Aim The effects of polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers on the mammalian heart are not completely understood. In this study, we have investigated the effects of a sixth-generation cationic dendrimer (G6 PAMAM) on cardiac function in control and diabetic rat hearts following ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Methods Isolated hearts from healthy non-diabetic (Ctr) male Wistar rats were subjected to ischemia and reperfusion (I/R). LV contractility and hemodynamics data were computed digitally whereas cardiac damage following I/R injury was assessed by measuring cardiac enzymes. For ex vivo acute exposure experiments, G6 PAMAM was administered during the first 10 mins of reperfusion in Ctr animals. In chronic in vivo studies, nondiabetic rats (Ctr) received either vehicle or daily i.p. injections of G6 PAMAM (40 mg/kg) for 4 weeks. Diabetic (D) animals received either vehicle or daily i.p. injections of G6 PAMAM (10, 20 or 40 mg/kg) for 4 weeks. The impact of G6 PAMAM on pacing-postconditioning (PPC) was also studied in Ctr and D rats. Results In ex vivo studies, acute administration of G6 PAMAM to isolated Ctr hearts during reperfusion dose-dependently impaired recovery of cardiac hemodynamics and vascular dynamics parameters following I/R injury. Chronic daily i.p. injections of G6 PAMAM significantly (P<0.01) impaired recovery of cardiac function following I/R injury in nondiabetic animals but this was not generally observed in diabetic animals except for CF which was impaired by about 50%. G6 PAMAM treatment completely blocked the protective effects of PPC in the Ctr animals. Conclusion Acute ex vivo or chronic in vivo treatment with naked G6 PAMAM dendrimer can significantly compromise recovery of non-diabetic hearts from I/R injury and can further negate the beneficial effects of PPC. Our findings are therefore extremely important in the nanotoxicological evaluation of G6 PAMAM dendrimers for potential clinical applications in physiological and pathological settings.


The purpose of this study is to explore the importance of climate of inquiry and critical reflection in teaching and learning. The study was established by using Teaching and Learning Guiding Principles Instrument (TLGPI) to identify the reliability and validity of the instrument in generating teaching and learning guiding principles (TLGP). Participants consisted of 355 Malaysian educators from higher education institutions and teacher training institutions. It is an essential instrument to reflect in generating the teaching and learning guiding principles in higher education level in Malaysia. Confirmatory Factor Analysis has validated all five items of Climate of Inquiry (CI) construct of TLGPI whereby all items indicated high reliability and internal consistency. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis also confirmed that a single factor model was used to generate teaching and learning guiding principles.


ABSTRACT Purpose: Our previous study demonstrated that topical ocular instillation can deliver effective concentrations of propranolol in the periocular tissues, and may be superior to oral propranolol in the treatment of periocular capillary hemangiomas. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of dosing protocol on the distribution of propranolol in the periocular tissues and plasma after topical ocular instillation. Methods: Each rabbit received propranolol 0.5% ophthalmic solution using one of the following dosing protocols: three drops of 50 μL, one drop of 50 μL, or one drop of 25 μL. The periocular tissues (e.g. eyelids and extraocular muscles) and blood were collected and assayed for propranolol at 1 h after dosing. Results: Decreasing the concentration of eye drops (1% to 0.5%), decreasing the number of eye drops during dosing (three drops to one drop), or decreasing the instilled volume (50 µL to 25 µL) generally lowered the concentration of propranolol in the periocular tissues. Nevertheless, therapeutic levels of propranolol (> 0.4 μg/g) were delivered to the periocular tissues at 1 h after dosing using any of the three protocols examined. Dose-dependent concentrations in some periocular tissues and plasma were observed over the dose range of 0.125 mg to 1.5 mg. The plasma concentration of propranolol was not measurable when a single 25 μL of propranolol 0.5% was instilled in the eye. Conclusions: The dosing protocol of topical ocular instillation can be tailored to achieve the desired therapeutic concentrations of propranolol in the periocular tissues while minimizing systemic exposure.


The information management is a bridge for the Government of the village in order to bring transparency and the use of the budget that has already absorbed. The prototype system management information the potential of rural palasari the district ujungjaya sumedang district based on the website using the primary and secondary stages in prototype is on the need, the process of design, building prototypes, evaluation and improvement.


The first known demonstration of efficient sum-frequency mixing of a CO(2) and a He-Ne laser in 77-K cooled proustite is reported. A power-conversion efficiency comparable with that of difference-frequency mixing is obtained. The excellent signal-to-noise ratio of the Fabry-Perot fringes that are obtained leads to the feasibility of wavelength measurement of a stabilized CO(2) laser by a sum-mixing technique, which can complement the conventional difference-mixing technique.


Due to the increasing storage data on the Web Applications it becomes very difficult to use only keywordbased searches to provide comprehensive search results, thus increasing the difficulty for web users to search information on the web. In this paper, we proposed using a combined method of keyword-based and Regular expressions (RegEx) searches to perform search using strings of targeted items for optimal results even as the volume of data around the world on the Internet continues to explode. The idea is to embed RegEx patterns as part of search engine's algorithm in a web application project to provide strings related to the targeted items for more comprehensive coverage of search results. The user's search query is a string of characters guided by search boundaries selected from the entry point. The results returned from the search operation are different results within a category determined by the search boundaries. This is designed to be beneficial to a user who has an obscure idea about the information he/she wanted to search but knows the boundries within which to get the information. This technique can be applied to data processing tasks such as information extraction and search refinements.


The author describes her experience through several quarters of Clinical Pastoral Education as a Jewish woman. She recounts the story of her own sense of urging toward chaplaincy as an expression of her spirituality, as well as much of the "mixed" nature of her journey among a predominantly Christian group. Included are stories of patient encounters as well as a record of her ongoing conversation with her surroundings.


This paper proposes implementation of digital signal processor (DSP) to perform flexible-band digital hysteresis current control in a switched capacitor active power filter (SCAPF). By integrating hysteresis current control with digital-based neural network harmonic detection, the proposed SCAPF forces the supply current to be sinusoidal, to have low current harmonics, and to be in phase with the line voltage. Simulation on MATLAB Simulink verified the controller's algorithm design, and a purpose-built laboratory SCAPF system tested its feasibility.


Abstract The environmental and economic realities of Arctic climate change present novel problems for international law. Arctic warming and pollution raise important questions about responsibilities and accountabilities across borders, as they result from anthropogenic activities both within and outside the Arctic region, from the Global North and the Global South. Environmental interdependencies and economic development prospects connect in a nexus of risk and opportunity that raises difficult normative questions pertaining to Arctic governance and sovereignty. This article looks at how the Arctic has been produced in international legal spaces. It addresses the implication of states and Indigenous peoples in processes of Arctic governance. Looking at specific international legal instruments relevant to Arctic climate change and development, the author attempts to tease out the relationship between the concepts of Indigenous rights and state sovereignty that underlie these international legal realms. What do these international legal regimes tell us with respect to the role of Arctic Indigenous peoples and the role of states in governing the 'global' Arctic? It is argued that while international law has come a long way in recognizing the special status of Indigenous peoples in the international system, it still hesitates to recognize Indigenous groups as international law makers. Comparing the status of Indigenous peoples under specific international regimes to their role within the Arctic Council, it becomes evident that more participatory forms of global governance are entirely possible and long overdue.


The ability of the newly developed bispyridinium compound K203 and its fluorinated analogue KR-22836 to reduce tabun-induced acute neurotoxic signs and symptoms was compared with the currently available reactivator of acetylcholinesterase-obidoxime. Tabun-induced neurotoxicity and the neuroprotective effects of all tested oximes in combination with atropine in rats poisoned with tabun at a sublethal dose (200 μg/kg intramuscularly (i.m.); 80% of LD(50) value) were monitored by a functional observational battery at 24 hr after tabun challenge. The results indicate that all tested oximes combined with atropine were able to survive tabun-poisoned rats 24 hr after tabun challenge while one non-treated tabun-poisoned rat died within 24 hr after tabun poisoning. All tested oximes combined with atropine were able to decrease tabun-induced neurotoxicity in the case of sublethal poisoning but they did not eliminate all tabun-induced acute neurotoxic signs and symptoms. While the ability to reduce tabun-induced acute neurotoxicity of obidoxime and K203 was similar, the neuroprotective efficacy of KR-22836 was slightly higher compared to other tested oximes. Thus, the newly developed fluorinated analogue of K203, called KR-22836, is able to slightly increase the neuroprotective effectiveness of antidotal treatment of acute tabun poisonings compared to K203 and currently available obidoxime.


The research on women's property in traditional China by American scholars had reflected the development of women's history.In terms of female inheritance,the research from the understanding about legal principle to the disparity between law and practice had given expression to the different approaches to daughters' inheritance by government and family.As to women's domination on the dowry,different standpoint from father control daughter's dowry to husband's family control wife's dowry,then to women themselves control and use their dowry independently,reflected the scholars' different cognitions on women's family status and property right.And the relationship between dowry and "wifely virtue" showed how women's property right had effect traditional morality,family ethics and men through the positive and negative influence of the dowry.


We continue the study of $(\mathrm{tw},\omega)$-bounded graph classes, that is, hereditary graph classes in which the treewidth can only be large due to the presence of a large clique, with the goal of understanding the extent to which this property has useful algorithmic implications for the Independent Set and related problems. In the previous paper of the series [Dallard, Milani\v{c}, and \v{S}torgel, Treewidth versus clique number. II. Tree-independence number], we introduced the tree-independence number, a min-max graph invariant related to tree decompositions. Bounded tree-independence number implies both $(\mathrm{tw},\omega)$-boundedness and the existence of a polynomial-time algorithm for the Maximum Weight Independent Set problem, provided that the input graph is given together with a tree decomposition with bounded independence number. In this paper, we consider six graph containment relations and for each of them characterize the graphs $H$ for which any graph excluding $H$ with respect to the relation admits a tree decomposition with bounded independence number. The induced minor relation is of particular interest: we show that excluding either a $K_5$ minus an edge or the $4$-wheel implies the existence of a tree decomposition in which every bag is a clique plus at most $3$ vertices, while excluding a complete bipartite graph $K_{2,q}$ implies the existence of a tree decomposition with independence number at most $2(q-1)$. Our constructive proofs are obtained using a variety of tools, including $\ell$-refined tree decompositions, SPQR trees, and potential maximal cliques. They imply polynomial-time algorithms for the Independent Set and related problems in an infinite family of graph classes; in particular, the results apply to the class of $1$-perfectly orientable graphs, answering a question of Beisegel, Chudnovsky, Gurvich, Milani\v{c}, and Servatius from 2019.


PURPOSE
As more research has been distributed through the media about the negative health impact of exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS), the public's support for smoke-free policies has increased. The purpose of this study was to evaluate trends in knowledge and attitudes about SHS exposure among Indiana adults by smoking status.

METHODS
Study data were from four cross-sectional studies previously conducted by the Indiana Tobacco Prevention and Cessation Agency using the Adult Tobacco Survey protocol between the years 2002 and 2007.

RESULTS
Eighteen questions were identified as addressing SHS, 16 of which were available for more than 1 year and were evaluated for time trends. Significant overall trends toward increased awareness of SHS's health effects and support for smoking bans were noted in 10 of the 16 questions analyzed. No significant overall change, positive or negative, occurred in the remaining six questions. When responses were analyzed by smoking status, never smokers and former smokers consistently exhibited higher rates of anti-SHS sentiments and knowledge of SHS than did current smokers.

CONCLUSIONS
In general, the trends are encouraging to public health efforts to raise awareness about SHS, but there remains much room for improvement, particularly among current smokers.


We study the emergence of glassy states after a sudden cooling in lattice models with short-range interactions and without any a priori quenched disorder. The glassy state emerges whenever the equilibrium model possesses a sufficient number of coexisting crystalline phases at low temperatures, provided the thermodynamic limit be taken before the infinite time limit. This result is obtained through simulations of the time relaxation of the standard Potts model and some exclusion models equipped with a local stochastic dynamics on a square lattice.


List of Plates. List of Figures and Tables. 1. Introduction: Place and Gender. 2. In and Out of Place: Bodies and Embodiment. 3. Home, Place and Identity. 4. Community, City and Locality. 5. Work/Workplaces. 6. In Public: the Street and Spaces of Pleasure. 7. Gendering the Nation--State. 8. Displacements. 9. Postscript: Reflections on the Dilemmas of Feminist Research. References. Index.


Many expectations are haven to the INTEGRAL satellite and the development and plan of devices in the next generation, which will exceed existing devices in a future, are also in progress. As a detector technology for the next generation, we have developed a liquid Xe Time Prjection Chamber(TPC) for MeV gamma-ray observations. It is designed to image gamma-rays in the energy range of 200keV to 10 MeV. The chamber consists of two sensitive volumes of 20cm 20cm 5cm. Two anode systems are at the center of effective area and made with a print substrate that has strip type anodes and induction electrodes.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the early clinical detection and new method for the treatment of congenital dislocation of hip in infants.

METHODS
From 2006 to 2010, 95 infants with congenital dislocation of hip were treated with self-made pygal cloth sling, including 25 males and 70 females, with an average age of 3.2 months old ranging from 0 to 6 months. Some patients were detected incidentally for the symptoms like asymmetric muscle strength or lower limbs range of motion, and all the patients got diagnosed with dislocation.

RESULTS
After the treatment, all of the patients received outpatient view once a month and taken X-ray examination bimonthly. Pygal cloth sling was removed after 2 months. According to the assessment criteria made by LIU Yuan-zhong, 90 patients got an excellent result, 2 good, 2 fair and 1 poor.

CONCLUSION
Treatment of congenital dislocation of hip in infants with self-made pygal cloth sling promotes the development of acetabulum and femoral head, and worthy further clinical applications.


In the last two decades, colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals have emerged as a phenomenal research topic due to their size-dependent optoelectronic properties and to their outstanding versatility in many technological applications. In this review, we provide an historical account of the most relevant computational works that have been carried out to understand atomistically the electronic structure of these materials, including the main requirements needed for the preparation of nanocrystal models that align well with the experiments. We further discuss how the advancement of these computational tools has affected the analysis of these nanomaterials over the years. We focus our review on the three main families of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals: group II-VI and IV-VI metal chalcogenides, group III-V metal pnictogenides and metal halides, in particular lead-based halide perovskites. We discuss the most recent research frontiers and outline the future outlooks expected in this field from a computational perspective.


Nonclassical multi-photon and number states are attractive because of their wide applicability, and experimental generation of these states is a longstanding aim. We prepare photon triplets using a spontaneous Raman scattering process in a hot atomic ensemble cascaded by a spontaneous parametric downconversion process in a periodically poled nonlinear waveguide; strong temporal correlations are observed between the photons. This represents the first combination of nonlinear processes of different orders with different physical systems, and demonstrates the scheme's feasibility. The triplets exist in the telecommunications band, which is promising for testing of quantum mechanical laws for multi-photon entanglement over large distances.


This paper identifies instances of negative interplay between public and private enforcement of European Union (EU) competition law. For this purpose, a detailed account of the premises underlying the EU's dual enforcement system is provided against the background of efficiency, effectiveness, fundamental rights and proportionality. These four interests, both internal and external to the EU's competition policy, are at stake if liability in parallel enforcement proceedings is either excessive or uncoordinated. While actors involved in the enforcement process are gradually recognizing these risks, so far the solutions offered remain incidental.


Hierarchical, three-fold symmetrical dendritic gold was prepared in an aqueous solution of the quaternary ammonium cationic surfactant dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide (DTAB). Similar surfactants with different head groups and hydrocarbon chain lengths were also used for comparison. Two-fold and one-fold symmetrical dendritic gold nanostructures were obtained in N-dodecyl-N-methylpyrrolidinium bromide (C(12)-MPB) and dodecyltriethylammonium bromide (DTEAB) aqueous solutions, respectively. Longer hydrocarbon chain lengths were unfavorable for the formation of dendritic nanostructures. The interaction energies between the individual surfactants and Au (111) plane were calculated using molecular dynamics simulations. Based on a series of contrast experiments and molecular dynamics simulations, the possible growth mechanism and fabrication process of the dendritic structures were proposed. The DTAB-capped, three-fold gold dendrites exhibited good surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensitivity toward rhodamine 6G (R6G), indicating their potential for use in SERS-based detections and analysis. This work provides a simple and effective strategy for fabricating dendritic gold nanostructures in aqueous solutions.


The aortic coarctation (CoA) was repaired with extended aortic arch (AA) anastomosis in 5 consecutive patients, 2 in neonate and 3 in infancy, ranging in age from 3 to 106 days. The associated lesions were ventricular septal defect in 2, atrial septal defect in 2 and complete atrioventricular canal in 1. Patent ductus was found in 4 and prostaglandin E1 was required in 2 with response in 1 patient. The AA was hypoplastic in 2 patients with arch to descending aorta diameter ratio below 0.5. The CoA repair was performed as the first procedure in all. The primary anastomosis was possible in all between AA and the descending aorta without undue tension after removal of the all ductus tissue and extensive mobilization of the aorta. Aortic clamp time was 28 minutes in average. The intraoperative pressure gradient after repair across AA was 0 to 10 mmHg (average 4.6 mmHg). All except 1 with preceding hepatic dysfunction tolerated the procedure without complication or operative death. Postoperative evaluation at 1 to 11 months showed no significant pressure gradient between upper and lower extremities. This method appears to be useful for CoA in early infancy particularly when AA is hypoplastic.


The equilibrium statistical characteristics of hyperbranched reaction system of AB(subscript g) type is studied from two viewpoints by using the principle of statistical mechanics. The equilibrium free energy and a relationship between the conversion and some thermodynamic quantities are obtained. Furthermore, two new methods that can be used to evaluate the number fraction distribution of hyperbranched polymers are reported. As an application, it is found that the effect of polymerization is significant on the equation of state proposed by the improved lattice-fluid theory.


This paper shows that multiple growth paths may occur in a politico-economic model of endogenous growth. This multiplicity is characterized by the coexistence of a low-tax, low-capital-flight equilibrium and a high-tax, high-capital-flight equilibrium. The likelihood of multiplicity is crucially related to the structure of power in society. For multiplicity to arise, it is necessary that the group in power (or the group that is decisive in determining the political outcome) has greater access to international capital markets than the average in the economy. The model provides an example of an inefficient allocation resulting from majority voting among rational agents.


Abstract. Well-preserved marine diatoms are documented for the first time from authigenic carbonate rocks induced by cold methane (hydrocarbon) seepage in the Omagari Formation (latest Santonian to earliest Campanian in age, Late Cretaceous Epoch; around 83.6 Ma) of the upper part of the Yezo Group in the Teshio-Nakagawa area, northern Hokkaido (northern Japan). The diatom flora is rich in species of Hemiaulus and Triceratium, associated with a few other extinct diatom genera. An araphid genus (Sceptroneis) was also observed; this is one of the earliest fossil records of "pennate" (Bacillariophyceae) diatoms. Although valve ultrastructures have been mostly dissolved, the preservation of these diatoms is much better than that in the few previous reports of Cretaceous siliceous photosynthetic organisms from Japan and adjacent regions in the northwestern Pacific Ocean. Because of their common generic composition in the mid- to high-latitude regions in both hemispheres, diatoms are suggested to have experienced a global radiation by early Campanian time. Thus, our diatom records provide insights into the Late Cretaceous floral adaptive radiation around the northwestern Pacific margin, where the radiation history of diatoms is yet unclear. As Gladius antiquus was confirmed but Basilicostephanus species were absent from the present material, the flora from the Teshio-Nakagawa area is tentatively regarded as belonging to the G. antiquus Concurrent Range Zone, an interval extending from an undetermined Late Cretaceous Epoch to the latest Santonian Age. However, this floral correlation is inaccurate because our materials are latest Santonian to earliest Campanian in age, as dated by the molluscan (ammonoids and inoceramids) biostratigraphy. Hence, further research is required to clarify the sensitivity of different chronological proxies and the stratigraphic ranges of age-diagnostic diatoms in different geographic provinces.


The Patent Law Treaty was drafted with the aim to "streamline and harmonize" formal requirements set by national or regional Patent Offices for the filing of national or regional patent applications and the maintenance of patents. In this Article, a number of core issues of the Patent Law Treaty has been selected: requirements for the accordance of a filing date, relief in respect of time limits and restoration of priority. A conclusion of this Article is that the goals of the Patent Law Treaty were not achieved by the Treaty as concluded. One of the reasons is that the Treaty contains too many optional requirements ("may require"), which may be implemented as compulsory by the Contracting Parties, allowing them too much freedom when implementing requirements of the Treaty into their national and regional patent laws. This defies the aim of harmonization and streamlining of the Patent Law Treaty. The negotiation history is described and discussed with emphasis on what went wrong during the negotiations. Reasons for the failure of the Patent Law Treaty are discussed and recommendations for repair are given.


Cocaine is associated with many health complications including gastrointestinal ischemia/infarction, and hemorrhage. The clinical medical literature describes such entities, but no case exists within the forensic literature describing life-threatening intraluminal gastrointestinal hemorrhage and sudden death associated with cocaine. A 48-year-old black man died suddenly in his home, with drug paraphernalia near the body. Further investigation revealed blood stains on upholstery, and a toilet filled with fresh blood. External examination of the body revealed fresh blood draining from the anus. Internal examination revealed a dusky portion of distal ileum filled with an abundance of fresh blood. Toxicology confirmed the suspicion of acute cocaine intoxication.Review of the clinical literature revealed several case reports describing an association between cocaine use and intestinal infarction, one with hemoperitoneum. Review of the forensic literature returned one case describing an association between cocaine toxicity and intestinal infarction, but without hemorrhage. To our knowledge, our case represents the first report in the forensic literature describing massive gastrointestinal hemorrhage associated with acute cocaine intoxication. It is important that the forensic pathologist recognize cocaine toxicity as a potential cause of gastrointestinal bleeding, especially in younger male decedents without significant comorbidities. Scene investigation may reveal useful clues pointing to this unusual etiology.


In this paper we investigate the modulation domain as an alternative to the acoustic domain for speech enhancement. More specifically, we wish to determine how competitive the modulation domain is for spectral subtraction as compared to the acoustic domain. For this purpose, we extend the traditional analysis-modification-synthesis framework to include modulation domain processing. We then compensate the noisy modulation spectrum for additive noise distortion by applying the spectral subtraction algorithm in the modulation domain. Using subjective listening tests and objective speech quality evaluation we show that the proposed method results in improved speech quality. Furthermore, applying spectral subtraction in the modulation domain does not introduce the musical noise artifacts that are typically present after acoustic domain spectral subtraction. The proposed method also achieves better background noise reduction than the MMSE method. Index Terms: speech enhancement, spectral subtraction, modulation domain, analysis-modification-synthesis (AMS)


Negrón, José F.; Shepperd, Wayne A.; Mata, Steve A.; Popp, John B.; Asherin, Lance A.; Schoettle, Anna W.; Schmid, John M.; David A. Leatherman. 2001. Solar treatments for reducing survival of mountain pine beetle in infested ponderosa and lodgepole pine logs. Res. Pap. RMRS-RP-30. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. 11 p. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the use of solar radiation for reducing survival of mountain pine beetle populations in infested logs. Ponderosa pine logs were used in experiments 1 and 2 and lodgepole pine logs were used in experiment 3. Experiment 1 comprised three treatments: (1) one-layer solar treatment without plastic sheeting and logs rotated one-third of a turn once a week; (2) two-layer solar treatment with plastic sheeting; and (3) two-layer solar treatment without plastic sheeting. For experiment 2, two additional one-layer treatments were added: one-layer treatment with plastic sheeting and no rotation and a one-layer with no plastic sheeting and no rotation. Experiment 3 included all the above-mentioned onelayer treatments only. For all experiments, brood density per 0.05 m (0.5 ft) was estimated before and after treatment and analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance. Subcortical temperatures were monitored in one replicate of all treatments in all experiments. In experiment 2, phloem moisture was monitored before and after treatment in uninfested logs. All treatments in all experiments caused drastic reductions in brood survival. In experiment 1, the one-layer treatment with the logs rotated once a week significantly reduced brood survival compared to the two-layer without plastic sheeting treatment but was not different from the two-layer with plastic sheeting treatment. There were no differences in brood survival after treatment associated with any treatments in experiments 2 and 3. In all experiments brood survival was consistently reduced in the aspects of the logs exposed to the sun. Maximum temperatures were consistently higher in the treatments with plastic sheeting, the exposed surfaces of the logs to the sun, and the upper layer of logs in the two-layer treatments. No differences were detected in phloem moisture content in uninfested logs before and after treatment in experiment 2, suggesting that heat is directly responsible for the observed reductions in survival. We conclude that solar treatments are an effective alternative for reducing mountain pine beetle survival in infested ponderosa and lodgepole pine logs.


Early data provide evidence that sex and gender are important factors that intersect with each other and with other social determinants to influence susceptibility and vulnerability to COVID-19. Sex and gender, along with other key variables such as age, can influence disease progression, outcome and access to services, as well as social, psychological and economic impacts. Similar patterns have been observed in other global outbreaks (eg, HIV, Ebola, Zika) where a complex interplay of gender and other dimensions of vulnerability have resulted in disparate health outcomes. Through these epidemics, the world has witnessed the implications of neglecting gender dynamics;1 from heightened risk of infection, increased mortality and greater susceptibility to other health problems, social vulnerability and economic insecurity. These experiences, together with pressure from civil society, have over the years prompted the adoption of a number of political commitments to gender-sensitive public health responses, including the need to produce gender-sensitive evidence. While these commitments are welcome, whether they will be translated into action remains a matter of discretion and political will.

The emergence and spread of COVID-19 have reinvigorated the conversation on the importance of fulfilling commitments to gender-responsive approaches to public health, ensuring that gender is part of pandemic responses and leadership considerations. WHO's Director-General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has affirmed that 'tackling (the) pandemic requires a gender-responsive, equity-oriented and human rights-based approach'2 while underlining WHO's commitment 'to using a gender lens to continuously evaluate and improve our response efforts'.3

Despite experience from other global health crises and existing commitments, we have failed to gather and share adequate gender-sensitive evidence to guide COVID-19 responses. While data and research on COVID-19 are being produced at unprecedented speed, reporting of the data disaggregated by sex—let alone by sex and age—remains rare.4 Growing numbers of countries have …


Abstract Minority rights instruments have been traditionally applied to old minority groups. This paper examines to what extent these same instruments are conceptually meaningful to the integration of new minorities stemming from migration. The conviction that minority groups, irrespective of their being old or new minorities, have some basic common claims that can be subsumed under a common definition does not mean that all minority groups have all the same rights and legitimate claims: some have only minimum rights, while others have or should be granted more substantial rights; some can legitimately put forward certain claims – not enforceable rights – that need to be negotiated with the majority, while others should not. In order to devise a common but differentiated set of rights and obligations for old and new minority groups, it is essential to analyse the differences and similarities of both categories of minorities, their claims, needs, and priorities; in this way, it will be possible to delineate a catalogue of rights that can be demanded by and granted to different minority groups. Studying the interaction between traditional minorities and migrants or old and new minority groups is a rather new task because so far these topics have been studied in isolation from each other. It is also an important task for future research in Europe since many states have established systems for the rights of old minorities but have not as yet developed sound policies for the integration of new minority groups stemming from migration.


Object detection is a comprehensively studied problem in autonomous driving. However, it has been relatively less explored in the case of fisheye cameras. The strong radial distortion breaks the translation invariance inductive bias of Convolutional Neural Networks. Thus, we present the WoodScape fisheye object detection challenge for autonomous driving which was held as part of the CVPR 2022 Workshop on Omnidirectional Computer Vision (OmniCV). This is one of the first competitions focused on fisheye camera object detection. We encouraged the participants to design models which work natively on fisheye images without rectification. We used CodaLab to host the competition based on the publicly available WoodScape fisheye dataset. In this paper, we provide a detailed analysis on the competition which attracted the participation of 120 global teams and a total of 1492 submissions. We briefly discuss the details of the winning methods and analyze their qualitative and quantitative results.


Wide color gamut displays using monochromatic light sources, such as LED or laser, or applying multi-primary techniques have been introduced by several authors in forms of laboratory based models and for high end natural color vision applications. In order to bring these technologies into the consumer market, one of our latest investigations resulted in a rear projection type high definition multi-primary display (MPD) system which has been realized by a modification of our previous three channel DLP™ projection television. Thereby the full spectral energy of the UHP™ type projection lamp is sequentially separated into five primary spectrums through a rotating color wheel instead of the conventional RGB primary colors so that it enables to reproduce a wide range of colors than sRGB compatible display. The main focus of this study is to describe a gamut mapping method that allows using a full range of color gamut of MPD for a given limited color gamut of television signal. This approach is to display an image in such a way that the limited color saturations of the current television signal are adaptively enhanced for every observer. Through the gamut mapping, the picture quality of MPD is significantly improved in comparison with a conventional display system.


We give an analytic proof of the existence of Shilnikov chaos in complex Ginzburg-Landau equation subject to a large third-order dispersion perturbation.


Much attention has been given to the representation of place in Australian literature (e.g. Gerster; Darian-Smith, Gunner and Nuttall; Haynes; Cranston and Zeller), but comparably little to this literature's participation in the production, or making, of place. This special issue brings together scholars working in a field that can be identified by various critical and historical movements in literary and cultural studies which constellate around questions of literature's intersections with the materiality of place. This field includes literary and cultural geography, psychogeography, critical regionalism, new materialisms, spatial history, and place-making studies. While diverse and dynamic, a commonality across these theoretical and methodological approaches is the understanding of place as an unbounded, non-geographically determined, and relationally constituted, real-world context for practices of living and meaning-making; and the recognition of complex, more than material, and more than human forces, in the ongoing constitution of place.


Neutrinos propagating in dense neutrino media such as core-collapse supernovae and neutron star merger remnants can experience the so-called fast flavor conversions on scales much shorter than those expected in vacuum. A very generic class of fast flavor instabilities is the ones which are produced by the backward scattering of neutrinos off the nuclei at relatively large distances from the supernova core. In this study we demonstrate that despite their ubiquity, such fast instabilities are unlikely to cause significant flavor conversions if the population of neutrinos in the backward direction is not large enough. indeed, the scatteringinduced instabilities can mostly impact the neutrinos traveling in the backward direction, which represent only a small fraction of neutrinos at large radii. We show that this can be explained by the shape of the unstable flavor eigenstates, which can be extremely peaked at the backward angles. ar X iv :2 11 1. 14 88 0v 1 [ as tr oph .H E ] 2 9 N ov 2 02 1


In Reply.— I agree that radionuclide cisternography is often of benefit in cases of dementia being evaluated for possible shunt surgery. This technique provides information on the status of the cerebrospinal circulation that is of value in many patients suspected of having normalpressure hydrocephalus, particularly when there are atypical clinical or radiological features. Radionuclide cisternography should not be relied on, however, to make the diagnosis without regard to the other findings. 1,22 Neither should it be used to exclude the diagnosis in patients who are clinically and radiologically characteristic of normal-pressure hydrocephalus. In the case under discussion, both the clinical and magnetic resonance imaging examinations supported the diagnosis of normal-pressure hydrocephalus at the time the decision to place the shunt was made. The additional information provided by radionuclide cisternography would not have been of value. Overall, data from studies of the value of radionuclide cisternography in patients suspected of having


This paper studies the effects of three financial shocks in the economy: a net-worth shock, an uncertainty or risk shock, and a credit-spread shock. We argue that only the latter can push the nominal interest rate against its zero lower bound. Further, a recessionary shock to the net worth or the credit spread generates a positive response for loans, which is counter-intuitive during an economic downturn. Finally, we find that there is an optimal commitment period for the central bank to keep the nominal interest rate equal to zero (forward guidance) after a financial turmoil. Beyond that optimal period, the volatility of inflation and output rise quick and sharply. Thus, an excessive forward guidance policy may destabilize the economy.


Accurately predicting functional recovery is an asset for all clinicians and decision makers involved in the care of patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI). Unfortunately, there is a lack of information on the relative importance of significant predictors of global functional outcome. There is also a need for identifying functional predictors that can be timely optimized by the medical and rehabilitation teams throughout the hospitalizations phases. The main objective of this work was to systematically review and rate early factors that are consistently and independently associated with global functional outcome in individuals with TSCI. A literature search using MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane databases from January 1, 1970 to April 1, 2017 was performed. Two authors independently reviewed the titles and abstracts yielded by this literature search and subsequently selected studies to be included based on predetermined eligibility criteria. Disagreements were resolved by a consensus-based discussion, and if not, by an external reviewer. Data were extracted by three independent reviewers using a standardized table. The quality of evidence of the individual studies was assessed based on the Oxford Center for Evidence-Based Medicine modified by Wright and colleagues (2000) as well as the National Institutes of Health (2014). Fifteen articles identifying early clinical predictors of functional outcome using multiple regression analyses were included in this systematic review. Based on the compiled data, this review proposes a rating of early factors associated to global functional outcome according to their importance and their potential to be modified by the medical/rehabilitation team throughout the early phases of hospitalization. It also proposes a new conceptual framework that illustrates the impact of specific categories of factors and their interaction with each other. Ultimately, this review aims to guide clinicians and researchers in improving the continuum of care throughout early phases post-SCI.


During a 2D echo exam, the transducer position is varied to elicit important information about the heart function and its anatomy. Knowledge of the transducer viewpoint is important in automatic cardiac echo interpretation to understand the regions being depicted as well as in the quantification of their attributes. In this paper, we address the problem of inferring the transducer viewpoint from the spatio-temporal information in cardiac echo videos. Unlike previous approaches, we exploit motion of the heart within a cardiac cycle in addition to spatial information to discriminate between viewpoints. Specifically, we use an active shape model (ASM) to model cardiac appearance in an echo frame, and cardiac motion is modeled using eigen-motions of ASM feature tracks. We test our method on 2 data sets of patients with various cardiac diseases, and we report comparison with re-implementations of two state-of-the-art view recognition methods.


Abstract Background Coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated to COVID-19, represents an emerging health threat worldwide as, after initial reports in China, it has continued to spread rapidly. The clinical spectrum of the disease varies from mild to severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Moreover, many patients can be asymptomatic, thus increasing the uncertainty of the diagnostic work-up. Laboratory tests play a pivotal role in the diagnosis and management of COVID-19, the current gold standard being real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) on respiratory tract specimens. However, the diagnostic accuracy of rRT-PCR depends on many pre-analytical and analytical variables. The measurement of specific COVID-19 antibodies (both IgG and IgM) should serve as an additional, non-invasive tool for disease detection and management. Methods The imprecision of the MAGLUMI™ 2000 Plus 2019-nCov IgM and IgG assays (Snibe, Shenzhen, China) was assessed by adopting the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) EP15-A3 protocol. Linearity of dilution and recovery was evaluated by means of mixes of high-level pools and low-level pools of serum samples. Immunoglobulin time kinetics were evaluated using a series of serum samples, repeatedly collected from COVID-19-positive patients at different times, from <5 days up to 26–30 days. Results Findings at the analytical validation of the assay carried out according to the CLSI EP15-A3 guideline demonstrated that imprecision and repeatability were acceptable (repeatability was <4% and <6% for IgM and IgG, respectively, whilst intermediate imprecision was <6%). In addition, results of dilution and recovery studies were satisfactory. The kinetics of COVID-19 antibodies confirmed previously reported findings, showing a rapid increase of both IgM and IgG after 6–7 days from the symptom onset. IgG had 100% sensitivity on day 12, whilst 88% was the higher positive rate achieved for IgM after the same time interval. Conclusions The findings of this study demonstrate the validity of the MAGLUMI 2000 Plus CLIA assay for the measurement of specific IgM and IgG in sera of COVID-19 patients, and for obtaining valuable data on the kinetics of both (IgM and IgG) COVID-19 antibodies. These data represent a pre-requisite for the appropriate utilization of specific antibodies for the diagnosis and management of COVID-19 patients.


MOTIVATION
The rapid growth of DNA sequence data creates a need to find graphic tools to study DNA sequence in a perceivable form. A large number of scholars work hard in this field. However, it is difficult to handle the following problems in one graph: (i) degeneracy, (ii) loss of information, (iii) difficulty of observing in multi-dimensional graph, (iv) difficulty of visualization when representing long DNA sequences and (v) need to reflect useful information.

RESULTS
DV-Curve (Dual-Vector Curve) using two vectors to represent one alphabet of DNA sequences not only avoids degeneracy and loss of information, but also has good visualization no matter whether sequences are long, and can reflect the length of DNA sequence. The applications of the DV-Curve on mutation analysis and two types of similarity analysis are presented in detail. DV-Curve is a significative tool by which biologists could find useful biological knowledge.

AVAILABILITY
The corresponding software of DV-Curve is available at http://bmchust.3322.org/Data/Soft/332-DV-Curve2.0.zip.


The scalable preparation of two-dimensional hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is essential for practical applications. Despite intense research in this area, high-yield production of two-dimensional h-BN with large-size and high solubility remains a key challenge. In the present work, we propose a scalable exfoliation process for hydroxyl-functionalized BN nanoplatelets (OH-BNNPs) by a simple ball milling of BN powders in the presence of sodium hydroxide via the synergetic effect of chemical peeling and mechanical shear forces. The hydroxide-assisted ball milling process results in relatively large flakes with an average size of 1.5 μm with little damage to the in-plane structure of the OH-BNNP and high yields of 18%. The resultant OH-BNNP samples can be redispersed in various solvents and form stable dispersions that can be used for multiple purposes. The incorporation of the BNNPs into the polyethylene matrix effectively enhanced the barrier properties of the polyethylene due to increased tortuosity of the diffusion path of the gas molecules. Hydroxide-assisted ball milling process can thus provide simple and efficient approaches to scalable preparation of large-size and highly soluble BNNPs. Moreover, this exfoliation process is not only easily scalable but also applicable to other layered materials.


Many studies have found relationships between students' achievement emotions and their performance as well as between students' science identities and their performance. However, little is known about how students' achievement emotions are related to their science identities. This study explored the relationship between achievement emotions and science identities in an inquiry-based physics class. In order to do so, we adapted the Achievement Emotions Questionnaire-Mathematics by replacing all references to mathematics with physics and selected items from the Persistence Research in Science and Engineering (PRiSE) survey. The adapted instruments were implemented with students in an inquiry-based physics class. The results showed that, overall, students' self-perceptions as science persons were low, especially as chemistry or physics persons. Students also had negative emotions overall about physics. The results showed that students' anxiety levels were significantly increased in a test-related situation compared to class-related and learning-related situations. In terms of the relationships between their science identity and their achievement emotions, students' self-identification and their perceptions about their parents/relatives/friends' views about them as physics persons were significantly related to their achievement emotions in physics. We also found that tests triggered great anxiety for students regardless of their pride in and enjoyment of physics.


BACKGROUND
Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) are quickly becoming a standard component of medical practices.

OBJECTIVES
We longitudinally studied the impact of EMR implementation on physician perceptions of quality of care, documentation, and work hours, as well as on measured physician productivity.

METHODS
Physicians were surveyed at 3-month intervals regarding perceived impact of the EMR on quality of care, documentation, and productivity. Relative Value Units (RVUs) per clinic hours were used to measure productivity. Paired t-tests were used to compare the mean RVUs per clinic hour in the pre-EMR with the immediate post-EMR time period and the long-term post-EMR time period.

RESULTS
RVUs per hour increased significantly from the pre-EMR time period to the immediate post-EMR time period (means 1.49 and 1.82, respectively, P = 0.0007). The long-term post-EMR time period also showed a significant increase over the pre-EMR period (mean 1.79, P = 0.007). Sixty-six percent of physicians perceived that EMR implementation increased their work amount a little or much more.

CONCLUSION
Not only did physician production rise immediately, it stayed at the increased level for the duration of our study period. This may be due to improved documentation supporting more appropriate billing. However, physicians also perceived the EMR as taking up more of their time.


Distribution of embryonic DNA in mouse preimplantation embryos was studied by the immunoelectron microscopic method with colloidal gold. The embryos (one-cell, early or late two-cell, four-cell) were sampled separately, and immunogold labelling has been performed on thawed ultrathin cryosections. Condensed chromatin blocks were labelled very intensively. DNA labelling was predominantly visible over peripheral chromatin blocks and over small patches of chromatin localized throughout the nucleus of one-cell embryo. DNA distribution appeared to be more extended in the whole nucleus of early two-cell embryo. A few labelled chromatin clumps were observed to be associated with prenucleolar body (nucleolar precursor body--NPB) in this stage. Convex-shaped electron-light areas (fibrillar centres?) were found at the periphery of NPB in the late two-cell stage. These areas were labelled by scattered individual gold particles. In reticulated nucleolar regions (detected in four-cell embryos) immunolabelling appeared as individual gold particles present over the periphery of areas with loosely arranged material (fibrillar centres) surrounded by a denser component (dense fibrillar component). These consecutive changes are correlated with nucleologenesis and with the onset of transcriptional activity. We conclude that at the onset of nucleolar transcriptional activity condensed chromatin does not penetrate the NPB of mouse two-cell embryo.


The possibility of stable bubbles being produced during ultrasonic irradiation of a guinea-pig hind limb, has been examined using a pulse echo ultrasonic imaging technique, that can visualise, within a cross-section of the limb, both moving and stationary bubbles of diameters down to 10 mu m (Beck et al. 1978). The observations reported clearly show that acoustic cavitation, leading to stable bubble production, occurs in vivo in mammalian tissue as a result of irradiation with ultrasound above 80 mW cm-2 intensity. However, before the biological consequences of such bubble formation can be assessed, further studies must be carried out to define more fully the intensity threshold as a function of the time or irradiation, and to establish the time course for re-absorption of these stable bubbles in the absence of a sound field.


Because microsatellite markers have a high degree of genetic variability, they are an effective tool for genetic monitoring. We have developed a genotyping panel containing 87 microsatellite markers that are polymorphic among commonly used inbred rat strains, including ACI, Fischer 344, Lewis, Brown Norway, Wistar-Furth, and Wistar-Kyoto. The markers are located at approximately 15- to 20-cM intervals along each of the 20 autosomes. By using fluorescently labeled primers and multiplex PCR analysis, the entire genome can be assayed with only 8 reactions. The resulting amplicons from these reactions can be distinguished from one another by both their size and the fluorescent dye associated with them. Amplicons are analyzed and allele sizes are determined by using automated capillary-based instrumentation. These multiplex panels provide a cost-effective and rapid method for genetic monitoring for applications ranging from assessing genetic contamination in a rat colony to moving mutations from one genetic background to another by using a speed congenic approach.


Historically, property has been the foundation of the existence of human society and of states at all times. The "Rule of Law" in every democratic state guarantees and protects property. In a chronological period of time, how has the Albanian legal systems guaranteed private property? After the change of dictatorial system caused by the democratic developments during the 90' which happened in all the East Europe, the democratic state although  it wasn't responsible for the past injustice, took over the moral and legal obligations to adjust, as soon as possible, some of the previous regime injustices, from 29 November 1994 and after. The first step was Law nr.7512 in August 1 st 1991 "For sanctioning and protection of private property, for free initiative independent private activity and privatization". Two basic elements of this process are: recognition/restitution and compensation of property. Both elements have encountered difficulties in their materialization in practice. The jurisprudence of European Court of Human Rights and the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Albania have tried to give the legal definition "restitution and compensation of property" meaning not the same as the right of property in a constitutional sense and rules of international law, but an understanding based on the principle of fairness and justice and more to the principle of the welfare state. An important role had the unification of these decisions, that taking into account the decisions of the European Court of Justice, unified judicial practice in regard to the question of restitution and compensation. Besides the repeated decisions and frequent recommendations as to improve the situation, Albanian state hasn't built yet appropriate and effective mechanisms for tackling this problem. Keywords : Private property, restitution and compensation of property, jurisprudence, ECHR


Effective public health work is rooted in traditions of concerned, humane, directed science. However, the field has changed significantly since its formalization in the mid-19th century, and even today, innovators are reshaping its underlying orientations. This study examines the origins and implications of one such innovation, the recent introduction of the term syndemic, along with related shifts in thinking and action that occur when operating from a syndemic orientation. Distinguishing between a single epidemic and the phenomenon of syndemics expands, in very particular ways, the conceptual, methodological, and moral dimensions of public health work. This perspective is a reminder that epidemiologic principles have been applied largely to the first tier of a highly complicated health system. It also alerts us to the inevitability of boundary judgments, the need to actively critique those judgments, and the possibilities that exist for orienting the entire health protection enterprise in new directions. Because public health workers aspire to assure safer, healthier conditions—which are politically contested and constantly in flux—the concepts, methods, and moral principles that shape health policy must themselves resemble the features of dynamic, democratic systems. Hence, a second purpose of this study is to explore what an explicitly dynamic and democratic view of public health work might entail. Examples provided here illustrate how innovators are learning to better acknowledge the interdependency of people in places; map the dynamics that govern patterns of health, vulnerability, and affliction; anticipate a range of plausible health futures; and work democratically with other citizens to build the public strength needed for navigating change and expanding people's freedoms. This inquiry joins conversations from three spheres of scholarship: public health, systems thinking and modeling, and social navigation. All of these inform our collective efforts to navigate health futures through the processes of setting direction, understanding change, and governing movement. Navigating Health Futures in a Dynamic and Democratic World


ABSTRACT The motivational aspects of humor are considered from the perspective of terror management theory, testing the hypothesis that exposure to the mortality salience manipulation will result in an alteration in participants' appreciation of humorous material. Participants rated several comic strips, indicating how funny they found the jokes. The differential relevance of various forms of jokes to the process of terror management was also examined by having participants rate their appreciation of jokes that address issues of varying applicability to existential concerns. Results indicate that mortality salience results in an exacerbation of the evaluation of humorous material, and that jokes' relative centrality to terror management processes produces differing evaluative responses. Theoretical and practical implications are examined.


Abstract Strict products liability has evolved in a manner that is widely misunderstood. The liability rule was first formulated to govern defective products that did not minimally perform one of their ordinary functions as expected by consumers—a malfunction that violates the implied warranty of quality. After adopting this rule, courts began applying it to products that did not malfunction and found that a test for defect based on consumer expectations often is indeterminate or can otherwise unduly limit liability in an important class of cases. To address these problems, most courts adopted the risk-utility test, a form of cost-benefit analysis that functions like the negligence standard of reasonable care. Relying on these cases, the Restatement (Third) of Torts: Products Liability embraced the risk-utility test, jettisoned the consumer expectations test, and characterized strict products liability as a misleading label that perpetuates confusion about liability being strict when it instead is based on negligence. In response, a clear majority of courts have rejected this negligence-based framework and affirmed the continued vitality of strict products liability. Puzzled by this unexpected development, mainstream scholars claim that courts are confused by the rhetoric of strict products liability. The prevailing scholarly opinion about this matter is confused; its fixation on negligence ignores the implied warranty rationale for strict products liability. Having been largely formulated as a rule of contract law, the implied warranty is under-theorized as a tort doctrine. Once adequately developed, the tort version of the implied warranty shows why courts have transformed the rule of strict products liability from the last century into a more comprehensive regime—"strict products liability 2.0"—that relies on consumer expectations to incorporate the risk-utility test into the framework of strict products liability. As compared to ordinary negligence liability, the implied warranty defines the safety problem in the normatively appropriate manner, thereby sharpening the inquiry about what's at stake. In dismissing this important development, mainstream tort theory relies on legal categories that fundamentally differ from the ones courts have used to develop strict products liability with analogical reasoning. Scholars have either resorted to overly general theories of tort liability or have otherwise focused on narrow doctrinal questions. By not engaging in the mid-level categorical theorizing required by analogical reasoning, the mainstream position could not see how this characteristic form of judicial reasoning has created the substantively sound regime of strict products liability 2.0.


This study brings light to some financial intermediary development factors that could negate stock market development, as well as those that could improve it. Using a panel of eight countries, from 1989 to 2008, we derive indexes via Principal Component Analysis; based on which panel fixed effect regressions are performed. The principal edge of this work is that, in policy making, not all aspects of financial intermediary development should be prioritized for stock market development.


ABSTRACT Objectives: The association between negative attitudes toward aging and mental health (indicated by depressive symptoms, neuroticism, and happiness) was explored among Israeli middle-aged and older gay and heterosexual men. Method: In a community-dwelling sample, 152 middle-aged and older gay men and 120 middle-aged and older heterosexual men at the age range of 50–87 (M = 59.3, SD = 7.5) completed measures of negative attitudes toward aging, depressive symptoms, neuroticism, and happiness. Results: After controlling for socio-demographic characteristics, the association between negative attitudes toward aging and mental health was moderated by sexual orientation, demonstrating that negative attitudes toward aging were more strongly associated with adverse mental health concomitants among middle-aged and older gay men compared to middle-aged and older heterosexual men. Conclusions: The findings suggest vulnerability of middle-aged and older gay men to risks of aging, as their mental health is markedly linked with their negative attitudes toward aging. This vulnerability should be addressed by clinicians and counselors who work with middle-aged and older gay men.


"Modular design" is a kind of design mode that not only can made clothing more interesting, makes the wearer can participate in choices, increase the possibility of clothing style .but also can extend the service cycle of clothing. In this "fast fashion" run market, the design idea of modular design can be a breakthrough point, help us find the way to balance the low-carbon and environmentally-friendly need and fashion. The article will combine the existing examples put the modular design summarized into three categories: component modular design and geometric modular design and compounded modular design.


Abstract Determination of intracellular concentration becomes essential for the drugs having target receptors or bioactivation site inside the cells. Majority of the antiviral drugs are nucleoside analogs and their intracellular phosphorylated metabolites are active. The anticancer drugs of the cellular enzyme and nucleoside analog category are also required to be undergone intracellular drug level analysis. In this review, we have sequentially described the cell isolation protocols, cell lysis techniques and sample preparation approach to be followed for quantification of intracellular levels of selected antiviral and anticancer drugs. Major limitations for intracellular analyte quantification and their possible way out has been discussed. Currently, no literature is available summarizing these important aspects including bioanalysis of intracellular quantification of either antiviral or anticancer drugs. This review, thus, can be considered to be first of its kind and will be highly useful in providing guidance for intracellular drug analysis aiming determination of the site-specific bioavailability.


The microtubule cytoskeleton orchestrates the cellular dynamics and plasticity that underlies cellular morphogenesis. Microtubule binding proteins known as "TIP" proteins regulate the dynamic properties of microtubules during chromosomal segregation and cellular division. Our recent study revealed that TIP150 is a novel plus end tracking protein interacting with EB1 and MCAK in vitro and in vivo (EMBO Reports. 2009. 10:857-65). However, it is unclear whether and how this interaction regulates chromosome segregation in mitosis. We hypothesize that Tip150 is essential for chromosome segregation, and governs proper kinetochore-microtubule attachment at the microtubule plus end. To delineate the molecular function of TIP150 and its regulation in chromosome segregation and the mitotic cell cycle, a combination of biophotonic analyses with RNA interference was employed. Immunofluorescence reveals that TIP150 localizes to the outer most part of the kinetochore and to the ends of growing microtubules by its C-terminal domain. Suppression of TIP150 resulted in an increase in mitotic defects, reduced kinetochore-microtubule attachment, and perturbed chromosome oscillation dynamics. Furthermore, the use of total internal reflection microscopy reveals a novel role for TIP150-EB1 elicited tracking to the microtubule ends. We reason that TIP150 is essential for kinetochore-microtubule attachment in mitosis and microtubule dynamics. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 2056. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-2056


Nurses are exposed to incidents of workplace violence involving patients and their family members, and also coworkers. Studies of occupational stressors generally rely on subjective self-reports, questionnaires, or biometric and biochemical markers in long-cycle time intervals, but such assessments offer little guidance to HF/E intervention efforts. This study examined the viability of using wearable sensors to detect workplace violence incidents, and included measurement of pulse transit time (PTT) as a biomarker of continuous blood pressure. Six nurses were monitored over seven days. The electrocardiogram, PTT, and activity level were measured using a custom-designed armband. Participants used a wristwatch (Empatica E4) to log incidents, and a smartphone survey app to rate incident severity. Results show PTT was a more reliable indicator of workplace incidents than low- to high-frequency (LF/LH) ratio heart rate variability, offering a more robust way to continuously monitor critical events noninvasively over long periods in demanding work environments.


Pakistan is a divided country with different religious groups represented. Since independence in 1941 the Muslim population has increased more rapidly than the Hindu population the West Pakistan population more rapidly and steadily than the East Pakistan population. In the late 1950s the Pakistan government initiated a family planning program. The program has trained medical and paramedical personnel in family planning added family planning services to existing medical centers planned for a National Research Institute of Family Planning employed mobile units to reach outlying areas conducted limited clinical studies on some contraceptives and used mass media advertising. Only India and Japan are doing more with government-sponsored family planning. A weak organizational structure and an inadequate number of trained personnel are the main weakness of the program. It is too early to assess the success of the program. A 10-point reduction in annual birth rates will be considered successful.


Nabokov's first, and atypical, American story, "The Assistant Producer," ends almost as soon as the author runs out of the "real life" material. This article supplies a continuation based on documents recently discovered by a Russian researcher, mostly letters of General Miller (the General Fedchenko of the story) from his cell in the N.K.V.D. prison, where he spent twenty months after his abduction and before his execution.


The reception of child immunization in Iran today can be explained by the conjunction of several factors. Firstly, the Pasteur Institute of Teheran (established in 1921) initiated the vaccine transfer, while the successive public health policies developed and systematized it. Since the Islamic Revolution, the application of the Expanded Program of Immunization has allowed the Islamic Republic of Iran to reach the fourth world-wide rank for immunisation of child populations. The socio-cultural appropriation of the technique can also be explained by its integration into the popular preventive practices (such as magic and religious rituals) as well as a specific treatment of the collective/individual question. This paper describes some results of a qualitative anthropological research conducted in Teheran and the rural district of Hassanâbâd (near Isfahân) between 1991 and 1992.


Failure to employ stratigraphie terms, as set forth in the Stratigraphic Code, has resulted in a situation perplexing to both professional and student geologists. To demonstrate that multiform usage is illogical and confusing, examples are presented from the Paleozoic section in New York State to show the varying ways in which the term "formation," fundamental in stratigraphy, has been used. Formation should be used only for lithogenetic (rock) units on geologic maps. Closer adherence to the Stratigraphie Code is advocated, in order to stabilize and clarify stratigraphy. If it is necessary to revise the Stratigraphie Code in the light of recent techniques in stratigraphy, the opinions of the current American Commission on Stratigraphie Nomenclature should be obtained.


ABSTRACT
Primary mediastinal germ cell tumors are uncommon tumors, of which the nonseminomatous type is more likely to metastasize than the seminomatous type. Primary mediastinal germ cell tumors may also present with superior vena cava obstruction. Here, we present this case of primary mediastinal germ cell tumor with superior vena cava obstruction causing dilatation of collaterals in dorsal intravertebral venous plexus, which strongly mimics sclerotic skeletal lesions/metastasis on a Contrast-enhanced CT scan and also appears FDG avid on PET scan. Herein, we can differentiate the two by just a simple review of plain CT scan image.


The hot nine-component system HD 93206, which contains a gravitationally bounded eclipsing Ac1+Ac2 binary ($P=5.9987$~d) and a spectroscopic Aa1+Aa2 ($P=20.734$~d) binary can provide~important insights into the origin and evolution of massive stars. Using archival and new spectra, and a~rich collection of ground-based and space photometric observations, we carried out a detailed study of this object. We provide a much improved description of both short orbits and a good estimate of the mutual period of both binaries of about 14500~d (i.e. 40 years). For the first time, we detected weak lines of the fainter component of the 6.0~d eclipsing binary in the optical region of the spectrum, measured their radial velocities, and derived a mass ratio of $M_{\rm Ac2}/M_{\rm Ac1}=1.29$, which is the opposite of what was estimated from the International Ultraviolet explorer (IUE) spectra. We confirm that the eclipsing subsystem Ac is semi-detached and is therefore in a phase of large-scale mass transfer between its components. The Roche-lobe filling and spectroscopically brighter component Ac1 is the less massive of the two and is eclipsed in the secondary minimum. We show that the bulk of the \ha emission, so far believed to be associated with the eclipsing system, moves with the primary O9.7I component Aa1 of the 20.73~d spectroscopic binary. However, the weak emission in the higher Balmer lines seems to be associated with the accretion disc around component Ac2. We demonstrate that accurate masses and other basic physical properties including the distance of this unique system can be obtained but require a more sophisticated modelling. A~first step in this direction is presented in the accompanying Paper~II (Bro\v{z} et al.).


Objective To explore the possibility of establishment of newbornand adult rat Schwann cell culture with "M" serum - free medium. Methods Newborn (aged 1 ~ 3 days) and adult ( aged 3 ~ 4 months) Lewis rat sciatic nerves were harvested and Schwann cells were obtained after a differential adhesion and a three week in - vitro Wallerian degeneration, respectively. Schwann cells were then incubated with the "M" serum - free medium for one week. The rates of purity and proliferation of cultured Schwann cells were assessed by S - 100 and 5 - bromo - 2 -deoxyuridine (BrdU) immunostaining. Results After one week of Schwann cell culture, the purity and the proliferation rates of newborn Schwann cells were 95 % and 73.8 %, and those of adult Schwann cells were 93 % and 38.3 %, respectively. Moreover, the DNA syntheses of most of contaminated fibroblasts were interrupted. Conclusions With the application of the "M" serum - free medium, the technique of Schwann cell culture was simplified and the contamination of fibroblasts was effectively controlled.

Key words:
Schwann cells; Cell culture; Fibroblasts; Serum - free medium


Background and objectives Upon activation, neutrophils (PMN) form neutrophil extracellular traps (NET). Those structures are expelled chromatin fibres composed of DNA and associated proteins. The process, NETosis, is dependent on citrullination, a post-translational modification of proteins. NETosis has been suggested to be pathogenic in certain autoimmune diseases, particularly in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), characterised by the production of anti-citrullinated protein autoantibodies (ACPA) which are specific for the disease. Although RA PMN show enhanced NETosis and RA autoantibodies recognise NET, the pathogenic mechanisms triggered by NET are not elucidated. Therefore, we have analysed the antigenic and immunogenic properties of NET in RA. Materials and methods PMN and monocytes were freshly isolated by dextran sedimentation or purified by magnetic bead sorting, respectively, from the blood of healthy donors and RA patients. IgG were purified from healthy donors, from ACPA-positive RA patients and from ACPA-negative patients with rheumatic diseases. Monocytes were differentiated into macrophages by culturing in the presence of M-CSF. Cell purity and IgG binding were estimated by flow cytometry. NETosis was induced in vitro on poly-L-lysine-adherent PMN and was analysed by fluorescence microscopy, together with IgG binding. NET were detached from plastic by mild nuclease digestion to produce soluble NET which were enriched, quantified by fluorescence (PicoGreen) and by spectrophotometry (NanoDrop) and characterised by SDS-PAGE and agarose gel. Macrophages and PMN were cultured with soluble NET in the presence/absence of LPS or C1q. Cell activation was estimated by measuring cytokine secretion by ELISA. Results Only low binding of IgG was observed by flow cytometry on untreated freshly isolated PMN. Upon NETosis, a strong binding of ACPA+ IgG was observed, specifically on the NET structures, as demonstrated by the co-staining of DNA by fluorescence microscopy. Soluble NET activated both macrophages and PMN, leading to IL-8 secretion, independently of ACPA+ IgG. The stimulatory activity of soluble NET was increased in the presence of C1q. Soluble NET from both healthy donors and RA patients induced cell activation. Likewise, both PMN and macrophages from healthy donors and RA patients responded to soluble NET. On the contrary, soluble NET specifically inhibited LPS-induced IL-6 secretion by macrophages, and to a lower extent TNF secretion, but not IL-8 secretion. Conclusions ACPA+ IgG from RA patients strongly and specifically recognise NET and not untreated PMN. NET are immunogenic and possess both pro- and anti-inflammatory properties depending on the cell type, the activation status and the presence of co-factors like C1q.


Face recognition systems must be robust to the variation of various factors such as facial expression, illumination, head pose and aging. Especially, the robustness against illumination variation is one of the most important problems to be solved for the practical use of face recognition systems. Gabor wavelet is widely used in face detection and recognition because it gives the possibility to simulate the function of human visual system. In this paper, we propose a method for extracting Gabor wavelet features which is stable under the variation of local illumination and show experiment results demonstrating its effectiveness.


In the present study, a photoresponsive chromophoric system such as 4-[(E)-2-(3-hydro xynaphthalen-2-yl)diazen-1-yl] benzoic acid was incorporated on to lignin core by functional transformation reactions and the photoresponsive beha-vior of the green, environment friendly product was investigated. The end hydroxyl group of lignin was modified with the chromophoric systems by DCC coupling. The chromophoric systems as well as the chromophore-bound biopolymer core systems were purified by column chromatography. The products were characterized by UV-visible, fluorescence, FT-IR and NMR spectroscopic methods. The results of the studies show that incorporation of the chromophoric system on to the lignin core enhanced the light absorption, emission and light stabilization properties of the chromophoric system. The light fastening properties of chromophoric system and the modified product were compared. It shows that stability of the chromophoric system greatly enhanced on attaching to the polymeric system. The trans-cis photoisomerisation and the reverse cis-trans thermal conversions were also assisted by the lignin core. The remarkable stability on irradiation shows that this is a novel photoresponsive system with excellent light fastening properties which would find application in coating materials, dyes, paints, inks, therapeutic agents and many more.


The source-field method is a very effective way to treat 3-D magnetostatic and magnetodynamic cases for linear and nonlinear studies. In this paper, we propose a variation of this method based on the concept of differential permeability. With this new approach, it is possible to handle nonlinear cases and also more complex hysteretic materials. In this work, we will present the method and consider the first case. The electric circuit is coupled with the magnetic structure and a time stepping technique is used.


The problem of maximizing the expected utility is well understood in the context of a complete financial market. This dissertation studies the same problem in an arbitrage-free yet incomplete market. Jin and Zhou have characterized the set of the terminal wealths that can be replicated by admissible portfolios. The problem is then transformed into a static optimization problem. It is proved that the terminal wealth is attainable for all utility functions when the market parameters are deterministic. The optimal portfolio is obtained explicitly when the utility function is logarithmic even if the market parameters follow stochastic processes. However we do not succeed in extending this result to the power utility function.


PurposeResearch shows that the majority of investors, consumers and even younger consumers who are interested in social responsibility are unaware of B Corps. Companies spend significant time and money to obtain B Corp status that B Lab, the non-profit that certifies companies, wants to use as a force for good. Using signaling theory and corporate communication theory, the study examines whether B Corps market their B Corp status effectively on B Corps' social media sites to determine whether brand equity is being built there for the B Corp label by the B Corp companies themselves.Design/methodology/approachThe authors content analyzed social media activity of 100 randomly selected US B Corps ranging in size and industry type over a two-month period on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. The sample was selected from the listing of the B Corporations on the B Lab website using a skip interval method. The authors searched for preselected keywords within two main categories, one directly mentioning B Corps (such as B Corp logo and B Corp name), and another discussing company social responsibility activities that directly relate to what B Corps do but did not mention the B Corp name.FindingsThe study finds that half of the B Corps had no social media presence. Of those who were active on social media, most B Corps did not mention B Corp status while many of the B Corps discussed social responsibility activities that directly talked about workers, environment, community, and governance, the areas that B Corp certification covers.Research limitations/implicationsThe study indicates that reverse decoupling might better explain communication of B Corp certification on social media than signaling theory. The finding is consistent with more recent research on certifications that shows that obtaining certifications by companies does not have to be followed by marketing certificates even when that could be beneficial. On the other hand, communication of general pro-social claims is consistent with the assumptions of the signaling theory and often used by B Corps. The study suggests why companies market general claims but not a B Corp label. Findings also suggest that when promoting the B Corp label is not done, a firm's internal values are not being expressed externally but when social responsible activities are promoted, a firm's internal values are being expressed externally. The research points to a missed opportunity for B Corps that spend significant resources to get certified. Future studies should employ larger samples with and international companies and venture into other forms of marketing through which B Corp status may be conveyed.Practical implicationsB Corps can easily connect information on the socially responsible activities of B Corps with B Corp status on social media and reap the benefits of B Corps by creating equity for B Corp label on multiple levels. This would also help B-Lab that strives to develop a stronger brand for the B Corps' certification. When consumers know what B Corp stands for, consumers are willing to pay premium prices. Investors are also increasingly interested in companies that care for stakeholders and the environment and are governed in transparent and socially responsible ways.Social implicationsB Corps are described by the B-Lab as a "force for good" that benefits communities, environment and society. Understanding how certifications such as B Corps are communicated to the public and improving how they are communicated can help businesses reap more benefits from B Corps' socially responsible activity and help consumers and investors become educated about such companies so that B Corps can support them. This is important as B-Corps certification is still not well known. Marketing B Corp certification more effectively can help develop a wider and stronger network of businesses that want to do good, investors that want to found socially responsible companies and consumers who want to buy from B Corps. To create such a marketplace B Corps need to be better marketed online.Originality/valueThe study shows that the authors cannot assume that the certifications that companies obtain, often using significant resources and potentially offering many benefits for building brand equity, will be communicated to the stakeholders to reap these benefits. The study provides possible reasons for why companies may not market such endeavors. The study questions assumptions implicit in signaling theory and by using reverse decoupling the study explains why companies may pursue certifications but not market that the companies obtain them even when pro-social certifications have a great potential to differentiate a company among stakeholders that look for socially responsible firms. The study questions what this means for creating a change in business to become a "force for good."


Three dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM) simulations have been used to study the possibility of magnetic film utilization to make GHz frequency band inductors. A simple structure of a flat magnetic film above a spiral coil gained about 65% inductance increase. Granular type soft magnetic films showed the best results.


In this paper a new algorithm to compute the component tree is presented. As compared to the state-of-the-art, this algorithm does not use excessive memory and is able to work eciently on images whose values are highly quantized or even with images having oating values. We also describe how it can be applied to astronomical data to identify relevant objects.


Abstract In view of the differences in the nature and concept of poverty across rural and urban regions, this article argues that a nationwide standardised poverty reduction strategy package may not be equally effective in these two regions. This article examines the limitations of existing poverty assessment approaches used in Bangladesh and identifies various indicators that are responsible for the achievement of higher level functioning in urban regions in contrast to rural areas. The methodology of the study is based on 917 samples of poor persons with microcredit collected from nine districts of Bangladesh. Significant differences have been observed in the indicators of poverty for rural and urban areas. The results from our participatory study reveal that the urban poor are more inclined towards social functioning achievements such as voting, decision-making at both household and work levels, having a voice at local meetings and co-operatives, whereas the rural poor are still demanding the most basic requirements.


Local government units carry out tasks aimed at meeting the needs of the local community. The implementation of these tasks necessitates the collection and disbursement of funds. As practice shows, rarely is a balance reached between revenue and expenditure. The shortage of the necessary funds to cover all planned expenditures in a given year causing the budget deficit, which in turn causes the need for borrowing. On this specific issue, this article presents the current scope of local government co-operation with banks. The article presents a catalogue of loan products and their availability to local governments. In this respect, the author has paid particular attention to the range of analyzed banks' risks, and the availability of information about the risks. This in the fullest possible way supports the implementation of the lending process, especially in terms of long-term financing. The primary purpose of the considerations made in this study was to find answers to the questions: what kind of risks are analyzed by banks in the lending process and how relevant are they? The conclusions were based on a literature review and survey research concerning the co-operation between commercial banks with local government units.


N,N'-Bis(2-quinolylmethylene)-1,1'-binaphthyl-2,2'-diamine-Ni(II) complex and analogous complexes were found to be efficient chiral Lewis acid catalysts for the asymmetric Michael addition reactions between 2-silyloxyfurans and 3-alkenoyl-2-oxazolidinones, for which asymmetric inductions of up to 97% ee were obtained.


Abstract Müllerian inhibitory substance (MIS), also known as anti-Müllerian hormone, is best known as the hormone that regulates the regression of the Müllerian duct in males. In females, MIS is expressed in granulosa cells of preantral and early antral follicles. The specific MIS type II receptor is present in granulosa and theca cells of these small, growing follicles. Because the role of MIS in preantral follicle development is unknown, we have evaluated the effect of MIS on the growth, differentiation, and apoptosis of intact preantral follicles in a serum-free culture system. In this system, treatment with FSH induces an increase in both follicle diameter, cell number, and follicle cell differentiation based on increased inhibin-α synthesis. Of interest, treatment with MIS enhances the effect of FSH both on follicle diameter and cell number. Although treatment with activin A also enhances FSH effects on follicle growth, treatment with transforming growth factor (TGF)-β inhibits the FSH effects on follicle growth. Based on in situ staining of fragmented DNA, MIS was found to have no effect on follicle cell apoptosis, unlike its proapoptotic action on Müllerian ducts. In contrast to MIS and activin, TGF-β was a potent proapoptotic factor for preantral follicles in culture. Analysis of inhibin-α expression of cultured preantral follicles further indicated that in contrast to activin, treatment with MIS did not enhance FSH-stimulated follicle differentiation. Thus, MIS is a unique factor that promotes preantral follicle growth but not preantral follicle cell differentiation and apoptosis.


Background: Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors (EGFR-TKIs) achieves remarkable success in the treatment of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) bearing activating EGFR mutations. However, EGFR-TKI resistance is still a obstacles in the clinical practice. TRAF1 as a member of TRAF family participates NSCLC progression. In our previous research found that TRAF1 played an important role in the progression of NSCLC.Methods: In vivo and vitro, quantitative PCR (qPCR) and western blot (WB) were carried out to check the expression of TRAF1 in gefitinib-sensitive and -resistant NSCLC samples. The cell counting kit-8 (CCK8) and flow cytometry were used to measure cell proliferation, apoptosis and cycle arrest.Results: Here we showed that TRAF1 over-expression is associated with clinical resistance to EGFR TKI. TRAF1 was significantly up-regulated in gefitinib-resistant cells. Knockdown of TRAF1 increased the sensitivity of gefitinib-resistant cell. Knockdown of TRAF1 induced cell apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. Conclusions: Therefore, our results highlight the function of TRAF1 in the EGFT-TKI resistance.


On April 15, 2010 President Barak Obama made the official announcement that the Constellation Program, which included the Ares I launch vehicle, would be canceled. NASA s Ares I launch vehicle was being designed to launch the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle, returning humans to the moon, Mars, and beyond. It consisted of a First Stage (FS) five segment solid rocket booster and a liquid J-2X Upper Stage (US) engine. Roll control for the FS was planned to be handled by a dedicated Roll Control System (RoCS), located on the connecting interstage. Induced yaw or pitch moments experienced during FS ascent would have been handled by vectoring of the booster nozzle. After FS booster separation, the US Reaction Control System (ReCS) would have provided the US Element with three degrees of freedom control as needed. The best practices documented in this paper will be focused on the technical designs and producibility of both systems along with the partnership between NASA and Boeing, who was on contract to build the Ares I US Element, which included the FS RoCS and US ReCS. In regards to partnership, focus will be placed on integration along with technical work accomplished by Boeing. This will include detailed emphasis on task orders developed between NASA and Boeing that were used to direct specific work that needed to be accomplished. In summary, this paper attempts to capture key best practices that should be helpful in the development of future launch vehicle and spacecraft RCS designs.


ABSTRACT The main purpose of this study was to design and implement a professional development programme on technology integration for teachers in a public education centre based on the technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) framework and learning by design approach, and to evaluate the programme's impact. Ten adult education teachers in a public education centre participated in this case study research. Data sources include teacher-reflective reports, lesson plans and focus group interviews. The results revealed that the programme both enhanced teachers' TPACK and influenced their teaching practices. The results emphasise the importance of providing information that aligns with teachers' specific needs in adult education centres, giving teachers an active role, making opportunities available to design technology-enhanced learning artefacts while working in collaborative teams and selecting ICT tools based on typical adult learning characteristics. The study also offers suggestions for future research and practice on the design of professional development programmes.


The Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) and North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO) are the two dominant lowfrequency modes in the North Pacific. This study focused on the simulation capability of the two leading lowfrequency modes in current-coupled models, based on 24 coupled model outputs from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). Results showed that most of these models captured the two low-frequency modes, but the air–sea coupling relationship (covariability of the ocean low-frequency modes with the atmospheric forcing modes) captured by CMIP5 models had drastic differences. Four models (CCSM4, CESM-WACCM, MIROC5, and NorESM1-M) not only captured the spatial and temporal characteristics of the PDO and NPGO modes but also simulated their air–sea coupling relationships. Therefore, we selected these four models to examine changes in the PDO and NPGO modes under different global warming scenarios using RCP4.5 and RCP8.5 forcing (RCP: Representative Concentration Pathway). In future RCP scenarios, the spatial patterns of PDO and NPGO showed no obvious changes. However, the dominant periods of the PDO and NPGO modes were shorter, which is consistent with faster oceanic Rossby waves induced by enhanced upper oceanic stratification in the warming scenarios.


Purpose of review Data now exist describing the appropriate positioning of the needle tip and pattern of local anaesthetic spread after injection. The recent literature has been analysed in search of studies on the optimal procedure for common approaches centred on block efficacy, performance time, and safety. Recent findings Large peripheral nerves are surrounded by a gliding layer, the adventitia or paraneurium. Ultrasonically, a circumneural spread corresponds to adventitial extraneural injection. Nerve expansion with fascicular separation matches intraneural injection. Deliberate intraneural injection remains controversial, and is not advisable at the present time. For popliteal sciatic nerve blocks, positioning the needle in the common nerve sheath between the tibial and peroneal components and obtaining a circumneural spread surrounding both divisions predict rapid surgical anaesthesia. Using axillary and infraclavicular approaches, ultrasound-guided perivascular injection aiming at circumferential spread around the artery appears a valuable alternative to individual targeted nerve injections. For single injection interscalene block, an injection into the fascial sheath but far from the plexus proved to be as effective as an injection adjacent to the nerve structures. Fascial plane approaches are appealing alternatives for thin nerves that run between muscles and cannot be regularly visualized with the current resolution of ultrasound systems. Summary The ultrasound appearance of nerves and target injections are better understood. The specific distributions of local anaesthetic spread that predict success are significantly different from one anatomical site to another. It seems advisable to avoid intraneural injection.


Over the last few decades there has been a tremendous growth in small and medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEs account for a major share of registered factories, employment, production and gross value added in Indian industry. However, more and more SMEs are now struggling to survive due to immense pressure created by globalization of world economy. The SMEs tend to be especially vulnerable to contextual changes. This paper focuses on enhancing competitiveness of SMEs through better human resource management (HRM) practice in general and compensation management strategy in particular. The paper aims to analyze differences between subsequent stages in the life cycle of SMEs and accordingly provide matching compensation strategy for enhancing competitive advantages.