Abstract For more than four decades the analysis of party organizations in the European democracies has been completely separated from analyses of American party structures. The first part of this article examines how and why such a separation was to emerge in the aftermath of Duverger's and Epstein's path-breaking original work. It then goes on to outline how an analytic framework might be developed so that more wide-ranging comparative studies of party organizations in democratic regimes can be undertaken in future. Only with such research can the limitations of 'exceptionalist' and 'regionalist' explanations of party structure development and change be overcome.


Bile acids are synthesized in the liver, stored in gallbladder, and secreted into the intestine to aid in the absorption of lipid-soluble nutrients. In addition, bile acids also actively participate in regulation of gene expression through their ability to act as ligands for the nuclear receptor farnesoid X receptor or by activating kinase signaling pathways. Under cholestatic conditions, elevated levels of bile acids in the liver induce hepatic inflammation, and because bile acid levels are also elevated in the circulation, they might also induce vascular inflammation. To test this hypothesis, primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and human aortic endothelial cells were treated with bile acids, and the expression of ICAM-1, VCAM-1, and E-selectin were monitored. The three major bile acids found in the circulation, chenodeoxycholic acid, deoxycholic acid, and lithocholic acid, all strongly induced both the mRNA and protein expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1. To delineate the mechanism, the experiments were conducted in the presence of various kinase inhibitors. The results demonstrate that the bile acid-mediated induction of adhesion molecule expression occurs by stimulation of NF-kappaB and p38 MAPK signaling pathways through the elevation in reactive oxygen species. The bile acid-induced cell surface expression of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 was sufficient to result in the increased adhesion of THP-1 monocytes to the HUVEC, suggesting that elevated levels of bile acids in the circulation may cause endothelium dysfunction and contribute to the initiation of early events associated with vascular lesion formation.


We apply Baxter algebras to the study of the umbral calculus. We give a characterization of the umbral calculus in terms of Baxter algebra. This characterization leads to a natural generalization of the umbral calculus that include the classical umbral calculus in a family of-umbral calculi parameterized by in the base ring.


This paper proposes an efficient scheme of fingerprint recognition for biometric identification of individuals. Three statistical features are extracted from fingerprint images and represented using a mathematical model. These features are (1) an entropy coefficient, computed from the intensity histogram of the image, (2) a correlation coefficient, computed by correlation operation between the original image and a filtered version of the image obtained using a 2D median filter, and (3) an energy coefficient, obtained by first subjecting the image to a 5-level wavelet decomposition and thereafter computing the percentage energy of the approximation coefficient obtained after the 5th level decomposition. The approach is tested over a dataset of 80 images divided into 10 classes and is seen to provide accurate recognition results.


How do we learn to communicate using language? I study children's language learning and how it interacts with their developing understanding of the social world. I use behavioral experiments, computational tools, and novel measurement methods like large-scale web-based studies, eye-tracking, and head-mounted cameras


The Internet and the growth of Information Technology (IT) and their enhanced capabilities to collect personal information have given rise to many privacy issues. Unauthorized access of personal information may result in identity theft, stalking, harassment, and other invasions of privacy. Information privacy concerns are impediments to broad-scale adoption of the Internet for purchasing decisions. Computer self-efficacy has been shown to be an effective predictor of behavioral intention and a critical determinant of intention to use Information Technology. This study investigated the relationship between an individual's computer self-efficacy and information privacy concerns; and also examined the differences among different age groups and between genders regarding information privacy concerns and their relationships with computer self-efficacy.
A paper-based survey was designed to empirically assess computer self-efficacy and information privacy concerns. The survey was developed by combining existing validated scales for computer self-efficacy and information privacy concerns. The target population of this study was the residents of New Jersey, U.S.A. The assessment was done by using the mall-intercept approach in which individuals were asked to fill out the survey. The sample size for this study was 400 students, professionals, and mature adults.
The Shapiro-Wilk test was used for testing data normality and the Spearman rank-order test was used for correlation analyses. MANOVA test was used for comparing mean values of computer self-efficacy and information privacy concerns between genders and among age groups. The results showed that the correlation between computer self-efficacy and information privacy concerns was significant and positive; and there were differences between genders and among age groups regarding information privacy concerns and their relationships with computer self-efficacy.
This study contributed to the body of knowledge about the relationships among antecedents and consequences of information privacy concerns and computer self-efficacy. The findings of this study can help corporations to improve e-commerce by targeting privacy policy-making efforts to address the explicit areas of consumer privacy concerns. The results of this study can also help IT practitioners to develop privacy protection tools and processes to address specific consumer privacy concerns.


A closed form is obtained of the length distribution of open and closed clusters in binary randomly disordered finite chains and its first three moments are calculated. It allows to express configurational averages of interest in chains with randomly distributed broken bonds, with randomly distributed infinite masses and related finite disordered systems and to calculate them exactly. A particular case of random walks on a chain with chaotically distributed pure absorbers is considered without any restrictions on the chain length and the number of absorbers. The exact expressions of the averaged survival probability and averaged lifetime of a particle in the chain are obtained and discussed.

[Russian Text Ignored]


In this paper, a novel 3-UPU (P and U stand for prismatic and universal joints, respectively) parallel mechanism (PM) and its variant PM are proposed. Both of them have two rotational and one translational (2R1T) degrees of freedom (DOFs) without involving any parasitic motion. Mobility analysis shows that the three constraint forces provided by three limbs of the mechanism are located on the same plane and the mobile platform can translate perpendicular to this plane and rotate around any axis on it. Analysis of the mechanism's motion characteristics demonstrates that the mobile platform outputs either pure rotation or pure translation. Moreover, the rotational axis can be fixed during the rotation process, which means no parasitic motion is involved. The causes of the motion characteristics are analyzed by the combination of an overall Jacobian matrix, a statistical method, and a geometric method. The PMs only need to translate or rotate once to move from the initial configuration to the final configuration, which allows for easy control of speeds. The relationship between mechanism parameters and singularity is analyzed. A speed control method for the PMs is proposed and a prototype is designed and made. Experiments are conducted to verify the determined motion characteristics, the speed control method, and the singularity analysis.


We examined blood lymphocyte subpopulations in 20 patients with sarcoidosis, 37 patients with other diseases, and 51 normal subjects. The B-lymphocytes were identified by the presence of surface immunoglobulin or B-lymphocyte-associated antigen. Lymphocytes were also centrifuged with sheep erythrocytes for 5 min at room temperature at 200 g, and rosette formation was assayed immediately (active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes) or after 60-min incubation at 4 degrees C (total T-lymphocytes). The B-lymphocytes counts did not differ among the groups. The proportions of total E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes and active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes were increased in the sarcoid patients, whereas absolute counts of both types of E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes were not different from control counts. Active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes showed an inverse correlation with serum concentration of angiotensin-1-converting enzyme, a probable indicator of the disease activity. Incubation of normal lymphocytes with sarcoid plasma increased the proportion of active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes. This plasma rosette enhancement was correlated with the number of active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes in the blood from which the plasma was separated. These results suggest that a factor in sarcoid plasma affects the number of active E-rosette-forming T-lymphocytes and that high numbers of these cells are associated with disease stability.


In recent years, most European countries have experienced substantial demographic changes and rising cultural diversity. Understanding the social and economic impacts of these shifts is a major challenge for policymakers. Richard Florida's ideas have provided a popular – and pervasive – framework for doing so. This paper assess Florida's legacy and sets out a 'post-Florida' framework for 'technology, talent and tolerance' research. The paper first traces the development of Florida's ideas. 'Florida 1.0', encapsulated by the Three Ts framework, has performed badly in practice. There are problems in bringing causality to the fundamental relationships, and in consistently replicating the results in other countries. 'Florida 2.0', though suggests that Creative Class metrics have value as alternative measures of human capital. This create space for a post-Florida agenda based on economic micro-foundations. I argue that the growing body of 'economics of diversity' research meets these conditions, and review theory and empirics. Urban 'diversity shocks' shift the size and composition of populations and workforces, with impacts operating via labour markets, and through wider production and consumption networks. While short-term labour market effects are small, over time low-value industrial sectors may become migrant-dependent. Diversity may help raise productivity and wages through innovation, entrepreneurship, market access and trade channels. Bigger, more diverse cities help generate hybridised goods and services, but may also raise local costs through crowding. All of this presents new challenges for policymakers, who need to manage diversity's net effects, and address both economic costs and benefits.


Background and Purpose— Elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) and lack of early vessel recanalization are predictors of poor outcome among patients with stroke treated with systemic tissue plasminogen activator (tPA). We aimed to evaluate the potential relationship between pretreatment SBP and tPA-induced recanalization. Methods— Consecutive patients with acute ischemic stroke resulting from intracranial artery occlusion were treated with standard intravenous tPA and assessed with 2-MHz transcranial Doppler for arterial recanalization. Early arterial recanalization was determined with previously validated Thrombolysis in Brain Ischemia flow grading system at 120 minutes after tPA bolus. Functional outcome at 3 months was evaluated using the modified Rankin Scale. Results— A total of 351 patients received intravenous tPA (mean age: 68.7±13.4 years, median National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score 16.5). Patients with complete recanalization (n=94) had lower mean pretreatment SBP values (152±23 mm Hg) than patients with incomplete or absent recanalization (n=257, 160±22 mm Hg, P=0.010). Pretreatment SBP levels were inversely associated with complete recanalization (OR per 10-mm Hg increase: 0.85; 95% CI: 0.74 to 0.98, P=0.022) after adjustment for demographics, risk factors, stroke severity, pretreatment Thrombolysis in Brain Ischemia grades, and continuous versus intermittent exposure to transcranial Doppler. Although patients with poor functional 3-month outcomes (modified Rankin Scale >2) had higher pretreatment SBP values (160±25 mm Hg) than functionally independent patients (154±20 mm Hg, P=0.027), pretreatment SBP levels were not independently associated with functional outcome on multivariable analysis. Age, complete recanalization, baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score, and time from symptom onset to tPA bolus were independent (P<0.05) predictors of 3-month outcome. Conclusion— Higher pretreatment SBP levels are associated with poor recanalization in patients with acute stroke treated with intravenous tPA.


In this paper, we provide a novel way to generate low-dimension (dense) vector embeddings for the noun and verb synsets in WordNet, so that the hypernym-hyponym tree structure is preserved in the embeddings. We call this embedding the sense spectrum (and sense spectra for embeddings). In order to create suitable labels for the training of sense spectra, we designed a new similarity measurement for noun and verb synsets in WordNet. We call this similarity measurement the hypernym intersection similarity (HIS), since it compares the common and unique hypernyms between two synsets.
Our experiments show that on the noun and verb pairs of the SimLex-999 dataset, HIS outperforms the three similarity measurements in WordNet. Moreover, to the best of our knowledge, the sense spectra is the first dense embedding system that can explicitly and completely measure the hypernym-hyponym relationship in WordNet.


The current hypertension guideline emphasizes combination therapy, especially single‐pill combination therapy (SPC). However, few studies compared the prevalence and factors associated with initial therapy choice across heterogeneous age groups in a current population. First, the authors consecutively identified 964 treatment naïve hypertensive patients in a large academic hospital from 01/31/2019 to 01/31/2020. All patients were grouped into (1) young aged, age < 55; (2) middle‐aged, 55≤age < 65; and (3) older aged, age ≥65. The multivariable regression model examined the factors associated with the combination therapy by age group. Overall, 80 (8.3%) were young, 191 (19.8%) were middle, and 693 (71.9%) were older aged. Compared with older age, younger patients were more likely to be male, highly educated, regularly exercised, have metabolic syndrome, and less likely to have cardiovascular‐related comorbidities, with a lower systolic but higher diastolic pressure. Only one in five patients used SPC, and the prevalence decreased with age. Besides hypertension grade, young patients without catheterization or echo test were less likely to receive multiple therapies, while older patients who were male with lower weight and lower risk levels were less likely to receive multiple therapies. In conclusion, combination therapy, especially SPC, was underused in the targeted hypertensive population. Our contemporary population study showed that young patients (<55) without a history of catheterization or echo examination and male older‐aged (≥65) patients with low‐risk classification were the population most likely to be neglected. Such information can help triage medical care resources in improving SPC use.


Through non-genetic maternal effects, mothers can tailor offspring phenotype to the environment in which young will grow up. If juvenile and adult ecologies differ, the conditions mothers experienced as juveniles may better predict their offspring's environment than the adult environment of mothers. In this case maternal decisions about investment in offspring quality should already be determined during the juvenile phase of mothers. I tested this hypothesis by manipulating juvenile and adult maternal environments independently in a cichlid fish. Females raised in a poor environment produced larger young than females raised without food limitations, irrespective of the feeding conditions experienced during adulthood. This maternal boost was due to a higher investment in eggs and to faster larval growth. Apparently, mothers prepare their offspring for similar environmental conditions to those they encountered as juveniles. This explanation is supported by the distribution of these fishes under natural conditions. Juveniles live in a different and much narrower range of habitats than adults. Therefore, the habitat mothers experienced as juveniles will allow them to predict their offspring's environment better than the conditions in the adult home range.


In this work, the results of plasma microwave transmission diagnosis were analyzed. According to the attenuation and phase shift of the electromagnetic wave propagating in the plasma, the electron density and collision frequency of the plasma can be diagnosed. Since part of the electromagnetic wave is reflected or diffracted when propagating in the plasma, and is not absorbed by the plasma, and this part of the attenuation is still included in the measured attenuation, the attenuation is distorted. Therefore, a curve fitting method is proposed to remove the attenuation caused by the plasma reflection, thereby improving the accuracy of the diagnosis of the collision frequency. The calibration effect of this method on plasmas with different electron densities and collision frequencies is analyzed, and a diagnostic frequency band with good calibration results is given. The curve fitting method is verified by experiment and simulation. After adopting the newly proposed method, the diagnosis accuracy of collision frequency can be increased by 30%. This method can be widely used in various types of plasma diagnosis and provides a new idea for plasma diagnosis.


Broadly speaking, the '-te aru' construction and the 'attributive passive' construction in Japanese are both de-transitivized, stative constructions that serve to set the scene for the ongoing discourse. In many cases, the constructions can be substituted for one another, and native speakers often find it difficult to identify a clear difference in meaning between the two. Previous research on these constructions, however, has ignored their functional similarities, and has attempted to explain their uses quite separately. In this paper we identify and account for the basic functions of these two constructions, as well as their similarities and their differences. We start by considering them in the context of a far more widely discussed, and more frequently used, derived stative construction in Japanese, a construction that involves an intransitive rather than a transitive verb root. We go on to consider examples of these two de-transitivized stative constructions, starting with cases in which they seem to be virtually interchangeable, and then refining our understanding of their functions by considering cases in which they cannot be substituted for one another. Our basic findings relate to the degree of semantic transitivity of the two constructions. Although the -te aru construction has previously been characterized as describing perfect aspect, and as not allowing an overt Actor (Martin 1975, Miyagawa 1988 and Hasegawa 1996), when we compare it with the 'attributive passive', we find that it is comparatively the more transitive, and thus more agentive of the two. The 'attributive passive', on the other hand, is highly objective and stative. Nevertheless, the fact that the verb root in this construction, as in the -te aru construction, is transitive rather than intransitive means that the relevance of an Actor to the state described can still be detected.


Enhance of Zeste Homolog 2 (EZH2) is the biochemical activity of the Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) that transfers a methyl group from the cofactor S-adenosyl methionine (SAM) to histone H3 on lysine 27 (H3K27), resulting in epigenetic silencing of target gene expression. Activity of the multi-component PRC2 complex is crucial for normal development and differentiation. However, dysregulation of H3K27 methylation is implicated in tumorigenesis and occurs through multiple mechanisms. Elevated levels of EZH2 correlate with poor prognosis in a number of solid tumors including prostate, breast, kidney and lung. The increased EZH2 expression observed in many solid tumors has been linked to loss of one or more miRNAs including mir-101, mir-26A, and mir-214; aberrant E2F activity and chromosomal amplification. Inactivating mutations in UTX, an H3K27 demethylase which acts in opposition to EZH2, have been described in several tumor types including transitional cell bladder carcinoma, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma, renal cell carcinoma and multiple myeloma. Recently, somatic activating mutations in EZH2 have been identified in follicular lymphoma (FL) and GCB diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL). The frequency of the most prevalent mutation, Y641, is reported to be 7-12% in FL and as high as 22% in DLBCL. In view of the above, biochemical inhibitors of EZH2 may have therapeutic utility and herein we report on the identification and characterization of potent and selective small molecule EZH2 inhibitors with in vitro and in vivo antiproliferative activity in cancer cell lines and mouse xenografts. The studies provide a compelling rationale for the clinical evaluation of EZH2 inhibitors in EZH2 driven human cancers. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr SY02-02. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-SY02-02


It is well-recognized that uncertainty is an endemic feature and limitation of clinical judgment and practice that cannot be eliminated in many cases. Among the tasks of clinical ethics is the responsible management of uncertainties, first articulated in E. Haavi Morreim's very nice concept of the "moral management of medical uncertainty." The papers in the 2012 Clinical Ethics issue of the Journal provide philosophically innovative and clinically applicable accounts of the varieties of uncertainty in clinical medicine and therefore in clinical ethics: epistemic uncertainty, metaphysical uncertainty, and relational uncertainty.


Pierre Viret was a Swiss Reformation leader who worked alongside John Calvin, William Farel, and Theodore Beza, but he is less well known in the English-speaking world. Viret brought his distinctive contributions to the Protestant Reformation as a pastor and an ethicist. These contributions in life and doctrine need to be rediscovered for a more robust reformational church today. This article considers Viret's credentials as a Reformer. It then explores various areas in which Viret applied his distinctively biblical ethic, particularly respecting the role of the magistrate and the relation between church and state. His biblical worldview is comprehensive in breadth and depth. His example is very accessible to Christians wanting to follow in his footsteps.


In this study, numerical simulations were carried out to analyze the effect of the smoke extraction system and fire shutters in subway station fires using FDS 4.0. Subway station used in the experiment was 205 m long. Simulation results are validated by comparing with experimental results. Simulation results showed good agreement with experimental results within 20℃. 20㎿ polystyrene was used as a fuel in the numerical prediction. Numerical predictions were performed in the side-platform type subway station in case of a train fire. Temperature and CO concentration were lowered by the operation of smoke extraction system.


Residential homes constitute roughly one-fourth of the total energy usage worldwide. Providing appliance-level energy breakdown has been shown to induce positive behavioral changes that can reduce energy consumption by 15%. Existing approaches for energy breakdown either require hardware installation in every target home or demand a large set of energy sensor data available for model training. However, very few homes in the world have installed sub-meters (sensors measuring individual appliance energy); and the cost of retrofitting a home with extensive sub-metering eats into the funds available for energy saving retrofits. As a result, strategically deploying sensing hardware to maximize the reconstruction accuracy of sub-metered readings in non-instrumented homes while minimizing deployment costs becomes necessary and promising. In this work, we develop an active learning solution based on low-rank tensor completion for energy breakdown. We propose to actively deploy energy sensors to appliances from selected homes, with a goal to improve the prediction accuracy of the completed tensor with minimum sensor deployment cost. We empirically evaluate our approach on the largest public energy dataset collected in Austin, Texas, USA, from 2013 to 2017. The results show that our approach gives better performance with fixed number of sensors installed, when compared to the state-of-the-art, which is also proven by our theoretical analysis.


Effect of toxic metal ions Cd(II) and Pb(II) on cyanobacterium (blue-green algae) Spirulina platensis intact cells have been studied with optical and differential scanning microcalorimetry (DSC) methods after 7.2 kGy 137 Cs gamma irradiation and without irradiation. It is shown that the addition of metal ions causes a decrease in optical absorption spectra band intensities. In the case of irradiation, the absorption band intensity decreases higher than without irradiation. The binding constant of Pb(II) with Spirulina platensis is calculated for nutrition medium with pH 9.2. DSC data show that Cd(II) and Pb(II) ions do not change the integral heat of absorption (Δ H m ) that equals to 24.6 J g -1 . In the case of irradiation, the DSC melting curve profile changes significantly and Δ H m decreases two times, which indicates that 50 % of proteins are denaturated. The DSC method also gives a possibility to evaluate C-phycocyanin content from deconvoluted heat absorption peak at 50 °C, which equals to 35.5 %. In case of irradiated wet mass, sub-cultured wet mass, and wet mass re-irradiated with the same dose, contents of Spirulina platensis ingredients – C-phycocyanin, chlorophyll, and carotenoids – increase as a result of the simultaneous effect of the metal ions and irradiation.


CONTEXT
Poor balance has been associated with increased injury risk among athletes. Neuromuscular-training programs have been advocated as a means of injury prevention, but little is known about the benefits of these programs on balance in high school athletes.

OBJECTIVE
To determine whether there are balance gains after participation in a neuromuscular-training program in high school athletes.

DESIGN
Nonrandomized controlled trial.

SETTING
All data were collected at each participating high school before and after a 6-wk intervention or control period.

PARTICIPANTS
62 female high school basketball players recruited from the local high school community and assigned to a training (n = 37) or control (n = 25) group.

INTERVENTION
Training-group subjects participated in a 6-wk neuromuscular-training program that included plyometric, functional-strengthening, balance, and stability-ball exercises.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Data were collected for the Balance Error Scoring System (BESS) and Star Excursion Balance Test (SEBT) before and after the 6-wk intervention or control period.

RESULTS
The authors found a significant decrease in total BESS errors in the trained group at the posttest compared with their pretest and the control group (P = .003). Trained subjects also scored significantly fewer BESS errors on the single-foam and tandem-foam conditions at the posttest than the control group and demonstrated improvements on the single-foam compared with their pretest (P = .033). The authors found improvements in reach in the lateral, anteromedial, medial, and posterior directions in the trained group at the posttest compared with the control group (P < .05) using the SEBT.

CONCLUSION
The study demonstrates that a neuromuscular-training program can increase the balance and proprioceptive capabilities of female high school basketball players and that clinical balance measures are sensitive to detect these differences.


A sequential study of the early stage of development of ethylnitrosourea (ENU) induced glioma in the rat was performed by electron microscopy and [3H]thymidine histoautoradiography. Hyperplasia, the earliest neoplastic change that was detectable morphologically, consisted of a few or several immature oligodendroglia like cells which were connected with one another or with preexisting neural tissue by junctional apparatus, and showed no reactive changes in the astrocytes or microglia. The labelling index of hyperplastic cells was 2.6%. Foci of early neoplastic proliferation (ENP) showed mild destructive changes in the neighboring neural tissue, and their major constituent cells had characteristics of immature oligodendroglias. The labelling index of cells showing ENP was 3.3%. The intercellular spaces exhibited slight enlargement with accumulation of extracellular matrix and a decrease in the number of junctional apparatus on the neoplastic cells. Microtumors showed apparent destruction of the preexisting neural tissue to form a tumor mass with an increase in the extracellular matrix. Constituent cells of the microtumors were similar to those of the ENP, although reactive astrocytes and microglias occurred more frequently. The labelling index was 9.6% in the central area of microtumors and 5.3% in the peripheral area. These findings suggest that in the initial or very early stages of glial cell neoplastic proliferation, it is necessary for the neoplastic cells to maintain contact with the neurons for metabolic purposes, and that after losing contact, these cells can proliferate autonomously with the accumulation of extracellular matrix.


The 4(3H)-quinazolinone is a frequently encountered heterocycle with broad applications including antimalarial, antitumor, anticonvulsant, fungicidal, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory. The current review article will briefly outline the new routes and strategies for the synthesis of valuable 4(3H)-quinazolinones.


Intensive agriculture is frequently criticized today because it is considered as a major source of environmental damage and biodiversity losses. However, it is necessary to analyze in which factor(s) agriculture is intensive. Indeed, a factor of production is intensively managed if significant amounts of other factors are combined with it to increase its productivity. Where land was rare – and this has been very frequent at the farmer level, and should become increasingly common– land use intensification is sought, i.e. an increase in production per ha. However, a broader and systemic approach of production is necessary. There are other forms of intensification than chemical inputs and farm machinery: agriculture can be intensive in labor, in different types of knowledge, in ecological functionalities... These different forms have different impacts. In addition, factors can be complementary or substitutable, at less in part. E.g. higher knowledge can make possible input savings (better efficiency) or better use of natural resources (agroecology). This has led to the concept of sustainable intensification, which is sometimes criticized because better input efficiency, or certain substitutions between factors, can be insufficient for biodiversity preservation. Another kind of intensification, ecological intensification, also needs to be examined. It corresponds to a better use of ecosystem functioning and of ecological processes, but also of information and of different types of knowledge. Ecologically Intensive Agriculture is a way of farming with high ecological intensity, aiming to use natural processes and ecosystem services in a sustainable way. However, it is not of course sufficient that agriculture better takes into account biodiversity and the natural resources. Greater eco-friendly and biodiversity-friendly agri-food systems don't necessarily ensure real food security, since the other aspects of the latter can be missing: availability, accessibility, acceptability, appropriateness, awareness. In addition, agriculture is not the only cause of biodiversity losses: the increasing population is occupying an increasing area and has an increasing footprint. Thus the notions of "agricultural intensification" or "intensive agriculture" deserve better examination than an outright rejection!


Electrical conductivity measurements combined with transmission electron microscopy observations were performed on a p-type Si bicrystal containing a Sigma =3 coincidence site lattice grain boundary. An increased conductivity observed in the surroundings of the grain boundary is due to the formation of a potential well for the holes. The potential well is found to be due to the segregation of impurity atoms, which saturate existing free bonds in the core of the observed dislocations at the interface.


In this paper we study the internetworking of WWANs and WLANs for next generation wireless packet data networks motivated by the capacity and coverage tradeoffs of the two networks. We compare different types of network architectures and propose a one-hop WWAN and multihop WLAN architecture to provide users with guaranteed service and smooth hand-offs. We then show through simulations that the proposed architecture coupled with a fine-grained packet scheduling algorithm achieves higher performance. Finally we identify several open research issues associated with the proposed architecture.


The authors report the clinical material from the Department of Neurosurgery, WAM in Lódź from the last 11 years including cases of damage to the deep branch of the ulnar nerve. In view of the importance of this branch for the function of the hand, damage to it requires very careful surgical management with autogenous graft. Sometimes this is technically difficult in view of the topographic conditions in this area. Damage to the deep branch of this nerve is usually associated with damage to the sensory part of the ulnar nerve, to the median nerve and tendons of finger flexors.


Multilingual societies, where cases of linguistically mixed couples abound, are especially interesting for the study of intergenerational linguistic transmission patterns, in order to detect the most influential factors in linguistic behaviour. Studying the transmission of Galician language within families living in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands may contribute to shed light on this issue. In this paper, elaborated within the project Evotranling, according to a qualitative methodology, we aim at explaining the outcome of several interviews with several mixed families with at least one of their members originating from Galicia and living in the aforementioned areas. We tried to detect linguistic attitudes and behaviours between the members of the couple as well as in their interaction with the children. Furthermore, we analysed the projection of the corresponding interpretive frames of their societies of origin (Catalan and Galician) onto the explicit and implicit ideologies that drive these attitudes and behaviours.


: A new structure to design observers for linear systems is presented in this work. The key step is the construction of two layers where the first consists of multiple observers and the second connects them providing the weighted estimation state. The main difficulty is to find a new feedback which is responsible for control weights. To define observation law, we rely on multi observers from the first layer. The proposed structure significantly improves the transient characteristics of the observation process, which is shown in illustrative examples.


Abstract 2424 Objective: A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) at position 309 in the promoter region of MDM2 leading to increased expression of MDM2 and attenuated function of p53 has recently been suggested as an unfavorable prognostic marker in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) although this has been questioned. Because inactivation of p53 by deletion and/or mutations also impacts on the clinical course of CLL, we assessed the role of the SNP309 genotype in CLL among Chinese populations. Methods: The MDM2 SNP309 genotypes in 166 CLL patients and 260 healthy controls were detected by the PCR-RFLP method, which all CLL samples was confirmed by direct DNA sequencing. We correlated the results with established CLL prognostic factors, overall survival (OS) and treatment-free survival (TFS). In addition, the correlation of the MDM2 SNP309 genotype with the MDM2 mRNA expression level was evaluated by QPCR. Results: 1. The MDM2 T309G genotype frequencies were 22.9% (T/T), 48.2% (T/G), and 28.9% (G/G) among the cases, and 31.5% (T/T), 54.2% (T/G), and 14.2% (G/G) in the control subjects, and the difference was statistically significant ( P =0.001). Logistic regression analyses revealed that the SNP309 G/G genotype instead of T/G heterozygote was associated with a significantly increased risk of CLL (adjusted OR = 2.8; 95% CI 1.57–4.98; P P = 0.401 for 309 T/G, respectively), compared with the SNP309 T/T genotype. Age at onset of CLL was similar irrespective of MDM2 status. The median age at diagnosis for the different genotypes was 65 years for T/T and 62 years for T/G, 63 years for G/G ( P >0.05). 2. In the entire cohort, no correlation was shown between the MDM2 SNP309 genotypes and Binet stage, IGHV mutational status, p53 mutation/deletion and no association existed between any particular MDM2 SNP309 genotype, OS and TFS. 3. The frequency of MDM2 mRNA expression in GG genotype was significantly higher than that in T/G ( P =0.026) and T/T genotypes ( P =0.003). Furthermore, patients with p53 aberrations (mutated and deleted) MDM2 expression were higher than SNP 309 T/G ( P =0.046) and T/T genotypes ( P =0.001), but were similar with G/G genotype with p53 wild-type ( P =0.532), which prompted us to study the role of the polymorphism in p53 wild-type individuals. 4. In the p53 wild-type groups, we also confirmed MDM2 expression levels with SNP 309 G/G ( P P =0.009) genotypes were higher than T/T genotypes. Moreover, survival analysis showed that the patients with SNP309 G/G (mean, 27.5 months; 95% CI, 21.2–33.9 months, P = 0.021) and T/G genotypes (mean, 48.7 months; 95% CI, 36.5–61.3 months, P = 0.045) both had significantly shorter TFS than SNP309 T/T genotype (mean, 97.2 months; 95% CI, 62.5–131.8 months). Conclusions: The results suggest that MDM2 309G polymorphisms contribute to the risk of developing CLL. The unfavorable SNP309 G/G genotype was associated with a gene-dosage-dependent increase of MDM2 expression. MDM2 SNP309 was found to be associated with TFS in p53 wild-type Chinese populations. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


High-quality, single-crystal-like Cu2O thin films of various thicknesses (10 nm–45 nm) were prepared at a low temperature (150 °C) by controlling layer-by-layer oxidation of wafer-scale Cu thin films sputtered along the (111) direction using a pure single-crystal Cu target. The cross-sectional images of the thin films reveal high crystallinity of Cu2O layers except for 60° twinning in the sequential stacking order as evidenced by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, which is consistent with the absence of the photoluminescence (PL) signals arising from atomic-scale vacancies. The optical properties of our Cu2O films were investigated using temperature-dependent PL and Raman spectroscopy. All of the Cu2O thin films exhibit characteristic band-to-band transitions together with the series of yellow excitonic transitions slightly below the fundamental bandgap. The spectral locations for the PL are approximately consistent with those for the bulk counterpart. The excellent optical quality of our Cu2O was further demonstrated by significantly reduced quasi-direct transition that occurs at symmetry-breaking crystal imperfection, which relaxes the stringent momentum conservation rule. We identified the three main Raman scattering modes of the Cu2O thin films, where the two forbidden modes of Γ15(1) and Γ12−+Γ25− are resonantly allowed by the proximity of the incident photon energy to the green bandgap. We believe that our synthesis technique can be utilized for the preparation of single-crystal-like metal oxide thin films at low production temperatures with precise thickness control for the development of novel optoelectronic devices and for the exploration of the nanoscale light-matter interaction as well.


Aortoiliac occlusive disease (AIOD) remains an area of debate concerning open and endovascular treatment options. A case of a 63-year old female is reported, with previous known vascular intermittent claudication, that presented in the emergency room with acute ischemia of the right lower limb with 24-hours of evolution. The computer tomographic angiography unveiled occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery, occlusion of left common iliac artery (CIA), subocclusive stenosis of right CIA, occlusion of distal runoffs vessels in the right lower limb and diffuse aorto-iliac disease. The first approach was to place the patient under catheter directed thrombolysis (48h) which led to right pedal pulse recovery but the occlusion of left CIA remained. The patient was then electively submitted to Covered Endovascular Repair of Aortic Bifurcation (CERAB) with chimney to inferior mesenteric artery and with an additional bailout left iliac sandwich due to dissection. Distal pulses are still present after 18 months of follow-up. Endovascular techniques provide a low morbimortality option with similar symptomatic improvement, challenging open surgery as the standard of care even in complex AIOD.


As the increase of digital image resources, image retrieval has been received widespread research interest. A popular approach for realizing the retrieval of relevant images from an image database is to match the vision features like histogram, color layout, textures and shapes automatically derived from images. However, the visual similarity does not always match to the human required retrieval results. This problem is known as the gap between visual similarity and human semantic. In this paper, we represent a method to bridge the gap. In our method, first, image's edges and their relative position information are derived. After that, independent factors hidden in the derived edge and position information are extracted by using a mathematic method referred to as the Singular Value Decomposition (SVD). We present our analysis on the relationship between the extracted independent factors and the human semantic. The most important contribution of this paper is that most extracted independent factors based on our method are demonstrated to be related to human semantic according to our experiments which are performed on 7,000 images.


Patients with Chronic kidney Disease (CKD) are fragile. Hemodialysis, the most useful Renal Replacement Therapy in the world is the only treatment available in Madagascar. It is an invasive act exposing several complications. This study aims to assess the prevalence of the bacterial complication in hemodialysis. We conducted a retrospective, exhaustive, descriptive single centre study. Record based study was carried in Befelatanana Hemodialysis Centre, in Antananarivo, the Capital. All chronic hemodialyzed patients who presented an infection were included. Over 136 infections have been suspected but only 33.8% benefited a bacterial identification. In 42.65% of cases, infection begun in 20 days following the first hemodialysis session. Access vascular using catheter is the principal source of infection in 49.06%, followed by pulmonary infection. Staphylococcus aureus (34.3%) was the bacteria frequently en-countered. Sepsis appeared in 98.52% of cases and any patients presented a septic choc. All patients received an adjusted antibiotherapy according to susceptibility testing. The survival rate was in 100%. Treatment of chronic kidney disease is very expensive in Madagascar and 3% of patients have the opportunity to do hemodialysis. That explains our few studied population. In our cohort, access vascular related to femoral catheter represents the common source of infection (49.06%). This prevalence is higher than another American studies. Patients arrived lately at hospital with End-stage of chronic kidney Disease imposing starting hemodialysis in emergency with catheter. Another source of infection has been seen in another site. Patients can also contract infection independently of hemodialysis. Antibiotherapy allowed favorable evolution. To conclude, using access vascular with catheter is inescapable in our center. To fix that, promoting native fistula with early nephrology medical follows-up could be a good solution. Renal transplantation with living donor, the best and less expensive treatment than chronic hemodialysis is now in progress, in collaboration with the Malagasy Government.


The iPhone was introduced only a decade ago in 2007, but has fundamentally changed the way we interact with online information. Mobile devices differ radically from classic command-based and point-and-click user interfaces, allowing for gesture-based interaction using fine-grained touch and swipe signals. Due to the rapid growth in the use of voice-controlled intelligent personal assistants on mobile devices, such as Microsoft's Cortana, Google Now, and Apple's Siri, mobile devices have become personal, allowing us to be online all the time, and assist us in any task, both in work and in our daily lives, making context a crucial factor to consider. Mobile usage is now exceeding desktop usage, and is still growing at a rapid rate, yet our main ways of training and evaluating personal assistants are still based on (and framed in) classical desktop interactions, focusing on explicit queries, clicks, and dwell time spent. However, modern user interaction with mobile devices is radically different due to touch screens with gestureand voice-based control and the varying context of use, e.g., in a car, by bike, often invalidating the assumptions underlying today's user satisfaction evaluation. There is an urgent need to understand voiceand gesture-based interaction, taking all interaction signals and context into account in appropriate ways. We propose a research agenda for developing methods to evaluate and improve context-aware user satisfaction with mobile interactions using gesture-based signals at scale.


Combinatorial interaction testing (CIT) is a well-known technique, but the industrial experience is needed to determine its effectiveness in different application domains. We present a case study introducing a unified framework for generating, executing and verifying CIT test suites, based on the open-source Avocado test framework. In addition, we present a new industrial case study to demonstrate the effectiveness of the framework. This evaluation showed that the new framework can generate, execute, and verify effective combinatorial interaction test suites for detecting configuration failures (invalid configurations) in a virtualization system.


Today, Ukrainian-Israeli relations are characterized by a certain coolness and extremely limited statements. Against the background of Russian aggression, Israel's position on the war in Ukraine is a cautious diplomatic game, on the one hand, expressing support for the sovereignty of Ukraine, on the other – refusing to provide heavy weapons to fight against Russian troops that have launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Not the last role in the diplomatic relations between the states was played by the factor of historical memory, which is determined by Israel's stereotypical ideas about the anti-Semitism of the Ukrainian people, despite the fact that Ukraine itself occupies one of the leading positions in terms of the number of righteous people in the world who saved the lives of Jews during the Nazi occupation of Ukraine. The purpose of the article is an attempt to solve the problem of Ukrainian anti-Semitism and the formation of a mistaken attitude of Jews to Ukrainian nationalism using one example from recent history. The main results of the research are that the modern social relations of Ukrainians and Jews of Ukraine, which are transferred to the plane of foreign relations, are built on the basis of historical prejudices. The erroneous interpretation of Ukrainian nationalists as anti-Semites, one-sidedness in the perception of reality leads to speculation about the state policy of Ukraine in matters of national consciousness. Reviewing the history of Ukrainians and Jews allows us to clearly answer questions about anti-Semitism and destroy stereotypes. The conclusions of the research are responded to the set goal and the proposed hypothesis of the research. It has been proven that the history of relations between Ukrainians and Jews was complex, filled with conflicts and manifestations of violence on both sides. At the same time, manifestations of mass anti-Semitism of Ukrainian nationalists are denied. Contrary to erroneous judgments, the facts of the hiding of Jews among Ukrainian nationalists, the forgery of passports and peaceful co-existence in the 20th century are cited. The originality of the study lies in the successful combination of the historical and modern components of the problem, which can serve as a source for studying the foreign relations of both states. The novelty of the analytical study clearly follows from the presented material – an attempt to review the history of relations between two peoples in Ukrainian history to explain contemporary social challenges.


Bench-scale soil column experiments were performed to examine the effects of soil type and infiltration conditions on the removal efficiencies of wastewater nitrites and nitrates during the biological ripening phase of soil aquifer treatment (SAT) columns. SAT was simulated in three 1-m-high soil columns packed with 3 different natural agricultural soils having sandy clay loam (SCL), loamy sand (LS) and sandy loam (SL) textures. All columns were equipped with tensiometers and soil-water sampling ports, and received secondary effluent from a wastewater treatment plant with a conventional biological treatment system. Soil columns were ponded with wastewater to a depth of 2.5 cm above the soil surface and operated under 2 different alternating wet and dry cycles, 7 days wet/7 days dry and 3 days wet/4 days dry. The effect of wetting and drying periods on SAT nitrogen removal performance was assessed comparing nitrite and nitrate removal rates of 7 days wetting/7 days drying and 3 days wetting/ 4 days drying cycles. Infiltration rate and the length of wetting period were important parameters affecting nitrogen removal efficiency of SAT columns. Denitrification performance of the columns decreased significantly when the infiltration schedule was switched from 7 days wetting/7 days drying to 3 days wetting/4 days drying cycles. LS soil operated with 7 days wetting/7 days drying cycles had the highest (95%) nitrogen removal performance. SCL and SL soils can be operated under both 7 days wetting/7 days drying cycles and 3 days wetting/4 days drying cycles to meet the denitrification/nitrification requirements of SAT.


Liquid column chromatography with automatic sample presentation makes it possible to automate some laborious procedures of the clinical chemistry laboratory. It is feasible accurately and automatically to determine a single substance in numerous specimens. To demonstrate the potential of this technique, we successfully adapted to commercially available equipment the Maickel and Miller fluorescent o-phthalaldehyde reaction with indole derivatives, for determining 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5.HIAA) in urine. Automated cationexchange chromatography combined with the o-phthal. aldehyde reaction affords excellent specificity and sensitivity. Analysis time, including regeneration of the resin, is about 30 mm per sample, and when the sample plate is loaded, the instrument runs unattended. Parallel determinations with a manual solvent extraction procedure give good correlation. Although the instrumentation is costly, adaptation of such determinations as 5.HIAA will justify wider use of this versatile tool.


In this paper, the authors design a tracking controller which satisfies transient response specifications and maintains tracking error within a tolerable limit for the uncertain track-following system of an optical disk drive. To this end, a robust H/sub /spl infin// control problem, with regional stability constraints and sinusoidal disturbance rejection is considered. The internal model principle is used for rejecting the sinusoidal disturbance caused by eccentric rotation of the disk. The authors show that a condition satisfying the regional stability constraints can be expressed in terms of a linear matrix inequality (LMI) using the Lyapunov theory and S-procedure. Finally, a tracking controller is obtained by solving an LMI optimization problem involving two LMIs. The proposed controller design method is evaluated through an experiment.


Natural language generation must work with insufficient input. Underspecifications can be caused by shortcomings of the component providing the input or by the preliminary state of incrementally given input. The paper aims to escape from such dead-end situations by making assumptions. We discuss global aspects of default handling. Two problem classes for defaults in the incremental syntactic generator VM-GEN are presented to substantiate our discussion.


Self-attention-based networks have obtained impressive performance in parallel training and global context modeling. However, it is weak in local dependency capturing, especially for data with strong local correlations such as utterances. Therefore, we will mine linguistic information of the original text based on a semantic dependency and the semantic relationship between nodes is regarded as prior knowledge to revise the distribution of self-attention. On the other hand, given the strong correlation between input characters, we introduce a one-dimensional (1-D) convolution neural network (CNN) producing query(Q) and value(V) in the self-attention mechanism for a better fusion of local contextual information. Then, we migrate this variant of the self-attention networks to speech synthesis tasks and propose a non-autoregressive (NAR) neural Text-to-Speech (TTS): SeDepTTS. Experimental results show that our model yields good performance in speech synthesis. Specifically, the proposed method yields significant improvement for the processing of pause, stress, and intonation in speech.


In order to ensure safe long term storage of nuclear waste it is necessary to consider possible consequences of future climate change. A program of long term climate scenario development is now underway. The plan calls for use of a climate model hierarchy because of the large expense incurred in using the most advanced climate models. First a number of extreme but marginally probable climate will be examined with simpler models, then a few selected cases will be examined with the best available general circulation models. Initial evaluation of estimates of future climate change suggest that precipitation increases may not be large enough to endanger the Yucca Mtn. site.


Abstract Traditionally, the settlement of landfills has been empirically determined by observation and measurement conducted on landfills after final restoration. Since measurements undertaken in this manner do not normally commence until several years after the commencement of deposition, settlement characteristics immediately after placement cannot be determined. Further, the range of typical settlement values currently adopted, 10–35% of deposited waste thickness, is too great to enable accurate planning and design of restoration profiles. A long-term research programme has been instigated, utilizing pressure cells buried within the refuse mass as landfilling progresses, to enable the determination of settlement characteristics from immediately after deposition has taken place through to final waste stabilization several decades into the future. The programme has been running for approximately two years to date, and the data collected in the first year are presented, together with a preliminary analysis.


In a radio physical experiment, a control scheme is implemented that makes it possible to desynchronize oscillations in networks of identical electronic neuron-like generators with a random topology of additive and diffusive couplings. Keyword: Neuron-like generators, Synchronization, Adaptive control, Radio physical experiment.


Martin Buber was a creative and heterodox socialist thinker. His socialist utopia was based on the idea of a new community that does not hark back to ancient forms, but wants to overcome modern society while incorporating its achievements, such as the principle of individual freedom. It is not bound, like the old Gemeinschaft—the tribe, the clan, the religious sect—by one single word or opinion that soon freezes into dogma and rigid law, but by a common life characterized by freedom and creativity, which require a diversity of opinions.


An analysis of 98 clinical consultations for dysuria in an urban general practice revealed that only 60 percent of patients had proven urinary tract infections. Two percent had gonorrhoea and the rest had an urethral syndrome. Most of the urinary tract infections were caused by Escherichia coli and Streptococcus epidermidis. Proteus mirabilis was the next commonest infecting organism. Among the commonly used urinary antimicrobials, nitrofurantoin was found to be the cheapest and most effective agent. The aetiology of the urethral syndrome was obscure and apart from a small minority of patients who had thrush (16 percent) no obvious cause could be found.


Breast cancer (BC) had been one of the deadliest types of cancers in women worldwide. More than 65% of advanced-stage BC patients were identified to have bone metastasis. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in the BC spinal metastases remained largely unclear. This study screened dysregulated genes in the progression of BC spinal metastases by analyzing GSE22358. Moreover, we constructed PPI networks to identify key regulators in this progression. Bioinformatics analysis showed that these key regulators were involved in regulating the metabolic process, cell proliferation, Toll-like receptor and RIG-I-like receptor signaling, and mRNA surveillance. Furthermore, our analysis revealed that key regulators, including C1QB, CEP55, HIST1H2BO, IFI6, KIAA0101, PBK, SPAG5, SPP1, DCN, FZD7, KRT5, and TGFBR3, were correlated to the OS time in BC patients. In addition, we analyzed TCGA database to further confirm the expression levels of these hub genes in breast cancer. Our results showed that these regulators were significantly differentially expressed in breast cancer, which were consistent with GSE22358 dataset analysis. Furthermore, our analysis demonstrated that CEP55 was remarkably upregulated in the advanced stage of breast cancer compared to the stage I breast cancer sample and was significantly upregulated in triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC) compared to other types of breast cancers, including luminal and HER2-positive cancers, demonstrating CEP55 may have a regulatory role in TNBC. Finally, our results showed that CEP55 was the most highly expressed in Basal-like 1 TNBC and Basal-like 2 TNBC samples but the most lowly expressed in mesenchymal stem-like TNBC samples. Although more studies are still needed to understand the functions of key regulators in BC, this study provides useful information to understand the mechanisms underlying BC spinal metastases.


Using the Bs meson wave function extracted from non-leptonic Bs decays, we reevaluate the rare decays Bs→l+l- γ,(l=e,μ) in the Standard Model, including two kinds of contributions from the magnetic-penguin operator with virtual and real photons. We find that contributions to the exclusive decays from the magnetic-penguin operator b→sγ with real photons, which were regarded as negligible in the previous literature, are large and the branching ratios Bs→l+l-γ are enhanced by a factor of almost 2. With the predicted branching ratios of the order of 10-8, it is expected that these radiative dileptonic decays will be detected in LHC-b and B factories in the near future.


Reverse Semantic Traceability (RST) is a quality control method that allows minimizing inconsistencies between inputs and outputs of every step in a software development process. For each step, before proceeding to the subsequent ones, the current inputs are restored (reverse engineered) from the current outputs, and compared to the original versions of inputs. If they are semantically different, then some corrective actions are required to eliminate the inconsistency. Previously RST was successfully used within projects that employed "formal" methodologies. This paper describes experience of integrating RST into one of agile methodologies (Microsoft Solutions Framework for Agile Software Development). The paper also provides a case-study of using the new combined methodology in a small software development project.


An enhanced version of an algorithm developed by Maguire and Marshall in their computerized DLTS system is presented. Improvements consist of introducing analysis of partial processing of digitized transients by deleting the initial part, which usually includes the loading transient caused by the measurement circuit RC constant. Also, a method to calculate trap concentration without using correlation functions is added. Some of the limitations involved with the use of this algorithm are also discussed. >


In recent years in Maryland, two significant legal reforms were enacted that successively depenalized and decriminalized low-level marijuana possession. This case study examines the impact of these legal changes on the type and levels of enforcement activity – including arrests and criminal citations – in the state's second largest jurisdiction. The goal of marijuana possession-related legal reforms is to eliminate or reduce associated sanctions for behavior increasingly viewed by the public and policymakers as less serious, and thus addressing it through the criminal justice system, a misallocation of resources. However, little attention has been paid to how resources – especially law enforcement attention – are allocated after such reforms. This study describes two types of displacement that occurred in Prince George's County, MD, subsequent to legal reform. The first result is that possession arrests are not completely replaced by citations, especially when it is unknown how many previous arrests were eligible for citations. Furthermore, total marijuana possession enforcement increases after the reform, as the availability of the criminal citation as an enforcement tool appears to produce enforcement net-widening. The second result is that overall levels of misdemeanor arrests – of which marijuana possession is top-ranked – do not decline, as police discretion and unchanged expectations of enforcement activity result in different misdemeanor arrests replacing marijuana arrests. These potential unintended consequences of reform are discussed in terms of their impact on enforcement outcomes and more fully assessing the relative success of such reform efforts.


Strategies to control neovascularization in damaged tissues remain a key issue in regenerative medicine. Unlike most reported desferrioxamine (DFO)-loaded systems where DFO demonstrates a burst release, here we attain zero-order release behavior above 40 days. This outcome was achieved by blending DFO with silk nanofibers with special hydrophilic-hydrophobic properties. The special silk nanofibers showed strong physical binding capacity with DFO, avoiding chemical cross-linking. Using these new biomaterials in vivo in a rat wound model suggested that the DFO-loaded silk nanofiber hydrogel systems stimulated angiogenesis by the sustained release of DFO, but also facilitated cell migration and tissue ingrowth. These features resulted in faster formation of a blood vessel network in the wounds, as well improved healing when compared to the free DFO system. The DFO-loaded systems are also suitable for the regeneration of other tissues, such as nerve and bone, suggesting universality in the biomedical field.


The mean average life is increasing; therefore, there is a need to increase the lifetime of the prostheses. To fulfil this requirement, new prosthetic designs and materials are being introduced. Two of the design parameters that may affect wear of total knee replacements, and hence the expected lifetime, are the insert conformity and material. Computational models have been used extensively for wear prediction and optimisation of artificial knee designs. The objective of the present study was to use a previously validated non-dimensional wear coefficient-based computational wear model to investigate the effect of insert conformity and material on the predicted wear in total knee replacements. Four different inserts (curved, lipped, partial flat and custom flat), with different conformity levels, were tested against the same femoral and under two different kinematic inputs (intermediate and high), with different levels of cross-shear. The insert bearing materials were either conventional or moderately cross-linked ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE). Wear predictions were validated against the experimental data from Leeds knee simulation tests. The predicted wear rates for the curved insert (most conformed) were more than three times those for the flat insert (least conformed). In addition, the computationally predicted average volumetric wear rates for moderately cross-linked UHMWPE bearings were less than half of their corresponding conventional UHMWPE bearings. Moreover, the wear of the moderately cross-linked UHMWPE was shown to be less dependent on the degree of cross-shear, compared to conventional UHMWPE. These results along with supporting experimental studies provide insight into the design variables, which may reduce wear in knee replacements.


We present details of a search for electroweak production of single top quarks in the electron+jets and muon+jets decay channels. The measurements use \~90 pb^-1 of data from Run 1 of the Fermilab Tevatron collider, collected at 1.8 TeV with the DZero detector. We use events that include a tagging muon, implying the presence of a b jet, to set an upper limit at the 95% confidence level on the cross section for the s-channel process ppbar->tb+X of 39 pb. The upper limit for the t-channel process ppbar->tqb+X is 58 pb.


Outcomes for pancreatic cancer (PC) patients remain strikingly poor with a 5‐year survival of less than 8% due to the lack of effective treatment modalities. Here, a novel precision medicine approach for PC treatment is developed, which is composed of a rationally designed tumor‐targeting ICAM1 antibody‐drug conjugate (ADC) with optimized chemical linker and cytotoxic payload, complemented with a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)‐based molecular imaging approach to noninvasively evaluate the efficiency of ICAM1 ADC therapy. It is shown that ICAM1 is differentially overexpressed on the surface of human PC cells with restricted expression in normal tissues, enabling ICAM1 antibody to selectively recognize and target PC tumors in vivo. It is further demonstrated that the developed ICAM1 ADC induces potent and durable tumor regression in an orthotopic PC mouse model. To build a precision medicine, an MRI‐based molecular imaging approach is developed that noninvasively maps the tumoral ICAM1 expression that can be potentially used to identify ICAM1‐overexpressing PC patients. Collectively, this study establishes a strong foundation for the development of a promising ADC to address the critical need in the PC patient care.


Polyimide-silica (PI-SiO2) hybrids were prepared from a novel polyimide (PI), derived from pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA), 1,6-bis(4-aminophenoxy)hexane (synthesized) and 4,4′-oxydianiline. SiO2 networks (5–30 wt%) were generated through sol–gel process using either tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) or a mixture of 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane-PMDA-based coupling oligomers (APA) and TEOS. Thin, free standing hybrid films were obtained from the respective mixtures by casting and curing processes. The hybrid films were characterized using Fourier transform infrared, 29Si nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry and atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques. 29Si NMR results provide information about formation of organically modified silicate structures that were further substantiated by FE-SEM and AFM micrographs. Contact angle measurements and thermogravimetric thermograms reveal that the addition of APA profoundly influences surface energy, interfacial tension, thermal stability and the residual char yield of modified hybrids in comparison to those obtained by mixing only TEOS. It was found that reduced particle size, efficient dispersion and improved interphase interactions were responsible for the eventual property enhancement. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Quantifying risks of forest and habitat management options are often limited by uncertainties in habitat associations, life history and population trends for resident species. Using the tailed frog (Ascaphus truei), a headwater stream-dependent amphibian, I: 1) developed hierarchical models of habitat relationships across this species' range in British Columbia; 2) examined plausible life history responses to habitat change, and 3) investigated population persistence outcomes within and among streams to uncertain effects of forest harvesting and disturbance scenarios. To develop habitat association relationships I used classification and regression trees (CART) together with simple and partial Mantel tests. Variables describing biophysical setting at mesoand micro-scales had a greater influence on occurrence and abundance of larval frogs than did adjacent forest practices, possibly because most sampling sites were in disturbed watersheds. Underlying geology was a consistently important determinant of occurrence patterns, with fine-scale stream structure more important in determining abundance. Using life stage-based population matrix models, I explored consequences of different life history strategies and ranges of habitat productivity and environmental variation on population persistence. Persistence is decreasingly sensitive to changes in growth rates, tadpole and adult survival, and fecundity. Populations also appear more sensitive to changes in survivorship of in-stream stages (eggs, hatchlings and tadpoles) than riparian stages (juveniles/adults). Clinal, elevational, and local reductions in habitat productivity (e.g., shorter growing seasons, reduced light penetration in mid-seral forests) appear as dominant factors mediating how local fluctuations in demographic rates determine risks of loss of small populations, even if environmental variation is relatively low. Using a spatially explicit metapopulation-landscape dynamics model, I explored six plausible hypotheses linking habitat alterations to population dynamics in response to forest harvesting and disturbances. Risks to populations from disturbance depend strongly on assumptions about age at first reproduction. Incremental effects of forest harvesting on risks were small compared with those already incurred through stochastic events (floods, debris flows, climatic variation) or state of the landscape. Once extirpated, population recovery through dispersal appears unlikely. However, key uncertainties about the impacts of harvesting and


Although there were many comparison literatures of EA frameworks, these literature use qualitative criteria based on intuitive practitioner's experience. The paper first defines 36 concrete features of EA frameworks using six categories and six interrogatives. Then we concretely compare typical EA frameworks based on the key features. The result shows the easiness and concreteness of the proposed EA comparison framework.


Nutrient (total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP)) are considered the major indicators to be impacted by wind speed in shallow lakes and reservoirs. As a reservoir situated in Jilin Province, China, Yangshapao Reservoir has been employed for irrigation and urban water use. After 2 years' observation carried out on water quality and wind speed, it was found that the TN, NH4 and TP are significantly correlated with the bottom shear stress attributed to wind, whereas the dissolved phosphorus (DP) is not. Bottom shear stress is also noticeably associated with dissolved oxygen (DO), thus promoting nutrient release into the water body. In winter, ice can effectively inhibit the wind-induced shear stress, and the TP concentration is evidently lower than in the other seasons. This scenario should be considered in the management of the water quality of the lake and similar lakes.


The article offers the insight into the synthetic approach to the study of state property within the sociological perspective. Various approaches to the study of property are scrutinized: the Marxist, the private-public, the functional, the institutional and the contemporary synthetic one. The necessity for the investigation of state property as a system of social institutions is asserted. The potentialities of social regulation of state property are identified in this very item.


The objective of this study was to evaluate the acceptance of fermented anchovy (Engraulis anchoita) by consumers aged 18–67 (n=100) from two experiments, first using preference test and then by acceptance of formulation preference. Anchovy fillets were fermented with added NaCl and glucose with 4 different treatments: A (NaCl 1% and glucose 4%), B (NaCl 1% and glucose 6%), C (NaCl 1.5% and glucose 4%), and D (NaCl 1.5% and glucose 6% glucose). At first, the preference of fermented anchovy fillets with samples prepared in the form of pizza was assessed by applying a preference ranking test to 75 consumers. The results indicated the sample with 1% NaCl and 6% glucose as the preferred (P>0.05). Later in the second stage, the preferred fermented fillet was subjected to acceptance by 100 consumers who have the consumption habit of such product by using a hedonic scale of 9 points. The results indicated an acceptance rate of 79.8%. This work aimed to call attention to the importance of the acceptance of this food.


The economic losses from earthquakes tend to hit the national economy considerably; therefore, models that are capable of estimating the vulnerability and losses of future earthquakes are highly consequential for emergency planners with the purpose of risk mitigation. This demands a mass prioritization filtering of structures to identify vulnerable buildings for retrofitting purposes. The application of advanced structural analysis on each building to study the earthquake response is impractical due to complex calculations, long computational time, and exorbitant cost. This exhibits the need for a fast, reliable, and rapid method, commonly known as Rapid Visual Screening (RVS). The method serves as a preliminary screening platform, using an optimum number of seismic parameters of the structure and predefined output damage states. In this study, the efficacy of the Machine Learning (ML) application in damage prediction through a Support Vector Machine (SVM) model as the damage classification technique has been investigated. The developed model was trained and examined based on damage data from the 1999 Düzce Earthquake in Turkey, where the building's data consists of 22 performance modifiers that have been implemented with supervised machine learning.


This study investigated the seasonal prevalence of Aedes aegypti and Ae. albopictus larvae in three topographical areas (i.e. mangrove, rice paddy and mountainous areas). Samples were collected from 300 households in both wet and dry seasons in nine districts in Nakhon Si Thammarat province. Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus were found in 21 out of 29 types of water containers in mangrove, rice paddy and mountainous areas. Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus laid eggs in different container types depending on season and topographical areas. Ae. aegypti larvae were found most in metal box in mangrove and mountainous areas in wet season. Ae. albopictus larvae were also found most in metal box in mangrove and mountainous areas in both wet and dry seasons. All Ae. albopictus larval indices were higher than Ae. aegypti larval indices in all three topographical areas and both seasons. HI and BI did not differ in three topographical areas but differed between Aedes sp. HI for both Ae. aegypti and Ae. albopictus in all three topographical areas in both seasons were greater than 10 %, except Aedes aegypti in rice paddy area in wet season. This indicated high risks of DHF transmission in these areas. Keywords—Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, Season,


OBJECTIVE
To study the natural history, prognosis, and nosology of synovitis, acne, pustulosis, hyperostosis, osteitis (SAPHO) syndrome.

METHODS
We performed clinical, radiological, and biological reassessment of 19 cases of SAPHO syndrome (13 with pustulosis palmaris et plantaris, 3 with acne, 3 with no dermatological manifestations) after a mean disease course of 12.3 yrs (1-35).

RESULTS
Similar involvement was noted in all patient groups. Despite persistent remittent attacks in 11/19 cases and new localizations in 10/19, the prognosis is promising and 18/19 patients considered that improvement has occurred. Enthesis involvement, occasionally associated with osteolysis, was in most cases the first event leading to hyperostosis, but tended to disappear in the spine and peripheral joints once synostosis was achieved. The behavior of osteochondral cartilage was similar to that of the enthesis, whereas the ribs below T6 were spared. We report the first descriptions of hyperostosis of the first costotransversal joint, interspinal ossification, erosion of wrist bones, followed by synostosis, and formation of bony bridges between ribs.

CONCLUSION
SAPHO syndrome appears to be a relevant disease process with good prognosis. Although aseptic osteitis is regarded as the hallmark of this entity, our followup study strongly suggests that the initial disease targets are enthesis and related tissues. Forty-three percent of our patients met criteria of the European Spondyloarthropathy Study Group for spondyloarthropathy, but only one had the HLA-B27 phenotype. Thus, it may be considered that SAPHO syndrome is nosologically related to spondyloarthropathy, especially those types associated with psoriasis, but probably differs in pathogenesis.


A detailed investigation was conducted to determine the precise subcellular localization of the rate-limiting enzymes of hepatic glycogen metabolism (glycogen synthase and phosphorylase) and their regulatory enzymes (synthase phosphatase and phosphorylase phosphatase). Rat liver was homogenized and fractionated to produce soluble, rough and smooth microsomal fractions. Enzyme assays of the fractions were performed, and the results showed that glycogen synthase and phosphorylase were located in the soluble fraction of the livers. Synthase phosphatase and phosphorylase phosphatase activities were also present in soluble fractions, but were clearly identified in both rough and smooth microsomal fractions. It is suggested that the location of smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER) within the cytosome forms a microenvironment within hepatocytes that establishes conditions necessary for glycogen synthesis (and degradation). Thus the location of SER in the cell determines regions of the hepatocyte that are rich in glycogen particles. Furthermore, the demonstration of the association of synthase phosphatase and phosphorylase phosphatase with membranes of SER may account for the close morphological association of SER with glycogen particles (i.e., disposition of SER membranes brings the membrane-bound regulatory enzymes in close contact with their substrates).


The withdrawal of Great Britain from the European Union turned out to be important not only for the citizens of this country but for all Member States of the European Union. One of the important consequences of notification of withdrawal from the organization was to determine the constitution of the European Parliament taking into account various variants of the moment when Brexit takes effect. The purpose of this article is to analyze the impact of the UK's withdrawal from the European Union on the conduct of elections and the appointment of seats in the European Parliament. This issue was presented primarily on the example of the elections held in Poland. The first part of the article discusses the procedure for the withdrawal of Great Britain from the EU and related problems. The second part is devoted to the impact of Brexit on the distribution of seats in the EP depending on the moment of Great Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. The third part of the article examines the problems associated with the procedure for indicating a Polish representative awaiting his mandate and his status.


This paper explores the relationship between sexual health and alcohol in young people in contemporary society, and the role of personal, social and health and economic education (PSHE). This research was prompted by the decision of the Department of Health (DH) not to publish National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on PSHE in January 2011. The guidance was requested following a Department for Education internal review into PSHE education. This paper will review qualitative and quantitative research, and data pertaining to the issue of sexual health behaviour and alcohol use among young people in the UK and the role of PSHE education. NICE guidance remains the 'gold standard' for evidence-based healthcare service provision and its implications for sexually transmitted infection and teenage pregnancy rates remains a high priority. Equally, research supports that addressing the issue of alcohol is an increasing priority in young people. This paper will argue that the NICE PSHE review findings should be updated, published and implemented.


Stockpiling of pre-pandemic influenza vaccines guarantees immediate vaccine availability to counteract an emerging pandemic. Generally, influenza vaccines need to be stored and handled refrigerated to prevent thermal degradation of the antigenic component. Requirement of a cold-chain, however, complicates stockpiling and the logistics of vaccine distribution. We, therefore, investigated the effect of elevated storage temperatures on the immunogenicity of a pre-pandemic influenza A H5N1 whole inactivated virus vaccine. Either suspended in liquid or kept as a freeze-dried powder, vaccines could be stored for 1 year at ambient temperature (20°C) with minimal loss of immunogenicity in mice. Elevation of the storage temperature to 40°C, however, resulted in a significant loss of immunogenic potency within 3 months if vaccines were stored in liquid suspension. In sharp contrast, freeze-dried powder formulations were stable at 40°C for at least 3 months. The presence of inulin or trehalose sugar excipients during freeze-drying of the vaccine proved to be critical to maintain its immunogenic potency during storage, and to preserve the characteristic Th1-type response to whole inactivated virus vaccine. These results indicate that whole inactivated virus vaccines may be stored and handled at room temperature in moderate climate zones for over a year with minimal decline and, if converted to dry-powder, even in hot climate zones for at least 3 months. The increased stability of dry-powder vaccine at 40°C may also point to an extended shelf-life when stored at 4°C. Use of the more stable dry-powder formulation could simplify stockpiling and thereby facilitating successful pandemic intervention.


Experiment was conducted to study the effect of Metabolizable Energy (ME) and Balanced Protein (BP) on the performance of 1- to 35day-old male and female Hubbard x Hubbard broilers. Set in a factorial arrangement, dietary treatments involved 3 levels of ME (2650, 2750, or 2850 kcal per kg diet) and 4 levels of Balanced Protein (expressed as 8.4, 9.0, 9.6, or 10.2 g Standardized Ileal Digestible lysine per kg). Each diet was fed to 5 replicate pens of 17 chicks. Dietary ME and BP did not interact for any of the parameters studied (p>0.05). The main effect of ME was significant (p<0.05) for feed intake, body weight, and feed conversion ratio at all ages. Highest ME (2850 kcal) resulted in 35 day feed intake and feed conversion ratio that was significantly (p<0.05) low compared with those fed on lower levels of ME; while 35 day body weight was significantly (p<0.05) high at 2850 kcal compared with 2650 kcal ME. Feed intake and body weight improved linearly (p<0.05) with increasing BP from 8.4 to 10.2 g per kg, while the BP did not have any effect on feed conversion ratio. Dietary combinations of ME and BP to optimize body weight and feed conversion ratio are suggested on weekly basis.


Background A hallmark of SLE is the paroxysmal disease course with symptoms fluctuating unpredictably both across different individuals and within individual cases. Importantly, the patient-specific experience of living with SLE is underreported, particularly when studying factors associated with health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Recent work has suggested that biomedical interventions are only partially predictive of HRQOL measures. The patient specific experience studied using qualitative methods is a necessary initial step to uncover additional root causes of poor HRQOL in SLE populations as patient experiences add richness and depth to a topic of inquiry not possible through quantitative methods. Methods Consented adult patients with American College of Rheumatology- or Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics-classified SLE were recruited for this study during their scheduled clinic visits. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted across six participants. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed, and analyzed using an iterative process where all data were first grouped based on the major questions of the study and then coded using an open coding scheme, allowing for identification of key issues based on patient experiences. Findings were presented to an interactive public forum with SLE patients, family members and friends of individuals with SLE, and health care professionals and assessed for accuracy and credibility. Results Four major factors that influence HRQOL emerged from the interviews: 1) ambiguity, inconsistency, and lack of symptom predictability due to SLE disease courses, 2) poor communication with family/friends/partners, and poor bi-directional communication between health care providers and patients (informational support), 3) lack of validation for patients experiences (appraisal support), and 4) problematic aspects of social support including negative support and patients inability to reciprocate support due to role changes. Data also indicate a reciprocal association between appraisal and informational sources of support. Conclusions Findings indicate that inadequate appraisal and informational support from informal and formal sources and ambiguity are particularly salient factors influencing HRQOL among SLE patients. Further investigation is needed to fully elucidate associations between biological (unpredictable of SLE symptoms), social (informational and appraisal sources of social support), and community level (public awareness campaigns) factors influencing disease. Findings also point to the necessity of integrating community organizations, physicians, and friends and family of patients with SLE into capacity building interventions aimed at improving HRQOL. Funding Source(s): Summer Undergraduate Research Award (Washington University in St, Louis)


The Course-of-Experience Framework (CEF) represents a promising path forward for embodied and enactive approaches to cognitive science. It aims to provide a comprehensive explanation of representation-hungry activities by grounding cognition in practice. Practice is not merely something that we do as a means to an end, but is constitutive of cognition. Puzzlingly, however, the CEF begins to develop a distributed approach to cognition by viewing individuals through their cultural-cognitive ecology or milieu, before shifting focus to an internalist interpretation of enactive agency. CEF states that the agent enacts their world and discovers themselves through practice, but provides no clear account of organism-environment mutuality. This is problematic because CEF's notion of practice depends on organism-environment mutuality in its first core assumption. The tendency to downplay the importance of the environment is likely due to a holdover of early enactivist ideas that have sparked tensions between ecological psychology and enactivism in the past. We attempt to re-align the CEF with the enactive project, which we think is gradually shifting away from individualistic concepts like autopoiesis and sense-making toward social and ecological concepts like participatory sense-making and affordances.


Cathepsin B was selected as a possible new therapeutic target of Fasciola hepatica. This is a cystein excretion protease present in the early phases of the parasite. First, we propose a three- dimensional model by homology of the cathepsin B of F.hepatica, by using as templates cathepsins B of human and rat (1PBH, 2PBH and 3PBH, 1MIR) from PDB (protein data bank). Its quality was checked by WHAT IF and a total final energy was -6750.96 KJ/mol as measure by GROMOS96. The active site (Cys 104, His 275, Asn 295) and amino acids involved in its stabilization by hydrogen bonds (Val 107, Phe 250, Gly 302), were identified. Also its secondary structure was predicted. The three-dimensional model could be employed in order to perform virtual screening by means of docking programs and data bases of virtual chemical compounds of the type "Michael acceptors".


The objective of the study is to evaluate the four new guar varieties (GAUG13, HG563, RGC986 and HG884) to study their chemical composition and physical properties. Samples were collected from the experimental farm, University of agricultural sciences Raichur. Proximate composition, Thousand seed weight, length, width, thickness, geometrical mean diameter, sphericity, bulk density, true density, coefficient of external friction, co-efficient of internal friction, angle of repose and terminal velocity were carried out for the guar seeds. Result obtained showed that verity HG-365 had a highest content of Ash (7.26 %), Fat (10.16%), Fiber (16.40) and Protein (51.95). Significantly highest value of moisture content (12.55%) and carbohydrates (20.53%) found in the varieties HG-884 and RGC-986. The verity GAUG13 found highest value of length (3.81 mm), thickness (3.74 mm) and geometrical mean diameter (3.62 mm). HG563 found highest value of width (3.47 mm), sphericity (0.98%) and Terminal velocity (4.81 m/s). RGC986 found highest value of co-efficient of external friction (0.77). HG884 found highest value of thousand seed weight (35.21 g), bulk density (1.24 g/cm), true density (2.42 g/cm), co-efficient of internal friction (0.77) and angle of repose (30.37 o).


The need to internationalize planning education is increasingly apparent, but planning programs in the United States have varying capabilities and resources to incorporate an international dimension in their curriculum. Offering a multiuniversity studio and study abroad course in Mexico, in conjunction with the World Congress in 2006, provided an opportunity to collaboratively address this need. The synergies that accrued are worth considering. An argument is made for adopting similar studio efforts as an integral component of future World Planning Congresses.


In dry season of 2019, a series of new mix-heritages containing both of natural/geological and prehistoric archaeological values were discovered along the Ba river ancient valley by the field survey team of the project TN17/T06. The archaeological relics were uncovered right in the geological heritage sites such as: waterfalls, fossil sites, ancient terraces, and low mountain slopes along the Ba river ancient valley, which belong to eluvial, deluvial, proluvial and alluvial formations of Pleistocene age. Hundreds of stone tools, including dozens of petrified wood tools were collected, such as: uni-facial and bi-facial tools, end-chooper, side-chopper, scraper, spearhead tool, flake and core tools, etc. The materials of the tools were made of quartz, quartzite, siliceous stone, opalchalcedony, petrified wood and basalt, which were recognized as geological heritages (A type: Paleontology; D type: Rock; F type: Minerals, according to the classification in the Circular 50/2017-TT-BTNMT of MONRE) of the heritage region. The collected artifacts characterise technique and geometric shape types of Paleolithic age. The archaeological discoveried sites were highly evaluated by Vietnamese and foreign archaeologists because they play a great important role in studying Paleolithic stage in Gia Lai province and The Central Highlands particularly, and in Vietnam and Southeast Asia generally. Besides, they have increased comprihensive heritage values of the region, as well as provided double invaluable resources (both natural and cultural heritage) for tourism exploitation and socio-economic sustainable development.


Background and objectives: Lyme disease is the most common tick-borne infectious disease in Europe, caused by the spirocheta bacteria of Borrelia burgdorferi. Several genospecies of B. burgdorferi are pathogenic to humans. B. burgdorferi sensu stricto, which is prevalent in North America, causes reactive arthritis, whereas B. garinii and B. afzelii, common in Europe, can affect the skin, heart, or nervous system; it has been shown that the clinical symptoms of the disease may be very different. The objective of this study was to identify the baseline characteristics of Lyme disease and to elucidate the frequency of different Lyme disease syndromes in Lithuania. Materials and Methods: Patients who were diagnosed with Lyme disease during an ambulatory visit to the Center of Infectious Diseases, Vilnius University Santaros clinics, from 2014 to 2016, were enrolled in this study. A retrospective material analysis was conducted. Results: In total, 1005 patients were enrolled with the following prevalence of clinical syndromes: erythema migrans (EM), 945 (94.02%); Lyme arthritis, 32 (3.18%); neuroborreliosis, 23 (2.28%); Lyme carditis, 4 (0.39%); and acrodermatitis, 1 (0.09%). Erythema migrans was dominant among middle-aged women, with a rash appearing mainly on the lower extremities. Lyme arthritis mainly manifested among middle-aged women as an oligoarthritis, mostly affecting the knee joint. Neuroborreliosis was seen more often in middle-aged women than men and the main symptom was nervus facialis neuropathy. Lyme carditis, manifested as an atrioventricular block, with a male/female ratio of 3:1, and the median age was 51. Acrodermatitis was diagnosed in a 61-year-old woman, as a painful, red rash on the hand. Conclusions: According to the prevalence of B. garinii and B. afzelii in Europe, previously it was thought that Lyme disease presented as erythema migrans, and less frequently as neuroborreliosis; however, this study revealed that other syndromes may also be seen. In addition, we revealed that the longer it takes for erythema migrans to appear, the greater the likelihood of Lyme arthritis developing.


The maxillary anterior region is considered the "esthetic zone" because of its importance on facial appearance and high visibility. Especially in the anterior region, implant prosthesis with proper soft tissue contours is important for successful esthetic results, this method may also help to reduce soft tissue complications with a gradual molding of the soft tissues profile. Commonly, it is recommended that dental implants should not be splinted with natural teeth due to the difference in biomechanics and mobility. However, in some cases, the splinting of a natural tooth with an implant seems to be needed. Several studies have described clinical cases where fixed partial dentures are supported by a connection between implants and natural teeth. In a 39-year-old man who showed periapical abscess of maxillary right central incisor, extraction were planned and after healing period, provisional crown was restored. After transferring the emergence profile of provisional crown, splinted zirconia prostheses were delivered.


Abstract Globalization is fast expanding the ways in which the performing arts and entertainment are received around the world. This situation should be analyzed from several perspectives, including technological, economic, artistic, philosophical, historical and social. Given that scientific development does not justify the use and value that has been attributed to the social media that convey artistic information in post-modern societies, the various systems of representation should be described in detail, followed by a critical analysis of social interaction that leads to the performing process. The Olympic Games are among the most viewed sporting events on the planet. Over the years, opening and closing ceremonies have become a complex model of a spectacular show. The opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games is a paradigmatic example.