagulase administration and supplement of fibrinogen, and the bleeding stopped in cases 2 and 3.

CONCLUSION
Long-term use of hemocoagulase could induce hypofibrinogenemia and severe bleeding.


The title of this essay borrows from Raymond Queneau's iconic Hundred Thousand Billion Poems , a sonnet generator capable of producing 10^14 unique texts – a quantity that no one reader (or even a million readers) could parse in a lifetime. While Hundred Thousand Billion Poems gestures towards the impossibility of ever accessing the totality of its many reading paths, computer games such as Super Mario Bros. limit the player to one isolated, incomplete perspective among an enormous (but finite) set of possible playthroughs. Despite this single-player experience, collective patterns of play emerge from the repetitive, procedural, and discrete elements – what Ian Bogost calls "unit operations" – that drive computational media. Following Mary Flanagan's approach to game criticism and Jean-Paul Sartre's notion of seriality framed in terms of contemporary theories of network culture, this essay examines two categories of "metagames" which "critically play" the serial logics intrinsic to computational media. Metagames are games about games and the examples in this essay are built inside, outside, or alongside Super Mario Bros. , inscribing twenty-five years of procedural play. From remakes of ROM hacks to speedruns of sequencers, this eclectic collection of player-created modifications documents an alternative history of computer games defined not by the production of software but by play. Whether reading Queneau's book or playing computer games, the constraints of the poem or program produce a range of repetitions. Rather than subjecting the player to the mechanisms of control as defined by the rules of the game, the techniques documented in this essay successfully metagame their own serial conditions to model the movements of a hundred thousand billion fingers.


Compact accelerator-based neutron sources (CANS) represent a growing technology to provide neutrons in many areas of research and applications. Based on nuclear processes initiated by low energy proton or deuteron beams or the nuclear photo effect using electron beams, very compact neutron sources have been designed and installed at universities, research institutes, and industrial sites accross the globe. These small sources have provided continuous impact in fundamental nuclear physics as well as in material sciences, engineering, metrology or health. In most recent years partly driven by the advent of reactor based neutron sources and the desire for local and mobile neutron sources and partly by progress in high current proton accelerator systems, efforts are increasing to develop, design and construct very powerful CANS. One goal of these efforts is to provide future midand large-scale neutron sources complementary to spallation and reactor based sources, while another is to provide local services for industry or health e.g. as neutron imaging services or with boron neutron capture therapy to fight cancer. The Union for Compact Accelerator-driven Neutron Sources (UCANS) is organizing regular meetings to discuss the state of the art and developments on this topic. The UCANS9 conference was planned to be held in Wako, Japan in November 2020. Due to the global coronavirus outbreak the conference could not happen and was postponed to a future date in 2021. As an intermediate activity a web-based meeting was organized termed UCANS-web Conference and held from Nov. 30 to Dec. 3 2020 with a world-wide attendance of many scientists and researchers. The virtual conference covered a very wide range of topics on most aspects of compact sources, accelerators, targets, moderators, detectors, neutron scattering, radiography, isotope and nuclear data, medical applications as documented at the conference website (ucans-web.org). The diverse and varied presentations and discussions at this virtual meeting inspired the participants and organizers to publish presented work within a proceedings volume in the Journal of Neutron Research. The present contributions deal with basic nuclear data evaluation by improved scattering kernels, the development of versatile beam monitoring and multiplexing systems as well as the design and configuration of optimized target-moderator combinations to improve neutron flux. They further present novel instrumentation concepts and the plans and outlines for novel CANS facilities. Although these articles represent only a fraction of all of the presented contributions within the UCANS-web Conference, they demonstrate the progress and state-of-the-art in this fast-emerging field. Upcoming conferences, workshops and UCANS meetings will show further progress and developments and the present proceedings will support all these discussions and activities to develop and optimize CANS.


Three issues in the context of escrow-based methods, are addressed. It is shown that full serializability can be guaranteed for escrow transactions by means of repeat semantics, that is, a transaction which fails is rerun in a special mode. The author describes a crash recovery protocol consistent with the concurrency control scheme used. An analysis is made, by means of a simulation model, of several different borrowing policies for escrow transactions and the best one is identified.<<ETX>>


Cimicifugae Rhizoma, a herb with a long history of use in traditional Oriental medicine is reported to have anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anti-complement and anticancer effects. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of Cimicifugae Rhizoma extracts on the osteogenic and adipogenic differentiation of human stem cells derived from gingiva. Stem cells derived from gingiva were grown in the presence of Cimicifugae Rhizoma at final concentrations of 0.1, 1 and 10 µg/ml. Cell proliferation analyses were performed at day 15. For osteogenic differentiation experiments, the stem cells were cultured in osteogenic media containing β-glycerophosphate, ascorbic acid-2-phosphate and dexamethasone, and osteogenic differentiation was evaluated by analysis of osteocalcin expression at 21 days. For adipogenic differentiation experiments, the stem cells were grown in adipogenic induction medium, and the adipogenic differentiation was evaluated by analysis of adipocyte fatty acid-binding protein at day 14. The cultures grown in the presence of 0.1 µg/ml Cimicifugae Rhizoma showed a significant increase in cellular proliferation at day 15 compared with the control group. The relative osteogenic differentiation in the presence of Cimicifugae Rhizoma for the 0.1, 1 and 10 µg/ml groups was 171.5±13.7, 125.6±28.7 and 150.5±9.0, respectively, when that of the untreated control group on day 21 was considered to be 100%. The relative adipogenic differentiation at day 14 of the 0.1, 1 and 10 µg/ml groups in the presence of Cimicifugae Rhizoma was 97.5±15.0, 102.9±12.8 and 87.0±6.8%, respectively when that of the untreated control group on day 14 was considered to be 100%. Within the limits of this study, Cimicifugae Rhizoma increased the proliferation of stem cells derived from the gingiva, and low concentrations of Cimicifugae Rhizoma may increase the osteogenic differentiation of stem cells.


This is the home for all things trial related to resources and products that the Courtright Memorial Library is bringing to campus for feedback.


Biomolecular condensates participate in diverse cellular processes, ranging from gene regulation to stress survival. Bottom-up engineering of synthetic condensates advances our understanding of the organizing principle of condensates. It also enables the synthesis of artificial systems with novel functions. However, building synthetic condensates with a predictable organization and function remains challenging. Here, we use DNA as a building block to create synthetic condensates that are assembled through phase separation. The programmability of intermolecular interactions between DNA molecules enables the control over various condensate properties including assembly, composition, and function. Similar to the way intracellular condensates are organized, DNA clients are selectively partitioned into cognate condensates. We demonstrate that the synthetic condensates can accelerate DNA strand displacement reactions and logic gate operation by concentrating specific reaction components. We envision that the DNA-based condensates could help the realization of the high-order functions required to build more life-like artificial systems.


New Zealand has a housing crisis. High land prices and high construction costs have all contributed to unaffordable housing. Additionally, the New Zealand dream of the "quarter acre section" lifestyle that has encouraged urban sprawl throughout our major cities with increasingly unsustainable services, transport and road costs. New and exciting housing options need to be explored for urban areas.
Christchurch is a city in New Zealand where urban sprawl has always been prevalent. In the wake of the 2010/2011 earthquakes sprawl increased further, relocating large suburban areas yet further away from the city centre. This has caused a greater reliance on cars, and a slower revival to the city.
Historically there is an aversion to higher density living. Perceived desirability is a large factor. The medium to high density solutions produced thus far have little regard for the concept of "home", with the use of substandard materials, and monotonous and repetitive design, and essentially falling short of addressing the needs of New Zealand's increasing population.
"A Home with a View" looks to address the needs of New Zealanders and Christchurch, through the individual tower-house within an overarching tower-housing neighbourhood development. The design as research thesis develops a medium density tower-housing neighbourhood as a mini city-scape, through the exploration of the tower-house as an intimate space to live and observe from.
Tower-housing has the potential to create a delightful, lively neighbourhood environment that contributes to quirky, new, and exciting housing options for New Zealand. The tower-house creates desire through unconventional lifestyle and highlights engaging solutions to an individual vertical housing type.


In mice, endogenous retroviruses are known to be activated during the course of radiation osteosarcomagenesis. Using the Southern blotting procedure, we have studied the presence of somatically acquired proviruses in genomic DNA isolated from seven primary 90Sr induced osteosarcomas and one osteosarcoma cell line, 0-127a1, of the CF1 mouse strain. Specific hybridization probes demonstrated the presence of newly integrated ecotropic proviruses in four primary tumors. Probably, clonally integrated proviruses were present at distinct locations in different subpopulations of tumor cells, reflecting tumor heterogeneity. Genomic DNA isolated from cultured osteosarcoma cells contained different additional MCF-related proviruses. No proviruses were found integrated in the vicinity of c-myc, but a large domain containing the complete c-myc gene was found amplified in one primary tumor (greater than 22 kbp) and in 0-127a1 cells (greater than 39 kbp). Our data suggest that activated retroviruses are not essential for the development of radiogenic osteosarcomas in CF1 mice, but they might be responsible for the deregulated expression of a growth promoting gene in some bone tumor cells.


OBJECTIVE. National tuberculosis programs in tuberculosis-endemic countries rarely implement active tracing and screening of child tuberculosis contacts, mainly because of resource constraints. We aimed to evaluate the safety and feasibility of applying a simple symptom-based approach to screen child tuberculosis contacts for active disease. METHODS. We conducted a prospective observational study from January through December 2004 at 3 clinics in Cape Town, South Africa. All of the children <5 years old in household contact with an adult tuberculosis source case were assessed by documenting current symptoms and tuberculin skin test and chest radiograph results. RESULTS. During the study period, 357 adult tuberculosis cases were identified; 195 cases (54.6%) had sputum smear and/or culture positive results and were in household contact with children aged <5 years. Complete information was available for 252 of 278 children; 176 (69.8%) were asymptomatic at the time of screening. Tuberculosis treatment was administered to 33 (13.1%) of 252; 27 were categorized as radiologically "certain tuberculosis," the majority (n = 22) of which had uncomplicated hilar adenopathy. The negative predictive value of symptom-based screening varied according to the case definition used, with 95.5% including all of the children treated for tuberculosis and 97.1% including only those with radiologically "certain tuberculosis." CONCLUSIONS. Our findings support current World Health Organization recommendations, demonstrating that symptom-based screening of child tuberculosis contacts should improve feasibility in resource-limited settings and seems to be safe.


PURPOSE
To develop a 4D MRI method for assessing respiration-induced abdominal organ motion in children receiving radiation therapy.

METHODS
A 4D MRI using internal image-based respiratory surrogate has been developed and implemented on a clinical scanner (1.5T Siemens Avanto). Ten patients (younger group: N=6, 2-5 years, anesthetized; older group: N=4, 11-15 years) with neuroblastoma, Wilm's tumor rhabdomyosarcoma, or desmoplastic small round cell tumor received free breathing 4D MRI scans for treatment planning. Coronal image slices of the entire abdomen were retrospectively constructed in 10 respiratory phases. A B-spline deformable registration (Metz et al. 2011) was performed on 4D datasets to automatically derive motion trajectories of selected anatomical landmarks, including the dome and the center of the liver, and the superior edges of kidneys and spleen. The extents of the motion in three dimensions (anteroposterior, AP; mediolateral, ML; superoinferior, SI) and the correlations between organ motion trajectories were quantified.

RESULTS
The 4D MRI scans were successfully performed in <20 minutes for all patients without the use of any external device. Organ motion extents were larger in adolescents (kidneys: 3-13 mm SI, liver and spleen: 6-18 mm SI) than in younger children (kidneys:<3mm in all directions; liver and spleen: 1-8 mm SI, 1-5 mm ML and AP). The magnitude of respiratory motion in some adolescents may warrant special motion management. Motion trajectories were not synchronized across selected anatomical landmarks, particularly in the ML and AP directions, indicating inter- and intra-organ variations of the respiratory-induced motion.

CONCLUSION
The developed 4D MRI acquisition and motion analysis methods provide a non-ionizing, non-invasive approach to automatically measure the organ motion trajectory in the pediatric abdomen. It is useful for defining ITV and PRV, monitoring changes in target motion patterns during the treatment course, and studying interplay effects in proton scanning.


Abstract This paper explores the effect of exclusionary ethical investing on corporate behavior in a risk-averse, equilibrium setting. While arguments exist that ethical investing can influence a firm's cost of capital, and so affect investment, no equilibrium model has been presented to do so. We show that exclusionary ethical investing leads to polluting firms being held by fewer investors since green investors eschew polluting firms' stock. This lack of risk sharing among non-green investors leads to lower stock prices for polluting firms, thus raising their cost of capital. If the higher cost of capital more than overcomes a cost of reforming (i.e., a polluting firm cleaning up its activities), then polluting firms will become socially responsible because of exclusionary ethical investing. A key determinant of the incentive for polluting firms to reform is the fraction of funds controlled by green investors. In our model, empirically reasonable parameter estimates indicate, that more than 20 % green investors are required to induce any polluting firmss to reform. Existing empirical evidence indicates that at most 10% of funds are invested by green investors.


This paper is motivated by recent findings that current models of stock returns and interest rates are incapable to capture the actual behavior of those financial variables (like hyper volatility, the behavior of higher moments and leverage effect), particularly during rare events. The paper solves analytically for the optimal portfolio strategies of bonds, stocks and cash when the investment opportunity set is driven by a mixture of jump diffusion and non-affine stochastic processes of interest rates and stock returns. Such structure should be able to capture the characteristics of financial data during rare events as many recent articles indicate. Results show that investors hold a linear combination of a speculative portfolio and a hedging portfolio, with weights related to the investor's risk tolerance. The investor increases (decreases) the speculative allocation in his portfolio if he expects upward (downward) jump. The amount of increase or decrease to the speculative portfolio depends on the degree of risk aversion and the investment horizon. The hedging portfolio consists of additional 100% bond portfolio to hedge against interest rate changes and a 100% stock portfolio to hedge against stochastic volatility changes. Those additional hedging portfolios depend on the duration of the bond and the correlation between stock returns and volatility processes, beside their dependence on the risk tolerance and investment horizon. The non-affine specification seems to increase the demand for hedging and captures the leverage effect. Calibration results show that the joint inclusion of jumps and non-affine structure into the investment opportunity set dynamics introduces a plausible simultaneous resolution for both Samuelson puzzle and asset allocation puzzle.


Many countries plan to decarbonise their energy systems by increasing energy efficiency and expanding the use of renewable energy sources (RES). Such actions require significant investments in new energy infrastructures. While people are generally accepting of these infrastructures, opposition sometimes arises when these developments are sited at close proximity to people's residences. Therefore, it is important to understand what actually drives people's preferences for spatial proximity to different energy infrastructure technologies. This study examines the factors influencing people's proximity preferences to different energy technologies using a cross-country econometric analysis of the stated preference data from an unprecedented survey conducted on nationally representative samples of the population in Ireland, the US and Germany. The survey involved more than 4,500 participants in total. This paper presents the data and selected results from a generalised ordered logit model for each energy technology surveyed. These are; wind turbines, solar power technology, biomass power plant, coal-red power plant and natural gas power plant. The results show that, in general, German and Irish citizens are willing to accept energy infrastructures at smaller distances to their homes than their US counterparts. Moreover, attitudinal factors are found to shape people's preferences more consistently than any of the socio-demographic characteristics. *Corresponding Author: email@example.com


Objective:To analyze the critical factors favoring the retention of patients under antiretroviral therapy (ART) in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), South Africa. Design and Methods:This retrospective study was based on the review of a representative sample of patients who began ART between March 2004 and May 2006 in 32 public sector sites and were followed up to July 1, 2007. Extended Cox proportional hazard models were used to identify the factors which significantly influenced treatment retention during the first 2 years of treatment. Kaplan-Meyer provided the probabilities of remaining on ART if these factors were present. Results:The 2835 sampled patients corresponded to about 10% of the universe of patients under ART in the 32 sites; 929 (33%) were males, and the median age of the sampled patients was 34 (interquartile range: 28-41). The analysis identified factors that significantly decreased the probability of remaining on ART. Patients' risk factors were initial CD4 <100 cells per microliter, lack of a telephone contact number, and being male. Sites' risk factors were the presence of a part time (PT) versus a full time (FT) senior professional nurse, a PT versus FT doctor, and intakes of 200 or more new patients per doctor per year. The probability of remaining on ART declined significantly for each increasing level of workload, but having a FT versus a PT doctor made a significant difference only for level of workload of 200 or more new patients per year. Conclusions:The analysis has identified the conditions influencing retention of ART patients in KZN. This has provided a method to estimate absorption capacity of the ART delivery sites, which is of added value for a sustainable expansion of the ART coverage.


In this Editorial, I address a curious feature of the contemporary renaissance of comparative constitutional inquiries: its exclusive focus on the "current" and the "new" with little or no attention to the field's rich and captivating intellectual history. Contemporary discussions in comparative constitutional law and comparative public law more generally, often proceed as if there is no past, only present and future. Many of the debates that take place within the field are presented as grounded in ideas or situations that are novel and hitherto unknown to mankind. The reality, however, is that critical encounters with the constitutive laws of others have been taking place since well before the late 18th century. Many of the contemporary debates in comparative constitutional law have early equivalents, some of which date back over two millennia. Granted, many of the specifics at play are indeed new. The migration of constitutional ideas, the ascendance of constitutional guarantees of rights and entitlements, the rise of a new transnational legal order and judicial class, and the corresponding decrease in the autonomy of "Westphalian" constitutionalism are among the developments that have inspired debates in the last few decades. And it is also true that the rapid development of information technology and the tremendous improvement in the quality and accessibility of data sources on constitutional systems and jurisprudence worldwide — have already had an effect on the way comparative constitutional inquiries are pursued. Taken as a whole, however, the history of engagement with the constitutive laws of others is much longer and richer than is reflected in the field's current renaissance. The near-exclusive emphasis on contemporary "headline" matters is understandable yet misguided. First, a field with no past lacks a solid intellectual identity and analytical mainstay. Second, the field's presumption of all-out novelty, of an entire comparative enterprise de-novo is in some respects fictional. Purportedly new challenges such as the fundamental tension between forces of legal convergence and enduring patterns of divergence have numerous early equivalents that occupied thinkers, jurists, and rulers for centuries. Third, and most importantly, conceptual history is potentially a powerful analytical and methodological tool for understanding the origins of comparative public law as we know it, for explaining the field's current renaissance, as well as for tracing how and why the constitutive laws of others have been selectively engaged, endorsed or rejected by communities, polities and empires through the ages. It may help drive home the message that comparative constitutionalism is more than an emerging field of legal inquiry. It is a tool for understanding of the political and the social condition itself.


This paper develops a new fault-tolerant robot control technique, by constructing and evaluating an adaptive actuator failure compensation scheme for control of a Hexapod subject to uncertain actuator failures. Based on adaptive integration of multiple individual failure compensators and direct adaptation of controller parameters, the adaptive actuator failure compensation scheme utilizes redundancy in the system to guarantee desired closed-loop stability and asymptotic output tracking, despite concurrent actuator failures whose pattern, time and value are all uncertain. Simulation results are presented to verify the desired adaptive failure compensation control performance for a typical Hexapod dynamic system model.


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in accordance with part 20 of this chapter. (b) Before public disclosure of a report, FDA will delete from the report: (1) Any information that constitutes trade secret or confidential commercial or financial information under § 20.61 of this chapter; and (2) Any personnel, medical, or similar information, including the serial numbers of implanted devices, which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy under § 20.63 of this chapter or 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6); provided, that except for the information under § 20.61 of this chapter or 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4), FDA will disclose to a patient who requests a report all the information in the report concerning that patient.


Background Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is an effective treatment for depression that has been proposed to work via the enhancement of cognitive control. Cognitive control training (CCT) can also alleviate depression by relying on DLPFC activation. As the additive effects of rTMS and CCT are unclear, we set out to conduct a within-subject pilot study in healthy controls. Methods Seventeen participants received two sessions of individualized resting-state connectivity-guided high-frequency rTMS, while randomly performing CCT or a control task. After each session, a negative mood was induced. Results We found effects on mood and cognitive control after rTMS + CCT as well as rTMS + control, which were indiscriminative between conditions. Based on the statistical evidence for the absence of an additive effect of CCT, we did not perform a full study. Conclusion Our results demonstrate no differential effects of single sessions combining rTMS and CCT in a healthy population, even with the methodological improvement of individualized neuronavigation. The improvement in cognitive control seen in both conditions could indicate that a simple cognitive task is sufficient when studying additive rTMS effects. Future studies should focus on augmenting the effects of various cognitive tasks and compare the present interventions with rTMS or cognitive tasks alone.


PurposeThis work assesses changes in soil and vegetation structure associated with grazing intensity (GI) in subhumid grasslands. We conducted the study in the Subandean district of Patagonia, Argentina. Non-degraded Subandean grass steppes have extremely erodible volcanic soils and are valuable grazing ranges. However, nowadays vast portions exhibit a heterogeneous cover that is mostly of cushions shrubs, with big eroded soil patches.MethodsWe selected four study sites along a GI gradient and one grazed-excluded site. Soils, vegetation cover and patches structure were characterised. We took soil samples beneath grass and shrub patches and their interpatches and in undisturbed spots. ResultsSoils in undisturbed spots had the highest chemical fertility. Soils in grazing areas showed high heterogeneity associated with plant life-form and GI. Results also showed that medium and fine sand particles remobilised from bare soil to vegetated patches. Total nitrogen and organic matter increased in the same direction. Grass cover decreased as GI increases, while shrubs cover and total richness increased, until a collapse at the highest intensity. Relative cover of cushion shrubs and bare soil grow steadily with GI. ConclusionsThe fertility island effect was associated with cushion shrubs. Grazing caused cushion shrub encroachment regardless of its intensity. Notwithstanding this, the same disturbance -grazing- which promoted cushions prevalence also favoured the collapse of fertile islands when reached to maximum intensity. Ecosystem services provision from a range management standpoint decreased. However, the increases in richness under moderate GI could represent an enhancement in system functionality.