Abstract Myiasis (maggot infestation) is a condition in which fly maggots feed off and develop in the tissues of living organisms. Most common in tropical and subtropical regions, human myiasis, is prevalent among individuals in close association of domestic animals and those inhabiting the unhygienic conditions. We, hereby, describe a rare case of cerebral myiasis (17th in the world, 3rd in India) that presented to our institution in Eastern India secondary in the operated site of craniotomy and burr hole few years back. Cerebral myiases are exceedingly rare conditions, especially in high-income countries with only 17 previously published cases with the reported mortality as high as 6 out of 7 cases dying of the disease. We additionally also present a compiled review of previous case literatures to highlight the comparative clinical, epidemiological features and outcome of such cases. Although rare, brain myiasis should be a differential diagnosis of surgical wound dehiscence in developing countries where conditions do exist in this country that permit myiasis. This differential diagnosis should be remembered, particularly when the classic signs of inflammation are not present.


An experiment was conducted to investigate the effect of screw speed, feeding head speed, and the nature and type of granular material on the productivity and power consumption of a screw conveyor, and then determine the optimal speed. This experiment contains two parts. Part one was designed with 11 levels of screw speed (100-600r/min, interval 50r/min), three levels of feeding head speed (60,80 and 100r/min), and two kinds of granular materials (fine sand and soybeans). Part two was designed with 11 levels of screw speed (20-140r/min, interval 20r/min), three levels of feeding head speed (300,400 and 500r/min), and two kinds of granular materials (fine sand and soybeans). The results indicated that with the increase of the screw speed, the conveying performance will not always get better; with the rise of the feeding head speed, the conveying performance will get better. Due to the higher bulk density of sand, the productivity of conveying sand is higher for granular materials. Finally, for sand, the result indicates when the screw speed is 400r/min, and the feeding head speed is 120r/min, the conveying performance of sand determined by the productivity and power consumption is the best; for soybean, when the screw speed is 300r/min, and the feeding head speed is 140r/min, the conveying performance is the best.


Effective time planning is very important in determining a success of any project. Thus, without proper time controlling will cause project delay and consequently budgeted cost overrun. In this project, VOC port trust of Tuticorin is considered. It had only four lanes which were not sufficient to tolerate the traffic. For this purpose an alternate arrangement of a six lanes is constructed. The work carried out was not done by proper planning, scheduling and resource allocation. So, that the resources were wasted and the time was extended. For reducing this wastage in time. It can be done by using the primavera p6 software. In this project, the planning, scheduling, resource allocation, cost and time management were of done by using primavera P6 software. This software improves the quality of construction with stipulated cost and time. Finally implementation of sequence can be done by using minimum time, cost and resources.


We demonstrate integrated optical mirrors in alumina-based waveguides on oxidized silicon substrates. The finite-element method (FEM) is employed for the design of mirrors operating between 1.31 and 1.55 /spl mu/m at both fundamental polarizations. Excellent agreement between measurement and simulation is achieved for the dispersion behavior of the device. The highly polarization-dependent scattering loss at the reflecting interface is well predicted considering approximate values for the reactive ion etching (RIE) process induced surface roughness.


Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the commonest cause of menstrual disorder in teenagers. Insulin resistance reportedly is associated with high androgen levels and related symptoms including anovulation and oligomenorrhea. More than half of teenage girls with PCOS are obese, and many of them later develop type 2 diabetes. This study assessed the effects of the insulin-lowering drug metformin in 18 obese girls 15-18 years of age who received a diagnosis of PCOS based on consensus criteria. Starting on days 6-8 of induced menstrual bleeding, participants received metformin in tablet form in a daily dose of 1700 mg for 6 months and were followed for 6 months longer. Two girls withdrew from the study because of side effects. The remaining 16 had improved menstrual cyclicity during follow-up. Once-a-month menstrual bleeding returned within 30 days of the start of the second month of treatment. The menstrual periods were ovulatory, as evidenced by increased luteal-phase progesterone levels and significantly lower androgen concentrations. Hirsutism decreased significantly, and in several instances acne and seborrhea were alleviated. Body mass indices decreased to within normal limits in all girls. Levels of luteinizing hormone (LH) and the LH/follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) ratio decreased significantly, while levels of sex hormone-binding globulin rose significantly. Levels of total testosterone, free testosterone, and androstenedione all declined significantly during metformin therapy. Basal fasting insulin levels during treatment were less than 5 mIU/liter. Ovulation continued during follow-up, with progesterone levels exceeding 5000 pg/mL in all instances. Metformin has favorable effects on ovulation in moderately obese adolescents with PCOS. It may well be a more appropriate treatment than estrogen and progestin in these patients, not only promoting ovulation but relieving symptoms of hyperandrogenism.


. We consider the Fix-Caginalp equation with the Neumann boundary condition in R n with n = 1 , 2 , 3. We obtain a global solution by the existence of the Lyapunov function. After, we construct a dynamical system corresponding to the equation. By the existence of the Lyapunov function, the ω -limit set is included in the set of its stationary solution. We treat its dynamical properties such as a global attractor, absorbing set, exponential attractor and so on. It is important to obtain the estimate independent of the initial value. Finally, we construct an exponential attractor.


Colleges worldwide have identified racial diversity as a vital dimension of their educational experience. Institutions might increase their level of diversity by addressing the problem of perceived social estrangement among minorities: studies have shown that this is an important factor in minority retention. One approach is to deliberately construct integrated social groups for students at the beginning of their college experience. These early interactions, aimed at reducing the social segregation of the population, may lead to lasting friendships between students of different races, and then bear further fruit later as different cultures and attitudes interact in positive ways. In this paper we describe an agent-based simulation of a college student body in which students form dyadic and group connections and change their preferences in response to their peers. We describe how the model can be used to study the impact of institutional policies on overall degree of segregation.


Highly nonlinear cob-web photonic crystal fibers are engineered to have dispersion profiles for efficient direct degenerate four-wave mixing and optimized supercontinuum generation with low-power picosecond pulses. This process is robust to fiber irregularities.


Social relationships are an essential component of community living for any individual, especially those with developmental disabilities. Many researchers have touched on the topic of social inclusion, but few inquiries have examined the experiences of the adult population or the viewpoint of persons with disabilities themselves. The purpose of this book is to explore the social relationships that persons with developmental disabilities of all ages have in school, work, and leisure settings. In an attempt to further describe the social experiences of the persons with disabilities, six cases of different developmental stages were chosen and interviews, using arts-based techniques (i.e., participant-produced drawings), were conducted with the six key participants. Each participant's "story" was presented as a case study, and cross-case comparisons were made. Within each case, several types of relationships including friendships, family relationships, relationships with support personnel, and community relationships were described in detail. Benefits and challenges of social inclusion for persons with disabilities as well as other community members were reported.


In principle, coatings made by brazing is a process variant of brazing which can be classified as high-temperature brazing. It is a thermal process which is carried out either without flux in a vacuum or under inert gas with tapes/slurries/pastes/powders with a liquidus temperature generally above 900 °C. In this process, no components are firmly connected to each other but brazeable materials are applied which, after the heat treatment process, produce a metallic, material-tight coating. The most commonly used filler matrix materials are nickel-based ones, cobalt, iron, copper-based ones or corresponding alloys. Hard materials are mixed in depending on the coating function. Carbides, silicides, borides, oxides, diamonds, CBn or hard material mixtures can be used as hard materials. Common industrial used hard materials are WC, CrC or NbC. Hard material proportions in the coating can be up to 80 Vol.%. Actual developments show contents up to 90 Vol.% and more. Depending on the application, layer matrix hardnesses are flexibly adjustable from 20-30 HRC to 62-65 HRC. The coating produced can therefore perform various functions. For this reason, they are also called functional coatings. For example, hard material particles introduced into the matrix can be firmly brazed onto the surface of the component and thus take on a wear protection or gripping function. Alternatively, worn components such as moulds or turbine blades can be recontoured by brazing suitable materials as tapes or slurries into the wear areas and then reworking them. The coatings are very dense and crack-free and are therefore also very suitable for corrosion protection, even at high temperatures. In contrast to deposit welding, the deposit-brazed coatings are relatively smooth and often do not need to be reworked or ground. The strength of high-temperature brazed hard material coatings can reach the strength of the base materials. This results in a highly stressable layered composite. 2D and 3D geometries can be coated both internally and externally. Coating thicknesses are usually ranging from 1.0 up to 4.0 mm. Minimum layer thicknesses of 0.05-0.1 mm up to 10 mm and more can be achieved. Recent developments also show the possibility of locally brazing on applied tapes or suspensions using laser energy without having to heat the entire component. By selecting appropriate morphologies of the starting powders for braze matrix materials and hard materials, the coating system can be specifically optimised and adapted for the respective application. In addition, work is being carried out on systems in which "signaling elements" are incorporated into the coating in order to record the condition of a surface during operation. For example, forces, wear or temperature. The lecture gives an overview of selected processes, materials and applications and an outlook on new developments.


Considering demand influenced by government's subsidy, retail price, random factor, objective functions of maximizing expected profit are suggested to supplier and retailer, equilibrium solutions of supplier's wholesale price, retailer's retail price and order quantity are available based on Stackelberg game model, following conclusions are drawn by theoretical and numerical analysis, wholesale price, retail price, average demand, order quantity, profit increase with government's subsidy; consumer's expense price decreases with government's subsidy. which means subsidy can boost demand, increase enterprise's profit, reduce consumer's cost, therefore, subsidy policy is favorable to government, enterprises and consumer. Key words: Government's subsidy; Manufacturer; Retailer; Stackelberg game


In this study, we constructed an assessment framework that was consisted of 9 indicators about functional, economic and public value for FOSS4G adoption to NSDI and alternatives such as data sharing, data management, utilization and construction and derived relative weights using AHP method. For the AHP, we conducted a survey to developing countries' 10 respondents from 9 Asian and Latin American countries. Firstly, result of the survey showed that economic value indicator came in the highest weight with 0.425, followed by functional value indicator with 0.345 and public value indicator with 0.230. Secondly, result of the alternatives analysis showed that data sharing alternative came in the highest adoption rate with 0.824, followed by data management with 0.780, data utilization with 0.778. This means that developing countries want to introduce FOSS4G to their NSDI from economic motivation. This study focused on the comprehensive aspect for adopting FOSS4G to NSDI that is different from the previous researches that were focused on the software engineering aspect to the adoption.


C-terminus of S19 ribosomal protein (RP S19) endows the cross-linked homodimer with a dual effect on the C5a receptor in leucocyte chemoattraction; agonistic effect on the monocyte receptor, and antagonistic effect on the neutrophil receptor. C5a exhibits the uniform agonistic effect on this receptor of both cell types. We have currently prepared a recombinant C5a-chimeric protein bearing the C-terminus of RP S19 (C5a/RP S19 chimera) to be used as a substitute of the RP S19 dimer. In vitro, this chimera similarly inhibited the intracellular Ca(2+) mobilization of neutrophils induced by C5a to the RP S19 dimer did. In the guinea pig skin, 10(-7) M C5a/RP S19 chimera exhibited an inhibitory capacity to the neutrophil infiltration induced by 3 x 10(-7) M C5a without enhancing monocyte infiltration. In reverse passive Arthus reaction, the neutrophil infiltration associated with plasma extravasation was significantly reduced by the simultaneous administration of 10(-7) M C5a/RP S19 chimera with antibodies. The C5a/RP S19 chimera is a useful tool not only to examine the molecular mechanism that underlies the functional difference of the C5a receptor between monocytes and neutrophils, but also to prevent C5a-mediated hyper-response of neutrophils in acute inflammation.


Photonic cross-connects (PXC) play a key role in all-optical transparent networks. In this paper, the optical design and modeling of a three-dimensional microelectromechanical system (3-D MEMS) based optical switch are discussed. Basic design rules and considerations are reviewed and used to determine the optimum configuration for free-space optical switches with more than 300 ports. The optical performance of a 256 /spl times/ 256 PXC system, including a 347 /spl times/ 347 nonblocking core switch and auxiliary 2 /spl times/ 2 optical switches for 1:1 protection and optical taps for power monitoring, is presented. The core switch has 1.4-dB median insertion loss, 1.5-dB wavelength dependent loss across a broadband of 1260-1625 nm, and a typical polarization dependent loss of 0.1 dB. Environmental tests including temperature and vibration are described.


This paper studies the problem of service allocation and scheduling of real-time messages in peer-to-peer wireless networks. Using stochastic network theory and optimization we propose a model that allows us to design a dynamic service allocation algorithm that maximizes the total network utility while meeting deadline constraints, by appealing to connections between Lagrange multipliers and deficits in service. The model allows for general interference constraints and arrival models. Using simulations we compare our algorithm against an optimal solution proposed for scheduling persistent real-time traffic and show the limitations of that approach to handle real-time messages for providing fairness.


Based on the association of certain histocompatibility Class I antigens with uveitis in patients from the Republic of Bashkortostan it has been proven that HLA B27 and B47 and haplotype A2B47 should be considered to be the markers responsible for the occurrence of uveitis in systemic and syndromic diseases. The greatest relative risk of herpetic anterior and posterior uveitis is associated with HLA B44 and B51 antigens; the risk of anterior and posterior uveitis is related to HLA B27 and HLA A28, A29 and B53, respectively. The findings permit improvement of the quality of early diagnosis of these diseases and are recommended for use in ophthalmological practice.


Vehicular Ad-hoc NETworks (VANETs) are witnessing an ever increasing interest. Security is a key aspect to pave the road to commercial deployments, as malicious attacks may increase the risk of accidents. Key management in VANETs poses further problems, as connectivity is limited and communication with a central certification authority might be problematic. In this paper, we propose a novel approach to key management for securing VANET communications. In particular, a general framework for key group multicast is proposed, with specific application to a VANET communication scenario.


This paper deals with the issue of current changes in accounting legislation in the context of international harmonization. The ever-increasing process of globalization, development of international co-operation, foreign participation in domestic enterprises, and capital ties lead to the need to harmonize information from financial reporting so that it is internationally comparable. The paper aims to describe changes in the accounting of accounting entities resulting from the amendment of the Czech accounting legislation with effect from 1 January 2016. The new accounting regulation of the Czech legislation enabled the implementation of the European Union legislation, European Directive No. 2013/34/EU in particular, and increased compatibility with IAS/IFRS accounting system, which corresponds with the general efforts to harmonize accounting systems.


In this study, motion planning and control scheme for a cooperative transportation system, which consists of a single object and multiple autonomous non-holonomic mobile robots, is proposed. Virtual leader-follower formation control strategy is used for the cooperative transportation system. The object is assumed as the virtual leader of the system and the robots carrying the object are considered as follower robots. A smooth path is generated by considering the constraints of the virtual robot. The origin of the coordinate system attached to the center of gravity of the object tracks the generated path. A path for each follower robot is generated to keep the formation structure. The follower robots track their paths. A communication framework is used for the messaging between robots, and asymptotically stable tracking control is used for trajectory tracking. The proposed method is verified with real applications and simulations using Pioneer P3-DX mobile robots and a single object.


Diesel oil-degrading yeast strains isolated from mangrove rhizosphere at Tritih Kulon, Cilacap had been screened with SMSS medium. Four culturable yeast were isolated. Qualitative test was conducted by culturing and incubating the yeasts for one month in a medium added with 1mL diesel oil. By measuring the reduction of diesel oil, two best yeasts were selected. The quantitative test, GC-MS analysis, was conducted to determine the detailed degradation process of diesel oil. Candida lusitaniae and Cryptococcus laurentii performed the degradative ability. Three highest percent area of hydrocarbon compounds were compared for assessment. The results showed that C. lusitanie had better degradative capability than C. laurentii, in which hexadecane and methyl hexadecanoate decreased by 90–95%, and 9octadecenoic acid, methyl ester declined by 30–40%. The increasing pH medium during incubation suggested that fermentation process occurred.


Background Esophageal carcinoma is an invasive malignancy with a poor prognosis. Inflammatory cells are related to the prognosis in many malignancies; however, the prognostic values of preoperative neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), lymphocyte-monocyte ratio (LMR) and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCCs) are contentious. Methods We performed a retrospective study on 178 patients who had proven ESCC and underwent R0 resection. A complete peripheral blood cell count on all patients 1 week before surgery was used to calculate NLR, LMR and PLR. All patients were grouped by the median count of NLR, LMR and PLR respectively. Kaplan-Meier curves were adopted to test the difference of overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) between the high group of NLR, LMR and PLR and the low group. All data analysis was performed by SPSS. P<0.05 was assigned to admit statistical significance. Results The median follow-up after the surgery was 39 months. The preoperative LMR showed no significant association with the OS [hazard ratio (HR) =0.733, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.397–1.353, P=0.321] and DFS (HR =0.850, 95% CI: 0.491–1.473, P=0.562). Neither NLR nor PLR exhibited a significant correlation with OS or DFS. Conclusions NLR, LMR, and PLR could not take the roles of prognostic biomarkers for patients with operable ESCCs.


LIUM participated in the System Combination task of the Fifth Workshop on Statistical Machine Translation (WMT 2010). Hypotheses from 5 French/English MT systems were combined with MANY, an open source system combination software based on confusion networks currently developed at LIUM. The system combination yielded significant improvements in BLEU score when applied on WMT'09 data. The same behavior has been observed when tuning is performed on development data of this year evaluation.


Ann Saudi Med 28(2) March-April 2008 www.saudiannals.net 145 Abu AlWalid Muhammad Ibn Ahmad Ibn Muhammad Ibn Rushd, known in the West as Averroës or Avén Ruiz or Averrhoes, was born in 1126 A.D. in Cordova (once the capital of Moorish Spain), and died in Marrakech, Morocco (Capital of the Almohad or al-Muwahhidun dynasty) on December, 10, 1198 A.D. Akin to many Arab and Muslim physicians and scholars we discussed in this series,1-6 Ibn Rushd was a true polymath, with knowledge, expertise and genuine contributions to philosophy, islamic law ( jurisprudence), medicine, astronomy, mathematics, physics and geography. Not surprisingly, he became known as the "Prince of Science". Ibn Rushd was a descendent of distinguished family of scholars, excelling in Quranic studies and theology, and with a long and well-respected tradition of legal and public service. Ibn Rushd is sometimes referred to the grandson (Al-Hafid), since his grandfather who carried the same name, used to be the grand judge (Qadi) of Cordoba. Ibn Rushd (the grandfather) was the author of a famous treatise in Maliki jurisprudence, the kitab al-Mugad Dimat al Mumahhidat. Ibn Rushd's father, Abu Al-Qasim Ahmad was also a Qadi.7 It was Ibn Tufail (Abubacer), the philosophic vizier of Almohad Caliph Abu Yaqub Yusuf, who introduced Ibn Rushd to the court. In 1169 A.D., Ibn Rushd was appointed a judge in Seville and in 1171 A.D., he was transferred to Cordova, where he held the position of a judge (Qadi) for ten years. During that time, he wrote commentaries and interpretations on the works of Aristotle, among others on Metaphysics, and on Plato's Politeia. In 1182 A.D., he was called to Marrakesh to work as a personal physician for the Caliph there, but he was soon transferred back to Cordova with the title of Great Qadi (Chief Judge). Ibn Rushd fell out of favor with the Caliph due to the opposition that theologians had raised against his writings. He was accused of heresy, interrogated and banned to Lucena, close to Cordova. At the same time (1195 A.D.), the Caliph ordered the books of Ibn Rushd to be burnt, with the exception of his works on medicine, arithmetic and elementary asIbn Rushd (Averroës): Prince of Science


Artificial intelligence (AI) can play an important role is in early diagnosis of complications, adherence to a healthy lifestyle and medication, real-time monitoring for optimal glycemic status and predictive prognostic model for the diabetic status of a patient. The early recognition and management of the complications (acute as well as chronic) in diabetes predict the quality of life  (QoL) of a patient. The promising results of AI in the early diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy have opened the frontiers for management of other complications as well. Although flash glucose monitoring (FGMs) and continuous glucose monitoring(CGMs) are yet to be used in routine clinical practice but these modalities do hold promise in future for management of diabetes. Automated diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy (DR) and cardiovascular risk factor monitoring are now possible based on the large retinal fundus imag-ing datasets with improved sensitivity and specificity. Smart-phones and smart devices do have the potential to bring the monitoring and early diagnosis of complications of diabetes into the patient's domain with the use of applications on their smart devices which will make future management of diabetes as an "e-disease management". AI applications offer greater accuracy, efficiency, ease of use and satisfaction and can complement the management and early identifi-cation of complication of diabetes in long run.


The conversion efficiency of black-dye-based dye-sensitized solar cell (DSC) was improved by cosensitization with organic dye (NKX-2553 or D131). This improved conversion efficiency was further enhanced by employing deoxycholic acid (DCA) as a coadsobent. The highest conversion efficiency, 11.6% under AM 1.5 irradiation (100 mW cm−2), was obtained in DSC with black dye and D131 in the presence of DCA.


The purpose of this study was to test if associations exist between plasma indicators of acute and chronic stress and lamb loin Warner Bratzler Shear Force (WBSF). Blood was collected at exsanguination from 2877 lambs from the Meat and Livestock Genetic Research fl ock with a suite of indicators analysed. Loin ( M. longissimus lumborum ) WBSF was measured after 5 days aging. Plasma indicators of stress did not relate to WBSF, however a positive association was found between WBSF and kill order, indicating that immediate pre-slaughter factors may be causing reduced tenderness in lamb. In addition, selection for decreased fat depth (PFAT) was associated with increased loin WSBF, indicating that genetic selection for increased carcass leanness is negatively a ff ecting lamb loin tenderness.


During the distillation of the fermented fruit mash or juice, ethanol and water are the carriers of a huge number of the other volatile aroma compounds. Unique and distinctive flavour of the final spirits depends on their quantity and quality. Fruit spirits have higher concentration of almost all types of volatile compounds with comparing to other types of distilled spirits. The art of distillation run is to obtain the best balance between congeners present. Two different types of distillation equipment are used for the production of fruit spirits: copper Charentais alembic and batch distillation columns. Although both distillation methods are based on the same theoretical principles, a different quantity of the flavour compounds of the final spirits is produced by using different distillation equipment. The main difference was shown in different distributions of the methanol, n-propanol, higher alcohols and fatty acid esters. Distillation methods need to be adjusted for each fruit spirits regardless to distillation equipment employed because fermented mash of different fruit varieties has a different requirement for distilling. Alembic stills yield better aroma and more characteristic fruit distillates but are slow and require more labour. Column still cleans the distillate giving a decent aroma and higher concentration of alcohol.


INTRODUCTION
Intravenous (IV) thrombolysis with alteplase (rt-PA) is effective in ischaemic stroke. The primary objective was to evaluate predictors of functional outcome in acute ischaemic stroke (AIS) patients treated with IV rt-PA. The secondary objective was to assess the outcome with the modified Rankin scale (mRS). We also examined the predictive value of the Totaled Health Risks in Vascular Events (THRIVE) score.

METHODS
AIS patients treated with IV rt-PA from February 2012 to August 2016 were recruited. Demographic data, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores, timing and neuroradiological findings were recorded. Patients received a dose of 0.9 mg/kg IV rt-PA within 4.5 hours of symptom onset. mRS score was evaluated at discharge and three months, and good and poor clinical outcomes were defined as scores of 0-2 and 3-6, respectively. Baseline THRIVE scores were assessed.

RESULTS
36 patients received IV rt-PA. 20 (55.6%) patients had an mRS score of 0-2 at three months. Based on THRIVE score, 86.1% had a good or moderately good prognosis. On univariate analysis, poor outcome was associated with NIHSS score before rt-PA (p = 0.03), THRIVE score (p = 0.02), stroke subtype (p = 0.049) and diabetes mellitus (DM; p = 0.06). Multiple logistic regression showed that outcome was significantly associated with NIHSS score before rt-PA (p = 0.032) and DM (p = 0.010).

CONCLUSION
Our newly developed Malaysian IV rt-PA service is safe, with similar outcomes to the published literature. Functional outcome after thrombolysis was associated with baseline NIHSS score and DM.


Stress-strain diagrams of standardizised longitudinal and transversal stripes of the thoracic aorta of 125 male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 9, 15, 24 and 30 months were recorded by an electromechanical instrument. The stripes were subjected to three successive extension-relaxation cycles. The relaxation curves of the third cycle were approximated to the functions y = a + bx and y = cxd (longitudinal stripes) and y = mxf and y = gxh (transversal stripes) respectively. The parameters could be interpreted as measures for structural and functional properties of elastic and collagenous fibers. The age changes of the curve parameters led to the following conclusions concerning age-dependent functional alterations of the aorta: The emphasis can be placed upon the increasing resistance counteracting the extension occuring with great stroke volumes. This may lead to the reduction of the capacity of the air chamber with great stroke volumes. These phenomena seem to be mainly caused by an increase of the pitch of the spiral of the collagenic fiber and the increase of the amount and/or the stability of the collagen. Age-related alterations of the elastin and of the net structure formed by the fibers influence also the distensibility at smaller extensions but seem to be less important. Therefore, the structural alterations of the aorta with age will affect the function in the first place at large stroke volumes and not be very obvious at a basic heart performance.


The evolving chemical and physical form of radon progeny influence their transport to the bioreceptor and the extent to which that receptor can take up these species into various tissues. When first born following radioactive decay processes, the potentially deleterious radon progeny undergo various physical and chemical transformations as they transcend from a highly charged to a neutral state, and interact with various constituents of the environment. These transformations impact on the extent to which the radon progeny become associated with aerosol particles on the one hand, and their ultimate chemical form that is available for uptake in the biosystem, on the other. The program, which originally commenced in 1987, dealt with the basic chemistry and physics of radon progeny and hence impacted on several themes of importance to the DOE/OHER radon program. One of these is dose response, which is governed by the physical forms of the radon progeny, their transport to the bioreceptor and the chemical forms that govern their uptake. The second theme had to do with cellular responses, one of the major issues motivating the work. It is well known that various sizes of ions and molecules are selectively transported across cell membrane to differing degrees. This ultimately has to do with their chemical and physical forms, charge and size. The overall objective of the work was threefold: (1) quantifying the mechanisms and rates of the chemical and physical transformation; (2) ascertaining the ultimate chemical forms, and (3) determining the potential interactions of these chemical species with biological functional groups to ascertain their ultimate transport and incorporation within cells.


To study whether the estimated date of confinement (EDC) for women with optimal menstrual histories is predicted best from the last menstrual period (LMP) or biparietal diameter (BPD), 2320 women had the EDC estimated by both LMP and BPD measured Sonographically in the second trimester. Those who delivered after the spontaneous onset of labor are reported here. Compared with the EDC calculated from the LMP, the EDC calculated from the BPD was postponed more than 1 week for 406 women (17.5%) and advanced more than 1 week for 56 (2.4%). For these women, the BPD estimate of EDC turned out to be closer to the day of delivery in 264 cases, whereas the LMP estimate was closer in 125 (P<.001). For 73 women, the estimates were equally good. For 80.1% of the women, the two estimates of EDC differed by 1 week or less; in these cases, the estimates were equally good in predicting the day of delivery. We conclude that the BPD is a better predictor of the spontaneous onset of labor than is the LMP.


This paper presents a kind of reliable low-leakage cache – RC-Cache, to solve the problem of high soft error rate in low-leakage on-chip caches. The proposed structure combines circuit technique and micro-architecture technique, and can reduce impacts of soft errors on leakage power optimization technique of caches. At circuit level, we improve the soft error immune of SRAM through specially designed soft error immune SRAM cell – SI-SRAM; at microarchitecture level, we reduce the soft error vulnerability of low-leakage caches by burst-based access prediction and early write-back operation. Experimental results show that in normal mode, soft error rate of RC-Cache is only 1/7 of the conventional cache, and in drowsy mode it is just 2/5. The techniques significantly improve the reliability of caches and, to a certain extent, mitigate soft error problem of low-leakage on-chip caches.


The security plans for many DOE facilities require the monitoring of pedestrians and vehicles to control the movement of special nuclear material (SNM). Vehicle monitors often provide the outer-most barrier against the theft of SNM. Automatic monitors determine the presence of SNM by comparing the gamma-ray and neutron intensity while occupied, to the continuously updated background radiation level which is measured while the unit is unoccupied. The most important factors in choosing automatic vehicle monitors are sensitivity, cost and in high traffic applications total monitoring time. The two types of automatic vehicle monitors presently in use are the vehicle monitoring station and the drive-through vehicle monitor. These two types have dramatically different cost and sensitivities. The vehicle monitoring station has a worst-case detection sensitivity of 40 g of highly enriched uranium, HEU, and a cost approximately $180k. This type of monitor is very difficult to install and can only be used in low traffic flow locations. The drive-through vehicle portal has a worst-case detection sensitivity of 1 kg of HEU and a cost approximately $20k. The world`s political situation has created a pressing need to prevent the diversion of SNM from FSU nuclear facilities and across international borders. Drive-through vehicle monitors would be an effective and practical nuclear material proliferation deterrent if their sensitivity can be improved to a sufficient level. The goal of this project is to evaluate different detector configurations as a means of improving the sensitivity of these instruments to achieve a vehicle monitor that is economical, practical to install, and has adequate sensitivity to be an effective barrier to illegal transportation of SNM.


This paper focuses on the review of major target sites in both the host organism and the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus and the inhibitors that have been screened so far to unravel possible treatment agents. In this review, four major target sites were found to be the main sites where the design of possible inhibitors and treatment interventions could be probed. The four major sites that were reviewed include main protease, transmembrane protease, serine 2, RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2. Several existing drug candidates have been screened as inhibitors of the reviewed target sites and could serve as lead agents, prodrugs, and prospects for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019. In this review, several inhibitors such as chloroquine (CQ) and hydroxychloroquine have gone through the clinical trial phase and are being utilized for the management of the disease. Drug candidates such as CQ, derivatives, remdesivir, and favipiravir have been used for the treatment of infected persons with 100% recovery rate. It is, therefore, imperative that further structural activity relationship and modifications be carried out using these drug candidates as models for synthesizing new analogues as treatment options. © 2021 Bright Vigbedor et al. All Rights Reserved.


The postmortem levels of biogenic amines in cerebrospinal fluid may represent a useful tool in defining some pathological conditions; no information is available concerning the occurrence of trace amines in postmortem cerebrospinal fluid. Thus, the occurrence of octopamine, synephrine and tyramine were evaluated by using a HPLC system in 20 postmortem samples of cerebrospinal fluid (obtained from 11 males and 9 females) and their levels were compared with those of 20 living subjects (obtained from 11 males and 9 females). The results show that trace amines dramatically increase in the postmortem cerebrospinal fluid (100, 20, and 4 fold increase for tyramine, octopamine, and synephrine respectively). To our knowledge, our data represent the first time trace amines have been identified in postmortem cerebrospinal fluid and the dramatic increase observed for tyramine has the potential of becoming a new tool in forensic science for better defining the time of death.


Abstract A look at the library literature shows that there is no longer a consensus among library administrators as to what is a public services function and what is a technical services function. It seems that many libraries have adapted not only to respond to budget cuts and to meet the needs of their patrons, but also to capitalize on the unique combination of skills of their own librarians. Are the skills required for a technical services librarian at odds with those that make a good reference librarian? Are there some skills that cross over well into each area? What skills can a librarian gain by broadening his or her job responsibilities? This paper seeks to explore the requisite skills needed for success in reference and cataloging, and how cross-training might enhance those skills. Negative aspects of blurring the departments will also be considered. Finally, the author proposes a flexible approach to developing job descriptions for librarians, based on their personal skills, aptitudes, and interests.


This article analyses the majority and minority positions in the Constitutional Court's Glenister v President of the Republic of South Africa and Others decision. It will identify the main differences in approach to the issue of the political 'independence' of an investigative agency such as the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks), and its predecessor, the Directorate of Special Operations (Scorpions). The article assesses what 'room for manoeuvre' in terms of possible legislation the majority judgment leaves to the South African parliament. The Court's approach and these apparent requirements are compared with current provisions for political 'independence' of anti-corruption agencies in Australia and Indonesia, raising, in particular, an assessment of the arguments for and against (a) the need for an anti-corruption investigative agency to be separate from the 'regular' police and prosecution service; and (b) the proposition that an anti-corruption investigative agency requires a higher level of political independence than the 'regular' police service(s). It also looks at issues of cost and effectiveness in establishing and maintaining dedicated independent anti-corruption agencies.


Approximately 50% of colorectal cancer patients will develop metastases during the course of the disease. Local or locoregional therapies for the treatment of liver metastases are used in the management of oligometastatic colorectal liver disease, especially in nonsurgical candidates. Thermal ablation (TA) is recommended in the treatment of limited liver metastases as free-standing therapy or in combination with surgery as long as all visible disease can be eradicated. Percutaneous TA has been proven as a safe and efficacious therapy offering sustained local tumor control and improved patient survival. Continuous technological advances in diagnostic imaging and guidance tools, the evolution of devices allowing for optimization of ablation parameters, as well as the ability to perform margin assessment have improved the efficacy of ablation. This allows resectable small volume diseases to be cured with percutaneous ablation. The ongoing detailed information and increasing understanding of tumor biology, genetics, and tissue biomarkers that impact oncologic outcomes as well as their implications on the results of ablation have further allowed for treatment customization and improved oncologic outcomes even in those with more aggressive tumor biology. The purpose of this review is to present the most common indications for image-guided percutaneous ablation in colorectal cancer liver metastases, to describe technical considerations, and to discuss relevant peer-reviewed evidence on this topic. The growing role of imaging and image-guidance as well as controversies regarding several devices are addressed.


Background: Association of extragonadal germ cell tumors EGCT with haematological malignancies is rare with a very limited prognosis.
Methods and findings: We report a case of a man, 21 years old, with progressive dyspnea, chest pain, night sweats, generalized edema, hemoptysis, pancytopenia and increased serum levels of alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), beta-fraction of the hormone chorionic gonodotrophin (beta-HCG) and lactic dehydrogenase. Chest computed tomography described a mediastinum mass measuring 11.3 x 7.3 cm whose biopsy revealed malignant germ cell neoplasia expressing positivity for cytokeratin, CD30 and AFP, indicating an embryonal carcinoma with teratoma. Bone marrow biopsy revealed interstitial infiltration by malignant neoplastic cells positive for CD68, CD163 and lysozyme, allowing the diagnosis of histiocytic sarcoma. The patient had a poor evolution, with death, sixteen days after admission.
Conclusion: Histiocytic proliferations are very rare and rapidly fatal. Etiopathogenic theories for the simultaneity of these malignancies have been described based on processes of transformation from a same cellular precursor.


Introduction. Toxic reactions to actinomycin D found not uncommon and can be often. However, side effects are usually reversible upon discontinuation of treatment. The aim of our study was to compare the clinical toxicity Kosmegen (production Merck Sharp & Dohme, UK) and the drug Aknomid D (LLC «Adik», Russia ), used in various modes of chemotherapy in children with solid tumors. Materials and Methods. The study included 38 patients, from 5 months to 16 years under observation and treated with the inclusion of drug regimens Aknomid-D and Kosmegen in the Institute of Children Oncology from 2011 to 2013. Toxicity assessment was carried out on the international scale of the Modified SIOP acute and subacute toxicity. Results. In general, patients in both groups dominated myelotoxicity, wherein the 3−4 degree myelotoxicity was recorded during the first course of chemotherapy with the same frequency. Hepatotoxicity was detected more frequently in the group of patients who were given the Kosmegen, but in this group are no reported cases of serious liver injury (grade 4). There was an increase of transaminases (ALT, AST) up to 10 standards in patients in both groups. Emetic syndrome developed with the same frequency in both groups of patients. Intensity emetic syndrome did not differ. Conclusion. Domestic drug Aknonid-D in the study showed good tolerance by patients and can be recommended for use in the Russian Federation. Keywords: Kosmegen, Aknomid D, toxicity, children. (Onkopediatriya – Oncopediatrics. 2014; 1: 20-24)


We discuss the polynomial reproduction of vector subdivision schemes with general integer dilation . We first present a simple algebraic condition for polynomial reproduction of such schemes with standard subdivision symbol. We then extend it to general subdivision symbol satisfying certain order of sum rules. We also illustrate our results with several examples. Our results show that such kind of scheme can produce exactly the same scalar polynomial from which the data is sampled by convolving with a finite nonzero sequence of vectors.


Blood meal as an animal feed supplement promotes agricultural sustainability. Blood meal which is high in proteins, lacks certain nutrients hence is expected to give impact on the chicken behaviour and welfare. This study was carried out to determine the impact of blood meal supplement on chicken behaviour. The study involved 100 chickens which were bred in semi-opened poultry house for 6 weeks. At 6th week, chickens provided with fish meal (FM) only had a higher body weight compared to that of the group provided with FM and blood meal supplement (FBM). Normal behaviour such as walking, standing, feeding, drinking, dust bathing and lying down were not significantly affected by the changes in the meal (p>0.05). However, based on a single assessor assessment, FBM group displayed higher score in explore and escape characteristics, than the FM group. On the other hand, FM group displayed a slightly higher score for fear behaviour than the FBM. Findings in this study leads to the conclusion that blood meal supplement has influence on the welfare in chickens farming in terms of their exploration, fear, and escape behaviours. Therefore, amount of blood meal as animal feed supplement in poultry production should be determined carefully to avoid any potential detrimental effect on poultry welfare


In compound houses in Ghana, tenants share basic facilities such as washrooms, kitchen and electricity meter. Most tenants have problems with queuing to use facilities and equal payment for utilities. Finding solution to these problems has resulted in emerging housing improvement trends on the rental market in Ghana. Results from 88 respondents indicated that this trend has resulted in increasing urban rental values. Landlords are improving the units in their compound houses because tenants find them more convenient and are ready to pay thrice more to live in one. Rent increment is sometimes based on the personal circumstances of landlords.


The present work analyses the possible influence of the colon in weight gain of obese animals. Subtotal colectomy was performed in rats fed with standard chow or high-fat diets. The results, suggested that subtotal colectomy did not exert any effect on the % of weight gain in rats administered a high-fat diet during the whole experiment as compared to controls. Animals submitted to a high-fat diet during the pre-surgery period and to a standard diet during the post-surgery period gained a lesser % of weight gain as compared to control or high-fat fed rats, together with a decrease in this parameter in colectomized animals. These changes did not agree with average food intake in rats fed with standard or high-fat diets. Surprisingly, the increase in body weight of sham-operated or subtotal colectomized rats fed with high- fat diet cannot be explained by a diminished food intake when compared to controls. Moreover, the change in food intake after surgery showed a correlation with body weight in sham-operated animals, although this correlation disappeared in colectomized rats. Mortality only appeared in colectomized rats administered a high-fat diet. However, stool was normalized and presented normal characteristics when animals returned to be fed with their respective diet after surgery. The results of this study support the concept that the maintenance of a high fat diet may originate a decrease of the intake, overall in subtotal colectomized rats, possibly through neuroendocrine mechanisms related to gut hormones or to adaptive mechanism along the gastrointestinal tract.


IoT(Internet of Things) based underground risk assessment system surrounding water pipeline enables an advanced monitoring and prediction for unexpected underground hazards such as abrupt road-side subsidence and urban sinkholes due to a leak in water pipeline. For the development of successful assessment technology, the PSU(Water Pipeline Safety Unit) which detects the leakage and movement of water pipes. Then, the IoT-based underground risk assessment system surrounding water pipeline will be proposed. The system consists of early detection tools for underground events and correspondence services, by analyzing leakage and movement data collected from PSU. These methods must be continuous and reliable, and cover certain block area ranging a few kilometers, for properly applying to regional water supply changes.


Tandem mass spectrometric data acquired for small (8-18 kDa) intact proteins by sustained off-resonance irradiation collisionally activated dissociation (SORI-CAD) and multipole storage-assisted dissociation (MSAD) were compared, and the results indicate that the two activation methods do not always provide the same fragmentation patterns. In MSAD experiments, the charge state distribution made available by the ionization conditions may dictate the range of fragment ions that can be generated. In addition, conditions of high space charge within the hexapole impair transmission and/or trapping of high m/z species, which can result in loss of important precursor and product ions. Finally, the non-resonant nature of activation in MSAD can provide access to secondary dissociation processes that are not available by SORI. Because of these considerations, MSAD is less reliable than SORI for generating sequence tag data. However, it appears that MSAD samples 'preferred' cleavage processes (i.e. those occurring at D and P residues) just as well as SORI, which implies that MSAD data may be somewhat more compatible with search algorithms that utilize unprocessed fragment ion masses.


The in vitro formation of lymphoid (L-CFU) and myeloid (GM-CFU) colonies derived from progenitor cells circulating in blood of patients bearing kidney allografts was studied upon a stimulation with PHA and Colony Stimulating Factor. In patients undergoing acute rejection a marked reduction of L-CFU and GM-CFU was found. Chronic rejection was associated with moderate impairment of GM-CFU proliferation, while patients with stable graft function had moderately reduced L-CFU progenitors with normal level of GM-CFU cells.


Polarization mode dispersion (PMD) field measurements on deployed buried fibres showed that the PMD variation over the 1520 to 1570 nm wavelength was stochastic. The PMD variation over the 98-hour period for each wavelength was directional and limited; they are due to the presence of random mode coupling along the fibre length and limited influence from extrinsic perturbations over time, respectively. PMD variation in the wavelength domain showed that the mean first-order PMD (FO-PMD) value is independent of whether the FO-PMD statistics of a fibre link approaches the Maxwellian theoretical distribution; the key factor is sufficient random mode coupling. The accompanying second-order PMD (SO-PMD) statistics, with FO-PMD statistics approaching Maxwellian, followed the PDF given by Foschini et al. (1999). The FO- and SO-PMD statistics at a given wavelength gave nonstochastic PMD distributions with time.


Goodson and Hunt showed that wound healing is impaired in streptozotocin (Sz) diabetic rats; we speculated that this impairment results from defective early inflammatory responses to wounding. Because we had shown that supplemental vitamin A stimulates the early inflammatory response to wounding in nondiabetic rats, we studied the effect of supplemental vitamin A on wound healing in rats with Sz-induced diabetes. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were fed a commercial rat chow containing twice the amount of vitamin A recommended by the NRC for healthy rats. The rats ate and drank (tap water) ad libitum. Two-thirds of the rats were injected (intravenously) with Sz 60 mg/kg body weight. All of these rats became diabetic (hyperglycemia greater than 350 mg/dl, hyperphagic, polydipsic, polyuric, glycosuric greater than 2%). Seven days later, half of the Sz-injected rats were continued on the chow (Group 2) while the other half (Group 3) were switched to the chow supplemented with 150,000 units of vitamin A/kg chow. The next day, all were wounded (7 cm skin incisions and s.c. polyvinyl alcohol sponge implants). Similarly wounded saline injected nondiabetic rats ingesting the unsupplemented chow served as controls (Group 1). The wounds of Group 2 rats healed poorly compared to Group 1 (breaking strength of skin incisions, 308 +/- 19 g vs 584 +/- 23 g, p less than 0.001; hydroxyproline of the sponge reparative tissue, 0.87 mg vs 2.40 mg/100 mg sponge p less than 0.001). Supplemental vitamin A (Group 3) did not affect the hyperglycemia, hyperphagia, polydipsia or glycosuria, but increased the breaking strengths of the incisions of the diabetic rats (468 +/- 40 g, p less than 0.001), and the sponge hydroxyproline (2.38 mg/100 mg sponge, p less than 0.001). In another experiment, in which the wounding and start of supplemental vitamin A were delayed until 28 days after streptozotocin administration (50 mg/kg body weight), similar results were obtained. Streptozotocin diabetes also caused a decrease in the cross-linking of reparative collagen as judged by the ratio of breaking strengths of skin incisions before and after formalin fixation. Supplemental vitamin A did not influence this defect. Sz also caused peripheral lymphocytopenia, adrenal hypertrophy and thymic involution which responded to the supplemental vitamin A. Based upon experimental data and theoretical considerations we conclude Sz diabetes causes two defects in wound healing: a) quantitatively (reduction in reparative collagen accumulation) and b) qualitative reduction in the degree of cross-linking of reparative wound collagen. The action of supplemental vitamin A in correcting the impaired wound healing, adrenal enlargement, thymic involution and lymphocytopenia of Sz-diabetic rats is independent of an effect on their disturbed carbohydrate metabolism.


ABSTRACT Garvicin ML (GarML) is a circular bacteriocin produced by Lactococcus garvieae DCC43. The recently published draft genome of this strain allowed determination of the genetic background for bacteriocin production. Bioinformatic analysis identified a gene cluster consisting of nine open reading frames likely involved in the production of and immunity to GarML. The garA gene encodes the bacteriocin precursor, garX a large transmembrane protein, garBCDE a putative immunity protein (garB) followed by an ATPase and two transmembrane proteins, and garFGH a putative ABC transporter complex. Functional genetic analysis revealed that deletion of garFGH had no effect on sensitivity to or production of GarML. In contrast, deletion of garBCDE or inactivation of garX resulted in high-level sensitivity to GarML and completely abolished production of active bacteriocin. Mass spectrometry of culture supernatants revealed that wild-type cultures contained the mature circular form as well as the linear forms of the bacteriocin, both with and without the three-amino-acid leader sequence, while bacteriocin-negative mutants contained only the linear forms. These results indicate that cleavage of the leader peptide precedes circularization and is likely performed by a functional entity separate from the GarML gene cluster. To our knowledge, this is the first conclusive evidence for these processes being separated in time. Loss of immunity and antimicrobial activity in addition to our inability to detect the circular bacteriocin in the ΔgarBCDE and garX::pCG47 mutants demonstrate that both these units are indispensable for GarML biosynthesis as well as immunity. Furthermore, the results indicate that these genes are implicated in the circularization of the bacteriocin and that their functions are probably interlinked.


A novel phosphoric acid -mediated synthesis of vinyl sulfones through decarboxylative coupling reactions of sodium sulfinates with phenylpropiolic acids is described. This transformation is efficient and environmentally friendly.


Abstract Chaperonins, belonging to the T-complex protein-1 (TCP-1) family, assist in the correct folding of nascent and misfolded proteins. It is well-known that in mammals, the zeta subunit of the TCP-1 complex (TCP-1ζ) plays a vital role in the folding and assembly of cytoskeleta proteins. This study reported for the first time the cloning, characterization and expression pattern analysis of the TCP-1ζ from Musca domestica, which was named as MdTCP-1ζ. The MdTCP-1ζ cDNA is 1,803 bp long with a 1,596 bp open reading frame that encodes a protein with 531 bp amino acids. The analysis of the transcriptional profile of MdTCP-1ζ using qRT-PCR revealed relatively high expression in the salivary glands and trachea at the tissues while among the developmental stages. The highest expression was observed only in the eggs suggesting that the MdTCP-1ζ may play a role in embryonic development. The expression of MdTCP-1ζ was also significantly induced after exposure to short-term heat shock and infection by Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, or Candida albicans. This suggested that MdTCP-1ζ may take part in the immune responses of housefly and perhaps contribute to the protection against cellular injury.


A new species of the genus Neyraia Joyeux et Timon-David, 1934 is described from Egyptian wild birds; Neyraia epops from the hoopoe Upupa epops. The new species is compared and with the other related species of the genus. The erection of the new species was based primarily on differences in the number of testes and number of the rostellar hooks.


Addictions are public health menaces. However, despite advances in addiction research, the cellular or molecular mechanisms that cause transition from recreational use to addiction remain to be elucidated. We have recently suggested that addiction may be secondary to long‐term epigenetic modifications that determine the clinical course of substance use disorders. A better understanding of epigenetic mechanisms in animal models that mimic human conditions should help to usher in a new area of drug development against addiction.


Since the seminal studies of Stouffer and McClosky it has become accepted that political elites are markedly more committed to civil liberties and democratic values than is the public at large; so much so that political elites should be recognized, in McClosky's words, as 'the major repositories of the public conscience and as carriers of the Creed'. The argument of this article is that previous analyses have erred by focusing on the contrast between elites taken as a whole and the mass public. The crucial contrast is not between elites and citizens, but rather between groups of elites that are competing one with another for political power. Drawing on large-scale surveys of two modern democracies, Canada and the United States, this article demonstrates that differences among elites in support for civil liberties eclipse, both in size and political significance, differences between elites and citizens. The fallacy of democratic elitism, as this study shows, is its indifference to which elites prevail in the electoral competition for power.


The aim of this study is to identify the critical success factors, benefits, and challenges of waqf accounting in corporate Malaysia and to test the propose model of waqf accounting. This paper is to identify five dimensions of CSFs of waqf accounting (accounting procedures and standards, accountability, fund waqf, cash waqf, and financial report disclosures). This paper is also to identify five benefits of waqf accounting (financial growth, efficiency of waqf management, customer satisfaction, quality improvement, and trustworthiness). Meanwhile, three challenges of waqf accounting (waqf administration, unqualified mutawalli, and lack of Islamic accounting). Therefore, this study is focused on the critical success factors, benefits, and challenges of waqf accounting in corporate Malaysia and to propose the model of waqf accounting.


Recently, there have been many schemes for achieving high-dimensional atom localization via measuring the first-order linear susceptibility. Here, we present a new scheme for high-precision three-dimensional (3D) atom localization in a three-level atomic system based on the Kerr nonlinearity, which refers to the real part of the third-order nonlinear susceptibility. Due to the space-dependent atom-field interaction, the position information of the atom can be determined by measuring Kerr nonlinearity in 3D space. Interestingly, by properly varying the parameters of the system, we find that there is only a small sphere in 3D space, which means the probability of finding the atom at a particular position can be 100%. Our scheme not only shows a new way to achieve high-precision and high-efficiency 3D atom localization but also provides some potential applications in high-dimensional atom nanolithography.


External electromagnetic interference (EMI) in unshielded low field and portable MRI systems can swamp the signal, and various multi-detector methods have been developed to minimize it. A new EMI cancellation method designed for a single-channel receiver-system has been implemented on a 50 mT system by using the MR-inactive channel of a birdcage coil and a 180o power hybrid. This method results in up to a 97% reduction in the standard deviation of external EMI.


The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between staff members' daily chats in a refresh room during break times and their knowledge sharing in the workplace, using a subjective questionnaire survey and statistical analysis relying on a social psychological methodology. The data was gathered from staff in a Japanese hospital and a hierarchical regression analysis and a simple slope analysis were conducted. As a result, it was found that among those who seldom participate in refresh room chats, staff members who frequently talk about positive job experiences when they do occasionally participate are likely to evaluate their knowledge sharing better than others who do not often talk so. In addition, among those who do not discuss positive job experiences, staff members who often participate in chats are likely to evaluate their knowledge sharing better than those who participate less often. Therefore, the development of measures both to promote participation in chats and to enable and encourage staff to talk about positive job experiences will be recommended in order to foster effective knowledge sharing.


The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between leadership, work motivation, morale with the performance of the teachers of State Junior High Schools se Kecamatan North Laut Island, Kotabaru District. This research uses quantitative methods. The results showed that: 1) teacher performance, principal leadership, work motivation and morale at high categorization, 2) There is a direct relationship between principal leadership and teacher work motivation, 3) There is a direct relationship between work motivation and teacher performance, 4 ) There is a direct relationship between principal leadership and teacher performance, 5) There is a direct relationship between principal leadership and morale spirit, 6) There is a direct relationship between work morale and teacher performance, 7) There is an indirect relationship between principal leadership and performance teachers through teacher work motivation, 8) There is an indirect relationship between principal leadership and teacher performance through morale spirit.


In light of global warming mitigation efforts, increasing sludge disposal costs, and need for reduction in the carbon footprint of wastewater treatment plants, innovation in treatment technology has been tailored towards energy self-sufficiency. The AB process is a promising technology for achieving maximal energy recovery from wastewaters with minimum energy expenditure and therefore inherently reducing excess sludge production. Characterization of this novel sludge and its comparison with the more conventional B-stage sludge are necessary for a deeper understanding of AB treatment process design. This paper presents a case study of a pilot-scale AB system treating municipal wastewaters as well as a bio- (biochemical methane potential and adenosine tri-phosphate analysis) and physico-chemical properties (chemical oxygen demand, sludge volume index, dewaterability, calorific value, zeta potential and particle size distribution) comparison of the organic-rich A-stage against the B-stage activated sludge. Compared to the B-sludge, the A-sludge yielded 1.4 to 4.9 times more methane throughout the 62-week operation.


This course is provide instruction and practice in Screen acting for television and film, including voice, poise, and character development.


The purpose of this experimental research was to determine the effects of the Partners in Care Practice Model (PIPC) on the outcomes of productivity and costs. Over an 18-month study period, no significant differences were found in costs per patient day between the pilot and control units; however, significant differences were found in actual salaries, amount of time spent in documentation, and supply costs. Differences in costs and productivity reflected increased training costs and costs for additional supplies on the pilot unit.


Reliable multicast protocols have gained popularity with active services contribution where routers implement additional functionalities. Contributing mainly to feedback implosion problems, retransmission scoping and cache of data, these active protocols open new perspectives for achieving high throughput and low latencies on wide-area networks. We define generic protocols with active services and present a throughput analysis of the various mechanisms proposed in existing protocols, i.e. active reliable multicast (ARM) and active error recovery (AER). The main contribution consists in the analysis of the local recovery facility with different NACK suppression strategies and the potential of the subcast feature. Some insights on dimensioning active networks are also provided.


Over the past 15 years or so, we have witnessed a dramatic increase in the generation of nucleic acid sequence data. The impact of this process has been felt particularly in animal virology, so that we now have complete genome sequences for representatives of most of the virus families. It is apparent that complete sequence determination of any virus genome is now a practical short or medium term goal. This is illustrated most clearly by the herpesviruses, whose large genomes have provided a challenge suited to serious genome sequencers. Thus, four complete herpesvirus sequences have been published to date. Those for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) were derived at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, U.K. (Baer et al., 1984; Chee et al., 1990) and those for varicella-zoster virus (VZV) and herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) were obtained at the MRC Virology Unit in Glasgow, U.K. (Davison & Scott, 1986; McGeoch et al., 1988).


The performance of Nb3Sn multifilament wires is highly strain-sensitive. Since the strain in each individual Nb3Sn filament rather than the overall strain on the Nb3Sn wire influences the superconducting properties, it is very important to build a relationship between the internal strain in each Nb3Sn filament and external loads. In this study, a 3D model is developed to address the relationship. It is found that the geometry of the cross-section of the filaments plays an important role in the relationship between the stress and strain.


Sheffield is one of five cities and towns involved in the urban safety project led by the Transport and Road Research Laboratory (TRRL) to demonstrate the effects of combining, on an area-wide basis, a range of low-cost engineering measures to reduce accidents. In 1985, after gaining the acceptance of local residents, a package of interacting countermeasures was implemented in an area to the North of Sheffield city centre. Central to the scheme was the discouragement of use by through traffic of six roads which were being used for travel diagonally through the area. This was done either by closure or restriction to use by buses and bicycles at carefully selected points. The arterial and distributor routes through and around the area were improved in line with the safety objectives to make it feasible to transfer to them some of the through traffic displaced from the residential areas. Within these areas the use of some roads where high speeds were attainable was made safer by arranging sheltered parking so that the effective carriageway width was reduced and pedestrians were helped to cross. The redistribution of traffic was achieved safely and, with one exception, without increasing delays on the main roads or at points of entry and exit to the residential areas. After two years of operation of the scheme the number of injury accidents reported is estimated to have been in the region of 20 to 30 per cent lower than would have been expected if no changes had taken place. All road user groups benefitted from a greater level of safety in line with reduction in accidents for the area as a whole. Accidents involving pedestrians on the local distributor routes were reduced by more than the average for the area, especially on routes where sheltered parking and verge hardening were introduced. (Author/TRRL)


In order to meet the demands of sustainable development the range of cementitious materials used will need to become more diverse. To master the use of this range of materials, modelling has an essential role to play in linking composition and processing to the final properties and performance. This paper describes some of the challenges such modelling presents and progress made at the Laboratory of Construction Materials at EPFL, based on the microstructural models mu ic [Bis09a, Bis09b] and AMIE [Dun10].


People have learnt from biological system behaviours and structures to design and develop a number of different kinds of optimisation algorithms that have been widely used in both theoretical study and practical applications in engineering and business management. An efficient supply chain is very important for companies to survive in global competitive market. An effective SCM (supply chain management) is the key for implement an efficient supply chain. Though there have been considerable amount of study of SCM, there have been very limited publications of applying the findings from the biological system study into SCM. In this paper, through systematic literature review, various SCM issues and requirements are discussed and some typical biological system behaviours and natural-inspired algorithms are evaluated for the purpose of SCM. Then the principle and possibility are presented on how to learn the biological systems' behaviours and naturalinspired algorithms for SCM and a framework is proposed as a guide line for users to apply the knowledge learnt from the biological systems for SCM. In the framework, a number of the procedures have been presented for using XML to represent both SCM requirement and bioinspiration data. To demonstrate the proposed framework, a case study has been presented for users to find the bio-inspirations for some particular SCM problems in automotive industry.


Introduction Directive 2013/35/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (electromagnetic fields (EMFs) was published in 2013. The directive gives minimum requirements for the protection of workers from risks to health and safety arising from exposure to electromagnetic fields (0 Hz to 300 GHz). The aim of this paper is to describe the directive and how it has been implemented into practice. Methods New guidelines have been written by different countries of the EU. Measurements and evaluations of EMFs have been conducted. High field values have been searched, and risk analyses for EMF exposure have been performed. Results For example, the following topics have been proposed in new guidelines: offices, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometer, electrolysis, medical devices, engineering workshops, automotive industry, welding, metallurgical manufacturing, radiofrequency (RF) plasma devices, rooftop antennas, walkie-talkies, and airports. Evaluation criteria for the current is 100 A, and for the voltages, 100 kV. There are also evaluation principles for active implanted devices, and there are guidelines on distance attenuation principles of EMFs. Discussion There has been progress in implementing the directive. However, small and medium size companies have often limited resources to put toward evaluation and risk analysis. Protection against these fields can be technical, increasing distance, working processes, worker guides, or in some cases, personal protection devices. Health examination can also give in some cases information on excessive exposure (e.g., microwaves). Documentation of the actions is probably lacking to some extent in risk analysis files.


The nonciliated bronchiolar cells (Clara cells) lining the terminal airways actively secrete a phospholipid. In contrast, the large alveolar epithelial cells (type II, granular pneumonocyte) are active phagocytic cells. It is proposed that the Clara cell is the main source of pulmonary phospholipid production (presumably surfactant) while the large alveolar cell is responsible for its subsequent breakdown.


The Baie Verte Group, as exposed on the peninsula between Baie Verte and Ming's Bight, consists of an ophiolite assemblage ranging from interlayered ultramafic and gabbroic rocks to sheeted diabase dikes overlain by pillow lavas and volcanic sediments. The sequence has been disrupted into five structural blocks separated by fault zones containing serpentinized peridotite and/or talc-carbonate; units within each block are separated by less significant faults. These structures and other deformation features in the Baie Verte Group are interpreted to be related to early Ordovician emplacement with some effects of later Acadian deformation.The Baie Verte Group is chemically similar, both in major and trace elements, to other ophiolite sequences such as in Oman and Papua. A low-Ti and low-K tholeiitic magma crystallized under conditions of low oxygen fugacity in the upper crust beneath a mid-ocean ridge, producing the observed peridotite–pyroxenite–gabbro–diabase–pillow lava sequence.


The present study was conducted during kharif 2019 (July–October)at the field of All India Coordinated Small Millets Improvement Project, College of Agriculture, Rewa (M.P.), India. Thirty-two (32) genotypes were evaluated for estimation of genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance for yield and yield contributing traits. The finger millet genotypes were sown in randomized block design with three replications. The results revealed that the values of phenotypic coefficients of variability were greater than genotypic coefficients of variability for all the traits studied. Moderate magnitude of PCV and GCV was recorded for number of tillers followed by flag leaf width, flag leaf length, 1000-grain weight, biological yield plant-1, and grain yield plant-1. The analysis of variance revealed that highly significant differences were recorded among the genotypes for all the studied characters, which indicate the presence of wide range of variability among genotypes and scope of selection for improvement. The high heritability coupled with high genetic advance as percentage of mean was recorded for flag leaf length, biological yield plant-1, grain yield plant-1, flag leaf width and 1000-grain weight. It forces to conclude that these characters are governed by additive gene action and phenotypic selection based on these traits in the segregating generations would likely to be more effective. In addition to the genetic variability, knowledge on heritability and expected genetic advance helps the breeder to employ the suitable breeding strategy.


The objective of this study was to take a multi-domain approach to predict feelings of anxiety among graduate allied health students. Participants (n=77) from a small university in upstate New York completed a series of questionnaires [International Physical Activity Questionnaire-short form (IPAQ-SF), Rapid Eating Assessment of Participants-Short Form (REAP-S), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Inventory (PSQI), Profile of Mood Survey-Short Form (POMS-SF), Trait and State Mental and Physical Energy and Fatigue Survey], and their resting metabolic rate, fat free mass and muscle oxygen saturation levels were measured. A backwards linear regression was used to identify predictors of anxiety. Our model predicted 28.1% of variance with women reporting greater feelings of anxiety. Poor sleep quality, increased sedentary behavior, and low trait physical energy were all significant predictors of increased feelings anxiety. Our results suggest that educators should attempt to reduce in class sitting time and promote better sleep hygiene. Additionally, researchers should examine barriers and burdens female students face that increase feelings of anxiety.


We here introduce NoReC_fine, a dataset for fine-grained sentiment analysis in Norwegian, annotated with respect to polar expressions, targets and holders of opinion. The underlying texts are taken from a corpus of professionally authored reviews from multiple news-sources and across a wide variety of domains, including literature, games, music, products, movies and more. We here present a detailed description of this annotation effort. We provide an overview of the developed annotation guidelines, illustrated with examples and present an analysis of inter-annotator agreement. We also report the first experimental results on the dataset, intended as a preliminary benchmark for further experiments.


Abstract Objective To build a comprehensive overview of the potential role of fish in improving nutrition with respect to certain micronutrient deficiencies in developing countries. Design A comprehensive literature review was completed. For this the electronic library databases ASFA, CABD and Scopus were systematically searched and relevant references cited in these sources were carefully analysed. The search terms used were 'fish', 'small fish species', 'micronutrients', 'food-based strategies', 'fish consumption' and 'developing countries'. The quality of data on nutritional analyses was carefully reviewed and data that lacked proper information on methods, units and samples were excluded. Results The evidence collected confirmed the high levels of vitamin A, Fe and Zn in some of the small fish species in developing countries. These small fish are reported to be more affordable and accessible than the larger fish and other usual animal-source foods and vegetables. Evidence suggests that these locally available small fish have considerable potential as cost-effective food-based strategies to enhance micronutrient intakes or as a complementary food for undernourished children. However, the present review shows that only a few studies have been able to rigorously assess the impact of fish consumption on improved nutritional status in developing countries. Conclusions Further research is required in areas such as determination of fish consumption patterns of poor households, the nutritional value of local fish and other aquatic animals and the impact of fish intake on improved nutritional status in developing countries where undernutrition is a major public health problem.


Although paediatric chronic pain is common, it is not yet clear which individuals with chronic pain are likely to seek health care for their pain. The aims of this study were to summarize the current evidence of the characteristics of children and adolescents with chronic pain who consult a physician or use medication for their pain. Additionally, we aimed to expand knowledge by further investigating key and promising, factors in a large community sample of adolescents.


Experimental techniques have been developed for obtaining single-event microdosimetric spectra from hospital based linear accelerators. Therapeutic electrons of 12, 15, 18, and 20 MeV from Clinic 18 and 20 accelerators have been produced at ultralow dose rates. Details of the experimental methods have been described previously by the authors. Single-event lineal energy spectra for these beams, as measured by a Rossi chamber differ significantly from cobalt-60 both in shape and dose average lineal energy (yd) which, depending on electron energy, can be 20-40% lower. The spectral peaks for electrons are greatly enhanced compared to cobalt. The yd for electrons also differs from previously reported values for 10-15 MV photon beams. These differences are less pronounced than for differences with cobalt. Spectral peaks and shapes correlate well with the actual electron stopping powers in tissue. The theory of dual radiation action predicts changes in relative biological effectiveness at low doses for megavoltage photon and electrons. Although at clinical doses the predicted differences are not statistically significant.


A single missing tooth in the posterior atrophic maxillary segment poses a therapeutic challenge. Open sinus lift is not often performed because of anatomical restrictions and the need for specific surgical skills. The osteotome approach has considerable efficacy and safety limitations. In many cases, the clinician elects to treat with a three-unit partial denture or discard any rehabilitation plans. Two cases in which minimal invasive antral membrane balloon elevation was performed for single-tooth replacement are presented. This procedure appears to be a relatively simple, highly effective, and safe solution for single-tooth, implant-supported restorations of the posterior atrophic maxilla.


Large-scale deep neural networks (DNNs) such as convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have achieved impressive performance in audio classification for their powerful capacity and strong generalization ability. However, when training a DNN model on low-resource tasks, it is usually prone to overfitting the small data and learning too much redundant information. To address this issue, we propose to use variational information bottleneck (VIB) to mitigate overfitting and suppress irrelevant information. In this work, we conduct experiments ona 4-layer CNN. However, the VIB framework is ready-to-use and could be easily utilized with many other state-of-the-art network architectures. Evaluation on a few audio datasets shows that our approach significantly outperforms baseline methods, yielding more than 5.0% improvement in terms of classification accuracy in some low-source settings.


Hawai'i is home to 1000 native species of flowering plants. Mucuna gigantea is one such Hawaiian species which has been studied as affordable sustenance and as a cover crop in developing countries. Mucuna gigantea and other Mucuna species (spp.) in general, are known to contain natural levodopa and its utility in the treatment of Parkinson's Disease has also been evaluated. Levodopa is converted in the periphery into dopamine which can then act on dopamine receptors to cause nausea, vomiting, arrhythmias, and hypotension. We describe a case in which a patient presents with abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting after legume ingestion. The bean was ultimately identified as Mucuna gigantea and the patient was diagnosed with levodopa-induced gastrointestinal toxicity from consumption of the legume. A literature review was conducted using the database search engines, Biological Abstracts and PubMed, with a broad combination of keywords of which include "mucuna, "gigantean," "levodopa," "l-dopa," "toxicity," and the association between Mucuna gigantea ingestion and levodopa toxicity is discussed. These findings expand the differential diagnosis of abdominal pain associated with nausea and vomiting in the correct clinical context.


This paper describes a pilot study of the effect of using a word processor on the writing of children with learning difficulties. A small sample of children enrolled at the Macquarie University Special Education Centre wrote two stories each week, one handwritten and one using a word processor. The effect of using a word processor seemed to be related to the specific problems that the children were experiencing in their written work. The children with severe spelling problems made fewer errors in their word processed stories while the reluctant writers whose handwritten were usually only a few sentences in length, tended to write more. However, on average the children did not write longer stories when they used a word processor.


Proceedings: AACR 106th Annual Meeting 2015; April 18-22, 2015; Philadelphia, PA

Over 232,000 new cases of invasive breast cancer are diagnosed annually within the United States; 70% express the estrogen receptor-α (ER) and may be treated with therapies targeting ER, such as tamoxifen (TAM). While initially effective, over 50% of patients treated with these therapies will develop or not respond, thereby making understanding the molecular mechanism of antiestrogen resistance critical component of breast cancer biology. We have previously determined that the unfolded protein response protein chaperone, glucose regulated protein 78 (GRP78), mediates antiestrogen resistance in ER+ breast cancer cells. Mice bearing LCC1 (TAM sensitive) or LCC9 (TAM resistant) xenografts were treated with 30μM 1x weekly IP injection of human GRP78-targeting morpholino and/or a diet containing 400 ppm tamoxifen citrate for 4-6 weeks. Tumor area was measured using calipers and tumor wet weight measured at sacrifice. Combination of GRP78 knockdown and tamoxifen treatment significantly reduced LCC9 tumor area and tumor wet weight, suggesting inhibition of GRP78 restores antiestrogen sensitivity in vivo. TAM and GRP78 morpholino+TAM treatments both reduced LCC1 tumor growth, however the combination of GRP78 inhibition and TAM significantly reduced tumor area and tumor wet weight when compared to TAM treatment alone. These data suggest that inhibiting GRP78 in combination with antiestrogens is more effective for the treatment of breast cancer than single agent endocrine therapy. Metabolic analysis of LCC1 and LCC9 breast cancer cells indicate that inhibition of GRP78 through RNAi results in an increase in the intracellular concentrations of the n-3 and n-6 essential polyunsaturated fats (PUFA) linoleic and linolenic acid. We further show that the accumulation of essential fatty acids is due to an inhibition of mitochondrial fatty acid transport resulting from a reduction in SREBP1/SREBP2 transcription and CPT1A protein expression. The reduced mitochondrial fatty acid transport is also associated with an inhibition of fatty acid oxidation, suggesting a novel role of GRP78 mediating cellular metabolism. We validated the effect of the GRP78-regulated metabolites by treating mice bearing LCC9 xenografts with TAM, 0.25 mg/day linoleic acid by oral gavage, or linoleic acid+TAM for 6 weeks. LCC9 tumors treated with linoleic acid+TAM demonstrated reduced tumor area and tumor weight when compared with TAM or linoleic acid treatment alone. These data suggest that the in vivo effect of GRP78 inhibition is mediated, in part, by increased linoleic acid concentrations. Moreover, the novel role of GRP78 controlling fatty acid oxidation may represent a new homeostatic ability of GRP78 to modify fatty acid metabolism and demonstrates the importance of targeting GRP78 in breast cancer treatment.

Citation Format: Katherine L. Cook, Robert Clarke. In vivo inhibition of GRP78 potentiates antiestrogen therapy effectiveness in ER+ breast tumors. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 1257. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-1257


Chunity is a programming environment for the design of interactive audiovisual games, instruments, and experiences. It embodies an audio-driven, sound-first approach that integrates audio programming and graphics programming in the same workflow, taking advantage of strongly-timed audio programming features of the ChucK programming language and the state-of-the-art real-time graphics engine found in Unity. We describe both the system and its intended workflow for the creation of expressive audiovisual works. Chunity was evaluated as the primary software platform in a computer music and design course, where students created a diverse assortment of interactive audiovisual software. We present results from the evaluation and discuss Chunity's usability, utility, and aesthetics as a way of working. Through these, we argue for Chunity as a unique and useful way to program sound, graphics, and interaction in tandem, giving users the flexibility to use a game engine to do much more than "just" make games.


MPEG-4 uses a perspective model for global motion estimation. The region of support for global motion representation consists of the entire image frame. Estimating global motion parameters is very expensive computationally, since all the pixels in the frames are involved in the computation. Therefore, computationally efficient global motion estimation techniques are sought-after. It is shown that real-time global motion estimation in an MPEG-4 video codec can be achieved by using a pixel subsampling method based on regular subsampling patterns. Simulation results demonstrated that the proposed method was capable of speeding up the conventional all-pixel GME approach by more than 11 times, with a subsampling ratio of 1/16, without significant loss in estimation accuracy and compression efficiency.


In order to fundamentally solve the acidification problem of high sulfur-containing bauxite during storage, by simulating the environment of minerals storage in laboratory, the acidification mechanism and influencing factors of high sulfur-containing bauxite were studied and confirmed using the single variable method to control the atmosphere, water and other variables. The results show that the acidification is mostly caused by the oxidation of sulfur-containing bauxite, which is mainly the natural oxidation of Pyrite(Fe S2), then the alkaline minerals dissolute in the presence of water, leading to the acidification phenomenon, which is influenced by moisture and air flow. Finally, more acid-producing substances are formed, resulting in the acidification of high sulfur-containing bauxite. The acidification of high sulfur-containing bauxite results from the combined effect of the oxygen in the air and water, which can be significantly alleviated by controlling the diffusion of the oxygen in air.


The Universal Service Support Policy of India came into being with effect from March 2002 and is amongst the several excellent regulatory measures taken by the Government towards reforming the Indian Telecom Policy. The Universal Service Fund of India has performed very well in so far as is evident from the several initiatives taken by it and their success thereof. Nevertheless, there is a long way to go before we manage to bridge our vast urban rural digital divide. In this article, the author explores some of the theoretical underpinnings and practical realities of Universal Service Policy with specific reference to India. She cautions against measures that involve state support to achieve short term benefits without careful evaluation of long term impacts on rural telecommunications and suggests the possible way forward to tackle the challenge of bringing ICT connectivity and its expected socio-economic benefits to rural India.


Recently spherical codes were introduced as potentially more capable ensembles for quantum key distribution. Here we develop specific key-creation protocols for the two qubit-based spherical codes, the trine and tetrahedron, and analyze them in the context of a suitably tailored intercept/resend attack, both in standard form, and in a 'gentler' version whose back action on the quantum state is weaker. When compared to the standard unbiased basis protocols, Bennett-Brassard 1984 (BB84) and six-state, two distinct advantages are found. First, they offer improved tolerance of eavesdropping, the trine besting its counterpart BB84 and the tetrahedron the six-state protocol. Second, the key error rate may be computed from the sift rate of the protocol itself, removing the need to sacrifice key bits for this purpose. This simplifies the protocol and improves the overall key rate.0.


The purpose of this study is to develop an arm manikin for oscillometric methods of blood pressure measurement over full clinical range of blood pressure, heart rate. Blood pressure simulator helps to resolve the uncertainties common in teaching students to take blood pressure. Simulator allows the pre-setting of values for both systolic and diastolic pressures and provides an excellent means to practice listening and distinguishing blood pressure sounds prior to actual clinical experience. With this realistic unit, the student can find the preset results and the instructor can unfailingly know if the student has performed the procedure accurately. The arm manikin is a mould made up of rexine material which is coated with ethaflex as a skin material. A small rubber tube is used as blood vessel and a small micro-speaker for heart beat listening. An external electronic box is used to make students do the whole practice of blood pressure and pulse measurement. The compressed air with 2x2 NC solenoid valve and other pneumatic accessories are used to create the artificial pulses. A small micro-speaker with pre-recorded sound is used to generate heart beating sound in the antecubital area. A blood pressure sensor MPX5050GP is used to sense the sphygmomanometer dial pressure. PCB designed using a 16-bit micro-controller with on-chip ADC and DAC. It has five keys and graphical 16x2 LCD for setting the simulation parameters including the heart rate, systolic pressure, diastolic pressure.


The present study was carried out to analyse morbidity and mortality rate in buffaloes and its associated factors in Pune division of Maharashtra state in India. Stratified two stages random sampling design was adopted & the data of total 564 buffaloes were collected through pre-tested modified schedule from 157 buffalo owners. The data were analysed statistically by SAS 9.3 software for evaluation of Chi-square and Logistic regression analysis. Overall morbidity (28.01%) and mortality (7.98%) rates were recorded in study area. Digestive diseases and respiratory diseases are major cause of the higher morbidity and mortality in buffaloes, respectively. Statistically, there wasn't significant association of overall disease incidence with age or sex. However, the Chi-square analysis of overall mortality rate showed significance (p<0.01) difference among age and sex. Logistic regression analysis also suggested the same results. Mortality rates were recorded higher in calves and male buffaloes as compared to their respective counterparts. It is suggested that digestive and respiratory problems may be reduced by improving feeding and management practices. This study provides the important tool for determining the health status of buffaloes and has special importance in planning of prevention and control strategies designed to reduce the incidences of diseases in livestock and therefore economic status of farmers.


In a prospective, randomized, single-blind study of 116 patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (mean disease duration 7 months), therapeutic activity of intra-articular rifamycin SV (525 mg/week) infiltration into each peripheral joint over 10 weeks was compared with that of 3 mg auranofin given orally twice daily. The incidence of side-effects was lower in rifamycin-treated patients. At the end of follow-up, the clinical variables and erythrocyte sedimentation rate showed a significant and persistant improvement both in 16 patients who continued the auranofin treatment regularly and in 55 treated with rifamycin who had completed the therapeutic cycle 62.5 months before; the latex test decreased only in the rifamycin group. In patients treated with auranofin or who changed to other commonly used antirheumatic agents, 57% of those with an initially negative radiological picture developed new radiological lesions in at least one of the small joints compared with 9% in the rifamycin group. Although the number of patients treated with rifamycin was small and the follow-up relatively short, the results of the study indicated that treatment with intra-articular rifamycin SV may prevent the appearance of radiological lesions in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis and normal radiographs initially.