It is a little difncult to review a book when the authors have already made a strong defence of the case in the Gazette (PASCAL Rules OK! Oct. 1981). PASCAL was developed in 1970 at Zurich Federal Institute of Technology by Nicholas Wirth and named in honour of Blaise Pascal of calculator fame. There is some dispute in Universities about the teaching of BASIC as a computing language (some institutions seem to dislike the idea of students learning anything about computing either at school or college!) The authors of this book feel that BASIC should be replaced by PASCAL as a computer language. PASCAL is a higher level language than BASIC and as such more nearly mirrors a natural language. It also has a richer structure and thus the implementation of complex programmes is easier. As an introduction to PASCAL I found this book very good. It is well laid out and eaxy to follow. The big problem is one of implementation. It is not easy to use on a microcomputer (and a large memory is needed) and how many students and staff have access to PASCAL on a main frame? For the average (and less than average) student BASIC is easy to understand and easy to implement. With structured BASIC available is PASCAL really necessary? If you are going into industry why not learn ALGOL or COBAL?


In the paper conditions are found under which the compact operator $Tf(x)=\varphi(x)\int_0^ xf(\tau)v(\tau)\,d\tau,$ $x>0,$ acting in weighted Lorentz spaces $T:L^{r,s}_{v} (\mathbb{R^+})\to L^{p,q}_{\omega}(\mathbb{R^+})$ in the domain $1<\max (r,s)\le \min(p,q)<\infty,$ belongs to operator ideals $\mathfrak{S}^{(a)}_\alpha$ and $\mathfrak{E}_\alpha$, $0<\alpha<\infty$. And estimates are also obtained for the quasinorms of operator ideals in terms of integral expressions which depend on operator weight functions.


Thin, reinforced and biaxially textured Ni5W/Ni12W/Ni5W composite substrate for coated conductor applications has been fabricated by traditional powder metallurgy method using the sparking plasma sintering (SPS) technology, followed by cold rolling and annealing. In-situ EBSD strain-stress analysis shows that the yield stress (δ0.2) can reach 240MPa. The high quality of cubic texture and boundaries of low misorientation angle were stable until elongations as high as 2%. Meanwhile, the cubic grain fractions on surfaces of top Ni5W layer of the composite tapes are 98.3%, 99.5% and 99.8%, respectively, corresponding to be annealed at 1250°C for 60min, 120min and 180min, indicating the cube texture can successfully sustain after severe treatment condition.


This paper provides evidence on the effects of successful tender offers on the number of target and acquiring firm employees. No significant change in combined employment is observed, on average, over the three-year period following offer completion. However, hostile tender offers completed between 1980 and 1984 are followed by an average 17.2% decline in employment. Net divestitures of operations over the period are responsible for some of the observed employment decrease; however, an estimated ‐12.2% change remains, on average, after adjusting for divestiture activity. Information contained in firm annual reports and in the Wall Street Journal indicates that the tender offers in the sample are often followed by considerable restructuring activity with respect to both target and acquiring firm operations. The findings suggest that acquiring firm managements may acquire new operations when the need to restructure their existing operations frees up resources, e.g. cash and/or managerial time and talent. The evidence also suggests that the corporate control market must be viewed as an integral part of the process by which US firms restructure to meet changing circumstances.


Drought is a recurrent extreme climate event that strongly affects every spectre of the natural environment and human lives (Madadgar andMoradkhani, 2014). There were numerous drought episodes recorded in MidwesternUSA, particularly in California. It has affected many aspects, including water shortages, groundwater overdraft, critically low stream flow (Diffenbaugh et al., 2015) and economical loss. In contrast, California as the third most extensive area in the U.S., is occupied most of the land use for agricultural purposes. In order to capture the trend of hydrological drought in California, understanding towards the risk of hydrological drought in comprehensive way should be conducted. In a broader sense, the quantification of hazard of hydrological drought will be a preliminary step mitigating the drought event, as an integral part of risk management. This research is aimed (i) to understand the characteristic of hydrological drought using statistical tool; (ii) to build a model to estimate the low stream-flow using the relationship between hydro-meteorological and hydrological drought; and (iii) to quantify the risk ratio of the hydrological drought duration using a statistical method. In general, the thesis will be divided into two big parts, hydrological drought severity and hydrological drought duration. The former part will be analysed using Bayesian Network to estimate the mean monthly discharge in California. The latter part is evaluated using Generalised Linear Model to study the risk of having the expected number of days without discharge in California under different cases of scenarios. Besides gaining information from modelling hydrological drought, this thesis will also try to answer the formulated research questions. The research questions focus upon the statistical perspective towards hydrological drought, by explaining the input data for the model and the advantage(s) and disadvantage(s) of such models.


DrJafferwishes toapologize forcertainerrors in theabovepaper.Thefollowingcorrections shouldbenoted: a) In the Results section of the Abstract, the percentage of women who had undergone a previous termination of pregnancy was 32%, not 29%. b) In the Results, in the section on Past history of termination of pregnancy, a total of 395 women provided information regarding their past history, and 127 women had undergone a previous termination. c) In Table 3, 127 women in total had a previous termination of pregnancy, not 129. d) In Table 8, the level of significance of those using no method of contraception is 0.003, not 0.0003.


This paper describes the dialogue around Science and Technology (S and T) policy in post-colonial African countries with a special emphasis on Southern Africa. It traces the evolution of S and T policy dialogue from several global and African conferences held in the 1960s. In post-colonial Africa, S and T policy dialogue was founded on the Monrovia declaration of 1979 and the Lagos Plan of Action of 1980. In the new millennium, African S and T policy dialogue has been driven by the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). In Southern Africa, the S and T policy environment is guided by several treaties of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Although African S and T policies are well discussed and articulated, implementation of the S and T agenda has been poor, hence the authors recommend that NEPAD institutes an S and T peer-review mechanism to monitor performance of S and T indicators in member states.


In this work we investigate the effect of relativistic degeneracy on different properties of low-dimensional quantum plasmas. Using the dielectric response from the conventional quantum hydrodynamic model, including the quantum diffraction effect (Bohm potential) on free electrons, we explore the existence of the Shukla– Eliasson attractive screening and possibility of the ion structure formation in lowdimensional, completely degenerate electron–ion plasmas. A generalized degeneracy pressure expression for arbitrary relativity parameter in two-dimensional case is derived, indicating that change in the polytropic index (change in the equation of state) for the two-dimensional quantum fluid takes place at the electron numberdensity of n0 1.1 × 10 cm−2 whereas this is known to occur for the threedimensional case in the electron density of n0 5.9 × 10 cm−3. Also, a generalized dielectric function valid for all dimensionalities and densities of a degenerate electron gas is calculated, and distinct properties of electron–ion plasmas, such as static screening, structure factor and Thomson scattering, are investigated in terms of plasma dimensionality.


Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus infestation is responsible for significant economic losses in cattle industry. The use of acaricides at strategic times and selection of resistant animals can minimize economic losses. This study aimed to determine the anatomical distribution and population dynamics of R. microplus in the municipality of Oleo, state of Sao Paulo. This study was conducted using eight male cattle, crossbred zebu-taurine (in accordance with the regional herd). Female R. (B.) microplus, greater than 4 mm, present in the right side of the animals were counted between April 2012 and March 2013. The highest tick number per animal was noted in October (128.25), and the lowest in April (35.5), with three infestation peaks during the study, in May, October, and December, which were influenced by the minimum and maximum mean temperature and rainfall. Among the cranio-caudal regions (anterior, median, and posterior), the posterior had the highest mean tick number, and the anterior had the lowest. The minimum temperature, rainfall, and solar radiation interfered with infestation of dorsoventral regions: in cold months, the lowest infestations were found in the mixed area (ear and tail); in the warm months, in the high region (head, neck, upper ribs, flank, and rump). The lower region (dewlap, cranial limb, lower ribs, abdomen, prepuce, scrotum, and lower limb) always had the highest mean tick number. The tick numbers of the caudal limb and crotch showed strong correlation with the total tick number (+0.88 and +0.70, respectively). These data, grouped according to median, posterior, and crotch regions, showed a stronger correlation with the total tick number (+0.96, +0.90, and +0.70, respectively).


Background: Many organophosphorus (OP) insecticides have either two O-methyl or two O-ethyl groups attached to the phosphorus atom. This chemical structure affects their responsiveness to oxime-induced acetylcholinesterase (AChE) reactivation after poisoning. However, several OP insecticides are atypical and do not have these structures. Aim: We aimed to describe the clinical course and responsiveness to therapy of people poisoned with two S-alkyl OP insecticides—profenofos and prothiofos. Design: We set up a prospective cohort of patients with acute profenofos or prothiofos self-poisoning admitted to acute medical wards in two Sri Lankan district hospitals. Clinical observation was carried out throughout their inpatient stay; blood samples were taken in a subgroup for assay of cholinesterases and insecticide. Results: Ninety-five patients poisoned with profenofos and 12 with prothiofos were recruited over 5 years. Median time to admission was 4 (IQR 3–7) h. Eleven patients poisoned with profenofos died (11/95; 11.6%, 95% CI 5.9–20); one prothiofos patient died (1/12; 8.3%, 95% CI 0.2–38). Thirteen patients poisoned with profenofos required intubation for respiratory failure (13/95; 13.7%, 95% CI 7.5–22); two prothiofos-poisoned patients required intubation. Both intubations and death occurred late compared with other OP insecticides. Prolonged ventilation was needed in those who survived—a median of 310 (IQR 154–349) h. Unexpectedly, red cell AChE activity on admission did not correlate with clinical severity—all patients had severe AChE inhibition (about 1% of normal) but most had only mild cholinergic features, were conscious, and did not require ventilatory support. Conclusions: Compared with other commonly used OP insecticides, profenofos and prothiofos are of moderately severe toxicity, causing relatively delayed respiratory failure and death. There was no apparent response to oxime therapy. The lack of correlation between red cell AChE activity and clinical features suggests that this parameter may not always be a useful marker of synaptic AChE activity and severity after OP pesticide poisoning.


Background: Cilia loss and dysfunction is one of the typical pathological features of chronic rhinosinusitis. Tryptophan-aspartic acid (W-D) repeat containing planar cell polarity effector (WDPCP) has been proven to be an essential element for ciliogenesis in human nasal epithelium, but its role in the beating of cilia remains unclear. Cilia beating requires energy from the mitochondria, which is regulated by the MAPK/ERK pathway. In this study, we sought to investigate the role of WDPCP and its underlying mechanism behind the dysfunction in the beating of cilia in chronic rhinosinusitis.Methods: We demonstrated WDPCP expression in the epithelium of nasal polyps. We also investigated the MAPK/ERK pathway in primary human sinonasal epithelial cells to explore the function of WDPCP. The air-liquid interface culture system was used as a model to verify the role of WDPCP and the MAPK/ERK pathway in the beating of cilia.Results: With the dysfunction of cilia beating, we observed a low expression of WDPCP in the epithelium of nasal polyps. Within the in vitro study, we found that WDPCP was critical for mitochondrial biogenesis and mitochondrial function in human sinonasal epithelial cells, possibly due to the activation of the MAPK/ERK pathway. The mitochondrial dysfunction caused by U0126 or lacking WDPCP could be partially recovered by dexamethasone.Conclusion: The low expression of WDPCP in nasal epithelium could affect mitochondria via the MAPK/ERK pathway, which may contribute to the dysfunction in the beating of cilia in chronic rhinosinusitis.


Resolution of (±)ibuprofen using S-α-Methylbenzylamine in pure ethanol leads to the enriched S-IBU/S-αMBA diastereomeric salt which crystallizes as very fine needles. In order to improve the filterability and processability of the solid phase, water can be added to the medium and lead to more equant particles that are still elongated. A high fraction of the resulting platelets display on both ends a fluid inclusion containing both liquid and a large bubble of gas. A detailed analysis of the particles reveals that they are not really single crystals but more an ordered association of fibers defined as fibrous crystal. A domain of partial solid solution is evidenced near the pure less soluble diastereomer and its impact on the formation of fibrous crystals is demonstrated. When pure S-IBU/S-αMBA diastereomeric salt is recrystallized in the same medium (e.g., ethanol–water) the crystallinity is improved, but fluid inclusions can still be observed.


Fabric hand, an important characteristic to the textile industry, is influenced by such fiber parameters as flexural rigidity and friction and by yarn parameters such as count, twist, CV%, hairiness, stiffness, and softness. This study deals primarily with predicting the softness of knitted T-shirts from yarn quality parameters. The work consists of a short literature review on the existing yam parameters as well as fabric hand evaluation and prediction techniques. The latest developments in measuring the roughness of textile material surfaces are, also covered. Using the surface profile as tested by the mechanical stylus surface analyzer (MSSA), developed at North Carolina State Uni versity, a novel yarn surface analysis parameter called the "surface response average" (SRA) is developed, along with a model for the fiber/stylus tip interaction. Ten T-shirts produced from ten different yarn samples are ranked based on their softness by a panel of judges. The yams used to make these T-shirts are tested by Uster III and MSSA, and standard roughness parameters are calculated. The results show no significant corre lation between standard roughness parameters and fabric softness. The correlation be tween hand and SRA is about -0.6, which suggests that a higher SRA corresponds to a softer fabric.


of chemical protective agents against ionizing radiation. The sulphur-containingprotective agents cystamine and cysteaminehave been studied, labelled sulphur.being used in the compounds. These substances inactivate the productsof irradiation of water by virtue of the reactivity of their sulphur groupings,and so fewer free radicalsare available within an irradiated cell to produceevidenceof radiation damage. Therkelsen shows that cysteamine administered to mice protects them from an otherwise lethal dose of nitrogen mustard. Pirie describesexperiments on the productionof radiation cataract. He reports that·if the beam of radiation included the whole lens, uniform opacity resulted; if only the centralportion of the lens received the same dose, no opacity resulted; if a marginal segmentof the lens received the same dose, a marginal opacity resulted spreading segmentally to the centre. The conclusion is reachedthat irradiation of the peripheral cells produces some influence on the central cells which does not act in reversefashion. Elson records the eJrects of a mustard, CB-1348, and the synthetic chemical "Myleran" in blood and bone marrow studies, and comparestheir action with radiation. Radiotherapy destroysthe activity of all varieties of hremopoieticcells. "Myleran" reproduces only the myeloid damage, and CB·1348 produces lymphoid destruction. If both are simultaneously administered, a marrow and systemic responseakin to that of radiation is seen. Belcher reports studieson the whole body irradiation of rats, and similar experiments with one limb shielded. Regenerationof irradiated marrow was much quicker in the animal with partial shielding, and it is concluded that a regenerative factor is produced by unirradiated hremopoietic tissue which stimulatesthe irradiated marrow. In several contributions the effects of the administrationof Sr'" on bone growth and metabolismare reported; profound depression of both growth and metabolism is recorded. Mole writes on the carcinogeniceffects of irradiation. Firstly a mutation may be produced in a cell, giving it neoplastic properties. Secondly, the radiation damageto the tissue may be reparable. In this repair process the neoplasm may arise, particularly if the radiation is long-continued and interferes with the subsequentrepair. This is the hypothesisof "unstablerepair" and is illustrated clinically. e.g., when carcinomaof the colon appearsas a sequelaof ulcerative colitis. Smithers, in the discussion of Mole's paper, rightly stressed the very low occurrenceof neoplasms as a result of standard therapeutic irradiation procedures.


The 60-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ) was translated into Turkish and administered to a community sample of 437 Turkish-speaking immigrants resident in Melbourne, Australia. The factor structures of the 60-item and 28-item versions of the GHQ were examined to determine the cross-cultural validity of the four subscales of the 28-item GHQ "anxiety/insomnia", "social dysfunction", "severe depression" and "somatic complaints". Four-factor principal components analyses yielded factors which corresponded to similar underlying traits, but the pattern of symptom loadings differed in several ways. Insomnia was less closely associated with anxiety, and general illness ratings such as "not feeling perfectly well" were not uniquely associated with somatic symptoms. The "anxiety/insomnia" and "severe depression" factors overlapped, with many symptoms partially correlated with both factors. These factors appeared to be due to variations in the frequency of occurrence of these symptoms rather than a qualitative distinction between anxiety and depression.


The objectives of the study are (1) to describe the implementation of teaching Vocabulary using short story telling and its influence to the students' vocabulary mastery, and (2) to find out the kinds of problem faced by the teacher when she taught English by using the short story telling. The writer formulates the problems in form of Action Research as follows : "How the implementation of teaching is and what kinds of problem faced by the teacher are when teaching English by using short story telling". The
research was done in SDN I Kismoyoso Ngemplak Boyolali. As the sample, the writer took 41 students of the fifth year students. Based on the data analysis, the writer describe the implementation of teaching Vocabulary using short story
telling. The teacher uses copies passage as media. The writer gave the copy of short story to the students. The writer read and translated word by word with slowly and loudly. The writer conducted treatment to the students in the form of the exercises. The writer had been done two cycles. The problems found in cycle 1 had been solved. in cycle 2. The process of teaching learning English make the
students enjoyed the English lesson especially vocabulary.
The writer also found that is the problems faced by the teacher when she taught English using short story telling technique are that : (1) the students always keep silent when they learn English, (2) two or three of the students always read story slowly, (3) the students are always afraid if asked to answer the questions from the writer, and (4) sometimes the students are very noisy when teacher teaches English.
The conclusion is that the implementatio n of teaching English using short story telling in SDN I Kismoyoso Ngemplak Boyolali is very effective. The use of teaching and aids using this technique is very appropriate and helpful to
enrich students' vocabulary mastery.


Abstract Background: Pyocolpos, an uncommon accumulation of pus in the vagina, has not been previously reported in an elderly woman. Case: A 76-year-old woman was hospitalised with post-menopausal bleeding and fever. Pelvic examination revealed an obstructed vagina. A gadolinium MRI showed pyocolpos. After surgical drainage, the patient rapidly recovered. Conclusion: Pyocolpos in elderly woman may appear spontaneously without any history of gynaecologic cancer or trauma.


Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) is currently seldom used in the high-rainfall (>600 mm) zone of south-eastern Australia. To determine its potential to improve forage availability during the summer-autumn feed-deficit period, a field plot-scale experiment with sheep evaluated a Continental cultivar of tall fescue (cv. Quantum) at Hamilton, Victoria, between September 2006 and January 2009. Four grazing treatments represented set stocking or rotational grazing at the two-, three- or four-leaf stage, in a completely randomized design with three replications. Grazing treatment effects on tall fescue tiller population dynamics, forage accumulation rates and consumption, sward nutritive value and botanical composition were measured. Results showed tall fescue can persist and support year-round grazing by sheep, subject to water availability for summer growth from summer rain or on moisture retentive heavy soils. During the summer-autumn (December–April) vegetative phase, grazing at the three-leaf stage optimized forage consumption, with no difference in feed value or botanical composition between the grazing treatments during these months. During the reproductive phase (September–November), feed value was highest under set stocking and declined with the production of each successive leaf. Grazing at the three- or four-leaf stage prevented winter weed invasion, but winter forage consumption was low in these treatments. Set stocking or grazing at the two-leaf stage improved winter forage consumption rates, but these swards were invaded by winter growing weeds.


Every Boolean function is uniquely defined by a polynomial modulo 2. The degree of a Boolean function is the degree of its defining polynomial. In cryptography, the Boolean functions of fixed degree played important role, for example, 1 or 2 degrees. Therefore, in finding algorithms that recognize properties of Boolean functions polynomials by their values vectors, it makes sense consider only algorithms that have lower complexity order. In this paper, we propose a linear complexity algorithm which determines the vector values a Boolean function given, it is a polynomial of fixed degree, and if so constructing this polynomial.


Since deformation estimation may lead to errors occurring when the camera vibrates, it is necessary to remove the image global motion before computing real bridge deformation. In this study, a combination of image motion correction algorithm and 2D image-based deformation measurement technique was utilized to address the issue of camera motion during the image data acquisition for bridge deformation measurement. Based on the proposed methodology, the image motion parameters were estimated by defining an effective sub-image in the image and using Iterative Affine Motion Estimator. Then the estimated parameters were applied to all pixels of each captured image to remove the motion effect. Finally, the corrected images were used to analyze by a 2D image-based deformation measurement technique in order to extract and measure real bridge deformation by tracking artificial or natural targets. The proposed methodology was validated by two experiments in the lab and field environments. Achieved results show the accuracy and reliability of the proposed methodology.


Backgrounds: The complications of hepatic cirrhosis are responsible for death and hospitalization. We aimed to analyze the clinical characteristics in cirrhotic symptom according to etiology.Methods: A total of 1,573 admissions of decompensated hepatic cirrhosis in the hospital were enrolled between September 2014 and August 2019. We described the relationships between major symptoms and cirrhotic etiologies. We assessed the secondary hepatic encephalopathy for each cirrhotic etiology.Results: Among all complications, the constituent ratio of gastrointestinal hemorrhage was 37.87%, followed by ascites and jaundice with 23.70% and 11.40%, respectively. Gastrointestinal hemorrhage was more presented in hepatitis B and hepatitis C than in alcoholic cirrhosis (57.59%, 47.86% and 42.19%, p < 0.05). No significant difference was found between hepatitis B and hepatitis C for all symptoms. Jaundice was the major symptom in primary biliary cirrhosis and autoimmune cirrhosis. Alcoholic cirrhotic patients had a higher rate to develop secondary encephalopathy than other etiologies (13.51%, p < 0.05).Conclusions: Gastrointestinal hemorrhage was the main symptom for hospitalization in decompensated cirrhotic patients. Patients of hepatitis cirrhosis were more likely to have gastrointestinal hemorrhage than those of alcohol cirrhosis. Patients of alcohol cirrhosis were likely to develop a secondary encephalopathy following the presentation of other symptoms.


Mineralo-organic nanoparticles form spontaneously in human body fluids when the concentrations of calcium and phosphate ions exceed saturation. We have shown previously that these mineralo-organic nanoparticles possess biomimetic properties and can reproduce the whole phenomenology of the so-called nanobacteria—mineralized entities initially described as the smallest microorganisms on earth. Here, we examine the possibility that various charged elements and ions may form mineral nanoparticles with similar properties in biological fluids. Remarkably, all the elements tested, including sodium, magnesium, aluminum, calcium, manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper, zinc, strontium, and barium form mineralo-organic particles with bacteria-like morphologies and other complex shapes following precipitation with phosphate in body fluids. Upon formation, these mineralo-organic particles, which we term bions, invariably accumulate carbonate apatite during incubation in biological fluids; yet, the particles also incorporate additional elements and thus reflect the ionic milieu in which they form. Bions initially harbor an amorphous mineral phase that gradually converts to crystals in culture. Our results show that serum produces a dual inhibition-seeding effect on bion formation. Using a comprehensive proteomic analysis, we identify a wide range of proteins that bind to these mineral particles during incubation in medium containing serum. The two main binding proteins identified, albumin and fetuin-A, act as both inhibitors and seeders of bions in culture. Notably, bions possess several biomimetic properties, including the possibility to increase in size and number and to be sub-cultured in fresh culture medium. Based on these results, we propose that bions represent biological, mineralo-organic particles that may form in the body under both physiological and pathological homeostasis conditions. These mineralo-organic particles may be part of a physiological cycle that regulates the function, transport and disposal of elements and minerals in the human body.


Aims and Objectives: To study cytological features of non-neoplastic and neoplastic lesions of enlarged lymph nodes by fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) and determine the pattern of disease affecting the lymphnodes.
Methods: This study was carried out at Mysore Medical College and Research Institute, Mysore on 943 cases that were referred with lymphadenopathy over a period of two years. Biopsy and special stains were done in selected cases.
Results: Tuberculous lymphadenitis, reactive hyperplasia, suppurative lymphadenitis, metastatic carcinoma and lymphoma were seen in 48.5%, 27.4%, 6.9%, 23.9% and 1.9% respectively. Tuberculous lymphadenitis was seen most often in the second and third decades, while reactive hyperplasia was seen most often in first two decades of life. Metastatic carcinoma was seen predominantly above 40 years of age. Squamous cell carcinoma was the most common metastatic lesion.
Conclusion: The most frequent causes of were tuberculosis, metastatic malignancies and reactive lymphadenitis. FNAC alone can help in establishing the diagnosis in large number of cases. In certain situation it can be enough for diagnosis in proper clinical setting to avoid surgical procedure like biopsy.


The relevance of the problem subject to the research is conditioned by the discrepancy between (a) the orientation of the modern vocational-pedagogical education on the result of the future teacher training that is based on the subject matter and contents, and (b) the need to develop pedagogical skills. The application of the gaming simulation within the process of pedagogical skills development takes such skills to a completely new level. A study of the process of pedagogical skills development at students of a vocational-pedagogical education by way of the gaming simulation is the purpose of the article. Experiment and research activities were carried out during four years. A pedagogical experiment using the specially developed programme allowing discovering the level of pedagogical skills development at the trainees is the leading method for the research of this problem. Research results: The article provides for a model for the education of a student of a vocational-pedagogical educational institution through the gaming simulation; a scheme for this model implementation has been developed. Article contents may be useful for lecturers and students of pedagogical higher education institutions at the monitoring of the education quality.


OBJECTIVE
To study the prevalence of esophageal cancer and various lesions of esophagus in high risk areas through a screening program for early diagnosis and treatment.

METHODS
Random cluster sampling method was used to select some portions of a natural village as screening object in the high risk areas of esophageal cancer, from 2006 to 2011. Endoscope iodine staining and index biopsy screening methods were used on people with high risk and followed by pathological exams for confirmation.

RESULTS
The detection rates regarding mild esophageal hyperplasia, moderate and severe esophageal hyperplasia were 5.33% (803/15 065), 1.28% (193/15 065), 0.68% (102/15 065) respectively while the detection rates on carcinoma in situ, intramucosal carcinoma and invasive cancer were 0.15% (22/15 065), 0.06% (9/15 065), 0.29% (43/15 065) respectively. The detection rate in male esophageal hyperplasia was higher than in female. People younger than 65 years old, the detection rates on mild, moderate or severe esophageal hyperplasia and invasive cancer showed an increase with age, with the 60-year-olds group reaching the highest. The detection rates on the above said diseases were 7.72% (198/2565), 2.07% (53/2565), 1.29% (33/2565), 0.51% (13/2565) respectively. The detection rates on mild, moderate or severe esophageal hyperplasia varied in different years and with statistically significant differences (P < 0.001) but did not show any obvious trend of changing. Geographical distribution of mild esophageal hyperplasia, moderate esophageal hyperplasia, severe esophageal hyperplasia also significantly varied in different villages (P < 0.001). The highest detection rate in the mountainous villages was seen the highest while the detection rate of village from hilly areas was the lowest.

CONCLUSION
There were considerable numbers of patients with precancerous lesions in the general population from the high risk areas. The detection rate of esophageal cancer in the mountain residents was higher than the rate in the hilly areas. Men and the elderly were the key populations calling for esophageal cancer prevention programs to be carried out.


Seven new species are described from Colombia: Anacroneuria citara, A. otun, A. pastora, A. quimbaya, A. tatama, A. tayrona and A. tunasi. The first Colombian records are given for A. bari Stark, A. curiosa Stark and A. harperi Stark; the latter two species were previously known from Mesoamerica and this is their first report from South America. New records, mainly in the Andinum natural region, are presented for 20 previously reported Colombian species. In addition, the unknown females of A. calima Baena & Rojas, A. marta Zuniga & Stark and A. yameo Stark & Sivec are described, and three unassociated females are described under informal designation.


Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are widely used anthropogenic chemicals. The PFAS class includes almost 5000 registered compounds, but analytical methods are lacking for most PFASs. The total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assay was developed to indirectly quantify unknown PFASs that are precursors to commonly measured perfluoroalkyl acids. To understand the behavior of recently identified per- and polyfluoroalkyl ether acids (PFEAs), including fluorinated replacements and manufacturing byproducts, we determined the fate of 15 PFEAs in the TOP assay. Ten perfluoroalkyl ether acids and a chlorinated polyfluoroalkyl ether acid (F-53B) were stable in the TOP assay and represent terminal products that are likely as persistent as historically used PFASs. Adding perfluoroalkyl ether acids and F-53B to the target analyte list for the TOP assay is recommended to capture a higher percentage of the total PFAS concentration in environmental samples. In contrast, polyfluoroalkyl ether acids with a -O-CFH- moiety were oxidized, typically to products that could not be identified by liquid chromatography and high-resolution mass spectrometry. Application of the TOP assay in its proposed enhanced form revealed high levels of PFEAs, the presence of precursors that form perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids, and the absence of precursors that form PFEAs in surface water impacted by PFAS-containing wastewater discharges.


This study assessed the immediate causal effect of peer-group rejection on children's state anxiety and self-esteem, as well as their risk-taking behaviour. Children (n = 44) aged 8 and 10 years participated in a minimal group study in which they were accepted or rejected by a peer group, following which their anxiety, self-esteem, and risk-taking behaviour were assessed. The findings revealed that peer rejection caused a substantial increase in the children's anxiety, but did not affect their self-esteem. It was also found that peer status interacted with age to influence the children's risk-taking behaviour. Following peer rejection, children's risk-taking behaviour was significantly greater at 10 compared with 8 years of age. In contrast, following peer acceptance, their risk-taking was significantly lower at 10 compared with 8 years of age. The implications of the findings for research on peer-group rejection and risk-taking behaviour are discussed.


Summary This study was designed to determine plasma cTnI and cTnT concentrations in dogs with DCM and to investigate the value of these two parameters in this type of heart disease. For this purpose, 11 dogs with DCM diagnosed, via electrocardiographic and echocardiographic examinations nearby apparent clinical heart disease symptoms were studied. The correlation coefficients between serum CK, cTnI and cTnT values were determined insignificant and no important relationship was calculated between these values. High cTnI levels were determined for 10 of 11 (90.9%) dogs with DCM, while high cTnT levels were determined for 7 of 11 (63.6%) dogs with DCM. It is suggested that cardiac Troponins, especially cTnI is a strong candidate as a cardiac biomarker in animals.


In today's society, all citizens who need digital information to manage their everyday life must be able to access it and trust it. They should have enough knowledge to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) and online health information (OHI) in an intended and purposeful way. The broader aim of this paper is to present and discuss health knowledge management (KM) from senior users of the online health information point of view. The theoretical point of departure is based on an understanding of health, knowledge and the Internet as social practices. This paper investigates e-Health literacy (eHL) and KM in health amongst seniors aged 65-90. It presents a case study on how they access, apprais, share and apply OHI in comparison to the way they use face-to-face health-encounters. Data comes from 17 open-ended interviews. E-HL and KM concepts are used to analyse and describe online behaviour and knowledge management in health as an interplay between individual and social factors.  The results show how participants engage in self- and co-management of their own or others' health and illustrate how they get or receive help to understand OHI. By examining how they use ICT and do (not) trust OHI regarding "serious cases," this paper provides critical insight into ways seniors acquire information and how they appraise, understand or trust in it. Their information-seeking activities are performed mainly in private settings, seldom with professionals. They have lower levels of trust in their own, individual appraisal skills, compared to collective searches and discussions. Norwegian seniors are cool and pragmatic, and emphatic on the "when needs must, see your GP!". By examining differences in ICT use, knowledge acquisition and support given or received, the results pinpoint how providers must affirm seniors' ICT use and individual and collective online health behaviour as assets for healthy ageing. A potential barrier for citizens' use of OHI and health technology is the built-in understanding of health as an individual capacity and ICT use as an individual activity, compared to a contemporary understanding of health and the Internet as social practices and collective resources. Designers of health technologies and OHI should critically consider built-in understandings of content and users to enhance accessibility and value for citizens of all ages.


Flexbeams in hingeless rotors have non-uniform geometries to form virtual hinges for the lead-lag and flap motions of blades. For bearingless rotors, the flexbeams also contain a virtual hinge for the pitch of the blades. Commonly, flexbeams are damaged through high cyclic and vibratory loadings. Damage in the form of delamination for composite beams degrade performance and can potentially cause catastrophic failure. In a beam of uniform cross section, the transverse dynamics of a beam can be characterized by four wavetypes. By tracking the progression of the waves along the beam and back again, the wavetypes can be used to infer damage. While this process has worked well for uniform beams with cracks, tapered beams are difficult to model. To avoid high fidelity spectral finite element modeling of tapered flexbeams, this paper introduces a concept involving the use of the dereverberated transfer function response to infer delamination damage. A "virtual control" is introduced to obtain the dereverberated transfer function with and without damage. Analytical and experimental results suggest that this approach can be used to qualitatively infer damage in flexbeams with tapered geometries. Preliminary experimental results are displayed for flexbeams with varying thickness and width tapers.


We introduce a class of extensive form games whereplayers might not be able to foresee the possible consequences of their decisions and form a model of theiropponents which they exploit to achieve a more profitable outcome. We improve upon existing models ofgames with limited foresight, endowing players with theability of higher order reasoning and proposing a novelsolution concept to address intuitions coming from realgame play. We analyse the resulting equilibria, devisingan effective procedure to compute them.


Addressing the subject of a suspended co-oscillating vector hydrophone application platform, a new sound wave receiving theory model of underwater particle velocity pickup sensor was established. Based on the study of the inner sound field of an elastic sphere vibrating freely under the action of sound waves in theory, the influence of material and geometry parameters on the frequency response of particle velocity has been analyzed. According to the results of parameter optimization and taking into account engineering needs, two samples of one-dimensional particle velocity pickup sensor have been designed and tested. By comparing the results of sensitivity tested in a calibration device, the general rules of theoretical analysis have been verified. The theory and experiments confirmed the feasibility of particle velocity pickup sensors in engineering applications.


What is the role of artificial intelligence in selecting fertilization-competent human spermatozoa according to their morphological characteristics? Summary answer: The established AI model in this study can be potentially used to select semen samples with superior fertilization potential in clinical settings.

 Defective spermatozoa-zona pellucida (ZP) interaction causes subfertility and is a major cause of low IVF fertilization rates. While ICSI benefits patients with defective spermatozoa-ZP binding, a standard method to identify such patients prior to conventional IVF is lacking. The application of artificial intelligence to sperm morphology analysis has become a topic of growing interest owing to the fact that the conventional assessment is highly subjective and time-consuming. Deep-learning, a core element of artificial intelligence (AI), incorporates the convolutional neural networks (CNN) to process all the data composing a digital image through successive layers to identify the underlying pattern.

 The fertilization-competent spermatozoa were isolated according to their binding ability to the ZP. The ZP-bound and -unbound spermatozoa were collected for functional assays and to establish an AI model for morphologic prediction of sperm fertilization potential. Human spermatozoa (n = 289) were isolated from normozoospermic samples. Human oocytes (n = 562) were collected from an assisted reproduction program in Hong Kong. Sample collection has been ongoing and will continue until the end of this study in November 2021.

 Sperm-ZP binding assay was employed to collect ZP-bound and -unbound spermatozoa. The fertilization potential and genetic quality of the collected spermatozoa were evaluated by our established protocols. Diff-Quik- stained images of ZP-bound and -unbound spermatozoa were collected respectively for the establishment of an AI model. A novel algorithm for sperm image transformation and segmentation was developed to pre-process the images. CNN architecture was then applied on these pre-processed images for feature extraction and model training.

 Our result showed that the sperm-ZP binding assay had no detrimental effect on sperm viability when compared with the raw samples and unbound-sperm subpopulations. ZP-bound spermatozoa were found with statistically higher acrosome reaction rates, improved DNA integrity, better morphology, lower protamine deficiency and higher methylation level when compared with the unbound spermatozoa. A deep-learning model was trained and validated by analyzing a total of 1,334 and 885 of ZP-bound/unbound spermatozoa to evaluate the predictive power of sperm morphology for ZP binding ability. Our newly trained AI-based model showed initial success in classifying the ZP-bound/ unbound spermatozoa according to their morphological characteristics with high accuracy of 85% and low computational complexity.

 This sperm selection method requires micromanipulation and relatively long processing time to recover ZP-bound spermatozoa. In addition to limited availability, the use of human materials may result in interassay variations affecting the reproducibility of this method among laboratories.
 Wider implications of the findings: In light of current findings, AI-based sperm selection method may provide high predictive values of sperm fertilization potential for clinical purposes. This method is particularly applicable to patients who had poor fertilization outcomes after conventional IVF treatments or those with high degree of defective sperm-ZP binding ability.

 Not applicable


A bar isolates the hypersaline pool from the Gulf of Aqaba. Finely laminated algal mats carpet the shallow shelf of the pool and gypsum floors the slope and bottom. Algae secrete pellets, ooids, oncolites, grapestones, flakes, and carbonate laminites. The ooids have a radial texture; hence, contrary to statements in the literature, ooids with a radial texture are formed in the depositional environment. The carbonate laminites occur between the gray and black algal mats. Although some of them are fibrous, most are cryptocrystalline. Cryptocrystalline laminites which consist of high-Mg calcite mimic the micrite of the geologic rock record; these laminites can preserve the morphology of the mats even after the organic matter has disappeared. Scanning electron micrographs sho the laminites to consist of a mosaic of micron-size rhombohedrons which, during diagenesis, would stabilize to low-Mg calcite. Hence, the origin of some ancient stromatolitic limestones (pelmicrites) may be explained in terms of secretion of cryptocrystalline high-Mg calcite laminites. These laminites are lithified within the algal mats; hence, their origin does not necessitate the introduction of later cement and establishes algal secretion as a potent force in lithification. This inference may supersede the concept that all micrites result from neomorphic replacement of aragonite. The algae create a microenvironment in which Mg becomes enriched in the organic matter, and in which high-Mg calcite with up to 40% molecular MgCO3 is secreted. The total molecular percent of MgCO3 in the Mg-organic complex and high-Mg calcite combined may reach 60. This preferential concentration of Mg may explain the high level of dolomitization of stromatolitic rocks in the geologic record. Amino acids devoid of sulfur, especially aspartic acid, as part of the biologic system may exert considerable influence in the precipitation of the carbonate laminites and particles. End_of_Article - Last_Page 618------------


This present study is set up to investigate how ICT can be successfully integrated in the course of teaching and to explore the factors that motivate or de-motivate teachers to use ICT inside the classroom setting. It also seeks to examine the reasons behind sustaining their use of ICT in the teaching process. The study employed "Herzberg' Motivation–Hygiene theory" to guide the process of understanding and categorizing the motivational factors. For the purpose of the study, data are collected through the use of semi-structured interviews with teachers who are experienced in using ICT. The deductive qualitative content analysis of the results reveal that the motivational factors which correlated most positively with ICT use are: self-perceived ability to use technology, level of resources available and satisfaction generated from utilizing IT, as well as and a sense of achievement resulting from applying technologies for teaching purposes.  The study also identifies a variety of motivational factors attributed by teachers to using ICT, such as: creating a satisfying and encouraging classroom environment, making teaching stimulating by increasing the attractiveness of tasks and enjoyable by breaking the monotony of class sessions, promoting the development of group cohesiveness by making learners active task participants.


Abstract In current socio-economic processes, info-communication services play a determining role, modifying the activities of certain actors. The growing dependence that has developed over the past two decades has imposed the need to give political will to security, which has led to an iterative evolution of the regulatory environment. Therefore, the regulatory framework requires certain entities to develop safeguards including controls that enhance both prevention and response in a manner commensurate with the business value of the information to be protected. However, due to the nature of cybersecurity, developing such countermeasures is not the task of a standalone organization but all entities in cyberspace in a wide range, from individuals to the public sector. Therefore, each entity involved must design protection capabilities in a manner commensurate with the risk, which requires strategic tools and methods and drives organizations to learn from their security incidents. Following our previous paper "Business strategy analysis of cybersecurity incidents" (Bederna et al.) on the topic, this paper reviews the essential formal security strategy formulation tools applied in the cases of Yahoo! and Estonia. Both are based on publicly available information. The analysis confirms the importance of managements' or the government's attitude and support for solving cybersecurity challenges.


The problem about two-photon induced fluorescence of organic dye active molecules located in spherical transparent microparticles at the ultrashort laser pulses influence was theoretically investigated. The system of kinetic equations for laser generation was written taking into account stimulation transitions. Generation regimes of stimulated radiation were found. Resonator properties of spherical microparticles were theoretically investigated using the method of expanding optical fields into series of eigenfunctions. The breakdown of the beginning of stimulated radiation in the microparticle was determined. It was shown that stimulated radiation intensity depends on degree of its spatial overlap with all other modes of the pump radiation. The interpretation of experimental data of two-photon induced fluorescence in the particles with organic dye was carried out.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Vitamin K, vitamin K-dependent proteins, and vitamin D may be involved in the regulation of calcification in chronic kidney disease (CKD).

DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS
Vitamin K and D status was measured as dietary intake, plasma phylloquinone, serum percent uncarboxylated osteocalcin (%ucOC), proteins induced by vitamin K absence (PIVKA-II), Vitamin K Epoxide Reductase single-nucleotide polymorphism, apolipoprotein E genotype, and plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) in 172 subjects with stage 3 to 5 CKD. Nutritional status was determined by subjective global assessment.

RESULTS
Subclinical vitamin K deficiency criteria was met by 6% (phylloquinone), 60% (%ucOC), and 97% (PIVKA-II) of subjects, whereas 58.3% and 8.6% had 25(OH)D insufficiency and deficiency, respectively. Dietary vitamin K intake was associated with higher phylloquinone and lower PIVKA-II. There were positive correlations between phylloquinone and the presence of stable weight, and the absence of subcutaneous fat loss or muscle wasting. 25(OH)D levels were positively associated with stable weight and albumin (P < 0.001). PIVKA-II levels were associated with apolipoprotein E genotype. Higher %ucOC and lower 25(OH)D were similarly associated with CKD stage, parameters of mineral metabolism, and urine albumin to creatinine ratio.

CONCLUSIONS
These data indicate that a suboptimal vitamin K and D status is prevalent in patients with CKD. Sufficiency of both vitamins K and D was similarly predicted by measures of overall improved nutritional status. Proteinuria was associated with both a suboptimal vitamin D status as well as worse peripheral vitamin K status.


As the international commercial transaction has drastically grown up with the mainland China, commercial disputes that are required to settle through ADR have tremendously increased during the last decade. Since China has not been fully exposed to the Free World for a long period of time, there would have been a great amount of misunderstanding about their competency and integrity to deal with internationally oriented commercial transactions with a view to internationally acceptable manner. This arbitration case was related to the contract in dispute of C&A Inc. as the importer v. China XX Importation Co. as the exporter for the sale of Silicon Metal. But after the contract were formed, exporter(respondent) declined to deliver the goods under the contracts because the market price of Silicon Metal increased according to the argument of the importer(claimant). Importer had to purchase alternative goods from other companies to substitute for the goods subject to the contracts in dispute. Importer purchased silicon metal of the same quality as under the contracts from two other Chinese companies as the necessarv measure to mitigate the loss, paying prices higher than the contract price. Since exporter had breached the contracts, importer's loss should be compensated by the exporter as the Arbitration Tribunal decided for supporting importer's claim of loss for the substitute goods. This study is aiming at analyzing the rationale of the arbitral awards made by the Shanghai Commission in terms of (l)Place of Arbitration, (2)Applicable Law, (3)Validity of the Contracts, (4)Doctrine of Frustration, (5)Responsibility for the Mitigation of Damage by the Importer.


Drawing on survey data and oral history interviews undertaken with family historians in Australia,England, and Canada this article will explore how family historians construct memories using diverse sources in their research. It will show how they utilize oral history, archival documents, material culture, and explorations of space to construct and reconstruct family stories and to make meaning of the past, inserting their familial microhistories into global macrohistories. It will ask whether they undertake critical readings of these sources when piecing together their families' stories and reveal the impact of that work on individual subjectivities, the construction of historical consciousness, and the broader social value of family history scholarship. How might family historians join with social historians of the family to reshape our scholarly and "everyday" knowledge of the history of the family in the twenty-first century?


An interpretation is an important work for people to communicate with other people from different cultural background. An interpreter not only translates a sentence or an idiom but also provides the equivalent sentence or an idiom in the target language. Meanwhile, the interpreter should go in the cultural adaptation and gives mutual understanding and comprehension in an intercultural contexta€' Thus, the author takes a case as an example to show that no one can easily and effectively act as an interpreter. The paper analyzes and discusses the relationships between language and culture, intercultural communication and interpreter. And then the author points out that any successful interpreter must be good at both target languages and cultures, he or she needs to interpret the meaning with acceptable cultural elements of the original speech, and so as to be a qualified interpreter for intercultural communication between different people from different cultural backgrounds.


In the eyes of the ruling international elites, the Great War had been driven by a rising nationalism that left Europe's civilization in shambles. The elites argued that a new modernism, combined with a world that was increasingly technologically interconnected, was to blame for the ruins, anguish, and hatred that dominated peoples' minds after 1918. These intellectual elites tried to rebuild Europe's civilization and create awareness beyond national boundaries. In this context, broadcasting experts in Europe built the first radio broadcasting infrastructures inside and beyond their borders. This book examines if, how, and why the promoters of broadcasting linked their activities in the interwar period to projects that aimed to unite Europe. The book describes five cross-border issues that the emerging transnational community of broadcasting experts worked to resolve. These issues concerned the institutionalization of broadcasting; the construction of networks; the interactions between broadcasting systems such as Radio Moscow, Radio Nations, Vatican Radio, and Radio Luxembourg; the role of broadcasting within a broader international context of warfare and peace building; and international programming efforts. The book is mainly based on research in the archives of international organizations such as the International Broadcasting Union, the League of Nations, and the International Telegraph Union. These organizations could all be seen as European system builders. They functioned as arenas in which various actors simultaneously negotiated the futures of both transnational broadcasting and Europe. Chapter 2 examines the "birth of an idea." Broadcasting was originally a private activity whereby states usually granted concessions to companies that would then operate (and sometimes construct) the stations. Several of the operational and construction problems mentioned above could not be resolved without a certain amount of international collaboration. However, international organizations such as the League of Nations and the International Telegraph Union (ITU) did not face such problems. They argued that the rapidly developing technology outpaced legislative action. As a result, ten European broadcasting organizations established the International Broadcasting Union (IBU) in 1925. The IBU's institutional structure followed the European tradition of combining a technical approach with the ideals of international peace and rapprochement. A wave of nationalizing broadcasting in Europe challenged this structure. Eventually, shared European traditions, combined with the central role of a small core group of experts in the IBU, ensured minimal state interference. The IBU was able to continue to seek cross-border collaboration and became the key player for interwar broadcasting in Europe. Chapter 3 deals with the pressing problem of network construction. Radio signals traveled through the air freely, which caused interference with signals across borders and major inefficiencies in the network. The IBU, at first alone, but later in collaboration with national PTT administrations, the League of Nations' Communication and Transit Committee, the ITU and its consultative committee for long-distance telephony, drafted plans to allocate frequencies in Europe. These activities secured efficient national wireless broadcasting. Furthermore, the gradually growing transnational community of broadcasting experts complemented these wireless systems with an interconnected European relay network for broadcasting via wire and cable. This network, coupled to the national wireless networks, facilitated the exchange of music and broadcasting of international programs throughout Europe. The construction processes were contested along the way. Throughout the 1930s, the development of short waves challenged the recently established European frequency allocation standards. Attempts to standardize these short waves resulted in an unplanned global regionalization of broadcasting. Chapter 4 challenges the IBU and ITU network efforts by focusing on their interaction with other structures, such as Radio Moscow, Radio Nations, Vatican Radio, and Radio Luxembourg. These stations, with the exception of Radio Moscow, were expanding at a time when the IBU and ITU efforts were well on their way to becoming the European standard. The ideas of the new stations' promoters, which were mostly globally-oriented, did not necessarily coincide with the IBU's vision of a Europe with national wireless broadcasting systems. Fine-tuning these standards with the structure of Radio Moscow, for instance, would redefine the eastern boundaries of the European network. Furthermore, the structure of Radio Nations and Radio Luxembourg threatened the very idea of a Europe made up of nation states. These systems favored a pan-national approach to the organization and network construction of broadcasting. International fine-tuning of these different systems in Europe could usually only take place via "technified" discussions that bridged ideological and political differences. Chapter 5 looks more closely at the role of broadcasting in the context of war and peace. Illicit propaganda broadcasting created serious problems on a continent with as many states as Europe and in an era of rapidly changing international relations. Any attempt to solve this problem depended on how well international relations were progressing. In a reluctant international atmosphere, the IBU initially took a gentleman's approach, requesting that its members broadcast in a civilized way without offending people in other countries. When international relations improved in the late 1920s, the League recognized the idea of positive propaganda. The subsequent close collaboration between the League and the IBU endorsed an international mindset based on European values of civilization and Enlightenment. The collaboration came to a halt when the rise in harsh nationalism caused international relations to deteriorate in the 1930s, thereby disrupting a well-oiled European broadcasting system. Nazi Germany forced the IBU to cease any activity related to power politics. The IBU officially dropped out of propaganda regulation, but a core of IBU experts continued to individually facilitate the League on this matter. Solutions came too late – a new world war broke out in 1939. Chapter 6 explores international programming. Programs and music touched the heart of culture and had a direct impact on feelings of belonging and identity. Any effort to standardize transnational cultural broadcasting policy, build international programs, and compile a musical repertoire suitable for broadcasting became an intricate matter. IBU experts and intellectual elites, both within and outside the League of Nations, disagreed substantially on what constituted a "high quality," "high culture," or "suitable" program. Consequently, many programming issues remained unresolved in 1939. Over the years, the various promoters of broadcasting expressed different concepts of the kind of unity that international programs should convey to listeners. They related programming more directly to the creation of European unity than their other broadcasting activities. Ultimately, their programs communicated a European culture that reflected a universal idea of national diversity. The promoters contributed a relatively safe, generally accepted, high-quality, and high-art image of European culture to Europe's cultural heritage in the interwar years. They balanced the local and national diversity of Europe with the international unity of Europe. Europe – On Air concludes that interwar promoters of broadcasting did indeed connect their activities to projects for European unification. To most of these promoters, broadcasting was a matter of practical internationalism. In the First instance, this meant resolving practical problems from a technical standpoint. The promoters formed a cross-organizational and flexible transnational expert community that could adapt to the problems at hand. Diffuse personal networks offered a way out when official routes failed. Secondly, practical internationalism meant that the promoters' ultimate goal was to contribute to the internationalist ideals of peace and rapprochement worldwide. With the exception of Radio Luxembourg, systems such as Radio Moscow, Radio Nations and Vatican Radio had global aims, albeit for different reasons. As always, Europe was shimmering somewhere in the background, whether entering into construction efforts and interests for a practical in-between solution, as a geographical space, as a tradition of commerce and organization, or as an explicit goal for cultural unification and civilization. Opinions vary regarding the success or failure of these interwar efforts. On one hand, the promoters of broadcasting created suitable international institutions, material networks, a great variety of "international" programs, and managed to let their vision trickle down into European program guides. On the other hand, increasing tension during the 1930s and the outbreak of the Second World War hindered the implementation and effective employment of their efforts. Many issues remained unresolved. Europe – On Air argues that the efforts of these promoters were not in vain. They have managed to create a European space, a community, and a kind of European regulatory culture for broadcasting. Equally important, their efforts have found a new start in post-Second World War organizations like the European Broadcasting Union and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. In this way, interwar projects have influenced the broadcasting agenda right through to today.


At concentrations arising in alcohol intoxication ethanol was reversibly bound to human serum albumin and hemoglobin. Alcohol altered the conformation and stability of the proteins, reduced the domain-domain interactions in the molecule of albumin and changed the binding of such hydrophobic ligands as ANS and bilirubin.


The first part of the paper describes the mechanism of interactions between hydrocarbon solvents and vulcanized rubber (representing crosslinked network structure). The problem has been discussed from the point of view of thermodynamic principles of swelling, temperature and material factors affecting swelling of filled rubber vulcanizates, as well as the impact of swelling on properties of the materials. In the second part of the paper results of own research, devoted to swelling of sulphur vulcanizates of EPDM rubber in hydrocarbon solvents contained in mineral oils and fuels, or their mixture. Using headspace Gas Chromatography, the degree of swelling rubber vulvanizes by different components of solvent mixture in a function of temperature, has been determined.


This paper analyzes the performance and timing overhead trade-off for a recently proposed data bus encoding scheme for low-power based on data lines reordering. The bus switch (BS) mechanism introduces greater activity savings than previous approaches; the hardware complexity of the encoder suggests to apply BS in off-chip buses, where the parasitic capacitance makes dynamic power dissipation in the bus lines the dominant contribution to power consumption. In the basic BS implementation, the encoding circuits included extra bus lines which degrade the energy saving. This paper illustrates and analyzes a circuit implementation with only one extra line, at the cost of a small time overhead. This solution strongly enhances the advantage in off-chip communications, where the available number of pads represents a key resource in low-cost packages. Our results indicate that the effectiveness of the approach strongly depend on an a-priori traffic analysis.


This is a retrospective study, the organ doses to the bladder and rectum were compared between Nucletron PLATO V14.2.3 (BV) and newer version software Oncentra MasterPlan V4.3 (OMP) treatment planning systems (TPS). The treatment data of 32 intracavitary brachytherapy patients at Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia from January 2010 to June 2015 were used. These data sets were used for catheter reconstruction for both PLATO and OMP TPS followed by independent verification using Excel. There is no significant difference in mean doses to organs at risk (OARs) that calculated by both TPS (p>0.05). The mean percentage of doses calculated by PLATO TPS for bladder and rectum were 66.58 ± 27.42 %  and 46.27 ± 14.47 % respectively. While the mean percentage of doses for bladder and rectum calculated by OMP TPS were 65.68 ± 24.24 % and 46.46 ± 16.66 respectively. The mean percentage difference in doses comparison between independent verification calculation and PLATO TPS was 1.96 ± 6.00% and then became 6.37 ± 5.17% when it was compared with OMP TPS. Overall, the dose calculation differences for both versions of TPS were within the range recommended by Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The dose calculations of the two treatment planning systems showed good agreement and both could be used in planning intracavitary brachytherapy for cervical cancer. Whereas Excel based independent verification suitable to be implemented as routine dose verification programme prior to treatment delivery. DOI : http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/JSKM-2021-1901-13


Progression of Alzheimer's disease involves aggregation of amyloid‐beta (Aβ) peptides, a complex process that involves the formation of several soluble intermediates and ends up with the deposition of ordered fibrillar architectures. The determination of the Aβ42 self‐assembly species targeted by an inhibitor is a key step in the identification of new inhibitors endowed with a suitable profile. In this context, the subtle characterization of myricetin (Myr) mode of action at a molecular level was performed by using different MS techniques, which allowed the monitoring of the modifications induced by Myr on the first occurring Aβ42 self‐assembly species. Results showed a persistent level of monomer and decreased formation of ordered Aβ42 aggregates in the presence of Myr, further, nano‐LC‐nano‐ESI‐QTOF, MALDI‐TOF, and ESI‐IT highlighted the formation of a new oxidized Aβ42 species, which is less prone to aggregation, in the presence of Myr. Coupling tryptic digestion and nano‐LC‐nano‐ESI‐QTOF also allowed the identification of Met35 as the specific site of oxidation along the Aβ aminoacid chain. Therefore, the detailed investigation by different MS techniques allowed better understanding of the molecular modification at the basis of the antiaggregating properties of Myr and highlighted its oxidizing action on the residue Met35 in Aβ monomers.


There are two techniques to surgically repair a coronary fistula: ligation or external obliteration of the fistula, with or without distal revascularization of the coronary and closure from within the heart chamber². The second intervention was used in this case and is associated with a lower recurrence rate³.


The collection of several paradoxosomatid species in the context of ecological studies prompted an investigation into the morphology and species-level characteristics of Australian millipedes in the tribe Australiosomatini Brolemann, 1916 (Polydesmida : Paradoxosomatidae). Three new species are described: Akamptogonus caragoon, sp. nov., Australiosoma fulbrighti, sp. nov. and Australiosoma combei, sp. nov. Notes or re-descriptions are provided for nine additional species belonging to the tribe. Scanning electron microscopy was utilised to examine details of the antennal sensory fields, the fifth sternite lamella and associated pores. The presence of the fifth sternite lamella in adult males is considered a synapomorphy for the family Paradoxosomatidae, whereas the prominent tubercle on the first femur in males (adenostyle) represents a synapomorphy of the subfamily Australiosomatinae. With the description of two new species in the genus Australiosoma Brolemann, 1913 a revision of the genus was undertaken with the purpose of constructing a species-level phylogeny. The most commonly described and utilised species-specific characteristics were scored in a data matrix and analysed using PAUP. The analysis resulted in a single, fully resolved tree of the following structure: Hoplatria clavigera ((A. clavigerum, A. inusitatum) (((A. rainbowi, A. nodulosum) A. michelseni) (A. laminatum (A. combei, A. fulbrighti))).


Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disease that occurs when there is a deficiency in the production of insulin by the pancreas or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces. Therefore, the treatment of diabetes aims to control the levels of glucose in the blood, which involves many different approaches, including insulin therapy many times.
To date, even though many strategies have been proposed as alternative administration routes for insulin, subcutaneous injections still the most common administration route. To overcome the disadvantages imposed by the daily subcutaneous injections of insulin and to increase patient compliance, this thesis aimed to develop stable coated microneedles for rapid transdermal delivery of insulin. For that, polymeric microneedles made of a biocompatible resin class I were developed using 3D printing technology and studied along with a commercial metallic microneedle. The penetration studies showed that the 3D printed MNs presented superior penetration capacity compared to the metallic microneedles.
To apply specific doses of insulin on the microneedles, an Inkjet printing technology was used. The SEM revealed the formation of fine layers on the microneedles without loss of insulin during the coating process. Moreover, Micro-CT showed that the films stayed onto the MNs surfaces during the piercing.
In order to address the challenges with insulin instability, different polymers and sugars were used as drug carriers to preserve insulin integrity during the coating process as well as to form uniform coating layers and facilitate rapid release rates. Circular dichroism and Raman spectroscopy demonstrated that most of the carriers maintained the secondary structure of insulin in its native form in the films. Moreover, X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the insulin-carriers tended to originate amorphous films. The release studies using Franz cell diffusion showed that insulin is quickly released from the coated microneedles within 30 min. Furthermore, the animal studies showed that the coated 3D printed microneedles promoted a similar initial profile release to the SC injections, followed by a more sustained release pattern for all tested insulins (bovine, aspart and glargine).


This was the 3rd edition of a festival that I founded, led/directed, curated and produced. Also known as the #r3fest, this was a hybrid programme examining running as an arts and humanities discourse, not just within sport science or as a fitness practice. This fills an existing gap within and beyond the academy. #r3fest 2018 was held in exile, hosted as it was hosted by the Paris School of Arts and Culture, University of Kent. Consistent with #r3fest's ethos of developing the work of emerging researchers and artists, this included a newcomer whose PhD in Information and Knowledge Society was from the Open University in Catalonia. The theme was a timely Dangerous Movements. Kai's keynote lecture responded to toxic trends like the rise of protectionism and the end of the freedom of movement. There was a live running and tracking activity too by Dr Veronique Chance. Co-curator: author and Reader in English and Environmental Humanities Dr Vybarr Cregan-Reid. See images http://kaisyngtan.com/r3fest/ Thus far, RUN! RUN! RUN! has presented the drawings, installations, performances, papers, academic posters and films of 65 researchers, artists and runners from 40 institutions, across venues including Cardiff National Indoor Stadium and Paris School of Culture and Art. Through RUN! RUN! RUN!, which the Guardian urges other academics to 'take a leaf from' (2014), I am recognised as being 'absolutely central' in the field of 'Running Studies' (Whelan 2015). BBC Radio 3's Free Thinking Programme (January 11, 2017), reached out to 300,000 listeners. http://goo.gl/nXL4Df My curatorial framework was published on Royal Society of the Arts blog, which reaches out to a global network of 28,000 fellows and more non-fellows (open access) http://bit.ly/2g1jAdr I co-founded and now lead the Running Cultures Group, which consists of artists, runners and academics from all walks. A JISCMail list, which I co-manage, has 70 subscribers from Chicago to Grenoble to Aberystwyth. http://goo.gl/8ee5d3


Objective: We assessed the relationship between positive aspects of religiosity and reduced stress in caregivers, and negative aspects of religiosity and increased caregiver burden. Method: Using data from the Biopsychosocial Religion and Health Study, we performed multiple linear regression analysis on 584 caregivers. Results: Mental health, but not physical health, was predicted by caregiver burden. Caregivers who viewed God as loving and not controlling and felt a sense of community with their church family had less burden. Caregivers who engaged in negative religious coping had a greater decline in mental health than those who saw God as loving and not controlling and who gave emotional support to others. Discussion: Some aspects of religion appear to play an important role in alleviating the mental stresses of being a caregiver.


The oxidation conditions and adsorption ability of Cu (II), Cd (II), and Pb (II) from an aqueous solution of sodium hypochlorite-oxidized fir bark powder were investigated. The optimum amount of NaClO was 9.6%, the pH was 9, and the oxidation time was 120 min. Batch adsorption experiments were carried out with various times, pH values, and initial metal ion concentrations. The adsorption isotherms and kinetics of adsorption were also studied. The maximum adsorption capacity of oxidized fir bark was 0.983, 1.223, and 0.966 mmol/g for Cu (II), Cd (II), and Pb (II), respectively, within 30 min at pH 5, higher adsorption capacity than that of unoxidized fir bark. The isothermal adsorption of heavy metal ions in aqueous solution was a good fit to the Langmuir equation, with a coefficient of determination, R2, above 0.99. The adsorption of fir bark on metal ions can be appropriately approximated by a pseudo-second order adsorption kinetics model. Results indicate that the fir bark powder modified with sodium hypochlorite can adsorb large amounts of metal ions and could be a good adsorbent for the removal of Cu(II), Cd(II), and Pb(II) from aqueous solution.


The restoration of the high botanical diversity of the premining jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forest is a major priority of rehabilitation following bauxite mining in southwestern Australia. This study investigated the effects of different ripping, seeding, and scarifying dates on the establishment of plants from propagules stored in the topsoil and from applied seed on areas being rehabilitated after mining. Seed stored in the topsoil, rather than applied seed, was the major contributor to plant diversity. Ripping late (April) or scarifying in June significantly reduced the number of species and numbers of individual plants that established from propagules in the topsoil. Species originating from broadcast seed were most numerous when the seed was broadcast in April or after scarifying in June. Scarifying before seeding, particularly in June, increased the establishment of species from the broadcast seed. To make best use of the applied seed, without jeopardizing the establishment of species from the topsoil, pits should be ripped and sown by April. We list a number of strategies that can help maximize plant numbers and botanical diversity on rehabilitated bauxite mines, which may also be of more general application for restoring the original native vegetation on disturbed sites.


Problems are posed and solved for upper-ocean submesoscale density fronts and filaments in the presence of surface wind stress and the associated boundary-layer turbulent mixing, their associated geostrophic and secondary circulations and their instantaneous buoyancy fluxes and frontogenetic evolutionary tendencies in both velocity and buoyancy gradients. The analysis is diagnostic rather than prognostic, and it is based on a momentum-balanced approximation that assumes the ageostrophic acceleration is negligible, although the Rossby number is finite and ageostrophic advection is included, justified by the quasi-steady, coherent-structure flow configurations of fronts and filaments. Across a wide range of wind and buoyancy-gradient parameters, the ageostrophic secondary circulation for a front is a single overturning cell with downwelling on the dense side, hence with a positive (restratifying) vertical buoyancy flux. For a dense filament the circulation is a double cell with central downwelling and again positive vertical buoyancy flux. The primary explanation for these secondary-circulation cells is a 'turbulent thermal wind' linear momentum balance. These circulation patterns, and their associated frontogenetic tendencies in both the velocity and buoyancy gradients, are qualitatively similar to those due to the 'classical' mechanism of strain-induced frontogenesis. For linear solutions, the secondary circulation and frontogenesis are essentially independent of wind direction, but in nonlinear solutions ageostrophic advection provides a strong intensification of the peak vertical velocity, while generally preserving the ageostrophic circulation pattern, when the Rossby number is order one and the wind orientation relative to the frontal axis is favourable. At large Rossby number the solution procedure fails to converge, with an implication of a failure of existence of wholly balanced circulations.


Objective: To compare the efficacy and safety of etanercept and sulfasalazine, alone and in combination, in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite sulfasalazine treatment. Methods: A double-blind, randomised study in adult patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite stable sulfasalazine (2–3 g/day) treatment. The primary end point was a 20% response by the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) criteria at 24 weeks. Results: At baseline, the three treatment groups (sulfasalazine, n = 50; etanercept, n = 103; etanercept and sulfasalazine, n = 101) were comparable for demographic variables and disease activity. Lack of efficacy was the primary reason for discontinuation (sulfasalazine, n = 12; etanercept, n = 1; etanercept and sulfasalazine, n = 4; p<0.001). Significantly more patients receiving etanercept, alone or in combination (74% for each), achieved ACR 20 responses at 24 weeks than those receiving sulfasalazine (28%; p<0.01). Similarly, more patients in the etanercept groups achieved ACR 50 and ACR 70 responses than those in the sulfasalazine group (p<0.01). In the groups receiving etanercept, significant differences in the ACR core components were observed by week 2 compared with those receiving sulfasalazine alone (p<0.01). The incidences of several common adverse events (headache, nausea, asthenia) were lower with etanercept alone than with the combination (p<0.05), but infections and injection site reactions were higher with etanercept alone (p<0.05). The safety profiles of both etanercept treatment groups were comparable with previous experience of etanercept. Conclusions: For all efficacy variables assessed, etanercept alone or in combination with sulfasalazine resulted in substantial and similar improvement in disease activity from baseline to week 24 compared with sulfasalazine alone in patients with active rheumatoid arthritis despite their sulfasalazine treatment. All three treatments were generally well tolerated.


The subject of values and their place in the development of a person makes up the two fundamental elements of any educa-tional system of quality.

This article, setting out from a concept of person, whose analysis permit us to check a group of values which arise from each of their dimensions, and whose development takes us towards the objective of a complete education. The values which arise from the same nature of human beings are the following: as we are animals gifted with reason and affection, there are corporal, intellectual and emotional values; as we are radically individuals, there are individual, liberationist moral and voluntary values; as a human characteristic is openness, the educational system must load also for social, ecological, instrumental, aesthetic, religious, spatial and temporal values.


Background

To investigate the efficacy and safety of endoscopic injection therapy for vesicoureteral reflux in adult patients with dilated ureteral orifice via modified hydrodistension implantation techniques.
Methods

 We retrospectively reviewed medical records including operational procedure and clinical course of all consecutive patients over 12 years old with a history of injection therapy. Endoscopic injection of dextranomer /hyaluronic acid copolymer was performed under hydrodistension implantation technique with some modifications in order to inject through dilated ureteral orifice align with the intramural ureter. Technical selections were done according to hydrodistension grade of the ureteral orifice. Voiding cystourethrography was evaluated at 3 months postoperatively. Hydronephrosis was evaluated using ultrasonography preoperatively until 6 months postoperatively.
Results

From 2016 to 2019, 12 patients (all female, 16 ureteral units; median age 32 [range: 15 to 61] years) underwent endoscopic injection therapy at one of our institutions. We have identified grade II vesicoureteral reflux in 5 ureters, grade III in 8, and grade IV in 3 ureters. Grade 3 ureteral-orifice dilation were presented in 12 ureters (75%), grade 2 in 3 and grade 1 in ureter in the present cases. Postoperatively, vesicoureteral reflux was diminished to grade 0 in 12 ureteral units (75%), decreased to grade I in 3 (9%), and remained grade III in 1 (6%). Three patients reported dull flank pain for several days postoperatively and there was 1 case of acute pyelonephritis. Temporary hydronephrosis was confirmed in 3 ureteral units (19%) at 1 month postoperatively.
Conclusions

According to hydrodistension grade of the ureteral orifice, endoscopic injection therapy via modified hydrodistension implantation technique is an effective and safe treatment for vesicoureteral reflux in adult patients with dilated ureteral orifice.


This paper discusses the synthesis and the analysis techniques applied to a nonlinear system subjected to parameter variations for which an exact feedback linearization is performed. The obtained linear system is described by a linear and a nonlinear dependant parameter parts. An H/sub 2//H/sub /spl infin// robust output feedback controller is designed on the linear part. The effect of the nonlinear part is attenuated by means of a reference model. A stability analysis method using parameter-dependant Lyapunov function is used to check the global stability in the presence of the nonlinearity which has been ignored in the synthesis step. The synthesis and the analysis results are then applied to an induction motor.


A new type of Rotman lens is presented for micro/millimetre-wave applications, such as collision avoidance radar. A dielectric slab Rotman lens is proposed to reduce the conductor loss in addition to the mutual coupling in a form which can be implemented easily at millimetre-wave frequencies. The proposed lens consists of a dielectric slab and slot lines whereas conventional lenses are constructed with parallel conducting plates. The dielectric slab excited in TE/sub 0/ mode shows a high degree of confinement for the fields, and low dispersion, and has an appropriate feed structure for the dielectric slab lens. A prototype lens was designed and fabricated with nine beam ports and nine array ports together with nine tapered slot antennas. This lens system was tested in the range from 10 to 15 GHz and the measured beam widths are about 15/spl deg/ at 13 GHz. The measurements also show that the mutual coupling between the beam ports decreases with frequency and its efficiency is about 34.6%. The overall performance is comparable to that of conventional Rotman lenses even though a spillover loss is presumed at the frequency of the implementation. It is expected that at millimetre-wave frequency the dielectric slab Rotman lens will have lower conductor loss and lower mutual coupling than conventional Rotman lenses.


Wheat is one of the basic food materials for humans and other animals. Continuing studies into breeding new species, which are suitable for agriculture, are based on the contention that the restricting factors are the effects of the nuclear genes. Such focusing of studies on the nuclear genome leads to restriction on the information on organelle DNAs, although cytoplasmic genetic factors are effective on the morphological, physiological and reproductive features of plants. Restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis (RFLP) of chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) has become a powerful tool for studying phylogenetic relationships. In this study, seven wheat species, belonging to Aegilops and Triticum, were studied. An intergenic spacer region of cpDNA was digested by six different restriction endonuclease enzymes, and fragments so obtained were investigated using the agarose gel electrophoresis technique. Discussion on the phylogenetic relationships among Triticum and Aegilops species is based on the resultant data. © 2005 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2005, 148, 305–310.


On account of small inaccuracies in the measured temperature derivatives of the elastic constants of quartz, only the nominal phi and theta angles of zero-temperature cut quartz resonators can be calculated. In previous work, the correction to the nominal phi angle was obtained from measurements on the third overtone of a contoured SC-cut quartz resonator at 25 degrees C. The correction reported for the phi angle was 48.3'. The errors are corrected, and the revised calculation shows that not only do the magnitudes of the angles change, but also the signs. This is in conformity with measurement. Similarly, both the magnitude and sign of the temperature derivative of the effective piezoelectric constant for the C-mode differ from the earlier incorrect value. The calculations also show that the change in orientation with the radius of the contour for the third and fifth harmonic is significant in the SC cut as well as the fundamental.<<ETX>>


A model of multivariate phenotypic evolution is analysed under the assumption that all characters have the same variance or at least constant ratios of variance. The rate of evolution is examined as a function of the amount of phenotypic variance in a variety of adaptive landscapes (fitness functions). It is demonstrated that the effect of variation depends on the type of adaptive landscape. In "well behaved" adaptive landscapes the rate of evolution can theoretically increase without limits, depending on the amount of heritable phenotypic variation. However, in other adaptive landscapes there are upper limits to the rate of evolution which cannot be exceeded if phenotypic variation is developmentally unconstrained, i. e. if it is the same for all characters. Further it is shown that the maximal rate of evolution becomes small if the number of characters becomes large. Fitness functions of this type are called malignant. It is argued that malignant fitness functions are more adequate models for the evolution of typical organismic systems, because they are models of functionally interdependent characters. It is concluded that there are upper limits to the rate of phenotypic evolution if the variation of functionally interdependent characters is developmentally unconstrained. The possible role of developmental constraints in adaptive phenotypic evolution is discussed.


The presence of noise is currently one of the main obstacles to achieving large-scale quantum computation. Strategies to characterise and understand noise processes in quantum hardware are a critical part of mitigating it, especially as the overhead of full error correction and faulttolerance is beyond the reach of current hardware. Non-Markovian effects are a particularly unfavorable type of noise, being both harder to analyse using standard techniques and more difficult to control using error correction. In this work we develop a set of efficient algorithms, based on the rigorous mathematical theory of Markovian master equations, to analyse and evaluate unknown noise processes. In the case of time-independent Markovian (or nearly Markovian) dynamics, our algorithm outputs the best-fit Lindbladian, i.e., the generator of a memoryless quantum channel which best approximates the tomographic data to within the given precision. In the case of nonMarkovian dynamics, our algorithm returns a quantitative and operationally meaningful measure of non-Markovianity in terms of isotropic noise addition. We provide a Python implementation of all our algorithms, and benchmark these on a range of 1and 2-qubit examples of synthesised noisy tomography data, generated using the Cirq platform. The numerical results show that our algorithms succeed both in extracting a full description of the best-fit Lindbladian to the measured dynamics, and in computing accurate values of non-Markovianity that match analytical calculations.


Approximately 30% of children with idiopathic growth hormone deficiency (IGHD) also suffer from other pituitary hormone deficien-cies. Of children with IGHD, approximately 10% are unable to generate appropriate ACTH levels in response to stress. This study was prospectively designed to test the integrity of the adrenal axis in patients with an established diagnosis of IGHD using the glucagon stimulation test (GST). The study population comprised 39 patients with established childhood-onset IGHD. The diagnosis of GHD was established on the basis of failure of GH to increase over 10 ng/ml after two stimulation tests. The GST was performed by intra-muscular injection of 1 mg glucagon. The criteria followed to define adrenal deficiency was cortisol less than 167 ng/l in response to GST. The mean peak blood glucose level was 8.64 ±1.71 mmol/l. Analysing the cohort using the cut-off of 167 ng/ml to define adrenal insufficiency under GST, there were 25.64% of children diagnosed: 20% among males and 35.7% among females. Subjects with GH and ACTH deficiency had a mean peak GH of 2.07 ±1.79 ng/ml - significantly lower than GH peak of children with IGHD alone (p < 0,001). The frequency of children with combined somatotroph and corticotroph deficiencies with a GH peak < 3 ng/ml was 21% (p < 0,001). The current study identified a prevalence of adrenal insufficiency of 25.64%, which could predict greater risk for children if untreated, especially because a substantial proportion of patients do not present clinical symptoms.

https://www.termedia.pl/Journal/-138/pdf-35977-10?filename=161-166 Assessing the adrenal.pdf


At the end of the twentieth century, the medical profession realized that physicians did not have the communication skills they needed in order to serve society in a manner consistent with their individual and collective aspirations. The curriculum of the medical profession was reformed as a result. Positivist biases within the profession influenced this reform, freezing the profession's view of communication skills as simple mnemonic tools rather than profound, lifelong evolutions of worldview. The tool-oriented conception of communication skills contributes to physicians' premature abandonment of the pursuit of expert performance in interpersonal communication. To reach an expert level of communication competency that aligns with their professional aspirations, physicians may wish to revisit their curricular choices.


This study aims to investigate the targets and targets-involved mechanism for the macrophage activation of low molecular weight saccharides from Cistanche deserticola (LMSC). The phagocytic activity and NO release of RAW264.7 cells were detected, and results showed that LMSC exerts immune activation effect by significantly increasing the phagocytic activity and NO release. LMSC-conjugated epoxy-activated sepharose beads were prepared as affinity reagent to capture the target proteins. Twenty-four proteins such as Eef2 were identified by LC-MS/MS analysis. Pathway enrichment analysis showed LMSC activated RAW264.7 cells by regulating Fcgamma receptor dependent phagocytosis, TNF-alpha NF-κB signaling pathway, glycolysis/gluconeogenesis and the citric acid cycle and respiratory electron transport pathway.