There is a need for the UK and EU to continue mutual assistance in criminal matters. As a Member State, Mutual assistance in criminal matters between was primarily governed by an EU convention. This convention builds on existing Council of Europe (CoE) conventions on mutual criminal assistance. The EU convention states that mutual assistance shall be afforded in proceedings brought by member states' authorities, or in connection with proceedings where a person may be liable in the requesting member state. Title II provides a framework for specific forms of assistance including restitution, hearings via videoconference and covert investigations. Member states are free to conclude further bilateral arrangements. A key element of this mutual assistance is harmonised EU data protection laws. With the UK now outside the EU's data protection architecture, this may pose a significant hurdle for future cooperation. This article critically analyses the need for a data adequacy decision from the EU for the UK to engage in mutual assistance in criminal matters post-Brexit. To reach a conclusion, the article is set out over three substantive areas considering: mutual assistance and data protection law as it applies to EU member states; the law underpinning adequacy decisions; and future legal developments post-Brexit. Specific examples of data transfers and the effect of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) are compared and contrasted to adequacy decisions. While provisions of the TCA and EU Law Enforcement Directive (LED) provide some assurances, the article recommends that a data adequacy decision made under the LED is pursued.


Apoptosis is a highly regulated process of cell suicide that occurs during development, host defense, and pathophysiology. The transcription factor IFN regulatory factor 5 (IRF5), known to be involved in the activation of innate immune responses, recently has been shown to be critical for DNA damage-induced apoptosis and tumor suppression. Here, we report on a cell-type-specific role of IRF5 in promoting apoptosis upon signaling through the death receptor Fas (CD95/APO-1/TNFRSF6). In particular, we show that mice deficient in the Irf5 gene are resistant to hepatic apoptosis and lethality in response to the in vivo administration of a Fas-activating monoclonal antibody, and that IRF5 is involved in a stage of Fas signaling that precedes the activation of caspase 8 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). In addition to hepatocytes, IRF5 is also required for apoptosis in dendritic cells activated by hypomethylated CpG but not in thymocytes and embryonic fibroblasts in vitro. Thus, these findings reveal a cell-type-specific function for IRF5 in the complex regulatory mechanism of death-receptor-induced apoptosis.


OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between ICU-acquired weakness (ICUAW) signatures and sepsis-related mortality using gene expression from the blood within 24 hours of sepsis onset. DESIGN: Observational study using differential gene expression analysis. SETTING: Publicly available gene expression profile GSE54514, single-center medical and surgical ICU. PATIENTS: Patients with primary bacteremia- and respiratory-triggered sepsis including 8 nonsurvivors and 13 survivors who were 18 years old and older and admitted to ICU. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Among validated 526 ICUAW gene signatures, differential gene expression analysis controlling for age identified 38 significantly expressed genes between nonsurvivors and survivors. Functional enrichment analysis of differentially expressed ICUAW genes identified impaired cadherin binding, sarcomere formation, and energy metabolism among nonsurvivors. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrated a biological association between sepsis-related mortality and ICUAW signatures in the early phase of sepsis. Defects in energy metabolism and muscle fiber formation were associated with sepsis-related mortality.


In this paper, we propose text independent speaker identification with a finite multivariate generalised Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM) with a k–means algorithm. Each speaker's speech spectra are characterised with a mixture of generalised Gaussian distribution that includes Gaussian and Laplacian distribution as a particular case. Speech analysis is done with the Mel Frequency Cepstral Coefficients (MFCC) extracted from the front end process. Using the EM algorithm and k–means algorithm the model parameters the numbers of acoustic classes associated with each speech spectra are determined. The performance of the proposed algorithm is studied through experimental evaluation and observed that this algorithm outperforms the existing speaker identification algorithm with GMM. It is also observed that this algorithm performs efficiently even with a heterogeneous population with small (less than 2 seconds) utterances.


Bovine kappa-casein reduced with 2-mercaptoethanol was fractionated on a DEAE-cellulose column to one nonadsorbed, five major adsorbed and two minor adsorbed fractions. The properties of the nonadsorbed and five major adsorbed fractions were reported in our previous paper (4). In this paper, the characteristics of two minor adsorbed fractions (P-X and P-Y) were reported. Gel electrophoretic patterns of these fractions were similar to kappa-casein. These fractions had the same amino acid composition and the same phosphorus content as the major components. P-X contained one residue each of N-acetylneuraminic acid, galactose and galactosamine, and P-Y two residues each. Furthermore, these fractions showed the stabilizing ability for alpha s1-casein in the presence of calcium ion. These results indicate that P-X and P-Y are minor components of reduced bovine kappa-casein.


This paper presents a new formalism for isomorphic representations of legal knowledge, based on feature structures. The formalism, which follows the legal-theoretical distinctions of Van Kralingen's (1995) conceptual modeling framework, preserves the structural composition of non-primitive concepts in the representation. We claim this is necessary when the interpretation of a non-primitive concept is partially modified by a deeming provision, because occurrences of the concept in legislation then refer both to the concept as a whole and to its component parts.


Generating some appealing questions in open-domain conversations is an effective way to improve human-machine interactions and lead the topic to a broader or deeper direction. To avoid dull or deviated questions, some researchers tried to utilize answer, the "future" information, to guide question generation. However, they separate a post-question-answer (PQA) triple into two parts: post-question (PQ) and question-answer (QA) pairs, which may hurt the overall coherence. Besides, the QA relationship is modeled as a one-to-one mapping that is not reasonable in open-domain conversations. To tackle these problems, we propose a generative triple-wise model with hierarchical variations for open-domain conversational question generation (CQG). Latent variables in three hierarchies are used to represent the shared background of a triple and one-to-many semantic mappings in both PQ and QA pairs. Experimental results on a large-scale CQG dataset show that our method significantly improves the quality of questions in terms of fluency, coherence and diversity over competitive baselines.


Liver transplantation is a curative therapy for many liver diseases. Grade of liver cirrhosis is classified with the Model for End-Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score and the Child- Turcotte-Pugh score. This last one employs five clinical measures of liver disease, including hepatic encephalopathy. After liver transplantation, immunosuppressive treatments are mandatory to obtain graft survival. The commonly immunosuppressive protocol includes calcineurin inhibitor like tacrolimus, corticosteroid, and mycophenolate mofetil.


International Journal of Radiation Biology, November 2014; 90(11): 948–952© 2014 Informa UK, Ltd.ISSN 0955-3002 print / ISSN 1362-3095 online. DOI: 10.3109/09553002.2014.950714 .French contribution to develop Prussian blue: Isabelle Besse Bardot, Sebastien Bardot, Florence Menetrier, Alexandra Leiterer & Annick Pech. The publishers would like to apologise on behalf of the authors. Following the publication of an article in the International Journal of Radiation Biology, Volume 90, Issue (11) 948– 952, we have been informed by the author of an error. On page 952 the wrong table was submitted and subsequently included in the article. The correct Table II follows.


Historically, it is well known that issues related to security of software applications are normally omitted by the development teams owing to a lack of expertise or knowledge in security policies. With the emergence of WEB 2.0 applications and technology many systems became to be ported from the original platform to the WEB, making the security flows became more serious. Entire systems, complex or not, have outstanding access availability and therefore are highly vulnerable to threats. This work aims to discuss how the security requirements should be elaborated in order to making easier the test execution team to elaborate the tests cases and consequently improving the quality of the solution developed.


RATIONALE
Cognitive and psychiatric impairments are threats to functional independence, general health, and quality of life. Evidence regarding these outcomes after lung transplantation is limited.

OBJECTIVES
Determine the frequency of cognitive and psychiatric impairment after lung transplantation and identify potential factors associated with cognitive impairment after lung transplantation.

METHODS
In a retrospective cohort study, we assessed cognitive function, mental health, and health-related quality of life using a validated battery of standardized tests in 42 subjects post-transplantation. The battery assessed cognition, depression, anxiety, resilience, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Cognitive function was assessed using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, a validated screening test with a range of 0 to 30. We hypothesized that cognitive function post-transplantation would be associated with type of transplant, cardiopulmonary bypass, primary graft dysfunction, allograft ischemic time, and physical therapy post-transplantation. We used multivariable linear regression to examine the relationship between candidate risk factors and cognitive function post-transplantation.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS
Mild cognitive impairment (score, 18-25) was observed in 67% of post-transplant subjects (95% confidence interval [CI]: 50-80%) and moderate cognitive impairment (score, 10-17) was observed in 5% (95% CI, 1-16%) of post-transplant subjects. Symptoms of moderate to severe anxiety and depression were observed in 21 and 3% of post-transplant subjects, respectively. No transplant recipients reported symptoms of PTSD. Higher resilience correlated with less psychological distress in the domains of depression (P < 0.001) and PTSD (P = 0.02). Prolonged graft ischemic time was independently associated with worse cognitive performance after lung transplantation (P = 0.001). The functional gain in 6-minute-walk distance achieved at the end of post-transplant physical rehabilitation (P = 0.04) was independently associated with improved cognitive performance post-transplantation.

CONCLUSIONS
Mild cognitive impairment was present in the majority of patients after lung transplantation. Prolonged allograft ischemic time may be associated with cognitive impairment. Poor physical performance and cognitive impairment are linked, and physical rehabilitation post-transplant and psychological resilience may be protective against the development of long-term impairment. Further study is warranted to confirm these potential associations and to examine the trajectory of cognitive function after lung transplantation.


Background: Medicinal plants have long been considered and have a long history, especially in eastern countries. Today, some of these herbs are used as sports supplements and studies have been done on the effects of some of them on some of the functional factors and general health of athletes and non-athletes. Most of these studies have confirmed the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effect and regulatory effect on body metabolism due to the intentional and scientific use of these herbs, as well as the greater partial efficacy of some of these herbs along with exercise.
Methods: In this review article, using dozens of articles as well as credible sources, the effects of some of these supplements and herbal remedies (Curcuma longa, Cinnamomum verum, Camellia sinensis, Zingiber officinale, Crocus sativus, and Allium sativum) on general health and fitness of athletes and non-athletes have been studied.

Results: After searching, screening and qualitative evaluation of the studies, at the end of the final synthesis, 88 articles were performed. Most of these studies have confirmed the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of these herbs, and have also emphasized the greater efficacy of these herbs along with exercise.
 Conclusion: Different studies have been done on the effects of herbal remedies with exercise. However, in most of these studies the protocols of exercise and physical activity were not based on specific principles and, more importantly, the dosage of these herbal remedies in human samples was the same for different individuals and not based on body weight or time and type of exercise.


This chapter deals with the question of whether there is one syntactic system that is shared by language production and comprehension or whether there are two separate systems. It first discusses arguments in favor of one or the other option and then presents the current evidence on the brain structures involved in sentence processing. The results of meta-analyses of numerous neuroimaging studies suggest that there is one system consisting of functionally distinct cortical regions: the dorsal part of Broca's area subserving compositional syntactic processing; the ventral part of Broca's area subserving compositional semantic processing; and the left posterior temporal cortex (Wernicke's area) subserving the retrieval of lexical syntactic and semantic information. Sentence production, the comprehension of simple and complex sentences, and the parsing of sentences containing grammatical violations differ with respect to the recruitment of these functional components.


Abstract Ecological traps occur when species choose to settle in lower‐quality habitats, even if this reduces their survival or productivity. This happens in situations of drastic environmental changes, resulting from anthropogenic pressures. In long term, this could mean the extinction of the species. We investigated the dynamics of occurrence and distribution of three canid species (Atelocynus microtis, Cerdocyon thous, and Spheotos venaticus) considering human threats to their habitats in the Amazon Rainforest. We analyzed the environmental thresholds for the occurrence of these species and related to the future projections of climatic niches for each one. All three species will be negatively affected by climate change in the future, with losses of up to 91% of the suitable area of occurrence in the Brazilian Amazon. A. microtis appear to be more forest‐dependent and must rely on the goodwill of decision‐makers to be maintained in the future. For C. thous and S. venaticus, climatic variables and those associated with anthropogenic disturbances that modulate their niches today may not act the same way in the future. Even though C. thous is least dependent on the Amazon Forest; this species may be affected in the future due to the ecological traps. S. venaticus, can also undergo the same process, but perhaps more drastically due to the lower ecological plasticity of this species compared to C. thous. Our results suggest that the ecological traps may put these two species at risk in the future. Using the canid species as a model, we had the opportunity to investigate these ecological effects that can affect a large part of the Amazonian fauna in the current scenario. Considering the high degree of environmental degradation and deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest, the theory of ecological traps must be discussed at the same level as the habitat loss, considering the strategies for preserving the Amazon biodiversity.


Five groups of mature male hamsters were used, each group containing normal and diabetic animals. Each animal received a transplant of neonatal pancreas. One group received no treatment. The other groups received: cortisone before transplantation; cortisone at the time of transplantation; cortisone and insulin; cortisone and growth hormone. It was found that cortisone in normal animals enhances development between the 10th and 24th days, with best results when given before transplantation. Among diabetics, cortisone improved growth but to a lesser degree, best results being obtained when started at the time of transplantation. A combination of cortisone and insulin gave normal animals a significant improvement beginning on the 10th day and continuing for the duration; among diabetics, improvement occurred but to a lesser extent. Although growth hormone significantly enhanced development in normal animals, beginning on the 13th day, the results were no better than after cortisone alone and were significantly inferior to those found after cortisone-insulin treatment. In the diabetic, growth hormone impeded development of the implant.


This article provides a brief history of the field of ergonomics and explores the interrelationship between health care and ergonomic professions. Health care practitioners contribute a unique perspective to an ergonomic research and intervention team. This singular perspective is based on knowledge of health issues, disease and injury etiology and prognosis, and the psychosocial impact of illness. Topics for collaboration between health care practitioners and ergonomists are identified.


Faces of one's own race and of other races are thought to be located in different regions of face space (Valentine, 1991). Here we investigated whether faces of different races (Caucasian and Chinese faces) have dissociable neural coding and distinct norms. We used adaptation techniques to alter perceptions of normality (aftereffects) for faces. Caucasian and Chinese participants adapted to distorted faces of one race (e.g., Chinese contracted faces—Experiment 1), or oppositely distorted faces of both races (e.g., Chinese contracted and Caucasian expanded faces—Experiment 2). We then tested for aftereffects in Chinese and Caucasian test faces. In Experiment 1 aftereffects were reduced when a change in race between the adapt faces and test faces occurred. In Experiment 2 aftereffects occurred in opposite directions for the two races. These results demonstrate that dissociable neural populations code faces of different races and suggest the existence of race-specific face norms.


Abstract : This report discusses the excitation of a multiconductor transmission line by an incident electromagnetic field. Specific relations for the terminal (or load) response of a multiconductor line are derived in terms of field- induced voltage and current sources which are distributed along the transmission line. It is shown how these sources are derived for a general multiconductor line and how they may be derived from a knowledge of the incident (or free space) fields by using a field coupling parameter. The components of the exciting fields along the line are then given explicitly for the special case of an incident plane wave with arbitrary angle of incidence.


ABSTRAC T With the splendor of advertising through above the line and the line bellows, then a separate issue for producers and advertising agencies to be able to create an effective to attract the attention of consumers on a product. An d can be effective, if the purpose of advertising can be achieved or accomplished and useful for companies in the implementation of marketing functions, so a advertising be flexible, stable, sustainable, simple, and easy to understanding . C an create effective advertising is, of course, must begin with an understanding of the advertised product marketing programs, in addition to the ad should creative , has appeal, credibility endorse be aware of recall advertising is part of marketing activities . Through promotional activities, advertising is one of the strategies in marketing communications, to introduce or explain the product is marketed. Strategy that is often used in the shooting target market is the grouping of market/segment as an area prospective buyers/users. Selection of a specific market group will be easier to communicate through media advertising products. Or character traits in a group is a market segment of data to facilitate market the product. Market segment the reference and the main purpose of the products offered through advertising. Therefore, in designing advertising must understand and know what is happening in the market as a place of pitching products . Keywords : advertising, effective , marketing strategies.


ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Predator-prey interactions are dynamic and the ability to predict their impact on prey species has become an important aspect in ecology. One method to predict the impact of a predator species on a prey population is by analysing the predator's functional response. However, predators are not all functionally similar and may differ intraspecifically. Predators are also not limited to prey from other species as they can cannibalise vulnerable individuals within their own population. The African clawed frog (Xenopus laevis) is a predator with a broad diet, known to consume multiple prey species, including its congeners. They are notorious cannibals with populations consisting of different sized conspecifics. They occur in sympatry with several congeners including the endangered X. gilli which are thought to be under threat through competition, hybridisation and predation from X. laevis. In this study, I investigated the role of predator size on the functional response of X. laevis predators using mosquito larvae (Culex pipiens) as a common prey. I also investigated the threat of X. laevis predation on X. gilli using choice and no-choice experiments to evaluate the relative vulnerability of X. laevis and X. gilli larvae to X. laevis predation. For the functional response experiments, predators were classified by size into small (15-30mm snout-vent length), medium (50-60mm) and large (105-120mm) size classes. Predator-prey interactions were filmed in order to compare handling time and attack rate to the functional response model. In the choice and no-choice experiments, both X. laevis and X. gilli larvae species were collectively and separately exposed to treatments with the presence or absence of a predator. Results showed that the functional response of X. laevis predators change with size: small predators were found to have a Type II response, while medium and large predators had a Type III response. Both functional response and behavioural data showed an inversely proportional relationship between predator attack rate and predator size. Small and medium predators had the highest and lowest handling time, respectively. That the functional response was found to change with the size of predator suggests that predators with overlapping cohorts may have a dynamic impact on prey populations. Therefore, predicting a predator's impact from the functional response of a single size-matched predator experiment may be a misrepresentation of the predator's potential impact on a prey population. Results from the choice and no-choice experiments showed that large X. gilli showed a significantly higher vulnerability to X. laevis predation compared to small X. laevis. Large and small X. laevis larvae, and same size X. gilli and X. laevis larvae showed no significant differences in relative vulnerability. Behaviour may be a factor in contributing to large X. gilli larvae's vulnerability to X. leavis predation, and this will likely have negative implications for the population structure of the endangered X. gilli.
…


Early identification of children who display elevated rates of interpersonal and behavioral problems is vital for the initiation of early intervention services. Teaching students social-emotional skills is an important goal of preschool programs, including Head Start programs, across the United States. In order to better understand the rates of interpersonal and behavioral delays demonstrated by preschool students participating in an urban Head Start program, as well as any demographic-based risk factors that may predict these problems, 1,399 (86% Black/African American) students were administered the Preschool and Kindergarten Behaviors Scales – 2nd edition (PKBS-2). Results indicate that gender is significantly associated with both social and behavioral challenges. Specifically, in comparison to girls, boys tend to be less socially adept and more likely to display troublesome behaviors. Suggestions for future research, such as longitudinal studies, are included.


The index coding problem provides a simple yet rich model for several important engineering tasks such as satellite communication, content broadcasting, distributed caching, device-to-device relaying, and interference management. This monograph provides a broad overview of this fascinating subject, focusing on the simplest form of multiple-unicast index coding. The main objective in studying the index coding problem are to characterize the capacity region for a general index coding instance in a computable expression and to develop the coding scheme that can achieve it. Despite their simplicity, these two closely related questions are extremely difficult and precise answers to them, after twenty years of vigorous investigation, are still in terra incognita. There are, nonetheless, many elegant results that shed light on the fundamental challenges in multiple-unicast network communication and expose intriguing interplay between coding theory, graph theory, and information theory. This monograph contains a concise survey of these results in a unified framework. It further discusses the relation to Network Coding and Distributed Storage. Fundamentals of Index Coding gives the reader a concise, yet comprehensive, overview of the work undertaken on this important topic; its relationship to adjacent areas and lays the groundwork for future research. It is a valuable starting point for all researchers and students in Information Theory.


MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate many important cancer related gene expression in the posttranscriptional process. Dysregulated expression of miRNAs has been observed in numerous human cancers including ovarian cancer. In this study, we found that the expression of the miR-181c was significantly decreased in ovarian cancer tissue and in tissues with lymph node metastasis when compared with their control samples, respectively. Moreover, among pathological stages, the expression of miR-181c was significantly decreased in the tissues with IV stage compared with other stages. In vitro, miR-181c significantly inhibited the proliferation, metastasis of A2780 cell line, and induced G1 phase arrest. Through bioinformatics prediction, protein kinase C delta (PRKCD) was identified as a target gene of miR-181c. Western blot results showed that PRKCD was increased in ovarian cancer tissue, in tissues with lymph node metastasis and IV stage of ovarian cancer pathological samples. After knocking down PRKCD, the cell cycle of A2780 cells was also arrested in G1 phase. The proliferation and the metastasis of A2780 cells were reduced. The dual luciferase reporter experiments showed that miR-181c regulated the expression of PRKCD by combining with its 3'UTR. These results indicate that miR-181c inhibits ovarian cancer metastasis and progression by targeting PRKCD expression.


Light and Elementary Linear Logic, which form key components of the interface between logic and implicit computational complexity, were originally introduced by Girard as 'stand-alone' logical systems with a (somewhat awkward) sequent calculus of their own. The latter was later reformulated by Danos and Joinet as a proper subsystem of linear logic, whose proofs satisfy a certain structural condition. We extend this approach to polytime computation, finding two solutions: the first is obtained by a simple extension of Danos and Joinet's condition, closely resembles Asperti's Light Affine Logic and enjoys polystep strong normalisation (the polynomial bound does not depend on the reduction strategy); the second, which needs more complex conditions, exactly corresponds to Girard's Light Linear Logic.


Competing risks data arise frequently in clinical trials, and a common problem encountered is the overall homogeneity between two groups. In competing risks analysis, when the proportional subdistribution hazard assumption is violated or two cumulative incidence function (CIF) curves cross; currently, the most commonly used testing methods, for example, the Gray test and the Pepe and Mori test, may lead to a significant loss of statistical testing power. In this article, we propose a testing method based on the area between the CIF curves (ABC). The ABC test captures the difference over the whole time interval for which survival information is available for both groups and is not based on any special assumptions regarding the underlying distributions. The ABC test was also extended to test short‐term and long‐term effects. We also consider a combined test and a two‐stage procedure based on this new method, and a bootstrap resampling procedure is suggested in practice to approximate the limiting distribution of the combined test and two‐stage test. An extensive series of Monte Carlo simulations is conducted to investigate the power and the type I error rate of the methods. In addition, based on our simulations, our proposed TS, Comb, and ABC tests have a relatively high power in most situations. In addition, the methods are illustrated using two different datasets with different CIF situations.


Anthocyanin is a kind of water-soluble flavonoids, which make the plants showing red, blue, purple, red purple or other colors. Expression of the metabolic regulation gene causes the accumulation of anthocyanins in plant cells, and makes the plant organs change color, easy to observe. In this paper, using Bi and Cl gene which involved in anthocyanin synthesis pathway as a visual reporter, and glyphosate resistant gene epsp ,encoding 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3 phosphate synthase,as a selection marker, plant expression vector pBAC9009 was constructed. Immature embryos and embryogenic callus of several excellent maize inbred lines were transformed with biolistic bombardment. Undertaking in vitro culture steps of callus induction, glyphosate resistance selection, differentiation and plant regeneration, 75 transgenic plants were regenerated, and 43 ears of corn were harvested. There are 18 T0 lines expressed parts or whole purple on the seedling or the growth stage, 8 ears of these lines with scattered purple seeds. Analysis of PCR, RT-PCR and anthocyanin content showed that exogenous genes were well integrated in the genome of maize and efficiently expressed in the purple leaves and seeds. In conclusion, we successfully constructed a visual tracking system for transgene which make the transformed plants can be easily distinguished from their appearance, only by its color appearance at the early stage. Application of the system can greatly improve efficiency of transgene, and save costs. It is very important for plant transgenic research.


In reality the security is to be provided in different levels based on the application and requirement. In attendance related applications require low level security, banking applications may need medium level security and defence applications require high level security. This paper presents a hybrid-modal (Unimodal or Multimodal) biometric system which is used to provide better security to applications based on their requirement. Based on the security level, the system uses both single evidence (unimodal) for lower level and multiple evidences (multimodal) for higher level security. The developed hybrid-modal system employs one or more biometric modalities such as face, voice and fingerprint by alleviating some of the challenges identified in fingerprint, face and voice biometrics modalities. These biometric modalities are selected as they are independent, non-intrusive and robust. Depends on the applications security level requirements like low, medium and high, the number of biometric modalities are provided as evidence to the system. The developed system is tested for 60 users. The accuracy for low level security applications using either fingerprint or face or voice the accuracy of around 94%, 93% and 82% respectively have achieved. The accuracy for medium level security applications using face & fingerprint, face & voice and voice & fingerprint are 91%, 81% and 88% respectively. Further, for high level security using all the three biometric traits the accuracy of 80% is achieved. The developed system provides promising results for all level of security applications.


A CSSL (chromosome segment substitution line), SG-64, carrying a segment of chromosome 4 from African cultivated rice (CG-14) in the genetic background of var. Wuyujing-7 (japonica), showed a spreading panicle, which was different significantly from that of Wuyujing-7 with an erect compact panicle. The gene controlling a spreading panicle is referred to as Spr3, and is mapped on chromosome 4. To uncover the genetic basis of Spr3, a large F(2) population derived from cross between SG-64 and Wuyujing-7 was constructed for fine mapping of the Spr3 locus. The high-resolution linkage analysis revealed that the Spr3 locus was narrowed down to a 4.6-kb region. The delimited genomic DNA regions of Wuyujing-7 and CG-14 were sequenced and compared. Sequence mutations between Wuyujing-7 and CG-14 were evident and the candidate genes for the locus were predicted. Publicly available databases were searched for homologous cDNA sequences. However, any coding regions or other meaningful sequences for the Spr3 locus were not found within this delimited region. This result suggested that Spr3 is an unknown genetic factor in controlling the outspreading of the primary branches in rice inflorescence. In addition, NIL(Spr3) exhibited seed shattering. The formation of spreading panicle was accompanied by a few undesirable traits and the spreading panicle links with seed shattering suggest that the spreading panicle was likely lost during the domestication and selection for high seed productivity of cultivated rice.


BACKGROUND
 Teledermatology (TD) is a branch of telemedicine focused on the evaluation of cutaneous lesions by dermatologists remotely, in order to avoid unnecessary in-person consults that could be otherwise resolved by this method, and to shorten the time required for prompt evaluation of cutaneous diseases.

 OBJECTIVE
 This study aimed to create and validate a questionnaire to evaluate satisfaction with the use of TD among primary care pediatricians (PCPs) and to test the questionnaire in our health area before performing an intervention for the optimization of TD.

 METHODS
 We first created a questionnaire based on previous publications. Then, an expert consultation was made before drafting the final version of the questionnaire. We tested it twice among pediatricians of different health areas, with a 1-month gap between both evaluations. Internal consistency, reproducibility, and validity of the questionnaire were evaluated. Finally, the validated questionnaire was tested among the PCPs of our health area, to analyze their responses.

 RESULTS
 We registered 38 questionnaire responses. In all, 30 (78.9%) PCPs actively used TD several times within a month or a year; none of them used TD daily. Technical and health care quality of TD was mostly considered as good or very good. TD was regarded as similar or even better than face-to-face evaluation for most PCPs, whereas 7.9% (3/38) of PCPs thought TD was worse than conventional consults. Most PCPs considered TD as an effective, self-learning, and trustable tool, and 10.5% (4/38) of them identified that pictures captured by mobile phones were a barrier for its use, as it affects patient privacy. Technical problems, absence of exclusive devices for image taking, and delayed answers are some other barriers for TD that need to be overcome. Nonetheless, all PCPs were satisfied with TD, and all of them reported they would continue or start to use this tool.

 CONCLUSIONS
 TD has demonstrated to be an efficient tool, as it reduces waiting time and costs for dermatology evaluation, and it increases satisfaction among professionals. With our proposed questionnaire, we validated that quality, usability, efficacy, and satisfaction related to TD in our health area had a positive consideration among PCPs in general, but there still are barriers to overcome.


This case describes how an assessment task for a postgraduate unit (Information Systems in Business) was developed and delivered using the virtual world platform Second Life. Students investigated and reflected upon the appropriateness of particular technologies for organizations and in particular for an insurance company. The assessment task was undertaken twice during 2010 and reflections from the students on their learning in relation to this task are included. The lecturer also reflected on the students' learning and application of technology skills, and these two sets of reflections were triangulated with data collected in a survey of the two student cohorts. Emergent themes from the data included graphics and interface, ease of use, game versus virtual world, business context usefulness, and social network characteristics, and these are discussed. Implications for designing authentic learning and assessment tasks with virtual worlds in a higher education context are explored in this chapter. The authors conclude that virtual worlds are a suitable application to support students learning of content knowledge, providing the technology is constructively aligned with the curriculum. Elaine Huber Macquarie University, Australia


Medical practice in Churchill is a challenging and rewarding form of wilderness medicine. If any reader is interested in learning more about Churchill or would like to consider visiting or even taking a health care position here, the following resources and contacts are available: The website for Churchill Independent Travel (www.creighton.edu/hutchens/church_travel.html) gives a complete list of options for those wishing to plan their own trip. The Arctic Medicine Conference is a medical conference with talks in Zoonoses, Dentistry, Entomology, and Travel Medicine hosted by Wilderness Medicine in Manitoba (www.skylarkmedicalclinic.com). The JA Hildes Northern Medical Unit is responsible for providing qualified physicians and nurse practitioners to staff northern Manitoba. For those who are interested, please contact Michelle Vandenbroeck at 1(204)789-3711 for information in working in Churchill or other parts of the Hudson Bay Inuit communities (www.umanitoba.ca/faculties/medicine/units/ northern_medical_unit). 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, by Patricia Schultz, is a recent bestseller that gives information about polar bear safaris.


We report the fabrication and characterization of an efficient laser based on a Nd:GdVO4 crystal with a laser wavelength of 1062.9 nm and differential efficiency of 54%.


The interactions between fungi and plants can yield metabolites that are toxic in animal systems. Certain fungi are known to produce sesquiterpenoid trichothecenes, such as T-2 toxin, that are biotransformed by several mechanisms including glucosylation. The glucosylated forms have been found in grain and are of interest as potential reservoirs of T-2 toxin that are not detected by many analytical methods. Hence the glucosides of trichothecenes are often termed "masked" mycotoxins. The glucoside of T-2 toxin (T2-Glc) was linked to keyhole limpet hemocyanin and used to produce antibodies in mice. Ten monoclonal antibody (Mab)-producing hybridoma cell lines were developed. The Mabs were used in immunoassays to detect T2-Glc and T-2 toxin, with midpoints of inhibition curves (IC50s) in the low ng/mL range. Most of the Mabs demonstrated good cross-reactivity to T-2 toxin, with lower recognition of HT-2 toxin. One of the clones (2-13) was further characterized with in-depth cross-reactivity and solvent tolerance studies. Results suggest Mab 2-13 will be useful for the simultaneous detection of T-2 toxin and T2-Glc.


We theoretically investigate high-order harmonic generation (HHG) from solids in two-color fields. It is found that under the premise of maintaining the same amplitude, the intensity of the second plateau can be enhanced by two to three orders in a proper two-color field compared with the result in the monochromatic field with the same frequency as the driving pulse of the two-color field. This can be attributed to the fact that most excited electrons can be driven to the top of the first conduction band due to the larger vector potential of the two-color fields, which leads to the higher electron population of upper conduction bands. Moreover, we also find that isolated attosecond pulses can be generated from solids by choosing a proper two-color field that allows the electrons to reach the top of the first conduction band only once. This work provides a promising method for extending the range of solid HHG spectra in experiments.


Background: Minimally invasive surgery of pulmonary nodules allows suboptimal palpation of the lung compared to open thoracotomy. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess endoscopic pleural dye marking using radial endobronchial ultrasound (r-EBUS) and virtual bronchoscopy to localize small peripheral lung nodules immediately before minimally invasive resection. Methods: The endoscopic procedure was performed without fluoroscopy, under general anesthesia in the operating room immediately before minimally invasive surgery. Then, 1 mL of methylene blue (0.5%) was instilled into the guide sheath, wedged in the subpleural space. Wedge resection or segmentectomy were guided by visualization of the dye on the pleural surface. Contribution of dye marking to the surgical procedure was rated by the surgeon. Results: Twenty-five nodules, including 6 ground glass opacities, were resected in 22 patients by video-assisted thoracoscopic wedge resection (n = 11) or robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (10 segmentectomies and 1 wedge resection). The median greatest diameter of nodules was 8 mm. No conversion to open thoracotomy was needed. The endoscopic procedure added an average 10 min to surgical resection. The dye was visible on the pleural surface in 24 cases. Histological diagnosis and free margin resection were obtained in all cases. Median skin-to-skin operating time was 90 min for robotic segmentectomy and 40 min for video-assisted wedge resection. The same operative precision was considered impossible by the surgeon without dye marking in 21 cases. Conclusions: Dye marking using r-EBUS and virtual bronchoscopy can be easily and safely performed to localize small pulmonary nodules immediately before minimally invasive resection.


A method has been developed which simultaneously compares the inhibition of an inflammation induced by a methyl nicotinate assay with the concentration of drug in the human epidermis determined in vitro following topical application of two 10% ibuprofen formulations. The bioavailability of drug from commercial gel and emulsion was assessed after the application of various doses (3, 6 and 12 mg/cm2) and an application time of 0.5 h at two time points: 0.5 and 24 h (only with the 12 mg/cm2 dose) after the removal of the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) from the skin. In parallel, we assessed the epidermal concentration of the drug in vitro and evaluated the anti-inflammatory effect of the topicals in vivo. A correlation (r = 0.9603, p < 0.001) between the amount of drug in the epidermis expressed as micrograms per milligram of epidermal protein and the corresponding inhibition of the inflammation was observed. Increasing the amount of drug in the epidermis correlated with an increased inhibition of the inflammation. The gel formulation released more drug to the skin and produced a greater anti-inflammatory effect. Topical NSAID concentration in treated skin can therefore be determined and correlates well with the resulting pharmacodynamic activity. This approach will likely have utility in optimizing topical NSAIDs.


Decadal predictions have become essential for near-term decision making and adaptation strategies. In parallel, interest in weather and climate extremes has increased strongly in the past. Thus, a combination of decadal predictions and extreme value theory is reasonable and necessary. Since decadal predictions suffer from typical discrepancies, such as start- and lead-year dependent conditional and unconditional biases, many ways for their recalibration have been proposed (Eade et al., 2014; Fučkar et al.,2014; Fyfe et al., 2011; Kharin et al., 2012; Kruschke et al., 2016; Raftery et al., 2005; Sansom et al., 2016; Sloughter et al., 2007). However, in previous studies, extremes have not been considered. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate how extremes from decadal predictions can be adequately recalibrated and how this affects forecasting skill. Pasternack et al. (2018) introduced a parametric Decadal Climate Forecast Recalibration Strategy (DeFoReSt 1.0), based on estimating polynomial adjustment terms (Gangstø et al., 2013). DeFoReSt assumes normality for the probability distribution (PDF) to be recalibrated and optimizes the cross-validated continuous ranked probability score (CRPS) with this assumption build in Gneiting et al. (2005). For a proof of concept, Pasternack et al. (2018) introduced a toy model for generating pseudo decadal forecast-observation pairs. For toy model data and surface temperatures from MiKlip hindcasts, improvement of forecast quality over a simple calibration from Kruschke et al. (2016) has been found. We extend these methods to extreme values with two modifications: (1) Follow DeFoReSt, but assume general extreme value (GEV) distributed forecasts. Again the CRPS is optimized but with the GEV build into the score (Friederichs and Thorarinsdottir, 2012). Both DeFoReSt strategies (DeFoReSt-normaland DeFoReSt-GEV) and the calibration from Kruschke et al. (2016) are compared to a forecast based on climatology. (2) The toy model is modified to generate pseudo decadal forecast-observation pairs with GEV distributed observations. For validation, a bootstrapping scheme is applied to temperature maxima hindcasts from MiKlip verified with HadEX2 observations. After recalibration, both DeFoReSt strategies perform similar for the toy model and MiKlip hindcasts, none significantly outperforms the other. However, they consistently show considerable improvements over the climatological forecast for the lower and upper quartiles in the toy model data. For the recalibrated MiKlip hindcasts, the findings are in accordance, but not as considerable, presumably due to their very small ensemble size (Sienz et al., 2016). This suggests that extremes may be directly recalibrated with the assumption of a Normal distribution, as long as this represents the characteristics of the decadal forecast ensemble. Thus, the forecasting skill of recalibrations appears to be unaffected by the underlying distribution of the observations.


Hemodialysis has come a long way since its early days and is a life sustaining therapy for millions of people with end‐stage kidney disease throughout the world. Although thrice weekly hemodialysis remains the most common form of renal replacement therapy, other therapies such as more frequent, prolonged dialysis modalities have seen a rise recently. In this review, we compare and contrast methods for measuring the dialysis dose, with a focus on small molecule clearance (Kt/Vurea) among various dialysis modalities. We also describe newer on‐line methods to measure dialysis and limitations to current adequacy measurement. Distinguishing dialysis adequacy from adequate treatment of the patient is also emphasized.


AIM
This study aimed to investigate the effects of limited health literacy on arterial stiffness measured by the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) in community-dwelling older adults.

METHODS
A total of 288 older adults (mean age, 72.4 years, men, n = 99) participated. The degree of arterial stiffness was assessed based on the CAVI using the VS-1500 device (Fukuda Denshi Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan). Arterial stiffness was defined according to a cut-off point of ≥9.0. Comprehensive health literacy was assessed using the 47-item European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47). Other potential confounding factors, such as demographics, number of prescribed medications, mini-mental state examination results, grip strength, gait speed, current smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical inactivity, were also assessed. An analysis of variance for continuous variables or chi-square test for categorical variables was used for group comparisons. A logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association between quartiles of HLS-EU-Q47 and arterial stiffness in crude and multivariate models adjusted for age, gender, and other confounding factors.

RESULTS
The first quartile with the lowest health literacy showed a significantly higher CAVI and prevalence of arterial stiffness than the fourth quartile with the highest health literacy (p<0.05). In logistic regression, the crude model showed that the third quartile (odds ratio [95% confidence interval] = 0.48 [0.24-0.93]) and fourth quartile (0.39 [0.19-0.77]) were significantly associated with arterial stiffness, while the multivariate model showed that to fourth quartile was significantly associated with arterial stiffness (0.44 [0.19-0.98]).

CONCLUSIONS
Older adults with limited health literacy might be at a higher risk of arterial stiffness after accounting for confounding factors.


The family Archeocrypticidae is redescribed on the basis of adult and larval characters, the relationships of the family are discussed, and the Australian fauna is reviewed. Keys are provided for the Australian genera and the species of Enneboeus Waterhouse and Australenneboeus Kaszab occurring in Australia. The following new taxa are described: Nothenneboeus, gen. nov., N. punctatus, sp. nov., N. carinatus, sp. nov., Australenneboeus apicalis, sp. nov., and A. minor, sp. nov. The following synonymies are proposed: Enneboeus Waterhouse = Parenneboeus Kaszab; Enneboeopsis Champion = Neboksianus Kaszab; Australenneboeus Kaszab =Lamellenneboeus Kaszab. This results in the following new combinations: Enneboeus tarsalis (Kaszab), Enneboeopsis australicus (Kaszab) and Australenneboeus analis (Kaszab).


Congenital hypothyroidism (CH) is a condition that affects infants from birth (congenital) and results from partial or complete loss of thyroid function (hypothyroidism). CH has existed since antiquity, as exemplified by goitrous dwarfs in 400 BC in South America, writing about goiter from ancient Rome in the first century and descriptions of mental retardation and goitrous hypothyroidism in a lecture and subsequent publication by Paracelsus in the sixteenth century [1]. Non goitrous sporadic CH was not described until the beginning of the industrial revolution by Thomas Curling in 1850. By the end of the nineteenth century, thyroid extract were observed to effectively treat patients with CH, however not until the 1970s was it possible for mental retardation caused by CH to be virtually eradicated by early treatment as a result of early diagnosis through newborn screening [2]. During the second half of the twentieth century, various enzymatic defects in hormonogenesis were shown to be responsible for CH [3]. Immune mediated mechanism have also been proposed to cause thyroid dysgenesis, but a causal relationship has not been proven [4,5]. In the 1990s mutations in the extracellular domain of Thyrotropin (TSH) receptor in the s sub unit of TSH and the transcription factors that regulate thyroid embryogenesis have been found to be rare cause of CH [6-10]. The suffering and heavy social and economic burden caused by congenital hypothyroidism prompted many countries to institute a formalized screening programme directed at newborns, just as a vaccination
programme has become an integral part of child health care. In African countries however, this type of formalized service has not yet been established. Yet most African countries have crude birth rates (Nigeria-39.9, Kenya-39.2, south Africa-22.3 and Egypt-24.2) above the average (20.3 births per 1,000population) for the entire world, for African countries, the implementation of a universal neonatal screening programme will bring about a considerable improvement in child health care.


In this study, phenolated wood resin was used an adsorbent for the removal of Cr(III), Ni(II), Zn(II), Co(II) ions by adsorption from aqueous solution. The adsorption of metal ions from solution was carried at different contact times, concentrations and pHs at room temperature (25°C). For individual metal ion, the amount of metal ions adsorbed per unit weight of phenolated wood resin at equilibrium time increased with increasing concentration and pH. Also, when the amounts of metal ions adsorbed are compared to each other, it was seen that this increase was order of Cr(III) > Ni(II) > Zn(II) > Co(II). This increase was order of Cr(III) > Ni(II) > Co(II) > Zn(II) for commercial phenol–formaldehyde resin. Kinetic studies showed that the adsorption process obeyed the intraparticle diffusion model. It was also determined that adsorption isotherm followed Langmuir and Freundlich models. Adsorption isotherm obtained for commercial phenol–formaldehyde resin was consistent with Freundlich model well. Adsorption capacities from Langmuir isotherm for commercial phenol–formaldehyde resin were higher than those of phenolated wood resin, in the case of individual metal ions. Original adsorption isotherm demonstrated the monolayer coverage of the surface of phenolated wood resin. Adsorption kinetic followed the intraparticle diffusion model. The positive values of ΔG° determined using the equilibrium constants showed that the adsorption was not of spontaneous nature. It was seen that values of distribution coefficient (KD) decreasing with metal ion concentration in solution at equilibrium (Ce) indicated that the occupation of active surface sites of adsorbent increased with metal ions. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 2838–2846, 2006


Brain development is a highly regulated process that involves the precise spatio-temporal activation of cell signaling cues. Transcription factors play an integral role in this process by relaying information from external signaling cues to the genome. The transcription factor Forkhead box G1 (FOXG1) is expressed in the developing nervous system with a critical role in forebrain development. Altered dosage of FOXG1 due to deletions, duplications, or functional gain- or loss-of-function mutations, leads to a complex array of cellular effects with important consequences for human disease including neurodevelopmental disorders. Here, we review studies in multiple species and cell models where FOXG1 dose is altered. We argue against a linear, symmetrical relationship between FOXG1 dosage states, although FOXG1 levels at the right time and place need to be carefully regulated. Neurodevelopmental disease states caused by mutations in FOXG1 may therefore be regulated through different mechanisms.


This research conducts a benefit-cost analysis of water policies to reach an optimal level of dissolved oxygen (DO) to meet year-round fishable water quality criteria in the Delaware River. A watershed pollutant load model is utilized to estimate marginal cost curves of water quality improvements to meet a more protective year-round fishable standard and annual benefits are defined to achieve future DO criteria in the Delaware River. The most costeffective DO standard is 4.5 mg/L defined by the point where the marginal benefits of willingness to pay (WTP) for improved water quality equals the marginal costs of pollution reduction. This optimal criteria (4.5 mg/L) can be achieved at a cost of $150 million with benefits ranging from $250 to $700 million/year. While a future DO standard of 4.5 mg/L reflects an economically efficient level of water quality, this DO criteria is less protective than the level of 5–6 mg/L needed to protect anadromous fish such as the Atlantic sturgeon. The policy to reach a DO level of 6 mg/L (at 80% DO saturation) may be difficult to achieve at summer water temperatures that approach 30 °C in the Delaware River at Philadelphia.


To evaluate physiological bone regeneration in the case of a postoperative maxillary cyst (POMC) treated using the deflation and dredging method to augment bone for implant placement. In the case of bone resorption, bone augmentation is required to place a stable implant. Before bone augmentation, the reason for bone resorption must be taken into consideration and should be treated first. The deflation and dredging method, which was originally developed for treating ameloblastoma, can be applied to treat POMC because of the similar treatment objectives of complete epithelium removal and enhancement of bone regeneration. In the first surgery, the cyst wall and overlying alveolar bone were removed under local anesthesia for deflation and histopathological examination. Three months after the deflation, new bone formation was observed along the inner surface of the cavity, the cavity itself became smaller, and the cyst could be easily enucleated. Thereafter, dredging was performed twice at intervals of 3 months. No epithelial cells were found on histopathological examination of the bone excised during dredging, and the bony cavity was filled with regenerated bone. Six months later, the implant body was placed, and the final prostheses were set after another 6 months. There has been no recurrence of POMC for >3 years after the last dredging. Treatment of the POMC and bone augmentation can be performed as a serial treatment without any invasive maneuvers, such as, bone harvesting and grafting. Bone regeneration is expected to occur under proper conditions of preparation.


Interoperability of mobile contactless city services has been emerging as a topic of discussion in many of the recent events by the representatives of industry and city organizations. Evidently, the interoperability has a connotation of a world where systems and devices interoperate or work together seamlessly. In the real world, such interoperability is a myth, and must always be built by considering the specificities of the existing artefacts. This paper studies and defines interoperability in the context of mobile contactless city services. We present three piloted mobile contactless city services to identify which kind of interoperability issues can be raised. Based on this analysis, an interoperability framework is proposed first by delineating the set of relevant entities and then by presenting four dimensions of the interoperability issues between the entities. We believe that this framework helps finding other related elements to make a coherent picture of interoperability in this context. It also leads to the definition of a relevant evaluation process. The goal of the paper is: (1) to properly define interoperability in our context; (2) to propose a set of evaluation criteria; (3) to propose an overview of an evaluation process


For the rapidly growing older adult population, disaster consequences are frequently life disruptive and even life threatening. By 2050, it is estimated that the global older adult population will reach 22 percent of the total. With declining health, this population poses a particular risk needing to be addressed in emergency preparedness and disaster recovery. The purpose of this article is to describe a Flex-Model (F-M) for the long-term assessment of older adults following a disaster. An F-M is a series of three-dimensional representations of an archetype with flexible components, both linear and parallel, that can be adapted to situations, time, place, and needs. The model incorporates the Life Patterns Model and provides a template that can be adjusted to meet the needs of a local community, healthcare providers, and emergency management officials, regardless of the country or region, during the months after a disaster. The focus is on changes resulting from the disaster including roles, relationships, support systems, use of time, self-esteem, and life structure. Following a baseline assessment, each of these life patterns is assessed through the model with options for interventions over time. A pilot study was conducted in Georgia to gain information that would be helpful in developing a more specific assessment tool following a severe winter storm. While this is a local study, the findings can nevertheless be used to refine and focus the F-M for future implementation. Results indicated that older adults used high-risk heating and lighting sources and many were totally responsible for their own welfare. Findings have implications for emergency preparedness and long-term recovery.


In this paper, the eigenvector and fractionalization of discrete Hadamard transform (DHT) is investigated. First, a Kronecker product method for finding eigenvalue and eigenvector of DHT matrix is described. Then, the number of sign change of eigenvector is used to arrange the index of eigenvector. Next, a discrete fractional Hadamard transform is defined by using the result of eigen-decomposition. Finally, the comparison with conventional recursive computation method is made to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.


Purpose

Existing research has highlighted the need for influential leaders to respond to the evolving social, economic and environmental constraints on the construction industry. Studies on leadership in other sectors have shown that influential leaders tend to demonstrate a high level of emotional intelligence. Little or no research examining relationships between leadership style and emotional intelligence has been conducted specific to construction project managers. This study aims to identify the prevalent leadership style adopted by construction project managers and investigate potential correlations between leadership style and emotional intelligence.

Design/methodology/approach

An online questionnaire including a mix of open and closed questions was adopted to address the research objectives. The group studied comprised project managers currently working in the construction industry in New Zealand and the UK.

Findings

The research found that transformational leadership style is prevalent among project managers examined in this study. Significant positive relationships were found between project managers' emotional intelligence and their likelihood of adopting a transformational leadership style.

Originality/value

The research results provide the construction industry with a benchmark against which individuals with high emotional intelligence, and so most suited to the challenges of the project management role, can be identified and trained. Recommendations including suitable methods for identifying, recruiting and training project managers, as well as secondment and mentoring options, were suggested for improving leadership capabilities in the construction industry.


In this paper, a formation control problem of second-order multi-agent systems with time-varying coupling delays under directed interconnection topology is investigated. Sufficient conditions are obtained for the attainment of both time-invariant and time-varying formations as well as time-varying formations for trajectory tracking under a special multiple leaders' framework. Some numerical simulations are also conducted to validate the theoretical results.


A subsea crane is normally mounted on a floating vessel and equipped with a winch system. The crane can operate in water down to 3000 m. The vessel tends to move up and down due to waves. This heave motion makes offshore lifting operations challenging. In order to ease the winch operation in rough sea, the winch can be equipped with additional systems like active heave compensation and constant tension. In active heave compensation and constant tension system, both motion and force control of the winch are important. This paper presents a digital displacement winch drive system and gives a description of challenges related to subsea lifting operations. The operation challenges are used to design a set of test cases for evaluating the performance of the digital displacement winch drive system.


Background: Delineating the neuropsychiatric pattern and features of Wilson disease is essential step to better recognition and management of these presentations. To our knowledge this is the first large study of neuropsychiatric manifestations of Wilson disease in Sudan. Method: A comprehensive case finding survey was conducted over a six month period, in the Capital of Sudan, covering all secondary and tertiary services that cater for patients with Wilson disease. Patients' assessment was carried out using batteries of functional tests, including, ICD-10 research criteria for major psychiatric categories, Mini Mental State Examination, ADHD scale, school records, parental reports. All neurological findings were conducted and verified by two neurologists. Results: Fifty cases of Wilson disease, of varying age and stage of illness, were thoroughly examined for neuropsychiatric symptoms and disorders. Most patients 29 (58%) showed psychological disturbance in form of psychiatric illness and significant behavioural disturbance. Mood and emotional disorders observed in 21 (42%) of cases, core symptoms of depressive disorder diagnosed in 19 cases (38%), behavioural and personality disturbances detected in 19 patients (38%), while cognitive impairments were found in 24 (48%) of all cases. Twenty-one cases (42%) presented with neurological abnormalities, predominantly consisting of posturing in 20 (40%), dystonia in 8 (16%), Parkinsonism was found in 10 (20%) patients, dysarthria in 9 (18%), athetosis in 3 (6%) cases and various forms of tremors in 21 (42%). Epilepsy was recorded in 3 cases (6%). Conclusion: Neuropsychiatric symptoms and disorders are highly prevalent in Wilson disease patients regardless of age, or stage of illness. Even though, patients in our sample had had an average of 6 years follow up duration, non-had shown evidence of liver failure. This shows an early indication of possibly benign trajectory course of the illness in Sudan.


New variants of SARS-CoV-2 are continually emerging with mutations in spike associated with increased transmissibility and immune escape. Phenotypic maps can inform the prediction of concerning mutations from genomic surveillance, however most of these maps currently derive from studies using monomeric RBD, while spike is trimeric, and contains additional domains. These maps may fail to reflect interdomain interactions in the prediction of phenotypes. To try to improve on this, we developed a platform for deep mutational scanning using whole trimeric spike. We confirmed a previously reported epistatic effect within the RBD affecting ACE2 binding, that highlights the importance of updating the base spike sequence for future mutational scanning studies. Using post vaccine sera, we found that the immune response of vaccinated individuals was highly focused on one or two epitopes in the RBD and that single point mutations at these positions can account for most of the immune escape mediated by the Omicron BA.1 RBD. However, unexpectedly we found that the BA.1 RBD alone does not account for the high level of antigenic escape by BA.1 spike. We show that the BA.1 NTD amplifies the immune evasion of its associated RBD. BA.1 NTD reduces neutralistion by RBD directed monoclonal antibodies, and impacts ACE2 interaction. NTD variation is thus an important mechanism of immune evasion by SARS-CoV-2. Such effects are not seen when pre-stabilized spike proteins are used, suggesting the interdomain effects require protein mobility to express their phenotype.


The Cerrado biome is located in the central region of Brazil and consists mainly of savanna vegetation. In this study we assessed the richness of tiger moths (Arctiidae) of the Brazilian Cerrado. Specifically, we 1) assessed species richness in one-degree cells in the biome, 2) identified areas where these moths are poorly known, and 3) tested if similarities in species composition are related to geographical distance in the relatively well-sampled areas. We obtained the data mainly from specimens deposited in museums, but we also included additional information from the literature. We compiled 2,321 records belonging to 723 species. Specimens were recorded in 108 localities distributed in 67 one-degree cells. Species occurring exclusively in one or two one-degree cells represented 64% of the total number of species. Sample effort was not uniform in the biome, as there were very few records in the northern region of the Cerrado. The best-sampled one-degree cell had 239 species. Species assemblages were structured in space with a clear trend of localities near one another presenting more similarities in faunal composition than distant localities. This distance decay in similarity was slightly more pronounced along the longitudinal than along the latitudinal distances. We conclude that the Cerrado still remains poorly inventoried for tiger moths, particularly in its northern portion, where many unrecorded species may be found in the future. Despite of this limited knowledge, the best-sampled region indicates that richness of tiger moths in the Cerrado is comparable to the species-rich forest biomes in the Neotropical region.


The combined study of single- and multi-channel seismic reflection data allow us to understand the structure of the Canary Basin oceanic crust and their relationship with the seafloor spreading history and main tectonic features formed during Mesozoic times on the Central Atlantic. The seismic image of the oceanic crust is very variable, with an irregular to smooth basement topography. The crustal inner reflectivity is also very variable, from transparent to highly reflective, depending on the segment. Where the basement topography is irregular, the main features are strongly dipping isolated reflections from the upper-middle crust, eventually reaching the lower crust. By the contrary, in areas with smooth basement topography, reflectivity is largely extended, particularly in the lower crust. Crustal thickness can be estimated along most of the multi-channel seismic reflection profiles, being delimited by sub-horizontal reflections in the crust-mantle boundary. The crustal thickness is generally of 2.0 S TWTT, although in areas with smooth topography values between 2.5 and 3 s can be reached. The geodynamic setting where the Canary Basin formed could explain the variability of its crustal structure. The oceanic crust with irregular topography and disperse reflectivity should have been formed in a typical slow spreading ridge with an important extensional tectonic activity. By the other hand, oceanic crust with smooth topography and abundant reflectivity should have been formed in a slow spreading ridge where crust-generating processes were modified by the nearest presence of a mantle thermal anomaly.


To facilitate the energy transition, the conventional baseload nuclear power must be equipped with flexibility. By integrating grid-scale energy storage systems to the existing nuclear plants, they can curtail their load to avoid surplus generation. Liquid air energy storage (LAES) has been steadily investigated for their advantages, and this paper suggests an integrated layout using mechanical drive steam turbine and packed bed energy storage systems. Possible options for integration of LAES to the existing nuclear steam cycle are considered. The performance of packed bed storage systems is analyzed using transient modeling, and the results are fed into the overall cycle design using an in-house code. The results of the analysis suggests that the concept can reach up to 45.7–59.8% in round-trip efficiency, under much simplified cycle layout than the reference LAES layouts.


The POINT-AGAPE collaboration is carrying out a search for gravitational microlensing toward M31 to reveal galactic dark matter in the form of MACHOs (Massive Astrophysical Compact Halo Objects) in the halos of the Milky Way and M31. A high-threshold analysis of 3 years of data yields 6 bright, short-duration microlensing events, which are confronted to a simulation of the observations and the analysis. The observed signal is much larger than expected from self lensing alone and we conclude, at the 95% confidence level, that at least 20% of the halo mass in the direction of M31 must be in the form of MACHOs if their average mass lies in the range 0.5-1 M⊙. This lower bound drops to 8% for MACHOs with masses � 0.01 M⊙. In addition, we discuss a likely binary microlensing candidate with caustic crossing. Its location, some 32' away from the centre of M31, supports our conclusion that we are detecting a MACHO signal in the direction of M31.


The effect of high temperature irradiation on commercial bipolar junction transistors has been studied for four dose rates. The experimental data presented in this paper show two base current degradation peaks as a function of irradiation temperature. An attempt to physically explain the obtained experimental results is proposed. This explanation is based on the difference in the enhancement-annealing kinetic of the elementary processes at play. The combined effects of high irradiation temperatures and dose rate are also discussed.


Education. 1976. ED 132 281. MF $.83, HC $2.06 (plus postage). In order to determine the specific counseling needs of the adult learner staff of the Adult Counseling Project began by conducting a literature search pertaining to the problems of returning students and those considering a return to school. The review revealed that little is known about the educational and vocational needs of the returning adult. A second phase of the Adult Counseling Project involved: (1) a survey of students enrolled in postsecondary vocational institutions ranging in age from 21 to over 50, and (2) a survey of those considering a return to school who also ranged in age from 21 to over 50. This survey involved administering a questionnaire to 650 students enrolled in three VTAE (Vocational, Technical, and Adult Education) schools in Wisconsin-Green Bay, LaCrosse, and Milwaukee, and to 100 nonstudents in the communities. Both the literature review and the results of the survey suggest that adults returning to school have academic and guidance needs which are only gradually being recognized and met. In particular, effective career guidance and study skill programs need to be developed and implemented for older students, since the bulk of existing study skills programs and career guidance strategies appears to be geared to adolescents and very young adults.


In this paper we present the results of infrared processing and sensor fusion obtained within the European research project GEODE (Ground Explosive Ordnance DEtection) that strives for the realization of a vehicle-mounted, multi-sensor anti-personnel land-mine detection system for humanitarian demining. The system has three sensor types: an infrared camera, a ground penetrating radar and a metal detector. The output of the sensors is processed to produce confident values on a virtual grid covering the test bed. A confidence value expresses a confidence or belief in a mine detection on a certain position. The grid with confidence values is the input for the decision-Ievel sensor fusion and provides a co-registraiion of the sensors. We describe the methods TNO-FEL developed for the processing of infrared (3-5 µm) data to produce confidence values. We show results of experiments with infrared processing and sensor fusion on real time data. The performance of the processing and fusion are measured with the SCOOP evaluntion method that yields a less biased probability of false alarm by taking into account the spatial arrangement of false alarms.


Substantial evidence supports the two-step mutation hypothesis by Knudson in human carcinogenesis. In inherited cancer traits the first mutation is thought to be inherited, but this oncogene acts recessively, and the cancer develops only after a second mutation, where the normal allele of this gene, the anti-oncogene, is lost. The most recent discovery in the field of inherited cancer diseases, is localization of the gene for adenomatous polyposis on chromosome 5. Inherited cancer traits may occur in greater frequency than was previously known. One example is the cancer family syndrome (CFS), where colorectal carcinoma is transmitted in an autosomal dominant mode. Clinical characteristics of CFS include early age of onset (mean about 40 years), high risk of metachronous colon tumours (32 to 54% in 10 years) and proximal predilection of the colon tumours. The frequency of CFS is at least 5% of all colorectal carcinomas, and this trait may present one opportunity for cancer screening programmes like familial adenomatous polyposis. Identification of CFS patients remains a problem even when careful family history is taken, and a specific biomarker for CFS is urgently needed.


In this paper, we consider two different aspects of the automatic speech recognition task: the effectiveness of using open-source ASR toolkits and the quite problematic recognition of children speech. On this difficult task, we compare three well established and widely available ASR toolkits and we finally demonstrate the feasibility of applying these results to speech recognition and spoken dialogue system design. Even if various open source ASR toolkits are now available, we were mainly interested in evaluate the usability of the relatively new BAVIECA system in comparison to two systems (SONIC and SPHINX) for which we had already various results in past experiments on children speech. This paper is intended to provide the reader with a simple overview of the solutions adopted by the three different systems under investigation and with the demonstration of their effectiveness on children speech. Furthermore, the paper provides suggestions for future research directions in the field.


Renewed interest in i.v. anesthetic techniques has resulted from the availability of more rapid and shorter-acting i.v. drugs. With recent advances in the area of infusion pump technology, it has become easier to administer i.v. anesthetics and analgesics by continuous infusion techniques. The newer sedative-hypnotic (midazolam, propofol) and analgesic (sufentanil, alfentanil) drugs are better suited pharmacologically to continuous administration techniques than the traditional i.v. agents because they can be more accurately titrated to meet the unique and changing anesthetic needs of the individual patient. With the newer sedative and analgesic drugs, it is now possible to administer i.v. anesthetics in a titrated manner analogous to that which is possible when volatile anesthetics are used. In this way, the drug infusion rate is varied depending on the patient's responses to noxious surgical stimuli. In titrating i.v. drug infusions, consideration must also be given to the age of the patient, pre-existing disease states, potential drug interactions, and proximity to the end of the operative procedure. The availability of rapid and short-acting i.v. drugs like alfentanil and propofol, as well as intermediate-acting muscle relaxants makes it possible to employ total intravenous anesthetic techniques during general surgery. Many non-sedative and non-analgesic i.v. drugs are being investigated in anesthesia for use by continuous infusion techniques, e.g., muscle relaxant, and local anesthetics. Several recent studies have demonstrated the efficacy of continuous infusions of local anesthetics for obstetrical analgesia. The use of continuous local anesthetic infusions makes it possible to achieve improved analgesia (i.e., a more constant degree of analgesia) with lower doses. Improved delivery systems for administering i.v. drugs will make it easier to use continuous infusion techniques in the future. With continued progress in the development of infusion devices and i.v. drugs designed for continuous administration, the use of intravenous anesthetic techniques will become more widespread. In the near future, infusion pumps will likely become standard equipment on all anesthesia machines and anesthesiologists should find these techniques easier to use in their clinical practices.


In the emission spectrum of the CO molecule four bands: 1-2, 1-7, 1-8, 0-6 which have not been observed so far and the 1-5 band belonging to the Angstrom system (B 1Sigma+ - A 1Pi) have been found and photographed by conventional spectroscopy. The rotational analysis of bands made it possible to extend and to improve the information for both combining states. Especially the spectroscopic and quantum-mechanical constants of the B 1Sigma+ Rydberg state around its v=0 and 1 levels were more precise and more extended. A new quantitative classification of the relative band intensities for the currently extended Angstrom system bands has also been proposed.


The field of soft robotics has attracted the interest of the medical community due to the ability of soft elastic materials to traverse the abnormal environment of the human body. However, sensing in soft robotics has been challenging due to the sensitivity of soft sensors to various loading conditions and the nonlinear signal responses that can arise under extreme loads. Ideally, soft sensors should provide a linear response under a specific loading condition and provide a different response for other loading directions. With these specifications in mind, our team created a soft elastomeric sensor designed to provide force feedback during cardiac catheter ablation surgery. Analytical and computational methods were explored to define a relationship between resistance and applied force for a semicircular, liquid metal filled channel in the soft elastomeric sensor. Pouillet's Law is utilized to calculate the resistance based on the change in cross-sectional area resulting from various applied pressures. FEA simulations were created to simulate the deformation of the sensor under various loads. To confirm the validity of these simulations, the elastomer was modeled as a neo-Hookean material and the liquid metal was modeled as an incompressible fluid with negligible shear modulus under uniaxial compression. Results show a linearly proportional relationship between the resistance of the sensor and the application of a uniaxial force. Altering the direction of applied force results in a quadratic relationship between total resistance and the magnitude of force.


\"Resistance of sheep worms against the available anthelmintic drenches is increasing. Breeding sheep for resistance against gastrointestinal parasites is the only long-term solution. Research has shown that breeding for worm resistance is a highly feasible option and that genetic gains of more than 2% per year can be achieved without loss of production. Replicated field trials in which resistant animals were managed separately from unselected control sheep showed that there was a 10-fold difference in worm egg counts between resistant and control ewes. Resistant ewes were 18% heavier than the controls at the time of peak worm-challenge in a Mediterranean environment. At weaning, there was a five-fold difference in worm egg counts between resistant and control lambs, which resulted in an improvement of weaning weight of up to 22%. It is therefore better to include selection for worm resistance in breeding programs than to omit it for fear of diminishing future genetic gains in other traits.

\"


This letter presents a novel approach to realize a 4 times 4 optical switch. The optical switch consists of a micromachined silicon micromirror array and a bistable mini-actuator array. The micromirror array, which comprises vertical mirrors, cantilevers, and trenches, can be monolithically fabricated by a simple anisotropic silicon etching process in high precision and high yield. The mini-actuator array consists of 16 commercially available bistable actuators integrated with L-shape arms. The advantages of this approach include high precision, easy alignment, high fabrication yield, and low cost. Because of bistable actuation, the power consumption is very low and thus the temperature elevation of a working device is less than 0.3 K. The measured insertion losses of the four channels are between - 1.6 and - 2.3 dB. The measured crosstalk is less than -60 dB, and the measured switching time is about 13 ms.


We present a detailed analysis of how to implement the computation of modular symbols for a given elliptic curve by using numerical approximations. This method turns out to be more efficient than current implementation as the conductor of the curve increases.


Itemset mining is an elementary data mining approach predominantly used for exploring interrelations among data. Frequent itemset mining exhibit interrelations frequently containing in data in which each of the items in the database consists of distinct weights. Mining infrequent itemsets are more intriguing and are used to attenuate cost function. Infrequent pattern mining is a challenging venture because there is a huge number of such patterns that can be derived from a given dataset. This paper concentrates on distinct techniques used for mining infrequent itemsets.


We deal with spaces of nonregular generalized functions in the Lévy white noise analysis, which are constructed using Lytvynov's generalization of a chaotic representation property. Our aim is to describe a relationship between Wick multiplication and integration on these spaces. More exactly, we show that when employing the Wick multiplication, it is possible to take a time-independent multiplier out of the sign of an extended stochastic integral; establish an analog of this result for a Pettis integral (a weak integral); and prove a theorem about a representation of the extended stochastic integral via the Pettis integral from the Wick product of the original integrand by a Lévy white noise. As examples of an application of our results, we consider some stochastic equations with Wick type nonlinearities.


Common vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene alleles have recently been shown to contribute to the genetic variability in bone mass and bone turnover, however, the physiological mechanisms involved are unknown. To examine this, the response to 7 days of 2 micrograms oral 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D[1,25-(OH)2D] (calcitriol) stimulation was assessed in 21 premenopausal women, homozygous for one or other of the common VDR alleles (bb, n = 11; BB, n = 10). Indices of bone turnover and calcium homeostasis were measured during 2 weeks. Baseline osteocalcin, 1,25-(OH)2D, type I collagen carboxyterminal telopeptide, and inorganic phosphate levels were significantly higher and spinal bone mineral density was significantly lower in the BB allelic group. After calcitriol administration, similar levels of 1,25-(OH)2D were attained throughout the study in both genotypic groups. The increase in serum osteocalcin levels in the BB group was significantly less than that in the bb group (11% vs. 32%, P = 0.01). The genotype-related baseline difference in osteocalcin levels was not apparent at the similar serum 1,25-(OH)2D levels. By contrast, the baseline differences in phosphate and type I collagen carboxyterminal telopeptide persisted throughout the study. Serum ionized calcium levels did not differ between genotypes, nor did it move out of normal range values. However, parathyroid hormone was less suppressed in the low bone density group (38% vs. 11%, P = 0.01). These data indicate that the VDR alleles are associated with differences in the vitamin D endocrine system and may have important implications in relation to the pathophysiology of osteoporosis.


Background: Autism spectrum disorder is a complex developmental disorder, which increased rapidly than other developmental disorders in the world. This complex disorder affects a child's self-autonomy, which has become a challenge for their parents or caregivers. Objective: This study is to explore main caregivers' experience to meet self-care needs of adolescents with autism spectrum disorder in Pontianak, West Borneo, Indonesia. Methods: This study employed a qualitative design with semi-structured in-depth interviews. Seven main caregivers who are living together and taking care of the adolescents with autism spectrum were selected using a purposive sampling. Triangulation was conducted to ensure the trustworthiness of this study, including interviews, observations of self-care activities, documents such as photos, learning reports, and field notes. Participants' statements were recorded using a voice recorder, and then transcribed, coded, interpreted, and categorized to form main themes and sub-themes. Results: The study identified three main themes: 1) autonomy in self-care, 2) care effort, 3) feelings, supports, and expectations. These findings emphasize the potentials of the children with autism to be autonomous in their daily self-care. Conclusions: Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder can potentially meet the needs of their daily care independently. This article has been corrected with a separate erratum:  https://doi.org/10.33546/bnj.1146


Multi-hop communications are becoming more and more important due to its flexibility and potential to improve communication coverage and quality. In this paper, we discuss the robust transceiver optimization for multi-hop amplify-and-forward multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems. In general, we consider a three-dimensional robust beamforming design, i.e., frequency, spatial and relay domains. With inevitable channel estimation errors, in our work both weighted mean square error (MSE) minimization and minimizing maximum MSE are adopted as the performance metrics to design robust transceivers. Following the Bayesian robust philosophy, a robust transceiver design is proposed. The design is based on convex optimization, and the involved optimization variables are optimized alternatively. The proposed transceiver optimization algorithms can be applied to the network with arbitrary hops, arbitrary antennas and arbitrary subcarriers. At the end of this paper, the performance advantages of the propose design have been assessed by the numerical results.


Abstract The field of human resource development (HRD) is not easy to define, whether in the United States or internationally. Understanding of the meaning of HRD varies from country to country based on a number of identifiable factors specific to that country. This paper explores the meaning of HRD in Lebanon through examining relevant ideas about socio-demographic variables such as history, religion, culture, family and gender that affect the Lebanese notion of HRD and of occupational attainment. The paper concludes with an agenda for research to further our understanding of challenges and opportunities for workforce and human resource education in the Lebanon.


Objective: The present study was carried out to determine the effect of cadmium exposure on Urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its isoenzymes A and B in workers exposed at cadmium plating. Methods: 50 subjects using cadmium during cadmium plating formed the study group. An equal number of age-sex matched subjects working in administrative section formed the control group. Urinary cadmium levels were determined by using a flameless atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its isoenzymes A and B were determined by using spectrophotmetric method. Results: A significant increase of urinary total N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its isoenzymes A and B profiles were noted in study as compared to controls. The levels of urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its isoenzymes A and B profiles were positively and significantly correlated with cadmium levels in urine. Multiple regression analysis was used to assess the effect of urinary cadmium or life style confounding factors (age, BMI, smoking and alcohol consumption) on urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its isoenzymes A and B. The analysis showed that the study subjects who had urine cadmium levels greater than 5 μg/g of creatinine, work duration >15 years, smoking and body mass index variables were significantly associated with urinary total N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase but not on isoenzymes A&B. Conclusion: The results presented in this study shows that the increased levels of urinary N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase observed in cadmium-exposed workers could be used as biomarkers for suggesting preventive measure.


Aims Despite knowing that cancer and cancer treatment can cause pain there is limited knowledge of how older people experience cancer pain and how this affects their daily lives. Here presented are some methodological insights and early findings from a PhD study that aims to consider how older people construct the experience of cancer pain and how this is informed by expectations and experiences. Method A qualitative diary-interview study was conducted with purposively selected older people who had been diagnosed with cancer and were in receipt of specialist palliative care. A two week page-a-day diary informed a subsequent interview to ensure holistic and person focused data about experience. Findings Older people are willing participants but tend to adopt a stoic role when living with cancer pain. Preliminary results show that older people are reluctant to self identify as living with worsening cancer pain and unwilling to express and discuss their pain as a problem, rather something to adapt and live with. Carers and or health care professionals may reinforce vulnerable and stoic stereotypes through gate keeping with associated stances of protection and advocacy. The participants appeared to be satisfied with the care provision for symptom management. However, the convention of stoic ageing is knowingly maintained with occasional glimpses of vulnerability. This image contrasts with the presented and perceived representation of older people with cancer as vulnerable. Conclusions Representation of the voice of older people through a diary may help the individual to present their experience more effectively to a third party. Awareness of older people's experience of cancer pain, through diary use and shared experiences, may give health care providers a greater understanding of the older persons support needs.


AIMS
Chronic primary mitral regurgitation (MR) results in enhanced filling of the left ventricle (LV) during early diastole. Filling is impaired with the onset of LV systolic dysfunction, due to increased myocardial stiffness and reduced restoring forces. We investigated echocardiographic parameters of early diastolic function in relation to LV systolic function.

METHODS AND RESULTS
Early diastolic transmitral flow and tissue Doppler velocities, propagation velocity of early filling (V(p)), and early diastolic strain rates (SR-E) were measured in 30 patients with chronic degenerative MR and 30 age-matched controls. MR subjects were further subdivided into group 1 (14 subjects) if they had well compensated LV, and group 2 (16 subjects) if they had one or more of the following: functional limitation (> NYHA class I), LV end-systolic diameter >or=4.0 cm, and LV ejection fraction <or=60%. Group 1 had increased early diastolic transmitral flow and tissue velocities, V(p) and SR-E, compared with controls. V(p) and SR-E in group 2 (46.5 +/- 9.92 cm/s and 1.44 +/- 0.36 s(-1), respectively) decreased significantly compared with group 1 (74.4 +/- 19.9 cm/s and 1.96 +/- 0.53 s(-1), P <or= 0.002). Onset and peak of early long-axis expansion and myocardial lengthening were significantly delayed in MR, and this delay was directly correlated with preload parameters.

CONCLUSION
In chronic MR, novel echocardiographic measurements of early diastolic function exhibit a biphasic pattern depending on the state of LV systolic function, and may prove useful in the timing of surgery.


Full-day-care preschools contribute significantly to the nutritional intake and acquisition of dietary habits of the preschool child. However, Irish preschools are not obliged to structure their nutritional practices in line with the Food and Nutrition Guidelines for Pre-school Services, resulting in variable dietary practices, many of which are not conducive to good health. The present study has investigated the influence of nutritional training, the possession of the guidelines and the existence of a written healthy eating policy on food provision and dietary practices in full-day-care preschools in Dublin North West (n 54). Results from a telephone questionnaire of preschool managers were analysed using c tests for independence (or Fisher's exact probability tests) via SPSS for Microsoft Windows (version 14.0; SPSS Inc, Chicago, IL, USA), and are outlined in the Table.


We deployed jaws of the common thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus) on the seafloor at ∼1000m depth off Monterey California for 8 months. The jaws disintegrated, with all the hyaline cartilage disappearing, leaving some fragments of tessellated cartilage and the teeth. Two different Osedax species, O. packardorum and O. talkovici were found to have bored into the roots of some of the teeth, and were using the dentin pulp, which is rich in collagen, as a food source. The enameloid crowns of the shark teeth and the tessellated cartilage showed no signs of Osedax activity. This is the first demonstration of Osedax exploiting a source of food that is not bone. This raises questions as to the original food source of Osedax 'bone worms'. Examination for the presence of Osedax in the skeletons and teeth of Mesozoic and possibly even Palaeozoic fossil sharks, bony fish and reptiles is warranted.