Reviews Fundamental constructs in mathematics education, John Mason and Sue Johnston-Wilder (eds.). Pp. 339. £22.50. 2004. ISBN 0 415 32698 2 (Routledge Falmer). This book is aimed at the serious reader of literature relating to learning mathematics, and consists of a fascinating range of sources classic texts, research papers and books linked by the editors' commentary, and providing an examination of key constructs in mathematics education, a construct here being defined as an entity which may describe, or account for, a phenomenon. The choice of constructs is based on some of the many have proved fruitful in research and that have informed choices made by teachers.


Treatment with mefiquine of uncomplicated falcipanrm malaria patients was undertaken in ITCI Hospital Balikpapan, East Kalimantan, Indonesia in 1991. This study was conducted to assess the efficacy and scrfety of mefloquine, and to assess in vitro sensitivity of P. falciparum to other antimalarials currently in use. A total of 16 falciparum malaria patients who had been selected according to WHO criteria for the drug sensitivity test were treated with 750 mg mefloquine single dose orally. All patients were hospitalized for 3-5 days and followed up on day 7, 14, 21 and 28. Clinical and parasitological eraminations were canied out during the study, haematological and biochemical examinations were also performed before drug administration and when the patient was discharged from the hospital. The main presenting symptoms were chills, headache and fever. Cure rate was 100% with the mean fever clearance time and parasite clearance time was 9.3 + 2.4 hours and 47.1 + 3.7 hours respectively. No significant dmg-related changes were noted in hematological or biochemical parameters. Only nausea was observed as a side effect of mejloquine which was mild and disappeared without treatment. ITCI Hospital area is a highly chloroquine resistant area (90,9%) and also as a multidrug resistant area (50%). This study shows that mefloquine is effective and safe for the treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria resistant to chloroquine as well as for multidrug resistant cases.


This paper presents a wearable indoor navigation system that helps visually impaired user to perform indoor navigation. The system takes advantage of the Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) and semantic path planning to accomplish localization and navigation tasks while collaborating with the visually impaired user. It integrates multiple sensors and feedback devices as an RGB-D camera, an IMU and a web camera; and it applies the RGB-D based visual odometry algorithm to estimate the user's location and orientation, and uses the IMU to refine the orientation error. Major landmarks such as room numbers and corridor corners are detected by the web camera and RGB-D camera, and matched to the digitalized floor map so as to localize the user. The path and motion guidance are generated afterwards to guide the user to a desired destination. To improve the fitting between the rigid commands and optimal machine decisions for human beings, we propose a context based decision making mechanism on path planning that resolves users' confusions caused by incorrect observations. The software modules are implemented in Robotics Operating System (ROS) and the navigation system are tested with blindfolded sight persons. The field experiments confirm the feasibility of the system prototype and the proposed mechanism.


Quantitative structure–property relationships (QSPRs) are increasingly used for the prediction of physicochemical properties of pure compounds, but only a few have been developed to predict the properties of mixtures. In this work, a series of existing and new formulas were proposed to derive mixture descriptors for the development of QSPR models for mixtures. These mixture descriptors were used to model the flash points of a series of 435 organic mixture compositions. Multilinear models were obtained using 12 different mathematical formulas, taking into account the linear or nonlinear dependence of the flash point on the concentration of each compound. The best model, issued from the newly proposed (x1d1 + x2d2)2 formula, was a four-parameter model presenting good prediction capabilities (with a mean absolute error in prediction of 10.3 °C) compared with existing predictive methods for both mixtures and pure compounds.


Introduction : The Family Planning program implemented in Indonesia in the 1970s successfully increases the prevalence of contraception, and on the other hand, lowers fertility. Nevertheless, this success is marred by gender inequality. The majority of family planning acceptors are women. Method : The study (1) explores male narratives on male contraceptives and male perceptions of their risks and benefits; (2) identifies the factors affecting male decisions about contraception; and (3) shows how men negotiate and discuss contraception with women if at all before making decisions. The study was conducted in Bandar Lampung (Lampung) and Kulon Progo (Special Region of Yogyakarta). A total of 30 participants, consisting of married men who received a vasectomy, married men who used condoms, sexually active unmarried men who used condoms, and married men who did not use contraceptives were interviewed in depth. In addition, focus group discussions (FGD) were conducted involving stakeholders in each region. Results: That men who used contraceptives experienced positive changes after receiving information and support from their peer group. Men who use contraceptives start off with views (myths) similar to those of the surrounding communities. Gender equality perspective was a key factor affecting contraceptive decision-making among men. Discussion: that male perception of male contraceptives, especially vasectomy, is in flux. Negative prior to use, it gradually transforms into positive after men experience the benefits. Male decisions to use contraceptives are determined by their perceptions .


Thermal annealing of Fe/Pt multilayers (ML) is reported to reduce significantly the formation temperature of FePt hard magnetic thin films. The transformation mechanisms of [Fe 1.38 nm/Pt 2.24 nm]50 ML, prepared by magnetron sputtering, is investigated in the present communication by high temperature X‐ray reflectivity using synchrotron radiation. Complete degradation of the ML periodic structure is observed at about 610 K. The variation with annealing temperature of the intensity of the first Bragg peak, the correlated vertical roughness, and the lateral correlation length of the ML show that the ML transform in two stages with a cross‐over temperature of about 515 ± 15 K. This behavior cannot be simply explained by the change in the measured interdiffusion coefficient below and above the cross‐over temperature, suggesting the formation of FePt nanograins along the interfaces.


Background Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one of the leading causes of premature death in Germany. Percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) are frequently performed in patients with angiographically intermediate stenoses. However, the necessity of PCI has not been proven for all patients. Pressure-based fractional flow reserve (FFR) is an invasive test that can be used to assess the functional significance of intermediate coronary stenoses in order to guide decisions on PCI. Objectives This health technology assessment (HTA) aims to evaluate (1) the diagnostic accuracy, (2) the risk-benefit trade-off and (3) the long-term cost-effectiveness of FFR measurement to guide the decision on PCI in patients with stable angina pectoris and intermediate coronary stenoses. Methods We performed a literature search in medical and HTA databases. We used the DIMDI instruments (DIMDI = Deutsches Institut für Medizinische Dokumentation und Information/German Institute for Medical Information and Documentation) to assess study quality and to extract and summarize the information in evidence tables. We performed a meta-analysis to calculate the pooled overall estimate for sensitivity and specificity of FFR with 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). Individual studies' case numbers were used as weights. The influence of single studies and important covariates on the results was tested in sensitivity analyses. We developed the German Coronary Artery Disease Outcome Model (German CADOM), a decision-analytic Markov model, to estimate the long-term effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of FFR measurement in the context of the German healthcare system. Results Our literature search identified twelve studies relevant to this HTA-report including ten diagnostic accuracy studies of FFR measurement, one randomized clinical trial (RCT) investigating the clinical benefits of this technique as well as one economic evaluation. Pooled estimates for sensitivity and specificity were 81.7% (95% CI: 77.0-85.7%) and 78.7% (95% CI: 74.3-82.7%). Sensitivity analyses indicated robust results. The RCT investigating the efficacy of an FFR-based treatment strategy provided evidence of the advantages of this strategy for patients with respect to freedom from angina and major adverse cardiac events. The published cost-effectiveness study demonstrates that the FFR-based strategy is cost-saving in the US context. Based on our own decision analysis for the German context, the FFR-based strategy improves (quality-adjusted) life-expectancy when compared to universal PCI and is cost-effective in the German healthcare context. This HTA is limited by the use of poor gold standards in several of the included diagnostic studies as well as the ongoing advance of technology and treatment options in interventional cardiology. Results of the decision analysis are limited by the necessary underlying assumptions and the uncertainty regarding long-term mortality reduction associated with PCI. Further research should focus on the acquisition of long-term data for disease progression in patients with and without functional coronary stenoses as well as the benefits and risks of PCI. Conclusions Based on actual evidence and our decision analysis, the use of FFR measurement to guide the decision on PCI should lead to better short- and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with stable angina and single-vessel disease without documented myocardial ischemia and it should provide a cost-effective use of resources in the German healthcare system. FFR measurement should be introduced in routine clinical practice. However, appropriate reimbursement strategies are necessary to avoid wrong incentives.


Iron–palladium is a superior bimetallic catalyst in the presence of acetylacetone (Acac) with remarkable synergistic effect for the Michael-type Friedel–Crafts reactions of indoles with chalcones. This catalytic system has the advantages of mild reaction conditions, smaller amount of metal salts, high yields of the desired products and operational simplicity, which make it a useful and promising process for the synthesis of indole derivatives. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This paper takes the shortest path discovery to study efficient relational approaches to graph search queries. We first abstract three enhanced relational operators, based on which we introduce an FEM framework to bridge the gap between relational operations and graph operations. We show new features introduced by recent SQL standards, such as window function and merge statement, can improve the performance of the FEM framework. Second, we propose an edge weight aware graph partitioning schema and design a bi-directional restrictive BFS (breadth-first-search)over partitioned tables, which improves the scalability and performance without extra indexing overheads. The final extensive experimental results illustrate our relational approach with optimization strategies can achieve high scalability and performance.


The presence of a pulsatile liver on physical examination usually signifies severe tricuspid regurgitation or constrictive pericarditis but is not cited as a finding of neoplastic involvement of the liver. 1,2 We report the interesting physical examination findings of visible and palpable hepatic pulsations in a man with extensive parenchymal involvement of the liver due to cholangiocarcinoma. Report of a Case. A 72-year-old man diagnosed as having cholangiocarcinoma 1 year previously was admitted to the University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, for stenting of the common bile duct. He initially presented with painless jaundice and underwent attempted resection but soon developed multiple hepatic metastases. His ensuing clinical course was complicated by several episodes of cholangitis, which required endoscopic stenting of the common bile duct. He had been doing well until 3 days before this current admission, when he developed fevers. An ultrasound study revealed multiple large liver lesions consistent


interesting to teachers of marketing who want more than a descriptive treatment of marketing. Many of the ideas regarding potential marketing improvements have been tested by research and practice and have been found to be workable. The author clearly indicates those ideas about which there is reasonable doubt. The descriptive parts of the book are profusely illustrated with maps, charts, and graphs. The tables contain up-to-date data. The author has a thorough knowledge of his subject based on thirty years of work in agricultural and industrial marketing. The organization and content of the book were planned after discussion with many teachers of marketing. This book should be welcomed by teachers of agricultural marketing. Teachers of general marketing courses will find the book of value for the assignment of supplementary readings. ARTHUR E. ALBRECHT The City College of New York


SUMMARY The muscles and tendons of the lower extremity are generally considered the dominant producers of positive and negative work during gait. However, soft-tissue deformations not captured by joint rotations might also dissipate, store and even return substantial energy to the body. A key locomotion event is the collision of the leg with the ground, which deforms soft tissues appreciably in running. Significant deformation might also result from the impulsive ground collision in walking. In a study of normal human walking (N=10; 0.7–2.0 m s–1 speeds), we show indirect evidence for both negative and positive work performed by soft tissue, consistent with a damped elastic collision and rebound. We used the difference between measured joint work and another quantity – the work performed on the body center of mass – to indicate possible work performed by soft tissue. At 1.25 m s–1, we estimated that soft tissue performs approximately 7.5 J of negative work per collision. This constitutes approximately 60% of the total negative collision work and 31% of the total negative work per stride. The amount of soft tissue work during collision increases sharply with speed. Each collision is followed by 4 J of soft tissue rebound that is also not captured by joint work measures. Soft tissue deformation may save muscles the effort of actively dissipating energy, and soft tissue elastic rebound could save up to 14% of the total positive work per stride. Soft tissues not only cushion impacts but also appear to perform substantial work.


The Kerr metric is perturbed by the introduction of a static particle on the rotation axis. A region of closed timelike curves (CTC) appears. The physical meaning of this is discussed. The CTC do not occur if the particle is endowed with a certain angular momentum.


Experimental and theoretical investigations were made of the pumping of a copper vapour laser by a relativistic electron beam ( ~ 500 keV, I ~ 3 kA, τ ~ 60 ns). The results obtained (energy of laser pulses ~30 mJ, efficiency ~1.5%—3% at a neon pressure of ~0.02 bar) were far from those expected. An analysis of the experimental and calculated data showed that the required concentration of the copper vapour in the atomic state was not reached in the active zone and that the process of pumping under these conditions was unconventional: the energy was transferred from the electron beam to the medium not by collisions with gas atoms (ionisation losses) but by the interaction of a beam-induced eddy electric field with the beam plasma.


According to the requirement of optical instrument illuminating system and performance characteristic of Ring-Shaped LED, a constant current circuit based on PT4115 chip is designed to drive Ring-Shaped LED. It is proved that not only the LED′s light intensity can be conditioned by PWM, but also its heat dissipation can be solved effectively. Moreover, compared with traditional halogen lamps, it has the advantage of the small volume and low-cost. Therefore, it can be widely applied to optical instrument illuminating system. This paper is applies innovative. Ring-Shaped LED of base on Amega 16 and PT4115 is applied for optical instrument illuminating system.


This paper will first examine some of the causes over many years and conditions that evolved that preceded the 2007-2009 credit crisis as well as some of the events that took place in the midst of the crisis. More importantly, this paper will examine how central banks applied the generally prescribed first line defense in the form of conventional monetary policy to its full extent without complete or adequate satisfaction or result. The bulk of the paper is directed at a description and analysis of the unconventional monetary tools, that which has come to be called quantitative easing, that central banks may employ in instances where the demand for liquidity and the accompanying panic essentially overrun the liquidity levels normally associated with conventional monetary policy.


This in vitro study evaluated the effects of two dentin adhesive systems on dentin permeability. The XR-Bonding System modifies the smear layer but does not open dentinal tubules. The Kanca or "total-etch" technique (phosphoric acid, Tenure A and B, Scotchbond 2 Adhesive) removes the smear layer and opens dentinal tubules. Despite these differences, both systems reduced dentin permeability in a similar manner. XR-Bond decreased permeability to 52% of the smear layer value, while total etching reduced permeability to 66% of that value.


Background This study explains how to compare the relative bias of instrumental variable and conventional regression using negative controls and bias plots. Conventional observational analyses such as multivariable adjusted regression depend on the assumption of no unmeasured confounding. This assumption is rarely plausible, and results from observational studies have frequently been inconsistent with results from randomised controlled trials. Instrumental variable analyses can provide consistent estimates of causal effects in the presence of unmeasured confounding. Instrumental variables are defined by three assumptions, they must: 1) be associated with the exposure of interest, 2) share no common cause with the outcome, and 3) have no direct effects on the outcome except through the exposure of interest. However, regulators and clinicians find it difficult to interpret conflicting evidence from instrumental variable compared with conventional regression analyses and need to assess which approach is likely to be less biassed. Methods In this paper we describe three techniques that can help answer this question: negative control outcomes, negative control populations and covariate balance tests. We illustrate these methods using an analysis of the effects of varenicline versus nicotine replacement products in primary care using data from 175,140 patients in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink. These patients were prescribed between 1 September 2006 and 31 October 2011. Results Patients prescribed varenicline were more healthy in terms of almost all baseline characteristics. For example, they were younger (mean age differences in years = 1.66: 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 1.49, 1.84), visited the GP less often (mean difference in attendance per year = 5.82: 95% CI: 5.65, 5.99) and were less likely to have neuropsychiatric co-morbidities such as depression (risk difference per 100 patients treated = 2.57: 95% CI: 2.31, 2.83). The proposed instrumental variable, physicians' previous prescription, was less associated with each of these baseline covariates (pheterogeneity = 0.004, 5.84E-04, and 0.07 respectively). This suggests instrumental variable estimates of the effects of varenicline are likely to be less biassed than conventional methods. Discussion Clinicians and regulators struggle to interpret conflicting evidence from instrumental variable compared with conventional regression analysis. The relative bias of these methods can and should be assessed using negative control populations and outcomes. The relative bias of instrumental variable and conventional analysis should be assessed using observed covariates. Researchers should report covariate balance plots with confidence intervals to robustly assess the relative bias for each covariate.


Model-based testing is a promising technique for test case design that is used in an increasing number of application domains. However, to fully gain efficiency advantages, intuitive domain-specific notations with comfortable tool support as well as a high degree of automation in the whole testing process are required. In this paper, a model-based testing approach for web application black box testing is presented. A notation for web application control flow models augmented with data flow information is introduced. The described research prototype demonstrates the fully automated generation of ready to use test case scripts for common test automation tools including test oracles from the model.


This article draws on data from a 2-year two-country study that included 157 people to explore the survival strategies of poor Honduran transnational families. I argue that transnational families defined as those divided between two nation-states who have maintained close ties depend on a cross-border division of labor in which productive labor occurs in the host country and reproductive labor in the home country. This article bridges the literatures on transnationalism and families. The transnationalism literature tends to focus on macro processes whereas the literature on families assumes proximity. This research helps fill the gap in both literatures exposing the ways in which processes of economic globalization have radically altered family form and function. (authors)


The present investigation reports the effects of the grinding process parameters namely wheel velocity, work piece velocity, feed rate and depth of cut in grinding of Al/SiC composites on grinding force, surface roughness and grinding temperature. The optimum values are obtained by employing Taguchi method. Combined effects of the four process parameters i.e wheel velocity, work piece velocity, feed rate and depth of cut on the performance measures grinding force, surface roughness, grinding temperature were investigated by using an orthogonal array and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) in grinding of Al/SiC composites. Optimal process parameters for each performance measures were obtained using S/N ratio. The S/N ratio values are calculated for each factor at a given level, allow the establishment of the best levels for predicting the grinding force, surface roughness and grinding temperature.


To the Editor: Uveitic glaucoma is a clinician's gray area of interest where the best treatment is still not clear. We read with great interest the recently published article by Nguyen et al1 "Combined Dexamethasone Intravitreal Implant and Glaucoma Drainage Device Placement for Uveitic Glaucoma" and we would like to appreciate the work of authors. The cause of raised intraocular pressure in these cases may be the blockage of the trabecular meshwork by the inflammatory cells/pigments, trabeculitis, peripheral anterior synechiae and which may get exaggerated by steroid responsiveness.2 Gonioscopy is an important tool to determine the angle status but the authors have not mentioned about the angle status in this study cohort. Uveitic eye can be difficult to treat with frequent episodes of hypotony due to ciliary body inflammation followed by intraocular pressure building up once the inflammation resolves.3,4 We made a few more queries and observations and would like to share with the authors. First, the mean preoperative logMAR best-corrected visual acuity was 0.55 ± 0.40 which deteriorated over the 9 months of follow-up as illustrated in the Box plot. We want to know whether the cause for decreased vision preoperatively was the presence of cataract, uveitis or any posterior segment pathology. As mentioned by the authors there was a decrease in number of episodes of reactivation of uveitis so what could have been the cause of decreased vision during the postoperative course. Second, preoperative finding like anterior chamber depth, lens status (phakic or pseudophakic), degree of synechiae in each eye has not been mentioned. Bayer and Önol5 and our own clinical experience show that above factors play a determinant role in deciding the site and position (ie, anterior chamber or ciliary sulcus) of tube placement of Ahmed glaucoma valve. A sulcus placement may be desirable in case of progressing synechiae. In case the tubes were placed in the anterior chamber, we wanted to know if there was an increase noted in degree of synechiae postsurgery as this may affect the tube position. We also want to know if these eyes had undergone previously failed filtering surgeries or were virgin eyes with no previous surgical intervention. In results, it was found that 1 eye had hypotony on postoperative 1-month upto 3-month; however, the cause for hypotony was not mentioned. Also we want to know if there was corneal-tube touch or lens-tube touch noted in this case. Third, most of the patients in this study cohort were on topical and systemic immunosuppressant preoperatively and postoperatively, so to what extent the dexamethasone implant was beneficial in reducing the frequency of uveitic episodes or increasing the success of the tube implant is not clear. A control group comprising of similar patients on preoperative topical and systemic corticosteroids/immunosuppressant undergoing tube implant without the dexamethasone implant should have been included. So, we agree with the authors that a long-term prospective study with a control group would be needed to give a better understanding of the role of combined placement of intravitreal dexamethasone implant with glaucoma drainage device in eyes with uveitic glaucoma.


The treatment of fractures of the neck of the radius in children is difficult, particularly if the angulation of the fracture exceeds 60 degrees. Since 1994 we have used closed reduction and stabilisation with an intramedullary Kirschner wire in patients with grade-IV fractures according to the classification of Judet et al. In a retrospective analysis of a two-year period (1994 to 1996), 324 children with fractures of the elbow were treated in our department. Of these, 29 (9%) had a fracture of the neck of the radius; six were grade-IV injuries (1.9%). Five of the latter had an excellent postoperative result with normal movement of the elbow and forearm. One patient with a poor result had a concomitant dislocation of the elbow. Our results suggest that closed reduction and intramedullary pinning of grade-IV fractures allows adequate stabilisation while healing occurs.


Poverty incidence is one of the most critical concerns in Botswana and the government has resolved to eradicate this problem and ensure that every citizen live in a dignified and acceptable condition consistent with the national aspirations as set out in the National Vision 2016. Currently, rural areas are persistently experiencing the highest poverty incidence compared to any other place in the country. This has been the case ever since we have measured the extent of the poverty problem in 1985/86. Rural development in Botswana has been a central policy and strategy of government effort to improve the welfare and standard of living since independence. Since the 1970s, a rural development council that was traditionally chaired by a Vice President demonstrates the importance that government takes about rural development. The membership of this council involves all permanent secretaries and key non-government stakeholders. The Council has made tremendous success in transforming Botswana from a primarily rural based population to a country where the majority of its residents live in urban areas. Initial rural development efforts that provided basic infrastructure countrywide contributed to Botswana's urbanization as part of this process involved a reclassification of many former rural villages into urban villages, particularly after the 1991 Population Census. Rural population is now a minority but the problems of poverty and vulnerability remains higher than in other areas. The nature and outlook of rural areas have changed dramatically and so have the needs of the rural people. There is a need to review our definition of a rural area, and re-visit the policies and processes of facilitating rural development to make them more relevant to emerging issues and challenges. This papers proposes that the country should choose its programmes and projects for development based on their ability and past record to perform, target government support more efficiently and effectively, acknowledge emerging challenges and respond accordingly by improving the operations of a market system, even if it requires government intervention.


Received November 9, 2017 Accepted March 6, 2018 In recent years, transdermal therapeutic systems have been widely used, while information regarding the release of drugs from such preparations and their pharmacokinetics remains insufficient. A "release test for preparations for cutaneous application" was recently published in the 17th edition of The Japanese Pharmacopoeia (JP17). In an effort to evaluate the release test method described in JP17 and its usefulness, we compared the release behavior of a bisoprolol patch preparation determined using the paddle-over-disk method described in JP17 with the results obtained in our reported clinical study. Several types of release fluids with pH values from 4.5 to 8 and salt concentrations from 10 to 100 mM were used in the release test. No influence of either the pH or the salt concentration of the release fluid on the release behavior was observed. The time required for 100% release was approximately 6 hours, which was consistent with the results obtained in the clinical study. The results suggest that the patch preparation exhibited a consistent release behavior that can be used to evaluate pharmacokinetic profiles in clinical studies. Consequently, the release test method described in JP17 represents a useful method for determining drug release from patch preparations.


Many first-year university students experience stressors that impact their adjustment and well-being. Their help-seeking attitudes and preferred sources of support may be associated with various factors. The purpose of the present study was to (1) examine help-seeking preferences amongst first-year university students, (2) explore factors associated with students' attitudes toward seeking mental health services, and (3) identify perceived barriers associated with accessing formal sources of support. First-year students at a Canadian university (N = 167) completed a survey assessing help-seeking attitudes and preferences, as well as challenges associated with seeking support. Participants also provided information about their perceived levels of social support, personality  characteristics, and their tendency to experience positive and negative affect. Findings suggest that social support and negative affect were significantly associated with positive attitudes toward seeking mental health services. However, students were more inclined to rely on informal sources of support, such as family members and friends, compared to formal sources of support available through on- or off-campus mental health services. For thosestudents who are inclined to access formal mental health support, barriers may impede access to care. Perceived barriers include cost and concerns about the availability of services and their overall effectiveness. These findings call for the creation of more opportunities for on-campus informal support in addition to better access to on-campus mental health services.


The Computerized Assessment System for Psychotherapy Evaluation and Research (CASPER; Farrell & McCullough-Vaillant, 1996) includes a computer-based interview designed to assess functioning across a broad range of areas. The psychometric properties of scales derived from this interview were examined in a sample of 191 patients from the admissions wards of a state psychiatric hospital. Few participants had difficulty completing the computerized interview, and most rated their reactions to it positively. Item analyses and confirmatory factor analysis largely replicated the structure reported in a previous study of outpatients. Support was found for scales representing Physical Complaints, Worry, Hopelessness, Assertiveness, Hostility/Anger, Thought Problems, Psychotic Symptoms, Substance Use, and Suicidal Thoughts and Behavior. Comparison of scales from the CASPER and the Behavior and Symptom Identification Scale-32 (BASIS-32; Eisen & Culhane, 1999) supported the convergent and discriminant validity of several scales. Support also was found for the CASPER Global Functioning scale. Overall, results supported the use of the CASPER as a valuable tool for assessing inpatient functioning.


According to UK Government targets, greenhouse gas emissions(GHGE) should now have been reduced by 37%. Food consumption is responsible for <30% of the environmental impact of households. Moving to diets with lower GHGE will require shifts in eating patterns by consumers, yet many are unaware that there is a relationship between what they eat and climate change. Thus an important step towards more environmentally sustainable diets is to make people aware of this relationship. The aim of this study was to develop consumer-friendly methods to inform people of the environmental impact of the foods they eat. Dietary GHGE feedback images and text were designed to present to users of an online dietary assessment tool. Images were adapted from existing online dietary feedback tools and front-of-pack labels due to their familiarity to consumers. Nutritional information was not presented to participants except for examples of food items/categories e.g. rice, biscuits. We collected the views of consumers in two ways: (1) a token drop voting activity where visitors to wellbeing fairs and farmers markets in Aberdeen answered the question: 'which image do you prefer?'; and (2) discussion by focus groups, recruited to attract a heterogeneous sample with a mix of socio-demographic characteristics. In the token drop voting activity, of the four images for GHGE dietary feedback displayed to consumers (n = 66), footprints using traffic light colours were the preferred option to show environmental impact with a star rating the least popular. Participants of focus groups (seven groups, n = 36, 8 male and 28 female) preferred a scale of environmental impact, as they thought that simpler images, such as the footprints, although immediate and impactful might be confused with other labelling currently in use, e.g. nutritional traffic lights. It was clear from participants that not everyone understands the terminology around GHGE, including 'CF', 'CO2', and 'carbon footprint', and that any messages must explain these concepts to consumers. Participants were split between those that wanted only an image and those wanting more information. This latter group wanted to know which foods contributed the most to their dietary environmental impact and alternative foods they could eat to reduce it. This study illustrates that consumers want to know the environmental impact of what they eat and that the information needs to be personalised to be effective. Text based dietary GHGE messages need to be composed so as to not encourage unhealthy eating behaviours. Consideration should be made so that the images, vocabulary and amount of information provided are inclusive for different individuals. Effective communication of the impact of food and dietary choices on climate change is required from policy developers and retailers if we are to meet the targets for GHGE reduction and is an area for future research.


ABSTRACT Promoting facility with content knowledge is one of the most important objectives of science teaching. Conventionally, the focus for this objective is placed on the substantive side of content knowledge (e.g. science concepts/laws), whereas its epistemic or ontological aspects (e.g. why do we construct concepts?) rarely receive explicit attention. In this article, we develop a theoretical argument for the value of elevating the attention paid to the epistemic/ontological aspects of content knowledge and integrating them with its substantive side. Our argument is structured in two parts. The first unpacks the epistemic/ontological aspects of content knowledge and their role in science. For this, we focus on two specific aspects (i.e. ontological status and epistemic value of science concepts), which we elaborate in the context of two particular content domains, namely magnetism and energy. The second part of the argument highlights the potential of discourse on epistemic/ontological aspects to facilitate learning in science. We delineate how such discourse could (a) promote coherent conceptual understanding, (b) foster a productive epistemological stance towards science learning, and (c) enhance students' appreciation of ideas associated with the nature of science. The article concludes with a discussion of ensuing implications for science education.


Simplifying the therapeutic regimen of liver transplantation (LT) recipients may help prevent acute rejection and graft failure. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of conversion from twice‐daily tacrolimus to once‐daily extended‐release tacrolimus under concurrent mycophenolate mofetil therapy in stable LT recipients. This randomized, prospective, controlled study included 91 patients who underwent LTs with at least 1 year of posttransplant follow‐up. Conversion was made on a 1 mg to 1 mg basis. No incidences of biopsy‐proven acute rejection, graft failure, or death were reported in either group at 24 weeks. Median serum tacrolimus level of the study group was 20% less than that of the control group at 8 weeks. However, no significant differences regarding biochemical indicators of liver function or serum creatinine levels were observed between the 2 groups. Adverse event (AE) profiles were similar for both groups, with comparable incidences of AEs and serious AEs. No significant differences regarding efficacy or safety were observed between the once‐daily tacrolimus and twice‐daily tacrolimus groups of stable LT recipients. In conclusion, our study suggests that tacrolimus can be safely converted from a twice‐daily regimen to a once‐daily regimen in stable LT recipients. Liver Transpl 22:209–216, 2016, 2015. © 2015 AASLD.


This clinical report presents a case treated by a currently available customized orthodontic treatment system. The use of patient-specific brackets, indirect bonding transfer devices, and customized archwires decreases treatment and chairside time, making orthodontic cases more predictable, accurate, and efficient. The need for time-consuming adjustments is greatly reduced, and appliance customization further facilitates the achievement of the final desired occlusion from the first day of treatment.


Background The spinal cord appears to be the site where anesthetic agents prevent movement in response to noxious stimuli. When isoflurane is differentially delivered to the head and torso (with low torso concentrations), cranial anesthetic requirements increase compared with systemic administration. The aim of the current study was to test the hypothesis that isoflurane action in the brain has descending influences on spinal cord dorsal horn neurons. A secondary aim was to determine the association, if any, of high cranial concentrations of isoflurane (> 6%) with dorsal horn activity. Methods Ten goats were anesthetized with isoflurane and the carotid arteries and jugular veins isolated and cannulated for cerebral bypass. A laminectomy was performed for recording from single lumbar dorsal horn neurons with hind limb mechanical receptive fields (one cell per goat). A standard noxious mechanical stimulus was applied to the dew claw or hoof bulb during a control period with end‐tidal isoflurane at 1.3% and during bypass with the following head/torso isoflurane concentrations: 1.3%/1.3%, 3.2%/1.3%, 9.4%/1.3%, 1.3%/0.2%, 3.0%/0.2% and 8.8%/0.3%. Results When torso isoflurane concentration was 1.3%, increasing cranial isoflurane concentration to 3% or 9% had no significant effect on the activity of dorsal horn units. When torso isoflurane was 0.2–0.3%, spontaneous activity increased; however, at these torso concentrations, evoked responses were significantly decreased (‐60%) only when cranial isoflurane concentration was increased to 9%. Conclusions Isoflurane action in the brain had an inhibitory effect on dorsal horn activity with the combination of supra‐clinical cranial and low torso concentrations.


Using a database from Chile, we have tested empirically the effects of economic residential segregation on educational achievements. Our hypothesis is based on literature's findings about segregation's negative impact on individuals' well being. We found that segregation has negative impacts. This result would have interesting policy implications and goes in the opposite directions of those investigations' findings, which indicate that segregation has just negligible effects. Keywords: Segregation, Education, Selection Bias JEL codes: R20, R29


The Altillanura is a unique ecosystem within the Colombian Llanos, characterized by well-drained savannas and extensive riparian forests. The Altillanura harbors a rich assemblage of species, largely understudied and currently under threat by large-scale and unplanned agribusiness. Moreover, the number of public protected areas in the Colombian Llanos, particularly in the Altillanura, is insufficient to conserve the threatened habitats and species. Therefore, conservation efforts by private reserves are crucial for the protection of the region's biodiversity. Here we present the first species list of the Tomogrande, a private nature reserve and scientific research field station in the municipality of Santa Rosalía, Vichada, Colombia. After ten years of ongoing research, we have recorded 299 species of plants, 189 species of birds, and 47 species of mammals. Compared to other private nature reserves in Vichada and the Tuparro National Park, the largest protected area in the region, Tomogrande makes a substantial contribution to the conservation of all three taxonomic groups. We advocate that better landscape planning and sustainable practices should become mandatory in the Altillanura to protect its biodiversity and the livelihoods of all stakeholders that inhabit this region.


Environmental issues and increased fuel prices are driving forces for the automotive manufactures
to develop more fuel efficient vehicles with lower emissions. Large investments are aimed at
minimizing power needed for propulsion i.e. new downsized engines with new aerodynamic devices
for drag reduction. For passenger cars the aerodynamic drag force is the dominating resistance
force at higher velocity. The car body is often optimized for reducing the drag resistance but one
region where the aerodynamic development has not reached its full potential is the design of the
underbody.
To explain the aerodynamic force in a simplified manner the resisting drag originates from the
pressure difference between the stagnation pressure in the front and the base pressure at the rear.
By reducing the difference in pressure the drag force will be reduced hence the fuel consumption
will be reduced. A device to improve the aerodynamics that is used on sports- and racing-cars
is a diffuser, with lower ground clearance the diffuser generates downforce and aid the braking,
cornering and acceleration. Using a diffuser on a passenger car, with higher ground clearance, will
improve the pressure recovery on the underbody and the base pressure will be increased. To get
an effective diffuser a flat underbody is preferred which also contributes to reducing the resisting
drag force.
In this study the drag reduction effect of a diffuser with panels on the underbody have been
studied on the SAAB 9-3 Sport sedan and the SAAB 9-3 Sports wagon. To measure the effect
of altering the underbody Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations has been performed
for the analysis, i.e. no wind tunnel tests have been performed. The simulations showed that a
great improvement of the aerodynamic drag force can be achieved with a flat underbody and a
diffuser. It was also found that the rear-end of the vehicles has an effect of the diffusers effect, a
steeper diffuser is to prefer on a rear-end with steep rear-windscreen e.g. the sedan.
Different additional aerodynamic devices and diffuser designs was simulated to find the most
effective drag reduction setup, it was found that the most effective configuration consisted of a
diffuser with covered rear rims. A reason for the drag reduction was found that the turbulent
crossflow through the rims was prevented which was advantageous for the pressure recovery and
overall streamlining of the pressure wake behind the vehicle.
This study has shown that there are still possibilities to improve the aerodynamics of vehicles,
especially at the underbody. By implementing panels at the underbody and a diffuser the drag
resistance can significantly be reduced and hence a lower fuel consumption.


Neurons in primary visual cortex are strongly modulated both by stimulus contrast and by fluctuations of internal inputs. An important question is whether the population code is preserved under these conditions. Changes in stimulus contrast are thought to leave the population code invariant, whereas the effect of internal gain modulations remains unknown. To address these questions we studied how the direction-of-motion of oriented gratings is encoded in layer 2/3 primary visual cortex of mouse (with C57BL/6 background, of either sex). We found that, because contrast gain responses across cells are heterogeneous, a change in contrast alters the information distribution profile across cells leading to a violation of contrast invariance. Remarkably, internal input fluctuations that cause commensurate firing rate modulations at the single-cell level result in more homogeneous gain responses, respecting population code invariance. These observations argue that the brain strives to maintain the stability of the neural code in the face of fluctuating internal inputs. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Neuronal responses are modulated both by stimulus contrast and by the spontaneous fluctuation of internal inputs. It is not well understood how these different types of input impact the population code. Specifically, it is important to understand whether the neural code stays invariant in the face of significant internal input modulations. Here, we show that changes in stimulus contrast lead to different optimal population codes, whereas spontaneous internal input fluctuations leave the population code invariant. This is because spontaneous internal input fluctuations modulate the gain of neuronal responses more homogeneously across cells compared to changes in stimulus contrast.


Rationale: Cyclooxygenase (COX)-derived prostanoids (PGs) are involved in blood pressure homeostasis. Both traditional nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) that inhibit COX-1 and COX-2 and NSAIDs designed to be selective for inhibition of COX-2 cause sodium retention and elevate blood pressure. Objective: To elucidate the role of COX-2 in blood pressure homeostasis using COX-1>COX-2 mice, in which the COX-1 expression is controlled by COX-2 regulatory elements. Methods and Results: COX-1>COX-2 mice developed systolic hypertension relative to wild types (WTs) on a high-salt diet (HSD); this was attenuated by a PGI2 receptor agonist. HSD increased expression of COX-2 in WT mice and of COX-1 in COX-1>COX-2 mice in the inner renal medulla. The HSD augmented in all strains urinary prostanoid metabolite excretion, with the exception of the major PGI2 metabolite that was suppressed on regular chow and unaltered by the HSD in both mutants. Furthermore, inner renal medullary expression of the receptor for PGI2, but not for other prostanoids, was depressed by HSD in WT and even more so in both mutant strains. Increasing osmolarity augmented expression of COX-2 in WT renal medullary interstitial cells and again the increase in formation of PGI2 observed in WTs was suppressed in cells derived from both mutants. Intramedullary infusion of the PGI2 receptor agonist increased urine volume and sodium excretion in mice. Conclusions: These studies suggest that dysregulated expression of the COX-2 dependent, PGI2 biosynthesis/response pathway in the renal inner renal medulla undermines the homeostatic response to a HSD. Inhibition of this pathway may contribute directly to the hypertensive response to NSAIDs.


This book will be an important addition to the limited number of books that discuss finance and accounting issues in East Asian countries. While presenting recent empirical studies on finance and accounting in East Asian economies, it also reveals the underlying reasons for remarkable economic growth and emerging performance of the financial markets in the East Asian countries. It introduces newly developed financial products, institutions, governance mechanism, banking policy changes and their implications in the East Asian economies, and discusses the way forward for these economies with recommendations for policy implications. It also contains suggestions for other developing countries trying to achieve rapid growth.


During the last century, the proportion of children and adolescents who have experienced a parental divorce or separation has increased dramatically, in Sweden and elsewhere. Vast research has shown that children in these families fare less well than children in intact families, both in the short and in the long run and on a number of outcomes. Much less is known about whether parental divorce means the same for children and adolescents today as it did a century ago. Have living conditions changed and, if so, how? Moreover, has the association between parental divorce and child well-being changed in magnitude over time? To answer these questions six waves of the Swedish Level of Living Survey (LNU) were used. The data set contains indicators on childhood living conditions for an entire century of Swedes, born 1892-1991. We show that living conditions for children of divorce have indeed changed on a number of dimensions but there is no evidence of magnitude change in the association between parental divorce/separation and two child outcomes, psychological well-being and educational attainment.


Social and political change involves a challenge to the status quo in intergroup power relations. Traditionally, the social psychology of social change has focused on disadvantaged minority groups collectively challenging the decisions, actions, and policies of those in positions of established authority. In contrast, this article presents a political solidarity model of social change that explores the process by which members of the majority challenge the authority in solidarity with the minority. It is argued that political solidarity as a social change process involves a contest between the authority and the minority over the meaning of a shared (higher order) identity with the majority. When identity ceases to be shared with the authority and becomes shared with the minority, majority challenge to authority in solidarity with the minority becomes possible. The model's contributions to existing social psychological approaches to social change are also discussed.


How do you ensure that your building and collections remain both safe and accessible? What are the best ways to avoid fire, flood, and other disasters? How do you combat overcrowding, infestation, and daily wear-and-tear? This book offers the very latest data on how professionals around the country operate their facilities, manage space and risk, and prepare for emergencies. Includes data broken out by museum discipline, governance type, and parent organization. Features insightful essays on best practices from outside experts and leading professionals in the field. Learn how your peers allocate space; assign responsibility for policy development and implementation; choose insurance, set policy for use of space, facilities rental, catering, emergency preparedness; and more.


In this paper, we propose a block-based OFDM Decode-and-Forward relaying scheme for cooperative wireless networks. In the scheme, an OFDM symbol is divided into blocks and one relay is selected for each block. Theoretical outage performance is analyzed and evaluated, and a unified outage expression is developed for our scheme and the other two schemes. Monte Carlo simulations are carried out to validate our analysis. The scheme can obtain a good tradeoff between complexity and performance.


The purpose of this study is to empirically examine the association of Supervisors' Toxicity and Subordinates' Counter-productive Work-behaviour in the Nigerian Public Hospitals. Counter-productive Work -behaviour (criterion variable) is further operationalized using five measures – abuse, production deviation, sabotage, theft, and withdrawal. The cross-sectional survey design is adopted and data is generated using the structured questionnaire. 197 respondents comprising doctors, nursing staff, lab technicians and other administrative staff selected from an accessible population of 402 staff provided responses to the questions. A total of five hypotheses are proposed and tested using descriptive and inferential statistical tools. Results indicate significant relationships in all hypothetical instances, thereby implying an association between Supervisors' Toxicity and Subordinates' Counter-productive Work- behavior. The study therefore concludes that Subordinates are quick to reciprocate Supervisors' Toxicity through Counter-productive Work- behavior of transferring aggression to either peers or other identifiable assets of the organization. The study further recommends a more emotionally oriented approach to the management of superior-subordinate relationships with emphasis on the training and retraining of supervisors regarding emotional intelligence as well as conflict and human relations issues.


The objectives of this study were to investigate the pH of common beverages and to evaluate the effects of common acidic beverages on the surface hardness and weight loss of human tooth specimens. A total of 106 beverages were conveniently purchased from supermarkets in Karachi, Pakistan. Prior to evaluation, beverages were refrigerated or stored at room temperature in accordance with the manufacturers' recommendations. Beverages were categorized into six groups: 'Sports and Energy drinks', 'Water', 'Fruit Juices and Drinks', 'Sodas', 'Milk and Flavored Milk' and 'Teas and Coffee'. Using a pH meter, the pH of each beverage was measured in triplicate at room temperature. In addition, the influence of five highly acidic beverages on the weight loss and surface hardness of human tooth specimens was evaluated using gravimetric analysis and the Vickers hardness tester, respectively. 'Sports and Energy drinks', 'Fruits Juices and Drinks' and 'Sodas' were the most acidic beverage categories, with a pH range of 3.00–5.00. A total of 33% of beverages tested in this study were highly acidic (pH less than 4.00), 29% of beverages were moderately acidic (pH 4.00–4.99) and 31% were mildly acidic (pH 5.00–6.99). Significant weight loss was observed in all immersed specimens compared to control counterparts (p < 0.05). Similarly, for surface hardness, five highly acidic beverages (Red Bull, Pepsi, Apple Cidra, Tang Mosambi and Tang Orange) significantly decreased the surface hardness of specimens (p < 0.05). The pH levels of commonly available beverages in Pakistan are highly acidic, which may encourage loss of minerals from teeth; hence, affecting their surface hardness.


Background : The endurance time during the constant high intensity exercise test (CET) on a cycle ergometer has been shown to be more sensitive to rehabilitation intervention than measures obtained from the incremental exercise test (IET). However, few studies have compared the limiting factors between the CET and IET. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to compare the limiting factors of exercise tests between the IET and CET in healthy humans. Methods: Untrained young men (n = 20) performed the IET and CET at 80% of the peak load on the IET to symptom limitation on a cycle ergometer. During both tests, ventilatory and metabolic variables were measured by using a breath-by-breath portable gas analyzer. Cardiovascular and muscle oxygenation were also measured. These variables were compared between the IET and CET at the end of the exercise by using the paired t-test. Results: Oxygen uptake was not significantly different between the tests, but cardiac output and tissue oxygen saturation were lower in the CET than in the IET. Conclusions: These results suggest that oxygen uptake is mainly provided by higher cardiac output in the IET and by higher muscle oxygen extraction in the CET. The improvement in muscle oxygen extraction may explain why the endurance time in the CET is more sensitive to rehabilitation intervention.


With the development of social networks, more and more users choose to use multiple accounts from different networks to meet their needs. Linking a particular user's multiple accounts not only can improve user's experience of the net-services such as recommender system, but also plays a significant role in network security. However, multiple accounts of the same user are often not directly linked to each other, and further, the privacy policy provided by the service provider makes it harder to find accounts for a particular user. In this paper, we propose a stable-matching-based method with user preference order for the problem of low accuracy of user linking in cross-media sparse data. Different from the traditional way which just calculates the similarity of accounts, we take full account of the mutual influence among multiple accounts by regarding different networks as bilateral (multilateral) market and user linking as a stable matching problem in such amarket. Based on the combination of Game-Theoretic Machine Learning andPairwise, a novel user linkingmethod has been proposed.The experiment shows that ourmethod has a 21.6% improvement in accuracy compared with the traditional linking method and a further increase of about 7.8% after adding the prior knowledge.


Context
Septic shock (SS) can pose a high risk of death if rescue efforts in an emergency room aren't started in a timely manner. Thus, rapid and efficient treatment is of great significance to the SS patients' survival. T-α1 can enhance the cellular immune function of patients, and blood purification (BP) can improve the hemodynamics of SS patients by clearing inflammatory mediators in the blood.

Objective
The study intended to explore the effects of Thymosin α1 (T-α1) plus blood purification (BP) on SS patients under the emergency green channel (GC), a fast and efficient service system that hospitals provide for acutely and critically ill patients.

Design
The research team designed a randomized controlled study.

Setting
The study took place in the Emergency Department at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China.

Participants
Participants were 86 SS patients who came to the hospital for treatment between June 2019 and January 2021.

Intervention
The research team numbered the patients in sequence according to the admission time of the patients, and then randomly numbered them by the computer, and assigned participants to an intervention or a control group, with 43 participants in the intervention group receiving T-α1 plus BP therapy and 43 participants in the control group receiving BP treatment only.

Outcome Measures
The study measured preparation time before treatment, symptom-onset-to-door (SOTD), duration of shock, length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU), and incidence of adverse reactions. The study also assessed changes between baseline and postintervention in inflammatory cytokines (ICs), immunological function, and myocardial-function markers. Finally, the research team conducted a one-year follow-up to determine participants' prognostic survival.

Results
The groups showed no significant differences in the preparation time before treatment, SOTD, rescue success rate, and incidence of adverse events (P > .05), while the intervention group showed a significantly shorter duration of shock and length stay in the ICU and a significantly higher overall response rate (P < .05). The research team observed significant improvements in the T-lymphocyte subsets, ICs, and myocardial function in both groups postintervention, but the changes in the intervention group were significantly greater (P < .05). Follow-up results showed no significant differences in overall survival between the intervention and control groups (P > .05), but the average LC was significantly higher in the intervention group (P < .05).

Conclusions
For SS patients, the combination of T-α1 and BP under the emergency GC can effectively improve their immunological and myocardial function, reduce inflammatory reaction, and prolong their LCs, which provides a greater guarantee of the effectiveness of treatment for SS patients in the future.


Cooperative awareness in vehicular networks is probably the killer application for vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications that cannot be matched by infrastructure-based alternatives even when disregarding communication costs. New and improved driver assistance systems can be introduced by extending their reach to sensors residing in neighboring vehicles, such as windshield-installed cameras. In previous work, we defined theoretical foundations for a driver assistance system that leverages on V2V communication and windshield-installed cameras to transform vision-obstructing vehicles into transparent tubular objects. We now present an implementation of the actual See-Through System (STS), where we combine the communication aspects with the control and augmented reality components of the system. We present a validation methodology and test the system with multiple vehicles on a closed road segment. This evaluation shows that the STS is able to increase the visibility of drivers intending to overtake, thus increasing the safety of such critical maneuvers. It also shows that Dedicated Short Range Communication (DSRC) provides the required latency for this delay-critical inter-vehicle communication, which could hardly be guaranteed with infrastructure-based communication technologies.


We have calculated the values of the critical packing fractions for the mixtures of symmetric nonadditive hard spheres at high densities for small values of the nonadditivity parameter. Calculations have been performed for solid-solid and fluid-fluid demixing transitions. A cluster algorithm for Monte Carlo simulations in a semigrand ensemble was used, and the waste recycling method was applied to improve the accuracy of the calculations. The finite size scaling analysis was employed to compute the critical packing fractions for infinite systems with high accuracy.


The results of gas phase decomposition studies are used to construct a chemistry model which is compared to data obtained from an experimental MOVPE reactor. A flow tube reactor is used to study gas phase reactions between trimethylgallium (TMG) and ammonia at high temperatures, characteristic to the metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) of GaN. Experiments were performed to determine the effect of the mixing of the Group III precursors and Group V precursors on the growth rate, growth uniformity and film properties. Growth rates are predicted for simple reaction mechanisms and compared to those obtained experimentally. Quantification of the loss of reacting species due to oligomerization is made based on experimentally observed growth rates. The model is used to obtain trends in growth rate and uniformity with the purpose of moving towards better operating conditions.


Craniomaxillofacial and plastic surgeons are often confronted with patients who present with enophthalmos caused mainly by trauma. In many patients, one-stage reconstruction repairs only the bony orbit, leaving intact the disfiguring enophthalmos. Thus, some filler is needed to restore the normal volume of the orbit. The authors describe a technique to correct such deformation safely and effectively. Data were collected from 30 enophthalmic patients (average age 36.67 ± 11.66 years) who underwent retro-ocular injections of fat globules between August 2014 and July 2018. CT helped identify a safe injection site, and specific CT measurements quantified the volume of fat globules required. There was a significant difference between the preoperative and postoperative values for lateral orbital protrusion (P < .01), superior orbital protrusion (P < .01), and orbital volume (P < .01). Most patients were satisfied with the outcome. There were no significant complications. Injecting fat globules into the retro-orbital area is an effective technique for correcting enophthalmos deformity.


The article focuses on the positive impact of drug legalization on reducing crime and violence's impact on health. The authors considered the potential of an innovative approach to crime prevention and health care improvement. Criminalization may reduce drug harm, but the current criminal-justice approach to drugs is not working enough. Drug use is still widespread, public. The personal harms are significantly large. There are a lot of short- and long-term health effects from crime and violence. The World Health Organization affirms that rates of drug use are unrelated to how effectively drug laws are enforced. Thus, it is actually to find new possibilities and develop new methods to reduce crime level and its negative influence. Drug decriminalization is one of such important issues. This article aims to investigate drug decriminalization for reducing the health damage from crime in the context of innovation in healthcare management. There is a comparative analysis of some drug legalization policies: decriminalization of the use and possession of all illicit drugs (with the control of their legal supply) or legalization of the use and supply of cannabis etc. The dynamic analysis of data for different types of crime, such as unlawful acts involving controlled drugs or precursors, intentional homicide, assault, kidnapping, sexual assault, and other violent crime both in two groups of countries – with criminal-justice and innovation health care (including drug decriminalization) approaches were taken. Portugal, Switzerland, Netherlands, Czechia are among the countries of the second group, which have decriminalized drug use and possession for personal use and have invested in harm reduction programs. The research consists of data for 25 European countries for 2008-2018 (the time limit of 2018 is determined by available statistics of the statistical service of the European Union, World Health Organization, UN Office on Drugs & Crime Databases, etc.). Based on the correlation and regression analysis, it is substantiated that drug decriminalization is an important factor in reducing the health damage from crime.


Orientation of two bipolar compounds embedded in polymer composites was studied. Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) dissolved in acetone was doped with a cobaltborane derivative of 1,2-dimethylimidazole and polystyrene (PS) dissolved in toluene was doped with the 3-(1,2-dimethyl imidazole)-borane. To orient the dipoles, the composites were exposed to external electrical field: PMMA composite at the temperature of glass transition (Tg) and PS composite during evaporation of the toluene solvent. The degree of dipole orientation was estimated by the change in relative permittivity (e) of the resulting composite film. The dependence of the e on the temperature, frequency, voltage, and dipole concentration was studied. It was found that the dipole's distribution in the composite film was not homogenous. At the Tg, the dipoles in PMMA became oriented by external direct electrical field and the orientation was conserved after cooling to lower temperatures. In a PS-based composite, the significant permittivity increase was observed already at low-dopant concentrations. The dipole orientation achieved during solvent evaporation was also permanent and the composite permittivity was an increasing function of the film thickness. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 40–45, 2004


Many species of Zingiber have great ornamental potential, due to durability and exotic appearance of the inflorescences. Despite its large phenotypic variability, they are scarcely exploited or not yet exploited regarding the ornamental potential. To conserve potential ornamental genotypes, and subsidize breeding program, the Agronomic Institute (IAC) maintain a Germoplasm Collection of Ornamental Zingiberales with promising accessions, including Zingiber. The aim was the morphophenological characterization of ten Zingiber accessions and the indication for landscape purposes. A large variation was observed to the evaluated characters: Clump height (CH); Inflorescence visualization (IV); Clump area (CA); Clump density (CD); Leaf stem Firmness (LSF); Number of leaf stems per clump (NLSC); Number of leaves per stem (NLS); Leaf color (LCol); Evergreen tendency (ET); Flower stem growth (FSG); Flower stem length (FSLe); Flower stem diameter (FSD); Flower stem per clump (FSC); Color sensorial perception (CSP); Flower stem weight (FSW); Inflorescence length (IL); Inflorescence diameter (ID); Bracts aspects (BAs); and Flowering season (FSe). The accessions very suitable and with the best performance to use for landscape purpose were Z. spectabile, IAC Anchieta (Z. spectabile), Z. newmanii.


Coupling of in vivo microdialysis with capillary electrophoresis/mass spectrometry (MD-CE/MS) was demonstrated. A microdialysis probe was inserted in the striatum of a rat brain and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in the brain was detected by CE/MS without any chemical treatment of the sample. MD-CE/MS is expected to be a useful technique for analyzing brain substances, because of the relatively small damage it causes to a living structure and the high selectivity of the analytical technique.


This paper presents various issues surrounding the education of immigrant students from the tropical islands north of Aotearoa-New Zealand, particularly the Kingdom of Tonga. It argues that technocratic approaches to practice in an urban, English-speaking, coeducational secondary school requires transformation into much more inclusive programs that consider historical, social, economic, and political contexts if students are to actively understand and be involved in their education, school, and society. The paper stresses the importance of valuing students' language and culture by focusing on the partnership between a "discourse of technocratic pedagogy" and indigenous ways of thinking about the world (that is, learning and teaching as a partnership in which the teacher and students are critically aware and proud of their language, beliefs, traditions, values, and priorities, thus creating a richer pedagogical context). The perspective is that critical awareness is part of a process by which they can come to understand more deeply possible connections between technocratic pedagogy and political, social, and economic forces and how their own culture can be accented or marginalized by the mass media, economic institutions, and educational institutions within the dominant New Zealand European/Palangi society. (Contains 17 references.) (SM) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. A Critical Theory to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) The promising focus for Indigenous PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS BEEN GRANTED BY


Clinical trials of glucose-lowering strategies in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have shown a favorable effect of intensive glycemic control on microvascular complications but failed to show a clear benefit on cardiovascular events. In 2008, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMA) have required stringent criteria to approve new glucose-lowering drugs, demanding proof of cardiovascular safety. As a result of these regulatory requirements, a number of cardiovascular outcome trials in T2DM have been conducted examining the cardiovascular safety of novel glucose-lowering drugs. Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) inhibitors, analogs of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1), and inhibitors of the renal sodium-glucose linked transporter-2 (SGLT2) are new classes of glucose-lowering drugs for subjects with T2DM. The results of the cardiovascular outcome trials comparing the DPP4 inhibitors saxagliptin, alogliptin, and sitagliptin or the GLP-1 analog lixisenatide to placebo have demonstrated that these drugs are safe. The results of a cardiovascular outcome trial comparing the SGLT2 inhibitor empagliflozin to placebo have been published. Notably, empagliflozin treatment has been associated with a significant reduction in the primary composite cardiovascular outcome. Although the question regarding the positive effect of glycemic control on cardiovascular risk is still unanswered, current evidence suggests that a multifactorial approach aimed at treating not only hyperglycemia but also classical cardiovascular risk factors is necessary in order to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with T2DM.


The tasks of this paper are (i) to explore the "alternative" public international law paradigms put forward by some as preferable to the "traditional" laws of occupation and armed conflict in understanding and challenging the situation in Palestine from an international law perspective, and (ii) to offer some thoughts on questions of tactics and strategy if law is to be deployed in pursuit of Palestinian liberation. Settler colonialism is the core ideological project from which the derivatives of forced population transfer and apartheid flow. These three overlapping frameworks are knitted together by common underpinning logics of settlement and racialisation. This was the case historically in European colonial empires, as it was under apartheid in southern Africa, and as it remains in Palestine today. The paper therefore begins by situating these conceptual frameworks in historical and legal context. It then considers law as a skeletal structure which can be fleshed out with hegemonic or counter-hegemonic muscle, before turning to discuss the perils and possibilities of employing legal tactics in pursuit of transformative anti-colonial strategy.


Local information and communication resource centers, usually called telecenters, are springing up in developing countries with the objective of bringing the benefits of new communication technologies to the rural poor. Rural telecenters are calling the attention of academic and nonacademic researchers, but there is no theoretical framework to help understand the process of diffusion and adoption of these centers by the local communities. This paper uses diffusion theory to provide a conceptual framework for telecenter research and practice. After briefiy reviewing the core of the theory, this paper focuses on the three aspects of diffusion that are most pertinent for telecenter application: (1) the perceived attributes of innovations, (2) the communication aspects of the diffusion process, and (3) the consequences of innovation adoption. The paper concludes with a summary of the implications of diffusion theory for telecenter research.


Vaccines are one of the greatest achievements of mankind, and have saved millions of lives over the last century. Paradoxically, little is known about the physiological mechanisms that mediate immune responses to vaccines perhaps due to the overall success of vaccination, which has reduced interest into the molecular and physiological mechanisms of vaccine immunity. However, several important human pathogens including influenza virus still pose a challenge for vaccination, and may benefit from immune-based strategies. Although influenza reverse genetics has been successfully applied to the generation of live-attenuated influenza vaccines (LAIVs), the addition of molecular tools in vaccine preparations such as tracer components to follow up the kinetics of vaccination in vivo, has not been addressed. In addition, the recent generation of mouse models that allow specific depletion of leukocytes during kinetic studies has opened a window of opportunity to understand the basic immune mechanisms underlying vaccine-elicited protection. Here, we describe how the combination of reverse genetics and chimeric mouse models may help to provide new insights into how vaccines work at physiological and molecular levels, using as example a recombinant, cold-adapted, live-attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV). We utilized laboratory-generated LAIVs harboring cell tracers as well as competitive bone marrow chimeras (BMCs) to determine the early kinetics of vaccine immunity and the main physiological mechanisms responsible for the initiation of vaccine-specific adaptive immunity. In addition, we show how this technique may facilitate gene function studies in single animals during immune responses to vaccines. We propose that this technique can be applied to improve current prophylactic strategies against pathogens for which urgent medical countermeasures are needed, for example influenza, HIV, Plasmodium, and hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Ebola virus.


AbstractConstruction companies develop and use composite indicators to evaluate their overall project performance. However, the conventional methodology of composite indicator development causes "the indiscrimination problem", a low degree of performance discrimination due to low resolution of measurement, and "the redundancy problem", an incorrect evaluation caused by interrelation among sub-indicators. To address these problems, we propose a novel methodology that uses fuzzy theories. The proposed methodology includes the utility function for normalizing, the fuzzy measure for weighting, and the fuzzy integral for aggregating. A retrospective case study on 52 real projects shows that our proposed methodology can help alleviate the indiscrimination and redundancy problems: the proposed methodology significantly improved the degree of performance discrimination (0.29 to 0.92) and changed ranks of under- or overestimated projects by taking the interactions of sub-indicators into account. Our methodology ca...


Intramolecular singlet fission (iSF) has shown potential to improve the power conversion efficiency in photovoltaic devices by promoting the splitting of a photon-absorbing singlet exciton into two triplet excitons within a single molecule. Among different possibilities, the donor-acceptor modular strategy of copolymers has shown great promise in its ability to undergo iSF under certain conditions. However, the number of iSF donor-acceptor copolymers reported in the literature remains remarkably narrow and clear trends for the molecular design of better candidates have not yet been established. In this work, we identify the trade-off between the main iSF requirements of the donor-acceptor strategy and formulate design rules that allow them to be tuned simultaneously in a fragment-based approach. Based on a library of 2944 donor-acceptor copolymers, we establish simple guidelines to build promising novel materials for iSF. These consist in (1st) selecting an acceptor core with high intrinsic singlet-triplet splitting, (2nd) locating a donor with a larger monomer frontier molecular orbital (FMO) gap than that of the acceptor, and (3rd) tuning the relative energy of donor and/or acceptor FMOs through functionalization to promote photoinduced charge transfer in the resulting polymer. Remarkably, systems containing benzothiadiazole and thiophehe-1,1-dioxide acceptors, which have been shown to undergo iSF, fulfill all criteria simultaneously when paired with appropriate donors. This is due to their particular electronic features, which make them highly promising candidates in the quest for iSF materials.


We describe Epilocal, a simple R program designed to automatically download the most recent data on reported infected SARS-CoV-2 cases for all Italian provinces and regions, and to provide a simple descriptive analysis. For each province the cumulative number of reported infected cases is available each day. In addition, the current numbers of hospitalized patients (separately for intensive care or not) and the cumulative number of deceased individuals are available at the region level. The data are analyzed through Poisson generalized linear models with logarithmic link function and polynomial regression on time. For cumulative data, we also consider a logistic parameterisation of the hazard function. Automatic model selection is performed to choose among the different model specifications, based on the statistical significance of the corresponding estimated parameters and on goodness-of-fit assessment. The chosen model is used to produce up-to-today estimates of the growth rate of the counts. Results are plotted on a map of the country to allow for a visual assessment of the geographic distribution of the areas with differential prevalence and rates of growth.


Knowledge about the movement and survival of diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella . (L.), in mixtures of nontransgenic and transgenic canola, Brassica napus (L.), containing a synthetic cryIA(c) insecticidal gene from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner would have implications in designing resistance management strategies. In diamondback moth larval movement studies neonates moved 72 h after infestation and other instars moved within 24 h. Diamondback moth larval movement and survival were studied in pure stands and mixtures of 80:20, 60:40, 40:60, and 20:80 transgenic and nontransgenic canola plants, respectively, that were arranged in rows within cages in a greenhouse. On the 6th d, no larvae survived in the pure stand of transgenic canola, and few survivors were recorded on transgenic canola plants in mixtures. In mixtures, the percentage of adult emergence decreased as the proportion of transgenic plants increased. All 4 instars were killed when they fed exclusively on transgenic plants. None of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th instars were able complete their life cycle when they fed on transgenic canola plants for 48 h and were subsequently transferred to nontransgenic plants. The results suggest that in seed mixtures diamondback moth larvae would move from transgenic to nontransgenic plants before acquiring lethal doses of toxin, indicating a higher possibility of resistance development. These results suggest that a seed mixture strategy may not be an effective strategy against diamondback moth to prevent or reduce the rate of resistance development against transgenic canola. However, transgenic and nontransgenic plants could be grown in separate rows with a wider row spacing (strip planting) to minimize the rate of resistance development.


Background: Trastuzumab resistance hampers its well-known efficacy in controlling HER2+ breast cancer progression. IGF1R is associated with worse outcomes in the HER2+ subtype of breast cancer (Br Cancer Res Treat 2012 132:131). Indeed, there is in vitro evidence showing that increased signaling through IGF1R confers resistance to HER2-targeting agents. However, the involvement of IGF1R and its downstream signaling pathways in this mechanism have yet to be confirmed. Purpose: Since, IGF1R is involved in the progression of breast cancers and resistance to trastuzumab therapy, co-suppression of this pathway with IGF1R mAB plus trastuzumab (T) or T-DM1 may, therefore, be efficacious in T-resistant breast cancer models. Methods: Here, we investigated the preclinical efficacy of IGF1R mAB (R7072) alone or in combination with T or T-DM1 in BT474/HerR (T-resistant) and MCF7/HER2-18 (HER2 stably overexpressed) cell lines. The inhibition of IGF1R pathway effectors was evaluated by Western blotting. Tumor growth inhibition after treatment of R7072, T/T-DM1 or the combination was examined in cell-based xenograft models. Results: 1) Doses as low as 10 μg/ml, R7072 abrogated p- AKT (S473 and T308) within 1hr of treatment in both MC7/HER2-18 and MCF7 cells (parental), 2) R7072 transiently blocked phosphorylation of downstream effector of mTOR, P70S6K (in 1hr treatment) in MCF7/HER2-18 cells but completely blocked of phosphorylation of P70S6K in MCF7 cells in both time points, 3) IGF1-induced AKT activation was inhibited in both HER2 overexpressed MCF7 and parental cells, however, both T and T-DM1 failed to block AKT activation following IGF1 stimulation in both cell lines, 4) in both cell lines, treatment of R7072 resulted in upregulation of p-ERK at higher time points, 5) R7072 was unable to block PI3K and its downstream effectors in HER2+/T-resistant cells, 6) in vivo xenograft data show that the combination of R7072 and T/T-DM1 has strongly enhanced antitumor effects in both MCF7/HER2-18 and BT474/HerR cells, but as a single agent, R7072 failed to block tumor growth in HER2+/T-resistant cells, and 5) similarly this combination significantly blocked the expression Ki67 and CD31 in tumor tissues. Conclusion: Our data suggest that the combination of R7072 and anti-HER2 antibody (T or T-DM1) is highly effective in the HER2+/T-resistant model and that similar level of inhibition cannot be achieved by either monotherapy. Citation Format: Yuliang Sun, Nandini Dey, Max Hasmann, Pradip De, Brian Leyland-Jones. Is interrupting IGF1R signaling enough to overcome resistance to trastuzumab in HER2+ breast cancer models?. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 537. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-537 Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR Annual Meeting 2013 because the presenter was unable to attend.


A new ternary chromium disulfide, Ba9Cr4S19, has been grown out of BaCl2 molten salt. Single-crystal structure analysis revealed that it crystallizes in the centrosymmetric space group C2/c with lattice parameters: a = 12.795(3) Å, b = 11.3269(2) Å, c = 23.2057(6) Å, β = 104.041(3)°, and Z = 4. Ba9Cr4S19 comprises four face-sharing Cr-centered octahedra with disulfide ions occupying sites on each terminal face. The resulting Cr4S15 tetramer units are isolated by nonmagnetic Ba-centered polyhedra in the ab plane and barium disulfide (=Ba4(S2)2) layers along the c-axis. Following the structure analysis, the title compound should be expressed as [Ba2+]9[Cr3+]4[(S2)2–]4[S2–]11, which is also consistent with Cr2p X-ray photoemission spectra showing trivalent states of the Cr atoms. The unique Cr-based zero-dimensional structure with the formation of these disulfide ions can be achieved for the first time in ternary chromium sulfides, which adopt 1–3 dimensional frameworks of Cr-centered polyhedra.


A new algorithm, the Partial Correlation Statistic (PCS) algorithm, is presented for structure learning under linear Structural Equation Models. The PCS algorithm can deal with continuous data following linear arbitrary distribution rather than only a Gaussian distribution. This paper makes two specific contributions. First, for linear arbitrarily distributed datasets, which are generated by the linear structural equation models, if the sample size is sufficiently large, partial correlation coefficient statistic is proved to follow a Student's t-distribution. Second, the PCS algorithm combines hypothesis testing of partial correlation statistic and local learning to select potential neighbors of the target node. This significantly reduces the search space and achieves good time performance. The PCS algorithm does not need to choose optimal threshold of partial correlation by large amount of experiments. Especially, the PCS algorithm redefines the relevance from statistic theory and measure the relevance of the variables based on <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$p$</tex-math><alternatives> <inline-graphic xlink:type="simple" xlink:href="yang-ieq1-2578315.gif"/></alternatives></inline-formula>-value. The effectiveness of the algorithm is compared with current state of the art methods on seven networks. A simulation shows that the PCS algorithm outperforms existing algorithms in terms of both accuracy and time performance on average.


Count data arise in numerous fields of interest. Analysis of these data frequently require distributional assumptions. Although the graphical display of a fitted model is straightforward in the univariate scenario, this becomes more complex if covariate information needs to be included into the model. Stratification is one way to proceed, but has its limitations if the covariate has many levels or the number of covariates is large. The article suggests a marginal method which works even in the case that all possible covariate combinations are different (i.e. no covariate combination occurs more than once). For each covariate combination the fitted model value is computed and then summed over the entire data set. The technique is quite general and works with all count distributional models as well as with all forms of covariate modelling. The article provides illustrations of the method for various situations and also shows that the proposed estimator as well as the empirical count frequency are consistent with respect to the same parameter.


The paper deals with state estimation of nonlinear non-Gaussian systems with a special focus on the Gaussian sum filters. To achieve a higher estimate quality, state and measurement predictive moments appearing in the filters are computed by the randomized unscented transform, which provides asymptotically exact estimates of the moments. The use of the Gaussian sum filter employing the randomized unscented transform is introduced and the proposed algorithm is illustrated in a numerical example. The analysis of the numerical example involves a comparison of several filters using a number of performance metrics both absolute and relative, assessing the point estimate quality, the estimate error quality, and the density estimate quality.


In order to investigate whether alcohol has teratogenic properties, rat embryos were cultured in vitro during their organogenetic period and exposed to ethanol at 200-800 mg% culture medium for the 48 hours of culture (0-24 somite stage) or to 600-800 mg% for 24 hours, or 6-hour periods. Exposure to alcohol throughout the entire 48-hour culture period or the first 24-hour period (0-12 somites) produced marked growth retardation, particularly of the head region in a dose-dependent manner, but did not prevent neural tube closure. Exposure to high levels of ethanol during specific 6-hour periods of early organogenesis (three to nine somites) prevented closure of the neural tube in 30% of cultured rat embryos, indicating a direct teratogenic action of ethanol. These results implied an effect of ethanol on embryonic development, independent of maternal metabolism. The 6-hour exposure experiments demonstrated that high doses of ethanol during specific periods of organogenesis can be teratogenic.


The Yrast approximation is applied to the T = 1 pairing collective Hamiltonian. A formalism is thus obtained which may incorporate anharmonic effects in a simple way. The experimentally observed anharmonicities in the 56Ni region are satisfactorily reproduced.


The object of the experiments was to answer the questions: Does evaporation from burned surfaces account for a significant portion of the dehydration of the body that is believed to be present after accidental burns? Does the treatment of these surfaces with tannic acid materially modify this evaporation? METHOD Apparatus. —A glass capsule was fitted with inlet and outlet tubes opposite one another. It enclosed an area of skin of 22 sq. cm. A thermocouple on the end of a piece of bakelite tubing was held inside the capsule, so that it was pressed lightly against the surface of the skin at all times. Wires to a cold junction and to a galvanometer passed through the tubing and the sealed top of the capsule. The capsule was sealed air-tight to the cutaneous surface with petrolatum. A stream of air was measured by passage through a dry meter, was dried by


During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and subsequent deglaciation, the Great Basin in the southwestern United States was covered by numerous extensive closed-basin lakes, in stark contrast with the predominately arid climate observed today. This transition from lakes in the Late Pleistocene to modern aridity implies large changes in the regional water balance. Whether these changes were driven by increased precipitation rates due to changes in atmospheric dynamics, decreased evaporation rates resulting from temperature depression and summer insolation changes, or some combination of the two remains uncertain. The factors contributing to these large-scale changes in hydroclimate are critical to resolve, given that this region is poised to undergo future anthropogenic-forced climate changes with large uncertainties in model simulations for the 21st century. Furthermore, there are ambiguous constraints on the magnitude and even the sign of changes in key hydroclimate variables between the Last Glacial Maximum and the present day in both proxy reconstructions and climate model analyses of the region. Here we report thermodynamically derived estimates of changes in temperature, precipitation, and evaporation rates, as well as the isotopic composition of lake water, using clumped isotope data from an ancient lake in the northwestern Great Basin, Lake Surprise (California). Compared to modern climate, mean annual air temperature at Lake Surprise was 4.7 °C lower during the Last Glacial Maximum, with decreased evaporation rates and similar precipitation rates to modern. During the mid-deglacial period, the growth of Lake Surprise implied that the lake hydrologic budget briefly departed from steady state. Our reconstructions indicate that this growth took place rapidly, while the subsequent lake regression took place over several thousand years. Using models for precipitation and evaporation constrained from clumped isotope results, we determine that the disappearance of Lake Surprise coincided with a moderate increase in lake temperature, along with increasing evaporation rates outpacing increasing precipitation rates. Concomitant analysis of proxy data and climate model simulations for the Last Glacial Maximum are used to provide a robust means to understand past climate change, and by extension, predict how current hydroclimates may respond to expected future climate forcings. We suggest that an expansion of this analysis to more basins across a larger spatial scale could provide valuable insight into proposed climate forcings, and aid in climate model process depiction. Ultimately, our analysis highlights the importance of temperature-driven evaporation as a mechanism for lake growth and retreat in this region.


– The cyanomorph and photosymbiodemes are here reported for the first time for Ricasolia virens (With.) H.H. Blom & Tønsberg comb. nov. (≡ Lobaria virens (With.) J.R. Laundon). The cyanomorph of R. virens is dendriscocauloid. The observed early developmental stages involve (1) a freeliving cyanomorph and (2) a photosymbiodeme composed of the cyanomorph supporting small, foliose, chloromorphic lobes. Whereas the chloromorph continues to grow, the cyanomorph decays and disappears leading to the final stage (3), the free-living chloromorph. Secondary cyanomorphs emerging from the chloromorph are not known.


This document provides a first specification of the management architecture to be set up in the context of a multi domain, open and ever evolving IPv6 network which is the 6NET network. It enumerates the requirements towards the management framework, provides a description of all entities which contribute to the management activity and specifies their interaction. Especially it defines the 6NCC which is the entity at the heart of the management architecture which ensures coordination among all other participants.


BACKGROUND
Fluralaner and afoxolaner are isoxazolines licensed for the treatment of flea and tick infestations. Isoxazolines have also shown efficacy for treatment of demodicosis. Nothing is known about the impact of these compounds on the populations of Demodex in healthy dogs.

HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES
The objective of this study was to measure the prevalence of Demodex in the skin of healthy dogs prior to and following the use of either afoxolaner or fluralaner, using real-time PCR (RT-PCR) for Demodex DNA. Our hypothesis was that the use of an isoxazoline at the labelled dose would eliminate Demodex populations from the skin of healthy dogs.

ANIMALS AND METHODS
Twenty healthy dogs with no history of skin disease were recruited. Dogs were divided into two groups of ten, with each group receiving afoxolaner or fluralaner for the 90 day study period. Hairs were plucked from three body sites on Day 0 prior to medication administration, then again on days 30 and 90. RT-PCR amplifying Demodex DNA was performed on all samples.

RESULTS
At Day 0 (prior to treatment), five of the 20 dogs were positive for Demodex DNA at least in one skin site (25%). At Day 60, three of 18 dogs were positive (16.7%) and on Day 90, six of 20 dogs were positive (30%). No significant difference in numbers of positive dogs was found between groups or timepoints.

CONCLUSION
Treatment with afoxolaner or fluralaner does not impact on cutaneous Demodex populations of normal dogs over a 90 day period.