Internet-of-Things (IoT) networks generally contain resource-constrained devices that require an energy-efficient key generation procedure to producing secure keys at a faster rate. The physical characteristics of the wireless channel can be exploited to secure communication within IoT networks. In particular, secret keys can be generated by leveraging on the randomness of the wireless physical channel between two communicating parties. The conventional mechanism of generating keys at the physical layer, i.e., using channel probing, quantization, information reconciliation, and privacy amplification, may not be preferable for IoT devices. In addition, in some cases IoT devices may be deployed in static environments, wherein the channel coherence time is too high to generate keys at a faster rate and with the desired randomness. This study proposes a mapping table-based key distribution scheme for IoT environments, wherein multiple characteristics of the random channel are combined to improve not only the key generation rate (KGR) but also the key agreement rate (KAR) and bit error rate (BER). In the proposed scheme, both the channel magnitude and the phase are exploited in the key generation process. The proposed scheme is immune to channel estimation errors while providing sufficient randomness in the static environment. Additionally, the scheme is thoroughly investigated for different scenarios including the case of a smarter eavesdropper, which attempts to estimate the channel between the legitimate nodes. This case verifies the robustness of the proposed scheme in different settings and attack models.


A scheduling scheme for MIMO systems which has the capability of obtaining multiuser diversity gain and controlling the link connection ratio among users simultaneously is proposed. Based on the Gaussian assumption of MIMO channel capacity which is fed back to the base station from each mobile, a Gaussian cost function with an appropriate mean and variance is used as a scheduling criteria. The mean and variance of the cost function permits the resources for the proposed scheduler to be controlled. We first consider the optimal scheduler, which maximizes overall system capacity with the desired link connection ratio (a priori desired ratio), and a method is proposed to obtain weights for the optimal scheduler using some properties of the Gaussian statistics. Although the optimal scheduler has the major impact on system capacity, the complexity associated with weight calculation is high. Thus, two types of suboptimal schedulers, weights of which are not dependent on the channel statistics, denoted as the control variance (CV) scheduler and the control mean(CM) scheduler, are proposed. The overall system capacity of the proposed schedulers, which is significantly enhanced by multiuser diversity, was evaluated analytically and verified by computer simulation. The simulation results show that the overall system capacity of the CM and the CV scheduler is above 99% that of the optimal scheduler. In addition, another result show that the proposed schedulers manage resources accurately, for a relatively small number of antennas


Sport is a complex and contradictory phenomenon of our time. The relevance of this study is due to the need to answer a number of questions related to determining its place among the values of modern society and person, identifying the possibility of realizing the humanistic potential of modern sport, as well as the most significant problems of its development in the context of globalization. These questions are related to the study of the influence of sociocultural factors on the development of sport. The purpose of this article is to study the influence of national traditions, the social structure of society, as well as globalization processes on the development of sport. It is shown that sport is a reflection of the national systems within which it developed. It is noted that the essence and significance of sport changes under the influence of sociocultural factors. Sport not only reflects a certain value system of society, but also popularizes and strengthens it. It is able to form its own subculture, values that differ from the generally accepted ones, from the values of other components of the sociocultural system. It is shown that modern trends in the sport development such as individualization, massification, desacralization, rationalization, and universalization are consistent with the main provisions of the concept of global development of A. de Benoist. It is emphasized that in the context of globalization, the values of traditional sport are being transformed, which leads to the dehumanization of the sport movement, the dominance of a technocratic style of thinking, to the politicization, commercialization of modern sport, the use of doping to improve sports results, etc. The globalization of sport has become a kind of cultural intervention that encroaches on national traditions and foundations. The positive and negative impact of mass media on the sport development is noted. On the one hand, they promote popularization of sport, and on the other, turn it into a consumer product. The subject of sale and consumption now is not only a sport spectacle, sport equipment, but also the athletes themselves, their image, lifestyle, and moral principles. It is hoped that the formula "unity in diversity" will become a natural axiom not only for the development of sport, but also for the whole of humanity


The Cretaceous hosts the highest hydrocarbon potential among all geological stratigraphic sequences worldwide, and the Lower Cretaceous in coastal southeastern China, with the development of black mudstones and shales, has potential for hydrocarbon generation. This potential, therefore, is of significance to regional hydrocarbon exploration both onshore and offshore; however, it has not been investigated in detail. Here, we address this issue based on the results of integrated organic geochemistry and petrology of four representative outcrop sections in the region. Results show that there are two possible source rock sequences in the Lower Cretaceous of coastal southeastern China, that is, a lower sequence represented by the Bantou Formation black mudstones in the Fujian Province and an upper interval represented by the Guantou Formation black mudstones or calcareous mudstones in the Zhejiang Province. The organic matter abundance of these two formations reaches levels of poor to good source rocks. The kerogen is dominated by type III, whereas type II can also be found locally in the northwestern Fujian Province. Most samples are highly mature to overmature, except for the samples with less influence of volcanism in the northern Guangdong Province. Comparatively, the organic matter abundance of the early-stage source rocks is higher than for the late-stage rocks, and the kerogen type is less favorable; however, the maturity shows little correlation with age and is largely related to volcanism. Therefore, the Lower Cretaceous in coastal southeastern China seems to have hydrocarbon potential (gas in particular) in local areas, including the northern Guangdong Province and its analog in offshore basins for the early stage and the northwestern Fujian Province and its analog in offshore basins for the late stage. These results and understanding provide insights for expanding new hydrocarbon exploration targets in southeastern China both onshore and offshore and may also have implications for understanding the regional Cretaceous geology.


Apache Cassandra is an open-source cloud storage system that offers multiple types of operation-level consistency including eventual consistency with multiple levels of guarantees and strong consistency. It is being used by many data-center applications (e.g., Facebook and App Scale). Most existing research efforts have been dedicated to exploring trade-offs such as: consistency vs. Performance, consistency vs. Latency and consistency vs. Monetary cost. In contrast, a little work is focusing on the consistency vs. Energy trade-off. As power bills have become a substantial part of the monetary cost for operating a data-center, this paper aims to provide a clearer understanding of the interplay between consistency and energy consumption. Accordingly, a series of experiments have been conducted to explore the implication of different factors on the energy consumption in Cassandra. Our experiments have revealed a noticeable variation in the energy consumption depending on the consistency level. Furthermore, for a given consistency level, the energy consumption of Cassandra varies with the access pattern and the load exhibited by the application. This further analysis indicates that the uneven distribution of the load amongst different nodes also impacts the energy consumption in Cassandra. Finally, we experimentally compare the impact of four storage configuration and data partitioning policies on the energy consumption in Cassandra: interestingly, we achieve 23% energy saving when assigning 50% of the nodes to the hot pool for the applications with moderate ratio of reads and writes, while applying eventual (quorum) consistency. This study points to opportunities for future research on consistency-energy trade-offs and offers useful insight into designing energy-efficient techniques for cloud storage systems.


This paper deals with a method for identification of nonlinear systems suitable to be described by Hammerstein models consisting of a static nonlinearity followed by an ARX linear model. The estimation of the static nonlinearity is carried out supplying the system with a sequence of step signals of various amplitude and determining the corresponding steady-state responses. The estimation of the parameters of the ARX linear system is carried out by means of a least square estimator using data generated supplying the system with a Pseudorandom Binary Sequence (PRBS). The method in question is able to identify static nonlinearities of general type, also with hysteresis and/or discontinuities. Simulation results confirm the validity of the method and its capabilities with respect to some other methods.


With the change of disease spectrum and the progress in the aging of society, chronic wound has gradually become one of the major diseases that threaten human health, and also one of the major economic burdens of family and society. According to the different etiology, the pathogenesis of chronic wound is different, including both systemic factors and local factors. The treatment of chronic wound is a multi-disciplinary integrated treatment process, including internal medicine treatment, surgical treatment, vascular interventional therapy, platelet-rich plasma treatment, and biological therapy, etc. Each treatment regimen has its own indications and pros and cons. To make a treatment regimen, a combination of a variety of options should be chosen according to the patient's wound conditions. The traditional chronic wound treatment mode is multi-disciplinary team (MDT) treatment mode, which requires the participation of surgeons from multiple departments such as intervention department, plastic surgery department, orthopedics department, etc., and it is also the mainstream mode for treating chronic wound in western countries. According to the domestic medical situation and the experience of our department, we put forward the integrated surgical wound treatment (ISWT) mode, that is to integrate multiple surgical techniques of wound treatment. Compared with the traditional MDT treatment mode, to apply the ISWT mode can make a more reasonable treatment plan, improve the efficiency of diagnosis and treatment, shorten the hospitalization period, and improve the diagnosis and treatment ability of the team. With the increasing incidence of chronic wound, the ISWT mode needs to be further explored and improved, and the team needs more specialized experts to join in.


The Nuclear Factor kappaB (NF-κB) proteins are a very important family of transcription factors. The signalling system of the NF-κB transcription factors drives cellular inflammation and immune responses, playing a central role in cell proliferation and apoptosis. NF-κB regulates the transcription of over 300 target genes including several negative feedback genes, such as the Inhibitory kappaBs (IκBs) and zinc-finger protein A20. Disruption to NF-κB signalling has been implicated in many autoimmune diseases and cancers. The ever growing list of diseases in which NF-κB is deregulated has made this one of the most intensely studied eukaryotic transcription factors.

In response to continuous TNFα stimulation the system exhibits nuclear-cytoplasmic oscillations in the localisation of NF-κB with a robust period. Pulsatile stimulation causes nuclear translocations of NF-κB that are entrained to the pulse frequency. The altered frequency of these oscillations results in a different pattern of NF-κB dependent gene expression. This suggests the hypothesis that altering the frequency of NF-κB oscillations could provide a novel means to control the output of the system, allowing the exploitation of this system as a therapeutic target.
The complex nonlinear dynamics in the NF-κB system make it an ideal candidate for a systems level analysis. Throughout this thesis a Systems Biology approach has been used to elucidate, both computationally and experimentally, how the period of NF-κB oscillations can be altered. This involved the development of a computational framework to characterise core network topology and parameter sensitivities of a recent deterministic model of the NF-κB system. Within this framework a model reduction algorithm has been described that has general applications to many other biochemical models. Bifurcation theory has been employed to characterise the system's sensitivities.

Computational analyses provided a basis to relate new experimental insights to our existing understanding of the system. Ectopic expression of the negative feedbacks IκBα and A20 showed different effects on the NF-κB oscillatory period. Computational analysis demonstrated that the manipulation of the delay in their transcriptional initiation could markedly change their influence on the oscillations. Single cell imaging also revealed a portion of A20 localised in perinuclear compartments. Two novel perturbations to the NF-κB dynamics are also considered: the effect after treatment with the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) diclofenac, and the effect of altered temperature. Theoretical analyses of these data lead to a number of hypotheses about how such perturbations influence the system.

Ultimately, this thesis presents a number of new insights into modulating the period of NF-κB oscillations and computational tools to aid in the analysis of biochemical networks.


This study critically analyzed Nepal's policy implementation challenges of special/inclusive education. Using qualitative data collected through document analysis, interviews, and focus group discussions, this study is based on the premises of qualitative research design under the interpretative paradigm followed by critical interpretive design to analyze and interpret the field data. For this, 15 (fifteen) policy experts from the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology, Department of Education, university professors, and 11 (eleven) head teachers from 6 (six) special and 5 (five) integrated schools, and special education council members and members of disabled related organizations were purposively selected as the informants. Furthermore, inadequate human resources, lack of necessary budgetary provision, and low level of awareness are the major challenges of special education in Nepal. There is a lack of a separate special education policy in the foundation period, and the responsibility and authority of relevant stakeholders are not explicitly stated. At the practice level, the researcher found a gap in the inductive action plans for implementation across the central, provincial, and local levels of government of Nepal. It was also found that there was no coordination among the Ministry of Education and other line ministries for the implementation of existing policy and provisions. This study implies that coherent policy-making is required through consultation with the relevant stakeholders from the central, provincial, and local levels so that there is a minimum gap in power-sharing among agencies at different levels of governance. Such attempts will ease the implementation of macro policies into the micro contexts.


Background We examined to what extent perceived neighbourhood crime moderates, associations between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and perceived local amenities, recreational facilities, footpaths and public transit, and potential mediation of environmental characteristics—T2DM association by physical activity, social contact, sleep and body mass index (BMI). Methods The 45 and Up Study data of 36, 224 individuals collected from 2010 to 2015 were analysed in 2019 using multilevel logistic regression to examine the association between T2DM and clustering of unfavourable built environment, and any difference in the association with increasing unfavourable environment and area disadvantage. We performed causal mediation analyses stratified by crime to examine whether crime moderated the strength of identified local amenities–T2DM pathways. Results The results showed that irrespective of crime, perceived lack of local amenities was associated with increased odds of developing T2DM, and BMI mediated 40% and 30.3% of this association among those who reported unsafe and safe daytime crime, respectively. The proportion mediated by BMI among those who reported unsafe and safe night-time crime was 27.3% and 35.1%, respectively. Walking mediated 5.7% of the local amenities–T2DM association among those who reported safe daytime crime. The odds of T2DM increased with rising unfavourable environment and area disadvantage. Conclusions The results suggest that the availability of neighbourhood amenities may lower T2DM risk by increasing walking and reducing BMI regardless of area crime. Policies to enhance access to local amenities and prevent crime, especially in disadvantaged areas, may support healthy behaviour and physical health that can potentially reduce T2DM risk.


47 patients with aortic valve disease were studied by left ventricular micromanometry and cineangiography before and 18 months after successful valve replacement. There were 27 patients (17 with aortic stenosis, ten with aortic insufficiency) with moderate hypertrophy (angiographic mass less than 180 g/m2) and 20 patients (ten with aortic stenosis, ten with aortic insufficiency) with severe hypertrophy (angiographic mass greater than or equal to 180 g/m2). In the patients with moderate hypertrophy ejection fraction was slightly although not significantly smaller than in 14 controls. Peak systolic circumferential wall stress was, however, significantly increased. In the patients with severe hypertrophy ejection fraction was significantly decreased although afterload was similar to that in the patients with moderate hypertrophy. This indicated a depressed contractile state in the patients with mass exceeding 180 g/m2. After surgery peak systolic wall stress returned to normal levels in both groups. Among the patients with severe preoperative hypertrophy only the patients with aortic stenosis showed a normal ejection fraction after surgery, whereas in the patients with aortic insufficiency ejection fraction improved but remained depressed compared to the controls. In a second study, comparison of left ventricular function with myocardial structure (endomyocardial biopsies) was carried out in 30 patients with aortic valve disease (group 1: 18 with aortic stenosis, group 2: twelve with aortic insufficiency). Both groups were restudied 18.8 and 17.4 months, respectively, following successful aortic valve replacement. Preoperative biplane ejection fraction (60 and 57%), angiographic mass (183 and 186 g/m2), muscle fibre diameter (31.1 and 30.8 mu), interstitial fibrosis (17.1 and 17.4%) and left ventricular fibrous content (31.0 and 32.2 g/m2) were similar in the two groups.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The pathogenesis of psychosomatic distress is considered. This emphasises interest in aetiology of distress rather than solely of disease. The influence of psychological aspects is as important whether the disease is of known or unknown aetiology, and can be of greater importance in poorer socio-economic circumstances. The doctor's role is to tease out the influence of these many factors. Certainly a holistic approach is necessary to assess and manage appropriately patients with disability. There is an important role for psychiatrists within services for management of such patients. Leadership by all doctors and psychiatrists in particular to apply the holistic approach should be encouraged.


Surveillance data claimed the presence of a diarrhoea outbreak after a flash flood swept off some villages of Mahmood Raqi district in Kapisa province. The water sources were treated with chlorine to stop the outbreak, but still no significant decrease in the incidence of diarrhoeal cases was observed. A case control study was conducted to find the risk factors of diarrhoea in the affected villages, of which approximately 5000 people are living in the affected villages of Mahmood Raghi district of Kapisa province. This study randomly selected 50 cases and 50 control families and applied a structured questionnaire. The control was defined as families that did not have any diarrhoea case in the two weeks prior to the study. The study was conducted on 8 and 9 of August, 2010. In the case families, 93 out of 161 (58%) children of ages under five and 51/451 (11.3%) people of ages over five years complained of diarrhoea. Average family size was 12 and 9.6 among case and control families. Average numbers of children under 5 years were 3.22 and 2 in the case and control families, respectively. Dug well was the main source of drinking water in 32% of the cases and 18% controls. The researchers found that hand washing with clean water and soap after using the toilet and before feeding the children was strongly protective in the controls, odd ratio (OR) = 0.03 (P=0.0000) (uncorrected chi square = 44.1 (P=0.000) and 0.15 (P=0.00072)), respectively. Covering the water pots for kitchen use was strongly protective against diarrhoea (OR=0.06, P=0.000). Education of mother was another protecting factor for children, average years of mothers education was 0.45 year in the cases and 3.1 years in the controls. Poor hand washing practices, improper water storage in the households and types of latrine were associated with the outbreak of diarrhoea. Level of parents' education is the key for prevention and control of diarrhoea in <5 years children. Health education session was conducted to control diarrhoea outbreak in the affected villages.


Optimal maintenance policies for a machine with degradation in performance with age and subject to failure are considered. The optimal policies are shown to be generally of a bang-coast nature, except in the case where the probability of machine failure is a function of maintenance. It is also shown, in the case where machine failure is not taken into account, that a high depreciation rate tends to reverse this policy to coast-bang. The results obtained here extend and unify the recent results for this problem.


The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a flexible abrasive disc (1), and to such an abrasive disc. The abrasive disc comprises a backing (2) with an upper side (3) and a lower side (4). The upper side has an abrasive agent coating (6) for forming a surface layer. In order to form a surface layer as specifically patterned as possible, the backing of each abrasive disc is coated separately. In this manufacturing method, the abrasive agent coating on the upper side of the backing is embossed with an embossing mould (10) specially structured and to be pressed against the backing.


X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) scanning of marine sediment has the potential to yield near‐continuous and high‐resolution records of elemental abundances, which are often interpreted as proxies for paleoceanographic processes over different time scales. However, many other variables also affect scanning XRF measurements and convolute the quantitative calibrations of element abundances and comparisons of data from different labs. Extensive interlab comparisons of XRF scanning results and calibrations are essential to resolve ambiguities and to understand the best way to interpret the data produced. For this study, we sent a set of seven marine sediment sections (1.5 m each) to be scanned by seven XRF facilities around the world to compare the outcomes amidst a myriad of factors influencing the results. Results of raw element counts per second (cps) were different between labs, but element ratios were more comparable. Four of the labs also scanned a set of homogenized sediment pellets with compositions determined by inductively coupled plasma‐optical emission spectrometry (ICP‐OES) and ICP‐mass spectrometry (MS) to convert the raw XRF element cps to concentrations in two ways: a linear calibration and a log‐ratio calibration. Although both calibration curves are well fit, the results show that the log‐ratio calibrated data are significantly more comparable between labs than the linearly calibrated data. Smaller‐scale (higher‐resolution) features are often not reproducible between the different scans and should be interpreted with caution. Along with guidance on practical calibrations, our study recommends best practices to increase the quality of information that can be derived from scanning XRF to benefit the field of paleoceanography.


The positive correlation between expected wages of workers and additional steps of education attainment has been studied extensively, as well as inverse relation between
education level in the country and unemployment rate. Thus, it is important to analyze education and labor markets in relation, more so with the presence of imperfections in these markers. Coordination may fail on markets of asymmetric information when there are high and low quality products, which are indistinguishable. This can cause degradation of the market. In order to avoid it, motivations of each side should be aligned correctly on education and labor markets. This can only be achieved if the education system is constructed with right motivators for both sides right from the base. Education cannot be a useful signal to employers if educational attainment cannot be used as a way of distinguishing employee's skills from others'.


Strain hardening of mental in one direction reduces the yield stress in the opposite direction, the existence of Bauschinger effect plays a unique role on the accuracy of the sheet metal forming simulation. Especially now extensive use of high strength steels and aluminum alloys, makes springback phenomenon an increasingly important issue, tool manufacturing of Auto-body forming put forward higher requirement for the accuracy of the finite element springback prediction. In order to improve the accuracy of springback prediction it is necessary to study the Bauschinger effect of materials. With a device tension-compression tests of DC06 and DP600 are carried out and the displacement-force relationship in different pretension strain are obtained. U-channel forming tests of DC06 and DP600 is carried out, with the simulation models are built, the magnitude of springback are calculated. The influence of different material models, which include the hardening laws of isotropic hardening, isotropic-kinematic hardening and kinematic hardening, on springback prediction is analyzed by comparing the simulation results, the factor of material model which influence the accuracy of springback prediction are also analyzed. The results show that there are differences between DC06 and DP600 on the size of Bauschinger effect, it is helpful to improve the accuracy of springback calculation when considering the Bauschinger effect, while the sensitivity of material constitutive model on the simulation of small curvature bending forming, limited the springback simulation accuracy.


The Zhijintang Sanctum version of the re-revised edition of Jinling edition of Ben cao gang mu (Compendium of Materia Medica)collected by Zhao Huiyuan of Baihe, Henan Province in 2008 was opted as one of the third batch of the National Directory of Rare Ancient Worksin 2010. On the second cover page (patent page), it is recorded as"Original Jiangxi version". However, it is investigated to find that most of its paper sheets were reprinted after the original Jinling version, only scores of paper sheets were supplemented block-printed, including the additional block-printed second preface and Li Jianyuan's submitted report of the Jiangxi version, the re-revised time of which should be after the Jiangxi edition, or 1603. The exact time can be determined only by checking it carefully against another Jinling re-revised version (the Sheyuantang Sanctum edition).


I argue that the science of the soul only covers sublunary living things. Aristotle cannot properly ascribe ψυχή to unmoved movers since they do not have any capacities that are distinct from their activities or any matter to be structured. Heavenly bodies do not have souls in the way that mortal living things do, because their matter is not subject to alteration or generation. These beings do not fit into the hierarchy of soul powers that Aristotle relies on to provide unity to ψυχή. Their living consists in their activities, not in having a capacity for activity.


Sailing robots provide a low-cost solution to conduct the ocean missions such as marine exploration, pollution detection, and border surveillance, etc. However, compared with other propeller-driven surface vessels, sailboat suffers in complex marine wind field due to its low mobility. Especially in tacking, sailboats are required to head upwind, and need to make a zig-zag path. In this trajectory, a series of turnings, which will cross the challenging no-go zone, place significant challenge as it will reduce speed greatly and consequently result in unsuccessful turning. This paper presents a hybrid sailboat design to solve this issue. Electric propellers and control system are added to a model sailboat. We have further designed the control strategy and tuned the parameters (PWM-time) experimentally. Finally, the system and control can complete the tacking maneuver with average speed approximately 10% higher and enhanced success rate, though the sailboat weight is much heavier.


Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disease characterized by demyelination and neurodegeneration, for which traditional treatment offers limited relief. Microglial/macrophage modulation plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of MS. Oxygen free radical accumulation can induce axonal and nerve cell damage, and further promote MS development. We created a new recombinant protein based on flagellin from Legionella pneumophila named flagellin A with linked C- and N-terminal ends (FLaAN/C), which is an independent intellectual property of our team. We previously showed that FLaAN/C might mitigate radiation-induced damage by inhibiting inflammatory responses and oxidative stress. However, whether FLaAN/C protects against MS remains unknown. Here, we investigated the anti-inflammatory effects of FLaAN/C on mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) induced by oligodendrocyte glycoprotein peptide 35–55 (MOG35-55). The mice were injected intraperitoneally with FLaAN/C after the onset of clinical symptoms, then clinical behavior scores and changes in body weight were recorded daily. The spinal lumbar spine in model mice was enlarged and accompanied by inflammatory cell infiltration and demyelination that were reversed by FLaAN/C. FLaAN/C also induced microglia/macrophages to generate less pro-inflammatory (CD86, iNOS, and TNF-α), and more anti-inflammatory (CD206, IL-10, and Arginase-1) cytokines. These findings suggesting that FLaAN/C promoted microglial/macrophages polarization from the inflammatory M1 to the anti-inflammatory M2 phenotype. Moreover, FLaAN/C inhibited release of the inflammatory cytokines, TNF-α, IL-8, IL-6, IL-17, and IFN-γ. These results indicated that the anti-inflammatory effect of FLaAN/C was associated with the inhibited generation of reactive oxygen species. FLaAN/C downregulated the expression of phosphorylated NF-κB-p65 and prevented downstream NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated pyroptosis. Collectively, these results indicated that FLaAN/C prevents pyroptosis by inhibiting the ROS/NF-κB/NLRP3 signaling pathway, and promotes the microglial/macrophage M1/M2 polarization that significantly alleviated inflammation in mouse models of EAE. Our findings suggested that FLaAN/C could be a promising candidate for MS therapy.


OBJECTIVE
To describe the country's progress in eliminating neonatal tetanus based on the information obtained from epidemiologic surveillance.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
A retrospective descriptive study of the epidemiological surveillance of neonatal tetanus in Colombia in the period ranging from 1989 to 2005. Available information was consulted regarding confirmations of this event of interest for Public Health.

RESULTS
During the study period, a total of 830 cases of neonatal tetanus were reported. In 1989, the rate of neonatal tetanus in Colombia was 0.22 per 1000 live births. In 2005, this value was reduced to 0.01 cases per 1000 live births; a reduction of nearly 94 %.

CONCLUSIONS
Given the information provided by epidemiological surveillance, Colombia has achieved the goal of maintaining a rate<1 case per 1000 live births. Nevertheless, even one case anywhere in the country should be considered a failure of the healthcare system.


The separation of mixtures of chemical compounds is often a laborious task, especially on an industrial scale. In his Perspective,
 Crabtree
 highlights a new concept introduced by
 Wang and Stiefel
 for the separation of olefins from refinery mixtures. The authors have discovered an electrochemical switch that can selectively separate olefins and is not prone to poisoning by common impurities. The key to the discovery lies in using an unusual complex that is derived more from biological concepts than from the complexes commonly used for olefin binding.


Effective schools are widely recognized as those in which the adults who work there are committed to their own learning and where learning is at the heart of everything undertaken, in effect learning organizations. In such learning cultures, there is a perpetual process of change and development and such schools have become known as Professional Learning Communities (PLCs). Such PLCs are discovering that one of the most successful ways of supporting continuous development is through the use of in-house structured research which identifies relevant learning needs at all levels and strives to meet these needs through the school's provision.
 In the 21st century, very few schools operate in isolation and collaboration between schools or groups of schools has become essential for their improvement and for the development of the education system as a whole. The use of in-house research both within and across schools increases the validity of both the learning and the collaboration, which, at its most effective is based on willing participation, trust, and notions of professional partnerships, where all parties are willing to learn from each other, whatever their official or apparent status.
 Although barriers to this development of cross-school PLCs through in-house research do exist, notably pressures from a competitive environment with a focus on measurable outcomes, a lack of resources including time, the growth of such communities is proving powerful through the use of student voice, staff involvement and leaders' firm beliefs. Furthermore, a new kind of educational leadership is emerging which depends much less on hierarchical structures and more on openness to new ideas, acceptance that progress is often uneven and rarely simplistic, and a recognition of the importance of personal qualities of all those involved, including the leaders.


Background: Thyroid cancer continues to be a problem all over the world, with the number of cases increasing year after year. We aimed to examine the association between various laboratory parameters and follicular-type thyroid nodules. We also examined the performance of several parameters to differentiate malignant and benign follicular thyroid lesions.
Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study to determine the association between various laboratory parameters and follicular-type thyroid nodules in Dr. Soetomo General Hospital, Surabaya.
Results: A total of 62 patients were examined. The NLR in the follicular carcinoma group was 2.26 ± 1.35, whereas the NLR in the adenoma group was 2.72 ± 0.74. The average lymphocyte in the follicular carcinoma group was significantly higher than the adenoma group, 2.20 ± 0.78 vs. 1.76 ± 0.82. With a cut-off value of 2.405, NLR had a 69.40% accuracy rate for diagnosing a follicular adenoma (sensitivity: 70%; specificity: 69.2%, PPV: 30.4%, NPV: 92.3%). Lymphocyte had an accuracy of 80.6% in detecting follicular carcinoma (cut-off: 1.625; sensitivity: 80.8%; specificity: 80.0%, PPV: 95.5%, NPV: 44.4%). With an accuracy of 72.6% (cut-off: 270.500; sensitivity: 71.2%; specificity: 80.0%, PPV: 94.9%, NPV: 34.8%), platelet value is a promising parameter for differentiating follicular cancer and adenoma. There was a significant relationship between NLR, lymphocyte, and platelet with follicular-type thyroid nodules (P < 0.05 for all).
Conclusion: NLR, lymphocytes, and platelets are potential biomarkers that can be used to differentiate follicular thyroid carcinoma and follicular thyroid adenoma.


Abstract Background Preparation of the internal mammary artery (IMA) is a critical step in autologous breast reconstruction. Intraoperatively, there is limited opportunity for residents to practice this skill. Porcine models provide highly realistic simulation for vascular surgery; however, use of live laboratory pigs is expensive, inconvenient, and offers limited opportunity for repetitive training. We aimed to develop an inexpensive and effective training model for IMA preparation. This article describes creation of a novel microsurgical model using cadaveric chest walls of Wisconsin Miniature Swine embedded in a modified mannequin thorax and augmented with a blue-blood perfusion system. Methods Anatomic comparison: five porcine chest walls were dissected, and various anatomic measurements were made for anatomic comparison to existing human data in the literature. Model assembly: the chest wall is prepared by cannulating the proximal and distal ends of the internal mammary vessels with angiocatheters, which are then connected to the blue-blood perfusion system. The model is assembled in four layers including: (1) a mannequin thorax with a window removed to expose the first to fourth intercostal spaces, bilaterally, (2) a layer of foam simulating fat, (3) the perfused pig chest wall, and (4) a second mannequin shell placed posteriorly for support. Results The porcine chest walls are similar to humans with regards to vessel size and location. This model can be assembled quickly, with a one-time approximate cost of $55.00, and allows for six training sessions per specimen. The model allows residents to practice the key steps of IMA preparation including dissection, elevation of perichondria, and vascular anastomosis while working at a depth that closely simulates the human thorax. Continuous blue-blood perfusion provides immediate feedback on anastomosis quality. Conclusion Overall, this novel model can provide inexpensive and realistic simulation of internal mammary vessel preparation and anastomosis.


Sorting networks are oblivious sorting algorithms with many interesting theoretical properties and practical applications. One of the related classical challenges is the search of optimal networks respect to size (number of comparators) of depth (number of layers). However, up to our knowledge, the joint size-depth optimality of small sorting networks has not been addressed before. This paper presents size-depth optimality results for networks up to $12$ channels. Our results show that there are sorting networks for $n\leq9$ inputs that are optimal in both size and depth, but this is not the case for $10$ and $12$ channels. For $n=10$ inputs, we were able to proof that optimal-depth optimal sorting networks with $7$ layers require $31$ comparators while optimal-size networks with $29$ comparators need $8$ layers. For $n=11$ inputs we show that networks with $8$ or $9$ layers require at least $35$ comparators (the best known upper bound for the minimal size). And for networks with $n=12$ inputs and $8$ layers we need $40$ comparators, while for $9$ layers the best known size is $39$.


Asymptomatic nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus is a major risk factor for acquiring infection in pa tients undergoing haemodialysis because of their decreased immunity, increased skin colonization by Staphylococci and multiple needle punctures required for dialysis. The present study was done to know the prevalence of nasal carriage of MRSA among patients undergoing dialysis and in HCW's during the period of October and No vember 2011 at GGH, Vijayawada, India. Sterile swabs were rotated into the anterior nares of patients (50) and HCW's (25) working in dialysis unit aft er taking informed consent. Swabs were inoculated into Nutrient agar, Blood agar, Mannitol salt agar. Identification of Staphylococcus aureus was done by standard methods. Antimicrobial su sceptibility and Methicillin resistant strains were detected as per the CLSI guidelines. Of the 50 patients and 25 controls, 21 patients and 7 controls have been found to be nasal carriers of Staphylococcus aureus . All the 21 isolates of SA among cases and 4 isolates from controls were resistant to Methicillin.


An analysis is made for the steady two-dimensional laminar boundary layer flow of a viscous, incompressible, electrically conducting fluid near a stagnation point past a shrinking sheet with slip in the presence of a magnetic field. The governing boundary layer equations are transformed to ordinary differential equations by taking suitable similarity variables and solved numerically by Shooting method. The effects of the various parameters such as velocity ratio parameter, slip parameter, Prandtl number, Eckert number and magnetic parameter for velocity and temperature distributions have been discussed in detail through graphical representation.


This article describes a culturally sensitive assessment tool for traumatized Cambodians, the Cambodian "Somatic Symptom and Syndrome Inventory" (SSI), and reports the outcome of a needs assessment conducted in rural Cambodia using the instrument. Villagers locally identified (N = 139) as still suffering the effects of the Pol Pot genocide were evaluated. All 139 had post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as assessed by the PTSD Checklist (PCL), and they had elevated SSI scores. The severity of the SSI items varied by level of PTSD severity, and several items--for example, dizziness, dizziness on standing, khyâl (a windlike substance) attacks, and "thinking a lot"--were extremely elevated in those participants with higher levels of PTSD. The SSI was more highly correlated to self-perceived health (Short Form Health Survey-3) and past trauma events (Harvard Trauma Questionnaire) than was the PCL. The study shows the SSI items to be a core aspect of the Cambodian trauma ontology.


In this work we investigate, by means of electrical and both spectral and integral electroluminescence measurements, the light emission mechanisms in AlGaAs/InGaAs/GaAs pseudomorphic HEMTs biased at high drain voltage. Under these conditions impact ionization and light emission take place due to hot electrons. We examine the distinctive features of the light spectra (in particular, using a high-resolution monochromator the spectrum peak is shown to possess a fine structure due to quantized levels of the InGaAs channel), their respective temperature and bias dependence, and by means of physical considerations and a study of the correlation between the light intensity and the device currents we speculate on the physical mechanisms giving rise to photon emission in the different energy ranges.


Mouse monoclonal antibody (mAb) L6 identifies an antigen expressed on the cell surface of many different human carcinomas. While studying the binding activity of mAb L6 to intracerebral tumor xenografts of human lung carcinoma LX-1 cells in nude rats using immunohistological techniques, we observed that L6 can also bind to a cytoplasmic antigen expressed in the magnocellular component of the hypothalamo-neurohypophysial system. Double-labeling experiments with antisera to vasopressin and oxytocin confirmed the localization of L6 immunoreactivity within both peptide-containing cell groups. L6 immunoreactivity in Brattleboro rats (with genetic deletion in the vasopressin gene) was exclusively localized within oxytocin neurons. Oxytocin and vasopressin failed to block L6 staining which suggested that its target epitope resides within the neurophysin sequence, and this explanation was supported by the finding that adsorption of L6 with porcine neurophysin completely eliminated hypothalamic immunoreactivity. Western blot analysis of bovine neurophysin and human pituitary extracts identified L6-immunoreactive bands which corresponded to the position of neurophysin and pro-pressophysin, confirming that L6 immunoreactivity in hypothalamus is related to neurophysin. Thus, monoclonal antibody L6, which is highly reactive with a membrane antigen of human lung cancer cell line LX-1, recognizes a cytoplasmic epitope in hypothalamic neurons identified as neurophysin by immunohistochemistry and Western analysis.


The relationship between erythropoietin production and the juxtaglomerular (JG) cells of the kidney were studied using Harada's method for staining and Hartroft's method for estimating JG granularity.

In stimulated erythropoiesis (after bleeding and phenylhydrazine injection), the JG cells also showed hypergranularity. In depressed erythropoiesis, on the contrary, the JG cells showed hypogranularity. Furthermore, from the observation of the chronological change of the JG cell, granularity tended to change in parallel with erythropoietin production. This study gave an indirect evidence of the secretion of erythropoietin by juxtaglomerular cells of the kidney.


Human exposure to aromatic amines (AAs) can result in carcinogenic DNA adducts. To complement previous work geared toward understanding the mutagenicity of AA-derived adducts, which has almost exclusively studied (monoadducted) DNA containing a single lesion, the present work provides the first in-depth comparison of the structure of monoadducted and diadducted DNA duplexes. Specifically, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were initially performed on DNA containing the nonmutagenic single-ringed N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-aniline (ANdG) or the mutagenic four-ringed N-(deoxyguanosin-8-yl)-1-aminopyrene (APdG) lesion at G1, G2, or G3 in the AA deletion hotspot (5'-G1G2CG3CC) in the anti or syn glycosidic orientation (B/S duplex conformation). Subsequently, diadducted strands were assessed that span each combination of damaged sites (G1G2 (nearest neighbors), G2G3 (next-nearest neighbors), and G1G3 (two intervening nucleotides)) and anti/syn lesion glycosidic orientations. Despite other N-linked C8-dG adducts exhibiting sequence dependence conformational heterogeneity, a single ANdG or APdG lesion induces helical conformational homogeneity that is exclusively controlled by aryl moiety size. However, the preferred damaged DNA conformation can change upon the addition of a second adduct depending on lesion separation, with neighboring lesions stabilizing a nonmutagenic conformation and next-nearest damaged sites stabilizing a promutagenic conformation regardless of adduct size. As a result, diadducted DNA is found to adopt conformations that are unfavored for the corresponding monoadducted system, pointing to differential replication and repair outcomes for diadducted DNA compared to those for monoadducted DNA. Thus, although the toxicity of monoadducted DNA is most significantly dictated by lesion size, the toxicity can increase or decrease upon a second damaging event depending on lesion size and relative position. Overall, our work adds the number of lesions and their spatial separation to the growing list of factors that determine the structure and biological outcomes of adducted DNA.


Service learning integrates academic learning and relevant community service with classroom instruction, focusing on critical, reflective thinking and personal civic responsibility. Through a grant, community college students were provided with grocery store vouchers to purchase unfamiliar, healthy foods. Students were taken on an educational "tour" of a local supermarket and were shown how to grocery shop according to dietary guidelines. Students then engaged in service learning by going out into their communities where they acted as nutrition educators and taught community members skills they initially learned. As a result of this project, students reported success in applying the knowledge and skills learned from one setting to another. By engaging in service learning, students also reported improved nutrition knowledge and overall confidence with the subject matter.


The paper defends the structural concept of representation, defined by homomorphisms, against the main objections that have been raised against it: Logical objections, the objection from misrepresentation, the objection from failing necessity, and the copy theory objection. Homomorphic representations are not necessarily 'copies' of their representanda, and thus can convey scientific insight.


Introduction Rock drills expose workers to high levels of hand-arm vibration, and extensive use of these tools give an increased risk of hand-arm vibration syndrome. Hand-arm vibration exposure can be difficult to estimate by using the task-based method because of an intermittent exposure pattern and changing working conditions throughout the work shift. New advances in measurement technology make it possible to perform full-shift measurements at the workplace. Methods Hand-arm vibration exposure for rock drillers/rock face stabilisers in Norway was assessed by full-shift field measurements with Svantek SV103 vibration metres on both right and left hand simultaneously. Result The mean daily vibration exposure for the rock drillers was 4.9 m/s 2 (A8) (range 2.7–8.8) for the right hand and 4.4 m/s 2 (A8) (1.0–7.0) for the left hand, based on 17 full-shift measurements. The mean exposure magnitude from the tools was 14.0 m/s 2 (9.2–20.0). For 12 of the 17 measurements the exposure was highest on the dominant hand. Discussion The full-shift method was practical to implement in the field measurements, and should be considered as an alternative to the task based method. This method has the potential to reduce the uncertainties associated with unpredictable changes in exposure like changing hardness of the rock. The daily exposure to hand-arm vibrations for the rock drillers was high compared to the occupational exposure limit. Thus, implementation of efficient strategies to reduce vibration exposure is important.


Background Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is a common condition with an incidence of about 100 per 100,000 in those aged over 50. There is heterogeneity in presentation, response to steroids and disease course. There is also little communication between primary and secondary care as only a small proportion is under shared care. These factors contribute to the lack of standardisation in management: The British Society of Rheumatology (BSR) published guidelines in 2009 to standardise this. Objectives The objective of this audit was to evaluate the quality of management of PMR at Aintree hospital's rheumatology department (Liverpool, UK)using standards set around aspects of BSR guidelines. Methods A cohort of 98 patients with a diagnosis of PMR between Jan 2007 and Nov 2010 were identified from outpatient clinical letters. Based on BSR guidelines, a questionnaire was designed and used to gather data. It assessed: 1) Documentation of clinical criteria and laboratory investigations which forms the basis for the diagnosis; 2) Usage of tapering steroid therapy; 3) Use of bone protection; 4) Clinical and biochemical monitoring of response to treatment and disease activity; 5) Management of relapses. All clinical letters, case notes and investigations were studied from electronic records or paper case notes. Results 1) Initial assessment investigations: in 97% of patients clear documentation recorded clinical criteria and baseline blood tests. However, serum electrophoresis, Bence-Jones protein, CK and anti-CCP were requested in <50% of cases. 2) Starting dose of Prednisolone: This varied between departments. When started by a rheumatologist, 94% were given the recommended 15mg. However, 59% were initiated on treatment by GPs or general physicians and the mean starting dose in this subgroup was 23.6mg (SD 11.2mg). 3) Steroid tapering: 35% were prescribed tapering regimes similar to that recommended by BSR. 22% had no clear instructions of steroid tapering regimes. 36% were weaned too quickly off steroids. Those patients weaned off steroids in <1 year had 39% flare rate, whilst those weaned off >1 year had a flare rate of 19%. 3) Bone protection: bone protection with bisphosphonate, calcium and vitamin D were co-prescribed in 81%. 4) Clinical response to treatment was documented in 99% and biochemical monitoring was documented in 66%. Side effects of treatment were recorded in 27%. 5) Relapse management was documented clearly in 22% and DMARDs were considered in 6 of the 10 patients that experienced >2 relapses. Conclusions This audit has highlighted that management of PMR in rheumatology clinics is generally at high standard. However, education of other specialities about optimum prednisolone start doses and the importance of bone protection are needed. The observation that rapid steroid tapering is associated with high flare rates is important in this patient group. In light of this we have developed a standard prednisolone withdrawal regime for PMR in attempt to reduce the frequency of PMR flares. References BSR and BHPR guidelines for the management of polymyalgia rheumatica B Dasgupta, et al. BSR and BHPR guidelines for the management ofpolymyalgia rheumatica, 2009 Disclosure of Interest None Declared


In this study, we developed a tunable piezoelectric optical microscanner. The characteristic of the present microscanner is that the Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 film is formed on the torsion hinges of the scanner and the hinges act as a tuner themselves. DC voltage applied to the tuner varies the resonant frequency of the rotation of the mirror. A laser displacement meter measures the resonant frequencies to be 6457 Hz for no tuning and 6471 Hz for 15 V tuning. The resonant frequency with tuning between 0 and 15 V shows a hysteresis curve. Moreover, tuning between -15 and 15 V results in the butterfly curve of resonant frequency. The scanning angle under resonant actuation at 6457 Hz is decreased from 5.6 to 5.0° by applying a DC voltage of 15 V to the tuner. The result is in good agreement with the displacement of the edge of the mirror measured using the laser displacement meter.


The relevance of the work. The geochemical specificity of the underground hydrosphere is extremely varied in composition brines and salt waters, which are characteristic of platform-type sedimentary basins with halogen formations. Therefore, elucidation of the origin, formation and distribution patterns of salt-bearing rocks is one of the fundamental problems of modern theoretical geology of oil and gas. The purpose of this work is to analyze the features of the formation of evaporites in the geological history of the Earth. The high importance of scientific and applied problems of "salt" geology and the wide interest in this problem are traditionally determined by the needs for various halurgic raw materials, as well as their close ties with the interests of many disciplines (hydrogeochemistry, studies of mineral deposits, oil and gas geology, etc.). The work reveals the possibility of using data on modern halogenesis to decipher the conditions and patterns of ancient salt accumulation in different geological periods, ranging from relatively young to the most ancient; in identifying the relationship and relationship of continental and marine halogenesis in different geological epochs; Conclusions : The regularities of the distribution and formation of salt-bearing rocks have been revealed, and the possibility of their use as sources of hydromineral raw materials has been determined.


Composites of zinc(oxy)hydroxide-graphite oxide and of zinc(oxy)hydroxide-graphene were used as adsorbents of hydrogen sulfide under ambient conditions. The initial and exhausted samples were characterized by XRD, FTIR, potentiometric titration, EDX, thermal analysis, and nitrogen adsorption. An increase in the amount of H(2)S adsorbed/oxidized on their surfaces in comparison with that of pure Zn(OH)(2) is linked to the structure of the composite, the relative number of terminal hydroxyls, and the kind of graphene-based phase used. Although terminal groups are activated by a photochemical process, the graphite oxide component owing to the chemical bonds with the zinc(oxy)hydroxide phase and conductive properties helps in electron transfer, leading to more efficient oxygen activation via the formation of superoxide ions. Elemental sulfur, zinc sulfide, sulfite, and sulfate are formed on the surface. The formation of sulfur compounds on the surface of zinc(oxy)hydroxide during the course of the breakthrough experiments and thus Zn(OH)(2)-ZnS heterojunctions can also contribute to the increased surface activity of our materials. The results show the superiority of graphite oxide in the formation of composites owing to its active surface chemistry and the possibility of interface bond formation, leading to an increase in the number of electron-transfer reactions.


OBJECTIVE
The objective of this study was to determine the proportion of women who had a ruptured ectopic pregnancy after being discharged from the emergency department (ED) where ectopic pregnancy had not yet been excluded.

METHODS
This was a retrospective chart review of pregnant (<12-week gestational age) women discharged home from an academic tertiary care ED with a diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy, rule-out ectopic pregnancy, or pregnancy of unknown location over a 7-year period.

RESULTS
Of the 550 included patients, 83 (15.1%) had a viable pregnancy, 94 (17.1%) had a spontaneous or missed abortion, 230 (41.8%) had an ectopic pregnancy, 72 (13.1%) had unknown outcomes, and 71 (12.9%) had other outcomes that included therapeutic abortion, molar pregnancy, or resolution of βHCG with no location documented. Of the 230 ectopic pregnancies, 42 (7.6%) underwent expectant management, 131 (23.8%) were managed medically with methotrexate, 29 (5.3%) were managed with surgical intervention, and 28 (5.1%) patients had a ruptured ectopic pregnancy after their index ED visit. Of the 550 included patients, 221 (40.2%) did not have a transvaginal ultrasound during their index ED visit, and 73 (33.0%) were subsequently diagnosed with an ectopic pregnancy.

CONCLUSION
These results may be useful for ED physicians counselling women with symptomatic early pregnancies about the risk of ectopic pregnancy after they are discharged from the ED.


This article demonstrates the politics of the policy processes of adaptation using the case of crop diversification. Competing narratives among different actors illustrate the complexity of practically translating crop diversification in practice. The context in which policy processes take place matter a great deal since adaptation policies' chance of success cannot be judged abstractly in their theoretical or technical attributes without considering the institutional, political and cultural context in which they are applied. This draws attention to the fact that policy processes are less of a linear sequence but more of a political process, underpinned by a complex mesh of interactions and ramifications between a wide range of stakeholders who are driven and constrained by the competing interests and contexts in which they operate.


BACKGROUND
Prenatal exposure to air pollution disrupts cognitive, emotional, and behavioral development. The brain disturbances associated with prenatal air pollution are largely unknown.

METHODS
In this prospective cohort study, we estimated prenatal exposures to fine particulate matter (PM2.5 ) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and then assessed their associations with measures of brain anatomy, tissue microstructure, neurometabolites, and blood flow in 332 youth, 6-14 years old. We then assessed how those brain disturbances were associated with measures of intelligence, ADHD and anxiety symptoms, and socialization.

RESULTS
Both exposures were associated with thinning of dorsal parietal cortices and thickening of postero-inferior and mesial wall cortices. They were associated with smaller white matter volumes, reduced organization in white matter of the internal capsule and frontal lobe, higher metabolite concentrations in frontal cortex, reduced cortical blood flow, and greater microstructural organization in subcortical gray matter nuclei. Associations were stronger for PM2.5 in boys and PAH in girls. Youth with low exposure accounted for most significant associations of ADHD, anxiety, socialization, and intelligence measures with cortical thickness and white matter volumes, whereas it appears that high exposures generally disrupted these neurotypical brain-behavior associations, likely because strong exposure-related effects increased the variances of these brain measures.

CONCLUSIONS
The commonality of effects across exposures suggests PM2.5 and PAH disrupt brain development through one or more common molecular pathways, such as inflammation or oxidative stress. Progressively higher exposures were associated with greater disruptions in local volumes, tissue organization, metabolite concentrations, and blood flow throughout cortical and subcortical brain regions and the white matter pathways interconnecting them. Together these affected regions comprise cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical circuits, which support the regulation of thought, emotion, and behavior.


The type specimen of the dubious species Dendrobaena jeanneli Pop, 1948 was found in the Zoological Museum, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj. An investigation of the somewhat softened and fragmented specimen allowed us to recognise its most important taxonomic characters such as the position of the clitellum and tubercles, the setal arrangement, the structure of the calciferous glands and the nephridial bladders. According to these characters this species belongs to the genus Octolasion Orley, 1885, and on the position of the clitellum and tubercles it is clearly identical with O. cyaneum (Savigny, 1826).


OBJECTIVE
To determine the sex ratio by birth order and to assess the sex preference of the couples in an urban community.

METHODS
A cross sectional study, in an urban community in Manipur, was conducted among the currently married couples. Data on background characteristics of the couple, family pedigree chart (of the offspring) including history of abortion, stillbirth, death of child of the couple, sex preference and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act [PNDT Act] were collected through a structured interview. Data were analyzed using descriptive and chi-square statistics.

RESULTS
There were a total of 1777 births to the 855 couples interviewed. There were 900 females per 1000 males for the 1st birth order but the sex ratio was favorable towards females in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th birth orders. Among both the husbands and wives, being more educated was significantly associated (p<0.05) with preferring lesser number of children, using new technology for sex selection and having heard of the PNDT Act. Majority of those who wanted to use new technology for sex selection (128, 56.6%) preferred to have male child.

CONCLUSION
Sex ratio in this community was favorable towards females, though it was less among the first born babies.


Communicating uncertainty to lay audiences is as challenging as indispensible if people are to understand medical test results, gains from financial investments, or weather warnings. Compared to risk communication in the medical domain, there is so far only limited evidence on how to best communicate uncertainty for continuous quantities, such as financial returns or wind speeds (Spiegelhalter et al., 2011). The poster presents results from a longitudinal study investigating this question within a real-life setting. We implemented different representations communicating probabilistic weather forecasts within an online information system operated by the German National Weather Service. The system is used by fire brigade coordination centers throughout Germany to prepare for severe weather conditions. By analyzing web usage and search behavior, we investigate which representations users rely upon under real operational constraints. We link the analysis to tests which representations are best understood and could thus aid emergency managers in their decisions.


During excavations carried out in 1937 by Mr. G. J. H. Neely on a Viking and pre-Viking site at Ronaldsway in the Isle of Man, a bronze balance-beam was discovered on the edge of a disturbed grave with a lead weight close by. A full account of the excavations appears in this number of the Antiquaries Journal. The balance-beam is, however, of unique interest, and it has been decided to make it the subject of a separate paper which is based on a comparison of the balance with recognized Viking, Saxon, and Romano-British types and on the results of an experiment conducted at the Science Museum, South Kensington. The balance and weight are now in the Manx Museum.


Smart environments are pervasive systems that comprise integrable net-aware devices. This way, intelligent services can offer complex functionalities across multiple devices. Smart home environments, also called eHomes, constitute already an important research area. However, to build a real elome is associated with high effort and financial costs. In this paper, we describe our software tool eHomeSimulator that allows us to simulate different smart environments. Thus, we can abstract from creating buildings and developing or purchasing devices. Instead, we can use the eHomeSimulator to research on software engineering aspects of eHomes, such as service development, specification, composition, deployment, and personalization.


AIM
Endothelial lipase (EL) is a member of the lipoprotein lipase family that regulates HDL metabolism. EL is known to act as a bridging molecule for monocytes or lipoproteins in vascular endothelial cells. We investigated the role and regulatory mechanisms of EL expression in macrophages.

METHODS
Macrophages originating from wild-type (EL+/+) and EL-deficient (EL-/-) mice were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The expression of EL mRNA was evaluated by northern blotting. DiI-LDL was used to measure the uptake of native low-density lipoprotein (nLDL).

RESULTS
LPS increased EL mRNA levels by increasing intracellular oxidative stress in the macrophages. LPS did not affect EL expression in macrophages derived from Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) gene mutant mice, C3H/HeJ. The uptake of nLDL after LPS-treatment was significantly lower in macrophages from EL-/- mice than those from EL+/+ mice. Simvastatin suppressed the LPS-induced upregulation of EL expression and uptake of nLDL.

CONCLUSIONS
EL expression is upregulated by LPS via TLR4 and promotes the uptake of nLDL by macrophages. Simvastatin inhibits the LPS-induced up-regulation and uptake in macrophages. Thus, our findings provide a novel role for EL in lipoprotein metabolism and would expand the range of anti-atherogenic effects of statins.


A conception design of the Advanced Proton Therapy Facility (APTF) has been carried out. The system intentionally employs a slow-cycling synchrotron with a maximum energy of 250 MeV, two rotating gantries and two fixed beam nozzles for the treatment. In this paper, we try to compare the strength and weaknesses between the two treatment methods: the beam spreading and the pencil beam scanning. The application of the pencil beam scanning method and the double-scattering method together with the related nozzle design at APTF is also given. The simulation results of employing the double-scattering method have been given during the preliminary design.


We describe CST, an online algorithm for constructing skill trees from demonstration trajectories. CST segments a demonstration trajectory into a chain of component skills, where each skill has a goal and is assigned a suitable abstraction from an abstraction library. These properties permit skills to be improved efficiently using a policy learning algorithm. Chains from multiple demonstration trajectories are merged into a skill tree. We show that CST can be used to acquire skills from human demonstration in a dynamic continuous domain, and from both expert demonstration and learned control sequences on the uBot-5 mobile manipulator.


The world of manufacturing technology is currently developing rapidly. Computerization carried out on manufacturing equipment makes it very easy for an industry, especially industries with a large production scale or mass production with a high number of orders in a short time. Manufacturing technology for machine tools usually uses a CNC (Computer Numeric Control) machine. Where the operation of this machine uses a program controlled by a computer and the programmer. This machine can produce products with high accuracy, even for very complicated manufacturing work. Product errors due to operator negligence can be reduced, as contact between the operator and the machine is minimal. However, if there is an error in the material or improper feed, the operator tends not to know because everything has been executed with the program that has been made. Observations were made at the 3 axis prismatic machine section, PT. Dirgantara Indonesia (DI). The milling machine used was the QUASER MV 185 type machine. Part material used in this study was Aluminum alloy 7010. The results of observations and calculations obtained that the average machining efficiency was 13%. Keywords : CNC, production process, efficiency.


The present review summarizes the literature-acquired knowledge as well as author's own experience in conducting aero-allergen immunotherapy, particularly in subcutaneous route of administration (SCIT) of all modalities of respiratory allergy disease from allergic rhinosinusitis, bronchial asthma to united airway disease. Because of the better adherence resulting in appropriate efficacy in connection with satisfactory safety, the author favours conventional schedules of subcutaneous route of therapeutic interven-tion. Given the lack of specific biomarker in monitoring treatment course, the main control mechanism of efficacy is the evaluation of quality of life using simple evaluation scale as visual analogue scale or standardized respiratory allergy questionnaires. The future of allergen immunotherapy should be focused on new routes of allergen administration (e.g. oral, epicutaneous, intradermal, intralymphatic) and on the searching potential biomarkers which could be objectively measured and easily accessible from body fluids (blood, nasal secretion, sputum). The combination of estimated biomarkers obtained from biological samples in conjunction with evaluation of quality of life could lead to the generation of the overall satisfactory monitoring protocol.


This article examines John Keats's use of the epistolary medium as a means of testing out, and of contesting, his unsettled place "among the English Poets". More specifically, it focuses on the various, at times contradictory, critical reflections on William Wordsworth—the contemporary poet who represented the most persistent and stimulating challenge for Keats—which emerge from his private correspondence to friends and family. Significantly, it is neither in letters directly addressed to Wordsworth nor in essays intended for print that Keats carves out a space for himself as a discerning critic. At stake, here and elsewhere in Keats's correspondence, is a project of literary prospecting played out on carefully measured epistolary grounds: with characteristic ambivalence, the self-styled "camelion Poet" playfully alludes to, appropriates and challenges, the writings of his eminent contemporary, while keeping him at a safe distance.


A portable seismic system designed for use in crustal experiments is discussed in this paper. The main features of the system which make it attractive are (1) a 7-lb commercial stereo tape recorder, (2) a simple chronometer, (3) a capability to be monitored in the field with a speaker rather than with a paper recorder, (4) a timer for self-operation, and (5) low overall power requirements.
 The seismic signal from the seismometer is amplified and fed to one channel of the recorder via a voltage-to-frequency converter so that very low-frequency signals can be recorded. Three additional signals made up of a WWVB radio time signal, a 100-Hz oscillator signal (to be used for compensation) and a 10-sec mark from a chronometer are fed into the second channel of the stereo recorder. The total weight of the instrumentation including the seismometer and carrying case is only 51 lb. This system will operate for over 120 hr with 27 lb of 6-volt batteries. This is more than sufficient for most crustal experiments. Because of its lightness and self-operating features, the system can easily be transported to remote areas by light aircraft at a minimum of expense and trouble.


: It is estimated that by 2030 nearly three-quarters of persons living with HIV will be 50 years and older. The aging HIV population presents a new clinical concern for HIV providers: adverse effects from polypharmacy. An aging population means more comorbidities and potentially more drug-drug interactions for providers to manage. This review discusses major comorbidities including cardiovascular disease, anticoagulation, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and malignancy and considerations for drug-interactions with antiretrovirals.


9 Background: Radium-223 chloride (Ra-223) is a 1st-in-class alpha-pharmaceutical targeting bone metastases (mets) with high-energy alpha-particles of short range (<100 μm). ALSYMPCA, a phase III, double-blind, randomized, multinational study, compared Ra-223 plus best standard of care (BSC) vs placebo (pbo) plus BSC in patients (pts) with bone mets in CRPC. The primary endpoint was OS; secondary endpoints included skeletal-related events (SREs).

METHODS
Eligible pts had progressive, symptomatic CRPC with ≥ 2 bone mets on scintigraphy and no known visceral mets; were receiving BSC; and either previously received docetaxel, were docetaxel ineligible, or refused docetaxel. Pts were randomized 2:1 to receive 6 injections of Ra-223 (50 kBq/kg IV) q4 wks or matching pbo and stratified by prior docetaxel use, baseline alkaline phosphatase level, and current bisphosphonate use.

RESULTS
922 pts (Ra-223, n = 615; pbo, n = 307) were randomized from 6/2008-2/2011. Based on data from a planned interim analysis (n = 809), unblinded June 2011, Ra-223 significantly improved OS in pts with CRPC with bone mets vs pbo (median OS 14.0 vs 11.2 mo, respectively; two-sided P = 0.00185; HR = 0.695; 95% CI, 0.552-0.875). SREs were lower in the Ra-223 vs pbo group, and time to 1st SRE was significantly delayed (median time to SRE 13.6 mo vs 8.4 mo, respectively; P = .00046; HR = .610; 95% CI, .461-.807).

CONCLUSIONS
Ra-223 significantly delayed time to 1st SRE and SRE components, except surgical intervention. These reductions in SREs, particularly SCC, are noteworthy. Ra-223 is an effective therapy with a highly favorable safety profile and may provide a new standard of care for treatment of CRPC pts with bone mets. [Table: see text].


Abstract Once common throughout surface waters west of the Rocky Mountains, the western ridged mussel (Gonidea angulata Lea) has been extirpated throughout much of its range (Blevins et al. 2017). This species is currently listed as endangered in Canada (COSEWIC 2010), where its northernmost occurrences are thought to be in Okanagan Lake within the southern interior of British Columbia. Recovery plans are legally required for listed species; but for G. angulata, recovery planning is a challenge as little is known about its habitat requirements, particularly within lakes. To be able to recover G. angulata throughout its historic range, we must study lentic as well as lotic habitats. We developed habitat suitability models for G. angulata in Okanagan Lake using snorkel survey data, habitat data, and two complementary classification methods based on the RandomForest algorithm. Both classification methods ranked the top four predictor variables as effective fetch between 1 and 2.25 km, medium-high embeddedness of substrates (25 to > 75%), high proportion of sand in the substrate, and low slope (0–20%). In comparison, G. angulata habitat in river systems have been described as having low sediment accumulation, boulders that offer refuge, low flow variability, and bank stability. These findings suggest that the drivers for G. angulata distribution in lakes are similar to those in rivers, although predictor variables themselves may vary. This is important because simply using predictor variables from lotic systems would not correctly predict G. angulata occurrence in lakes, demonstrating the importance of this lake-specific investigation.


Hardenability is one of the most basic criteria influencing the formulation of the heat treatment process and steel selection. Therefore, it is of great engineering value to calculate the hardenability curves rapidly and accurately without resorting to any laborious and costly experiments. However, generating a high-precision computational model for steels with different hardenability remains a challenge. In this study, a combined machine learning (CML) model including k-nearest neighbor and random forest is established to predict the hardenability curves of non-boron steels solely on the basis of chemical compositions: (i) random forest is first applied to classify steel into low- and high-hardenability steel; (ii) k-nearest neighbor and random forest models are then developed to predict the hardenability of low- and high-hardenability steel. Model validation is carried out by calculating and comparing the hardenability curves of five steels using different models. The results reveal that the CML model works well for its distinguished prediction performance with precise classification accuracy (100%), high correlation coefficient (≥0.981), and low mean absolute errors (≤3.6 HRC) and root-mean-square errors (≤3.9 HRC); it performs better than JMatPro and empirical formulas including the ideal critical diameter method and modified nonlinear equation. Therefore, this study demonstrates that the CML model combining material informatics and data-driven machine learning can rapidly and efficiently predict the hardenability curves of non-boron steel, with high prediction accuracy and a wide application range. It can guide process design and machine part selection, reducing the cost of trial and error and accelerating the development of new materials.


Structural, mechanical and elastic behaviour, density of states, electronic charge density and band structure of V B2 and ZrB2 are studied by the ab initio density functional method. The calculations carried out using the gradient-corrected approximation of the density functional theory are in excellent agreement with the experimental results where available. The five independent elastic constants have been calculated for the first time for V B2 and ZrB2. The elastic behaviour of these compounds is compared with the measured values for ZrB2 and TiB2. The origin of the pseudogap in the total density of states, a common feature of the compounds, is interactions between boron p states. The analyses of calculated density of states and band structure do not indicate superconductivity in the compounds.


We investigate the task and motion planning problem of clearing clutter from a workspace with limited ingress/egress access for multiple robots. We call the problem multi-robot clutter removal (MRCR). Targeting practical applications where motion planning is non-trivial but is not a bottle-neck, we focus on finding high-quality solutions for feasible MRCR instances, which depends on the ability to efficiently compute high-quality object removal sequences. Despite the challenging multi-robot setting, our proposed search algorithms based on A*, dynamic programming, and best-first heuristics all produce solutions for tens of objects that significantly outperform single robot solutions. Realistic simulations with multiple Kuka youBots further confirms the effectiveness of our algorithmic solutions. In contrast, we also show that deciding the optimal object removal sequence for MRCR is computationally intractable.


Amat, S., McKinnon, J. J., Penner, G. B., Simko, E. and Hendrick, S. 2014. Evaluation of mineral status in high dietary sulfur exposed or sulfur-induced polioencephalomalacia affected beef cattle. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 94: 139-149. We examined the mineral status in beef heifers fed high S containing diets with differing forage-to-concentrate ratio (F:C), and in S-induced polioencephalomalacia (PEM) affected feedlot steers. A metabolism trial was conducted as a randomized complete block design using a 2×2 factorial treatment arrangement with main effects of dietary S and F:C using 16 ruminally cannulated heifers. The F:C was modified by altering the proportion of barley silage (4 vs. 51% dry matter), whereas, the S content was modified by using differing sources of wheat dried distillers' grains with solubles (WDDGS) to achieve low and high S diets (LS=0.30 vs. HS=0.67%). Minerals including Cu, Co, Fe, Mg, Mn, Mo, Se and Zn were determined from rumen fluid, blood, brain tissue and urine. Urinary mineral excretion was also assed. During the course of the metabolic trial, an outbreak of S-induced PEM in a commercial feedlot was documented and brain minerals of these PEM steers (n=4) were contrasted with the experimental heifers fed HS diet. There were no interactions between dietary S concentration and F:C (P>0.05). Heifers fed HS diet had reduced (P<0.05) mineral intakes (except for Mo), ruminal Co, Fe and Mn, and serum Mg and Fe relative to those fed LS diet. Heifers fed low F:C diet had reduced (P<0.05) Cu, Fe, Mo and Se intakes, greater (P<0.05) ruminal Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn, and reduced (P<0.05) serum Cu and Se, and greater (P<0.05) serum Mg than heifers fed high F:C diet. Brain minerals were not affected (P>0.05) by F:C or dietary S. However, the PEM brains had reduced Cu (P=0.058), Fe (P=0.003) and Mo (P<0.001) relative to normal brains. Dietary S and F:C did alter the mineral status of the heifers, but no deficiencies or PEM were induced.


Private homeownership has increasingly become a kind of new obsession and a symbol of upward mobility among the emerging middle class in post-Mao Chinese society. This essay studies the neoliberal making of the new Shanghai middle-class dream by exploring how this dream is invented and imagined through the pursuit of cosmopolitan citizenship, socio-spatial class distinction, and tiered lifestyles. It analyzes and problematizes the enduring charm of Shanghai as a global "city of magic" continues to attract those who aspire to eventually own a piece of property and display cultural capital of this highly unaffordable neoliberal city. Through a series of distinct case studies of recent real estate advertisement, interior design philosophy, and signature furniture stores and architecture magazines whose storytelling aesthetics are middle-class-inspired and focused, the essay critiques the way in which private homeownership is engineered, advertised, and made as one of the key prerequisites for the new Shanghainese (xin Shanghairen) to become middle class in the past two decades. It argues that the making of the new Shanghai middle-class dream is problematically preconditioned by a type of state-market promotion and advertisement of private homeownership and urban citizenship that ultimately synchronizes with the state-capitalist, neoliberal making of a moderately prosperous (xiaokang) society where class distinctions have revived to dominate the social, cultural, and economic discourses of a bourgeois Shanghai in the age of global capitalism.


Salvador Dali's flamboyant moustache, Richard Nixon jumping in the West Wing, Grace Kelly's amazing profile - these are just a few of the images that achieved iconic status and helped make photographer Philippe Halsman an icon in his own right. Comprising hundreds of photographs and insightful accompanying texts, this volume explores Halsman's oeuvre in a variety of aspects. It examines his early career exhibiting works at the avant-garde La Pleiade Gallery in Paris; his experiments with portraiture, particularly the series of stunning images of Marilyn Monroe and his more than 100 covers for Life magazine; his pictures of the contemporary art scene that include famous dancers, movie stars, stage actors, and musicians and the birth of his "jumpology" concept; and his unique, 30-year collaboration with Salvador Dali, including a book devoted entirely to the artist's moustache. Anyone interested in portraiture, celebrity, or surrealist photography will marvel at the breadth and magnificence of Halsman's work, which is definitively presented in this beautiful volume.


In this study, we consider a regulation problem for molecular robotics realized by DNA reactions. The control objective is to regulate the concentration of a target DNA strand to a desired level using practical DNA circuits. This is a challenging problem as regards to the architecture of the molecular robot, because of the corresponding positiveness, modularity, and finiteness problems. A DNA comparator-based controller with DNA amplifiers is proposed, and it is shown to successfully achieve the control objective. The properties and the stability of the system are evaluated in terms of both retroactivity and the Lyapunov stability theory for a positive second-order system. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to realize a regulator in a practical DNA reaction system for molecular robotics.


A Workshop on "Very Hot Astrophysical Plasmas" was held in Nice, France, on 8-10 November 1982. Dedicated mostly to theoretical, observational, and experimental aspects of X-ray astronomy and related atomic physics, it was the first of its kind to be held in France. The Workshop was "European" in the sense that one of its goals (apart from pure science) was to gather the European astronomical community in view of the forthcoming presentation of the "X-80" project for final selection to be the next scientific satellite of the European Space Agency. We now know that the Infrared Space Observatory has been chosen instead, but the recent successful launch of EXOSAT still keeps X-ray astronomy alive, and should be able to transfer, at least for a time, the leadership in this field from the U.S. to Europe, keeping in mind the competitive level of our Japanese colleagues. (With respect to the selection of ISO, one should also keep in mind that observations in the infrared often bring material relevant to the study of X-ray sources!) On a longer time scale, the Workshop also put emphasis on several interesting projects for the late eighties-early nineties, showing the vitality of the field in Europe. Some proposals have already taken a good start, like XMM, the X-ray Multi-Mirror project, selected by ESA last December for an assessment study in 1983. The present proceedings contain most of the papers that were presented at the Workshop. Only the invited papers were presented orally, contributed papers being presented in the form of posters but summarized orally by rapporteurs. To make up this volume, the written versions of these papers were either cross-reviewed by the Invited Speakers, or refereed by the Rapporteurs (for contributed papers) and edited by us, when necessary. Note, however, that the conclusions of the Workshop, which were kindly presented by Richard McCray, have already appeared in the "News and Views" section of Nature (301, 372, 1983). Altogether, the present proceedings aim at giving an up-to-date overview of X-ray astronomy, and may be taken also as a kind of "status report" on European projects in the field. As such, it should hopefully be useful to the astronomical community at large. But it is certainly worthwhile to recall that the Workshop (hence, this volume) would not have been possible without the help of many people, especially on location, in the city of Nice. The organizers received a competent and dedicated help from the Observatoire de Nice (interesting absorption effects could be seen while ascending the Mont-Gros in the fog — and also during the lunch under the Grande Coupole!), from the "Mutuelle Générale de l'Education Nationale", which provided a convenient and modern building to hold the Workshop, and from the City of Nice, which arranged a magnificent — if rainy — cocktail party at the Villa Massha. Thanks are also due to all our sponsors for financial help. We want to thank more particularly Pr Raymond Michard, Director of the Observatoire de Nice, and several other people there: Françoise Bely-Dubau, Danièle Benotto, Renata Feldmann, Paul Faucher. In Saclay and during the Workshop, we all appreciated the efficient collaboration of Claudine Belin and Raymonde Boschiero, while after the Workshop, Nils Robert Nilsson was of great help as Manuscript Editor for these proceedings. In spite of the poor weather, already alluded to — and which turned out to be the worst over all France for decades — and thanks to the cooperation of all, we do think it was really...— a Nice Workshop.


Body Mass Index (BMI) is a good indicator for measurements of Bone Mineral Density (BMD) which measures the density of minerals present in the bones using a special scan. This study was conducted to assess the association between BMI and status of BMD among 101 individuals who underwent Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DEXA) scan. 39 subjects had normal and 62 had low bone mineral density. BMD was low in 82.4% of people with normal BMI, 78.1% among overweight, and 44.2% among obese. There was a statistically significant association between these two variables (P < .001). Low BMD was recorded in 59.1% of females and 76.9% of males. Association between advancing age and lower BMI is an important risk factor in the occurrence of low BMD.


A heterologous antiserum for human cervical squamous cell carcinoma was prepared and specificity determined by Ouchterlony immunodiffusion and immunofluoresence studies. With this antiserum, a tumor antigen was purified from human cervical squamous cell carcinoma tissue. The specificities of the antigen and the antiserum were then re‐examined by a radioimmunoassay method using 125I‐labeled purified antigen. Although normal cervical tissue extract showed a moderate cross‐reactivity in the radioimmunoassay, the circulating antigen activity could not be detected in normal women or in several patients with other carcinomas, whereas 27 of 35 patients with cervical squamous cell carcinoma showed detectable serum antigen activity. All patients with advanced stages of cervical squamous cell carcinoma showed detectable antigen levels. These results indicate that there is a quantitative abnormality, at least, of this tumor antigen in patients with cervical squamous cell carcinoma and that the radioimmunoassay for the antigen is a potentially useful tool in clinical care.


Faithful reconstruction is a key and crucial point of polarization holography research, and has significant research interests in the field of holographic storage and image display. In order to realize faithful reconstruction of the reconstructed wave, the interference angle and dielectric tensor should be controlled. In contrast, we used the polarization holography theory described by tensor, and obtained the faithful reconstruction condition of linear polarization wave under arbitrary interference angle without any dielectric tensor constraint, which is further verified by experimental analysis.


In this study, effect of anisole additive into the diesel fuel on performance and emission parameters of diesel engines was investigated. Instead of structural changes which are more difficult and expensive, development of fuel technologies is preferred to provide reduction on exhaust gas emissions which are harmful to environment and human health. Therefore, in this experimental study, anisole was used as additive into diesel fuel with the volumetric ratio of 1,5%, 3% and 5%. The performance characteristics and exhaust emissions of a four cylinder, four stroke, naturally aspirated, water cooled, direct injection compression ignition engine fueled with modified fuels were analyzed. Engine was subjected constant speed, full load conditions during tests. Engine power, torque, specific fuel consumption, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide and carbon dioxide emissions were measured and results were evaluated. Changes in performance parameters were negligible for all ratios of modified fuels except specific fuel consumption. Finally, while carbon monoxide gas emissions were increased with anisole additive, carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide gas emissions were decreased.


Experimentation in my work means performing experiments based on computer-based models, which describe system structure and behaviour abstractly. Often, these systems do not exist in reality yet or can not be explored directly for other reasons. Hence, instead of the system itself models of the system will be explored (with a certain goal). These models are executed in special computing environments (usual simulation systems) to get model observations. Systematic experimentation using model input parameter variation assignments leads to lots of possibly long-running experiments that must be planned, documented, automated executed, monitored and evaluated. The problem is, that experimenters (who are usually not computer scientists) miss the proper means of expressions (e. g., to express variations of parameter assignments) to describe experimentation processes formally in a way, that allows their automatic execution by a computer system while preserving reproducibility, re-usability and comprehension (summarized as transparency). An existing approach to tackle this problem is using a scientific workflow management system (S-WfMS), which is applicable, since the process of experimentation can be defined as a specifically structured scientific process that comprises the ordered phases planning, execution and evaluation of experiments. A formalization of such a process is further called as experimentation workflow (a specialization of a scientific workflow). A S-WfMS is flexible enough to handle experimentation workflows, while using only the concepts of data and control flow. It contains no knowledge about the semantics of the data and how it is related to the model or the experimentation aim. This is problematic, because experimenters are focused on the aim. My approach is to identify general experimentation workflow concepts and formalize them as a meta-model-based domain-specific language (DSL) that I call experimentation language (ExpL). experimentation language (ExpL) includes general workflow concepts like control flow and the composition of activities, and it allows modeling of experimentation workflows on a framework-independent, conceptional level. This approach is based on the idea to apply the paradigm of model driven engineering also to the domain of experimentation workflows. Hence, re-using and sharing the experimentation workflow with other scientists is not limited to a particular framework anymore. Therefore, it is easier to switch the particular framework that executes the model because the experimentation description does not need to be re-implemented. This is useful in order to follow different experimentation aims if the type of the model supports switching the framework. ExpL includes common workflow concepts like activities and resources, but provides declarative elements in order to support parameter studies properly, too. This is a novelty that helps


The article deals with the problems of acquired valvular disorders. It mainly focuses on the new findings regarding ethiopathogenesis, diagnostics, evaluation and treatment, especially catheterization. In advanced countries, post-rheumatic abnormalities have almost disappeared, their current etiology has substantially changed (mitral stenosis). The earlier relatively rare degenerative changes now predominate, mainly affecting older patients (aortic stenosis). Also the treatment methods for acquired abnormalities have substantially changed - currently catheterization approaches are used more frequently in their correction.Key words: aortic regurgitation - aortic stenosis - echocardiography for valvular abnormalities - magnetic resonance abnormalities - mitral regurgitation - mitral stenosis - valve replacement.