♦ Background: Pre-dialysis education can guide the choice of the dialysis modality best tailored to meet the needs and preferences of individual patients with chronic kidney disease. ♦ Methods: In a retrospective single-center cohort study, we evaluated the impact of a pre-dialysis education program on the incidence rates of patients using hemodialysis (HD) and peritoneal dialysis (PD) in our unit. The frequency distribution of dialysis modalities between people attending our education program and people not attending the program (control group) was analyzed for the 4-year period 2004 - 2008. ♦ Results: From among all the incident chronic kidney disease 5D patients presenting during the 4-year period, we analyzed 227 who started dialysis either with an arteriovenous fistula or a PD catheter. In that cohort, 70 patients (30.8%) took part in the education program, and 157 (69.2%) did not receive structured pre-dialysis counseling. In the group receiving education, 38 patients (54.3%) started with PD, and 32 (45.7%), with HD. In the standard-care group not receiving education, 44 patients (28%) started with PD, and 113 (72%), with HD (p < 0.001). ♦ Conclusions: Our multidisciplinary pre-dialysis program had a significant impact on the frequency distribution of dialysis modalities, increasing the proportion of patients initiating dialysis with PD.


Experiments of electron-beam-induced current (EBIC) and deep-level transient spectroscopy have been performed on a silicon bicrystal precontaminated with Fe and then annealed at . Contrary to all other similarly heat treated samples, whether they are as-received or deliberately contaminated with the fast diffusing Cu and/or Ni, the slowly cooled sample containing Fe exhibited an enhanced EBIC contrast and barrier effects at the grain boundary level, which have been associated with the formation of iron silicides at the interface. On the other hand, the rapid cooling has been found to `freeze' the moderately diffusing Fe in interstitial sites which act as recombination centres and are then at the origin of the observed general decrease of the EBIC in the bulk. A specific additional treatment of the quenched samples has led to the restoration and even improvement of both the EBIC signal and the minority carrier diffusion length.


We use the Adomian decomposition method to study a nonlinear wave equation. The decomposition method plays an important role in a wide class of differential and integral equations, stochastic and deterministic problems (linear or nonlinear) in Mathematics and Physics. The method provides solution without linearization, perturbation, or unjustified assumptions. An analytic solution of a nonlinear wave equation in the form of a series with easily computable components using the decomposition method will be determined. The nonhomogeneous equation is effectively solved by employing the phenomena of the self-canceling "noise" terms. The phenomena is useful in demonstrating a fast convergence of the exact solution.


Abstract. A silicon nitride directional coupler (DC) used to create a biosensing device is presented. The DC detects changes in the refractive index of the cladding (nclad) as changes in the relative output intensity. The DC length (L), nclad-dependent sensitivities of the DC, and preferred dimensions of the single-mode DC waveguides are obtained through numerical simulations. The performance of the DC is evaluated through end-fire coupling measurements. The intensities measured after varying the nclad using air, water, and glycerol solutions agree well with the fitting for a wide range of L values between 60 and 600  μm, i.e., corresponding to 6 to 60 times the coupling length. The bulk refractive index sensitivity was investigated using glycerol solutions of different concentrations and was found to be 18.9 optical intensity units per refractive index unit (OIU/RIU). Biotin/streptavidin bindings were detected with a sensitivity of 60 OIU/RIU and a detection limit of 0.13  μM, suggesting the feasibility of the DC for immunosensing.


Black soldier fly (BSF) farming is emerging as a new farm enterprise in Kenya poised to provide high-quality and affordable alternative protein sources for animal feed production. Consequently, commercialisation and adoption require farmers to understand if the enterprise is economically viable. This study sought to assess the determinants of profitability of the BSF farm enterprise. A census survey was conducted whereby 34 well-established smallholder BSF farmers were interviewed. A double log regression analysis on the determinants of profitability of the BSF farm enterprise was done. The results revealed that 93.6% of the variation in enterprise gross margin was explained by the independent variables. Feed and household size contributed positively and significantly to the enterprise gross margin. Labour was significantly and negatively correlated to the enterprise gross margin. Farm size, gender, level of education, and age of the farmer did not significantly influence the gross margin of the enterprise. Furthermore, the survey showed that a 1% increase in man-hours spent in the BSF farming enterprise would result in a 0.34% reduction in the gross margin while a 1% increase in the usage of the rearing substrate would lead to a 1.38% increase in the gross margin. There is a need for farmers to reduce the man-hours spent in the BSF farms but at the same time increase significantly the utilisation of more rearing substrate to improve their profitability. However, a long-term socio-economic impact assessment on the BSF farming enterprise would be valuable to attract investors and interest in the insect production sector for animal feed.


Medical assistance in the termination of life, whether euthanasia or assisted suicide, is arguably one of the most hotly debated topics as we approach the millenium. While euthanasia has been a subject of controversy for thousands of years, the historical influences vis a vis the medical profession are primarily rooted in the past century. This chapter seeks to explore some of the recent historical developments which have had an impact on the emergence of medical euthanasia and physician assisted suicide. The objective is to juxtapose events in a way that relates historical fact (and fiction) to current events and debates. Sociology, law and theology have each a view and impact in this arena; however, they are deliberately left to the side, so as to allow for a longitudinal landscape.


Creation and defence of a suicidal death is a study of the aftermath of self inflicted death in young adults, from the perspective of their friends. Suicide is a leading cause of death among young adults. Those who die in youth are likely to be engaged in an extended social network and thus the impact of their death may be particularly widespread. Research on the
aftermath of suicide has largely focused on the experiences of family members. Research with friends of those who die has tended to be quantitative in nature and has been principally concerned with the relationship between exposure to a peer's suicide and risk of suicidal ideation in those left behind.
By contrast, this study aimed to illuminate how friends of young adults who ended their life while they were a student at university understood their experience. The analysis had a particular focus on how suicidal deaths are conceptualised and reacted to. Qualitative methodology informed the study design and the principles of phenomenology were employed to gain rich insight into this under explored group. Semi-structured interviews based loosely on a series of topics were undertaken, and in total twelve young adults were interviewed. The results of the analysis focused on the experiences described in relation to the suicidal death. The findings show that the experiences of this group were complex and contradictory; however, four core areas were identified as shaping the experiences of participants. These were participants' descriptions of labelling their friends' death as a suicide; their experiences in trying to identify an explanation for the suicide; the explanations they rejected and those they eventually offered for the death; and their own personal reaction to the suicide. Links between these categories and wider representations of suicide are discussed and a series of suggestions made for how these both enable and constrain the experience of bereavement by suicide. The study concludes by discussing the implications of these findings for practice and a series of suggestions are made about how this study may inform further research.


Using an inducible lineage-tracing mouse line, we identified that Tcf21, a bHLH transcription factor gene, is expressed in visceral adipose tissue (VAT) but not in subcutaneous adipose tissue. In VAT, Tcf21 is expressed in mesenchymal progenitor cells but not in adipocytes. Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells actively proliferate followed by differentiation into adipocytes during neonatal development but have limited adipogenic capacity in adult mice even when fed with a high-fat diet (HFD) . Bulk RNAseq and ATACseq analyses of Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells isolated from mice of different ages or adiposities revealed the dynamic gene expression and chromatin accessibility in Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells. In particular, higher expression of pro-mitotic genes was observed in neonatal mice followed by an elevation of pro-adipogenic gene expression. Increased expression of inflammatory genes and fibrotic genes was observed in Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells from obese mice. Using transcriptomic and motif enrichment data, we constructed a gene regulatory network mediating the gene expression changes in Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells. Single-cell RNAseq and immunostaining identified multiple subpopulations of Tcf21 lineage cells including 2 major subpopulations including a mesothelial subpopulation and an interstitial subpopulation. Using an inducible cell-type-specific Tcf21 KO mouse line, we identified that neonatal deletion of Tcf21 in Tcf21 lineage progenitor cells led to their increased adipogenic differentiation during postnatal development and improved metabolism after HFD treatment. In vitro loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies showed that Tcf21 inhibits the adipogenic differentiation of VAT progenitor cells. Mechanistic studies identified that Tcf21 inhibits adipogenesis and developmental progress of VAT progenitor cells through promoting the expression of Dlk1, a negative regulator of adipogenesis, mainly in the interstitial subpopulation.

 Q.Liu: None. C.Li: None. P.Gao: None. L.Wang: None. Y.Li: None. M.Shiri: None. F.N.Alkaifi: None. J.Sun: None. X.Fu: None.

 Louisiana Board of Regents (BOR.Fu.LEQSF (2019-22) -RD-A-01) ; NIH/NIDDK (1R15DK122383) ; NIH/NIGMS (P20GM130555) ; NIH/NHLBI (1R01HL157519) .


The Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for Veterans with Disabilities is a national educational program that helps post-9/11 Veterans accomplish their dreams of starting their own businesses. Although their story has been well documented, one story that has not been told is that of a group of business librarians who support the program. The authors present unique services and resources made available to participants of this program and discuss some of the challenges, results, and future aspirations of library support.


Wireless connectivity for the Internet of Things (IoT) requires combining low latency and high reliability with power and cost constraints. On top of that, diverse applications and end-to-end services with very different performance requirements should ideally share the same network infrastructure. Software defined networks (SDN) were defined to allow this coexistence, but they have seen very limited adoption in IoT systems due to the inherent resource constrained nature of the wireless devices. Additionally, the low-power nature of IoT communication standards does not usually allow for physically separated control and data channels, which is a basic requirement for real-time network slicing. In this work, we propose a SDN implementation for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), which has become the de-facto technology for IoT applications. The proposed BLE mesh structure is able to use different protocols for different services, ensuring a clear separation between control and data channels while still being sent over the wireless medium. A proof-of-concept for the proposed SDN implementation is given in a real BLE mesh testbed, where measurements show how the system is able to automatically detect and recover from network congestion by identifying the nodes responsible of such situation and reconfiguring their parameters over the air.


The growth, condition, and mortality of black crappie, bluegill, and yellow perch were measured in 30 Nebraska Sand Hills lakes (1998, 1999) to determine the value of these parameters in these fish populations compared to other Great Plains populations. Growth was variable for all three fish species, but similar to or higher than populations in other midwestern states. Bluegill condition, as measured by mean relative weight, ranged from 115 to 123, indicating these populations were in very good condition. Mean relative weight by length for black crappie ranged from 94 to 114, but only 83 to 95 for yellow perch. Mean total annual mortality did not vary significantly among the three species, with 38.6% for black crappie, 30.9% for bluegill, and 37.9% for yellow perch (p > 0.50). These mortality estimates were similar to other lightly exploited or unexploited midwestern populations. This study indicates that high-quality panfish populations in the Nebraska Sand Hills had characteristic growth, condition, and mortality traits, and it provides baseline information for future comparisons with other Great Plains fish populations.


review. Patient average age was 62 years (range 4–82). The majority of referrals were from consultant dermatologists (73%). An incorrect diagnosis was given to 24% of patients before being seen, with certain cases being mislabelled as scarring alopecia, which has a tremendous impact on prognosis and treatments. In 5% of patients we identified a second hair disorder that also required treatment. Twenty-one per cent of patients had not received any type of treatment prior to our review, and 44% had only received topical steroids. On first consultation their average Dermatology Life Quality Index was 12, reflecting the tremendous psychological morbidity associated with hair and scalp disorders. Patients described their experience as good/excellent (94%) and 50% wish to attend to access novel treatments. Our results demonstrate that specialist assessment often revises diagnoses and therefore can help refine investigations and treatments accordingly. Delays in diagnosis/treatment often incur additional financial and administrative costs. Owing to the challenges these patients have faced in obtaining their diagnosis/treatment, they are often keen to participate in research studies. As future treatments expand, specialist clinics such as ours provide a database for drug registries aiding pharmacovigilance.


Both intestinal dysbiosis and central-line associated blood stream infections (CLABSI) have been well documented in children with short bowel syndrome (SBS). Gastrointestinal microbiota prime and regulate mucosal immunity, therefore we hypothesize children with SBS may have longstanding increased intestinal permeability which could lead to mucosal inflammation and predispose to bacteremia.

 We sought to investigate intestinal permeability as well as both intestinal and systemic activation of the inflammatory cascade in children with SBS.

 Two cohorts of children with SBS were consented; with Group 1 including children with SBS requiring central venous catheter (CVC) for parenteral nutrition, and Group 2 including children with SBS without CVC. SBS groups were compared to three control groups including age and sex-matched children with CVC for hematologic disease (Group 3), children without a CVC (Group 4) and healthy adult controls (Group 5). To evaluate intestinal permeability, we quantified circulating bacterial products LPS and MDP through the binding of their respective receptors, TLR4 and NOD2. To determine colonic inflammation, fecal calprotectin was quantified from a single stool sample. Cytokine profiles included IFN-γ, IL-Iβ, IL-8, IL-10, IL-17, TNFα were quantified by Multiplex Immunoassay while gene expression of transcription factors FoxP3+, RORγT, TLR2, and TLR4, were determined by RNA extraction and quantitative PCR.

 22 children were recruited in the study (Group 1 n=6, Group 2 n=6, Group 3 n=5, Group 4 n=5) as well as 10 adult control samples (Group 5). The median age of Group 1 was 67 months with a residual small intestine of 26.5cm (IQR 24.7–40) while those in Group 2 were 51 months with a residual small intestine of 55cm (IQR 31.2–89). Circulating bacterial products of LPS and MDP were not different between SBS groups and control children. Serum analysis of cytokine TNFα was significant (p<0.005) however multiple comparator analysis did not identify within group differences. Other cytokines did not differ between groups. Fecal calprotectin levels were not elevated however statistically lower in Group 1 (median 12.8mg/kg; IQR 9.3- 34.9) compared to in Group 2 (median 96mg/kg, IQR 71.6–188.2;) p <0.01. Relative quantification of RNA expression of FoxP3+, RORγT, TLR2, and TLR4 did not differ between groups.

 Despite concern of compromised intestinal epithelial barrier function in children with SBS, this study did not detect differences in circulating bacterial products compared to control children as an assessment of intestinal permeability nor increased systemic inflammation. Further research is required to investigate intestinal epithelial barrier function over time and the mechanism of bacteremia in children with SBS.

 CAGRegional Medical Associates of Hamilton


In 2005, Stephen Abram, vice president of Innovation at SirsiDynix, challenged library and information science (LIS) professionals to start becoming "librarian 2.0." In the last few years, discussion and debate about the "core competencies" needed by librarian 2.0 have appeared in the "biblioblogosphere" (blogs written by LIS professionals). However, beyond these informal blog discussions few systematic and empirically based studies have taken place. This article will discuss a research project that fills this gap. Funded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council, the project identifies the key skills, knowledge, and attributes required by "librarian 2.0." Eighty-one members of the Australian LIS profession participated in a series of focus groups. Eight themes emerged as being critical to "librarian 2.0": technology, communication, teamwork, user focus, business savvy, evidence based practice, learning and education, and personal traits. This article will provide a detailed discussion on each of these themes. The study's findings also suggest that "librarian 2.0" is a state of mind, and that the Australian LIS profession is undergoing a significant shift in "attitude."


Recently, many investigators have turned attentioni to devices for continuous culture of microorganisms. In the basic sciences, the externally controlled "chemostat" of Novick and Szilard (19'50) and AMonod's "bactogen" (1950) have found considerable usefulness in studies where fairly large amounts of cells were required and where it was desirable to maintaini the population at a specific growth rate. Continuous culturing devices also find useful application in the saniitary enigineering field. Garrett and Sawyer (1952), Schulze (1956), Garrett (1958), and Busch (1959) have made use of continuous flow bench scale activated sludge units. The basic advantages and re(luirements for these units for use in sanitary engineering studies have been discussed by Coe (1952), and Hatfield and Stirong (1954) and Busch (1959). The advantages lie primarily in similarity of operation to the prototype as compared with the dissimilarity of batch units. The requiremenits as set forth by Busch embody positive control of air flow, aeration solids, and solids wasting. Regardless of the degree of control, extrapolation of bench scale data for the prediction of prototype operation is precarious. A more important need for such control is to insure that the sludge used for experimentation retains some degree of constancy throughout the investigation. Ideally, the most useful experimentation requires that the system remain constant as one variable is studied. This is one of the valid arguments for working with pure cultures. Howrever, in applying biochemistry and microbiology to the treatment of organic wastes, a heterogeneous population should be used, since under natural conditions, such systems would evolve subject to the intrinsic selectivity embodied in the enrichment culture principle. To control the constancy of a heterogeneous population is a far more difficult problem than that presented by a pure culture since selection in a pure culture depends oni random mutation which under normal conditions is a comparatively rare occurrence. Therefore, before confidently applying the chemostat principle to a heterogeneous populationi, it is necessary to obtain some assurance


The structure of glasses and devitrified phases, in Tl2O⋅GeO2 and Tl2O⋅B2O3 systems, have been
investigated using solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), neutron diffraction and
Raman spectroscopy. Gas pycnometry, thermal analysis and powder X-ray diffraction (XRD)
have also been used to characterise and measure properties of glasses and devitrified phases.
The crystallisation study showed that metastable crystalline phases were obtained from lowtemperature
heat-treatment. X-ray diffraction of devitrification products, obtained at higher
temperature, indicates crystallisation of the corresponding, more stable, stoichiometric
compounds from the glass but with one or more second phases. Thallium NMR studies reveal
that various chemical environments of thallium are present in the heat-treated samples. For the
Tl2Ge4O9 sample, whose crystal structure is known, magic angle spinning NMR reveals the
presence of one thallium site, the [Ge3O9] ring structure was observed using Raman
spectroscopy.
A germanate anomaly is present in the thallium germanate glasses indicated by a minimum
value of molar volume at x ~ 0.15. Neutron diffraction and Raman spectroscopy confirm the
change in the coordination number of germanium from [GeO4] to [GeO6 or 5]. Tl solid-state
NMR suggests that at least two thallium sites are also present in the glass, low and high
coordinated thallium. Tl-NMR spectra are broad and shifted mainly due to the chemical shift
dispersion and chemical shift anisotropy interaction, respectively. T2 measurements confirmed
that dipole-dipole and pseudodipole or exchange interactions are stronger in high thallium
content glasses. A 203Tl enrichment study determined that the broadening due to the exchange
interaction is ~ 10 kHz.
Only three crystalline thallium borate phases were obtained, either singly or in combination
with each other. Density data, X-ray diffraction patterns and solid-state NMR results of the
three phases formed support what structural information exists in the literature. Chemical shift
interaction and chemical shift dispersion contribute to the line broadening and lineshape of Tl
NMR of TlB5O8 and TlB3O5 containing sample. Dipolar interaction and the Tl…Tl exchange
interaction are stronger in the Tl2B4O7 sample. The chemical shift anisotropy parameters of
TlB5O8 and TlB3O5 are presented.
A borate anomaly is present in thallium borate glasses with a minimum value of molar volume
at x ~ 0.28. Neutron diffraction and solid-state NMR spectroscopy confirm the change in the
coordination number of boron to oxygen atoms from [BO3] to [BO4]. N4 values obtained from
both techniques are very close and are larger than found for alkali borate glasses. Raman
spectroscopy also reveals the changes in boron-oxygen superstructural units. 205Tl solid-state
NMR suggests that at least two thallium sites are present in the glass, low and high coordinated
thallium. Tl-NMR spectra are broad and shifted mainly due to the chemical shift dispersion and
chemical shift anisotropy interaction, respectively. T2 measurement confirmed that
dipole-dipole and exchange interactions occur in glasses throughout the range of studied
compositions.


While watching television, people increasingly consume additional content related to what they are watching. We consider the task of finding video content related to a live television broadcast for which we leverage the textual stream of subtitles associated with the broadcast. We model this task as a Markov decision process and propose a method that uses reinforcement learning to directly optimize the retrieval effectiveness of queries generated from the stream of subtitles. Our dynamic query modeling approach significantly outperforms state-of-the-art baselines for stationary query modeling and for text-based retrieval in a television setting. In particular we find that carefully weighting terms and decaying these weights based on recency significantly improves effectiveness. Moreover, our method is highly efficient and can be used in a live television setting, i.e., in near real time.


Importance Ankle sprains are the most common sports-related injuries for which effective preventive measures exist. This review summarises the preventive effectiveness of this neuromuscular training (NMT), culminating in an overview of effective exercise components. Objective To assess the preventive effect of NMT for first-time and recurrent ankle sprains in sports. Evidence review An electronic literature search of PubMed, SPORTDiscus and EMBASE was conducted (until 24 March 2016) to identify published randomised controlled trials (RCTs), controlled trials (CTs) and time trend analyses related to NMT as a preventive measure for ankle sprains. Methodological quality of relevant studies was assessed using a predefined set of 19 criteria. Meta-analyses were performed on comparable populations and intervention content. Findings A total of 30 studies met the inclusion criteria and were analysed (24 RCTs, 3 CTs and 3 time interventions). Studies showed a great diversity in preventive effects and methodological quality (quality score ranged between 47% and 100%). The diversity in preventive effect was independent of study quality and design. A total of 14 studies focussed solely on the effectiveness of balance training, and 16 studies evaluated the effect of balance training combined with adjunct interventions. Pooled data showed a significant reduction in the occurrence of ankle sprains (relative risk (RR) 0.60; 95% CI 0.51 to 0.71). Single-component interventions specifically targeted at ankle sprains achieved preventive effects (RR=0.58; 95% CI 0.48 to 0.72) as opposed to multicomponent interventions (RR 0.67; 95% CI 0.37 to 1.24). With respect to interventions targeted at general injuries, significant effects were found using both single-component (RR=0.71; 95% CI 0.52 to 0.97) and multicomponent interventions (RR=0.55; 95% CI 0.41 to 0.74). Pooled data showed a significant reduction of NMT on ankle sprains in studies including participants regardless of their injury history (RR=0.59; 95% CI 0.49 to 0.71), and in athletes with a previous ankle sprain (RR=0.69; 95% CI 0.49 to 0.98). Conclusions and relevance NMT is effective at reducing ankle sprains in a sporting population, and in athletes with a previous ankle sprain. The evidence for an effect on first-time ankle sprains remains inconclusive. A key element of NMT to prevent ankle sprains is balance training, irrespective of the use of balance boards or other balance devices. Since both single-component and multicomponent NMT interventions are effective at reducing ankle sprains, the type most fitting to the context should be chosen for implementation efforts. Level of evidence Level 1.


In this work, we explore machine learning through a model-agnostic feature representation known as braiding, that employs braid manifolds to interpret multipath ray bundles. We generate training and testing data using the well-known BELLHOP model to simulate shallow water acoustic channels across a wide range of multipath scattering activity. We examine three different machine learning techniques-k-nearest neighbors, random forest tree ensemble, and a fully connected neural network-as well as two machine learning applications. The first application applies known physical parameters and braid information to determine the number of reflections the acoustic signal may undergo through the environment. The second application applies braid path information to determine if a braid is an important representation of the channel (i.e., evolving across bands of higher amplitude activity in the channel). Testing accuracy of the best trained machine learning algorithm in the first application was 86.70% and the testing accuracy of the second application was 99.94%. This work can be potentially beneficial in examining how the reflectors in the environment changeover time while also determining relevant braids for faster channel estimation.


Wastes are the sustainable sources of raw materials for the synthesis of new adsorbent materials. This study has as objectives the advanced capitalization of fly ash, by sulphuric acid activation methods, and testing of synthesized materials for heavy metals removal. Based on the previous studies, the synthesis parameters were 1/3 s/L ratio, 80 °C temperature and 10% diluted sulphuric acid, which permitted the synthesis of an eco-friendly adsorbent. The prepared adsorbent was characterized through SEM, EDX, FTIR, XRD and BET methods. Adsorption studies were carried out for the removal of Cd2+ ions, recognized as ions dangerous for the environment. The effects of adsorbent dose, contact time and metal ion concentrations were studied. The data were tested in terms of Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm and it was found that the Langmuir isotherm fitted the adsorption with a maximum adsorption capacity of 28.09 mg/g. Kinetic data were evaluated with the pseudo-first-order model, the pseudo-second-order model and the intraparticle diffusion model. The kinetics of cadmium adsorption into eco-friendly material was described with the pseudo-second-order model, which indicated the chemisorption mechanism.


Eliminating the specific harmonics especially low-order harmonics of the output voltage of 9-level inverter using SHE-PWM control scheme is investigated. Harmonic minimization is the intricate optimization problems because the nonlinear transcendental equations have multiple local optima. Increasing the degrees of freedom in the suggested method means that the number of switching angles increases. The suggested method is able to eliminate high number of undesired harmonics. As the number of switching angles increases, using either traditional iterative techniques or resultant theory method gets useless. In this paper to overcome this problem the imperialist competitive algorithm (ICA) is used. Also a DC-DC converter is used to enhance the SHE performance in the range for which the conventional SHE methods do not have any solution. Experimental and simulation results of a 9-level inverter show that the proposed method effectively minimizes a large number of particular harmonics so the total harmonics distortion of output voltage will be lower.


Hawaii established a Clinical Research Center with collaboration from the University of Hawaii Pacific Biomedical Research Center, the John A. Burns School of Medicine and Kapiolani Health via a five year award from the Research Centers in Minority Institutions of the National Institutes of Health. Support offered includes consultative services for protocol design; epidemiological and biostatistical analysis; design of study forms; and data and specimen collection and analysis.


Introduction: Hemophagocytic syndrome also known as Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is a potentially fatal hyperinflammatory condition. It can be primary or a secondary disorder associated with a variety of underlying conditions. These disorders feature severe cytopenias due to uncontrolled hemophagocytosis and clinical symptoms result from disordered immune regulation and cytokine storm.
Materials and Methods: The present study was done at the tertiary care centre attached to University Medical College in western India. Forty five patients with cytopenias who were suspected to have secondary HLH were included in this study. Clinical details and routine investigations, tests necessary to diagnose HLH i.e. Ferritin, Triglyceride, LDH, Fibrinogen levels were done. Bone marrow aspirate in these patients showed evidence of hemophagocytosis. Statistical analysis was done using the appropriate software and statistical tests.
Results: Infection was the commonest cause associated with secondary HLH in our study. 95.5% patients had anaemia while 42.2% patients had fever along with other clinical manifestations. Elevated Serum Ferritin levels were found in 55.5% patients. 82.1% and 63.0% patients had elevated Lactate Dehydrogenase and elevated triglycerides levels respectively while only 35.6% patients had low fibrinogen levels. Higher levels of ferritin were associated with severe cytopenias and with poor outcome of the patients. PT and APTT were also deranged in a significant proportion of patients. We have also observed raised APTT values correlating with abnormal ferritin levels and cytopenias in our study. This could be because most of these cases were associated with sepsis. We found significant association of elevated serum Ferritin, Triglyceride and LDH levels with HLH.
Conclusion: Hemophagocytic syndromes should be considered in unexplained cytopenias. A bone marrow aspiration or organ biopsy revealing hemophagocytosis along with Serum Ferritin, Triglycer


We present the first James Webb Space Telescope/NIRCam-led determination of 7 < z < 9 galaxy properties based on broadband imaging from 0.8 to 5 μm as part of the GLASS-JWST Early Release Science program. This is the deepest data set acquired at these wavelengths to date, with an angular resolution ≲0.″14. We robustly identify 13 galaxies with signal-to-noise ratio ≳ 8 in F444W from 8 arcmin2 of data at m AB ≤ 28 from a combination of dropout and photometric redshift selection. From simulated data modeling, we estimate the dropout sample purity to be ≳90%. We find that the number density of these F444W-selected sources is broadly consistent with expectations from the UV luminosity function determined from Hubble Space Telescope data. We characterize galaxy physical properties using a Bayesian spectral energy distribution fitting method, finding a median stellar mass of 108.5 M ⊙ and age 140 Myr, indicating they started ionizing their surroundings at redshift z > 9.5. Their star formation main sequence is consistent with predictions from simulations. Lastly, we introduce an analytical framework to constrain main-sequence evolution at z > 7 based on galaxy ages and basic assumptions, through which we find results consistent with expectations from cosmological simulations. While this work only gives a glimpse of the properties of typical galaxies that are thought to drive the reionization of the universe, it clearly shows the potential of JWST to unveil unprecedented details of galaxy formation in the first billion years.


Double-blind crossover randomized Latin square comparison of placebo, dextroamphetamine, and levoamphetamine in 31 consecutively diagnosed children with minimal brain dysfunction (MBD) replicated a smaller nonrandom study. Both isomers showed significantly more benefit than placebo but were not significantly different from each other. Dextroamphetamine showed a nonsignificant trend of superiority over levoamphetamine. Of 25 subjects who responded well to drugs, three responded only to levoamphetamine, five only to dextroamphetamine, and 17 to both. This study seems to confirm the efficacy of levoamphetamine in MBD. An unsocialized aggressive subgroup (308.4) showed a nonsignificant trend for levoamphetamine superiority, in contrast to the hyperkinetic (308.0) and overanxious (308.2) subgroups. Those who responded best to levoamphetamine tended (not significantly) to be from poorer functioning families. Parents' ratings, but not teachers' or psychiatrists' ratings, showed significant placebo effect.


Pronunciation evaluation systems used by many people in the same place at one time need to evaluate the pronunciation robustly. In order to deal with the robust problem, this paper first applies multi-training plus adaptation for acoustic models refinement as in robust speech recognition and then introduces a nonlinear mapping method using CDF-matching for the evaluation feature normalization. Experimental results indicate that multi-training and adaptation can improve the performance. At the same time, the nonlinear feature mapping method still yields a performance improvement.


Due to the power electronic converter based interface and maximum power control strategy, wind generators cannot directly respond to power system transients. This brings new challenges on power system transient stability. Taking wind turbine type 4 (WT4) as one example, this paper analyses its influence on transient stability with respect to locations, low voltage ride through parameters, wind power plant installation capacity and penetration levels. Based on the sensitivity analysis carried out for the influence of WT4, a supplementary transient stability control is proposed. The results on a 3-area system show that this supplementary control can improve transient stability of power systems with high penetration of wind power.


The task allocation on various components or processing units composing an automation system needs a design-aided methodology in order to obtain both relevant architecture of this automation system and a sufficiently efficient task allocation. The dependability, mainly illustrated in our approach by the availability of the process and by the reliability that characterizes the risk of incidents or accident occurrences, can be taken into account in the earliest stage of the automation system design. The main interest is that it allows for the definition of reliable operational and functional architectures. To achieve the task allocation, the search method used must integrate a notion of cost that includes both technological and functional aspects and those linked to the dependability. A genetic approach is used for the task allocation, giving a very satisfactory result in a reasonable computational time.


In this thesis, we present LieART 2.0 which contains substantial extensions to the Mathematica application LieART (Lie Algebras and Representation Theory) for computations frequently encountered in Lie algebras and representation theory, such as tensor product decomposition and subalgebra branching of irreducible representations. LieART 2.0 can now handle all classical and exceptional Lie algebras up through rank 15. The basic procedure is unchanged–it computes root systems of Lie algebras, weight systems and several other properties of irreducible representations, but new features and procedures have been included to allow the extensions to be seamless. The new version of LieART continues to be user friendly. Some extended tables of branching rules of irreducible representations are included in the supplementary material for use without Mathematica software.


Introduction: Job stress and job satisfaction play a key role in the work environment of an organization. These influence the behaviour of a doctor towards his or her co-workers, administration and, most importantly towards the patients. Objective: To assess job stress among consultants working in Colombo group of hospitals and to identify the factors that affect job satisfaction. Methods: A descriptive cross sectional study was conducted by using postal questionnaire on 262 consultants working in Colombo group of hospitals. Hospital consultants job stress and job satisfaction questionnaire developed by Amanda Ramirez et al. was used with their permission. Results: Of the 262 questionnaires mailed 171 were returned. Of total responded 84.6% reported extremely satisfied or satisfied with their work. Nearly 92% agreed intellectual stimulation by teaching contributed to their job satisfaction. Nearly 80% reported having a high level of responsibility, being perceived to do the job well by the colleagues, being able to bring about positive changes to the unit, having a high level of autonomy contributed to their job satisfaction. Poor administration and lack of facilities e.g. computers, filing procedures caused job stress in 73%. Threat of being sued for malpractice or having to deal with distressed relatives did not contribute to stress in nearly 80%. Conclusion: In Sri Lanka nearly 85% consultants reported they were satisfied with their job and teaching medical undergraduates and post graduates was one of the major contributory factors. However 73% indicated factors such as lack of resources, and poor administration cause stress at work. Providing computers and basic stationery for patient documentation and efficient and effective administration will improve the work output of consultants by reducing their stress levels.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the changes in apoptosis of neutrophil in peripheral blood in sepsis in rats.

METHODS
The rat sepsis model was reproduced by cecum ligation and puncture (CLP). One hundred and forty-four rats were randomly divided into normal control group, sham operation group and 2, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72 hours after CLP groups. Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) was used to identify neutrophil apoptosis.

RESULTS
In early period after CLP, neutrophil apoptosis in peripheral blood was limited with a positive rate of less than 5.00%. The positive rate rose to (48.33+/-12.53)% at 48 hours, and it began to lower, approaching the normal level at 72 hours after CLP.

CONCLUSION
Death is the main pathway of loss of neutrophils which are produced in the acute phase of sepsis, and apoptosis is the main pathway of loss of neutrophil in the later phase of sepsis.


&NA; The central nervous system may initiate or maintain hypertension in humans by a variety of mechanisms. Increased cerebral pressor activity can cause hypertension in some patients with the Guillain‐Barré syndrome, where disinhibition of cerebral centres may result from an afferent baroreflex lesion. The brain itself initiates hypertension in patients with cerebral tumours, cerebrovascular accidents, and subarachnoid haemorrhage. The use of drugs (including alcohol), or at times their withdrawal, results in hypertension through neurogenic mechanisms. Impaired cerebral activity also contributes, as in tetraplegic patients in whom paroxysmal hypertension is a consequence of increased spinal sympathetic reflex activity, which is not restrained or appropriately counteracted by the brain because of the cervical spinal cord transection. Neurogenic factors also play a role in the maintenance of hypertension in patients in whom the initiating cause is clearly humoral. In renal artery stenosis for instance, cerebral actions of angiotensin II may later gain ascendance over its peripheral effects, especially as circulating levels fall, as has been demonstrated with the centrally acting sympatholytic agent, clonidine. This is an example of humoroneural coupling that contributes to the hypertension. Increased afferent renal nerve activity may be an additional factor, especially in patients with renal parenchymal disease, where renin appears to play a minor role. The role of the nervous system in other causes of primary hypertension is presently less clear. In phaeochromocytoma noncatecholamine tumour products may have neurogenic effects that could account for the ability of clonidine to lower blood pressure in some patients. These are examples by which the central nervous system plays a role in either initiating, or more importantly, in perpetuating hypertension, even when the primary cause is clearly nonneurogenic. The refinement of existing techniques and development of noninvasive approaches, together with the study of patients with welldefined neurological disorders, should further extend our knowledge of the role of the central nervous system in circulatory control, especially in the pathophysiology of essential and secondary hypertension. Determination of the neural mechanisms is likely to influence patient management and future therapeutic strategies.


A study was made of the changes in organic C and N and in the ratio of C:N in the soil of a long-term fertility trial with citrus at the University of California Citrus Experiment Station, Riverside, during 28 years of irrigation and differential fertilization, from 1927 to 1955. All changes in organic C and N and ratio of C:N in the soil were in the surface 0 to 6 inches. Check plots that received no fertilizers or organic materials contained about the same quantities of organic C and N in 1955 as in 1927. Treatment with urea and triple superphosphate did not increase the organic C and N in the soil. The (NH₄)₂SO₄ treatment increased the organic C and N, probably as a result of extreme acidification of the soil. The Ca(NO₃)₂ treatment increased the organic C but not the organic N. Cover crops increased the organic C and N a small but statistically significant amount. Mineral N had no effect on the increases in C and N from the cover crops or from any of the added organic materials. There were accumulations of KCl-extractable and fixed NH₄ in the soil of acidified plots but not in soil of pH near neutrality. The accumulation of organic C and N in the soil increased with increase in the rate of application of manure, the highest rate of application approximately tripling the organic C and N. The accumulations of C and N resulting from applications of alfalfa hay, bean straw, or cereal straw were not significantly higher statistically than those from the cover-crop treatment, and were much lower than those resulting from the application of equivalent weights of organic materials as manure.


We simulated an experiment in which a thin colloidal sessile droplet is allowed to dry out on a horizontal hydrophilic surface when a mask just above the droplet predominantly allows evaporation from the droplet free surface directly beneath the holes in the mask [Harris D J, Hu H, Conrad J C and Lewis J A 2007 Phys. Rev. Lett. 98 148301]. We considered one particular case when centre-to-centre spacing between the holes is much less than the drop diameter. In our model, advection, diffusion, and sedimentation were taken into account. FlexPDE was utilized to solve an advection-diffusion equation using the finite element method. The simulation demonstrated that the colloidal particles accumulate below the holes as the solvent evaporates. Diffusion can reduce this accumulation.


Wetlands are the interface between land and water – simultaneously providing benefits and imposing costs on local communities. On the one hand, water percolates through wetlands, providing a cleaning process beneficial to society. This cleaning process is particularly important in agricultural landscape where pollution from pesticides or nutrients are widespread. Yet, on the other hand, wetlands are costly for agricultural production since they are unproductive land.


The RET (Requirements Engineering and Testing) workshop series provides a meeting point for researchers and practitioners from the two separate fields of Requirements Engineering (RE) and Testing. The long term aim is to build a community and a body of knowledge within the intersection of RE and Testing, i.e., RET. The 4th workshop was co-located with the 25th International Requirements Engineering Conference (RE'17) in Lisbon, Portugal and attracted about 20 participants. In line with the previous workshop instances, RET 2017 o ered an interactive setting with a keynote, an invited talk, paper presentations, and a concluding hands-on exercise.


The multi-scale line-to-line vascular channels (LVCs) widely exist in nature because of their excellent transmission characteristics. In this paper, models of LVCs with turbulent convection heat transfer are established. Based on constructal theory and the entropy generation minimization principle, the constructal optimizations of LVCs with any order are conducted by taking the angles at bifurcations as the optimization variables. The heat flux on the channel wall per unit length is fixed and uniform. The areas occupied by vasculature and the total volumes of channels are fixed. The analytical expressions of the optimal angles, dimensionless total entropy generation rate and entropy generation number (EGN) of LVCs with any order versus dimensionless mass flow rate are obtained, respectively. The results indicate that the dimensionless total entropy generation rate of LVCs with any order can be significantly decreased by optimizing the angles of LVCs, which is significantly more when the order of LVCs is higher. As the dimensionless mass flow rate increases, the optimal angles of LVCs with any order remain unchanged first, then the optimal angles at the entrance (root) increase, and the other optimal angles decrease continuously and finally tend to the respective stable values. The optimal angles of LVCs continue to increase from the entrance to the outlet (crown), i.e., the LVCs with a certain order gradually spread out from the root to the crown. The dimensionless total entropy generation rate and EGN of LVCs first decrease and then increase with the growth of the dimensionless mass flow rate. There is optimal dimensionless mass flow rate, making the dimensionless total entropy generation rate and the EGN reach their respective minimums. The results obtained herein can provide some new theoretical guidelines of thermal design and management for the practical applications of LVCs.


UV resonance Raman spectroscopy has been used to determine the conformational energy landscape of poly-L-lysine (PLL) in the presence of NaClO4 as a function of temperature. At 1 degree C, in the presence of 0.83 M NaClO4, PLL shows an approximately 86% alpha-helix-like content, which contains alpha-helix and pi-bulge/helix conformations. The high alpha-helix-like content of PLL occurs because of charge screening due to strong ion-pair formation between ClO4- and the lysine side chain -NH3+. As the temperature increases from 1 to 60 degrees C, the alpha-helix and pi-bulge/helix conformations melt into extended conformations (PPII and 2.51-helix). We calculate the Psi Ramachandran angle distribution of the PLL peptide bonds from the UV Raman spectra which allows us to calculate the PLL (un)folding energy landscapes along the Psi reaction coordinate. We observe a basin in the Psi angle conformational space associated with alpha-helix and pi-bulge/helix conformations and another basin for the extended PPII and 2.51-helical conformations.


OBJECTIVE
A number of researchers have provided evidence that separation anxiety is an important antecedent or current affect in panic disorder. The objective of this pilot study was to test this hypothesis by comparing dreams, screen memories, and life situations of panic disorder patients with those of comparison patients.

METHOD
A recent dream with associations, screen memories with associations, and life situations at onset of symptoms were recorded verbatim during semistructured interviews with 20 patients with DSM-III-R panic disorder and 20 comparison subjects upon referral to a private outpatient practice. A judge blind to the diagnoses rated each of the dreams, screen memories, and life situations separately on each of the 10 Gottschalk-Gleser Content Analysis Scales, thereby measuring manifest and latent death, mutilation, separation, guilt, and shame anxiety and overt and covert hostility in each group.

RESULTS
mean separation anxiety scores were significantly higher in both the dreams and screen memories of the panic disorder patients than in the comparison patients. Mean scores for covert hostility directed outward were significantly higher in the dreams of the panic disorder patients than in the comparison patients.

CONCLUSIONS
The hypothesis that separation anxiety is a prevalent affective undercurrent in the dreams and screen memories of panic disorder patients was supported. Significantly higher covert hostility in the panic disorder patients' dreams may support Bowlby's observation that people with high separation anxiety tend to disavow their anger.


Previous headphone experiments have shown that listeners can lateralize high-frequency sine-wave amplitude-modulated (SAM) tones based on interaural time differences in the envelope. However, when SAM tones are presented to listeners in free field or in a room, diffraction by the head or reflections from room surfaces alter the modulation percentages and change the shapes of the envelopes, potentially degrading the envelope cue. Amplitude modulation is transformed into mixed modulation. This article presents a mathematical transformation between the six spectral parameters for a modulated tone and six mixed-modulation parameters for each ear. The transformation was used to characterize the stimuli in the ear canals of listeners in free-field localization experiments. The mixed modulation parameters were compared with the perceived changes in localization attributable to the modulation for five different listeners, who benefited from the modulation to different extents. It is concluded that individual differences in the response to added modulation were not systematically related to the physical modulation parameters themselves. Instead, they were likely caused by individual differences in processing of envelope interaural time differences.


Spatially resolved Raman light scattering experiments were performed on a zinc-blende GaN/GaAs heterostructure with confocal micro-Raman scattering technique under the backscattering geometric configuration. By varying the illumination spot locations across the heterostructure interface, we found that the Raman light scattering spectral features change remarkably. The interface effect on the GaAs substrate manifested as a much broader lineshape of the transverse optical (TO) phonon mode. Two kinds of broadening mechanisms, namely, spatial correlation induced wave-vector relaxation effect and lattice-mismatch strain + compositional intermixing effect, have been identified. The former leads to the broadening of the TO mode at the low-energy side, whereas the latter accounts for the broadening at the high-energy side. The diffuse light scattering from the highly defective nucleation layer of GaN was found to produce a broad scattering background of the GaN TO mode. The methodology and conclusions of the pres...


Aedes albopictus is a cosmopolitan mosquito species capable of transmitting arboviruses such as dengue, chikungunya, and Zika. To control this and similar species, public and private entities often rely on pyrethroid insecticides. In this study, we screened Ae. albopictus collected from June to August 2017 in Mecklenburg County, a rapidly growing urban area of North Carolina, for mutations conferring pyrethroid resistance and examined spatiotemporal patterns of specimen size as measured by wing length, hypothesizing that size variation could be closely linked to local abundance, making this easily measured trait a useful surveillance proxy. The genetic screening results indicated that pyrethroid resistance alleles are not present in this population, meaning that this population is likely to be susceptible to this commonly used insecticide class. We detected no significant associations between size and abundance-related factors, indicating that wing-size is not a useful proxy for abundance, and thus not useful to surveillance in this capacity. However, mosquitoes collected in June were significantly larger than July or August, which may result from meteorological conditions, suggesting that short-term weather cues may modulate morphological traits, which could then affect local fecundity and virus transmission dynamics, as previously reported.


Abstract: "This paper argues that the out-of-body experience (OBE) and other elements of a near-death experience (NDE), as well as the positive affects that accompany them, do not yeild conclusive evidence for survival after death. The OBE has features that suggest a physical basis for it, the other elements show the influence of cultural background, and positive affects may simply occur to conserve one's energy and prolong life. Other explanations for near-death elements, such as sensory deprivation, extrasensory perception, and eyeless sight, are addressed."


Exposure of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) to frost reportedly increases the frequency of bloat in ruminants grazing the forage. Our objective was to investigate changes in leaves of the plant that occur with freezing that could be related to ruminant bloat. A high occurrence of bloat is associated with elevation in the ratio of potassium (K + ) to sodium (Na + ) in the rumen, which is thought to cause flocculation of chloroplast membrane particles, producing a stable foam that results in bloat. In several plant species, exposure to frost temporarily inhibits ATPase activity, resulting in the movement of water and K + from the protoplast of plant cells into the apoplast. Our hypothesis was that an overnight frost causes movement of K + into the apoplast of alfalfa leaves, and leaching of this extracellular K + from the foliage would increase the ratio of K + to Na + in rumen fluid of livestock grazing the alfalfa. To test this hypothesis, we slowly froze detached alfalfa leaves to -2°C, and nucleated extracellular ice formation. We then thawed the leaves and leached them in distilled, deionized water. The mean increase of 1.061 g K + kg -1 leaf fresh weight leached from frozen-thawed alfalfa was sufficient to increase the occurrence of bloat according to evidence from other studies. Compared with control leaves, calcium and magnesium were also elevated by 1.821 and 0.425 g kg -1 leaf fresh weight, respectively, in leachate from frozen-thawed alfalfa, but relatively little Na + was found in this leachate. A similar increase in leachate ion concentration was found when the study was repeated.


Abstract Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), in a few decades, is expected to be the commonest cause of end-stage liver disease and liver cancer surpassing all other etiologies. Urbanization and modern lifestyle have led to global epidemic of NAFLD with alarming prevalence rates across the globe. Its multisystemic involvement manifests as metabolic syndrome, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, end-stage liver disease, and hepatic and extrahepatic malignancies. The absence of promising therapy for halting disease progression in NAFLD is a challenge that is not only limited to liver disease but also other organs involved. It is unrealistic to expect any significant impact of pharmacotherapies in overall survival of NAFLD patients, given that the morbidity and mortality in these patients are contributed by conditions other than that of liver. Liver-centric approach in managing NAFLD will be futile unless the problem is dealt in a holistic manner. Lifestyle modifications have been repeatedly appraised in prevention and treatment of various diseases linked to metabolic syndrome including NAFLD. Despite being inexpensive and highly efficacious in prevention and treatment of different manifestations of NAFLD, lifestyle intervention often fails to gather sufficient interest among patients and physicians alike. This review intends to highlight pleiotropic nature of this disease, limitations of currently available pharmacotherapies and evidence that emphasizing lifestyle intervention is the only way to holistically deal in patients with NAFLD. How to cite this article Shrestha A, Pradhananga S. Holistic Approach in the Management of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease. Euroasian J Hepato-Gastroenterol 2022;12(Suppl 1):S51–S58.


A directional effect on showering of 20 to 100 GeV electrons and positrons in a thick Si crystal has been found when the particle flight line is parallel to the 111 crystal axis within a few milliradians. In these conditions an average of 12 or more photons are emitted in the first tenths of radiation length of crystal. It is shown, using crystals, that it is possible to realize a compact detector to distinguish high energy electrons aligned in a well defined direction from a random incoming electron.


Finland has one of the highest homicide rates in Western Europe, and almost every tenth homicide is caused by asphyxiation. Reliable statistics, a strict legislation, and an exceptionally high medico‐legal autopsy rate formed a base for a nationwide analysis of asphyxia homicides (n = 383) during 30 years. The cases were identified through multiple records, and all the forensic pathology case files were studied in detail. In more than one out of five cases, there were indications of staging, and the homicide was revealed first at autopsy in close to one in ten cases. The vast majority of the homicides took place in private locations and involved persons known to each other. Every third victim was an intimate partner, and every tenth a child. Almost half of the victims died from manual strangulation, one in three from ligature strangulation. Smothering, choking, neck compression with a firm object, and thoracic compression were more rare methods. Drownings were excluded from this study material. Of all the victims, 7% had no observable external injuries. Petechiae were recorded in approximately in 61%, laryngohyoid fractures in 47%, and vocal cord hemorrhages in 16% of the cases. Every tenth female victim had genital injuries. Toxicological analyses were performed in close to all of the cases, and almost three out of four victims tested positive for blood alcohol. The various aspects of the demographics and autopsy findings covered in this study contribute reliable and accurate data to further strengthen the spectrum of observable medico‐legal characteristics of asphyxia homicides.


Background: Poisoning is a very common medico-social problem in our part of the world. It significantly contributes to the morbidity and mortality, which is a big concern and burden to our society.
Objective: To determine the demographic profiling of poisoning in Emergency Department of Kathmandu Medical College.
Methododogy: This is a cross sectional study conducted for the period of six months from March 2017 to September 2017 at the Emergency Department Kathmandu medical college teaching hospital. The study includes the cases of poisoning brought to the above mentioned institute for management. The data thus collected was entered in the SPSS and analysed to find the poisoning profile. Ethical clearance was taken from Institutional Review Board of Kathmandu Medical College.
Results: A total of 40 cases of poisoning came to Emergency Department over the period of six months of which 14 (35%) were males and 26 (65%) were females. The mean ages for males were 32.07 years and females were 26.23 years. Regarding time of consumption 42.5% of cases consumed poison at night. The most common poison consumed was Organophosphorus (55%) and next in kin was paracetamol (15%). However, type of Organophosphorus could not ascertained due to lack of information from the patent party.
Conclusion: People in the productive age groups are more prone to poisoning with various products due to stress or other social economic factors. Social education and strict rules and regulation for the sale of the pesticides can be useful in containing this problem.


For neon 3p states excited by transversely polarized electrons, the integrated Stokes parameters, and , have been measured from threshold to 300 eV for the decay photons of 692.9, 667.8 and 717.4 nm wavelengths from the and states, respectively. The and parameters for the 692.9 and 667.8 nm transitions indicate similar excitation mechanisms consistent with their similar `L S component states'. The non-zero indicates the breakdown of L S-coupling and the large values near threshold suggest a significant exchange process. For the 717.4 nm transition, the three Stokes parameters are much smaller than those of the other two lines. The low is surprising since the large (75.4%) -coupled component state was expected to cause large exchange effects.


Data voluntarily submitted to the NCDB by 597 hospitals throughout the US indicate marked variations in the type of surgery used for the treatment of breast cancer. Patients in New England with early stage breast cancer are much more likely to be treated with partial mastectomy than are patients in the East South Central or West North Central regions.


Abstract: Infectious diseases account for most of the 10 million annual deaths globally in children younger than 5 years. In recent years, data indicating that typhoid fever is a major cause of morbidity among the urban and periurban populations and the single most important cause of febrile bacteremia in febrile children has emerged. In several community-based studies from south Asia, the incidence rate seems to be especially high among young children, with rates exceeding 500 to 1000 cases per 100,000 population. In contrast, nontyphoidal salmonella infections in Africa seem to be an important cause of community-acquired bacteremia, especially among HIV-infected populations. Although isolated cases of chloramphenicol resistance in Salmonella typhi have been known for a long time, the mid 1980s saw the emergence of strains of S. typhi resistant to all the 3 primary oral antibiotics. In recent years, there has also been a marked increase in quinolone-resistant isolates. Although the exact determinants and factors associated with endemic disease and outbreaks of drug-resistant cases of typhoid are uncertain, there does seem to be an association with crowding, lack of sanitation and hygiene, and access to street foods. The appropriate and rapid diagnosis of typhoid remains a challenge with a variety of serological diagnostic tests and polymerase chain reaction-based techniques. Given the limited resources available for case management, appropriate antimicrobial therapy of multidrug- and quinolone-resistant typhoid poses particular problems in developing countries, especially because of the rapid emergence of resistant strains in recent years. Therefore, it is imperative that the focus clearly remain on preventive strategies for typhoid, including safe water, hygiene, and appropriate vaccination strategies.


Controlled drug delivery systems, which are intended to deliver drugs at predetermined rates for predefined periods of time, have been used to overcome the shortcomings of conventional drug formulations. Injectable drug-loaded matrices and controlled release technology offer numerous advantages compared to conventional dosage. However, one of the greatest challenges in applying this system to the clinical phase is the relatively large initial burst release. To reduce this effect of large initial burst release, a new drug delivery system was fabricated in this thesis. Both alginate and gelatin are biocompatible nature polymers and have been largely used as biomaterials for long time. By cross-linking alginate solution carrying drug-loaded uncross-linked gelatin microbeads, the initial burst release was reduced significantly, compared with drug directly releasing from gelatin or cross-linked alginate matrix. Firstly, a series of gelatin microbeads were prepared in a water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion by a traditional emulsification method. The effects of the concentration of gelatin solution, volumetric ratio of water-to-oil phase, stirring speed and emulsifying time on the particle size and dispersity of gelatin microbeads were studied.
Secondly, drug-loaded gelatin microbeads were encapsulated into the cross-linked sodium alginate macro-beads. The release behavior of drug-loaded gelatin microbeads encapsulated within cross-linked alginate gel was characterized both at room temperature and 37°C and compared with the release from gelatin microbeads and cross-linked alginate gel alone. This system represents a promise for the development of novel and versatile injectable drug delivery systems. Thirdly, a dual-drug delivery system was fabricated by encapsulating drug-loaded gelatin microbeads into the mixture of cross-linkable sodium alginate and another drug. The effects of preparation methods of drug-loaded gelatin microbeads and ratio between gelatin microbeads and alginate on drug release behaviors of both drugs were studied. This system shows a significant potential in dual drug delivery field due to the synergistic effect between gelatin and alginate.
Additionally, combination of multi-drugs in one system has been revealed as a promising application in the drug delivery systems. Therefore, in the fifth chapter of this thesis, an idea for the multi-drug delivery system was simply demonstrated. Rods of gelatin gels loaded with different drugs were separated by the agarose gel in a polycarbonate tube. The effects of the length of agarose gel and temperature on the drug release profiles were investigated. The results suggested the feasibility to employ this idea to the practical applications.


Twenly‐one different biotinylated lectins were used to recognize the carbohydrates of Aspergillus umbrosus, one of the most common microbes that patients with farmer's lung in Finland are exposed to. The glycoprotein fraction of A. umbrosus was bound especially well by Concanavalin A and consisted mainly of carbohydrates mannose and glucose. The carbohydrate fraction of A. umbrous antigens were isolated from the crude extract of A. umbrosus with Con A‐Sepharose affinity chromatography. Serum IgG antibodies to A. umhrosus mannoprotein fraction were determined in 57 patients with farmer's lung, 10 asymptomatic exposed farmers and 10 healthy controls by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Candida albicans and Saccharomyces cerevisiae mannan were used as controls. Patients had high levels, whereas asymptomatic exposed farmers showed moderate, and healthy controls low levels, of IgG antibodies to the A. umbrosus mannan/mannoprotein fraction. There were no significant differences in the mean antibody levels between the patients and controls against C. albicans or S. cerevisiae mannose fraction although in all groups more antibodies were detected against C. albicans than S. cerevisiae.


A numerical model is proposed for propagation waves in turbulent flow liquids, gases and plasmas. The problem of a traveling wave through flow with an inhomogeneous profile of velocity and concentration of turbulence is solved. The multiple scattering of waves on the inside surfaces of turbulent bodies of the cone and paraboloid is investigated. A comparison is made of the results of calculations with experimental data obtained by ultrasonic and electromagnetic sounding of turbulent flow water and plasma. Transfer of the signal in an oscillator neural network with flexible stochastic connections is considered. The process of synchronization of an oscillator neural network external electromagnetic field is investigated.


We have observed stimulated extraordinary-ordinary wave scattering and cross-polarized self-starting optical phase conjugation effects in a nematic liquid-crystal film. The basic mechanism involved is the nonresonant laser-induced nematic crystal axis reorientation. These processes require low optical power and are characterized by millisecond response speed.


Contrastive self-supervised learning has outperformed supervised pretraining on many downstream tasks like segmentation and object detection. However, current methods are still primarily applied to curated datasets like ImageNet. In this paper, we first study how biases in the dataset affect existing methods. Our results show that current contrastive approaches work surprisingly well across: (i) object- versus scene-centric, (ii) uniform versus long-tailed and (iii) general versus domain-specific datasets. Second, given the generality of the approach, we try to realize further gains with minor modifications. We show that learning additional invariances -- through the use of multi-scale cropping, stronger augmentations and nearest neighbors -- improves the representations. Finally, we observe that MoCo learns spatially structured representations when trained with a multi-crop strategy. The representations can be used for semantic segment retrieval and video instance segmentation without finetuning. Moreover, the results are on par with specialized models. We hope this work will serve as a useful study for other researchers. The code and models are available at https://github.com/wvangansbeke/Revisiting-Contrastive-SSL.


The diagnosis of neurological diseases is one of the biggest challenges in modern medicine, which is a major issue at the moment. Electroencephalography (EEG) recordings is usually used to identify various neurological diseases. EEG produces a large volume of multi-channel time-series data that neurologists visually analyze to identify and understand abnormalities within the brain and how they propagate. This is a time-consuming, error-prone, subjective, and exhausting process. Moreover, recent advances in EEG classification have mostly focused on classifying patients of a specific disease from healthy subjects using EEG data, which is not cost effective as it requires multiple systems for checking a subject's EEG data for different neurological disorders. This forces researchers to advance their work and create a single, unified classification framework for identifying various neurological diseases from EEG signal data. Hence, this study aims to meet this requirement by developing a machine learning (ML) based data mining technique for categorizing multiple abnormalities from EEG data. Textural feature extractors and ML-based classifiers are used on time-frequency spectrogram images to develop the classification system. Initially, noises and artifacts are removed from the signal using filtering techniques and then normalized to reduce computational complexity. Afterwards, normalized signals are segmented into small time segments and spectrogram images are generated from those segments using short-time Fourier transform. Then two histogram based textural feature extractors are used to calculate features separately and principal component analysis is used to select significant features from the extracted features. Finally, four different ML based classifiers are used to categorize those selected features into different disease classes. The developed method is tested on four real-time EEG datasets. The obtained result has shown potential in classifying various abnormality types, indicating that it can be utilized to identify various neurological abnormalities from brain signal data.


NF-kappa B activation is a crucial late step in the induction of immunoglobulin kappa light-chain gene expression in pre-B cells by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We have analyzed NF-kappa B activation in three independent mutant lines of 70Z/3 pre-B cells which are unresponsive to LPS. All three variant cell lines failed to activate NF-kappa B when induced with LPS or the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate. However, all three cell lines contained functional NF-kappa B, as revealed by detergent treatment of cytoplasmic extracts. Moreover, cycloheximide induced limited activation of NF-kappa B comparable to that in wild-type 70Z/3 pre-B cells in two of the three variant lines. These results indicate that the mutations blocking kappa gene induction in these variant 70Z/3 pre-B-cell lines affect NF-kappa B activation.


This report combines two different threads of research: In the first chapter, we make a proposal for a mathematical model of prejudiced behaviour. The heuristic background of this is the study of agents in open marketplaces, e.g., on the internet. We derive our model from a simple outset within the framework of the general theory of learning systems and a few axiomatic assumptions. The model considered turns out to be an example of a noisy dynamical system. Systems of this type have recently attracted much attention in the physical and mathematical communities. We perform a theoretical study of our special system in chapter 2 and carry out some numerical experiments. We stress the analogy of the phenomenology of the system with phase transitions in physical systems. The results that we obtain in chapter 2 give us some insight into the qualitative behaviour that learning systems governed by our prejudiced learning rule will exhibit.


An analysis of the aperture-coupled gridded patch antenna is described by using the spectral domain Green function approach. Effects of various antenna parameters on the input impedance and resonant frequency are studied. These results are useful for antenna design applications. The theory is confirmed by comparisons with available results.


More than 50% of patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) develop pulmonary disease during the course of their illness. The authors reviewed 96 computed tomographic (CT) scans of patients with AIDS in an attempt to describe disease entities by the patterns seen on the scans. Such patterns included isolated ground-glass and interstitial infiltrates, which are suggestive of Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP). If pleural effusions or parenchymal nodules are also present, AIDS-related lymphoma (ARL) or Kaposi sarcoma (KS) is more likely. Although diffuse alveolar infiltrates are most commonly present in PCP, a segmental alveolar infiltrate is suggestive of a bacterial pneumonia, especially when associated with cavitation or ipsilateral pleural effusion. Well-defined nodules are typical for ARL, whereas ill-defined nodules are more commonly suggestive of KS. Accompanying adenopathy or effusion with nodules further suggests ARL. Different combinations of parenchymal, nodular, and pleural abnormalities may be suggestive for additional diagnoses, including Mycobacterium tuberculosis, M avium-intracellulare, and Cryptococcus neoformans infections and human immunodeficiency virus adenopathy. The authors believe that a specific pattern of involvement can help suggest a likely diagnosis in many instances.


We show a superconvergence property for the Semi-Lagrangian Discontinuous Galerkin scheme of arbitrary degree in the case of constant linear advection equation with periodic boundary conditions.


The evaluation of antioxidant property, total phenolic compounds and pigment content of 8 medicinal plants including: Gynostemma pentaphyllum Thunb., Camellia sinensis Ktze., Cymbopogon citratus Stapf., Centella asiatica (L.) Urban., Andrographis paniculata (Burm.) Wall. ex Nees, Thunbergia laurifolia Lindl., Murdania loriformis (Hassk.) Rolla Rao et Kammathy and Acanthus ebracteatu s Vahl., was performed using 95% methanol as a solvent. C. sinensis methanolic extract showed the highest antioxidant activity with 0.34 μg/ml IC 50 followed by the extract of C. asiatica and G. pentaphyllum , respectively. The extract of A. paniculata had the highest chlorophyll a yield. C. sinensis extract had the highest chlorophyll b content. While, the carotenoid constituent can be determined only in G. pentaphyllum methanolic extract. However, the highest level of total pigment was in C. sinensis extract. Correlation analysis found a statistically significant relationship with an exponential pattern between the amount of total phenolic compounds and the antioxidant property at correlation level was 0.9687. On the other hand, the total pigment yield did not have a correlation with antioxidant activity. Key words: Pigment, phenolic compound, antioxidant, medicinal plant.


We studied the impact of "IVF - ET" on the glucose tolerance test (GTT), insulin tolerance test (ITT) and adiponectin to investigate differences in the phenotypes of B6J- Irs2(-/-) mice. The B6J-Irs2(-/-) mice (KO-Nat group) were prepared by natural mating. Other mice were produced by IVF-ET used ICR strain recipients and surrogate mothers (KO-IVF group). Measurement of body weight, GTT, ITT and blood sampling were performed at the ages of 6, 14 and 24 weeks after birth. Body weights, impaired glucose tolerance, insulin resistance and plasma adiponectin concentrations did not differ for each gender between the KO-IVF and KO-Nat groups. Therefore, we concluded that phenotypes of Irs2(-/-) mice produced by reproductive technology are stable.


Plants are one of the most important parts of the ecological system and demand a reliable method for accurate classification. In this study, the first-derivative fluorescence spectral curves (FDFSCs) based on laser-induced fluorescence technology were proposed for the characterization of plant species. The measurement system is mainly composed of a spectrometer, an excitation light source (the two excitation wavelengths are 460 and 556 nm, respectively), and an intensified charge-coupled device camera. FDFSCs were calculated from the deviation between the fluorescence values at each wavelength, plus and minus one band, divided by the wavelength range. Principal component analysis was utilized to analyze the FDFSCs by extracting the main attributes and reducing the dimensionality of variables. A support vector machine was used to evaluate FDFSC performance for the identification of plant species. Plant species that are difficult to distinguished by the naked eye, can be identified effectively using the proposed FDFSCs. For the 556 nm and 460 nm excitation wavelengths, the overall identification rates of the six plant species evaluated were 93.3% and 91.7%, respectively. Experimental results demonstrated that the combination of the FDFSCs with multivariate analysis could provide a simple and reliable method for the characterization of plant species.


This paper investigates finite-time (FT) stability and stabilization problems for a class of switched linear systems with polytopic uncertainties. Both stable and unstable subsystems are considered to coexist in the system, and a new concept of extended FT stability is proposed as the first attempt. A stability criterion is first established, where the admissible maximum switching number is obtained while ensuring extended FT stability of switched linear systems with time-varying delays under a given maximum ratio between the running time of unstable subsystems and the running time of stable subsystems. Sufficient conditions on the existence of desired memory state-feedback controllers are then developed. A numerical example and a class of servomechanism systems are given, respectively, to illustrate the effectiveness and validity of the developed techniques with time-varying delays and without time delay.


Individuals in the United States paradoxically long for and dread old age. The alternative to growing old is an outcome few of us would prefer. But aging seems inevitably associated with decline. Independent choices, a hallmark of adulthood, can be lost between one day and the next with a heart attack, a stroke, or a fractured hip. Senior citizen discounts notwithstanding, our culture does not offer a valued place for elders. It becomes easy to focus on what we will certainly lose rather than on any uncertain gains associated with aging.

And yet, we have examples of thriving elders. Former President Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 at age 78. Dr Benjamin Mays, a president of Morehouse College and mentor to Martin Luther King, Jr, and Andrew Young, published his autobiography Born to Rebel at 76. Celia Cruz, the Cuban American singer called the "Queen of Salsa," whose songs earned 22 gold records, continued performing and recording until her death at 78.

These people not only lived long, they lived well. How does one flourish over eight or nine decades? Joan Erikson was the wife and professional partner of the developmental psychologist Erik Erikson. Together they characterized eight stages of human development, from developing trust in infancy to encouraging generativity in old age (1). At age 90, soon after Erik's death, Joan began describing a ninth stage of wisdom that continued to include autonomy and growth. "But only if we've taken care of our bodies," she stressed. "The consistent care necessary to keep the body machinery functioning in spite of age and deterioration is mandatory" (2). This issue of Preventing Chronic Disease explores the role of public health in healthy aging.

Several authors describe current challenges in healthy aging in the United States. Gohdes and colleagues discuss age-related eye diseases; low vision and blindness rise dramatically with age in every race and ethnic group (3). Lai et al found that recovery from stroke in a Kansas population was related to sex, in part because prestroke functioning was lower in women compared with men in the study (4). Shenson and colleagues developed an index on the use of preventive services (Pap test, colon cancer screening, mammogram, and influenza and pneumococcal vaccines) in older Americans (5). The percentage of the population that achieved age- and sex-appropriate completion of these services ranged from 21% of women aged 50 to 64 years to 40% of men aged 65 years and older (5).

Stimpson et al used data from the Hispanic Established Population for the Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly to examine concordance of chronic disease between older Mexican American spouses. Their findings of similarities in disease between spouses led them to recommend including spousal diagnoses in patient medical histories (6).

State public health programs have a role in addressing these and related concerns of aging. As always, health surveillance is a major tool, indicated in this issue by the report from the Association of State and Territorial Chronic Disease Program Directors describing a mapping study of stakeholders' attitudes toward state roles in healthy aging and less prevalent chronic diseases (7). Maylahn and coauthors examine the use of quality-of-life indicators in older citizens, and Moriarty et al provide information on the development of these indicators (8,9).

Concerns about an aging population are not limited to the United States or even to the most industrialized countries. China, India, and many other nations face increasingly higher proportions of elders in their populations. Hawkins describes the efforts of the Global Ageing Research Network (GARNet) to establish common measures of healthy aging for intracountry and intercountry comparisons (10). A world growing older may see changes in economics, policies, and social securities not experienced by recent generations. This is a critical test of public health's ability to integrate multiple domains to improve the health of citizens around the globe.

Joan Anderson's book A Walk on the Beach describes her friendship with Joan Erikson in the last years of Erikson's life (2). She provides an account of the two women wandering through an old cemetery on Cape Cod in Massachusetts. Erikson lifts her walking cane and places it on the dates, 1860–1928, listed on a headstone. "It's all about the dash," she says (2,11). The recorded dates of birth and death are the least important aspects of a life. The dash speaks for all the time one spends on earth.


European advertising, its aesthetics, institutions and its central organisations, the advertising agencies, were profoundly changed by the arrival of American advertising agencies during the inter-war period. Supported by industrial clients who demanded global communications campaigns, and based on new forms of professional advertising management, these agencies soon dominated the course of European advertising history. During the 1960s, the influence of American advertising agencies began to wane, and global advertising increasingly followed new trends that originated in Europe. This article searches for the origins of this remarkable change of direction. In doing so, it compares the cultural-economic development of major European advertising industries from the immediate post-war years to the twenty-first century. It can be shown that the European advertising industries followed 'non-American' pathways in their development, which combined an emphasis on creativity with radically new forms of advertising production and agency management. As a result, successful advertising agencies today look less like American full-service agencies, and much more like the smaller European agencies of the type that had emerged between the world wars. The article discusses these findings in the light of the often-applied term 'Americanisation'.


Abstract Aoplonema Knight, Daleapidea Knight, Hadronema Uhler, and Hadronemidea Reuter are revised. Aoplonema nigrum, sp. nov., A. rubrum, sp. nov., Hadronema incognitum, sp. nov., and H. mexicanum, sp. nov. are described. Hadronemidea echinata, comb. nov. is proposed for Hadronema echinata Gruetzmacher and Schaffner, 1977. Aoplonemella, gen. nov. is described to accommodate Hadronema festiva Van Duzee, 1910; and Origonema, gen. nov. is described to accommodate Hadronema splendida Gibson, 1918. Scutomiris setosus, gen. et sp. nov. are described from Baja California Sur, Mexico. This new genus is superficially similar to the Neotropical genus Tupimiris. Male genitalic characters not mentioned in the original description of T. scutellatus are illustrated and compared with those of S. setosus, showing that the two are not related. Aoplonema, Aoplonemella, Daleapidea, Hadronema, Hadronemidea, Origonema, and Scutomiris form a monophyletic group herein denominated the Hadronema group. Dorsal habitus color photographs of all the species, scanning electron micrographs of selected species for each genus, and illustrations of male and female genitalic characters are provided for all species. Keys to separate the genera and species treated in this paper are presented. A phylogenetic hypothesis of relationships among the genera is proposed, and host-plant associations are discussed.


The article contains a mathematical model, describing the regularities of the overlaying metal heating. – a powder wire, deposited by means of electric-resistance surface deposition. Obtained were regression equations, which allow to predict th temperature of powder wire at electric-resistance surface deposition.


Objective: It is a well-known fact that cardiovascular alterations like arteriosclerosis lead to a high cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The cellular and molecular mechanisms of the mineralization process are delved for by utilizing different experimental settings, e.g., in vitro models with vascular smooth muscle cells, ex vivo models using aortic rings as well as in vivo rat or mice models. The aim of this study was to establish a novel model for vascular calcification studies via ex vivo perfusion of a thoracic aortic tissue. Design and method: The design and conception of the perfusion chamber were done pursuant to the requirements. The thoracic aorta of a Wistar rat was dissected and all aortic branches were coagulated. The aorta was perfused for 14 days at 37°C in a humified atmosphere. Vessel mineralization was detected by quantification of the calcium content (normalized to dry weight) and histological staining (Alizarin Red, von Kossa). Results: The experimental protocol for tissue preparation, buffer and perfusion condition were established. Tissue integrity during perfusion procedure seems to be intact; histo-morphological markers for elastic fibril degradation or necrotic markers are missing. Buffer and perfusion media were tested for induction of non-specific effects. Buffer and control media (w/o perfusion) did not induce vessel mineralization. To induce mineralization a medium containing high phosphate level (known from established ex vivo models) was used. Perfusion of the aortic tissue with this high phosphate medium induced a significant increase of calcium content in the aortic wall compared to perfusion condition with control medium (1.4 ± 0.4 vs. 6.5 ± 1.6 &mgr;g/mg; p < 0.05). Histological staining revealed medial located mineralization within the vessel wall. Conclusions: The novel experimental setting provides a novel ex vivo model with solely luminal perfusion, which allows administration of substances in a more physiological manner than well established ex vivo settings for calcification studies. Furthermore, the benefit of easier handling than in vivo models and the advantage of working with tissue make usage for studying signaling pathways and for screening of pharmaceuticals possible.


An idiopathic epilepsy (IE) risk haplotype on canine chromosome (CFA) 14 has been reported to interact with the CFA37 common risk haplotype in the Belgian shepherd (BS). Additional IE cases and control dogs were genotyped for the risk haplotypes to validate these previous findings. In the new cohort, the interaction between the two regions significantly elevated IE risk. When the haplotypes were analyzed individually, particular haplotypes on both CFA14 (ACTG) and 37 (GG) were associated with elevated IE risk, though only the CFA37 AA was significantly associated (p < 0.003) with reduced risk in the new cohort. However, the CFA14 ACTG risk was statistically significant when the new and previous cohort data were combined. The frequency of the ACTG haplotype was four-fold higher in BS dogs than in other breeds. Whole genome sequence analysis revealed that a 3-base pair predicted disruptive insertion in the RAPGEF5 gene, which is adjacent to the CFA14 risk haplotype. RAPGEF5 is involved in the Wnt-β-catenin signaling pathway that is crucial for normal brain function. Although this risk variant does not fully predict the likelihood of a BS developing IE, the association with a variant in a candidate gene may provide insight into the genetic control of canine IE.


Today's societies, democracies, media and journalism are undergoing a transformation hitherto unheard of in history. The key element of these changes is information and access to it, as well as processing possibilities and skills. Without understanding the process, without the ability to select information, and without critical analysis, individuals and entire societies become vulnerable to stupidity, information wars, disinformation and interference with elections.
Politicians, especially populists but not exclusively so, saw a great opportunity in the existence of a "cloudy information space", in the confusion of citizens deprived of their independent thinking and poorly educated. That is why politicians fight with free media and independent journalists, because this is the first line of defence against disinformation and ignorance. Freedom of media is also a barrier to the authoritarian aspirations of politicians, because of its unique attribute — the only freedom showing the state of other freedom and rights.
The book by professor Jacek Dąbała, Media phenomena and paradoxes, published in 2020, diagnoses these problems and challenges and shows the key to media and information thinking. It is written in a minimalistic form of 200 texts, each of about 2000 characters. The short form is balanced by the multitude of topics covered, including science, politics, history, medicine, media, technologies, customs, law, religion, faith, emotions, intellect and stupidity. Dąbała scans issues in Russia, China, the United States, Germany, Poland and many others. The topics and analyses are universal and you can even risk a thesis that many of them will be timeless. It is therefore a global and universal reading which, when translated into other languages, should be recommended as essential content for journalists, politicians, students, and even more broadly — for all of us, that is, media recipients.
The book is a subjective view of all the 200 topics through the prism of pro-democracy views and freedom — freedom understood in the broadest sense, freedom of science and speech.
Dąbała certainly poses important questions, questioning our way of seeing the world and its presentation in the media. However, he often leaves the questions unanswered, apparently because the answer is in the method — analysis, critical thinking and seeking quality.
The book Media phenomena and paradoxes is excellent material for conducting workshops for journalism students. Analysing problems in the book can also improve journalistic thinking. For journalists who have not lost their instincts, humility and willingness to keep going, such an exercise can be very valuable.
This is important knowledge for anyone who wants to better understand the world, and for media people it is a must-read.


The experiments showed that in a dose of 35-70 mg/kg rifampicin inhibited reproduction of the fixed rabies virus in the brain of infected animals. The drug had no inhibitory effect on synthesis of the virus-neutralizing antibodies after vaccination. Combination of rifampicin with antirabies gamma-globulin had a marked synergistic effect. The animal survival after the combination use amounted to 75-100 per cent and depended on the infective dose of the virus and the scheme of the drug administration. It was concluded that rifampicin might be used in complex therapy of rabies during the incubation period (along with gamma-globulin and the vaccine) for inhibiting virus reproduction at early infection stages.


This paper proposes a Location-Constrained Particle Filter (LC-PF) for Radio Signal Strength Indication (RSSI) based indoor localization system. Based on proposed LC-PF, the RSSI fluctuation problem can be restrained. The proposed methods include location-constrained importance weight updating (LC-WU) and location-constrained propagation model (LC-model). LC-WU eliminates particles in prohibited regions based on the geolocation of the map. The LC-model propagates particles based on different turning probabilities in different regions. These two methods can be applied separately or jointly. The proposed LC-PF has 2.48 m average accuracy improvement over basic PF with 68% error reduction, and results in 2.07 m accuracy with 90% confidence.