Background In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) immune activation and leukocyte migration to the joints precede clinical onset of disease. Early inhibition of inflammation is the main aim of treat-to-target strategy, but the mechanisms and time course for restoration of the immune system remains poorly understood. The family of CD18 integrins is central in the inflammatory response by allowing leukocytes to bind ICAM-1 and migrate to inflammatory foci. We have demonstrated a soluble form of CD18 (sCD18), which is shed to the systemic circulation by monocytes and increased following stimulation with TNFα. sCD18 competes with the cell-expressed receptors for binding to ICAM-1 and thus may function by limiting leukocyte adhesion to ICAM-1.(1) Recently, we found that plasma levels of sCD18 are decreased because of binding to inflammation induced ICAM-1 and associate inversely with disease activity in chronic spondyloarthritis.(2) Objectives To characterize the profile and regulation of plasma sCD18 levels in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis before and during a treat-to-target strategy (the OPERA regimen). Methods The level of sCD18 in plasma was analyzed with a time-resolved immunoflourometric assay (TRIFMA) in a study population of 152 patients with early treatment naïve RA (the OPERA cohort) at baseline and after 3, 6, and 12 months of treatment with methotrexate + placebo (PLA) or methotrexate + adalimumab (ADA) and matched healthy controls (HC). In vitro, synovial fluid mononuclear cells (SFMC) and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from 9 RA patients were cultured with or without adalimumab (5μg/ml) for 48 hours. Results Plasma levels of sCD18 were decreased in early RA patients at baseline (median=958mU/ml, IQR=766-1243mU/ml) compared with HC (median=1001mU/ml, IQR=872-1355mU/ml) (P<0.05). The sCD18 plasma levels further decreased after 3 months of treatment (median=858.9mU/ml, IQR=729-1076mU/ml) compared with baseline (P<0.05). Only after 12 months of treatment (median=1018mU/ml, IQR=830-1346mU/ml) the levels were similar to HC (P=0.6). RA patients with an ACR70 response or EULAR DAS response after 3 months of treatment had a greater increase in sCD18 plasma levels from baseline to 12 months (both P<0.05). There was no significant difference in these changes between patients treated with PLA or ADA. In vitro, both supernatants from RA SFMC and RA PBMC cultures had decreased levels of sCD18 after incubation with adalimumab (P<0.05 and P<0.005 respectively). Conclusions The decreased plasma levels of sCD18 could be part of the deregulated immune system in early RA. Interestingly, sCD18 exhibited a biphasic course during a treat-to-target strategy with an initial decline followed by a gradual increase to HC levels. In vitro, adalimumab decreased the CD18 shedding explaining the initial decrease in sCD18 plasma levels. The late increase found especially in the patients with an early ACR70 response or EULAR DAS response could reflect latency in restoration of the normal immune system, pointing to sCD18 as a marker for such restoration. References Gjelstrup LC et al., J. Immunol., 2010 Oct. Kragstrup TW et al., Arthritis Res Ther, 2014 Jan (accepted). Disclosure of Interest : None declared DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.5732


Interleukin 6 (IL-6) plays critical roles in the immune response and hematopoiesis. It is a potent B cell differentiation factor inducing antibody-forming plasma cells. It enhances interleukin 3-induced proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells. Furthermore, IL-6 induces maturation of megakaryocytes. In IL-6 transgenic mice, a massive polyclonal plasmacytosis and an increase in the number of mature megakaryocytes in the bone marrow were observed. The data indicated that deregulated expression of the IL-6 gene induced a polyclonal plasmacytosis and could be involved in the oncogenesis of plasma cell neoplasias. IL-6 receptor (IL-6R) was molecularly cloned and found to be an immunoglobulin superfamily having an MW of 80 kDa. Upon the binding of IL-6 to its 80 kDa IL-6R, a second non-binding molecule, gp130 was shown to associate with IL-6R. The complex of IL-6 and soluble IL-6R lacking both transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains could bind gp130 and transduce the signal. The results indicate that the IL-6R system consists of two polypeptide chains: one is an 80 kDa ligand-binding molecule and the other is a possible signal transducer, gp130.


Some symbiotic probiotics have antioxidant activities and could improve the antioxidant capacity of the host. There is still no report on the screening of host-derived antioxidant probiotics for grouper farming. In this study, 369 out of 583 isolates were screened from the gut of hybrid grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus ♀ × Epinephelus lanceolatus ♂) based on their non-hemolytic characteristics. Subsequent preliminary screening with 2,2-Diphenyl-1-Picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging rate assay resulted in 36 potential antioxidant isolates. After comprehensive evaluation with nine different antioxidant assays (DPPH scavenging rate, 2,2'-azino-bis (3-ethylbezothiazoline)-6-sulfonic acid radical scavenging rate, iron ion reducing ability, reducing activity, O2 -· scavenging rate,·OH scavenging rate, ferrous ion chelating rate, hydrogen peroxide tolerance, oxygen-free radical scavenging ability, et al.), 10 isolates with strong antioxidant abilities were screened from 36 potential antioxidant isolates. Then some other probiotic properties, such as simulated gastrointestinal fluid tolerance, adhesion, digestive enzyme activity, and antibacterial activity of the 10 selected isolates were evaluated. All 10 isolates were also identified using the molecular method. Finally, Vibrio rhodolitus GO 91 and Shewanella corallii GO 310, as representatives of the two genera resulting from the identification of the 10 isolates, and with the best overall probiotic properties, were selected from the 10 isolates. Isolates GO 91 and GO 310 were further tested for their safety performances. Antibiotic sensitivity tests showed that GO91 and GO310 were sensitive to many commonly used aquaculture antibiotics. The in vivo challenge test of GO 91 and GO 310 didn't cause any disease symptoms or death in hybrid grouper. Therefore, isolates GO 91 and GO 310 showed great potential to be used as probiotics in hybrid grouper farming.


The use of the surgical robot has been increasing in thoracic surgery. Its three-dimensional view and instruments with surgical wrists may provide advantages over traditional thoracoscopic techniques. Our initial experience with thoracoscopic robot-assisted minimally invasive esophagectomy (RAMIE) for esophageal cancer was compared with our traditional thoracoscopic minimally invasive esophagectomy (MIE) approach for esophageal cancer. A retrospective review of a prospective database was performed. From July 2008 to October 2009, 43 patients underwent MIE resection. Patients who had benign disease and intrathoracic anastomosis were excluded. Results are presented as mean ± SD. Significance was set as P < 0.05. Eleven patients who underwent RAMIE and 26 who underwent MIE were included in the cohort. No differences in age, sex, race, body mass index, or preoperative radiotherapy or chemotherapy between the groups were observed. No significant differences in operative time, blood loss, number of resected lymph nodes, postoperative complications, days of mechanical ventilation, length of intensive care unit stay, or length of hospital stay were also observed. In this short-term study, RAMIE was found to be equivalent to thoracoscopic MIE and did not offer clear advantages.


Preface. Acknowledgments. Introduction to Fiber-Optic Transmission. Fiber-Optic Cable. Connectors, Splices, and Other Passive Devices. Light Sources. Light Detectors. Impairments to Light Transmission. Regenerators and Fiber-Optic Amplifiers. Wave-Division Multiplexing. Synchronous Optical Network (SONET) and Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH). Link Engineering of Lightwave Systems. Outside Plant Considerations. System Availability and Survivability. Powering Options to Improve Availability. Hybrid Fiber-Coax (HFC) Systems. On-Premises Wiring of Buildings--Fiber Optics. Tools for Trouble Shooting Fiber-Optic Systems. Optical Networking. Appendix: Acronyms and Abbreviations. Index.


Are there "hidden parameters" in quantum theory? This problem has been discussed repeatedly by physicists and debated vigorously by the philosophers of materialistic and idealistic viewpoints. We suggest a kind of experiments which may be used to clarify the problem and might be useful in developing a theory of unstable particles.


A semiempirical model is described of charge deposition near an interface of dissimilar materials irradiated by /spl gamma/-quanta. The input to the suggested model is the secondary electron yield and effective reflection coefficient. These parameters were tabulated using a special Monte Carlo code for Z=6-79 (C, Al, Cu, Ag, Au) and for different initial angles of photons with energy 0.1-2 MeV. It is found that energy and particle reflection coefficients differ by the factor of approximately 1.5. The deposited charge calculated according to the model agrees with that obtained by direct simulation technique to an accuracy better than 10% for every combination of materials in the energy range considered.


Objective To understand the iodine nutritive status of the pregnant women and wet nurses in two counties of Shan Xi Zha Shui and An Kang.In order to provide the scientific evidences for the causes and interference of the mind mental retardative children in those areas.Methods Contents of iodine in urines and milk were measured by spectrophotometer.Contents of T 3、T 4、TSH in serum were tested by radioimmuoassay(RIA).Results Contents of urinary iodine were 235.7 μg/L in pregnant women and 214.3 μg/L in wet nurses respectively,but the rate of urinary iodine level lowed than that of the low limit in the national standard of urinary oidine (100 μg/L) were 1.6% in pregnant woman and 6.7% in wet nurse respectively.The T 3 levels were 0.7 μg/L in pregnant woman and 0.6 μg/L in wet nurse and the rate of T 3 levels lowed than the standard value ( 0.8 μg/L ) were 67.2% in pregnant women and 69.4% in wet nurses respectively.The T 4 levels were 95.6 μg/L in pregnant women and 63.0 μg/L in wet nurses respectively,the rate of lowed than the standard value (100 μg/L) was 58.3% in pregnant women and than the standard value (57.0 μg/L) was 40.3% in wet nurses respectively.The TSH levels in pregnant women and wet nurses were higher than that of the standard value (5.0 mU/L) and the rate of TSH increased were 25.0% in pregnant women and 23.8% in wet nurses respectively.Milk iodine content of mothers were 163.1 μg/L.Conclusions The iodine absorption in pregnant women and wet nurses were well at present period,but functive index of thyroid were not well.Those results were reverse from the value of urinary iodine,it indicated that iodine absorption and utilize were not well in human body of pregnant woment and wet nurese.


This paper has made to investigate the thermal performance characteristics for several types of brazed aluminum heat sinks with offset-strip fin. Heat sinks with different fin height, fin length, number of fin layer and slanted fin are prepared and tested for natural convection as well as forced convection. The experimental results for brazed heat sink(BHS) are compared to those for advanced pin fin heat sink(PHS) so that the appropriate heat sink can be designed or chosen according to the heating conditions. The overall heat transfer performances for BHS are almost comparable to those of PHS under natural convection, and become 1.2~1.5 times as high as those of PHS under forced convection situation. This study shows that fin height and number of fin layer are important parameters, which have a serious influence on thermal performance for brazed heat sinks.


A 6-month-old splenectomized calf was inoculated with blood from a cattle with Tick Fever. The clinical signs, rectal temperature and packed cell volume were observed between the 0 and 40th days. Blood and blood clot samples were collected from the calf on the 8th, 10th, 22th, 24th and 26th days. The following techniques were evaluated by the Anaplasma marginale parasitemia: thin blood smear of blood clot fragment and smear of a drop of blood clot. The slides were stained by the dilute and pure Giemsa methods. The results were acceptable and the authors propose the use of the three techniques to confirm an Anaplasma diagnosis.


Abstract Objectives: Health information systems (HIS) commonly contain patient addresses that provide valuable data for geocoding and spatial analysis, enabling more comprehensive descriptions of individual patients in biomedical studies. Despite the widespread adoption of HIS, no systematic review has examined the extent to which spatial analysis is used in characterizing patient phenotypes. Materials and Methods: We systematically evaluated English-language peer-reviewed articles from PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases from inception to August 20, 2023, without imposing constraints on time, geography, or specific health domains. Results: Only 62 articles met the eligibility criteria. These articles utilized diverse spatial methods, with a predominant focus on clustering techniques, while spatiotemporal analysis (frequentist and Bayesian) and modeling were relatively underexplored. Geographically, the use was limited, involving only nine countries, with over 80% of studies conducted in the United States. Moreover, a noteworthy surge (82.3%) in publications was observed post-2017. The publications investigated various clinical areas, including infectious disease, endocrinology, and cardiology, using phenotypes defined over a range of data domains, such as demographics, diagnoses, and visit. The primary health outcomes investigated were asthma, hypertension, and diabetes. Notably, patient phenotypes involving genomics, imaging, and notes were rarely utilized. Discussion and Conclusion: This review underscores the growing interest in spatial analysis of HIS-derived data and highlights knowledge gaps in clinical health, phenotype domains, geospatial distribution, and spatial methodologies. Additionally, this review proposes guidelines for harnessing the potential of spatial analysis to enhance the context of individual patients for future biomedical research.


A software-defined radio receiver is designed from a low-power ADC perspective, exploiting programmability of windowed integration sampler and clock-programmable discrete-time analog filters. To cover the major frequency bands in use today, a wideband RF front-end, including the low-noise amplifier (LNA) and a wide tuning-range synthesizer, spanning over 800 MHz to 6 GHz is designed. The wideband LNA provides 18-20 dB of maximum gain and 3-3.5 dB of noise figure over 800 MHz to 6 GHz. A low 1/f noise and high-linearity mixer is designed which utilizes the passive mixer core properties and provides around +70 dBm IIP2 over the bandwidth of operation. The entire receiver circuits are implemented in 90-nm CMOS technology. Programmability of the receiver is tested for GSM and 802.11g standards


The lateral load resisting system of a multi‐storey building is considered to be an assembly of structural components, such as the structural frame, shear walls, concrete cores, etc. However, in reality, some so‐called 'non‐structural components (NSCs)' also play important roles in adding stiffness to the building. To evaluate the contributions from those NSCs and to quantify some of their contributions to the stiffness of the structure under service level loads, this paper reports on the analysis of a lateral load resisting system with different components so that the stiffness contribution from each individual component may be evaluated. Results from finite element analyses are verified by other theoretical calculations. Discussions and conclusions on the performance of both single components and the building system are also provided. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Failure of organic packages is often accelerated by mechanical failure of an underfill designed to protect the solder joints. The crack growth rate of an underfill under thermal cycling is crucial for package reliability and lifetime prediction. Mechanically-induced fatigue crack growth results have been used in package reliability studies, but thermally-induced fatigue crack growth data for underfills does not exist. Thermal fatigue experiments are complex to perform, since it is thermal loading that grows underfill cracks in actual packages. We describe the fatigue crack growth behaviors of an underfill measured by applying thermal fatigue stresses to obtain low-cycle fatigue da/dN vs. thermal stress intensity factor plots. The number of cycles to failure or fast fracture was found to depend strongly on thermal loading. We compared thermal fatigue data with thermal fracture toughness results, and found that the final crack length after thermal fatigue crack growth compared well with the critical crack length of thermal fracture data.


A 5-day-old Thoroughbred colt was presented with profuse watery diarrhea, hypovolemic shock, and a patent urachus. Despite intensive medical therapy, the colt was euthanized 15 d later due to poor clinical response. Necropsy revealed a small intestinal structural abnormality that formed a closed jejunal ring. Although rare, intestinal malformations should be considered in neonatal foals with clinical signs resembling enteritis.


The fireshell model for Gamma‐Ray Bursts (GRBs) naturally leads to a canonical GRB composed of a proper‐GRB (P‐GRB) and an afterglow. P‐GRBs, introduced by us in 2001, are sometimes considered "precursors" of the main GRB event in the current literature. We show in this paper how the fireshell model leads to the understanding of the structure of GRBs, with precise estimates of the time sequence and intensities of the P‐GRB and the of the afterglow. It leads as well to a natural classification of the canonical GRBs which overcomes the traditional one in short and long GRBs.


Background: We initiated a prospective, institution-wide study to determine whether genomic testing with a 409-gene panel in solid tumors can identify new actionable genomic information (beyond that identified by smaller hot-spot panels) and lead to enrollment in genotype matched trials using agents relevant to the alteration(s) identified when coupled with robust decision support tools. Methods: Eligible patients (pts) had no remaining standard of care therapy anticipated to extend life by more than 3 months, ECOG performance status of ≤ 1, and a willingness to consider clinical trial enrollment. The patients9 tumors were initially sequenced using a hotspot panel (predominantly a 50-gene panel, Life Technology, Ion Torrent), and if no actionable alterations were found, then tumor and paired germline were sequenced with a 409-full-length (Ion Proton) gene panel. Actionable genes were defined as those for which a matched genotype selected trial exists in the institution. Results: 471 pts across more than 30 tumor types were consented and underwent 409-gene testing. Data for each mutation, relevant therapeutic agents and corresponding clinical trials were annotated. Each variant was annotated for the level of evidence that associated a specific alteration in a potentially actionable cancer gene with a potential therapeutic opportunity with appropriate references. Specific mutations, copy number variants and fusions were linked to targeted agents, clinical trials, and functional data. Data were distributed via a publicly accessible website, reports and proactive clinical trial alert notifications. Alterations in a potentially actionable gene were found in 48.0% of patients. Novel alterations in an actionable gene not found on a previous hot-spot panel were found in 36.9% of pts (174 pts). Of the 434 mutations found in actionable genes in these 174 pts, the specific variant in the gene was of known activity based on existing literature in only 17%; for 41% the variant was of unknown significance. Approximately one-quarter of patients with mutations in actionable genes were enrolled on clinical trials using matched-therapies during the period of data review. Reasons for non-enrollment were the treating physician9s opinion that there was insufficient evidence for the functional significance of the variant, exclusion criteria or lack of available slots, or other reasons including pt choice. Conclusions: A significant population of patients with variants in potentially actionable cancer genes not evaluated in a traditional hot-spot cancer gene panel can be identified using a 409-gene targeted gene panel. The high number of variants of unknown significance represents a knowledge gap of clinical importance. While a number of factors contribute to bottlenecks in utilizing the expanded sequencing results, expanded genomic testing combined with robust decision support can facilitate trial enrollment. Citation Format: Kenna R. Shaw, Scott Kopetz, Vijaykumar Holla, Beate C. Litzenburger, Walter Kinyua, Blessy Sajan, J. Jack Lee, Russell Broaddus. Prospective evaluation of two-phase NGS platform coupled to active precision oncology decision support in the therapeutic management of patients with advanced cancers. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2015 Nov 5-9; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2015;14(12 Suppl 2):Abstract nr A76.


The paper deals with a computational method for detection of the solar system minor bodies (SSOs), whose inter-frame shifts in series of CCD-frames during the observation are commensurate with the errors in measuring their positions. These objects have velocities of apparent motion between CCD-frames not exceeding three RMS errors ($3\sigma$) of measurements of their positions. About 15\% of objects have a near-zero apparent motion in CCD-frames, including the objects beyond the Jupiter's orbit as well as the asteroids heading straight to the Earth.
The proposed method for detection of the object's near-zero apparent motion in series of CCD-frames is based on the Fisher f-criterion instead of using the traditional decision rules that are based on the maximum likelihood criterion. We analyzed the quality indicators of detection of the object's near-zero apparent motion applying statistical and in situ modeling techniques in terms of the conditional probability of the true detection of objects with a near-zero apparent motion.
The efficiency of method being implemented as a plugin for the Collection Light Technology (CoLiTec) software for automated asteroids and comets detection has been demonstrated. Among the objects discovered with this plugin, there was the sungrazing comet C/2012 S1 (ISON). Within 26 minutes of the observation, the comet's image has been moved by three pixels in a series of four CCD-frames (the velocity of its apparent motion at the moment of discovery was equal to 0.8 pixels per CCD-frame; the image size on the frame was about five pixels). Next verification in observations of asteroids with a near-zero apparent motion conducted with small telescopes has confirmed an efficiency of the method even in bad conditions (strong backlight from the full Moon). So, we recommend applying the proposed method for series of observations with four or more frames.


Ground energy systems use the ground and groundwater beneath a site as a heat source or sink to reduce energy costs and improve the environmental performance of buildings. The design and performance of the ground element of these systems (boreholes and ground loops) are dominant factors in the capital and operating costs of the system, yet, at present, such systems are often specified with little geotechnical input. This paper reviews some of the existing design approaches from a geotechnical perspective, and identifies potential failure modes (short term, long term and regulatory related) for ground energy systems. Short-term failures may result from deficiencies in the capacity of the infrastructure forming the ground element and/or from poor connection between the infrastructure and the ground. Long-term failures may derive from misestimation of loads and/or ground parameters. Possible future directions in the design of ground energy systems are discussed, and the need for informed geotechnical input to ground energy system design is highlighted.


Older adult inmates have grown both in proportion and in number due to the confluence of a number offactors. This aging of the prison population has created a host of policy and practice issues that encompass justice considerations, cost containment issues, and biopsychosocial care needs. The older prisoner's physical, social, and psychological needs are complex and necessitate gerontologically based service delivery systems. The intent of this article is to help in the preparation of social work practitioners who can engage in older adult prison advocacy work by familiarizing them with a review of pertinent literature. Topics discussed include the following: the characteristics of older adult inmates, the special needs of older offenders and accompanying service delivery issues, and the use of selective decarceration as one strategy for addressing the problem of prison overcrowding. The authors conclude the article with a summary of key challenges social workers face in assisting this population.


We study the transport in semiconductor superlattices subject to quantizing electric and magnetic fields, which are aligned parallel to the growth axis, based on the double-time nonequilibrium Green function method. The eigenstates of the system are completely discrete due to Wannier-Stark and Landau quantization unless elastic or inelastic scattering leads to a finite collisional broadening. Our quantum-mechanical approach goes beyond the Kadanoff-Baym ansatz and reveals the hopping character of the high-field transport in narrow-miniband superlattices. Gaps appear in the electric-field and magnetic-field dependences of the current, which are smeared out only by Coulomb interaction or scattering on acoustic phonons.


The development of any integrity assurance program for existing underground tanks includes soil borings to detect contamination, field testing to determine the electric and chemical properties of the tank system and surrounding environment, computer modeling to assess the potential for corrosion and assign a priority index, precision tank testing inventory analysis and repairs and retrofitting with cathodic protection. A program is presented that provides the framework for making decisions that satisfy the requirements for safety, economics, and regulations.


This paper presents a system for speaker independent keyword spotting (KWS) in continuous speech using a spoken example template. The approach, based on Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) for matching the template to a test utterance, does not require any modelling or training as required in alternative techniques such as the Hidden Markov Model (HMM). This is of particular relevance to applications such as detection of words that have not been adequately represented in a training database (e.g. searching for topical words that are emerging in society). Introduced is the use of the DTW distance histogram for automatic estimation of similarity thresholds for every keyword-utterance pair. Experiments conducted on a wide range of speech sentences and keywords show that when only a few examples of the keyword are available, the proposed system has higher recall ratio than a HMM-based approach.


We present ReadOnce Transformers, an approach to convert a transformer-based model into one that can build an information-capturing, task-independent, and compressed representation of text. The resulting representation is reusable across different examples and tasks, thereby requiring a document shared across many examples or tasks to only be read once. This leads to faster training and evaluation of models. Additionally, we extend standard text-to-text transformer models to Representation+Text-to-text models, and evaluate on multiple downstream tasks: multi-hop QA, abstractive QA, and long-document summarization. Our one-time computed representation results in a 2x-5x speedup compared to standard text-to-text models, while the compression also allows existing language models to handle longer documents without the need for designing new pre-trained models.


The first editorial for Brain Impairment was entitled 'Landmark development'. Published in May 2000, the editorial both told a story and painted a context. In two paragraphs it recounted the pioneering work of Professor John Walsh and the history of the first two decades of the Australian Society for the Study of Brain Impairment (ASSBI), culminating in the foundation of the journal. In telling this story, the context for the journal was also outlined. Reflecting the nature of ASSBI, the journal would aim to be multidisciplinary and to address the full range of conditions that affect brain function across the lifespan.


This review is an attempt to explain the role of basal ganglia (BG) outputs in generating movements. Recent work showed that opponent outputs from the BG represent instantaneous body position coordinates during behavior. On the other hand, projection neurons in the striatum, the major input nucleus, as well as dopaminergic neurons that form the nigrostriatal pathway, can represent movement velocity. To explain these findings, a new model is proposed, in which the BG implement the level of transition control in an extended control hierarchy. BG outputs represent descending reference signals that command diverse lower-level position controllers. This model not only explains major neurological symptoms but also makes quantitative and testable predictions.


The vibrational spectra of a number of transition metal tetra-oxo-complexes are reported for the first time, including those of salts containing the anions [RuO4]–; [MO4]2–(M = Mn, Fe, or Ru); [MO4]3–(M = Cr, Mn, Re, or Fe); and [MO4]4–(M = Ti, V, Cr, Mo, W, Fe, or Co). From these measurements and published data on the fundamental frequencies of other such ions we calculate force constants for most of the known transition-metal tetra-oxoanions. Raman data on [Cr18O4]2– and [W18O4]2– are also presented


Abstract.— The iris in Red-Eared Slider Turtles (Trachemys scripta elegans) is intrinsically photosensitive, slowly constricting the pupil when exposed to light. We hypothesized that one of the photopigments involved in the photomechanical response (PMR) is melanopsin (Opn4). The purpose of this project was to determine whether mRNA of Opn4 is present in their iris. After eyes were dissected from animals, we extracted iris tissues to carry out fluorescent in situ hybridization. Comparison of fluorescence from images revealed significant labeling in the iris for two melanopsin isoforms (Opn4x and Opn4m). We then carried out quantitative real-time PCR to identify relative expression levels of mRNA. Expressions by both isoforms in the iris were significant. In contrast to the retina, which had higher levels of Opn4m than Opn4x, the iris had higher levels of Opn4x than Opn4m. We also carried out Carr–Price reactions on tissue extracts, which were stabilized by hydroxylamine, and detected retinal oxime in the iris. Possession of retinal oxime indicates prior presence of retinal, a vitamin A-type chromophore, necessary for a functional protein. Evidence of a chromophore along with both Opn4 mRNA isoforms in the iris of this species supports presence of the photopigment and a possible role in the turtles' slow PMR.


We used a "high-performance" liquid-chromatographic assay [for parent cyclosporine (CsA) and nine metabolites] and a radioimmunoassay to detail the diversity of results among whole-blood samples from patients with transplanted organs. Heterogeneous populations of metabolites in samples collected just before the next dose of CsA were detected by HPLC, with CsA, M17, M1, or M8 predominating; M21, M203-218, MUNDF1, and M18 were detected in lesser amounts. Results by HPLC vs RIA for CsA or for individual metabolites vs CsA (or RIA) were diverse, with correlation coefficients (r) ranging from 0.058 to 0.933. RIA vs HPLC(sum of CsA + metabolites) gave the best comparison (slope = 0.931, y-intercept 14 micrograms/L, r = 0.933); but the scatter of data about the regression line remained significant (Sy/x = 132 micrograms/L). Most important, RIA/HPLC(CsA) vs HPLC(sum of metabolites) was remarkably poor (r = 0.222). A 12-h pharmacokinetic curve (for drug concentrations in a heart-transplant patient) displayed dissimilar times for peak concentrations of CsA and metabolites; each differed in the proportion (48% to 81% of peak concentration) eliminated from blood over the 12 h. These studies exemplify the utility of a more-inclusive, specific assay to monitor the diverse disposition of cyclosporines in patients and to demonstrate the errors associated with use of the RIA/HPLC ratio technique to predict metabolite concentrations.


The aroma compositions of Fragaria ananassa varieties are assessed by purge-and-trap high-resolution gas chromatography. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and gas chromatography/Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy allow the identification of 93 components from which 21 are for the first time described as constituents of strawberry aroma. Despite the complexity of the aroma, sensory properties are assigned to 40 components as perceived by three independent testers by application of a sniffing technique to the chromatographic effluent. The data are used for comparative sensory characterization of strawberry varieties by means of principal component analysis.


We study DAG-depth, a structural depth measure of directed graphs, which naturally extends the tree-depth of ordinary graphs. We define a DAG-depth decomposition as a strategy for the cop player in the lift-free version of the cops-and-robber game on directed graphs and prove its correctness. The DAG-depth decomposition is related to DAG-depth in a similar way as an elimination tree is related to the tree-depth. We study the size aspect of DAG-depth decomposition and provide a definition of mergeable and optimally mergeable vertices in order to make the decomposition smaller and acceptable for the cop player as a strategy. We also provide a way to find the closure of a DAG-depth decomposition, which is the largest digraph for which the given decomposition represents a winning strategy for the cop player.


In this paper we point out the relevance of and the need for a theoretical discussion around UX research and practice. Although there is a good coverage of methodological and design related topics in the HCI literature, there is still a lack of theoretical focus in the rapidly increasing work on user experience (UX). We analyzed 122 individual items on theories collected in a CHI'11 special interest group session on UX theories and theoretical frameworks. The data set was filtered and categorized in several iterations, resulting in 56 items distributed over 7 major theory categories and related to 9 relevant disciplines. The categories are an initial mapping of the field and point towards the directions for further conceptual and theoretical clarification. Our results help to explore the multi-disciplinary nature of UX and to build a more solid foundation for UX research and practice.


Hexagonal ZnO nanorings were synthesized using a one-step hydrothermal method and Au nanoparticles were decorated on the surface of the ZnO nanorings through a facile deposition process. The as-prepared ZnO nanorings showed a well-defined hexagonal shape with a width of 0.75–1.4 μm, a thickness of 0.17–0.33 μm and a hollow size of 0.2–1 μm. For the Au nanoparticle-decorated hexagonal ZnO nanorings (Au–ZnO nanorings), Au nanoparticles with a size of 3–10 nm were distributed discretely on the surface of the ZnO nanorings. The acetylene sensing performance was tested for the ZnO nanorings and Au–ZnO nanorings. The results indicated that the Au–ZnO nanorings showed a higher response (28 to 100 ppm acetylene), lower operating temperature (255 °C), faster response/recovery speed (less than 9 s and 5 s, respectively), and lower minimum detectable acetylene concentration (about 1 ppm). In addition, the mechanism for the enhanced acetylene-sensing performance of the Au–ZnO nanorings was discussed.


The assumption that the illuminated region and the penumbra of a body scatter independently at high frequencies is used to obtain scattering coefficients for perfectly reflecting convex bodies in plane electromagnetic and sound waves. The formulae involve only the scattering coefficients of the circular cylinder and the geometry of the shadow boundary. One general result is that the electromagnetic scattering coefficient of a solid of revolution, when the direction of propagation of the incident wave is along the axis of revolution, is the average of the sound-hard and sound-soft scattering coefficients.


High-Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) efficiently addresses the storage and transmit problems of high-definition videos, especially for 4K videos. The variable-size Prediction Units (PUs)--based Motion Estimation (ME) contributes a significant compression rate to the HEVC encoder and also generates a huge computation load. Meanwhile, high-level encoding complexity prevents widespread adoption of the HEVC encoder in multimedia systems. In this article, an adaptive fractional-pixel ME skipped scheme is proposed for low-complexity HEVC ME. First, based on the property of the variable-size PUs--based ME process and the video content partition relationship among variable-size PUs, all inter-PU modes during a coding unit encoding process are classified into root-type PU mode and children-type PU modes. Then, according to the ME result of the root-type PU mode, the fractional-pixel ME of its children-type PU modes is adaptively skipped. Simulation results show that, compared to the original ME in HEVC reference software, the proposed algorithm reduces ME encoding time by an average of 63.22% while encoding efficiency performance is maintained.


The phenomenon of visualized notions has been studied in 42 children and adolescents with schizophrenia. It has been established that visualized notions, being a peculiar manifestation of the visual image thinking reflecting individual characteristics of the ontogenesis of the psyche, change under the impact of the pathological process, which provides certain clinical information. The assessment of qualitative characteristics and the dynamics of visualized notions in the process of analysis of the mental status may serve as an additional criterion in schizophrenia diagnosis.


We propose an approach for learning category-level semantic segmentation purely from image-level classification tags indicating presence of categories. It exploits localization cues that emerge from training classification-tasked convolutional networks, to drive a "self-supervision" process that automatically labels a sparse, diverse training set of points likely to belong to classes of interest. Our approach has almost no hyperparameters, is modular, and allows for very fast training of segmentation in less than 3 minutes. It obtains competitive results on the VOC 2012 segmentation benchmark. More, significantly the modularity and fast training of our framework allows new classes to efficiently added for inference.


Reducible disulfide-containing hyperbranched PEI-SS-HP was synthesized via click chemistry and evaluated as nonviral gene carrier. The structure of the polymers was confirmed by 1 H NMR and FTIR. It was shown that the PEI-SS-HP was able to bind plasmid DNA to positively charged nanoparticles. The reduction sensitivity of the PEI-SS-HP was confirmed by gel retardation assay in the presence of DTT mimicking an intracellular reductive environment. In vitro experiments revealed that the reducible PEI-SS-HP not only had much lower cytotoxicity, but also posed superior transfection activity as compared to non-degradable 25-kDa PEI. The results indicate that a reducibly degradable PEI-SS-HP can be a promising gene vector.


—Statistical and machine learning is a fundamental task in sensor networks. Real world data almost always exhibit dependence among different features. Copulas are full measures of statistical dependence among random variables. Estimating the underlying copula density function from distributed data is an important aspect of statistical learning in sensor networks. With limited communication capacities or privacy concerns, centralization of the data is often impossible. By only collect-ing the ranks of the data observed by different sensors, we estimate and evaluate the copula density on an equally spaced grid after binning the standardized ranks at the fusion center. Without assuming any parametric forms of copula densities, we estimate them nonparametrically by maximum penalized likelihood estimation (MPLE) method with a Total Variation (TV) penalty. Linear equality and positivity constraints arise naturally as a consequence of marginal uniform densities of any copulas. Through local quadratic approximation to the likelihood function, the constrained TV-MPLE problem is cast as a sequence of corresponding quadratic optimization problems. A fast gradient based algorithm solves the constrained TV penalized quadratic optimization problem. Numerical experiments show that our algorithm can estimate the underlying copula density accurately


PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
Significant cancer disparities exist between Black and White patients. One important contributor to patient outcomes disparities is patient-clinician communication. Conversations between clinicians and Black patients are often shorter and less detailed compared to White patients.

LITERATURE SEARCH
A systematic literature search was conducted. Databases were searched to identify studies that included (a) participants with a cancer diagnosis, (b) information specific to Black or African American participants, and (c) information on patient-clinician communication. A total of 67 articles underwent full review; 24 studies met inclusion criteria.

DATA EVALUATION
Each included study was scored for level of evidence, and common themes were identified across studies using the Matrix Method.

SYNTHESIS
The following themes were identified: relationship building, building trust, empowering patients for shared decision-making, addressing topics of patient concern, and consideration of community and family.

IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH
Results identify several ways that nurses can improve communication with Black patients. Research aimed at identifying interpersonal strategies to mitigate cancer disparities is needed.


Histone deacetylases (HDACs) perform key functions in transcriptional regulation by modifying the core histones of the nucleosome as well as non-histone targets. We have previously cloned and characterized HDAC9, a member of the Class IIa HDAC family, which also contains HDACs 4,5 and 7. These are characterized by the presence of a common N-terminal region, which mediates direct interactions with transcription factors such as BCL-6 or MEF2. The HDAC9 gene encodes multiple protein isoforms some of which display distinct cellular localization patterns and biological activities. The transcribed region of HDAC9 is very large, spanning more than 900 kilobases, with approximately 50% of these sequences being non-coding. Consistent with its size as well as the multiplicity and structural complexity of expressed HDAC9 isoforms, we report that HDAC9 expression is under the control of three independent promoter regions, one of which possesses a CpG island. This is in contrast to other HDAC genes thus far identified, each of which appears to possess a single CpG island-containing promoter. Transcripts initiating from the individual HDAC9 promoters are differentially expressed and encode specific HDAC9 isoforms. A comparison of the human and mouse HDAC9 genes reveals some important differences in both regulatory regions and coding sequences. Specifically, the human HDAC9 gene can express from its second promoter, which is not present in the mouse gene, hematopoietic-specific transcripts (i.e. only found in the lymph node, spleen and lymphocytes in normal tissue) that encode isoforms containing previously unidentified N-terminal sequences. In normal B cells, HDAC9 mRNA transcripts are initiated from the second and proximal promoters and stimulation of these cells with IL2, α-CD40 MoAb, Staphylococcus aureus Cowan strain 1, or arsenic trioxide had no appreciable affect on HDAC9 expression. However, due to a potentially abnormal differential promoter usage and alternative splicing, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patient B-cells displayed HDAC9 isoform expression pattern that was dramatically distinct from that observed in normal B-cells. Specifically, there was significant expression from the distal (CpG island containing) promoter, which is not utilised in normal B cells, and overexpression from the second and proximal promoters. With regard to alternative splicing, the CLL patient cells lacked exon7, which contains a nuclear localization signal and exon12, which contains a site of sumoylation - a modification linked to deacetylase activity. Moreover, these changes were specific for full-length HDAC9, and not the MITR isoform that lacks catalytic domain. Stimulation of CLL patient B-cells with SAC/IL-2 caused a switch in promoter usage leading to the change in isoform specific expression to a pattern that is identical to that of normal B-cells. These results suggest that deregulation of HDAC9 expression may play a role in B-cell development and the pathogenesis of B-cell neoplasms. Given the need for development of better therapies for indolent B-cell malignancies such as CLL, the finding that HDAC9 expression in cancer cells is modulated by SAC/IL-2 points to a possible combinatorial therapy with HDAC inhibitors, which have been shown to induce apoptosis in CLL cells.


Schwannoma of the head and neck may origin from many nerves, i.e. cranial or spinal. The authors described that rare benign neoplasm of peripheral nerve sheath, localized in parotid gland in a 68-year-old female. For diagnosis FNB, USG were carried out. The patient was treated surgically.


Many employers were shocked and alarmed when the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2006 unanimously established a relatively broad standard regarding employees' complaints of retaliation by employers when employees have made discrimination complaints. An examination of case law as well as comments made by those attending the 2006 Labor and Employment Law Roundtable at the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration allow us to conclude that although employees who make complaints need to be treated carefully, employers need not panic. Instead, they must thoroughly document any personnel actions and base them on actual performance, making sure that any termination or demotion is, in fact, not a retaliation.


The Red Palm Weevil (RPW) is one of the most damaging pests to palm cultivation; this invasive weevil poses a threat to the palm industry. The characterization and identification of this pest in order to determine its biological diversity is the first step in controlling it, which will help in developing effective control programs. The purpose of this study is to investigate the biodiversity of and characterize RPW from five different Egyptian geographical locations at morphological and genetic levels using morphometric analysis, scanning electronic microscopy and two different genetic markers. Our results revealed no significant differences between length and width of the adult body among RPW adults from different geographical locations. Different typologies of prothoracic spots were observed, indicating a degree of diversity in the RPW populations. The magnitude of the different body parts was measured among both males and females. Significant differences were exhibited between length of the antennal seta, as well as forelegs, the lengths and widths of the pronotum, and the rostrum length between both sexes. Both RAPD and ISSR used DNA markers, generating reproducible and distinct banding patterns. The polymorphic banding patterns that have resulted from all studied populations confirmed that these markers demonstrate genetic variability amongst the studied Egyptian populations of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus. The recorded differences may be due to the presence of different red palm weevil genotypes. The obtained results might have potential applications in developing a new tracking and control strategy for this invasive pest.


Abstract : Perhaps nothing is more human than to assume that things easily seen are more real and important than those largely hidden from view. Take icebergs, for example. Typically, we focus on the highly visible tips of icebergs above the water s surface rather than the much larger masses of ice hidden from us under the cold, dark water. We fail to appreciate how much the tip depends on all of that mass below it in order to float and how much additional mass is hidden from our view. In many ways, it s the same story with Air Force command and control (C2). Over the last couple of decades, the US Air Force has pioneered and developed a C2 enterprise for joint and coalition airpower that is rivaled by none. When we describe it, we tend to emphasize the highly visible aspects of tactical employment, like the missionpackage coordination and tactical execution activities practiced in every Red Flag exercise. As one would expect, however, there is much, much more to the C2 story in terms of who created the plan and whether it will contribute to our desired strategic outcomes. As we make difficult choices in an era of reduced resources, we must ensure that we do not lose sight of the people, processes, and ideas that help link our tactical actions to desired strategic outcomes. This article describes the foundational C2 concepts that comprise the entire C2 iceberg. After a brief discussion of the more familiar tip of the C2 iceberg, it then addresses the rest of the C2 iceberg the people, processes, and products that constitute the air tasking cycle in component major command and numbered air force headquarters. For our purposes and to suggest a useful distinction not discriminatingly demarcated in Air Force C2 doctrine the article refers to these as component headquarters command and control (CHQ C2).


As conservative surgery and radiation therapy have become accepted treatments for early-stage breast cancer, increasing attention has focused on the cosmetic results of this technique. When partial mastectomy--a term which encompasses a diversity of excisional techniques--is followed by radiation therapy, breast defects characterized by parenchymal loss, nipple-areola complex distortion, and cutaneous abnormalities can occur. From 1981 to 1990, eight patients sought reconstructive correction of a radiated partial mastectomy deformity. Patients were from 42 to 70 years of age (mean 49 years). All had breast cancer, except for one patient with diffuse and chronic breast abscesses. Six patients were reconstructed with latissimus dorsi flaps and two with rectus flaps. No patient underwent reconstruction sooner than 1 year after completion of radiation therapy; for the entire group, a mean of 2.6 years elapsed from completion of radiation therapy to flap reconstruction of the breast. Mammograms were obtained on all the breast cancer patients before and after the myocutaneous flap procedure. Follow-up extended from 1 to 9 years after reconstruction (mean 3.6 years) and included both physical examination and serial mammographic evaluations. Myocutaneous flap reconstruction with either latissimus or rectus flaps achieved an aesthetic improvement of the partial mastectomy deformity in all eight patients. Complications consisted only of seroma formation in two patients following latissimus flap reconstruction. Mammographic evaluation revealed fibrofatty degeneration of the soft tissues of both types of flaps, a change that occurs as early as 6 months after operation and appears as a radiolucent area. The feasibility of mammography as a screening adjunct for recurrent cancer in this group of patients is demonstrated. Advantages of this technique of autogenous tissue reconstruction are improvement of contour deformities associated with conservative surgery and radiation therapy, preservation of normal, sensate breast skin, enhancement of symmetry with the contralateral breast, and avoidance of a prosthesis.


A counterintuitive cell-free protein synthesis (CFPS) strategy, based on reducing the ribosomal fraction in rabbit reticulocyte lysate (RRL), triggers the development of hybrid systems composed of RRL ribosome-free supernatant complemented with ribosomes from different mammalian cell-types. Hybrid RRL systems maintain translational properties of the original ribosome cell types, and deliver protein expression levels similar to RRL. Here, we show that persistent ribosome-associated metabolic activity consuming ATP is a major obstacle for maximal protein yield. We provide a detailed picture of hybrid CFPS systems energetic metabolism based on real-time nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) investigation of metabolites kinetics. We demonstrate that protein synthesis capacity has an upper limit at native ribosome concentration and that lower amounts of the ribosomal fraction optimize energy fluxes toward protein translation, consequently increasing CFPS yield. These results provide a rationalized strategy for further mammalian CFPS developments and reveal the potential of real-time NMR metabolism phenotyping for optimization of cell-free protein expression systems.


ABSTRACT: The concept of hypothyroid heart disease remains controversial. Although hemodynamic abnormalities have been describecd, the presence of underlying abnormal cardiac structures has not been confirmed. The authors studied 20 hypothyroid patients using M-mode echocardiography before and after 1-thyroxine therapy. Fifteen additional hypothyroid patients were studied using two-dinensional echocardiography to confirm the data of the first study. The findings were the same in both studies: during hypothyroidism, the interventricular septum is thickened, the ratio of septal thickness to left ventricular posterior wall thickening is increased, the right ventricular wall is thickened, regional wall motion of interventricular septum and right ventricular wall is decreased, and global function of the left ventricle is decreased. These findings are reversed with 1-thyroxine therapy; they occur within 6 months of the development of hypothyroidism, but appear unrelated to elevated TSH levels. Whether the thickened interventricular septum and right ventricular wall represent true muscular hypertrophy requires further elucidation. Nevertheless, these data demonstrate the existence of a hypothyroid cardiomyopathy.


Nanocrystal TiO2 has been synthesized from TiCl3 as a precursor using the co-precipitation method. Synthesis parameters are chosen to produce the anatase phase of TiO2 nanomaterials. Polymer-TiO2 composite was made from a mixture of TiO2 nanomaterials and poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and ethyl cellulose polymer materials. PVA solvents were used by water (H2O) while for ethyl cellulose used terpineol solvents. Composite fiber was made using electrospinning method with sedimentation parameters: between the syringe and Al foil collector applied the voltage at 10 kV, between the needle tip and the collector, the distance was 10 cm, the syringe pump was set at a constant flow rate of 1 ml/h, the collector rotation speed was 100 rpm , and humidity inside electrospinning machine was 40%. Samples were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). XRD results showed TiO2 crystal diffraction peaks when the composition of TiO2 was quite large, whereas for only a small TiO2 composition, the diffraction peaks did not appear and were only dominated by amorphous PVA. Deposition results showed that composite fibers have been formed for PVA polymers whereas fiber ethyl cellulose was not formed.


Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is common, with hypertension and diabetes mellitus acting as major risk factors for its development. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and the most frequent end point of CKD. There is an urgent need for more precise methods to identify patients at risk of CKD and cardiovascular disease. Alterations in microvascular structure and function contribute to the development of hypertension, diabetes, CKD, and their associated cardiovascular disease. Homology between the eye and the kidney suggests that noninvasive imaging of the retinal vessels can detect these microvascular alterations to improve targeting of at-risk patients. Retinal vessel – derived metrics predict incident hypertension, diabetes, CKD, and cardiovascular disease and add to the current renal and cardiovascular risk strati fi cation tools. The advent of optical coherence tomography (OCT) has transformed retinal imaging by capturing the chorioretinal microcirculation and its dependent tissue with near-histological resolution. In hypertension, diabetes, and CKD, OCT has revealed vessel remodeling and chorioretinal thinning. Clinical and preclinical OCT has linked retinal microvascular pathology to circulating and histological markers of injury in the kidney. The advent of OCT angiography allows contrast-free visualization of intraretinal capillary networks to potentially detect early incipient microvascular disease. Combining OCT ' s deep imaging with the analytical power of deep learning represents the next frontier in de fi ning what the eye can reveal about the kidney and broader cardiovascular health.


This is a numerical and experimental study on the film cooling effectiveness and pressure loss of cylindrical-shaped film cooling on an annular cascade. Film cooling holes will be employed on the inner diameter endwall, just upstream of the blade stagnation region of GE-E3 first stage high pressure turbine in a subsonic commercial aircraft. For a deeper understanding of the interaction behavior between film cooling jets and secondary flows inside the cascade passage, five (four and two halves) 3D profile airfoils are used to obtain a periodic flow in the middle passage. The experimental test rig has an inner diameter of 970 mm and outer diameter of 1098 mm (scaled 3X actual size). Total pressure loss and loss coefficient after the trailing edge surface are measured using a Five Hole Probe with 0.5 o and 10mm of circumferential and radial increment respectively. Film cooling effectiveness will be reported using a TSP method. Experimental data is validated by an in-house RANS model and by the existing literature. Results show that the pressure loss and film cooling effectiveness found in the test rig coincide with existing literature as well as CFD analysis.


We analyse the international transmission of interest rates by focusing on the role of the accumulation of international reserves and on the financing of sovereign debt. An increase in foreign exchange reserves is expected to moderate the influence of U.S. interest rates. However, a high level of government debt raises the sovereign risk premium. Moreover, an increase in the stock of government debt denominated in foreign currency may increase the expected rate of depreciation of the domestic currency. We explain the theoretical mechanisms in a model, which describes the money market equilibrium in an economy with capital account openness. Then, we test the predictions of the model for a panel of advanced and developing economies over the period 1970-2018. Our main findings are: i) significant spillovers from the U.S. interest rates to other countries, mostly for Advanced Economies; ii) a dampening effect of the share of external liabilities in the domestic currency, clearly a determinant of risk premium; iii) a negative effect of international reserves on interest rates, as expected; iv) higher reserves decrease risk premia, for long-term interest rates; v) the significance of spillovers fades once the sovereign debt reaches 100% of GDP in developed countries.


Background: To investigate the clinical feature in prognostic prediction of repeatedly recurrent spinal chondrosarcoma (RRSC). The purpose of this study was to illustrate the clinical parameters of RRSC and to discuss the prognostic factors by statistical analysis.Methods: Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate independent prognostic factors for recurrence and death of patients with RRSC. Recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) were estimated by Kaplan-Meier curve, and differences were analyzed by log-rank test. Factors with P < 0.1 extracted by univariate analysis were subjected to multivariate analysis by Cox regression analysis. P < 0.05 were considered statistically significant.Results: Included in this study were 49 patients with RRSC who were followed up by a mean of 31.7 months (median, 25 months; range, 5-93 months). Local recurrence was detected in 33 patients, with death in 28 patients. The final statistical analysis indicated that wide surgical margin (> 4 mm) was the most favorable prognostic factor for both recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). Meanwhile, fewer number of recurrences (NOR) was in favor of RFS, and lower pathological grade was a significant favorable prognostic factor for OS.Conclusion: Wide surgical margin should be considered in predicting the prognosis of RRSC, including RFS as well as OS. NOR was significant prognostic indicator for RFS, and pathological grading was significantly associated with OS.


Hepatitis C virus infection causes acute and often chronic hepatitis. Therapy with interferon-alpha has been shown to induce remission of the inflammatory process within the liver and also elimination of the virus. However, only about 50% of treated patients respond in terms of at least a transient disappearance of viral RNA from the circulation below the limit of detection. In order to find prognostic factors for responsiveness, patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection were analyzed for virus genotype and pretreatment biochemical liver parameters including serum AST, ALT, and gamma-GT activities. Whereas the initial biochemical response to interferon-alpha 2a was found not to be related to virus genotype, the initial virological response was found to be closely related to infection by genotype 3a and to a low pretreatment ratio of serum gamma-GT/ALT activity. These data confirm and extend the importance of virus genotype for responsiveness to interferon-alpha therapy and introduce an additional, host-specific parameter with a potential predictive value, namely the pretreatment ratio of serum gamma-GT/ALT activity.


We compared the clinical effects of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis (MIPPSO) and open surgery on the repair of thoracolumbar vertebra fracture. Seventy patients, who suffered from thoracolumbar vertebra fracture and received treatment at our hospital, were selected and randomly divided into either the minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis group (MIPPSO group) and the traditional open pedicle screws osteosynthesis group (TOPSO group) with 35 cases in each group. The perioperative parameters including length of incision, duration of operation, bleeding during operation, length of hospital stay, the changes of pre-operative and post-operative VAS pain scores, inflammatory indexes including serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and creatine kinase (CK), and imaging indexes including Cobb's angle and anterior margin height of vertebral body of both groups were compared. The length of incision, duration of operation, bleeding volume during operation and length of hospital stay in the MIPPSO group were significantly lower than those in the TOPSO group (P<0.05). Both minimally invasive surgery and traditional surgery effectively alleviated the pain (P<0.05), which was more significant in MIPPSO group (P<0.05). The post-operative inflammatory indexes, CRP and CK levels, of both groups were higher compared to the pre-operation (P<0.05), which was more significant in TOPSO group (P<0.05). The differences of imaging indexes, including Cobb's angle and anterior margin height of injured vertebra, were statistically significant between pre-operation and post-operation for each group (P<0.05); however, there were no statistically significant differences between two groups at either pre-operation or post-operation (P>0.05). The effect of minimally invasive percutaneous pedicle screws osteosynthesis is similar to the traditional open surgery, however, the MIPPSO technique has the advantages of small trauma, less bleeding, short duration of operation, rapid post-operative recovery, light pain, less economic cost, and better aesthetic effect and is therefore worthy of clinical promotion.


Invasions by exotic species represent both threats to ecosystems as well as opportunities to learn more about them. Among the invaders that will have the largest impacts are those that directly modify ecosystems and thus have cascading effects for resident biota. Exotics can affect ecosystems by altering system-level flows, availability, or quality of nutrients, food, and physical resources (e.g. living space, water, heat or light). The invader-mediated control of physical resources, typically achieved through the modification of habitats, has received limited attention in invasion biology. This reflects a general trend in ecology, and only recently has the concept of ecosystem engineering been developed to account for the role of species that shape habitats. Plants and animals in terrestrial and aquatic systems can both create and destroy structure. When introduced into ecosystems, these exotic engineers cause physical state changes with effects that ramify throughout the system. Although the consequences of these modifications are varied and complex, insight gained from general ecological principles offers an opportunity to predict what invaders will do upon their integration into systems. Examples from the literature suggest that introduced ecosystem engineers that increase habitat complexity or heterogeneity tend to cause abundances and/or species richness to rise, while those that decrease complexity tend to have the reverse effect. In assessing such patterns, however, it is critical to also consider spatial scales and the life habits of resident organisms. In addition to providing predictive power, recognition of engineering as a major means by which invasive species affect ecosystems provides a unifying theme for invasion biology and offers a chance to consider more fully the general role of species in ecosystems.


BACKGROUND
Previous research has demonstrated a relationship between prepubertal alcohol and tobacco use and delayed pubertal characteristics in girls. Although, laboratory research indicates that alcohol and tobacco use inhibits sexual maturation in male rats, human research in this area is lacking. To address this question among boys, we conducted a study to explore the association between early use of alcohol and tobacco and time to development of secondary sexual characteristics.

METHODS
The study population included 3199 boys interviewed between the ages of 11 and 21. Participants reported the ages at which they first experienced body hair growth, deepening of the voice and facial hair growth. Early alcohol and tobacco use were defined as first use preceding the age of pubertal development among those reporting regular consumption patterns. Hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using Cox proportional hazard models.

RESULTS
Early alcohol use was associated with longer time to body hair growth (HR 0.77; 95% CI 0.69-0.87), voice changes (HR 0.72; 95% CI 0.64-0.82) and facial hair growth (HR 0.77; 95% CI 0.68-0.86), after adjusting for tobacco use and age at interview. Tobacco use was not independently associated with the puberty indicators after controlling for alcohol use and age at interview.

CONCLUSIONS
Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that alcohol may inhibit puberty onset in boys, an association that has been previously observed among young girls. Thus, alcohol may be an exposure deserving more scrutiny as a disruptor to normal pubertal development.


A short review of the literature from 1933 to 1970 is presented. In man, the conception ratio is about 160 males to 100 females, which coincides with a prepomderance of smaller, round-headed sperm over larger, elongated-headed ones. A genetic relationship is thus seen between sperm morphology and sex ratios as reflected in the number, viability, and motility of the 2 types of sperm. Sex ratio is also influenced by physical and chemical differences in the female reproductive secretions in relation to the time of conception. The sex of an infant at fertilization can be influenced by judging the cervical milieu and the timing of coitus. The Y sperm having the smaller head and longer tail moves more rapidly and occurs in greater numbers than the X sperm. But if the cervical environment is hostile or if the egg is not immediately available, the Y sperm will die and the X sperm will probably fertilize the ovum. The easier the conditions for conception, the greater the likelihood of a male being conceived; the more difficult the circumstances, the greater the likelihood of a female being conceived. The possibilities for males are enhanced by fresh egg and fresh sperm near ovulation; the presence of fresh egg and older sperm enhance the likelihood for females.


BACKGROUND
The main goal of the treatment of the peri-implantitis is to decontaminate the surface of the implant, thereby enabling further treatment involving, e.g., guided bone regeneration. Since new implants of the rougher surface were introduced to the common dental practice, decontamination is even more difficult.

OBJECTIVES
The aim of the study was to evaluate 3 different methods of decontaminating implants with 3 different surfaces.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
A total of 30 dental implants with 3 different surface types (machined, sandblasted, and acid-etched (SLA) and hydroxyapatite (HA)-coated) were used in the study. Each group of implants was coated with Eschierichia coli biofilm and cultivated. Afterwards, the implants were transferred to the jaw model and treated with a different method: sonic scaler mechanical debridement with a Woodpecker PT5 sonic scaler (1st group), mechanical debridement with sonic scaler and with the combination with chemical agent Perisolv® (2nd group), and with Er:YAG laser treatment (3rd group). Each implant was treated with the specific method and sent for further microbiological evaluation.

RESULTS
The highest level of decontamination was achieved for machined-surface implants and the lowest for HA-coated implants. The method with the highest biofilm reduction was the scaler and Perisolv® group. The highest level of decontamination of HA-coated implants were achieved for Er:YAG laser irradiation method.

CONCLUSIONS
In the following paper, the superiority of combined chemical-mechanical method of decontaminating the surface of the implant on SLA and machined-surface implants was proved. On the contrary, Er:YAG laser irradiation was reported as the best option for decontamination of the HA-coated implants. In our opinion, it is a significant finding, revealing that the method of peri-implantitis management should be considered in accordance to the type of the surface of the implant (customized to the surface of the implant).


Multiphoton dissociation of C4H2N2 molecules at 193nm has been studied at high laser intensities. Emission spectra are recorded from violet (B 2Σ → X 2Σ) bands of CN and the Swan bands of C2(d 3πg → a 3πu).


A large-scale tool for systematic analyses of the dispersal and turbulent properties of ocean currents and the subsequent separation of dynamical regimes according to the prevailing trajectories taxonomy in a certain area was proposed by Rupolo. In the present study, this methodology has been extended to the analysis of model trajectories obtained by analytical computations of the particle advection equation using the Lagrangian open-source software package Tracing the Water Masses of the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean (TRACMASS), and intercomparisons have been made between the surface velocity fields from three different configurations of the global Nucleus for European Modelling of the Ocean (NEMO) ocean/sea ice general circulation model. Lagrangian time scales of the observed and synthetic trajectory datasets have been calculated by means of inverse Lagrangian stochastic modeling, and the influence of the model field spatial and temporal resolution on the analyses has been investigated. In global-scale ocean modeling, compromises are frequently made in terms of grid resolution and time averaging of the output fields because high-resolution data require considerable amounts of storage space. Here, the implications of such approximations on the modeled velocity fields and, consequently, on the particle dispersion, have been assessed through validation against observed drifter tracks. This study aims, moreover, to shed some light on the relatively unknown turbulent properties of near-surface ocean dynamics and their representation in numerical models globally and in a number of key regions. These results could be of interest for other studies within the field of turbulent eddy diffusion parameterization in ocean models or ocean circulation studies involving long-term coarse-grid model experiments.


We investigate the cryogenic stability of two-finger 100-nm gate-length InP HEMTs aimed for Ka- and Q-band ultra-low noise amplifiers (LNAs). InP HEMTs with unit gate widths ranging between 30 and 50  $\mu \text{m}$  exhibit unstable cryogenic behavior with jumps in drain current and discontinuous peaks in transconductance. We also find that shorter gate length enhances the cryogenic instability. We demonstrate that the instability of two-finger transistors can be suppressed by either adding a source air bridge, connecting the back end of gates, or increasing the gate resistance. A three-stage 24–40 GHz and a four-stage 28–52-GHz monolithic microwave-integrated circuit LNA using the stabilized InP HEMTs are presented. The Ka-band amplifier achieves a minimum noise temperature of 7 K at 25.6 GHz with an average noise temperature of 10.6 K at an ambient temperature of 5.5 K. The amplifier gain is 29 dB ± 0.6 dB. The Q-band amplifier exhibits minimum noise temperature of 6.7 K at 32.8 GHz with average noise temperature of 10 K at ambient temperature of 5.5 K. The amplifier gain is 34 dB ± 0.8 dB. To our knowledge, the Ka- and Q-band amplifiers demonstrate the lowest noise temperature reported so far for InP cryogenic LNAs.


Abstract Introduction Effective communication is critical to successful large-scale change. Yet, in our experience, communications strategies are not formally incorporated into quality improvement (QI) frameworks. The 1000 Lives Campaign ('Campaign') was a large-scale national QI collaborative that aimed to save an additional 1000 lives and prevent 50 000 episodes of harm in Welsh health care over a 2-year period. We use the Campaign as a case study to describe the development, application, and impact of a communications strategy embedded in a large-scale QI initiative. Methods A comprehensive communications strategy guided communications work during the Campaign. The main aims of the communications strategy were to engage the hearts and minds of frontline National Health Service (NHS) staff in the Campaign and promote their awareness and understanding of specific QI interventions and the wider patient safety agenda. We used qualitative and quantitative measures to monitor communications outputs and assess how the communications strategy influenced awareness and knowledge of frontline NHS staff. Results The communications strategy facilitated clear and consistent framing of Campaign messages and allowed dissemination of information related to the range of QI interventions. It reaffirmed the aim and value of the Campaign to frontline staff, thereby promoting sustained engagement with Campaign activities. The communications strategy also built the profile of the Campaign both internally with NHS organizations across Wales and externally with the media, and played a pivotal role in improving awareness and understanding of the patient safety agenda. Ultimately, outcomes from the communications strategy could not be separated from overall Campaign outcomes. Conclusion and recommendations Systematic and structured communications can support and enhance QI initiatives. From our experience, we developed a 'communications bundle' consisting of six core components. We recommend that communications bundles be incorporated into existing QI methodology, though details should be tailored to the specific context and available resource.


Eighty-four patients with chronic crural ulcers were treated with Acudex powder (Dextranomer) Polfa. The mean duration of the treatment was 8 weeks (3-15 weeks). Complete healing of ulcers was achieved in 44 cases (52%), improvement in 10 (12%). The preparation caused a relatively quick clearing of ulcers and marinal epithelialization. In 7 cases the treatment had to be stopped due of allergic reactions around the ulcers or major pains. The remaining patients tolerated the drug very well. Outpatient treatment was also possible.


Breast cancer (BC) is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. The metabolism of iron is closely regulated by hepcidin which exerts its action by interacting with a ferroportin.
 The aim of the present study was to assess the alterations in the levels of some serum biomarkers that have a role in iron homeostasis (hepcidin and ferroportin) in addition to hematological parameters (hemoglobin, leukocyte and platelets count) in different stages of BC.
This study included 66 women with BC. The patients were categorized as follows : group 1 includes :22 patients with stage I disease ,group 2 includes: 22 patients with stage II disease ,and group 3 include: 22 patients with stage III disease .Group 4 includes :22 apparently healthy women as control.
Data analysis revealed a significant elevation of serum hepcidin levels of patients groups 1, 2, and 3 (437.2±26.4, 501.4±31.8 and 558.5±21.3 pg/ml respectively) ,vs  (179.4±19.8 pg/ml) of control, with  steady elevations from stage I to III . Furthermore, serum ferroportin levels were significantly lowered in groups 1 and 3 compared to control  (0.589±0.107  and 0.733±0.1 vs 1.37±0.28 ng/ml respectively).While  blood hemoglobin level of group 3 were lower (11.96±0.18 vs  12.7±0.13g/dl ) compared with controls . Blood leukocyte count of patients (all groups) (7.39±0.28 ,8.93±0.48,9.86±0.52 (^103/µl) respectively) were markedly increased compared to controls (6.06±0.23), while mean platelet count for patients in group 2&3 were significantly increased compared to controls  (313.9±19.3,309.2±25.3 vs 233.3±9.1 respectively).
In conclusion, hepcidin, ferroportin and hematological markers including hemoglobin, WBC count and platelets count are altered in women with BC compared to healthy control. The changes occur mostly in accordance with disease stages.


Well completion practices in high-temperature, high-pressure carbonates are challenging especially for long lateral horizontal wells intended for fracturing applications. An integrated approach involving intervention and fracturing design and reliable post-fracturing flow measurements is very critical to optimize the well performance.
 After initial intervention complexities due to wellbore accessibility in a 6,250-ft cemented lateral initially planned with 13 fracturing stages resulting in the loss of many operational days, a revamped engineering workflow was planned for Well-A. As a first step, Coiled Tubing (CT) was used for abrasive jetting perforations, cleanout, and acid squeeze functionalities with a novel bottomhole assembly (BHA). The BHA was equipped with a real-time telemetry to optimize intervention to a single run. Having real-time bottomhole parameters helped in perforating the desired zones accurately and enhanced the injectivity by creating cleaner perforation tunnels.
 Stages were reduced to five with an optimized perforation design based on rock typing approach, and short clusters were designed to divert the fracture fluids effectively using multimodal particulate diversion. Each fracturing stage was isolated with a mechanical plug. A novel high-frequency pressure monitoring technique that analyzes fluid entry points from water hammers was utilized during the fracturing treatments to analyze on-the-fly diversion efficiency and optimize further treatments.
 A multiphase flowmeter was utilized to enhance milling and flowback to minimize losses and manage the choke schedule based on actual well performance leading to better fracture cleanup and recovery. The production performance of Well-A was compared with two offset horizontal wells drilled azimuthally parallel, intersecting the same carbonate sublayer. The post-fracturing absolute production enhancement analysis showed 11 to 15% improvement, and productivity index (PI) improvement was 40 to 63% when normalized by stage count. The effective integration of multiple technologies was applied successfully on the candidate well, yielding enhanced operational efficiency with optimized production performance.


Current grammatical error correction (GEC) models typically consider the task as sequence generation, which requires large amounts of annotated data and limit the applications in data-limited settings. We try to incorporate contextual information from pre-trained language model to leverage annotation and benefit multilingual scenarios. Results show strong potential of Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers (BERT) in grammatical error correction task.


Introduction Barrett's Oesophagus (BO) is a risk factor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma (OAC). London Cancer Alliance published guidelines for dedicated Barrett's surveillance list with advanced imaging techniques which was adopted by Croydon in June 2015 with a single operator monthly list. While the focus was on identifying dysplasia/early cancer, we opted to analyse the impact of a dedicated surveillance list on patients with a low risk of cancer progression who could be discharged back to primary care and the potential cost savings that could be made. Method We analysed a prospective database of all patients who had a gastroscopy on a dedicated BO surveillance list from June 2015 to December 2016. Patients with <2m BO without intestinal metaplasia (IM) on histology were discharged back to primary care. Based on the life expectancy of males being 78 years and females 82 years (2015), average cost savings for endoscopy every 5 years was calculated based on the tariff in 2016. Results Out of 85 patients, 62 (73%) were males. Average age for males was 65 and 68 years for females. All patients had PPI as regular treatment. 59 (69%) patients had IM, The mean Prague 'C' length was 1.9 cm while 'M' was 3.6 cm. Four patients had indefinite for dysplasia out of which 3 were referred to tertiary care centre and 1 was downgraded on repeat endoscopy. One patient had OAC. 20 (24%) patients with <2 cm BO with no IM were discharged from surveillance. Based on a tariff of £420 for gastroscopy with biopsies, 34 gastroscopies in males (£14280) and 30 in females (£12600) were avoided thus resulting in cost savings of about £27 000 on the assumption that surveillance would have continued till their life expectancy with the tariff remaining the same. Conclusion We recognise that the patients who were taken off the dedicated surveillance list may have been taken off anyway if they had an endoscopy on a normal service list. However assessment of these patients on a dedicated list has ensured uniformity of follow-up surveillance endoscopy and discharge. Lack of awareness and adherence to updated guidelines by various grades of health professionals might have resulted in unnecessary endoscopies. There are potential cost savings although it would be difficult to quantify them accurately because of variable factors. Strict adherence to guidelines would also increase capacity for endoscopy units in the face of rising demand. Disclosure of Interest None Declared


Changing demographic trends and population needs have increased demand for chronic complex care and contributed to rising health care costs. The study sought to identify unmet health care needs of older adults and opportunities for service improvement in a high need suburban neighborhood of a prairie province. The insights provided by older adults informed the service design for a new model of integrated care in community settings. Narrative inquiry methodology was used to understand care experiences through stories. Stories of older adults' health care journeys were elicited with semi-structured interviews. A paradigmatic approach to analysis was applied with holistic coding, mapping of story elements followed by comparison and theming across participants' stories. Older adults perceived that relationship and informational continuity fostered effective communication and supported coordination of care. Timely access to care was valued and flexibility in types of medical encounters was suggested as an option to improve provider responsiveness. Access to information about community resources was limited and older adults required support with navigation. Structural (e.g. availability of services and transportation), financial and personal barriers exist for older adults to access and use community health services. Health care transitions were inadequately supported by comprehensive discharge planning, timely communication and follow up post discharge. New models of care need to embrace person-centred and goal directed approaches to the delivery of care to improve patient experience. Older adults offer valuable perspectives as community partners and co-designers of systems change in efforts to re-engineer health services.


Abstract Introduction and Aims Acute harm from heavy drinking episodes is an increasing focus of public health policy, but capturing timely data on acute harms in the population is challenging. This study aimed to evaluate the precision of readily available administrative emergency department (ED) data in public health surveillance of acute alcohol harms. Design and Methods We selected a random sample of 1000 ED presentations assigned an ED diagnosis code for alcohol harms (the 'alcohol syndrome') in the New South Wales, Australia, automatic syndromic surveillance system. The sample was selected from 68 public hospitals during 2014. Nursing triage free‐text fields were independently reviewed to confirm alcohol consumption and classify each presentation into either an 'acute' or 'chronic' harm. Positive predictive value (PPV) for acute harm was calculated, and predictors of acute harm presentations were estimated using logistic regression. Results The PPV of the alcohol syndrome for acute alcohol harm was 53.5%. Independent predictors of acute harm were ambulance arrival [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.4–4.7], younger age (12–24 vs. 25–39 years: aOR = 3.4, 95% CI 2.2–5.3), not being admitted (aOR 2.2, 95% CI 1.5–3.2) and arriving between 10 pm and 5.59 am (aOR 2.1, 95% CI 1.5–2.8). PPV among 12 to 24‐year‐olds was 82%. Discussion and Conclusions The alcohol syndrome provides moderate precision as an indicator of acute alcohol harms presenting to the ED. Precision for monitoring acute harm in the population is improved by filtering the syndrome by the strongest independent predictors of acute alcohol harm presentations. [Whitlam G, Dinh M, Rodgers C, Muscatello DJ, McGuire R, Ryan T, Thackway S. Diagnosis‐based emergency department alcohol harm surveillance: What can it tell us about acute alcohol harms at the population level? Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:693–701]


A numerical procedure is described in which the aerodynamic drag and torque in low Earth orbit are calculated for a prototype Space Shuttle external tank and its components, the "LO2" and "LH2" tanks, carrying liquid oxygen and hydrogen, respectively, for any given angle of attack. Calculations assume the hypersonic limit of free molecular flow theory. Each shell of revolution is assumed to be described by a series of parametric equations for their respective contours. It is discretized into circular cross sections perpendicular to the axis of revolution, which yield a series of ellipses when projected according to the given angle of attack. The drag profile, that is, the projection of the entire shell is approximated by the convex envelope of those ellipses. The area of the drag profile, that is, the drag area, and its center of area moment, that is, the drag center, are then calculated and permit determination of the drag vector and the eccentricity vector from the center of gravity of the shell to the drag center. The aerodynamic torque is obtained as the cross product of those vectors. The tanks are assumed to be either evacuated or pressurized with a uniform internal gas distribution: dynamic shifting of the tank center of mass due to residual propellant sloshing is not considered.


Background: The recommendation that patients with accidental hypothermia (AH) should be transported to specialized centers which can provide extracorporeal life support has not been validated, and the efficacy still remains unclear.Methods: This was a multicenter retrospective cohort study of patients with a body temperature of ≤35°C presenting at the emergency department of 12 hospitals in Japan between April 2011 and March 2016. We divided the patients into the two groups based on the point of care delivery: Critical Care Medical Center (CCMC) or non-CCMC. The primary outcome of this study was in-hospital death. In-hospital death was compared between AH patients at the CCMC and non-CCMC via a multivariable logistic regression analysis. Subgroup analyses were conducted according to patients with severe hypothermia (<28°C) or systolic blood pressure of <90 mmHg.Results: A total of 537 patients were included; 413 patients (76.9%) in the CCMC and 124 patients (23.1%) in the non-CCMC group. The in-hospital death rate was lower in the CCMC group than in the non-CCMC group (22.3% versus 31.5%, p<0.001). The multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of the CCMC group was 0.54 (95% confidence interval: 0.32-0.90). In subgroup analyses, patients with systolic blood pressure <90 mmHg in the CCMC group were less likely to experience in-hospital death (AOR 0.36, 95% CI 0.23-0.56). However, no such association was observed among patients with severe hypothermia (AOR 1.08, 95% CI 0.63-1.85)Conclusions: Our multicenter study indicated that Care at CCMC was associated with improved outcomes in patients with AH. Optimizing the transport of patients with AH to specialized centers is likely to be beneficial.


Abstract High sulfur and high ash both coals are unsuitable for their efficient use in gasification, liquefaction, combustion, and carbonization purposes. Coal is being used as an energy source all over the world which results in increasingly environmental issues and other deleterious effects, so the contribution of coal in power production in Pakistan is very small. Total sulfur contents in major coal fields are in the range of 0.5 - 10 wt% roughly. Utilization of such high ash and sulfur coals causes the environmental pollution and other effects. So prior to its utilization, it is necessary to desulfurize and demineralize such coals. Physical, biological and chemical processes are used for the coal cleaning method. Present work aims at the desulfurization of Pakistani coal from Lakhra and Makarwal by using chemical method which involves the leaching of coal with acids, under different conditions of temperature, particle size and agitation time for each treatment.


This article argues that Peruvian writer Luis Loayza's essay collection El sol de Lima (1974) rewrites the national literary canon of Perú from the ethical perspective of a writer's devotion to the craft of writing. In his essays, which examine Peruvian authors from colonial times to the twentieth century, Loayza discusses José Carlos Mariátegui's and Luis Alberto Sánchez's ideas about Peruvian literature in order to suggest that it has been burdened by a long-lasting and widespread "colonial condition" that can be found at work in modern times and located even in its most prestigious names (Juan de Espinosa Medrano, Ricardo Palma, etc.). Disowning this colonial tradition, Loayza builds a new corpus of writers who, by assuming their literary vocation and an ethics of self-sacrifice, have defeated the sense of being peripheral in certain passages and moments of their work (Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, Abraham Valdelomar, Martín Adán, etc.). This tradition created by Loayza does not rest upon fixed notions such as work and author, but is fragmentary and fleeting in nature. According to El sol de Lima, the Peruvian literary canon is not so much a monumental system of great books as an anthology of brilliant textual instants.


In this letter, we introduce an unsupervised iterative algorithm to adapt HMMs trained using clean speech in order to recognize speech corrupted by an additive and a convolutional noise. Both types of noise are considered as stochastic processes that can be modeled using HMMs and can be estimated by applying Sankar's stochastic matching (SM) algorithm successively in the cepstral and in the linear spectral domain. These estimates are derived directly from the given test speech signal and the set of clean speech models, and lead to the estimation of a new set of HMMs that maximize the likelihood of the test signal.


In fitting atomic structures into EM maps, it often happens that the map corresponds to a different conformation of the structure. We have developed a new methodology to handle these situations that preserves the covalent geometry of the structure and allows the modeling of large deformations. The first goal is achieved by working in generalized coordinates (positional and internal coordinates), and the second by avoiding harmonic potentials. Instead, we use dampers (shock absorbers) between every pair of atoms, combined with a force field that attracts the atomic structure toward incompletely occupied regions of the EM map. The trajectory obtained by integrating the resulting equations of motion converges to a conformation that, in our validation cases, was very close to the target atomic structure. Compared to current methods, our approach is more efficient and robust against wrong solutions and to overfitting, and does not require user intervention or subjective decisions. Applications to the computation of transition pathways between known conformers, homology and loop modeling, as well as protein docking, are also discussed.


Atrazine is a widely used herbicide. The electrochemical sensing of atrazine was performed by the detection of its reductive current. In order to make the sensing system smaller and simpler, a gold electrode chip (detection area: 1.8×0.6 mm) was prepared and modified with an atrazine imprinted polymer layer, as the recognition element for atrazine. An atrazine sensing chip modified with molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) layer was fabricated by spin-coating in this study. Using the atrazine-sensing chip, a cathodic current of atrazine was observed and the reductive current depended on the concentration of atrazine below 20 µM. The detection limit of the sensor was 50 nM (11 ppb). The atrazine-sensing chip was more selective to atrazine than other herbicides such as simazine, ametryn and MCC.


Security has become a key consideration in industrial settings. Newer technologies, such as wireless sensor networks, have adopted the position that security is mandatory. For wireless sensor applications it is important to secure data in transit in the air, to authenticate data originating from, or arriving at the wireless devices and applications, and, most important, to protect the safety and integrity of the legacy process control and plant safeguarding systems that the new wireless world interconnects into. Current industrial wireless mesh networks, such as WirelessHART™, ISA100.11a, and WIA-PA, have adopted AES 128 bit encryption for both securing communications and data. To ensure that devices and applications are authenticated special join keys are used. The process of loading these keys is called provisioning. To ensure that join keys remain secret they are loaded offline through special wired interfaces or provisioned over the air using less secure mechanisms. What is needed is a low cost efficient public key mechanism that can be utilized over the air while not compromising security. This paper examines the use of elliptic curve cryptography for this purpose. We realize this technique on a WirelessHART mesh network. Efforts are underway to incorporate this approach as an addition to the WirelessHART standard.