Aim: To analyze the causes and characteristics of posterior segment inflammation in the Vitreo-retinal department in a multispecialty hospital. Methods: This is a retrospective study on 97 patients who presented with manifestations of posterior segment inflammation in a multispecialty hospital in the last 2 years were included in the study. They were analysed with respect to aetiology, clinical manifestations, intervention done and response to treatment. Results: Posterior segment inflammation was most commonly seen as a manifestation toxoplasmosis (18.6%) followed by systemic vasculitic disorder like SLE (16.5%). Other common causes included infections like tuberculosis, (9.3%) endogenous (bacterial and fungal endophthalmitis (12.4%) and viral retinitis. Others were VKH, vasculitis with unknown etiology, Behcets disease and sarcoidosis Conclusions: We found toxoplasmosis to the commonest single etiological agent. There was a significantly higher incidence of posterior segment involvement due to systemic vasculitis in our study population which is hitherto been unreported in other study populations.


Information technology and advanced online environments have reduced the cost of these exchange activities and triggered the emergence of the sharing economy. Con-sequently, public attitude toward the sharing economy has gradually shifted from re-luctance to acceptance. Moreover, the sharing economy has revolutionized the busi-ness models and viewpoints of conventional industries, and sharing service providers have gradually shifted from an independent to a collaborative stance, thereby affect-ing conventional economies. This study interprets the phenomenon of cross-industry collaboration in the sharing economy through social exchange and social network the-ories. A multiple-case research framework is used to examine tourism and service in-dustries. Secondary data of service providers and users on sharing platforms are ana-lyzed using content analysis, supplemented with a content analysis of the interview data of three hotel executives. The varying phenomena of the conventional and shar-ing economies on social exchange and social network were compared. Finally, this paper proposes conclusions and practical recommendations according to the analytical results. Â JEL classification numbers: D85, M31, L14.


The connection of renewable-based distributed generation (DG) in distribution networks has been increasing over the last few decades, which would result in increased network capacity to handle their uncertainties along with uncertainties associated with demand forecast. Temporary non-network solutions (NNSs) such as demand response (DR) and temporary energy storage system/DG are considered as promising options for handling these uncertainties at a lower cost than network alternatives. In order to manage and treat the risk associated with these uncertainties using NNSs, this paper presents a new risk-managed approach for multi-stage distribution expansion planning (MSDEP) at a lower cost. In this approach, the uncertainty of available DR is also taken into account. The philosophy of the proposed approach is to find the "optimal level of demand" for each year at which the network should be upgraded using network solutions while procuring temporary NNSs to supply the excess demand above this level. A recently developed forward-backward approach is fitted to solve the risk-managed MSDEP model presented here for real sized networks with a manageable computational cost. Simulation results of two case studies, IEEE 13-bus and a realistic 747-bus distribution network, illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


Behavioural problems in childhood are common, with significant and wide-ranging implications for individuals, families and the community. There is some evidence that sensory processing difficulties are associated with behavioural problems in children with disabilities such as autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, there has been minimal research into the association between sensory processing difficulties and behavioural problems in the absence of these disorders. The aim of this investigation was to determine the prevalence of sensory processing difficulties in children aged 5 to 9 who have been identified as at risk of developing conduct disorder, and to examine the relationship between sensory processing difficulties and behavioural problems. Participants were children aged 5 to 9 selected to participate in an early intervention program for children at risk of developing conduct disorder. Behaviour problems were assessed using the Eyberg Child Behaviour Inventory (ECBI; Eyberg and Robinson 1983) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; Goodman 1997). Sensory processing was assessed using the parent-reported Short Sensory Profile (SSP; McIntosh et al. 1999). Sensory processing difficulties were identified in 55.2%, which is higher than the estimated prevalence in the community (5.3–13.7%). Significant correlations were found between sensory processing difficulties and severity of behavioural problems. Using multiple regression analysis, sensory processing difficulties made a significant unique contribution to behavioural problems, and contributed more to the model than did other variables – language difficulties and socio-economic status. Notwithstanding the need for further research, these findings suggest that sensory processing should be considered in the assessment and management of children with behaviour problems.


Summary.  International controlled trials have demonstrated increasing sustained virological response (SVR) rates to interferon‐based therapies in hepatitis‐C‐treated patients. Response rates of 6–20% in the era of interferon monotherapy are compared with 42–82% with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin. The virological durability of the SVR is unknown and the optimal follow‐up for these patients is unclear. The aim of our study was to determine SVR rates and the durability of the response to interferon‐based therapies in the clinical setting. From our database of 1540 hepatitis C patients, 344 treatment courses of at least 12 weeks duration were identified, including interferon monotherapy (175 patients), interferon plus ribavirin (96 patients) and peginterferon plus ribavirin (73 patients). Interferon monotherapy was associated with an SVR rate of 5% in 103 genotype 1 patients and 25% in 72 genotype 2/3 patients. Response rates were higher (P < 0.001) with interferon plus ribavirin—41% in 34 genotype 1 patients and 73% in 62 genotype 2/3 patients—and with peginterferon plus ribavirin—47% in 47 genotype 1 patients and 79% in 26 genotype 2/3 patients. Of 147 patients with an SVR, 146 (>99%) remained hepatitis C virus PCR negative during a mean 2.3 years (range 0.3–10.3) of follow‐up. In conclusion, with advances in therapies, we are achieving higher response rates in hepatitis C patients treated in the clinical setting. We can now expect an SVR in over half of the treated patients. Importantly, the response is durable and medium and long‐term follow‐up of these patients are of low yield and largely unnecessary.


The changes in phase contrast X-ray images as the photon energy is changed were observed and analyzed. Such results were justified in part with a preliminary model based on the interplay of refraction and absorption effects. The observed change may open up interesting opportunities for chemical analysis based on phase contrast images taken at different absorption edges.


In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, environmental stress conditions that damage the cell wall lead to activation of the so-called "compensatory mechanism," aimed at preserving cell integrity through a remodeling of this extracellular matrix. Here we used DNA microarrays to investigate the molecular basis of this response to two agents that induce transient cell wall damage; namely Congo Red and Zymolyase. Treatment of the cells with these two agents elicited the up-regulation of 132 and 101 genes respectively, the main functional groups among them being involved in cell wall construction and metabolism. The main response does not occur until hours after exposure to the cell wall-perturbing agent. In some cases, this response was transient, but more sustained in others, especially in the case of the genes involved in cell wall remodeling. Clustering of these data together with those from the response to constitutive cell wall damage, revealed the existence of a cluster of co-regulated genes that was strongly induced under all conditions assayed. Those genes induced by cell wall damage showed an enrichment in DNA binding motifs for Rlm1p, Crz1p, SBF (Swi4p/Swi6p), Msn2p/Msn4p, Ste12p, and Tec1p transcription factors, suggesting a complex regulation of this response together with the possible involvement of several signaling pathways. With the exception of PHO89 and FKS2, none of the genes induced by Congo Red was up-regulated in a slt2 strain. Moreover, characterization of the transcriptional response to Congo Red in a rlm1 mutant strain revealed that only a few genes (i.e. PHO89, FKS2, YLR042C, and CHA1) were induced at least partially independently of the transcription factor Rlm1p, the rest being totally dependent on this transcription factor for their activation. Our findings consistently demonstrate that the cell integrity signaling pathway regulates the cell wall damage compensatory response, mainly through transcriptional activation mediated by Rlm1p.


Cell cycle progression follows a precise sequence of events marked by different phases and checkpoints which are associated with specific chromatin organisation. Whilst these changes have been extensively studied, their consequences on transcriptional networks remain to be fully uncovered, especially in dynamic model systems such as stem cells. Here, we take advantage of the FUCCI reporter system to show that chromatin accessibility, gene expression and key transcription factors binding change during cell cycle progression in human Embryonic Stem Cells (hESCs). These analyses reveal that core pluripotency factors such as OCT4, NANOG and SOX2 but also chromatin remodelers such as CTCF and RING1B bind the genome at specific phases of the cell cycle. Importantly, this binding pattern allows differentiation in the G1 phase while preserving pluripotency in the S/G2/M. Our results highlight the importance of studying transcriptional and epigenetic regulations in the dynamic context of the cell cycle.


Presently 80% of the biomass of sea scallop Placopecten magellanicus on Georges Bank is located within 3 large areas closed to fisheries. Sea stars Asterias spp., primary predators of scal- lops, are also aggregated within these closed areas. As prey becomes depleted within one scallop bed, sea stars may move to another food source, possibly to another scallop bed. We tested the hypothesis that sea star aggregations moved from one scallop bed to another within the Nantucket Lightship Closed Area (NLCA) on Georges Bank. We video surveyed 204 stations in the NLCA from 1999 to 2006 using a 1.57 km grid-centric systematic sampling design. The center of sea star abun- dance was calculated by averaging the sea star frequency-weighted latitude and longitude for all stations. Using multivariate analysis of variance and all-pairs comparisons (Hotelling's T 2 ), shifts in the center of sea star abundance were determined by assessing if the locations of the 2 aggregations were different. The sea star center of abundance, standard ellipse and 95% confidence ellipse were superimposed on the scallop density distribution maps to determine the spatial overlap. The distrib- utions of sea star aggregations in the NLCA significantly shifted between consecutive years from 1999 to 2006 and overlapped with areas of high densities of scallops. Shifts in the center of abundance reflect changes in distribution possibly resulting from movement, recruitment and mortality. As sea stars aggregate in these areas presumably due to high abundances of scallops, sea star movement between the scallop beds may increase natural mortality rates of the scallop population on Georges Bank.


The combined effect of sisomicin and 6-[(R)-2-[3-methylsulfonyl-2-oxo-imidazolidine-1-carboxamido]-2-phenyl-acetamido-a1-penicillanic acid sodium salt (mezlocillin, Baypen) was studied against 50 bacterial strains, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus spp. Klebsiella-Enterobacter, E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus. No antagonism or indifference was detected with the strains studied. Both antibiotics were synergistic against 62% of the strains, and partially synergistic against 38%. Out of the bacteria studied, Staphylococcus aureus was the most susceptible to the combined action of sisomicin and mezlocillin.


The study aims to identify the effectiveness of a structural theory-based training program in enhancing the teaching practices of Arabic language teachers teaching grade ten in South Al Batinah in Sultanate of Oman. The study used the quasi-experimental design, and the sample consisted of 40 male and female teachers. To achieve the objectives of the study, a training program, an observation form and a measurement tool of teachers' tendencies towards a structural teaching were made. The program was implemented with an experimental group of 20 female and male teachers in the first semester of the academic year 2018/2019. The study has found that there is a statistically significant difference between the average grades before and after implementing the program, with higher grades achieved after implementation. There has also been no statistically significant difference between the average grades in the post implementation phase due to the social variable. The researcher recommended organizing training courses for Arabic language teachers to expand their knowledge of educational theories and their applications in classroom teaching practices, and benefiting from the structural teaching observation form in educational supervision.


In this work, we propose an alternative parametrized form of the proximal operator, of which the parameter no longer needs to be positive. That is, the parameter can be a non-zero scalar, a full-rank square matrix, or, more generally, a bijective bounded linear operator. We demonstrate that the positivity requirement is essentially due to a quadratic form. We prove several key characterizations for the new form in a generic way (with an operator parameter). We establish the optimal choice of parameter for the Douglas-Rachford type methods by solving a simple unconstrained optimization problem. The optimality is in the sense that a non-ergodic worst-case convergence rate bound is minimized. We provide closed-form optimal choices for scalar and orthogonal matrix parameters under zero initialization. Additionally, a simple self-contained proof of a sharp linear convergence rate for a (1 /L )-cocoercive fixed-point sequence with L ∈ (0 , 1) is provided (as a preliminary result).Toour knowledge, an operator parameter is new. To show its practical use, we design a dedicated parameter for the 2-by-2 block-structured semidefinite program (SDP). Such a structured SDP is strongly related to the quadratically constrained quadratic program (QCQP), and we therefore expect the proposed parameter to be of great potential use. At last, two well-known applications are investigated. Numerical results show that the theoretical optimal parameters are close to the practical optimums, except they are not a priori knowledge. We then demonstrate that, by exploiting problem model structures, the theoretical optimums can be well approximated. Such approximations turn out to work very well, and in some cases almost reach the underlying limits.


In the present work, a study of a physico-chemical characterisation of underground waters, utilised for agriculture and human use in the Lecce district (Southern Italy) has been reported. The aim of the work has been to define the quality of underground waters in the different areas and to value salt contamination due to seawater intrusion. Statistical techniques, such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Cluster Analysis (CA), have been utilised to examine the correlations among the different parameters and to define contamination areas. The results have shown a high salt contamination in artesian wells of the Ionian Sea coast.


This article presents the institutional framework of preferential and non-preferential certificate of origin in Colombia. Special emphasis is made in the process of verification, the sanctioning regime and the common errors that Companies incur, also describing some current trends of the Authority to disregard the Proof of Origin.
Preferential Origin, Suspension of Preferential Tariff Treatment, Verification, Free Trade Agreement, Sanctions and Penalties, Authorized Exporter, Transshipment, Non-preferential origin, Proof of Origin.


The decision to initiate radio and radar satellite tracking work at the Royal Radar Establishment was taken at the end of 1960, and followed directly from our experience in working with Echo 1 satellite. During the week following its launch, positional information on Echo 1 was transmitted to N.A.S.A. Goddard Space Flight Center by teletype. The equipment used was a 10 cm radar feeding a 45 ft. paraboloid dish aerial, which was steered by slaving to an optical sight; it was a system adapted in a hurry from its main work programme of Moon-echo investigations, and very limited in its capability for extended satellite tracking work. In order to participate in communications tests via Echo 1, another aerial was recovered from disuse and pressed into service at short notice. This was a 20 ft. wood-and-wirenetting device. A primitive system of semi-automatic steering control was designed and built, a receiver on 960 Mc/s headed by a parametric amplifier was supplied by the Post Office Engineering Department, and, after 10 days' intensive work, signals were received at Malvern via Echo 1 from Bell Telephone Laboratories, Holmdel, New Jersey. Although the signal level was below the frequency-modulation threshold, so that intelligible speech could not be received, the signal strength was measured to be within half a decibel of its theoretically predicted value for the air-and-space transmission path. This successful initial experiment, performed jointly by the Post Office and R.R.E., was a landmark in the progress of U.K. work in the space/ground environment, and led by separate paths to Goonhilly Downs and the present R.R.E. Satellite Tracker. The influence of the 1960 experiment, and in particular the prediction-aided pointing control method used, can be discerned at both installations today.


The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of different types of nanoparticles on thermal and dielectric properties along with the relation between them. Boron nitride (BN) nanoparticles with high thermal conductivity and ferriferrous oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles as a typical magnetic oxide were dispersed into transformer oil to form different types of nanooil. Thermal and dielectric properties of the nanooil with different mass fractions were measured. Thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity under different temperature were measured for each type of the nanooil in order to investigate the effect of nanoparticles on thermal property. Dielectric property experiments were performed in accordance with IEC standard. Relative permittivity, dissipation factor and electrical resistivity tests for the nanooil were conducted along with ac and dc breakdown strength in a range of temperature. It is found that both types of the nanooil showed improved thermal property compared with non-modified oil. The nanooil exhibits different performance in dielectric property due to the different properties of the nanoparticles. The obtained results show significant improvement in heat transfer process with increasing the mass fraction of BN nanoparticles while the oil modified by Fe3O4 nanoparticles shows considerable enhancement in dielectric breakdown strength. Through further comparison between the two types of nanooil, it is proposed that the improved thermal property contributes to the enhancement of the breakdown strength.


This study proposes an automatic sign language translator, which is developed as assistive technology to help the hearing/speech impaired communities to communicate with the rest of the world. The system architecture, which includes feature extraction and recognition stages is described in detail. The signs are classified into two types: static and dynamic. Various types of sign features are presented and analysed. Recognition stage considers the hidden Markov model and segmentation signature. Real-time implementation of the system with the use of Windows7 and LINUX Fedora 16 operating systems with VMware workstation is presented in detail. The system has been successfully tested on Malaysian sign language.


Fossil fuels (i.e., coal, oil, and natural gas) provide about 85% of the world's energy, sustaining our standard-of-living. They are inexpensive, transportable, safe, and relatively abundant. At the same time, their use contributes to problems such as air quality and acid rain that are being addressed through various control efforts and to the problem of global warming, which is now being considered by governments of the world. This talk will focus on six key aspects of the scientific findings that are leading to proposals for significant limitation of the emissions of fossil-fuel-derived carbon dioxide and limitations on emissions of other greenhouse gases that can influence the global climate, including substances used in the refrigeration and air-conditioning industries.


Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) billows can facilitate microscale turbulent mixing around seamounts in the Kuroshio. This study sought to describe the influence of billow intensity (i.e., "intermittent and small" and "steady and large" billows) on vertical nitrate fluxes. KH billows led to turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rates [ε = O (10–7 to 10–6) W kg–1] and eddy diffusivities [Kρ = O (10–4 to 10–3) m2 s–1] that were significantly stronger than those outside the billow depths. The mean nitrate flux estimated using Kρ in the billow depths had a maximal value of 10.0 mmol m–2 day–1, which was much higher than estimates for the open ocean. The nitrate flux associated with the shallow KH billows at two vertical levels contributed to enrich the subsurface phytoplankton maximum, while the deeper billows closer to the summit were found to induce a large amount of nitrate flux from the deeper to the subsurface water. This study showed that KH billows make important contributions to seamount ecosystems, particularly in the cycling and vertical mixing of nutrients to make them available for potential downstream transport.


ABSTRACT This article examines the cultural and philosophical significance of code switching in the formulation of diasporic identity in Edward Said's Out of Place (1999) and Fawaz Turki's Exile's Return: The Making of a Palestinian-American (1994). It argues that exilic Palestinian writers' use of code-switching pursues various purposes related to the multiplicity and plurality of voices to which they are subject, but it mainly pertains to the 'exoticization' of their homeland and 'nationalizing' their experiences in exile. Ultimately, the use of code-switching in the memoirs chosen here act as one of the most effective strategies that diasporic writers employ to satisfy a number of important socio-pragmatic and rhetorical functions that are usually expected in exilic writing. These strategies also aim to guide the (mainstream) readers' affective responses to their work in the way(s) exiled authors believe best suit their rhetorical and national goals.


Abstract In this study, we quantified the rate of ferrihydrite conversion to goethite via the Fe(II) pathway using synchrotron radiation-based energy dispersive X-ray diffraction (ED-XRD). Ferrihydrite transformation experiments were conducted in oxygen-free solutions at neutral pH with synthetic 2-line ferrihydrite reacting with 100 mM Fe(II). The kinetics of goethite crystallization was measured in situ at temperatures ranging from 21 to 90 °C. The results showed that in the presence of ferrous iron, the transformation of poorly ordered ferrihydrite into crystalline goethite is rapid and highly dependent on temperature. The time-resolved peak area data fitted using a Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov (JMAK) kinetic model yielded rate constants of 4.0 x 10-5, 1.3 x 10-4, 3.3 x 10-4, 2.27 x 10-3, and 3.14 x 10-3 1/s at reaction temperatures of 21, 45, 60, 85, and 90 °C respectively. The activation energy for the transformation was determined to be 56 ± 4 kJ/mol. Comparison with the activation energy predicted for the phase conversion in the absence of ferrous iron indicates that Fe(II) acts as a catalyst that decreases the activation energy barrier by approximately 38 kJ/mol. The kinetic parameters derived from the experimental data suggest that goethite crystallization is controlled by a 1-D phase boundary growth mechanism with a constant nucleation rate occurring during the reaction


Background. Excellence in palliative care demands attention to the multidimensional aspects of patient and family suffering, yet too few psycho-oncology professionals report adequate preparation in this vital area. Methods. A total of 148 competitively selected psychologists, social workers, and spiritual care professionals participated in intensive educational courses to enhance their palliative care delivery, leadership, and advocacy skills. Extensive process and outcome evaluations measured the effectiveness of this educational program. Results. To date, 2 national courses have been completed. The courses received strong overall evaluations, with participants rating increased confidence in defined palliative care skills. Conclusions. The initial results of this innovative National Cancer Institute-funded transdisciplinary training for psycho-oncology professionals affirm the need and feasibility of the program. See the Advocating for Clinical Excellence Project Web site (www.cityofhope.org/ACEproject) for additional course information.


Abstract Three experiments were conducted to explore the credibility of earwitness versus eyewitness testimony among American college students. Experiment 1 demonstrated that subjects were less likely to identify the perpetrator of a simulated crime in auditory lineups than in visual or auditory-visual lineups. In Experiment 2, subjects observed a videotaped witness from Experiment 1 make an identification. Contrary to actual accuracy data, subjects were as believing of the identifications made by auditory witnesses as they were of the identifications made by visual or auditory-visual witnesses. In Experiment 3, mock jurors in a simulated robbery trial believed auditory lineup identifications as much as they did visual or auditory-visual lineup identifications.


The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a teacher's praise dispositions scale(TPDS). On the basis of a literature review of praise, we developed 19 Likert-type items to measure praise dispositions of elementary and secondary school teachers. The developed scale was examined with 342 teachers. With an exploratory factor analysis we extracted 3 sub-factors of the scale consisted of 16 items; frequency, intention, and standard of praise. Cronbach's α coefficients of sub-scales were from .60 to .85 and split-half reliabilities were from .60 to .84. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to assess the suitability of three components model. It was found that some correlation coefficients, not all of them, between gratitude disposition and praise disposition were statistically significant. It suggested that teachers'praise disposition scale is related to gratitude disposition but is not the same scale. In conclusion, TPDS could be used to measure praise dispositions of teachers. However, for further validity and reliability, repeated research is necessary.


A 41-year-old woman with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis came to the outpatient-clinic, prior to a scheduled infusion with natalizumab. She had been treated with natalizumab for four years. Prior to treatment she did not wish to have her John Cunningham virus status tested. At the consultation she appeared disoriented and answered questions inadequately. An MRI was consistent with progressive multifocal leucoencephalopathy, and treatment with plasmapheresis was startet immediatly. The patient deceased four months later.


INTRODUCTION
Every patient needs a comprehensive treatment planning. Dentists must consider the advantages and disadvantages of the available implant prosthetic options and match them to patient's expectations. Hybrid denture prosthesis is one, i.e., fabricated and retained by screw threaded into implant abutments, most of the time on four implants. Sometimes due to failure of an implant, the prosthesis needs to be replaced with a newer casting to accommodate the existing implants. Clinical consideration: This article presents a novel technique, wherein the existing framework of the fixed prosthesis can be used to convert the fixed prosthesis to removable prosthesis on the existing implants, without recasting.

CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE
The implant is economical and easily convertible from a fixed-fixed to a fixed-removable prosthesis. Hence, there is reduced morbidity, reduced cost, and an increased psychological comfort for the patient.


ABSTRACT Little is known about the mental health of pregnant women in prison in England or the factors which impact admissions to prison mother and baby units (MBUs). Research from the UK suggests women with more 'stable' backgrounds and lower prevalence of mental disorder are more likely to be admitted to prison MBUs. Eighty-five pregnant women were interviewed in eight different prisons. Schedules for the Clinical Assessment of Neuropsychiatry (SCAN) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) were used to assess mental health; Severity of Dependence Questionnaire (SOD-Q) for drug misuse; Alcohol Use Identification Test (AUDIT) for hazardous drinking; and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-II) to identify personality disorder. Fifty-one per cent of participants had depression and 57% had anxiety. Those who were working prior to imprisonment were more likely to be admitted to MBUs, and those with a prior social services involvement, diagnosis of personality disorder or history of suicidality were less likely to be admitted. The high levels of depression and anxiety can have negative impacts on both the mother and her unborn child. Factors which influence MBU admission suggest those who might benefit most from MBU placement are least likely to be admitted.


Phase change materials (PCMs) use latent heat to store a large amount of thermal energy over a narrow temperature range. While PCMs are commonly used for thermal storage applications, they may also be used to dampen large pulsed heat loads, which are commonly generated by high-power electronics and direct-energy weapons. During a pulse, the PCM absorbs some of the large heat load, and between pulses the heat is dissipated to a cooling system, which minimizes the instantaneous heat load applied to the cooling system, reducing its physical size and power consumption. To minimize the size of a PCM heat exchanger, a simple computational model that can capture the transient thermal response of a flat plate PCM heat exchanger in a vapor compression cooling system with a pulsed heat load was developed. Using this model, the effect of PCM thermal conductivity, melt temperature, and latent heat on the size of the PCM heat exchanger was studied. PCM thermal conductivity and melt temperature had the greatest impact on the PCM heat exchanger size. The ideal PCM heat exchanger would contain relatively high thermal conductivity PCM with a melt temperature close to the desired heat source temperature.


The frequency of acrocentric chromosomes associations in the lymphocytes of periferal blood decreased on the 7th and 30th day after vaccination. The rate of the decrease was in direct dependence on the intensity of the immunological response, that probably was due to shortening the length of the interphase of the lymphocytes induced for immunopoiesis. Frequency of the acrocentric chromosomes associations did not differ from the control level 6 months after vaccination.


This paper intends to propose a critical examination of some of the theoretical orientations that have most characterized the debate on the informal economy in recent years. The reflection will take welfare regimes as a research field for analyzing the impact of informality on institutional systems. The paper will be divided into two parts. In the first one, structuralist, geographical and governmental approaches to informality will be discussed, showing some theoretical limits in their interpretation of the plurality of social practices and institutional change. In the second part, some indications will be proposed on how to understand the role of informality on institutional systems starting with a review of some Gramscian notions relating to the problems of normativity and historical change.


Breeding for low erucic acid is a major objective to improve the edible oil quality in Brassica juncea. FAE1, theintron-less, 1521-bp gene encoding fatty acid elongase, genetically control the biosynthesis of erucic acid in oilseed Brassicas. The Brassica juncea being an amphidiploid, contains two paralogs of this gene (FAE1.1 and FAE1.2). Allelic variations in the gene such as SNPs and InDels are predominantly responsible for variability in erucic acid content in the seed, among the Brassica genotypes. The coding sequence of FAE1 gene paralogs were sequenced from low (LEA) and high (HEA) erucic acid genotypes which had a few SNPs that differentiated LAE and HEA genotypes. Two SNPs in FAE1.1 at position 591 and 1265 and one in FAE1.2 at 237, which led to a change in the recognition site of Hpy99I, BglII and MnlI restriction enzymes, respectively, converted into CAPS markers to differentiate LEA and HEA genotypes. The efficacy of these CAPS markers was found 100 per cent when validated in Brassica juncea, B. rapa and B. nigra genotypes and used in back-cross breeding. However, owing to functional complexity of CAPS in routine analysis; nucleotide sequence variability in the promoter region of FAE1 gene paralogs were expedited to develop simple PCR based markers. The upstream regions of FAE were sequenced from LEA cultivar Pusa Mustard30 and HEA cultivar Pusa Bold. A28-bp deletion in the promoter of FAE1.1 and a 340- bp insertion of a transposonlike element in the FAE1.2 gene promoter was discovered in LEA genotype in comparison to HEA. Markers based on these sequence variabilities in the promoter regions of FAE1.1 and FAE1.2 were found to completely co-segregate with the seed erucic acid content. These markers would be effectively used in marker assisted selection for development of low erucic acid cultivars in B. juncea.


INTRODUCTION
Diabetes mellitus, particularly type II, is a major public health concern worldwide. While the occurrence of diabetic retinopathy cannot be prevented, with the provision of knowledge to sufferers, sight-threatening complications can be minimized.

PURPOSE
To report the results of a KAP (Knowledge, Attitude and Practice) study among a rural population in two areas: diabetes mellitus (DM) and diabetic retinopathy (DR). The level of knowledge was evaluated for both DM and DR; however, the influence of knowledge on practices and attitude was evaluated in only the DR group.

METHODS
In rural areas, 145 awareness meetings on DM and DR were conducted attended 28 347 individuals. Using systematic random sampling, the data were collected from every 14th individual. In total, 1938 individuals from a rural population were numbered for gaining their responses to the KAP questionnaire. Univariate and multiple regression analyses were performed to identify independent risk factors related to the knowledge of the disease and influence of this knowledge on attitude and practice.

RESULTS
Of 1938 individuals, 966 (49.9%) had knowledge of DM and 718 (37.1%) had knowledge of DR. Knowledge about DM was more in women (OR=1.93; 95% CI: 1.55-2.39), in subjects who followed the Christian faith (OR=1.48; 95% CI: 1.07-2.04) and in those who belonged to the upper socioeconomic strata (OR=2.60; 95% CI: 1.84-3.67). The knowledge of DR was significantly higher among subjects who spoke the Malayalam language (OR=3.80; 95% CI: 2.03-7.13), who followed the Christian faith (OR=1.73; 95% CI: 1.27-2.35), and in those who belonged to the upper socioeconomic strata (OR=1.85; 95% CI: 1.32-2.58). Compared with those who had no knowledge of DR (n = 1220), significant percentages of individuals with knowledge (n = 718) had the right attitude - to go for regular eye examinations - (65.9% vs 93.3%) (p<0.0001) ). Regarding practice patterns, only 36.5% of individuals with knowledge about DR believed that if they controlled their blood sugar, they could avoid a visit to an ophthalmologist, compared with 55.5% with no knowledge (p<0.0001).

CONCLUSION
The results suggest that we need to propagate aggressive and comprehensive awareness models to educate rural populations on DM and DR.


Little is known about the process or causes of fledging or nest-leaving in passerine birds because researchers can rarely predict when fledging will occur in a given nest. We used continuous videotaping of nests to both document the process of fledging in the house wren, Troglodytes aedon, a small, cavity-nesting songbird, and test hypotheses as to what might cause fledging to begin. Fledging began any time from 14 to 19 d after hatching commenced. Slower-developing broods fledged later than faster-developing broods. Fledging typically began within 5 h of sunrise and over 80% of all nestlings fledged before noon. All nestlings fledged on the same day at 65% of nests and over two consecutive days in most other nests. We found no evidence that fledging was triggered by changes in parental behaviour. Parental rate of food delivery to nestlings did not decline during a 3-h period leading up to the first fledging, nor was the rate of feeding just prior to the first fledging lower than the rate at the same time the day before. Moreover, parents did not slow the rate of food delivery to nests after part of the brood had fledged. Hatching is asynchronous in our study population which creates a marked age/size hierarchy within broods. At most nests, the first nestling to fledge was the most well-developed nestling in the brood or nearly so (as measured by feather length). This suggests that fledging typically begins when the most well-developed nestlings in the brood reach some threshold size. However, at about one-fifth of nests, the first nestling to fledge was only moderate in size. At these nests, severe competition for food may have caused smaller, less competitive nestlings to fledge first to increase their access to food. We found no strong support for the suggestion that the oldest nestlings delay fledging until their least-developed nestmate reaches some minimum size, although further experimental work on this question is warranted.


The purpose of this project was to evaluate how energy efficiently some of JM's residential buildings can become in standard production. What kind of measures are needed to achieve the level of energy demand that is included in BBR12 (Boverkets Byggregler)? What measures are needed for achieving a lower demand so that the buildings could be classified as passive houses? The investigation has included a single family house and two different types of apartment blocks. The simulation programs Enorm and VIP+ have been used to calculate the energy demand of the buildings. The results from the programs have been compared with the measured energy demand for the three buildings. Several different measures have been simulated to see how they affect the energy demand. Certain measures were combined to achieve the allowed annual energy level of 110 kWh/m2, according to BBR12. Measures were also combined to reach an annual energy level of 90 kWh/m2. Relevant measures were combined to achieve an annual energy demand of 45 kWh/m2, which is the level of classification for passive houses. The results of the simulations show that the calculated energy demands from both programs are relatively close to the measured values. The elements that have the biggest impact on the buildings energy demand are the windows, the wall construction, the ventilation system and how the balconies are attached to the buildings. To achieve an annual energy demand of 110 kWh/m2 only a few measures need to be taken. With a ventilation system that includes a recycling-system the buildings would be able to achieve an annual energy demand of 90 kWh/m2, year. The small house and one of the apartment blocks could be classified as passive houses if more major measures would be taken. It is likely to believe that the interest and the demand for energy efficient buildings and passive houses will continue to increase. People are becoming more aware of the cost for energy consumption and how it affects our environment and climate. Energy efficient buildings have high advertising impact and would bring advantages compared to other houses. The main conclusion is therefore that JM should develop routines for how to build more energy efficient buildings and passive houses in the future.


The selection of efficacious anti-tumor monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) for biological applications is a lengthy and labor-intensive process. In vitro characterization of one hybridoma fusion may reveal large numbers of tumor antigen-specific hybridomas. Very often, many of these tumor-specific antibodies need to be assessed in vivo using several different murine xenograft tumor prevention models to determine biological efficacy. The production and purification of sufficient quantities of many antigen-specific hybridomas is time-consuming, and several months can pass between initial determination of MAb specificity and bioactivity. Moreover, many tumor-specific MAbs selected using in vitro binding studies have no in vivo anti-tumor efficacy. These studies describe an in vivo screening method either to eliminate non-efficacious MAbs or to rank-order several tumor-specific MAbs in an expeditious manner. Proof-of-concept studies were conducted using two hybridomas secreting fully characterized neutralizing human anti-tumor MAbs (CNTO MAbs). Nu-/nu- mice were injected with CNTO MAb-secreting hybridoma cells in Matrigel cell matrix, followed by injection of target human tumor cells 4 days later (when circulating CNTO MAbs were detected in serum). Both the tumor take-rate and the mean tumor volumes were reduced significantly in mice treated with CNTO MAbsecreting hybridomas compared with mice treated with non-antibody-secreting cells. A panel of human antitumor antigen-specific MAbs with unknown biological efficacy was then evaluated by this method. The hybridomas exhibited a varied pattern of anti-tumor protection, indicating that some hybrids were secreting neutralizing anti-tumor MAbs, while others appeared to be less efficacious. These studies demonstrate a rapid, biologically relevant "yes/no" in vivo screening method for the evaluation of anti-tumor antigen MAbs.


The Pulitzer Prize in Music has been associated with excellence in American composition since 1943, when it first honored William Schuman for his Secular Cantata No. 2: A Free Song. In the years that followed, this award has recognized America's most eminent composers, placing many of their works in the standard orchestral, chamber and solo repertoire. Aaron Copland, Samuel Barber, Walter Piston and Elliott Carter are but a few of the composers who have been honored by this most prestigious award. Several of these Pulitzer Prize-winning composers have made significant contributions to the solo and chamber music repertories of the bassoon, an instrument that had a limited repertoire until the beginning of the twentieth century. The purpose of this project is to draw attention to the fact that America's most honored composers have enlarged and enriched the repertoire of the solo bassoon and bassoon quartet. The works that will be discussed in this document include: Quartettino for Four Bassoons (1939) - William Schuman, Three Inventions for Solo Bassoon (1962) - George Perle, Canzonetta (1962) - John Harbison, Metamorphoses for Bassoon Solo (1991) - Leslie Bassett and "How like pellucid statues, Daddy. Or like a . . . an engine" (1994) - John Corigliano. Each chapter will include a brief biography of the composer, a historical perspective of where that composition lies in relation to their other works, background information about the work, a formal analysis and suggestions for performance.


Calculations of static stress changes due to large earthquakes have shown that the spatial distribution of aftershocks is predictable to first order, with aftershocks primarily occurring in areas experiencing positive stress changes. Delineation of these areas relies on resolving the stress perturbation onto planes with known orientations; common practice is to use poorly constrained regional stress information to compute optimally oriented failure planes, assuming that they exist everywhere. Here we show that this assumption is not supported by observation but rather that aftershock failure planes are controlled by geological structure. We argue that useful aftershock hazard estimates are better made by replacing information on regional stress with statistical measures of structural orientations.


To state that oxygen brings about the retinopathy of prematurity seems an over-simplification. The objective of this paper is to present some of the physiological background upon which retrolental fibroplasia develops and to examine the possible etiologic relationship of factors other than oxygen therapy. In this examination certain thoughts may possibly be stimulated in regard to current thinking about other problems in vascular disease of the retina. The approach is not from statistical analysis of data but rather from the physiological point of view. There is little purpose in presenting here a history of the disease or the sequence of researches that have led to the general acceptance of high oxygen administration as its exciting cause. The immature infant is a complex being whose various organ systems have been presented, without adequate preparation, with an imposing work load. The term "immature infant" was chosen as best representing that group of


Introduction: The purpose of this systematic review was to identify, evaluate, and provide information about palatal bone thickness in different vertical growth patterns for the placement of orthodontic anchorage devices. Methods: We performed a systematic review of the published data in Medline via PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and Scopus from January 2000 to August 2022 using eligibility criteria. Data collection analysis and data extraction were performed independently by three reviewers. Sensitivity analyses were performed with the Cochrane risk of bias tool and the ROBINS-I tool was used for non-randomized studies. Results: A total of 343 articles were identified. The inclusion criteria included palatal bone thickness and vertical facial growth. However, both variables were found in 4 studies and only 2 had a control group. The different studies evaluated palatal bone thickness according to sex (male 14.1 mm; female 9.68 mm) and vertical malocclusion (normal 2.2 -12.6 mm; open bite 1.9 -13.2mm) with heterogeneous results. Likewise, the vertical growth pattern with a low angle (9.39 mm) was greater than the normal (8.55 mm) and high angle (7.53 mm). Conclusions: Palatal bone thickness varies according to different vertical growth patterns, with the greatest thickness being found near the incisive foramen in hypodivergent individuals.


In this paper, we introduce an information theory motivated algorithm for constructing a low dimensional representation for data sampled from a higher dimensional space. The proposed minimum entropy linear embedding algorithm tries to minimize the information uncertainty (measured by entropy) as much as possible. The entropy is estimated by Gaussian mixture model probability density function and an upper bound of entropy is derived. As a result, the numerical integration involved in the objective function is reduced to a computationally efficient eigenfunction problem. The superiority of proposed method is that it can be used to find the intrinsic character of high dimensional data and has potential ability to reduce redundancy and to improve classification accuracy. Numerical results on toy data, UCI machine learning data set and face recognition illustrate this superiority.


Introduction: It is now recognized that androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) can induce neuroendocrine (NE) differentiation (NED) in prostate cancer (PCa) as well as histologically distinct NE cancer in >25% of castrate resistant prostate cancer (CRPCa). Neuroendocrine cells, which are present but rare in the normal prostate, secrete growth factors but the mechanism of normal NED in the developing prostate is largely unknown. We hypothesize that the neuroendocrine phenotype, seen in CRPCa, recaptures events that occurs during normal prostatic development in response to the androgens. The purpose of these experiments is to determine if NED occurs in the development of the normal mouse prostate in response to androgen. Methods: 8-10 week old male mice (n=7 per group) were castrated and 2 weeks post-castration were treated with androgens (DHT) or oil (control), and then euthanized 1, 2 or 4 hours after treatment. Prostate lobes were then dissected, analyzed by immunohistochemistry for synaptophysin, a marker of NED, and scored blindly (Table 1). Intensity and distribution were then summed and analyzed using the Mann-Whitney test. ScoreIntensityDistribution 0 No expression No expression 1 Weak Antibody expression in 0-33% of epithelial cells 2 Mild Antibody expression in 33%-66% of epithelial cells 3 Strong Antibody expression in 66%- 100% of epithelial cells Table 1: Immunohistochemistry scoring system Results: No significant difference in synaptophysin staining was found in the epithelium between oil and DHT treated samples in the anterior, dorsal, and lateral prostate. There was a significant difference in synaptophysin staining found between oil and DHT treated samples at the 1 hour time point in the ventral prostate (p Conclusion: Androgens induce rapid and transient NED in the murine ventral prostate epithelium, indicated by a spike in synaptophysin at the 1 hour time point. By 2 hours, there is no significant difference in synaptophysin staining between the oil and DHT treated samples. This transient elevation in a NED marker is only observed in the ventral lobe. This indicates that CRPCa may recapture events that occur in the growth of the normal prostate. Citation Format: Danielle N. Sanders, Magdalena Grabowska, Robert Matusik. Neuroendocrine differentiation in prostate cancer and development. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Eighth AACR Conference on The Science of Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; Nov 13-16, 2015; Atlanta, GA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2016;25(3 Suppl):Abstract nr B23.


Persons with cognitive or mental disabilities have difficulties participating in or are excluded from IT development and assessments exercises due to the problems finding good ways to efficiently collaborate on equal terms. In this paper we describe how we worked closely together with persons that have mental and cognitive disabilities in order to test and develop methods for participation in assessments and in processes for developing, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) products and services. More than 100 persons with mental and cognitive disabilities participated in the study (people with diagnoses such as depression, anxiety disorder, bipolarity, and schizophrenia). To explore the conditions for a more equal and fair participation we have developed and elaborated a set of methods, tools and approaches. By combining scientific research methods with well-established methods for empowerment and participation we have developed methods that are cost effective and that easily can be incorporated in existing processes. We believe that our approach have taken steps to implement possibilities for persons with mental and cognitive disabilities to take part where user participation is needed in order not to discriminate or exclude but also to improve the overall quality of the end result. The results clearly show that it is possible to include persons with mental and cognitive disabilities. A mixed method -- mixed tool approach can increase the possibility for participation. The results also show that the quality of the analysis phase increases if the collaborative approach is extended to also embrace the data analysis phase.


At 14:11 NZDT (01:11 UTC) on 9 December 2019, an explosive eruption (VEI=2) occurred on White/Whakaari Island in New Zealand’s northeast Bay of Plenty. The sudden eruption claimed 20 lives among the 47 tourists who were on the island at the time of the eruption. Several volcano-tectonic features overlap in the island such as a major caldera rim collapsing scarp to the west, a landslide, a crater lake and a large shallow hydrothermal system at the center, making complex the understanding of the eruption triggering factors. Here we use Sentinel-1 Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) data from 3 different tracks (1 ascending and 2 descending) spanning the period of 2014-2020 to investigate the spatio-temporal surface deformation evolution of White Island in the years before the eruption. By analyzing the InSAR time-series displacements between the two eruptions of April 2016 and December 2019, at least 4 separate stages can be identified that possibly relate to different parts of the volcanic eruptive cycle:  1) During April 2016 - February 2018, the crater lake edge and the western sub-crater wall rapidly moved downslope at a rate of ~6 cm/yr, while the central sub-crater area uplifted at a rate of ~3 cm/yr; 2) From February 2018 to January 2019, both the western and the central sub-craters uplifted at a rate of ~5 cm/yr; 3) During  the following six months, from January 2019 to June 2019, the western sub-crater started moving downslope again at a rate of ~3 cm/yr, while the central sub-cater kept moving up at a rate of ~4 cm/yr; 4) And finally, during June 2019 - December 2019 (until the eruption), uplift occurred around the western sub-crater again at a similar rate as in the central sub-crater area (~ 4 cm/yr). Seismic records before the eruption show that approximately 500 volcanic earthquakes located at a depth of ~ 5 km occurred at the southwestern part of White Island on June 2019, that may point to a shallow level intrusion of new magma. This upcoming magma might then have pressurized the shallow hydrothermal system during the fourth-stage uplift. Modeling of the uplift during June 2019 to December 2019 indicates a shallow source located at only ~200 m below the surface in the vicinity of the crater lake, likely coinciding with the shallow hydrothermal system responsible for the final 2019 phreatic eruption.


Chinese hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-chinensis), shooting star (Pseuderanthemum laxifl orum), downy jasmine (Jasminum multifl orum), areca palm (Dypsis lutescens), and 'Jetty' spathiphyllum (Spathiphyllum) were grown in containers using Osmocote Plus 15–9–12 (15N–3.9P–10K), which provided phosphorus (two experiments), or resin-coated urea plus sulfur-coated potassium sulfate, which provided no phosphorus (one experiment). Plants were treated with water drenches (controls), drenches with metalaxyl fungicide only, drenches with phosphoric acid (PO4-P), drenches with metalaxyl plus phosphorus from phosphoric acid, drenches with PhytoFos 4–28–10 [4N–12.2P–8.3K, a fertilizer containing phosphorous acid (PO3-P), a known fungicidal compound], or a foliar spray with PhytoFos 4–28–10. Plants receiving soil drenches with equivalent amounts of P from PhytoFos 4–28–10, PO4-P, or PO4-P+metalaxyl generally had the greatest shoot and root dry weights and foliar PO4-P concentrations. There were no differences between the control and metalaxyl-treated plants, indicating that root rot diseases were not a factor. Therefore, responses from PhytoFos 4–28–10 were believed to be due to its nutrient content, rather than its fungicidal properties. Foliar-applied PhytoFos 4–29–10 produced plants that were generally similar in size to control plants or those receiving metalaxyl only drenches. Fertilizers containing PO3-P appear to be about as effective as PO4-P sources when applied to the soil, but are relatively ineffective as a P source when applied as a foliar spray. A distinct positive synergistic response for shoot and root dry weights and foliar PO4-P concentrations was observed for the PO4-P+metalaxyl treatment when no P was applied except as a treatment.


We present a high-resolution, simple, and versatile system for imaging ultracold Rydberg atoms in optical lattices. The imaging objective is a single aspheric lens [with a working distance of 20.6 mm and a numerical aperture (NA) of 0.51] placed inside the vacuum chamber. Adopting a large-working-distance lens leaves room for electrodes and electrostatic shields to control electric fields around Rydberg atoms. With this setup, we achieve a Rayleigh resolution of 1.10 μm or 1.41λ (λ = 780 nm), limited by the NA of the aspheric lens. For systems of highly excited Rydberg states with blockade radii greater than a few μm, the resolution achieved is sufficient for studying many physical processes of interest.


Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has been repeatedly demonstrated to increase power of endogenous brain oscillations in the range of the stimulated frequency after stimulation. In the alpha band this aftereffect has been shown to persist for at least 30 min. However, in most experiments the aftereffect exceeded the duration of the measurement. Thus, it remains unclear how the effect develops beyond these 30 min and when it decays. The current study aimed to extend existing findings by monitoring the physiological aftereffect of tACS in the alpha range for an extended period of 90 min post-stimulation. To this end participants received either 20 min of tACS or sham stimulation with intensities below their individual sensation threshold at the individual alpha frequency (IAF). Electroencephalogram (EEG) was acquired during 3 min before and 90 min after stimulation. Subjects performed a visual vigilance task during the whole measurement. While the enhanced power in the individual alpha band did not return back to pre-stimulation baseline in the stimulation group, the difference between stimulation and sham diminishes after 70 min due to a natural alpha increase of the sham group.


Foraminifera are microscopic single-celled organisms, ubiquitous to the marine realm, that construct shells during their life cycle. The shells, in general, fossilize well in the sediment and they are diagnosable due to inter-species morphology and ornamentation variability. Classifying and counting foraminiferal shells is an important tool in assessing and reconstructing past and present environmental, oceanographic and climatological conditions. However, the present day manual identification procedure, performed with a microscope and a needle/brush, is a very time consuming. Circumventing this manual procedure, using machine leaning, promises to dramatically lower the time consumption related to generating foraminiferal data records.

The first step towards that end is developing a deep learning model that can detect and classify microscopic foraminifera from 2D digital microscope pictures. The work is based on a VGG16 model implementation that has been pre trained on the ImageNet dataset and employing transfer learning techniques to adapt the model to the foraminifera task. The 2D photographic training data input was constructed by combining objects representative of and extracted from Arctic marine sediments (100µm-1mm size fraction) from the Barents Sea region. Four object groups, including 1) calcareous and 2) agglutinated benthic foraminifera, 3) planktic foraminifera and 4) sediments were used in the training data construction. With the initial set-up the algorithms were able to identify adherence to one of the four groups correctly ~90% of the time and with further fine-tuning and refinement reaching 98% correct identifications.

The second step is to use machine leaning for classification of individual benthic calcareous foraminiferal species within the sediment. The work will focus on the 20 most common species that comprise ca. ≥ 80% of the total benthic calcareous foraminiferal fauna in the Arctic. The training of the algorithms will be done using targeted species-specific 2D photographic and 3D CT scanning data in addition to potentially using hyperspectral imaging.


This paper reports on the study of the Center of Gravity (COG) for the ALACRANE mobile robot, which consists on a hydraulic tracked vehicle with a customized heavy manipulator. The COG has been experimentally estimated by taking into account different arm positions. These estimations have been used to modify the mass distribution of the robot so that the COG can be appropriately controlled online by using onboard inclinometers. This analysis is necessary because the robot has to move on inclined terrains, where tip-over problems are present. During navigation, only three actuators are available: the two track speeds and the arm base rotation. Thus, the arm base rotation is employed to improve static tipover stability according to the supporting polygon principle. Experimental results from this work are discussed in the paper.


BACKGROUND
 The global COVID-19 pandemic has triggered a fundamental reexamination of how human psychological research can be conducted both safely and robustly in a new era of digital working and physical distancing. Online web-based testing has risen to the fore as a promising solution for rapid mass collection of cognitive data without requiring human contact. However, a long-standing debate exists over the data quality and validity of web-based studies.

 OBJECTIVE
 Here, we examine the opportunities and challenges afforded by the societal shift toward web-based testing, highlight an urgent need to establish a standard data quality assurance framework for online studies, and develop and validate a new supervised online testing methodology, remote guided testing (RGT).

 METHODS
 A total of 85 healthy young adults were tested on 10 cognitive tasks assessing executive functioning (flexibility, memory and inhibition) and learning. Tasks were administered either face-to-face in the laboratory (N=41) or online using remote guided testing (N=44), delivered using identical web-based platforms (CANTAB, Inquisit and i-ABC). Data quality was assessed using detailed trial-level measures (missed trials, outlying and excluded responses, response times), as well as overall task performance measures.

 RESULTS
 The results indicated that, across all measures of data quality and performance, RGT data was statistically-equivalent to data collected in person in the lab. Moreover, RGT participants out-performed the lab group on measured verbal intelligence, which could reflect test environment differences, including possible effects of mask-wearing on communication.

 CONCLUSIONS
 These data suggest that the RGT methodology could help to ameliorate concerns regarding online data quality and - particularly for studies involving high-risk or rare cohorts - offer an alternative for collecting high-quality human cognitive data without requiring in-person physical attendance.

 CLINICALTRIAL
 N.A.


Background Globally, there were 2.7 million neonatal deaths in 2015. Significant mortality reduction could be achieved by improving care in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), where the majority of deaths occur. Determining the physical readiness of facilities to identify and manage complications is an essential component of strategies to reduce neonatal mortality. Methods We developed clinical cascades for 6 common neonatal conditions then utilized these to assess 23 health facilities in Kenya and Uganda at 2 time-points in 2016 and 2017. We calculated changes in resource availability over time by facility using McNemar's test. We estimated mean readiness and loss of readiness for the 6 conditions and 3 stages of care (identification, treatment, monitoring-modifying treatment). We estimated overall mean readiness and readiness loss across all conditions and stages. Finally, we compared readiness of facilities with a newborn special care unit (NSCU) to those without using the two-sample test of proportions. Results The cascade model estimated mean readiness of 26.3–26.6% across the 3 stages for all conditions. Mean readiness ranged from 11.6% (respiratory distress-apnea) to 47.8% (essential newborn care) across both time-points. The model estimated overall mean readiness loss of 30.4–31.9%. There was mild to moderate variability in the timing of readiness loss, with the majority occurring in the identification stage. Overall mean readiness was higher among facilities with a NSCU (36.8%) compared to those without (20.0%). Conclusion The cascade model provides a novel approach to quantitatively assess physical readiness for neonatal care. Among 23 facilities in Kenya and Uganda, we identified a consistent pattern of 30–32% readiness loss across cascades and stages. This aggregate measure could be used to monitor and compare readiness at the facility-, health system-, or national-level. Estimates of readiness and loss of readiness may help guide strategies to improve care, prioritize resources, and promote neonatal survival in LMICs.


Conflicting findings exist regarding the link between environmental factors and development of Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a variety of transgenic mouse models of AD. In the present study, we investigated the effect of behavioral stress on the onset and progression of Aβ pathology in the brains of TgCRND8 mice, a transgenic mouse model of AD. One group of TgCRND8 mice was subjected to restraint stress starting at 1 month of age until they were 3 months old, while restraint stress in the second group started at 4 months of age until they were 6 months old. After 2 months of treatment, no differences in the soluble, formic acid extracted, or histologically detected Aβ deposition in the cortical and hippocampal levels were found between non-stressed and stressed mice. These results showed that restraint stress alone failed to aggravate amyloid pathology when initiated either before or after the age of amyloid plaque deposition in TgCRND8 mice, suggesting that if stress aggravated AD phenotype, it may not be via an amyloid-related mechanism in the TgCRND8 mice. These findings are indicative that plaque load per se may not be used as a significant criterion for evaluating the effect of stress on AD patients.


The Gulf of Mexico has seen some of the most destructive hurricanes on record. What can residents in the Gulf region expect future storms to be like? Two weeks before Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast, leading hurricane expert Dr. Kerry Emanuel published that he had discovered statistical evidence that hurricanes were indeed affected by global warming. He found that the duration and intensity of hurricanes worldwide have increased by about 50 percent since the 1970s and that this trend directly corresponds with a global increase in tropical sea surface temperature. Dr. Emanuel will share his groundbreaking research on how climate change can affect hurricane activity and discuss its implications for the Gulf region.


The use of stratigraphic grids allows the construction of geostatistical models controlled by stratigraphic information. A stratigraphic grid is a 3D grid with boundaries defined by stratigraphic surfaces and cells which respect the stratigraphic organisation (proportional, onlap, toplap,...). The GOCAD Research Group recently developed object-based Stochastic simulations using curvilinear sedimentary bodies and generalized the concept of stratigraphic grids within each simulated object. We propose a technique for simulating petrophysical parameters within an object-based reservoir model, using this framework provided by stratigraphic grids within each object. The complete stochastic simulation approach is then defined by the following sequence of operations : 1. Define a 3D stratigraphic grid respecting the geometry of the sedimentary limits of the reservoir. 2. Next, in the layers where it is required, stochastically simulate the distribution of 3D curvilinear sedimentary bodies (e.g. representing sand bodies). 3. Once this object simulation is performed, create a local 3D curvilinear stratigraphic grid contained within each sedimentary body. 4. In each of these local 3D curvilinear stratigraphic grids, use geostatistical simulation tools to simulate the distribution of petrophysical properties. The local curvilinear stratigraphic grids so defined honours the sand bodies stratigraphy and allow to generate more realistic simulations than classical global rectilinear grid. The ultimate goal is to merge all the local 3D curvilinear stratigraphic grids into one global 3D curvilinear reservoir stratigraphic grid filling the whole reservoir. The petrophysical properties of the reservoir can then be transferred from the local stratigraphic grids to the global reservoir stratigraphic grid. Erosion rules between sand bodies can also be accounted for. With such an approach, based on local stratigraphic grids within sedimentary bodies, we can take into account both the geometry and the topology of the geological bodies.


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In this paper, the development history and study status of concrete was reviewed. The opportunities, challenges and countermeasures of concrete materials in face of rapid development of modern science and technology were expounded. Finally, it was pointed out that to develop the study, exploiture and application of the sixth component of concrete is inevitable progress trend.


Glioblastoma (GBM) is one of the deadliest of all human cancers. Developing therapies targeting GBM cancer stem cells or glioma stem cells (GSCs), which are deemed responsible for the malignancy of GBM due to their therapy resistance and tumor-initiating capacity, is considered key to improving the dismal prognosis of GBM patients. In this study, we found that folate antagonists, such as methotrexate (MTX) and pemetrexed, are selectively cytotoxic to GSCs, but not to their differentiated counterparts, normal fibroblasts, or neural stem cells in vitro, and that the high sensitivity of GCSs to anti-folates may be due to the increased expression of RFC-1/SLC19A1, the reduced folate carrier that transports MTX into cells, in GSCs. Of note, in an in vivo serial transplantation model, MTX alone failed to exhibit anti-GSC effects but promoted the anti-GSC effects of CEP1347, an inducer of GSC differentiation. This suggests that folate metabolism, which plays an essential role specifically in GSCs, is a promising target of anti-GSC therapy, and that the combination of cytotoxic and differentiation therapies may be a novel and promising approach to effectively eliminate cancer stem cells.


The DNA sequence of a full-length Triticum astivum CV. Jinan 177omega-gliadin homologous gene (omega1236) containing partial 5' and 3' flanking sequences with no intron was cloned by genomic PCR-based technology. The omega1236 sequence possibly encode a putative 47.2 kDa protein except for eight stop codons at amino acid residue positions 87, 117, 125, 157, 198, 313, 357 and 365 respectively. All the eight stop codons were caused by base transition. Sequence analysis revealed that omega1236 had 98% homology to a omega-gliadin gene of wheat (AB059812). Like all other gliadin gene families characterized in cereals, this gene possessed all the features in other plant reported previously. Phylogenetic analysis of the completely sequenced gene as well as those omega-genes in wheat, omega-secalin and C-horden genes in rye and barley, and alpha-, beta- and gamma-gliadin genes in wheat indicated that the omega1236 was more closely related to omega-gliadin gene family, much less homology to alpha- , beta- and gamma-gliadin gene families. Short peptide was produced in the culture of transformed E. coli induced by IPTG in early 2 h. It indicated that stop codon would be in omega1236. The result is consistent with that of the sequenced gene. The present paper could accumulate data useful for both omega-gliadin gene cloning by PCR and the study on structures and functions of these genes.


A reference T-sensor system is provided for detecting the presence and/or measuring the concentration of analyte particles in a sample stream. The system includes: a) a laminar flow channel; b) three or more inlet means in fluid connection with the laminar flow channel for respectively conducting into the laminar flow channel (1) an indicator stream which may include an indicator substance which indicates the presence of the analyte particles, (2) the sample stream, and (3) a reference stream, which can be a control stream and/or internal standard stream; c) wherein the laminar flow channel has a depth and/or width sufficiently small to allow laminar flow of the streams and a length sufficient to allow particles of the analyte to diffuse into the indicator stream to form a detection area; and d) outlet means for conducting the streams out of the laminar flow channel preferably to form a single mixed stream. Also provided are methods of using the device to improve accuracy and increase convenience of measuring the concentration of analytes in a sample. Monitoring reference stream(s) in laminar flow with sample stream(s) allows for calibration or for monitoring or correcting for the effects of experimental conditions which might otherwise degrade accuracy. A reference stream which serves as both a control stream and an internal standard stream is convenient and economical. The device of this invention also needs less frequent calibration than previously-known fluid analysis devices because the devices and methods of this invention provide for continuous and simultaneous quality control and internal standardization.


This special issue of The Anatomical Record honors the bridges of knowledge and communications between Brazil and the United States in Anatomical Science, Healthcare, and Medical Education. The volume is organized in two sets of manuscripts: the first one stems from presentations of Brazilian colleagues in the latest iteration of the Building Bridges outreach initiative—a meeting entitled Building Bridges Back to Back, held at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, in December of 2019; the second, is a compilation of selected papers submitted independently to The Anatomical Record, authored by Brazilian researchers. All abstracts in this volume are featured in English and in Portuguese, and the opening piece is fully available in both languages. This bold and innovative addition represents the commitment of The Anatomical Record to support and help grow our bridges; it is a gesture of utmost respect and appreciation for our people and our culture. Together, our efforts to advance the knowledge in basic, translational, and clinical sciences, to expand our connections, and to build on our relationships across boundaries becomes a reality. This is an introduction and an overview of the manuscripts contained in this very special issue.


In the upper atmosphere of Titan, complex chemistry leads to the formation of organic aerosols. Since the work of Khare et al. in 1984, several experiments investigated the formation of Titan aerosols, so called tholins, in the laboratory. It has been suggested that nitrogen-containing compounds may contribute significantly to the aerosols formation process. In this study, we focused on the influence of pyridine, the simplest nitrogenous aromatic hydro- carbon, on the chemistry of Titan's atmosphere and on aerosol formation.
To assess the effect of pyridine on aerosol formation chemistry, we used two different experimental setups : a capaci- tively coupled radio-frequency (electronic impact), and a VUV Deuterium lamp (photochemistry) in a collaboration between LATMOS (Guyancourt) and NASA-GSFC (Greenbelt), respectively. Aerosols produced with both setups were first analyzed using a FTIR-ATR (Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy - Attenuated Total Reflection) with a spectral range of 4000-800 cm−1 to characterize their optical properties. Next the samples were analysed using a Bruker Autoflex Speed MALDI mass spectrometer with a m/z range up to 2000 Da in order to infer their composition.
Infrared spectroscopy analysis showed that tholins produced with a nitrogen-methane gas mixture (95:5) and nitrogen- pyridine gas mixture (99:250ppm) present very similar spectra features. Tholins produced with a mixture of nitrogen- methane-pyridine (99:1:250ppm) do not present aliphatic CH2 or CH3 vibrational signatures. This could indicate a cyclic polymerization by a pyridine skeleton. Mass spectrometry is still in progress to confirm this.


Introduction Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is becoming a common cause for secondary care referral. While simple steatosis does not lead to liver related morbidity, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) may lead to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Currently, non-invasive imaging including ultrasonography (USS) may reveal fatty infiltration. Many patients attend secondary care for USS, in whom NAFLD may be identified incidentally. While the true prevalence and burden of NAFLD in the community remains unclear, patients attending for USS in whom NAFLD is identified could provide the opportunity to reduce disease burden by monitoring for any complications. The aims of this study were to assess whether patients reported to have fatty liver on USS, irrespective of clinical indication, were adequately assessed by testing of liver function tests (LFTs) and if abnormal, subsequently referred to a specialist clinic. Methods A single centre, retrospective analysis of all patients who underwent USS over a 5-month period (January–May 2011) at Chase Farm Hospital was performed. Patients who had LFTs within 8 weeks of USS were said to have had their LFTs checked appropriately. Data were obtained from radiology reports via PACS/EPR reporting systems. Results 258 patients were investigated over the audit period. 69 (26.7%) patients (42 male, 27 female), median age 58 years (25–91 years) were reported to have fatty liver on ultrasound. 52 (75.3%) of these patients had their LFTs checked of which 37 (71.2%) were abnormal. 12 (17.3%) patients with fatty liver on ultrasound were formally seen in a specialist clinic. Over half of patients (27, 51.9%) with fatty liver and abnormal LFTs were never seen in a specialist clinic. Conclusion A quarter of patients with USS diagnosis of fatty liver did not have their LFTs checked potentially missing an opportunity to monitor for complications of NAFLD. While only the tip of the iceberg of NAFLD patients are referred to secondary care, a large portion of the iceberg goes unnoticed even on surfacing. An increased awareness of NAFLD needs to relayed to all healthcare professionals including radiologists and general practitioners coming into contact with this "iceberg." Competing interests None declared.


The Gurbantonggut Desert, China, is an ideal site for study of sublimation from the snowpack because there are sparse vegetation and simple topography, and the wind speed is not large enough to blow snow into the atmosphere from the snowpack. Daily sublimation was measured by manual snow lysimeters at 8:00, and an automatic weather station was deployed at the top of a stout longitudinal dune chain at the southeastern edge of the desert. It is shown that on a daily scale, there was an extremely significant no‐intercept linear relationship between the measured sublimation and that calculated by the bulk aerodynamic method, although the former was only 83.8% of the latter. It is also demonstrated that −10°C and 2 m/s were the thresholds where the sublimation varied with the air temperature and the wind speed. When these two thresholds were exceeded, the sublimation accelerated. However, the air temperature and the wind speed at 2 m above the ground averaged −17.2°C and 1.3 m/s, respectively, and the percentages of the time when the air temperature was below −10 °C and the wind speed was below 2 m/s were 76.9% and 85.1%, respectively. As a result, the rate of sublimation was quite low most of the time, and the thin snowpack remained in a quasi‐static state until the melt stage started. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The aim of this research thesis is to contribute to already extensive corporate finance literature in the context of the Nigerian market by examining the determinants of dividend payouts by non-financial firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Accordingly, two proxies for dividend policy were used: dividend intensity and the dividend payout ratio. Also, six explanatory variables - return of assets, size, debt ratio, growth opportunities, liquidity ratio and tangibility of assets - were selected, based on the theoretical predictions and empirical findings from the literature reviewed, in order to explain the determinants of dividend payouts of non-financial firms in Nigeria. This study used a quantitative method design based on a positivist paradigm to draw its conclusions. Secondary data from the annual accounts of 74 non-financial companies listed on the NSE, for a five-year period from 2013 to 2017, were manually collected from companies' official websites, while market data was obtained from the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Thereafter, pooled OLS models were employed in analysis and testing of the research hypotheses formulated. The findings of this study indicate that dividend payouts were positively correlated to profitability, growth opportunities and liquidity, whereas size, debt ratio, and asset tangibility were all found to be negatively correlated to dividend payouts. Further proof reveals that time and industry effects do not impact much on the dividend payouts of Nigerian firms. Finally, this present study makes a significant contribution to both academia and practice. First, it provides a basis for future research, as it appears to be the first study in Nigeria to cover all sectors using up-to-date accounting and market data to investigate empirically the determinants of dividend payouts of non-financial firms listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange. Secondly, this research was designed to advance knowledge of corporate finance in order to provide further evidence on the determinants of dividend payouts of such firms to facilitate comparison with other similar studies in emerging markets. Finally, it assists firms in understanding the dynamics of the Nigerian market, especially the institutional environment including the financial, legal and political system, with a view to making more informed decisions about the determinants of corporate dividend policy decisions.


Globalization as a social process is inevitable and thus requires nations to join global community of the world. The liberalized economics, modernized culture, and democratized politics as the effects of globalization demand competition and interdependence among nations. Only will human resources with good quality support a country to enhance its competitive power. To contribute to the development of the human resources, some schools in Indonesia have taken into action the strategic decision, that is teaching English to young learners since their early age. English is chosen as the first foreign language to teach because of its status as a global language. This paper focuses on the discussion of the teaching of English to young learners to support the development of human resources in Indonesia.


In the past few years there have been a number of reports correlating a high frequency of herpes simplex virus type 2 (HS V-2) infection with lesions of the uterine cervix. These studies have used a clinical history of herpetic infection or the demonstration of herpetic antibodies in the cancer patients. The present study was performed to evaluate any possible carcinogenic activity of the formalin-inoculated herpes simplex virus type 2 in the reproductive tract of the female mouse. This approach to the study was selected because of previous experience with a model system of carcinogenesis of the cervix uteri using coal tar hydrocarbons. Cytologic and histologic preparations from experimental animals and controls are presented to demonstrate the mucosal alterations and tumors observed in the animals. Nominvasive lesions of the cervix were identified in 76.8% and invasive adenocarcinoma detected in 30.2% of the mice.


Background: Zinc is an essential trace element in maintaining human health. Zinc deficiency has many adverse effects on the body's growth and validity and delays the individuals' daily performance of duties. The study aimed: to find the association between serum zinc levels and different socio-demographic factors.Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to achieve the study's aim from November 2021to May 2022. The size of sample comprises 140 participants.  All study members were adults ages ranging from (18-65) years taken randomly from Al-Najaf Governorate. The data was collected by estimating serum zinc and using a simple questionnaire, then analyzed using a statistical program. Results: The association between serum zinc with educational level and monthly income wasa significant p-value (0.048 and 0.027, respectively). Other socio-demographic characteristics were not significant. Conclusion: The study concluded that educational level and monthly income could affect serum zinc level more than Other socio-demographic characteristics.


The glacial geomorphology of the Tian Shan has been mapped, with the study area covering almost 638,000 km2. The map, designed to be printed at A0 size due to the elongated shape of the mountain range, is presented at a scale of 1:1,100,000. Five glacial landform categories are presented; glacial valleys, marginal moraines, glacial lineations, hummocky terrain and meltwater channels. These landform categories were mapped using the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) digital elevation model (90 m resolution), Landsat 7 ETM+ satellite imagery (30 m resolution), and images contained in Google Earth. The mapped landforms were created by glaciers that were restricted to mountain areas and their immediate surroundings.


How do financial frictions in currency markets affect firm-level exports? We bring new answer to this question by looking at a recent episode in the summer of 2011 when the cost of US dollar funding increased markedly for European banks and their clients. Our analysis relies on a unique dataset of matched banks and exporters located in France. We measure the exposure of individual exporters to the 2011 dollar funding shock using information about their lending banks' crossborder US dollar liabilities before the shock. Controlling for observed and unobserved firm-level factors and product-destination-level demand effects, we find robust evidence that more exposed firms reduced more their exports to the United States in the twelve months that followed the shock. The magnitude of this financial trade cost is equivalent to a counterfactual rise in US tariffs by 2 to 5 percentage points. Finally, we document various transmission channels related to firms' natural hedging, market power, relations with US banks in France or use of financial instruments to hedge.


The objective of this paper is to present a methodology for the classification of spatial patterns considering the parameters of urban form which play a significant role in the formation of the urban climate. The urban morphological parameters, i.e. building coverage, impervious pavement, vegetation, water, farmland and landuse types were used to classify the spatial patterns by a K-means cluster analysis. And the presented methodology was applied on Changwon city, South Korea. According to the results of cluster analysis, the total spatial patterns were classified as 24 patterns. First of all, The spatial patterns(A-1, A-2, A-3, B-1, B-2, B-3, C-1, C-2, C-3, D-1, D-2, D-3, E-1, E-2, E-3, F-1, F-2, F-3, G-1, G-2, G-3), which distributed in the rural area and the suburban area, can have the positive impacts of cold air generation and wind corridor on an urban climate environment, were distributed in the rural area. On the other hand, the spatial patterns of the downtown area including A-4, B-4, C-4 and D-4 are expected to have the negative impacts on urban climate owing to the of artificial heat emission or the wind flow obstruction. Finally, it will require the future research to analysis the climatic properties according to the same spatial patterns by the field survey.


ABSTRACT The Swedish universal welfare state has transformed since the 1990s into a mixed welfare model with increasing deregulation, recommodification, and reverse distribution from the public to the private sector where capital and influence have concentrated. In major cities such as Stockholm, this has resulted in a polarization where groups in the city centre and residential areas have accumulated wealth and resources while groups in marginalized suburbs and neighbourhoods have faced increasing social exclusion and marginalization. Public sector social work has long focused on individual case work, whereas this development calls for increasing community work initiatives. In this article, we analyse the rise of urban social movements mobilizing for inclusion, influence, and social justice as important aspects of contemporary community work in the Swedish urban periphery. Through analysis of semi-structured interviews with community workers and activists as well as media articles, reports, and web-based materials, the results show how the mobilization of the organization Megafonen has contributed to the development of new social institutions and urban commons.


Estimating the far-field source signature has always been an important part of seismic processing. However, estimating the source signature from an air gun array is difficult because of the complex interaction between the air bubble oscillations from each air gun, the state of the sea surface, variations in air pressure, the air guns geometry, etc. Removing the bubble noise is important since proper seismic imaging requires a zero-phased, spiky wavelet. De-bubbling has conventionally been done by deconvolution using an (assumed) known source signature. Several methods to estimate the signature and de-bubble the data have been implemented, for instance, source modeling or using near-field hydrophone measurements. We describe an alternative approach using a convolutional neural network for de-bubbling. The network is trained on real data containing a large range of source signatures to make the network robust and adaptive to signature variations. If the signature in the test data is equal to one of the signatures used in the training, the network performs well. Also, if the signature changes in the middle of a sail line, the network can adapt to this change. Moreover, we investigate the network's sensitivity to changing geology within a survey and on two different surveys on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. If the test data are from similar geology as the training data, the network performs better than if not. Even when applied to a different part of the Norwegian Continental Shelf, the network is still able to remove most of the bubble noise.


Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have shown efficacy with diverse populations. The training periods for sport MBIs range 4-10 weeks, but positive outcomes have been found during the first 2-4 weeks This is promising as athletes have busy schedules. Additionally, smartphone MBIs are gaining in popularity, but research with them is just beginning. Therefore, the purpose of this pilot study was to investigate a brief MBI with competitive high school baseball players. Participants included four athletes (mean 15.6 years) from one club team and their head coach. The athletes completed mindfulness training via Headspace (headspace.com). Each athlete was interviewed post-intervention. The head coach was also interviewed to gain insight into any observed changes in his athletes. Consensual Qualitative Research analysis resulted in four categories: Mindfulness, Readiness for Competition, Self-confidence, and Perceptions of the Intervention. All athletes discussed the MBI as facilitative for mental preparation for competition. Further, one athlete initially reporting low self-confidence, felt that his confidence improved after participation in the pilot study. Finally, all participants identified the app as a convenient way to practice mindfulness given their busy schedules. Positive outcomes in the current study are supported in the literature and provide insight into the efficacy and acceptability of a smartphone MBI. Future directions for research and implications for applied settings are discussed.


Abstract The use of alternative (or complementary) treatment strategies (ATSs) i.e. differing from annual community-directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTI) is required in some African foci to eliminate onchocerciasis by 2025. ATSs include vector control, biannual or pluriannual CDTI, better timing of CDTI, community-directed treatment with combinations of currently available anthelminthics or new drugs, and 'test-and-treat' (TNT) strategies requiring diagnosis of infection and/or contraindications to treatment for decisions on who to treat with what regimen. Two TNT strategies can be considered. Loa-first TNT, designed for loiasis-endemic areas and currently being evaluated using a rapid test (LoaScope), consists of identifying individuals with levels of Loa microfilaremia associated with a risk of post-ivermectin severe adverse events to exclude them from ivermectin treatment and in treating the rest (usually >97%) of the population safely. Oncho-first TNT consists of testing community members for onchocerciasis before giving treatment (currently ivermectin or doxycycline) to those who are infected. The choice of the ATS depends on the prevalences and intensities of infection with Onchocerca volvulus and Loa loa and on the relative cost-effectiveness of the strategies for the given epidemiological situation. Modelling can help select the optimal strategies, but field evaluations to determine the relative cost-effectiveness are urgently needed.


This article analyses one of the variations of classic mediation,64 which is mandatory mediation. In foreign countries mandatory mediation is often used as a tool to encourage the use of mediation and to popularize this method of alternative civil dispute resolution. Started in 2005, mediation faces difficulties in Lithuania. Thus, making mediation mandatory at least in certain categories of disputes could give new impetus to the development of mediation in Lithuania. Therefore, the article deals with the concept of mandatory mediation, analyses experience of foreign countries in the field of mandatory mediation, deals with practical problems while implementing mandatory mediation and presents a review of arguments for and against mandatory mediation. On the basis of a study performed, the author of the article submits proposals for the introduction of mandatory mediation in the Lithuanian legal system. In this article mandatory mediation is defined as a form of mediation where the parties are directed to use mediation by judge or by law. Mandatory mediation can also be imposed on the parties by procedural and economic sanctions against parties for the unjustified refusal to use mediation. In all cases, the main condition for the application of mandatory mediation is the right of the parties to the dispute to go to court. Under this condition, mandatory mediation for its expected social and economic benefits is not considered to be an obstacle to access justice. The practice of foreign countries that implemented mandatory mediation shows that drastic imposition of mandatory mediation naturally induces rejection. Thus, consistent, systematic, based on the results of the interim analysis of the gradual introduction of mandatory mediation, starting with certain categories of disputes particularly susceptible to the effects of mediation is necessary. The author of the article proposes to promote mediation in Lithuania by introducing mandatory mediation for at least certain categories of disputes. The introduction of mandatory mediation in Lithuania could be started from the family disputes including interests of children. At a later stage it is possible to decide on the feasibility of application of the mandatory mediation for other categories of disputes, as well (e.g., labour, small sum property disputes, disputes between relatives and neighbours, etc.). In order to encourage not only the parties to use mediation, but also judges to direct parties to mediation, it would be appropriate to introduce mandatory mediation by the law (the Civil Procedure Code of the Republic of Lithuania) that would have an exemption provision to allow a party to petition the court for good cause to be exempt from the referral to mediation.