Short-term forecasting is required by utility planners and electric system operators for tactical operational planning and day-to-day decision making. The forecasting is intended to obtain the system load demand over a period of hours or days, and it plays an important role in determining unit commitment, spinning reserve, economic power interchange, load management etc… Electrical load has a time-varying nature, and it is affected by various factors such as social, meteorological and financial conditions. Since the time horizon is relatively small in short-term load forecasting, the social and financial conditions have almost no influence on the forecasting process. In this research, the authors analyze the capability of a neural network, such as Self-Organizing Maps (SOM) for short-term load forecasting. The input data used concern the global load demand of Spain over several years and were obtained thanks to the Electrical Spanish System Operator: Red Eléctrica Española (REE). The study was focused on testing the first hours of the day to be forecasted in order to identify its common patterns with the historical database previously trained by the neural network. The input data has to be analysed beforehand to normalize them and filter anomalous days and holidays. Weekends were also excluded as their patterns are completely different to the rest of the week. After several simulations with different training parameters, three distinct tests were accomplished with the first 8, 10 and 12 hours of the day to be forecasted, and the errors between them were compared. Even in the case of 8 hours, the results show how the Self-Organizing Map is able to associate the evolution of the day with the most similar patterns in the database. The error in the case of the 10 hour test is lower and it reaches a minor value of around 1.6% when the test is carried out with 12 hours. Further tests will allow to select the best range of hours for creating the input data and will take into account the advantage of previously classifying the data depending on the season (summer, winter …).


Background

Bovine mastitis characterized by mammary gland inflammatory responses, is the most frequent and costly diseases in dairy cattle. Researchers have been seeking effective treatments for this disease, but still not very successful. Ras-related C3 botulinum toxin substrate 1 (Rac1) is implicated in various cellular functions, including apoptosis, ROS production and inflammatory responses, and presents an attractive therapeutic target for many diseases. However, the effects of Rac1 signaling on mastitis remain unclear. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of Rac1 signaling on mastitis via inhibition by Rac1 specific inhibitor NSC23766 based on a murine model of lipoplysaccharide (LPS)-induced mastitis.
Methods

Murine mastitis model was established by perfusion of LPS, hematoxylin-eosin (H & E) staining was employed to explore the mechanisms in mouse model, qRT- PCR analysis, Western blotting analysis.
Results

The results revealed that NSC23766 significantly decreased the damage of mammary gland by LPS, reduced myeloperoxidase activities, and the productions of IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and MCP-1 gene expression in the mammary glands with LPS perfusion. Moreover, western blot analysis showed that NSC23766 inhibited the phosphoryation of p65, IκBα, ERK, and p38, and suppressed the expression of NLRP3.
Conclusion

These findings suggested that administration of NSC23766 prevented the development of mastitis by inhibiting NLRP3, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling pathways. Accordingly, this study may provide research basis for the development of new drugs against mastitis, and NSC23766 might be a potential therapeutic drugs for mastitis.


Our study examines investor reactions to a specific form of succession planning—relay succession. Theory predicts that both the initiation and the outcome of a relay CEO succession process will influence shareholder wealth. Our results show that investors generally do not react to the initiation of the process as indicated by heir apparent appointment; but react negatively when the process ends in heir apparent exit from the firm and react positively when the process ends in heir apparent promotion to the CEO position. We also found a strong positive investor reaction to outside CEO promotion and a negative investor reaction to nonheir inside CEO promotion. Further, firm performance exerts an important influence on the wealth effect of heir apparent promotion and exit. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


The purpose of this paper is to present a general framework for the study of control problems using the behavioral formalism and to specialize such a setting to the l/sub 1/ optimal control problem. This paper is motivated by earlier work on control in a behavioral context, and by papers on H/sub /spl infin// and H/sub 2/ optimal control in this formalism. We study the partial-information case since we explicitly specify the variables on which the controller can impose constraints.


Pediatric integrative therapy programs are essential to the treatment and well-being of patients. Identifying an effective integrative therapy model within conventional pediatric medical settings, however, often proves difficult. Our goal in this article is to explore varied solutions to increase access and inclusion of integrative therapies in an effort to promote best practice and holistic care. The main methods applied in this article are vignettes that illustrate how the integrative therapies in a metropolitan academic hospital successfully treat the patient by complementing conventional medicine. This leads to comprehensive care. The central finding of the article proposes viable solutions to increase interdisciplinary collaboration both internally within the institution and externally. Integrative therapists detail how they were able to increase visibility and yield best practice through increased educational initiatives and interdisciplinary collaboration.


Transformed stem cells have been isolated from some human cancers. We report that, unlike other brain cancers, the lethal glioblastoma multiforme contains neural precursors endowed with all of the critical features expected from neural stem cells. Similar, yet not identical, to their normal neural stem cell counterpart, these precursors emerge as unipotent (astroglial) in vivo and multipotent (neuronal-astroglial-oligodendroglial) in culture. More importantly, these cells can act as tumor-founding cells down to the clonal level and can establish tumors that closely resemble the main histologic, cytologic, and architectural features of the human disease, even when challenged through serial transplantation. Thus, cells possessing all of the characteristics expected from tumor neural stem cells seem to be involved in the growth and recurrence of adult human glioblastomas multiforme.


This paper addresses the implementation and Development method of an energy audit Strategy in Ammonia plant. Energy audit, as an effective energy-saving and emission-reducing measure, was applied in thousands of high energy-consuming enterprises around the world. In this paper, energy audit concept and purpose is analyzed. Therefore, the main objectives of this projectis to develop an energy Audit Strategy which can serve for different forms of energy, develop an approach/algorithm for conducting an energy audit of Ammonia plant and conduct a case-study to apply the developed approach in ammonia plant. Moreover, the world's average net energy efficiency for ammonia plant is 38.6GJ/MT, in this case
study we found the net energy efficiency of this particular plant is around 30GJ/MT which is in the range of the benchmark. In addition, there is electricity data that we are missing in this calculation that is why it is quite law. As a result, if we had that data the Net Energy Efficiency ofthe plant would have been around 35 GJ/t NH3.


A 7-year-old girl with an anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery restored connection of the left coronary artery to the ascending aorta by aortocoronary bypass graft. Aortocoronary bypass grafting was performed with a vascular prosthesis. Postoperative angiography showed a patent left coronary artery without narrowing or kinking. Clinical improvement was rapid and the left ventricular function recovered completely.


HUGE is a database for human large proteins newly identified by Kazusa cDNA project, which aims to predict protein primary structures from sequences of human large cDNAs (>4 kb). In particular, cDNA clones capable of coding for large proteins (>50 kDa) are current targets of the project. More than 700 sequences of human cDNAs (average size, 5.1 kb) have been determined to date and deposited in the public databases. Notable information implied from the cDNAs and the predicted protein sequences can be obtained through HUGE via the World Wide Web at URL http://www.kazusa.or.jp/huge


Purpose: To prepare and characterize in situ gel-forming implants of methylprednisolone for the treatment of spinal cord injuries. Methods: In situ hydrogels of methylprednisolone were prepared by dispersing polylactide glycolic acid (PLGA) polymer and methylprednisolone in N-methyl-pyrrolidone solvent, and subsequent membrane sterilization. Hydrogels were prepared using varying concentrations of PLGA polymer. The physicochemical properties of hydrogels, including visual appearance, clarity, pH, viscosity, drug content, and in vitro drug release, were characterized. In vivo studies were performed to examine antiinflammatory activity (paw edema test) and in vivo motor function activity in a rat spinal injury model after injecting the hydrogels into rats. Results: The physicochemical properties of the gels were satisfactory. F1, F2, F3, and F4 formulations showed 99.67, 95.29, 88.89 and 88.20 % drug release, respectively, at the end of 7 days. In vivo antiinflammatory activity was highest for F1 (62.85 %). Motor function activity scores (arbitrary scale) for the F1, F2, F3 and F4 formulations were 4.82 ± 0.12, 4.70 ± 0.12, 4.68 ± 0.02, and 4.60 ± 0.05, respectively, and were higher (p < 0.05) for F1, F2 and F3) than for the standard (methylprednisolone, 30 mg/kg body weight, iv; activity score, 4.59 ± 0.20). Conclusions: The in situ hydrogels of methylprednisolone developed may be useful for the effective management of spinal cord injuries in patients. However, further investigations are required to ascertain their suitability for clinical use. Keywords: Methylprednisolone, In situ hydrogel, Spinal injury, Motor activity, Implant


Twist extrusion is a novel method for severe plastic deformation of materials. Severe plastic deformation in metals creates small and uniform grain size and therefore increases their mechanical strength. In this study, the effect of die angle in twist extrusion and cross-section of extruded parts on plastic properties and microstructures of Aluminum 7050 alloy was investigated using DEFORM 3D finite element software. Samples were simulated using dies with die angles of 20, 37, and 56 degrees with square, rounded-rectangular, and elliptical cross-sections. The aspect ratios of rectangular and elliptical cross-sections were also changed while keeping the cross-section area constant in order to investigate the effects of dimensions. Plastic strain distribution, gain size distribution, and the force needed for extrusion were extracted under all conditions. The results indicate that increase in die angle significantly reduces grain size and increases the force necessary for extrusion. Removing sharp corners in cross-section also results in more uniform plastic strain distribution and reduction in extrusion force. The elliptical cross-section with dimensions of 9×6mm which had the lowest dimension ratio can reduce grain size from 100ffm to 6ffm in a single pass and requires the lowest extrusion force.


: Out patient surgery is becoming more and more popular with experience. A series of 7,250 operations performed during one year at Ste-Justine Hospital forms the basis of the presentation. A wide variety of procedures are now done by the pediatric surgical specialities on an out patient basis. Proper selection of patients, operations and families is mandatory. A low complication rate of 1.2% can be expected as well as high patient, family and staff satisfaction.


This paper presents field measurement-based channel characterization for air–to–ground (A2G) and air–to– air (A2A) wireless communication systems using two drones equipped with lightweight software-defined radios. A correlation-based channel sounder is employed such that the transmitting drone broadcasts the sounding waveform with a pseudo-noise sequence and the receiving drone captures the sounding waveform together with the location information for the post-processing analysis. The path loss results demonstrate that the measurement and flat-earth two-ray results have similar trends for A2G while the measurement and free space path loss are similar to each other for A2A. The time delays between the direct path and multipath components are widely spread for A2A while the multipath components are mostly concentrated around the direct path for A2G generating a more challenging communication environment. We observe that the reflections from several buildings having metal roofs and claddings on the measurement site cause sudden peaks in the root-mean-square delay spread. The results indicate that the A2A channel has better characteristics than the A2G under similar mobility conditions.


Observations were made on early pulmonary adenomata induced by the exposure of mouse lung tissue to a carcinogen in organ culture and its subsequent subcutaneous implantation into host animals. The adenoma cells appeared to be derived from type II alveolar cells and showed a high degree of differentiation at the ultrastructural level. The procedure used permitted the study of early lesions, microscopic in size. These lesions, however, were of the same basic type which is produced by conventional in vivo methods of pulmonary tumor induction in mice.


It is well known that the stationary distribution of the number of busy servers in the Erlang blocking system (MIG/cIc) depends on the service-time distribution only through its mean. This insensitivity property is shared by several other queueing systems. In this paper, we give simple sufficient conditions for determining if this insensitivity property holds for general queueing systems and related stochastic models. The conditions involve determining whether the solution of the stationary Markovian flow equations also solves certain restricted flow equations. The proof that these conditions are sufficient is direct and elementary. GENERALIZED SEMI-MARKOV PROCESSES; INSENSITIVITY; LOCAL BALANCE; PRODUCT PROPERTY


ABSTRACT Cellulosomes are considered to be one of the most efficient systems for the degradation of plant cell wall polysaccharides. The central cellulosome component comprises a large, noncatalytic protein subunit called scaffoldin. Multiple saccharolytic enzymes are incorporated into the scaffoldins via specific high-affinity cohesin-dockerin interactions. Recently, the regulation of genes encoding certain cellulosomal components by multiple RNA polymerase alternative σI factors has been demonstrated in Clostridium (Ruminiclostridium) thermocellum. In the present report, we provide experimental evidence demonstrating that the C. thermocellum cipA gene, which encodes the primary cellulosomal scaffoldin, is regulated by several alternative σI factors and by the vegetative σA factor. Furthermore, we show that previously suggested transcriptional start sites (TSSs) of C. thermocellum cipA are actually posttranscriptional processed sites. By using comparative bioinformatic analysis, we have also identified highly conserved σI- and σA-dependent promoters upstream of the primary scaffoldin-encoding genes of other clostridia, namely, Clostridium straminisolvens, Clostridium clariflavum, Acetivibrio cellulolyticus, and Clostridium sp. strain Bc-iso-3. Interestingly, a previously identified TSS of the primary scaffoldin CbpA gene of Clostridium cellulovorans matches the predicted σI-dependent promoter identified in the present work rather than the previously proposed σA promoter. With the exception of C. cellulovorans, both σI and σA promoters of primary scaffoldin genes are located more than 600 nucleotides upstream of the start codon, yielding long 5′-untranslated regions (5′-UTRs). Furthermore, these 5′-UTRs have highly conserved stem-loop structures located near the start codon. We propose that these large 5′-UTRs may be involved in the regulation of both the primary scaffoldin and other cellulosomal components. IMPORTANCE Cellulosome-producing bacteria are among the most effective cellulolytic microorganisms known. This group of bacteria has biotechnological potential for the production of second-generation biofuels and other biocommodities from cellulosic wastes. The efficiency of cellulose hydrolysis is due to their cellulosomes, which arrange enzymes in close proximity on the cellulosic substrate, thereby increasing synergism among the catalytic domains. The backbone of these multienzyme nanomachines is the scaffoldin subunit, which has been the subject of study for many years. However, its genetic regulation is poorly understood. Hence, from basic and applied points of view, it is imperative to unravel the regulatory mechanisms of the scaffoldin genes. The understanding of these regulatory mechanisms can help to improve the performance of the industrially relevant strains of C. thermocellum and related cellulosome-producing bacteria en route to the consolidated bioprocessing of biomass.


The object of discussion are federal relations in Russia, their formation and evolution after the reformation of the institutional basis and changed political and social-economic situation in the country. The paper examines the processes of federal structure asymmetry, measures to address it and the program of fiscal federalism out to 2005. Steps are proposed to increase the efficiency of the regional policy and make it a part of the social-economic policy of the Federation. Examined is the problem of interregional integration as a factor in this process and the role of federal districts. As an instrument of regional policy that can suppress the conflict of interests, the idea of regional (interregional) corporations of development is developed.


ABSTRACT This article examines the political and economic position of Indians in post-apartheid South Africa, where they are sandwiched between an economically dominant white class and the majority African population. It provides a brief background on African and Indian relations since the nineteenth century, and examines how and why these were strained at certain historical junctures. Against this background, the article explores issues of identity, nationality, and citizenship in the post-apartheid period, which has seen the population of Indian South Africans augmented by new migrants from the Indian sub-continent. It argues that while the rubric of 'Indian' has been challenged by increasing class divides and fracturing along religious lines, the legal definition of South Africans according to race, the economic competition that recent Indians migrants provide for working class Africans in townships, and Indians' relatively privileged position vis-a-vis Africans has seen them come under pressure in a context of widening inequality and a racially exclusive African nationalism. They will remain 'stuck in the middle' for the foreseeable future.


The latent factor structure of the Dutch version of the Wechsler Memory Scale-Fourth Edition (WMS-IV-NL) was examined with a series of confirmatory factor analyses. As part of the Dutch standardization, 1,188 healthy participants completed the WMS-IV-NL. Four models were tested for the Adult Battery (16-69 years; N = 699), and two models were tested for the Older Adult Battery (65-90 years; N = 489). Results corroborated the presence of three WMS-IV-NL factors in the Adult Battery consisting of Auditory Memory, Visual Memory, and Visual Working Memory. A two-factor model (consisting of Auditory Memory and Visual Memory) provided the best fit for the data of the Older Adult Battery. These findings provide evidence for the structural validity of the WMS-IV-NL, and further support the psychometric integrity of the WMS-IV.


This paper is devoted to the analysis of the place and role of religion in contemporary Ukraine, its influence on the political processes, and the transformation of religious life under the influence of political factors. The gradual increase of political and religious factors in modern human-caused society puts new tasks in the interpretation of these new occurrences and processes. Currently, religious influences on political life in Ukraine seem to be quite noticeable. Apparently, both religion (churches) and politics (state) are social institutions ; determining further development of the Ukrainian society. Hence, their interactions are problematic and deserve more detailed research. This paper examines some aspects of problem of interaction between the state and the churches at the time of independent Ukraine. At first, the current situation of religious life in Ukraine is explained ; mapping religion and politics is also considered. Next, the model of state-church relationship in Ukraine and state policy for religion is discussed. A brief observation of churches' involvement in political processes in Ukraine is done by looking through some bifurcation points of modern Ukrainian history including the Orange Revolution and the Revolution of Dignity.


On 28 February 2018 the Court of Justice of the European Union (hereafter 'CJEU') ruled in the Nidera BV case (C-387/16) (CJEU, 28 Feb. 2018, Case C-387/16, Nidera BV, ECLI:EU:C:2018:121.) that Article 183 of the VAT Directive, read in the light of the principle of fiscal neutrality, must be interpreted as precluding a reduction in the amount of interest normally payable under national law on overpaid VAT which was not refunded in due time for reasons connected to circumstances not attributable to the taxable person, such as the high amount of that interest when compared with the amount of overpaid VAT, the period of time during which the overpayment was not refunded and the underlying reasons for this, as well as the losses actually incurred by the taxable person.  In previous case it already became clear that overpaid tax must be refunded to the taxable person concerned within a reasonable period. If not, the taxable person must be compensated in the form of default interest. (Opinion AG, 28 Feb. 2018, Case C-387/16, Nidera BV, ECLI:EU: C:2017:740, paragraph 1.)


Most deep learning approaches to comprehensive semantic modeling of 3D indoor spaces require costly dense annotations in the 3D domain. In this work, we explore a central 3D scene modeling task, namely, semantic scene reconstruction without using any 3D annotations. The key idea of our approach is to design a trainable model that employs both incomplete 3D reconstructions and their corresponding source RGB-D images, fusing cross-domain features into volumetric embeddings to predict complete 3D geometry, color, and semantics with only 2D labeling which can be either manual or machine-generated. Our key technical innovation is to leverage differentiable rendering of color and semantics to bridge 2D observations and unknown 3D space, using the observed RGB images and 2D semantics as supervision, respectively. We additionally develop a learning pipeline and corresponding method to enable learning from imperfect predicted 2D labels, which could be additionally acquired by synthesizing in an augmented set of virtual training views complementing the original real captures, enabling more efficient self-supervision loop for semantics. In this work, we propose an end-to-end trainable solution jointly addressing geometry completion, colorization, and semantic mapping from limited RGB-D images, without relying on any 3D ground-truth information. Our method achieves state-of-the-art performance of semantic scene reconstruction on two large-scale benchmark datasets MatterPort3D and ScanNet, surpasses baselines even with costly 3D annotations. To our knowledge, our method is also the first 2D-driven method addressing completion and semantic segmentation of real-world 3D scans.


A 74-year-old man had a paraneoplastic motor neuron disease mimicking amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He had an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate, other laboratory abnormalities, and a previously undiagnosed renal cell carcinoma. Four months after nephrectomy, his strength had improved and he had no fasciculations. Seven other patients with cancer and motor neuron disease improved or stabilized after tumor treatment. Even though it is rare, paraneoplastic motor neuron disease is important to diagnose because it may be treatable.


dotal status. It has seemed for some time that there might have been a theoretical place for the use of HBO in treating carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning. Seemingly, there are those who would like us all to invest in expensive HBO units on the basis of opinion.3 In the United States, third-party payers accept the "rational" opinion of seemingly partial clinicians. However, this should not detract from the severity of the problem of CO poisoning, which remains underdiagnosed and poorly treated, and from which people still die." There is still a need to confirm the findings of Scheinkestel and colleagues, and to determine the best means of treatment. The Journal's editorial comment on the study outlines other methodological flaws in, and caveats to, uncritical acceptance of the findings." It seems as ifHBO has yet to find an evidence-based niche other than in the treatment of decompression sickness. Until other trials of at least the same standard as this one can be performed, HBO is likely to remain a "Cinderella" technology in Great Britain."


Imaging through scattering media is encountered in many disciplines or sciences, ranging from biology, mesescopic physics and astronomy. But it is still a big challenge because light suffers from multiple scattering is such media and can be totally decorrelated. Here, we propose a deep-learning-based method that can retrieve the image of a target behind a thick scattering medium. The method uses a trained deep neural network to fit the way of mapping of objects at one side of a thick scattering medium to the corresponding speckle patterns observed at the other side. For demonstration, we retrieve the images of a set of objects hidden behind a 3mm thick white polystyrene slab, the optical depth of which is 13.4 times of the scattering mean free path. Our work opens up a new way to tackle the longstanding challenge by using the technique of deep learning.


There is evidence suggesting that high altitude (HA) exposure leads to a fall in heart rate variability (HRV) that is linked to the development of acute mountain sickness (AMS). The effects of sex on changes in HRV at HA and its relationship to AMS are unknown. Methods HRV (5-min single-lead ECG) was measured in 63 healthy adults (41 men and 22 women) 18–56 yr of age at sea level (SL) and during a HA trek at 3619, 4600, and 5140 m, respectively. The main effects of altitude (SL, 3619 m, 4600 m, and 5140 m) and sex (men vs women) and their potential interaction were assessed using a factorial repeated-measures ANOVA. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the ability of HRV to predict AMS. Results Men and women were of similar age (31.2 ± 9.3 vs 31.7 ± 7.5 yr), ethnicity, and body and mass index. There was main effect for altitude on heart rate, SD of normal-to-normal (NN) intervals (SDNN), root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), number of pairs of successive NN differing by >50 ms (NN50), NN50/total number of NN, very low-frequency power, low-frequency (LF) power, high-frequency (HF) power, and total power (TP). The most consistent effect on post hoc analysis was reduction in these HRV measures between 3619 and 5140 m at HA. Heart rate was significantly lower and SDNN, RMSSD, LF power, HF power, and TP were higher in men compared with women at HA. There was no interaction between sex and altitude for any of the HRV indices measured. HRV was not predictive of AMS development. Conclusions Increasing HA leads to a reduction in HRV. Significant differences between men and women emerge at HA. HRV was not predictive of AMS.


In this thesis, the surface-initiated polymerization of conjugated polymers using Kumada Catalyst-transfer Polycondensation (KCTP) is presented. Covalently immobilized films of conjugated polymers are fabricated on a variety of substrates and extensively characterized using spectroscopic and electrochemical techniques. This "grafting from" technique has allowed for the formation of smooth, covalently immobilized, and mechanically robust conjugated polymer films, which is not possible to obtain using grafting to and grafting through methodologies.
 The grafting of conjugated polymers requires the immobilization of phosphine ligated nickel catalysts to form the polymerization initiator, which is a difficult task due to the two-dimensional nature of the interface and the close proximity of neighboring reactive sites. A technique of characterizing the grafting density using indirect electrochemical methods is presented, which has allowed for the first time to probe the behavior of surface-bound nickel species. It was found that the grafting density changes based on the ligand environment, and side reactions between neighboring initiating sites is the primary cause of the observed low grafting density upon exchange to the necessary bidentate phosphine ligands for polymerization. Furthermore, kinetic information is also obtained from the technique and it was found that the rate of cross coupling with the immobilized initiators is dependent on the ligand environment.
 To further understand the oxidative addition of Ni(0) to haloarenes, a series of kinetic isotope effect (KIE) experiments were carried out. Simple haloarenes were coupled to alkyl or aryl Grignard reagents via nickel catalysts, and analyzed for 13C enrichment using inverse gated decoupling NMR. It was found that the first irreversible step of the coupling reaction is dependent on the type of halide and position of the methyl substituent on the arene. The results presented here rationalize observations at surfaces, and also provide additional insight into the highly debated mechanism of organometallic oxidative addition reactions.


The use of protease inhibitors causes the accumulation of very large polypeptides (polyprotein) in tissue culture cells infected with either poliovirus or echovirus 12. The effectiveness of the inhibitor varies, depending on the cell line chosen. In infected monkey kidney cells, polyprotein is not cleaved when a chymotrypsin inhibitor is added, but in infected HeLa cells a trypsin inhibitor is most effective. Therefore, at least a part of the proteolytic activity is supplied by the host cell. Extracted viral polyprotein can be cleaved in vitro by trypsin or chymotrypsin. As estimated by migration in sodium dodecyl sulfate gels and antigenicity, chymotrypsin cleavage of the poliovirus polyprotein yields fragments which are similar to the in vivo product. The polyprotein is not in soluble form but is attached to a fast-sedimenting, membrane-bound structure. Proteolytic activities in cell extracts were assayed using polyprotein as substrate, and infected and uninfected extracts produced qualitatively dissimilar cleavages.


This study aimed to produce immunoglobulin Y (IgY) specific to dengue virus which could be used for diagnostic kit of dengue. Lohman laying hens were immunized intramuscularly with antigenic of dengue. Egg yolk was separated from egg white and IgY antibody was then purified by multiple polyethylene glycol (PEG) 6000 extraction and ammonium sulfate purification steps. The IgY concentration in egg yolk increased during the immunization period until week 6 where it began to increase dramatically at 2 weeks and it reached a plateau at 4 weeks after immunization. After week 6 the levels decreased gradually. Antibody of dengue was detected and produce a specific line of precipitation in agar gel precipitation test (AGPT) beginning the second week after the first immunization. Analysis of results obtained with ELISA showed significant increase in the denguespecific antibodies after two weeks from the primary immunization. Through the effect of boostering; the antidengue antibody levels reached a plateau at four weeks from the primary immunization and remained significantly higher till the end of observation period. SDS-PAGE revealed the IgY preparation to be pure and dissociated into protein bands with molecular weights of 145; 66; 45, 33 and 26 kDa and western blot analysis revealed the presence of anti-dengue IgY in egg yolks protein, with a molecular weights of approximately 66 kDa. These results suggested that chicken IgY could be a practical strategy in large-scale production of specific anti-dengue Ig Y for diagnostic KIT of dengue.


One of the hallmarks of the Japanese psychiatrist and philosopher Kimura Bin's (b. 1931) philosophical approach is the conversion of ordinary words into philosophical concepts. Here we focus on the way he appropriates the Japanese words onozukara and mizukara, ordinary terms associated, respectively, with things that occur naturally, spontaneously, or by themselves, and those that come from oneself. This re-reading of these terms as philosophical concepts furnishes an interpretive frame that brings together and makes sense of large and important concepts in philosophy and psychology such as self and nature, perception and sensation, collective subjectivity and individual subject, schizophrenia and self-realization. His appropriation of these two Japanese terms also uncovers a general and impersonal form of subjectivity that underlies our experience of ourselves as individuated subjects and stands at the center of his philosophical and psychological investigations into these phenomena.


Chemokines are important mediators in immune responses and inflammatory processes of neuroimmunologic and infectious diseases. Although chemokines are expressed predominantly by cells of the immune system, neurons also express chemokines and chemokine receptors. We report herein that human neuronal cells (NT2-N) produce macrophage inflammatory protein-1alpha and -1beta (MIP-1alpha and MIP-1beta), which could be enhanced by interleukin (IL)-1beta at both mRNA and protein levels. The addition of supernatants from human peripheral blood monocyte-derived macrophage (MDM) cultures induced MIP-1beta mRNA expression in NT2-N cells. Anti-IL-1beta antibody removed most, but not all, of the MDM culture supernatant-induced MIP-1beta mRNA expression in NT2-N cells, suggesting that IL-1beta in the MDM culture supernatants is a major factor in the induction of MIP-1beta expression. Investigation of the mechanism(s) responsible for IL-1beta-induced MIP-1alpha and -1beta expression demonstrated that IL-1beta activated nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kappaB) promoter-directed luciferase activity in NT2-N cells. Caffeic acid phenethyl ester, a potent and specific inhibitor of activation of NF-kappaB, not only blocked IL-1beta-induced activation of the NF-kappaB promoter but also decreased IL-1beta-induced MIP-1alpha and -1beta expression in NT2-N cells. These data suggest that NF-kappaB is at least partially involved in the IL-1beta-mediated action on MIP-1alpha and -1beta in NT2-N cells. IL-1beta-mediated up-regulation of beta-chemokine expression may have important implications in the immunopathogenesis of inflammatory diseases in the CNS.


The energy transition requires a legal system that promotes the most sustainable forms of energy. This requires a holistic approach that accounts for all effects of energy production throughout the energy chain. This article analyses the presence of holistic elements in the current legal framework of biomass used for energy purposes. It finds that the most advanced example, sustainability criteria for biofuels, applies to only a fraction of all biomass uses, as the applicability is dependent on the production process used and the manner of consumption. Furthermore, the legal framework for biomass accounts for neither all direct effects, nor any indirect effects of production, nor the carbon debt resulting from biomass combustion. All this undermines the assumed sustainability of biomass. As a result, the current legal framework is far from holistic and poorly equipped to promote the most sustainable forms of energy.


Changes in the structure of the work done by aircraft flyers during piloting and oxygen starvation were studied. The experiments were carried out on 10 pilots who performed simulation flights while breathing hypoxic gas mixtures containing 10.5% O2 (at an altitude of 5000 m) or 9.6% O2 (at an altitude of 5600 m). These findings suggest that the earliest sign of disordered piloting during hypoxia was a delayed formation of controlling actions. At greater hypoxia noticeable changes were seen in the structure of motor activities together with distinct disturbances of coordination relations of muscles-antagonists involved in the realization of controlling movements. The sensory component suffered from the hypoxic effect to a lesser extent. Complex forms of the mental activity proved to be most resistant to hypoxia.


Today's household appliances are quickly increasing their features and functions. These new technologies require innovative training methods to maintain learning motivation especially with older users, because they may need more time to learn. Conventional manuals are insufficient to maintain motivation in this population. Previously studied assistive communication robots also have difficulty explaining a second device because their strong presence distracts the user from the device during explanation. We propose an anthropomorphized learning method that sustains older people's motivations to learn new technologies. Our method creates an anthropomorphized household appliance using robot eyes and arms. This method assists the learning process using human expressions. These human-like expressions attract users during training and maintain learning motivation. Our system uses three forms of anthropomorphization: pointing, directive motion, and emotion. We designed and implemented both hardware and software and evaluated the method by training older people to learn a vacuum's features. Our method increased older people's emotional status by an average of 2.53 points compared with the manual learning that decreased emotional status by −.53. This increased emotional status suggests that our system could maintain older users' motivation more effectively compared with traditional manual methods.


Canonical Wnt signaling is central to normal bone homeostasis, and secretion of Wnt signaling inhibitors by multiple myeloma (MM) cells contributes to MM-related bone resorption and disease progression. The aim of this study was to test the effect of Wnt3a on bone disease and growth of MM cells in vitro and in vivo. Although Wnt3a activated canonical signaling in the majority of MM cell lines and primary cells tested, Wnt3a had no effect on MM cell growth in vitro. Moreover, forced expression of Wnt3a in H929 MM cells conferred no growth advantage over empty vector-transfected cells in vitro or importantly when grown subcutaneously in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice. Importantly, although H929 cells stably expressing an empty vector injected into human bone grew rapidly and induced a marked reduction in bone mineral density, bones engrafted with Wnt3a-expressing H929 cells were preserved, exhibited increased osteoblast-to-osteoclast ratios, and reduced tumor burden. Likewise, treatment of myelomatous SCID-hu mice, carrying primary disease, with recombinant Wnt3a stimulated bone formation and attenuated MM growth. These results provide further support of the potential anabolic and anti-MM effects of enhancing Wnt signaling in the bone.


Background: Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) is a member of the TGFβ family of growth and differentiation factors with a key role in regulating folliculogenesis. In experimental studies, using supraphysiologic concentrations, AMH inhibits breast cancer growth. However, high levels of AMH were associated with increased breast cancer risk in two prior prospective epidemiologic studies. Methods: We conducted a nested case–control study of premenopausal plasma AMH and breast cancer risk within the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) and NHSII. In NHS, 32,826 women donated blood samples in 1989–1990; in NHSII, 29,611 women donated samples in 1996–1999. After blood collection and before February 2004 (NHS) or July 2010 (NHSII), 539 cases were diagnosed among women premenopausal at diagnosis, and were matched 1:1 to controls. ORs and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using unconditional logistic regression, adjusting for matching and breast cancer risk factors. Results: Higher plasma levels of AMH were associated with increased breast cancer risk (top vs. bottom quintile multivariate OR, 2.20; 95% CI, 1.34–3.63; P trend = 0.001). The association did not vary by invasive versus in situ disease or by estrogen receptor status. Associations were not significantly different by age at blood or diagnosis. Further adjustment for plasma estradiol or testosterone yielded similar results. Conclusions: Higher circulating AMH levels are associated with increased breast cancer risk among premenopausal women. Impact: The significant positive association between premenopausal plasma AMH levels and subsequent breast cancer risk before menopause suggests AMH may be useful as a marker of breast cancer risk in younger women. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(5); 854–60. ©2016 AACR.


We have studied the structural and magnetic properties of two compounds from the Me32+(Fe3+(CN)6-)23-.H2O family, where Me=Ni and Co. From x-ray analysis we find that the compounds crystallize in the face-centred cubic structure with the space group of F43m. Both the Fe and Me ions are coordinated octahedrally by six carbon atoms and six nitrogen atoms, respectively. The Fe ions are in a strong crystalline field, while the Me ions are in an intermediate field with cubic symmetry. From the magnetic studies a quantitative bulk ferromagnetic behaviour (a spontaneous magnetization and a hysteresis loop) has been established for both complex compounds. In addition, from the magnetization against temperature curves we obtained, for both compounds, the Curie as well as Curie-Weiss temperatures, the Curie constants and the effective moments in the paramagnetic state. From the assumed value of the spin for every cation we fitted the chi T=F(T) curves and from the field dependence of the magnetization we determined the high-field susceptibility. The magnetic properties of the compounds were analysed in the framework of the mean-field theory.


The tourism development paradigm has a very frightening effect on the island's destination. Gili Matra Islands as an island destination has the potential to have a high level of vulnerability. The sustainability aspect of island destination is a development challenge in future. Destination protection is important in its sustainability. Creative ecotourism as a form of sustainable tourism is consistently urgent to adopted and as the purpose of this paper. The method of this paper is descriptive qualitative through in-depth interviews. Within case study of the Gili Matra Islands on this paper, it is able to provide an overview of alternative ecotourism forms in actual and conceptual of destination protection. The creative of ecotourism concept is able to collaborate with the differentiation of tourism products in each island (Gili Trawangan, Gii Meno, and Gili Air).


The district nurse working in the primary care encounter on a daily basis patients seeking care due to poor health. In the primary care the first contact between patient and nurse is often by phone, where the district nurse must make a medical assessment of the patients' need of care, and regarding to the information that is gathered during the call, sort and prioritise the patients need for the appropriate level of care. Conjunctivitis is a condition that often results in self-care advice, nevertheless has earlier research proven it difficult to only offer self-care treatment to patients suffering from conjunctivitis due to the fact that conjunctivitis is experienced by patients as a rather complicated condition both in relation to the illness and from a social perspective. The aim of this study was to describe the district nurse care of patients with conjunctivitis when there exists a discrepancy between the expectation of care and received care. The study has a qualitative approach. Eight district nurses participated in the study. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews that were recorded on tape, then analysed with a manifest content analysis. The result shows that discrepancy can arise when the patients expectation of care and the district nurses assessment of care in the case of conjunctivitis do not correspond, possibly influencing care negatively in regard to several perspectives. The result of the study identifies several factors that can lead to discrepancy as well as in what manner the care is effected under those circumstances.


The aim of this project is to model, simulate and analyze the performance of the hydraulic servo system using MATLAB and Simulink. Experiments were conducted using open loop and closed loop control. In open loop control, the experiment was conducted for various speeds by supplying voltage to actuator from 5V to 10V. The open loop experimental data were used to determine the transfer function of the system. In closed loop control, the PI, PD and PID controllers were implemented in the hydraulic servo system and the desired positions were set to 30 mm, 50 mm and 70 mm. The results of the closed loop control showed that the PID controller produced better performance. The results also indicate that the transfer function model represented the actual system very well.


Restoration of lost marsh platforms can include de-novo construction using dredged sediments. Two restoration projects constructed with beneficial use material in 2004 and 2015 were planted with native vegetation in the anticipation they would function similarly to adjacent Juncus roemerianus (Black needlerush) dominated salt marshes. Planted J. roemerianus, however, failed to establish and exists sparsely in the restored marsh. To better understand potential sources of failure, this study assessed vascular plant diversity in Spring and Fall of 2017 through 2019 and demonstrated establishment of both planted and naturally recruited vegetation. The two constructed sites were found to have higher species richness and plant diversity (Shannon-Wiener H', and Simpson's D) than the natural reference marsh, in part due to the higher elevations of the two constructed sites. The plant diversity metrics indicated the two beneficial use restorations did not meet the species composition of the reference marsh. Further monitoring should be conducted to observe the species development over the long term with considerations given to the potential future marsh change.


There are conflicting results regarding the changes in spatio-temporal gait parameters during the 6-min walk test (6MWT) as indicators of gait-related motor performance fatigability (PF) in people with Multiple Sclerosis (pwMS). To further analyze if gait-related motor PF can be quantified using instrumented gait analysis during the 6MWT, we investigated: (i) whether gait parameters recorded during the first or second minute were more stable and thus the better baseline to assess motor PF and (ii) if the minimum toe clearance (MTC) together with "classical" spatio-temporal gait parameters can be used to quantify motor PF in pwMS. Nineteen mildly affected pwMS [12 women/7 men; 47.8 ± 9.0 years; the Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS): 2.7 ± 1.0] and 24 healthy controls (HC; 15 women/9 men; 48.8 ± 7.6 years) completed the 6MWT equipped with inertial measurement units. Data were analyzed using the attractor method to compare the stability of gait parameters and, besides "classical" spatio-temporal gait parameters, the MTC was calculated as a potential new marker for motor PF in pwMS as this was shown in healthy older adults. It was found that (i) gait parameters were more stable in the second than in the first minute and (ii) gait-related motor PF could not be detected based on spatio-temporal gait parameters, including the MTC. Descriptive analysis indicated a decrease in MTC variability, which is assumed to be indicative for motor PF, toward the end of the 6MWT in some pwMS. Future studies should investigate gait parameters for the assessment of motor PF in pwMS recorded during more intense and/or longer walking protocols, taking the level of disability into account. Furthermore, using gait parameters recorded in the first minute of the 6MWT as a baseline for the assessment of motor PF should be avoided.


This paper examines the allocative performance of rotating savings and credit associations (roscas), a financial institution which is observed world-wide. We develop a model in which individuals save for an indivisible good and study roscas which distribute funds using random allocation and bidding. The allocations achieved by the two types of rosca are compared with that achieved by a credit market and with efficient allocations more generally. We find that neither type of rosca is efficient and that agents are better off with a credit market than a bidding rosca. Nonetheless, a random rosca may sometimes yield a higher level of ex ante expected utility to prospective participants than would a credit market.


While many transgenders, or 'lady-boys', have a high visibility and work in professions such as hairdressing, cabaret shows, and Thailand's sex industry, they still remain marginalised and stigmatised in Thailand. Drawing on data from a larger research study, we learned that trarisgenders face unique issues in regards to their legal rights and risk to HIV / AIDS. Transgenders are regularly victims of sex crimes and due to stigma and fear; often do not report these crimes to police. Most transgenders do not know their legal or human rights under Thai law, where to go for help when their rights are violated, or about the availability of Post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) after a sexual assault. We describe working with transgenders, through a unique international collaboration, to produce a context-specific animated film that supports their struggle for social justice and the protection of their human rights. The animation is a new, strategic screen-based resource that aims to empower transgenders in overcoming barriers that deny them equitable access to participation in social, economic, political and cultural relations in their local community. The animation is currently being distributed through peer outreach on mobile phones and MP3 players among the different transgender communities in Chiang Mai. Looking forward, we describe our plans to integrate the animations into a chatroom-based peer-education programme to promote equity, social justice and how to negotiate condom use to minimise the transmission of HIV among the target population.


Introduction: Human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV-1) carriers are often found in coastal areas of the Kyushu-Okinawa region in Japan. Of the patients infected with the virus, only 2-5% will develop adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL). ATLL is classified into four clinical subtypes as follows: acute, lymphoma, chronic, and smoldering. Chronic-type ATLL has a better prognosis compared with acute and lymphoma types. However, in half of patients, chronic-type ATLL progresses to leukemia/lymphoma crisis. Abnormal expressions of CD58 and beta-2 microglobulin (b2M) were recently reported to be involved in the immune escape mechanism of tumor cells in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (Pasqualucci et. al. Cancer Cell 2014). In our previous study, acute-type ATLL had significantly higher rates of CD58 gene deletion, which was associated with leukemia/lymphoma crisis in chronic-type ATLL (Yoshida et. al. Cancer Res 2014). However, the clinicopathological significance of HLA expression in ATLL patients remains controversial. In addition, we previously reported that the expression of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), one of the regulatory factors of tumor immune responses, influenced disease prognosis in ATLL patients. Especially PD-L1 expression in stromal cells in tumor microenvironments is associated with better prognosis of ATLL (Miyoshi et al. Blood 2016). The present study evaluated the clinical relevance of HLA, b2M, and PD-L1 expressions, with particular emphasis on predicting overall survival of ATLL patients. Methods: We report the clinicopathological profiles of 123 patients diagnosed as having ATLL at Kurume University (Kurume, Japan) according to the 2008 World Health Organization classification system. Among these patients, 45 had the acute type and 52 had the lymphoma type, with a median age of 66 years (range, 13-90 years). We examined the immunohistological expressions of HLA and b2M proteins in all the 123 patients by using tissue microarray. The expression patterns and clinicopathological features were also examined statistically. All data were analyzed by using the STATA software version 12.0 (StataCorp, College Station, Texas). Results: In the immunohistochemical study, 91 (74%) of the 123 patients were positive for HLA, including 60 who were cell membrane positive (HLAm+), 31 who demonstrated cytoplasmic localization (HLAcy+), and 32 who were negative for HLA (HLA−). In addition, 89 (72%) of the 123 patients were positive for b2M, including 54 who were cell membrane positive (b2Mm+), 35 who demonstrated cytoplasmic localization (b2Mcy+), and 34 who were b2M negative (b2M−). The HLAm+b2Mm+ group, which showed membrane staining for both HLA and b2M, accounted for 48 cases (39%) in the present study (Table 1). In terms of clinical features, no significant differences were found between the HLAm+b2Mm+ group and the other groups. Immunophenotypical evaluation revealed significantly higher rates of CD30-positive lymphoma cells (P = 0.004) and PD-L1-positive stromal cells in microenvironments (PD-L1+stromal cells ≥50/HPF: miPD-L1high) in the HLAm+b2Mm+ patients (P = 0.008) than in the patients in other groups. Disease-specific survival (DSS) curves showed that the HLAm+b2Mm+ group had significantly better prognosis than the other groups (Figure 1-a). Especially the HLAm+b2Mm+ group with miPD-L1high had an excellent prognosis, with a 5-year survival rate of 77% (Figure 1-b). The multivariate analysis demonstrated that the membrane expressions of both HLA and b2M in lymphoma cells with increased number of PD-L1-positive stromal cells were an independent factor of good prognosis in ATLL (Table2). Conclusions: The results of our study demonstrated the following three points: 1) The expression patterns of HLA and b2M in the patients with ATLL varied. 2) The HLAm+b2Mm+ group showed significantly better prognosis than the other groups. Especially the HLAm+b2Mm+ group with miPD-L1high demonstrated the most favorable prognosis. These results suggest that the host immune surveillance mechanism for lymphoma cells in the HLAm+b2Mm+ group with mPD-L1high is still functioning. 3) The membrane expressions of HLA and b2M in ATLL cells are useful as a predictive marker of good prognosis and increase in the number of PD-L1-positive stromal cells in tumor microenvironments. Disclosures Asano:Chugai: Honoraria; Jannsen: Honoraria. Ohshima:Chugai: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Kyowa Kirin: Research Funding, Speakers Bureau.


The increase of population has caused land use land cover change. The development of a city has increase the need of settlements and buildings. Monitoring any land cover is important to support environmentally based and sustainable urban planning. Medan as one of big cities in Indonesia has showed a development of the areas. The aim of the study was to analyze the land cover and vegetation existence in two sub-districts of Medan.  The supervised classification analysis was conducted for year 2019. Ground check was a part of the study. There were six land cover classes found in the area, namely paddy fields, grass, shrubs, trees, mixed plant, and built-up land. The largest area within two sub-districts is built up areas.  The results show less vegetated areas within two sub-districts.  There was 86% of built-up areas in Medan Baru and 69.3% in Medan Selayang.  Vegetation as an important element in the environment needs to be preserved within the urban areas. There is a need to plant trees in less vegetated areas. Green open space should be incorporated into city planning in order to preserve and improve the quality of the urban environment.


Purpose: Harmful use of alcohol is a major public health problem. While harm is often researched in the context of heavy drinking episodes, high-frequency drinking, even when drinking moderate quantities, constitutes a health risk in a longer perspective. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of daily use of alcohol in the Norwegian general population, and to assess sociodemographic, mental health-related and personal resource variables associated with daily use of alcohol. Methodology: A cross-sectional survey concerned with health, illness and serious life events was distributed to 5,500 persons in the general population in Norway (response rate 36 %). Sociodemographic variables, personal resource variables (general self-efficacy, optimism, and extraversion) and psychological distress (current anxiety and/or depression) were assessed with regards to their associations with daily drinking in unadjusted and adjusted regression models. Findings: Daily use of alcohol was reported by 39 persons (2.2 %) in the sample (3.1 % of men and 1.4 % of women). While general self-efficacy, optimism and extraversion were unrelated to daily drinking, the adjusted model revealed that male sex (OR: 2.18, p < 0.05), being unemployed/not in education (OR: 3.10, p < 0.05) and reporting current anxiety and/or depression (OR: 3.12, p < 0.01) were associated with daily use of alcohol. Value: The study has contributed to the knowledge about daily drinkers in a representative sample of the Norwegian population. A proportion of 2.2 % was found to drink alcohol on a daily basis. Compared to their counterparts, the odds of daily drinking were higher for men, unemployed persons and persons reporting current psychological distress. Public health initiatives aiming at reducing harmful use of alcohol may pay particular attention to these subsets of the population.


Little research examined how and why cognitive and emotional trust in supervisor influence employees' proactive behavior (PB). The following findings were obtained by applying a hierarchical cross-national comparison framework on influence path to Chinese and Japanese samples: 1) the confirmatory cross-national comparisons on higher-order level pathways confirmed that in both China and Japan, the influence of cognitive trust on PB is mediated by prospects of performance and growth, and the influence of emotional trust on PB is mediated by warmth and happiness; 2) the exploratory crossnational comparison on lower-order level pathways revealed that the detailed structures of the two pathways were not much different between China and Japan, except in the depending willingness dimension of emotional trust; 3) finally, by comparing the findings of 1) and 2), we attempted to distinguish the inevitable parts and cultural peculiar parts within the two pathway. Keywords—proactive behavior; cognitive & emotioal trust; prospects of performance & growth; warmth & happiness; influence path


OBJECTIVE
To assess gallbladder (GB) volume variations in response to a standard meal.

METHODS
We assessed these variations with ultrasonography at brief intervals over the postprandial period, which included the emptying and refilling phases of the GB.

RESULTS
During both emptying and refilling of the GB, the volume fluctuated continuously, with brief alternating volume decrements and increments. The phases of emptying and refilling appear to be the net result of the algebraic sum of these volume fluctuations. In the emptying phase, the volume decrements showed a greater volume (35.7 +/- 10.7 ml vs. 14.8 +/- 8.4 ml) and lasted longer (158 +/- 37 min vs. 85 +/- 44 min) than the volume increments, whereas the opposite took place in the refilling phase (4.3 +/- 3.4 ml vs. 16.4 +/- 12.2 ml; 39 +/- 20 min vs. 84 +/- 37 min).

CONCLUSION
It is probable that the continuous GB volume fluctuations are the expression of hepatic bile recycling in the GB during the entire postprandial period, and the amount of bile recycled by the GB is greater during the emptying than the refilling phase.


The Norwegian authorities pursue active labour market policies to fight unemployment by qualifying the unemployed in a wide range of programmes. We discuss theoretically and investigate empirically the effects such policies might have on the wage curve using a panel of more than 5400 Norwegian firms and regional unemployment figures. Total unemployment is a better predictor of wage pressure than open unemployment. The wage flexibility is reduced when we control for labour market programmes. The results support the view that labour market programmes shift the wage curve downwards and hence increase the equilibrium employment. JEL Classification: C23, J38.


The stability in the sense of semicontinuation for the cone efficient points and the cone weakly efficient points of a perturbation set in Banach space with perturbation order are studied. On this basis, the stability for the cone efficient solutions and the cone weakly efficient solutions of multiobjective programming problem under two perturbations are obtained in Banach space.


- The canny edge detection is one of the most implemented edge detection algorithms because of its superior performance in noisy environment. Because of its frame level statistics, it is intensive and having high latency. Applying basic canny edge detection algorithm on input image may cause excessive edges in smooth regions and to loss of significant edges in high-detailed regions. Based on block type and the local distribution of the gradients in the image block, we present a distributed canny edge detection algorithm based on threshold segmentation that adaptively computes the edge detection thresholds. The new block-based algorithm has a significantly reduced latency and can be easily used for parallel processing applications. This paper presents improved algorithm based on threshold segmentation in which threshold of pixel in an image is estimated by calculating the mean and variance of the grayscale values of the neighbor pixels. Experimental results demonstrate that proposed algorithm can preserve more useful edge information and more robust to noise.


The operative morbidity rate in elderly patients with lung cancer is high in comparison to nonelderly patients, probably because of the increase in comorbidities that occurs with aging. However, previous reports were retrospective and were performed at single institutions; thus, the preoperative comorbidities and operative morbidity could not be fully assessed. We conducted a multi-institutional prospective observational study of elderly patients (>75 years of age) with a completely resected non-small cell lung cancer. From March 2014 to April 2015, 264 patients from 22 hospitals affiliated with the National Hospital Organization in Japan were prospectively registered in the present study. The primary end point was operative morbidity (National Cancer Institute Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events version 4.0). The secondary end points were operative mortality and the risk factors for operative morbidity. Preoperative comorbidities were assessed according to the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation-27 index. The mean age at the time of surgery was 79.3 years (range 75-90 years). Forty-one percent of the patients were >80 years of age. Twenty-six percent underwent sublobar resection. The incidence of morbidities of any grade was 43.2% (90% confidence interval: 38.2%-48.2%). Respiratory system-related morbidity (19.3%), followed by cardiovascular system-related morbidity (10.2%), was the most common morbidity. The in-hospital mortality rate was 1.1% (3 of 264 patients). A multivariate analysis of the risk factors for operative morbidity showed that both Adult Comorbidity Evaluation-27 grade and the blood loss volume were significant factors. The results of the present prospective multi-institutional study should be used as a reference in the surgical treatment of elderly patients with lung cancer.


Barium Magnesium Tantalate (Ba(Mg1/3 Ta2/3)O3) is ABO3 type perovskite material. It is fetching more attention of researchers as material for dielectric resonator and is used in satellite communication. The dominant mode of synthesis of this material is solid state route. In the present work TG/DTA has been carried out of the raw material in the temperature range from 30 to 14000C. In TG 3 major weight-loss steps are observed till 10000C with a total loss of 22% followed by weight gain of 18% in the temperature range 1000 to 13000C and then weight loss continued till 14000C and finally the stable composition showed a weight loss of 8%. This observation is supported by DTA which showed a broad endotherm till 200 suggesting loss of adsorbed water followed by a short endotherm at 3500C, a sharp endotherm at 800C suggesting decomposition of Barium Carbonate. Enthalpy of the reaction mixture seems to rise quickly after the decomposition leading to ternary phase formation. The chemical composition changes rapidly after 1100 till 1200 C suggesting rapid uptake of oxygen. The sharp and significant endotherm observed between 1120 to 12000C suggested that at 12000C majority of the reactions taking place in the reaction mixture are over. Highest oxygen stoichiometry appeared at temperature 13000C. Considering this, material was calcined at temperatures 950, 1200 2 hrs, 1200 18hrs, 1200 18 hrs (total 36 hrs) and 1300 2hrs. At every stage some amount of material was taken out and subjected for XRD. Crystallite size observed to be increasing from 200 to 331 A0at temperature 950 to 13000 C respectively


Bacterial inoculants are known to improve quality of silage. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the effects of different types of lactic acid bacteria (LAB; L. plantarum, L. salivarius, L. reuteri, L. brevis and S. bovis) inoculation (106 g−1 DM) on rice straw silage quality and to examine these effects on ruminal fermentation characteristics, digestibility and microbial populations in an in vitro condition. Inoculated rice straw was ensiled for 15 and 30 days. For in vitro study, rumen liquor was obtained from two rumen fistulated mature cows fed on mixed forage and concentrate at 60:40 ratio twice daily. Inoculation of LAB improved (P˂0.05) the rice straw silage quality such as increased dry matter and crude protein contents, decreased pH and butyric acid, and increased propionic acid and LAB contents especially after 30 days of ensiling. Results from in vitro study revealed that addition of LAB to the rice straw silage improved fermentation characteristics such as increased total volatile fatty acids and dry matter digestibility (P˂0.05). LAB treatments also decreased methane production and methane/total gas ratio after 15 and 30 days of ensiling. From the rumen microbial population perspective, cellulolytic, and fungal zoospores were enhanced while protozoa and methanogens were decreased by the LAB treatments. Based on these results, it could be concluded that inoculating rice straw silage with LAB (especially for L. plantarum and S. bovis) improved silage quality, rumen fermentation parameters and microbial populations in vitro. However, in vivo studies need to confirm those effects.


The transport of taurocholic and glycocholic acids by the small intestine of rats and guinea pigs against a concentration gradient was studied by the everted gutsac technique. Transport of these substances is limited to the distal ileal segment. This transport is inhibited by anoxia, dinitrophenol and sodium azide. The system has a transport maximum. On the basis of these criteria bile acid reabsorption is considered to occur by active transport.


In this paper we introduce a new conceptual algorithm for the conceptual analysis of a mixed incomplete data set. This is a Logical Combinatorial Pattern Recognition (LCPR) based tool for the conceptual structuralization of spaces. Starting from the limitations of the elaborated conceptual algorithms, our Laboratories are working in the application of the methods, the techniques and in general, the philosophy of the Logical Combinatorial Pattern Recognition with the task to improve those limitations. An extension of the Michalski's concept of lcomplex for any similarity measure, a generalization operator for symbolic variables and an extension of the Michalski's Refunion operator are introduced. Finally, the performance of the RGC algorithm is analyzed. A comparison with several known conceptual algorithms is presented.


. In this paper, we investigate the components of a Research 2.0 infrastructure. We propose building blocks and their concrete implementation to leverage Research 2.0 practice and technologies in our field, including a publication feed format for exchanging publication data, a RESTful API to retrieve publication and Web 2.0 data, and a publisher suit for refining and aggregating data. We illustrate the use of this infrastructure with Research 2.0 application examples ranging from a Mash-Up environment, a mobile and multitouch application, thereby demonstrating the strength of this infrastructure.


In order to have reliable communications, channel coding is often employed. Turbo code as a powerful coding technique, has been widely studied and used in communication systems. Turbo code decoder algorithm is studied in details in this paper. The performance of Turbo code used in IS-2000 Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) reverse or forward link under Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN) and slow fading channels is evaluated. The bit error rates (BER) of Turbo code at low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) are obtained by simulations.


Summary In the context of radioactive waste management, concrete is used at various levels of the radioactive waste repositories. For safety purposes, it is of fundamental importance to characterise the mechanical integrity and chemical alteration of cementitious materials. While various sensors have been developed to provide punctual information on concrete infrastructures, indirect non-intrusive methods are still scarce. Spectral induced polarization (SIP) has been considered to fill this gap, based on its sensitivity to both fluid content and specific surface area, the latter being in connection with chemical alterations and pore-fluid interface evolution. The frequency-dependent polarization of different CEMI and CEMV cement types was investigated for various formulations determined by water/cement ratio and possible aggregate addition. SIP measurements provide complex conductivity values, both at early-age and mature stages. First results show an increase of both real and complex conductivity components with increasing water/cement ratios, and a decrease but proportional electrical response of mortars (obtained by addition of a resistive sand aggregate) with regard to their corresponding hardened cement pastes. The proportionality coefficient seems independent from the water/cement ratio. The eventual aim is to achieve homogenous quantifiable damaging of the cement-based samples, as to test the observability of its impact on polarization measurements.


We report this case of a 45-year-old man with HIV-AIDS on HAART therapy who presented with acute abdominal pain and renal failure. He was found to have pneumatosis intestinalis on computerized axial tomography scan of the abdomen. He underwent emergent explorative laparotomy, which revealed a necrotic large bowel segment for which a right-sided hemicolectomy and ileostomy were performed. The patient subsequently developed septic shock and hypoxic respiratory failure. He expired a week after the surgical procedure. Acute abdominal events due to vascular catastrophes secondary to hypercoagulability, endothelial dysfunction and accelerated atherosclerosis have been reported in HIV positive patients.


Background: The carotid artery should be stented in patients with 70-90% stenosis owing to the high risk of stroke. The self-expanding Smart nitinol stent system is a popular treatment for carotid artery stenosis, because it is easy to manipulate and deploy, and endothelialization is rapid. Methods/Design: We conducted a retrospective, single-center, non-randomized, parallel controlled trial at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, China. A cohort of 103 patients with severe atherosclerotic carotid stenosis was included in the analysis. Treatment was undertaken according to each patient's wishes after weighing the options: a Smart nitinol stent system (Cordis Corporation, Miami, FL, USA) was used in 40 patients, while 63 were managed conservatively with antiplatelet drugs. The primary outcome is the degree of disability and dependence 2 years after treatment, assessed by the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). The secondary outcomes are mRS score 90 days and 1 year after treatment, recurrence of cerebrovascular events, and severity of neurologic deficit measured using the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale 1 and 2 years after treatment. Discussion: Previous studies of the Smart nitinol stent system for the treatment of carotid stenosis are mostly self-controlled case series or small cohort studies with short follow-up periods. Consequently, the long-term influence of Smart nitinol stent deployment on the risk of cerebrovascular events and long-term outcomes are not known. This trial illuminates the therapeutic benefits of the Smart nitinol stent system in a 2-year follow-up study of a large cohort of patients with severe atherosclerotic carotid stenosis. Trial registration: This trial was registered at ClinicalTrial.gov (NCT02800174). Ethics: The study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, China (approval number: 201605-01) and conducted in accordance with the guidelines of the Declaration of Helsinki, formulated by the World Medical Association. Informed consent: Written informed consent was obtained from participants or their guardians.


This is a qualitative research that focuses on the meaning represented in the phoneme contained in English onomatopoeic words. Onomatopoeia is word that imitates the sounds of human, animal, things, actions, and nature in the world. Onomatopoeia exists in many reading materials such as comics, fables, tales and poetry. This research focuses on the onomatopoeic words which are contained in Oxford English Dictionary for the dictionary is regularly updated. Out of two kinds of phoneme, which are consonants and vowels, this research limits the investigation for only English front vowels. Based on the manner of articulation, English front vowels are divided into front high tense unrounded vowel /i/, front high lax unrounded vowel /ɪ/, front mid tense unrounded vowel /e/, front mid lax unrounded vowel /ɛ/, and front low lax unrounded vowel /ӕ/. This approach used in this research is called sound symbolism which is a study of relation between sound and meaning. This research applies low-level properties, a mechanism in sound symbolism that is associating the sound to the meaning based on the shared perceptual feature in both phoneme and associated stimuli. The mechanism is used as the method of the research for the researcher explores the characteristics of front vowels contained in English onomatopoeic words that are used to represent the sounds produced by human, animals, natures, machines, and other things. Based on the investigation, the result indicates that the higher vowels the more diminutive meaning it indicates, while the lower vowels the more augmentative meaning it indicates.


Local ensemble transform Kalman filters (LETKFs) allow explicit calculation of the Kalman gain, and by this the contribution of individual observations to the analysis field. Though this is a known feature, the information on the analysis contribution of individual observations (partial analysis increment) has not been used as systematic diagnostic up to now despite providing valuable information. In this study, we demonstrate three potential applications based on partial analysis increments in the regional modelling system of Deutscher Wetterdienst and propose their use for optimising LETKF data assimilation systems, in particular with respect to satellite data assimilation and localisation. While exact calculation of partial analysis increments would require saving the large, five‐dimensional ensemble weight matrix in the analysis step, it is possible to compute an approximation from standard LETKF output. We calculate the Kalman gain based on ensemble analysis perturbations, which is an approximation in the case of localisation. However, this only introduces minor errors, as the localisation function changes very gradually among nearby grid points. On the other hand, the influence of observations always depends on the presence of other observations and settings for the observation error and for localisation. However, the influence of observations behaves approximately linearly, meaning that the assimilation of other observations primarily decreases the magnitude of the influence, but it does not change the overall structure of the partial analysis increments. This means that the calculation of partial analysis increments can be used as an efficient diagnostic to investigate the three‐dimensional influence of observations in the assimilation system. Furthermore, the diagnostic can be used to detect whether the influence of additional experimental observations is in accordance with other observations without conducting computationally expensive single‐observation experiments. Last but not least, the calculation can be used to approximate the influence an observation would have when applying different assimilation settings.


Amplification of the MYCN oncogene, a member of the MYC family of transcriptional regulators, is one of the most powerful prognostic markers identified for poor outcome in neuroblastoma, the most common extracranial solid cancer in childhood. While MYCN has been established as a key driver of malignancy in neuroblastoma, the underlying molecular mechanisms are poorly understood. Transcription factor activating enhancer binding protein-4 (TFAP4) has been reported to be a direct transcriptional target of MYC. We show for the first time that high expression of TFAP4 in primary neuroblastoma patients is associated with poor clinical outcome. siRNA-mediated suppression of TFAP4 in MYCN-expressing neuroblastoma cells led to inhibition of cell proliferation and migration. Chromatin immunoprecipitation assay demonstrated that TFAP4 expression is positively regulated by MYCN. Microarray analysis identified genes regulated by both MYCN and TFAP4 in neuroblastoma cells, including Phosphoribosyl-pyrophosphate synthetase-2 (PRPS2) and Syndecan-1 (SDC1), which are involved in cancer cell proliferation and metastasis. Overall this study suggests a regulatory circuit in which MYCN by elevating TFAP4 expression, cooperates with it to control a specific set of genes involved in tumor progression. These findings highlight the existence of a MYCN-TFAP4 axis in MYCN-driven neuroblastoma as well as identifying potential therapeutic targets for aggressive forms of this disease.


In the context of an infinite locally finite weighted graph, we give a necessary and sufficient
condition for semi-Fredholmness of the Gauss-Bonnet operator. This result is a discrete version of the
theorem of Gilles Carron in the continuous case [5]. In addition, using a criterion of Anghel [2], we give
a sufficient condition to have an operator of Gauss-Bonnet with closed range. Finally, this work can be
considered as an extension of the work of Colette Anne and Nabila Torki-Hamza [3].


The levels of fibronectin, alpha-1 antitrypsin, and fibrinogen have been studied in 34 patients after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). Patients were grouped according to A: postoperative course without complications (n = 18), B: development of sepsis accompanied by organ insufficiency (n = 8), and C: acute rejection (n = 6). The plasma levels of alpha-1 antitrypsin and fibrinogen did not show a typical pattern with respect to the postoperative course. The levels of fibronectin, however, did respond to the postoperative events. Starting from a subnormal level a significant increase was observed in group A (p less than 0.005) and C (p less than 0.05) whereas in group B plasma levels remained low. Significant differences (p less than 0.05) were found on day 3 and 5 between group A and C and group B and C. At the end of the observation period survivors (group A and C) had significantly higher levels of fibronectin than nonsurvivors (group B). Therefore fibronectin might aid to diagnose immunologic disturbances after OLT.


ABSTRACT Background: Although tobacco control efforts have contributed to an overall decline in smoking, individuals with substance use disorders (SUDs) continue to smoke at high rates and remain targets of advertising to vulnerable groups, including those with mental health disorders and SUDs. Objectives: We examined associations of tobacco advertising exposure and receptivity, anti-tobacco message awareness, and health-risk perception with smoking status and cigarettes-per-day (CPD) in a national sample of SUD treatment patients. Methods: The patients (N = 1,113) in 24 programs chosen randomly, stratified by program type, from among publicly funded adult treatment programs within the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network completed surveys of smoking, advertising exposure and receptivity, anti-tobacco message awareness, and perceived health risks. Results: Current smokers (77.9% of the sample) smoked a daily median of 10 cigarettes (IQR = 13). The participants reporting daily advertising exposure were 1.41 times more likely to be smokers (p = 0.019) than others. Those highly receptive to advertising were 2.34 times more likely to be smokers (p < 0.001) than those with low/moderate receptivity. Higher perceived health risk was associated with lower odds of smoking (OR = 0.99, 95% CI: 0.98–0.99, p < 0.001). CPD for smokers highly receptive to advertising was 11.1% (95% CI: 2.8%–20.0%) higher than for smokers with low/moderate advertising receptivity. Anti-tobacco message awareness was not associated with smoking status or CPD. Conclusion: The high rate of smoking among SUD treatment patients is associated with daily exposure and high receptivity to tobacco advertisements and lower perception of health-related smoking risks. Tobacco control efforts should target this vulnerable population.


The paper describes a methodology for determining the conditions in which the liquid phase arises in the transported natural gas. This methodology allows fast and accurate determination of the phase in which water can be found in natural gas transmission pipelines and also the possibility to highlight the points in the transmission system in which water is in liquid state. A complex function which can describe the phase behavior of water from natural gas has been defined by processing the phase envelopes of the wet natural gas in the field of the Romanian transmission system.


Ocean eddies play a major role in lateral and vertical mixing processes of particulate organic carbon (POC), as well as in the transport of heat, salinity, and biogeochemical tracers. In the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), however, there are limited observations to characterize how these mesoscale structures affect the spatial distribution of POC in the upper water column, which is important for organic matter cycling and export. We present the distribution patterns of POC relative to mesoscale features throughout the water column in the deep-water region of the GoM during three oceanographic cruises held during the summer months of 2015, 2016, and 2017. Samples were collected under well-stratified upper ocean conditions, which allowed us to assess the spatial and temporal distribution of POC as a function of non-steric sea surface height, density, apparent oxygen utilization, and chlorophyll fluorescence. We further explored the variability of integrated surface layer POC concentrations at stations located within the cores and the edges of cyclonic and anticyclonic eddies, and those collected outside these structures. Although our results indicate mesoscale eddies modulate several important physical and biogeochemical variables and POC concentrations in the upper ocean, these features do not fully explain the spatial distribution of POC concentrations throughout the deep-water region of the GoM. Relatively lower POC concentrations were observed in the border of the cyclonic and the center of the anticyclonic eddies, in contrast to the relatively higher POC concentrations at the center of the cyclonic and the border of anticyclonic eddies. We observed high variability in POC concentration variability outside mesoscale structures, which may be attributed to other processes such as upwelling over the shelves, and the contribution by rivers during the summer especially in the northern and southern GoM.


Front-back vibrations of high-speed elevator need to be suppressed as in the case of lateral vibrations. The dynamic model for the front-back vibrations is different from the lateral vibration model since the supporting structure varies. In this study, a dynamic model was derived using the energy method. Based on the free vibration analysis, it was observed that the fundamental frequency for the front-back vibration is slightly lower than the fundamental frequency of the lateral vibration, which means that the active vibration control should be carried out in both directions. The PPF control algorithm was applied to the numerical model under measured rail irregularities. The numerical results show that the active vibration control of elevator front-back vibration is also possible.


Comparative psychology entails the search for general principles regarding the immediate control, development, adaptive function, and evolutionary histories of behavioral patterns. It has been a part of the discipline of psychology since its inception as a separate field of inquiry. I trace the history of comparative psychology from the earliest evidence of interest in animals to the present. Although comparative psychology as a subdiscipline can be traced through British origins, as exemplified by Charles Darwin and a group of other British animal behaviorists, it matured in North America during the 20th century. It became a visible part of American psychology prior to WWI but faded during and shortly after the war. Some important psychologists entered the field between the wars and provided the foundation for its development and expansion after WWII. Aided by federal funding, the field thrived after the war. The influences of reformulated European ethology, evolutionary theory, and the so-called cognitive revolution all created important changes in the field. Recent years have seen a return of increased international representation, greater influence of women, and increased collaborative research.

Keywords:

animal behavior;
zoological psychology;
ethology;
evolution


Comparisons of experimental and numerical investigations into the effect of duct on motion variables and speed loss for a given ship model are presented. The purpose of these comparisons is to verify the advantage of using ducted propeller on sea keeping performance and added power or speed loss. Relevant damping theories concerning the lift characteristic of ducts are described as foundation for the numerical calculations of using an equivalent flat plate that represents the duct of ducted propeller in software of SHIPX. In SHIPX, a case ship of RR NVC Nor-lines 120m cargo vessel is defined and several plug-in are used to do simulations for bare ship (refers to vessel with open propeller) and ship with foil (represents vessel with ducted propeller). The duct"s effect on RAOs for motion variables, added resistance and speed loss are evaluated respectively under 5 different wave conditions. A series of experiments on M3006 respectively with an open propeller and a ducted propeller are carried out in both calm water and 8 regular wave conditions in the large towing tank of MARINTEK center. Repetitions of tests under same wave conditions are used to make uncertainty analysis of measured variables. The effect of wave height and wave period affecting the duct"s effect on motion variables and added resistance are discussed and compared with numerical results obtained from SHIPX. Additionally, by interpolation of propeller rotational speed given tow rope force at self-propulsion point, corresponding thrust and torque are obtained. Then the interpolated variables are used to calculate propulsive coefficients including thrust deduction, wake fraction and relative rotative efficiency in both calm water and regular waves. The effect of wave height and wave period on propulsive coefficients are studied and compared for both open and ducted propeller. Furthermore, corrections are made for interpolation results to give more precise power prediction. The effect of propeller loading on wake fraction and propeller efficiency varying with 5 different wave conditions are presented. Finally the duct"s effect on added power is studied and compared with numerical results from SHIPX.


Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Zinov'ev is one of the few Russian social thinkers who may be described in the direct, literal sense as "a scholar of world renown." Hundreds of articles, books, surveys, and reviews have been devoted to his work. In them we find flattering comparisons between him and such true luminaries of culture as Swift, Voltaire, Rabelais, Gogol, and SaltykovShchedrin. The suspicion may, of course, arise that the compliments lavished on Zinov'ev are motivated by political and ideological considerations: he has been welcomed, above all, as a merciless and uncompromising critic of the Soviet social order, and this could not but have elicited wild rejoicing among the Sovietologists. However, in the atmosphere of the cold war extremely emotional exposés both of the "Great Terror" and of Stalin's aggressive foreign policy were never in short supply. With regard to Zinov'ev, many very authoritative Western intellectuals emphasize above all other things the high standard of professionalism of his works and their thematic breadth: logic, methodology, sociology, literature. Let me cite a few facts. Many noted specialists (Ajdukewicz, Bochenski, Ayer, and others) have recognized him as one of the greatest logicians of the century. In 1978 Zinov'ev received a prize for the best European essay on sociology, and in 1982 the highly prestigious Alexis de Tocqueville Prize. None


The mechanism by which the human T-cell leukemia viruses type I and II (HTLV-I and -II) transform T cells is unknown, but the nonstructural Tax protein that these viruses produce is known to be essential for viral replication and to have the capacity to trans-activate cellular gene expression. The HTLV-I and -II Tax proteins have been shown to activate the promoter of both the human and mouse granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) genes in mature T-cell lines. T-cell-specific Tax-responsive sequences were previously localized to the 90-bp region extending from base pairs -53 to +37 in the human GM-CSF promoter. In this study, a series of site-directed and deletion mutations were created in the human GM-CSF promoter, which was linked to the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) gene, and the constructs were assayed for their response to Tax by using a Tax-expressing plasmid in transient cotransfection assays. The results demonstrated that both copies of the repeated sequence CATTA (A/T), located between base pairs -48 and -36, are required for Tax responsiveness in T cells and that these sequences bind nuclear factors present in T cells. The Tax-responsiveness of other sequences located 5' of base pair -53 was also examined, including an NF-kappa B consensus sequence and the CK1, CK2, and GC-rich regions identified in both the mouse and human GM-CSF promoters. These sequences did not have Tax-responsive regulatory activity when they were examined in the context of the intact human GM-CSF promoter in T cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The main objective of this research was to determine the effectiveness of local Electric Arc Furnace Slag (EAFS) as a replacement material in cement mortar and to determine the degree of its pozzolanicity.

The properties of steel slag blended cement were studied at chemical and physical laboratories of Nile cement Industry in accordance to the international standards (ASTM and BS). Chemical analysis showed that locally produced steel slag contains a high amount of iron due to a purification process in steel manufacturing compared with the standard (ACI 233). According to test results, it found that the degree of pozzolanicity is 95.8 % for 28 days which indicates a good quality electric arc furnace slag and a promising pozzolanic supplementary material in concrete. Compressive strength test of mortar samples at 2, 7 and 28 days with different percentages of electric arc furnace slag (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%) had been conducted. Finally, the study proved the efficiency of using one of the industrial wastes as a pozzolanic material in cement industry.


The cyclicality of underwriting profits for the property-liability insurance industry has been extensively researched. The underwriting cycle refers to a repeating series of phases that insurance markets go through. The sequence of hard and soft markets may be observed in prices, profitability, and supply (capacity) for insurance. In this study we try to describe in detail phases of insurance cycles and its characteristics. We put a special emphasis into crises (hard markets). We also present some historical data about crises, its causes and consequence on the example of the US insurance market.


Firefighting is a professional task to perform since it involves specialized skills; however the response of firefighters and their departments is accused for inefficiency and mismanagement especially in case of high rise buildings. The purpose of the study is to highlight firefighters view on improving fire emergency response reasons in high rise buildings in Rawalpindi. It investigates hurdles faced by firefighters to response to fire emergencies in high rise buildings. This study is based on qualitative approach with purposeful sampling technique. Five rescue stations were visited for interview from 25 firefighters and two focus group discussions from 10 firefighters on set agenda related research study. The surveys were based on semi structured interviews from firefighters. It highlighted obstacles in firefighting response in high rise building constructed without safety standards as per building bylaws and how firefighters' response depends on resources, skills, implementation of building bylaws and coordination among response organizations. The study found that safety standards as per building bylaws are not being implemented fully in Rawalpindi and lack of public awareness about firefighting profession affects fire emergency response. Furthermore lack of coordination at all levels especially with Police, Traffic and WAPDA departments and unavailability of Incident Command System (ICS) also affects fire emergency response despite of having good skills and resources. The study also found that media is playing positive role at the site as representatives of the media never disturb firefighters for interviews rather they contacts their seniors for gathering details of the incident.


We present a new stochastic model for the evolution of Directed Acyclic Graphs (DAG)-based distributed ledgers (DL), under the presence of heterogeneous delay. This model is used to analyse the performance metrics of the DL, showing in particular that the number of unapproved messages does not diverge to infinity, even under the presence of delay. We propose an analysis based on conveniently defined sets, as well as an alternative drift-based analysis. The former allows to get a bound on the number of unapproved messages, while the latter, through a simpler analysis, allows to probe the existence of such bound. For particular scenarios, we are able to derive the expected value of the drift of unapproved messages, through a Markov process-based approach. State-of-the-art mathematical models trying to capture the impact of delays on the performance of such DLs rely on some particular simplifications. In contrast, through our model, we are able to analytically derive similar performance guarantees, in a more realistic set-up. In particular, we focus on IOTA foundation's tangle, while our results can be extended to other DAG-based distributed ledgers. We compare our results to results obtained in a real testbed, showing good accordance between them.


The Engineering Management Program (EMP) at the University of Pretoria is now in its 10/sup th/ year of operation. The success of the program has led to the establishment of the Department of Engineering and Technology Management in the Faculty of Engineering. This paper provides an overview of the evolution of both the program and the department, suggests some views on the discipline of engineering management, and offers a number of observations and "lessons learned". A brief description is also provided of several academic initiatives that have since spun off from the EMP and now form part of the department's portfolio of products.