Accurate knowledge of transfer length has been shown to be crucial to the goal of maintaining continuous production quality in the modern manufacture of prestressed concrete railroad ties. Traditional manual laboratory methods, such as the conventional Whittemore method which requires the use of embedded reference points, are clearly not suitable for production operation or for use in reliable production quality-control.This paper presents the results of another advance in the development of automated transfer length measurement systems for practical in-plant operation. The new device offers a significant improvement over the previously successful automated Laser-Speckle Imaging (LSI) system developed by the authors. The earlier automated LSI strain measurement system has been modified to provide significantly improved optical resolution of longitudinal surface strain, with the ability to resolve longitudinal prestressed concrete crosstie surface strain without time-consuming special surface preparation. More importantly, the new system is also capable of making measurements of strain in a real-time "on-the-fly" manner over the entire distance range of interest on the tie associated with transfer length development. It features both a "jog" mode of operation, similar to its predecessor in which measurements of longitudinal surface strain are automatically captured in arbitrary spatial increments over the entire range of the computer-controlled traverse, and an "on-the-fly" mode in which measurements of longitudinal surface strain are captured without the need for stopping at each measurement location. This latter mode offers the potential of a much faster capture of the strain profile and should prove to be very beneficial for field testing and in-plant diagnostic applications.The performance of this new system is first demonstrated using a new calibrated step-wise uniform strain field setup which has been developed specifically for verification of this and other automated transfer length measurement systems. This verification system produces a calibrated step change in surface deflection, effectively subjecting the automated strain measurement system to an ideal step change in longitudinal strain for a given gauge length. In addition, the new automated system is demonstrated by conducting measurements of longitudinal surface strain on prestressed concrete crossties in a manufacturing plant. For this latter experimental in-plant testing, strain measurements using the new system are also compared directly with those from the recently introduced 6-camera transfer length measurement system, as well as with the traditional Whittemore gauge measurements. The agreement between these independent measurement systems is remarkable, and it is shown to even be possible to discern differences in strain profile and associated transfer length between adjacent crossties within a given casting bed. This new automated and high-resolution device should provide a very convenient and fast diagnostic tool for the manufacturer to quickly identify the need to modify production (e.g., concrete mix) if transfer length specifications fall out of desired range.Copyright © 2016 by ASME


Abstract The main objective of this paper is to propose an alternative method for viscoelastic characterisation of wood-based panels. Our approach, based on inverse identification methods, allows simultaneous estimation of the whole bending/torsion stiffness matrix of orthotropic plates. Elastic or viscoelastic characterisations are carried out according to the same protocol. The first step consists of optimisation of the experimental set-up, i.e., determination of the best localisation and intensity of the applied stresses and of the best position for boundary conditions. This step is realised for each type of panel using generic algorithms to obtain sensitivities satisfying the test for each stiffness matrix component. An identification procedure is then performed using a finite element program. The measurement of the whole displacement field (500×500 mm2) is made using an optical system. Validation of the elastic identification is carried out by comparison with the mechanical properties obtained from a vibrating test and a simulation tool. Non-conventional analysis of the viscoelastic behaviour of wood-based panels is illustrated for two particular plywood panels.


A novel approach to building an intelligent robot, which can be expected to show many intelligent behaviors as people do, is proposed. This approach exploits a computer device called Tesla S1070, a personal supercomputer, to control a humanoid robot named NAO. The Tesla S1070 acts as a human head, in which thousands of artificial neural network, the basis of an artificial brain (AB), evolve in a parallel way and act as a human brain. The CUDA (Computing Unified Device Architecture) technology is employed to solve the key problem, i.e., how to improve the evolution speed of thousands of neural network. The general architecture of this approach, the reason why the Tesla S1070 is selected, and how the data structure of neural net modules should be modified to meet the demands of CUDA are presented in detail. This approach provides a method both for controlling a robot by the AB, and for demonstrating the power of the AB through a robot.


Human bodies, ecosystems and infrastructures display a non-linear sensibility to extreme temperatures occurring during heatwave events. Preparing for such events entails to know how high surface air temperatures can go. Here we examine the maximal reachable temperatures in Western Europe. Taking the July 2019 record-breaking heatwave as a case study and employing a flow analogues methodology, we find that temperatures exceeding 50 ∘C cannot be ruled out in most urban areas, even under current climate conditions. We analyze changes in the upper bound of surface air temperatures between the past (1940–1980) and present (1981–2021) periods. Our results show that the significant increase in daily maximum temperatures in the present period is only partially explained by the increase of the upper bound. Our results suggest that most of the warming of daily maximum surface temperatures result from strengthened diabatic surface fluxes rather than free troposphere warming.


Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are membrane-enclosed fragments shed from all cell types, including tumour cells. EVs contain a wide range of proteins, biolipids and genetic material derived from mother cells and therefore may be potential biomarkers for tumour diagnosis, disease progression and treatment success. We studied the effect of canine mast cell tumours (MCTs) on EV concentrations in blood isolates in association with MCT's histological grade, Ki-67 proliferative index, KIT-staining pattern and number of PLT. The average EV concentration in blood isolates from nine dogs with MCTs was considerably higher than that in blood from eight healthy dogs. But there were no statistically significant differences in EVs concentration in the population of dogs with MCT according to a different histological grade of malignancy (Patnaik, Kiupel), KIT-staining pattern and Ki-67 proliferation index. The results show that these variables statistically do not significantly predicted EV concentrations in blood isolates (P > .05), except the KIT-staining pattern I which added statistically significantly to the prediction (P < .05). The results confirmed the impact of neoplasms on the morphological changes to cell membranes, which result in greater vesiculability and higher EV concentrations.


Many Isaria-like species have recently been moved into more appropriate genera. However, more robust molecular phylogenetic analyses are still required for Isaria-like fungi to ensure accurate taxonomic identification. We analyzed these Isaria-like strains using multi-gene phylogenetics. Cryptic diversity was discovered in several Isaria farinosa strains, and two new species, Samsoniella pseudogunnii and S. pupicola, are proposed. Our results reveal that more attention needs to be paid to cryptic intraspecific diversity across different isolates and genotypes of the Isaria-like species, some of which will need to be transferred to Samsoniella. Interestingly, S. hepiali, with a very broad host distribution, has been widely used as a medicinal and edible cordycipitoid fungus.


Conventional probabilistic seismic-hazard assessment (PSHA) is difficult to apply in regions lacking sufficient information concerning geological setting, active faults, and so forth. Also, for a site-specific PSHA, site effects arising from both crustal rock and overlying soil sediments are generally not assessed rigorously. This is of particular importance for those metropolitan cities having a significant proportion of reclaimed land, because the site-to-site variability of such site effects can be very large. The objective of this article is to demonstrate an alternative procedure for assessing seismic hazard, developed from the conventional source-based Cornell-McGuire PSHA approach, based on considering an infinite number of sources. The proposed new procedure is termed the direct amplitude-based (DAB) approach. The major advantage of the proposed DAB approach is that it is not necessary to characterize any seismic sources. Moreover, if a "site-specific" and "event- specific" ground-motion attenuation model is available, a more accurate site-specific PSHA could be performed. Also, a generic analytical solution for the proposed procedure has been derived to avoid the need for a lengthy integration process. Using the proposed approach, peak ground velocities have been computed at different return periods, to form a seismic hazard curve, citing Hong Kong as a case study.


Background: The pathogenesis of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is not fully understood and combining novel biomarkers with established risk factors could improve early prediction of GDM. Low vitamin B12 (B12) levels have been linked to obesity, insulin resistance and GDM but its predictive ability in early pregnancy as a risk factor for later GDM has not been proven. Methods: Micronutrients in Pregnancy as a Risk factor for gestational diabetes and Effects on mother and baby (PRiDE) is a cohort study of pregnant women at high risk of developing GDM (n=4751 recruited). GDM was diagnosed by a 2-hour 75g OGTT according to UK NICE criteria (fasting blood glucose, FBG ≥5.6mmol/l or 2-hour BG ≥7.8mmol/l). B12 and folate were measured by electrochemiluminescence and deficiency defined as ≤200pg/ml and ≤3ng/ml respectively. Multiple linear and logistic regression models were done with covariates including age, BMI, ethnicity, parity, smoking status, gestational weight gain and folate levels. Results: The data from the first 3412 women with complete B12/folate and OGTT results were analysed (median (range) gestational age 12+5(4+3, 16+0) and 26+4 (15+0, 32+1) weeks respectively). Mean (±SD) age was 30.7±5.2 years, BMI 30.8±7.3 kg/m2 and 56.0% were obese. 11.5% had GDM and B12 and folate deficiency rates were 10.2% and 0% respectively (p>0.05 in GDM vs. no-GDM). GDM women had similar B12 and folate values to no-GDM (346±151 vs. 357 ± 155 pg/ml and 19.8±12.6 vs. 18.8±12.1 ng/ml respectively, adjusted p>0.05). B12 was negatively correlated with BMI (Pearson's r=-0.24, p Conclusions: Early pregnancy B12 values were predictive of high FBG in late gestation. Low B12 levels may be an independent risk factor for GDM, particularly in obese women. Disclosure N. Sukumar: None. A. Antonysunil: None. Y. Ghebremichael-Weldeselass: None. I. Goljan: None. C. Bagias: None.


A unified algebraic approach to the synthesis of generalized Fibonacci Switched Capacitor Converters (SCC) has been developed. The proposed approach reduces the power losses by increasing the number of target voltages. It is shown that the binary and Fibonacci SCC are private cases of the proposed approach. Furthermore, the proposed generalized SCC is built around the same switch network as the binary and Fibonacci SCC. This feature is extremely beneficial since it provides the option to switch between the different target voltages, thereby increasing the resolution of attainable conversion ratios. In the case of three flying capacitors, six new conversion ratios were introduced in addition to the thirteen that have been realized already. The theoretical results were verified experimentally.


To investigate the origin of the features discovered in the exoplanet population, the knowledge of exoplanets' mass and radius with a good precision is essential. In this paper, we report the discovery of three transiting exoplanets by the SuperWASP survey and the SOPHIE spectrograph with mass and radius determined with a precision better than 15 %. WASP-151b and WASP-153b are two hot Saturns with masses, radii, densities and equilibrium temperatures of 0.31^{+0.04}_{-0.03} MJ, 1.13^{+0.03}_{-0.03} RJ, 0.22^{-0.03}_{-0.02} rhoJ and 1, 290^{+20}_{-10} K, and 0.39^{+0.02}_{-0.02} MJ, 1.55^{+0.10}_{-0.08} RJ, 0.11^{+0.02}_{-0.02} rhoJ and 1, 700^{+40}_{-40} K, respectively. Their host stars are early G type stars (with magV ~ 13) and their orbital periods are 4.53 and 3.33 days, respectively. WASP-156b is a Super-Neptune orbiting a K type star (magV = 11.6) . It has a mass of 0.128^{+0.010}_{-0.009} MJ, a radius of 0.51^{+0.02}_{-0.02} RJ, a density of 1.0^{+0.1}_{-0.1} rhoJ, an equilibrium temperature of 970^{+30}_{-20} K and an orbital period of 3.83 days. WASP-151b is slightly inflated, while WASP-153b presents a significant radius anomaly. WASP-156b, being one of the few well characterised Super-Neptunes, will help to constrain the formation of Neptune size planets and the transition between gas and ice giants. The estimates of the age of these three stars confirms the tendency for some stars to have gyrochronological ages significantly lower than their isochronal ages. We propose that high eccentricity migration could partially explain this behaviour for stars hosting a short period planet. Finally, these three planets also lie close to (WASP-151b and WASP-153b) or below (WASP-156b) the upper boundary of the Neptunian desert. Their characteristics support that the ultra-violet irradiation plays an important role in this depletion of planets observed in the exoplanet population.


Nonlethal injury is a common and ubiquitous feature of marine systems and can result in altered growth and survival rates. Ecological theory predicts that injured animals should face an energetic tradeoff between investing in recovery vs. investing in reproduction. Possible impacts on reproduction may range in magnitude from very strong (elimination of reproduction), to intermediate (reduced number of offspring), to weak (reduced investment in each offspring). While this tradeoff is well established in terrestrial systems, it has received little attention in the marine environment, particularly in a way that quantitatively relates the degree of injury to the degree of reproductive impact. We examined injury via limb loss across 4 sites in the mangrove tree crab Aratus pisonii. We found that limb loss was highest at the site that was closest to roads and had the highest level of human presence, and conversely, injury was lowest at the site furthest from the road and with the lowest level of human presence. We found evidence that the quality of consumed food likely decreases with the number of limbs lost, but found no influence of limb loss on amount of food consumed or on energy storage. We show that limb loss reduced the number of eggs produced and that the mass of the ovary declined with the number of regenerating limbs, providing direct evidence for a tradeoff between reproduction and injury recovery. Further, our study therefore suggests that these impacts may increase with the level of human disturbance.


Drinking practices vary substantially among different countries. An understanding of such differences can help researchers, clinicians, and policymakers develop prevention, diagnostic, and treatment measures as well as overall alcohol policies that are appropriate for a given country. Accordingly, researchers have conducted cross-cultural analyses of drinking patterns and practices. Three countries included in such analyses are India, Mexico, and Nigeria. These countries differ substantially in their ethnic and cultural characteristics, including the role that alcohol plays in daily life. To gain a better insight into the attitudes toward alcohol in these countries, researchers have analyzed the alcoholic beverage preferences, gender and age differences in alcohol consumption patterns, drinking contexts and drinking patterns, alcohol-related problems, approaches to prevention and treatment, and drinking indicators in each nation. These analyses demonstrate that no single definition of "normal" drinking, problem drinking, or alcohol dependence can apply equally to all countries or cultures.


We study the bidirectional lightwave propagations in an erbium-doped fiber ring laser and an inverted-S fiber ring laser, and observe their optical bistability behaviors. We develop a model for the inverted-S fiber ring laser using nonlinear optical loop mirror and nonlinear amplifying loop mirror (NOLM-NALM) principle, which operates in the nonlinear region. Good agreements between the laser experimental performance and the developed model are achieved. The laser shows good switching and pulse compression capabilities. In addition, the laser model illustrates the route to chaotic operation via period doubling bifurcation, when the input power increases. We also obtain quasi-periodic operation when the laser is amplitude modulated experimentally.


In cooperative relay networks with multiple users and multiple potential relays, which relay nodes are selected has great impact on the system performance. It is an optimization problem for selecting suitable relay nodes. The exhaustive search can solve this problem but the complexity will increase factorially with the network size, i.e., the number of users and the number of relays in the network. In this paper, we formulate both single-objective and multi-objective relay selection problems. For single-objective relay selection problem, only one system objective is considered. A novel quantum bee colony optimization (QBCO) based relay selection scheme is proposed. For multiobjective relay selection problem, two contradictive objectives are considered simultaneously. A novel non-dominated sorting quantum bee colony optimization (NSQBCO) based relay selection scheme is proposed. Simulation results show that the proposed relay selection schemes have the ability to find global optimal solution but have less computational complexity compared with exhaustive search scheme.


Cipher text-Policy Attribute-base Encryption (CP-ABE) is regarded as one of the most suitable technologies for data access control in cloud storage. In almost all existing CP-ABE schemes, it is assumed that there is only one authority in the system responsible for issuing attributes to the users. However, in many applications, there are multiple authorities co-exist in a system and each authority is able to issue attributes independently. In this paper, we design an access control framework for multi-authority systems and propose an efficient and secure multi-authority access control scheme for cloud storage. We first design an efficient multi-authority CP-ABE scheme that does not require a global authority and can support any LSSS access structure. Then, we prove its security in the random oracle model. We also propose a new technique to solve the attribute revocation problem in multi-authority CP-ABE systems. The analysis and simulation results show that our multi-authority access control scheme is scalable and efficient.


Cancer is accompanied by an increase of both thrombotic and hemorrhagic complications. Thus, the management of venous thromboembolism (VTE) or atrial fibrillation (AF) presents certain difficulties in oncologic patients. So far, low molecular weight heparins (LMWHs) have been proved the most effective and safe agents for long-term use in the VTE setting. However the novel oral anticoagulants (Direct Oral Anti Coagulants-DOACs), which are more friendly to use and begin to displace conventional anticoagulation in non-cancer patients, emerge as an attractive alternative. We present the latest data from randomized trials, meta-analyses of DOACs in oncologic populations and recent recommendation papers, as these agents claim their role in the management of cancer patients. Rhythmos 2019;14(1):5-9.


The ARTiS system is a real-time extension of the GNU/Linux scheduler dedicated to SMP (Symmetric Multi-Processors) systems. It allows to mix High Performance Computing and real-time. ARTiS exploits the SMP architecture to guarantee the preemption of a processor when the system has to schedule a real-time task. The implementation is available as a modification of the Linux kernel, especially focusing (but not restricted to) IA-64 architecture. The basic idea of ARTiS is to assign a selected set of processors to real-time operations. A migration mechanism of non-preemptible tasks insures a latency level on these real-time processors. Furthermore, specific load-balancing strategies permit ARTiS to benefit from the full power of the SMP systems: the real-time reservation, while guaranteed, is not exclusive and does not imply a waste of resources. This document describes the theoretical approach of ARTiS as well as the details of the Linux implementation. Several kind of measurements are also presented in order to validate the results.


Ameiva ameiva is a lizard species widely distributed in Central and South America. In this study, we present data on clutch size and duration of reproductive cycle in a population of A. ameiva from a Caatinga site in northeastern Brazil, looking to answer the following questions: 1) What is the average clutch size in this population? 2) Is clutch size associated with body size of females? 3) Is reproduction continuous or seasonal? The fieldwork to collect the lizards consisted of monthly trips from October 2008 to September 2010. Additionally, from June 2009 to May 2010, we registered the abundance of hatchlings and adults in the population by counting active lizards in the field. We collected 15 adult females, ten of which were in reproductive condition. Average clutch size was 5.3 ± 0.7 (range: 2–8, N = 10), and was significantly associated with body size of females. Reproductive females were registered both in the rainy and dry seasons, suggesting a prolonged reproductive period throughout the year. However, the decline in adult abundance during the peak of dry season and the absence of hatchlings in the population during four consecutive months are indications that females did not reproduce continuously during 2009-2010. Keywords: Clutch size; Life story; Reproductive cycle; Seasonality


A regression model, assuming no interactions, was developed and tested for determining the contribution of 20 linguistic dimensions to spelling difficulty. The model was tested on 333 words drawn from Greene's New Iowa Spelling Scale. Separate regression runs were made for difficulty indices at grades 2, 4, 6, and 8. The coefficients of multiple correlation were .829, .901, .877, and .818, respectively.


This paper presents an active control dedicated to a re-entry problem found in the offshore oil industry. The re-entry operation consists in connecting the bottom of a very long pipeline to the wellhead, by dynamically modifying the pipeline top position, which is linked to a floating device (vessel or plat- form). These long pipelines are usually called risers, because they are used to rise the drilling mud or the hydrocarbons from the wellhead to the platform. Nowadays the re-entry operation is done manu- ally. The use of an active control intends to reduce the operation time, and to make it possible even under bad weather conditions. The considered offshore structure can be analyzed as a cable submerged in a flow. A convenient model is given by the Bernoulli's historical cable equation, completed with a damping factor, that linearly depends on the structure speed. The damping factor is developed in series around zero, to get an approximate solution. The corresponding model turns out to be differentially flat[1], a property directly used in the control design, providing an extension to previous works of Petit and Rouchon [2], Thull et al [3], and Sabri [4]. This paper presents an overview of the results of [5]. Furthermore it contains material concerning a new tracking system, that uses the system inversion to define the feedback control.


Objective
To investigate the effects of long time different negative pressures on osteogenic diffe-rentiation of rabbit bone mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs).

Methods
The rabbit BMSCs were isolated and cultured by density gradient centrifugation. Flow cytometry was used to analyze expression of surface markers. The third passage cells cultured under condition of osteogenic induction and under different negative pressure of 0 mm Hg (control group), 75 mm Hg (low negative pressure group), and 150 mm Hg (high negative pressure group) (1 mm Hg=0.133 kPa), and the negative pressure time was 30 min/h. Cell growth was observed under phase contrast microscopy, and the growth curve was drawn; alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity was detected by ELISA after induced for 3, 7, and 14 days. The mRNA and protein expressions of collagen type I (COL-I) and osteocalcin (OC) in BMSCs were analyzed by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blot.

Results
The cultured cells were identified as BMSCs by flow cytometry. The third passage BMSCs exhibited typical long shuttle and irregular shape. Cell proliferation was inhibited with the increase of negative pressure. After induced for 4 days, the cell number of high negative pressure group was significantly less than that in control group and low negative pressure group ( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between the low negative pressure group and the control group ( P>0.05); at 5-7 days, the cell number showed significant difference between 3 groups ( P<0.05). The greater the negative pressure was, the greater the inhibition of cell proliferation was. There was no significant difference in ALP activity between groups at 3 days after induction ( P>0.05); the ALP activity showed significant difference ( P<0.05) between the high negative pressure group and the control group at 7 days after induction; and significant difference was found in the ALP activity between 3 groups at 14 days after induction ( P<0.05). The greater the negative pressure was, the higher the ALP activity was. Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR and Western blot detection showed that the mRNA and protein expressions of COL-I and OC protein were significantly higher in low negative pressure group and high negative pressure group than control group ( P<0.05), and in the high negative pressure group than the low negative pressure group ( P<0.05).

Conclusion
With the increase of the negative pressure, the osteogenic differentiation ability of BMSCs increases gradually, but the cell proliferation is inhibited.


Chemical separation of different vitamin A derivates in inner ear extracts was performed by means of high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) with fluorescence and UV detection. For more accurate site identification the membranous cochlea was dissected and the basilar membrane, the spiral ligament and the stria vascularis were isolated for analysis. Retinyl esters were found in the basilar membrane at a concentration of 11.4 +/- 5.9 micrograms/g dry weight, a high concentration compared with that in other tissues of other organs. The spiral ligament contained retinyl esters at a lesser concentration and no retinyl esters were found in the stria vascularis. Retinol was not detected in the spiral ligament or basilar membrane but was found in the stria vascularis at a concentration of 1.2 +/- 0.8 micrograms/g. Retinyl palmitate and retinyl stearate were identified. This investigation shows that vitamin A forms retinyl esters with long-chain fatty acids in the basilar membrane in high concentrations relative to other organs and in greater quantity than in other sites in the inner ear.


The disinfection of recirculating nutrient solution is essential to avoid disasters due to the dispersal of pathogens in a closed soilless culture system. In this work, a disinfection technique using pulsed electric field (PEF) has been investigated. A system was designed to implement continuous disinfection treatment of nutrient solution. The system mainly includes two parts: 1) a pulsed power generator that produces repetitive pulses with amplitude of between 0 kV and 5 kV with a pulse duration of $10\ \mu\mathrm{s}$ and a pulse repetition frequency of 50 Hz and 2) a parallel-plate treatment chamber used to realize continuous processing. In order to verify the efficacy of PEF treatment Fusarium oxysporum, being amongst the most destructive root-borne diseases, was selected as the object of study and therefore the nutrient solution was inoculated with this pathogen. The results indicate that PEF treatment deactivated most of the Fusarium oxysporum in the nutrient solution, achieving a maximum disinfection efficiency of 99%. At the same time, no obvious changes of the inorganic compositions in the PEF-treated nutrient solution were observed. The overall system is simple and convenient to be operated, worked stably and was capable of achieving a continuous treatment. This work therefore clearly demonstrates the feasibility of continuous PEF disinfection treatment in real soilless culture systems, opening the door for implementation in various agricultural applications.


Background A potential role of hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) use in patients with antiphospholipid antibodies (aPL) has been suggested by some retrospective cohorts and in animal models based on its potential beneficial effects on autoantibody effect and titer, endothelial function and glucose or lipid metabolism [1–3]. Objectives To evaluate the impact of HCQ on aPL titers, on glucose and cholesterol levels and its role in the prevention of thrombotic recurrences in Primary Antiphospholipid Syndrome (PAPS). Methods Patients with PAPS, diagnosed according to 2006 Classification Criteria without any Connective Tissue Disease, that received HCQ (HCQ+) but no immunosuppressive drugs, were matched with similar patients that did not received HCQ (HCQ-) according to the following characteristics: same gender, follow-up duration, disease onset, age at the beginning of the follow-up ±10 years and initial date of the follow-up ± 5 years. Results Seventy-two patients (36 HCQ+ and 36 HCQ-) with a mean follow-up of 77 (±SD 49) months between 1992 and 2015 were studied. No significant variations in demographical, clinical, serological features were observed between the two groups except for of anti-extractable nuclear antigen antibodies (19% in HCQ+ versus 0% in HCQ-,p:0.014). Anti-β2Glycoprotein I IgG titers were significantly lower in HCQ+ than in HCQ- patients at the end of the follow-up (Student t,p:0.018). The variations of all the aPL titers in the two groups are shown in Figure 1. No differences in glucose and cholesterol levels were detected. Eight percent of HCQ+ and 17% of HCQ- patients experienced a thrombosis during the follow-up. Among patients with a history of thrombosis the annual incidence of recurrences was lower (0,87%) in HCQ+ patients than in HCQ- (2,17%).Table 1. Prevalence of medium-high titer antiphospholipid antibodies over follow-up Antiphospholipid antibodies medium-high titers Variation between beginning and end of follow-up in HCQ+ (%) Variation between beginning and end of follow-up in HCQ− (%) Anticardiolipin IgG −25% −4% Anticardiolipin IgM −0% +11% Anti-β2 Glycoprotein IgG* −30% −7% Anti-β2 Glycoprotein IgM −28% −6% *Statistically significant (p=0.04). Conclusions This study showed a strong reduction of aPL titers and of the incidence of recurrences in patients treated with HCQ, supporting a possible role of this drug in the treatment of patients with PAPS. References Rand JH, Wu XX, Quinn AS, et al. Hydroxychloroquine directly reduces the binding of antiphospholipid antibody-beta2-glycoprotein I complexes to phospholipid bilayers. Blood 2008, 112:1687–1695. Broder A, Putterman C. Hydroxychloroquine use is associated with lower odds of persisently positive antiphospholipid antibodies and/or lupus anticoagulant in systemic lupus erythematosus. J Rheumatol 2013, 40:30–33. Schmidt-Tanguy A, Voswinkel J, Henrion D, et al. Antithrombotic effects of hydroxychloroquine in primary antiphospholipid syndrome patients. Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis. 2013;11(10):1927–1929. Disclosure of Interest None declared


Author(s): Parson, Rahul Bjorn | Advisor(s): Dalmia, Vasudha | Abstract: The Hindi literati of Calcutta will always boast that Bengal was the starting point of the various paths taken by Hindi prose and publishing. The admixture of colonial, orientalist, missionary, compradore, and nationalist forces gave rise to a lively Calcuttan Hindi press from the mid-nineteenth century well into the twentieth century. It remained in constant dialogue with the Hindi-speaking publics beyond Bengal, while staying grounded in the socio-economic world of Calcutta's Barabazar. However, toward the end of the twentieth century, Calcutta's Hindi legacy was by most accounts moribund; scholars lamented that the lack of institutional support and interest had desiccated Hindi literary production in Calcutta. But then, along with other upheavals and ruptures that attended the liberalization of the Indian economy beginning in 1991, a spate of Hindi novels emerged on the scene; they came from an unexpected portion of Calcutta's demographic - Marwari women. This dissertation discusses the 200 year tradition of Hindi in Calcutta, exploring the continuities from the inaugural phase to contemporary novels, and how Marwaris, who had their own language and script, and as a merchant community from Rajasthan not previously known to produce literature, had come to make the language their own and publish in it. The first part of the dissertation (chapters 1-3) acknowledges the overlooked contribution Calcutta (Kolkata after 2001) and its diverse population made regarding the development of modern Hindi. The majority of scholarship regards Calcutta as squarely Bengali in terms of literary activity. I give special attention to the cultural and material conditions that gave rise to a confident Hindi print community. This process would play a major role in the promotion of Hindi as a national language. Print Hindi required, for its survival, the establishment of bonhomie with Marwaris and other upcountry merchants. Therefore the press called merchants to tie their fortunes to the Hindi movement for numerous reasons. It was the language of the market, the new technology of knowledge, and in time became implicated in nationalist projects to which Marwaris were summoned. The press extolled the religious virtues of switching to Nāgarī since Jain and Hindu scriptures (Prakrit and Sanskrit) were often in that script. Lastly, Marwaris could also identify with the supralocal character of Hindi, as they were themselves a diaspora with all-India ambitions. In the first three chapters of this dissertation I explore the politico-historical and social forces that shape the Marwari community and summon its literature into existence. Part two (chapters 4-6) discusses a new wave of Hindi writing. It engages with the novels of Alka Saraogi (b. 1960), Prabha Khetan (1942-2008), and Madhu Kankaria (b. 1957), three Calcutta-based Marwari women writers. The proliferation of Hindi novels from Marwari women signals a historical and political liminality as they confront issues of identity, belonging, gender, and class in a patriarchal social and literary milieu. This spate of Hindi prose literature coincides with neoliberal economic reforms in the Indian state, compelling writers to reflect on the consequences of globalization and late-capitalism in Calcutta at the close of the twentieth century. The writing is decidedly Calcuttan and urban in themes and influences, acknowledging a shared cultural space with Bengali while presenting a sensibility of Hindi-speaking migrants. This dissertation undertakes to contextualize the significance of this writing in the broader scope of one hundred years of social reform movements, women's issues in particular, and reconciling tradition with modernity. The novels circumvent the mainstream and majoritarian narrative of Calcutta and its history, yet are nourished in the concrete environment and cultural richness of the city.


At the turn of this century, satellites which have demonstrated the feasibility of many space applications, enter in a new era. Today they have an additional mandate: they must provide a well-identified service to Users and/or to Customers. This is applicable not only to Telecommunication but also to Earth observation missions. Data products or derived information must be elaborated rapidly in order to either authorise a near real time direct dissemination of data to Users or to generate alarms (e.g. for forest fire detection). Furthermore, the amount of data produced by instruments exceeds the downlink capability, leading to the need of implementing a selection or a compression mechanism onboard. On the same line, for observatory type of science missions, on board autonomy can bring significant advantages. With respect to the points outlined here above, on-board Payload Data Processing Systems can provide a suitable solution and the necessary autonomy or intelligence. This paper focuses on Payload Data Processing Systems and in particular on their implementation based on On-board networks. Taking into account that space applications have specific requirements, no commercially available networking infrastructure could be directly used for on-board applications. Therefore, SpaceWire links, Networks and tools have been standardised and adapted to space use. This paper presents their characteristics, related devices and tools developments and new opportunities offered by their intrinsic flexibility.


Delay and probability discounting functions typically take a monotonic form, but some individuals produce functions that are nonsystematic. Johnson and Bickel (2008) developed an algorithm for classifying nonsystematic functions on the basis of 2 different criteria. Type I functions were identified as nonsystematic as a result of random choices and Type II functions were identified as nonsystematic as a result of relatively shallow slopes, suggesting poor sensitivity to choice parameters. Since their original publication, the algorithm has become widely used in the human discounting literature for removal of participants, with studies often removing approximately 20% of the original sample (Smith & Lawyer, 2017). Because subject removal may not always be feasible because of loss of power or other factors, the present report applied a mixed effects regression modeling technique (Wileyto, Audrain-Mcgovern, Epstein, & Lerman, 2004; Young, 2017) to account for individual differences in DD and PD functions. Assessment of the model estimates for Type I and 2 nonsystematic functions indicated that both types of functions deviated systematically from the rest of the sample in that nonsystematic participants were more likely to show shallower slopes and increased biases for larger amounts. The results indicate that removing these participants would fundamentally alter the properties of the final sample in undesirable ways. Because mixed effects models account for between-participants variation with random effects, we advocate for the use of these models for future analyses of a wide range of functions within the behavioral analysis field, with the benefit of avoiding the negative consequences associated with subject removal.


Primary angiosarcoma of the spleen is a very rare but very aggressive soft tissue sarcoma due to early dissemination. The outcome of this disease is typically dismal with a mean survival of one to two years. However, our here presented case remained uncommonly symptom-free for nine years after splenectomy alone at the early phase of the disease.


Plasma fibronectin is covalently incorporated into alpha-chains of fibrin gels in the presence of Factor XIII activated by thrombin (FXIIIaT) but not by Factor XIII activated by the snake venom enzyme batroxobin (FXIIIaB). FXIIIaB catalyzes introduction of gamma-gamma cross-links in fibrin but cross-linked alpha-chains are not formed. In the presence of FXIIIaT, fibrin gels formed by batroxobin incorporated fibronectin and the alpha-chains are cross-linked indicating that FXIIIaB has a different substrate specificity from FXIIIaT. In the presence of FXIIIaT the incorporation of fibronectin approaches 1 mol/340 kDa unit weight of fibrin. Fibronectin when present in a fibrinogen thrombin mixture containing FXIII does not influence the clotting time of the system nor the release of fibrinopeptides. Incorporation of fibronectin is not appreciable before the gel point. This indicates that the polymerization and gelation of fibrinogen is essentially not perturbed by the presence of fibronectin and that fibrin in the gel matrix rather than the fibrin polymers formed prior to gel point is the preferred structure for fibronectin incorporation. Incorporation of fibronectin into fibrin gels during formation leads to an increase in turbidity and a small decrease in Ks (permeability coefficient). This suggests that the width of the strands in the gel increases as a result of fibronectin incorporation. Fibronectin is also incorporated into preformed gels having completely cross-linked gamma- and alpha-chains perhaps indicating that the sites in fibrin involved in fibronectin incorporation are different from those involved in fibrin cross-linking. FXIIIaT appeared to be adsorbed to fibrin gel matrix in the presence but not in the absence of calcium ions.


We randomized 43 villages in Bangladesh to receive information on well-water arsenic that emphasized water safety relative to the national standard (bright-line message) or provided additional information on how risks from exposure increase with arsenic levels (gradient message). The gradient message led to 50% more switching of water sources when the arsenic level was moderately unsafe, but 40% less switching at high arsenic levels. The differences in behavior are at least partially explained by differences in risk perception that developed after the information campaign.


The lavish productions of London's patent theatres, Covent Garden and Drury Lane, received their most nuanced critiques from an unlikely source: their burlesques. These satirical entertainments in the minor theatres often transferred their subjects to contemporary settings as a means to comment on social, political, and artistic affairs. Such was the case with Byron's Manfred, which—despite the poet's claim that it was unsuited to the stage—was presented at Covent Garden in 1834. While the production's spectacular scenery was praised, the incidental music by Henry Bishop was not so well received. This muted response to Bishop's score was symptomatic of the changing fortunes of the composer and of music's use in theatres more generally. A burlesque of the Covent Garden production written by Gilbert Abbott à Beckett, Man-Fred, transformed Byron's Count into a chimney sweep in central London and lampooned Bishop's habit of assembling scores from the works of others as well as criticizing restrictions on performers. Drury Lane's revival of Manfred in 1863 was also recontextualized by its burlesque, Mad Fred. These reworkings of 'legitimate' theatre in 'illegitimate' settings provide insight into the values behind nineteenth-century music-theatrical practices and their relevance to society.


Experimental studies are made on the hemi — cylindrically blunted fins for Mach 2.2 to examine the effect of dimples on shock wave / boundary layer interaction. Flow field details around hemi — cylindrically blunted fin has been captured using oil flow visualization, measurements of static and total pressures and lambda shock has been captured by shadowgraphy technique. Studies show that the configuration indicate nonstart without any dimples whereas startup is observed with adoption of dimples on the leading edge of blunt fin. Studies have been also made by varying the number of holes, diameter of holes and height of blunt fins. In addition, improvement in reduction of separation region has been observed.


Eukaryotic initiation factor 5A (eIF5A) is an essential factor with a unique amino acid, hypusine, required for its activity. Hypusine is formed exclusively in eIF5A by a post-translational modification involving two enzymes, deoxyhypusine synthase (DHPS) and deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH). Each of the three genes, Eif5a, Dhps or Dohh is required for mouse embryonic development. Variants in EIF5A or DHPS were recently identified as the genetic basis underlying certain rare neurodevelopmental disorders in humans. To investigate the roles of eIF5A and DHPS in brain development, we have generated four conditional knockout mouse strains using the Emx1-Cre or Camk2a-Cre strain and examined the effects of temporal- and region-specific deletion of Eif5a or Dhps. The conditional deletion of Dhps or Eif5a by Emx1 promotor driven Cre expression (E.9.5, cortex and hippocampus) led to gross defects in forebrain development, reduced growth and premature death. On the other hand, the conditional deletion of Dhps or Eif5a by Camk2a-promoter driven Cre expression (postnatal, mainly in the CA1 region of hippocampus) did not lead to global developmental defects; rather, these knockout animals exhibited severe impairment in spatial learning, contextual learning and memory, when subjected to the Morris Water Maze test and a contextual learning test. In both models, the Dhps knockout mice displayed more severe impairment than their Eif5a knockout counterparts. The observed defects in brain, global development or cognitive functions most likely result from translation errors due to a deficiency in active, hypusinated eIF5A. Our study underscores the important roles of eIF5A and DHPS in neurodevelopment. Significance eIF5A, an essential translation factor, is the only protein that undergoes a unique posttranslational modification, that converts lysine to hypusine by conjugation of the aminobutyl moiety from the polyamine spermidine. Hypusine biosynthesis occurs by two enzymatic steps involving deoxyhypusine synthase (DHPS) and deoxyhypusine hydroxylase (DOHH). Mutations in EIF5A or DHPS have been associated with rare neurodevelopmental disorders in humans. To understand the mechanisms underlying the pathogenesis of the disease, we generated mutant mice with brain-specific deletions of Eif5a or Dhps. The Eif5a and Dhps conditional knockout mice exhibited impairment in brain development, growth and cognitive functions. These animal models may serve as useful tools in the development of therapies against the eIF5A- or DHPS-associated neurodevelopmental disorders.


Listeria monocytogenes has been recognized as the etiological agent causing foodborne disease outbreaks, with fresh produce as vulnerable for contamination at even preharvest stage. Owing to the richness in microbial community, compost may mediate suppression of pathogens. ABSTRACT Listeria monocytogenes is a leading foodborne pathogen that can contaminate fresh produce in farm environment, resulting in deadly outbreaks. Composts contain a diversity of microorganisms, and some of them may be compost-adapted competitive exclusion microorganisms against L. monocytogenes. To understand interactions between compost microflora and the pathogen, both dairy- and poultry-wastes based composts (n = 12) were inoculated with L. monocytogenes, and then analyzed by next-generation sequencing approaches along with culturing methods. DNA extraction and enumeration of L. monocytogenes were performed at 0 and 72 h post-incubation at room temperature. The major bacterial phyla were identified as Firmicutes (23%), Proteobacteria (23%), Actinobacteria (19%), Chloroflexi (13%), Bacteroidetes (12%), Gemmatimonadetes (2%), and Acidobacteria (2%). The top three indicator genera enriched in different compost types were identified by LEfSe with LDA score > 2. The interactions between L. monocytogenes and indigenous microflora were limited as no significant changes in the dominant microbial members in compost ecosystem, but some discriminatory species such as Bacillus, Geobacillus, and Brevibacterium were identified by Random Forest analysis. Besides, changes in metabolic pathways and the increased abundance of bacteriocins category in the compost samples containing L. monocytogenes after 72 h postinoculation were revealed by metatranscriptomic sequencing. Taken together, the compost-related factors such as compost types, composting stages, and the collection farms are major drivers that affect compost microbial compositions, and the analysis of compost metagenome implied that interactions between L. monocytogenes and compost microflora may include competition for nutrients and the presence of antimicrobials. IMPORTANCE Listeria monocytogenes has been recognized as the etiological agent causing foodborne disease outbreaks, with fresh produce as vulnerable for contamination at even preharvest stage. Owing to the richness in microbial community, compost may mediate suppression of pathogens. In this study, the impact of compost-related factors and L. monocytogenes intrusion on dynamic changes in compost microbiome was investigated by next generation sequencing techniques. The compost-related factors such as compost types, composting stages, and the collection farms are major drivers that affect compost microbiome. The interactions between L. monocytogenes and compost microflora may include the competition for nutrients and the presence of antimicrobials produced by native compost microorganisms as potential competitive exclusion microorganisms. Findings from this study are important for the composting industry to understand the composition and functionality of microbial community in their products and help developing organic fertilizers fortified with anti-L. monocytogenes competitive exclusion microorganisms.


An inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for determination of the contents of six elements, Cd, Cr, Pb, Zn, Cu and Ni in drinking water has been developed in the present work. The operating parameters were optimized. 45Sc, 72Ge, 115In and 209Bi were chosen as the internal elements and the effect of matrix, interface and fluctuation of instrument was overcome effectively. Collision/reaction technology was used to eliminate the interference of polyatomic ion. Satisfactory linearity of working curves of six elements was obtained, giving all their correlation coefficients over 0.9997. The determination limit of the analytes were in the range of 0.70-77.0 ng x L(-1). The RSD was between 0.47% and 1.69%. GBW08607 was determined and the result was in the range of the standard. Drinking water of four areas was determined, the recoveries of the sample were 92%-108%. The method is simple, quick, accurate and stable, and can be used as a reliable method to determine trace elements in drinking water.


OBJECTIVE
The aim: To investigate the effectiveness of comprehensive approach in correctional work with older preschool children with speech disorders.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Materials and methods: The research was conducted in 2018-2022. The research involved 250 children aged 5-7 years, who were divided into two groups. The experimental group consisted of 150 children with motor alalia (57 girls and 93 boys). The control group consisted of 100 children without speech disorders (48 girls and 52 boys).

RESULTS
Results: The analysis of outpatient cards of children with speech disorders of various aetiology was carried out. The main results of a comprehensive medical as well as psychological and pedagogical examination of children with motor alalia are highlighted. The result of the research revealed that organic lesion of the brain affects not only the clinical presentation of nonverbal symptoms, but also psychospeech development, in particular.

CONCLUSION
Conclusions: The expediency of using a comprehensive diagnostic methodology was proved, where the medical component consisted in studying the peculiarities of bioelectrical activity of the brain on electroencephalography, which reflects the process of its morphological maturation in ontogenesis.


This study aimed to explore the core knowledge topics and future research trends in neuroscience in the field of education (NIE). In this study, we have explored the diffusion of neuroscience and different neuroscience methods (e.g., electroencephalography, functional magnetic resonance imaging, eye tracking) through and within education fields. A total of 549 existing scholarly articles and 25,886 references on neuroscience in the field of education (NIE) from the Web of Science Core Collection databases were examined during the following two periods: 1995–2013 and 2014–2022. The science mapping software Vosviewer and Bibliometrix were employed for data analysis and visualization of relevant literature. Furthermore, performance analysis, collaboration network analysis, co-citation network analysis, and strategic diagram analysis were conducted to systematically sort out the core knowledge in NIE. The results showed that children and cognitive neuroscience, students and medical education, emotion and empathy, and education and brain are the core intellectual themes of current research in NIE. Curriculum reform and children's skill development have remained central research issues in NIE, and several topics on pediatric research are emerging. The core intellectual themes of NIE revealed in this study can help scholars to better understand NIE, save research time, and explore a new research question. To the best of our knowledge, this study is one of the earliest documents to outline the NIE core intellectual themes and identify the research opportunities emerging in the field.


The radiation regulatory scheme in the United States must periodically evolve and adapt to ensure that public health, workers, and the environment are properly protected in view of accepted societal values and the advance of science, technology, and medical practices. Federal regulators must use best judgment in weighing a multitude of factors and considerations. In the early 21st century, a few dependable but tired and antiquated "workhorses" of regulation have been reworked already--but many more remain that likely need reworking. Three primary points of discussion on current directional influences on federal radiation regulation merit examination: • In 2015, what are the stressors driving societal and policy changes and how might these dynamics be forcing reexamination of old regulations? • What are the things that make a "good" regulation and an effective rule? • What are the thorny issues that the federal government is wrestling with and what are some of the notable activities in federal radiation regulations and guidance that are underway? This journal article was presented at the 2015 Annual Meeting of the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements and served as a broad overview of federal regulatory actions and issues.


Post-synthesis treatment of Fe-BEA with hydrogen has previously been shown to improve the low-temperature activity for NO reduction during standard NH3-SCR. Here, a 2 wt.% Fe-BEA sample was prepared by incipient wetness impregnation and calcined in air at 450 °C for 3 h. The fresh sample was then treated with 5% H2 at 650 °C for 5 h. The evolution of different iron species in Fe-BEA before and after H2-treatment was studied using in situ DRIFT spectroscopy with NO as a probe molecule and by UV-Vis spectroscopy. The DRIFTS results show that the relative intensity of the absorption peak representing isolated iron species increases significantly after H2-treatment of the fresh Fe-BEA sample. Furthermore, the UV-Vis results show a significant decrease in the relative intensity in the UV region representing larger iron particles, whereas the relative intensity representing smaller iron species increases after treatment of Fe-BEA with hydrogen. The results show that the low-temperature NO reduction during standard NH3-SCR can be increased for Fe-BEA by redispersion of smaller iron species into the zeolite structure by hydrogen-treatment.


In collaboration with industry partners, a normative model of the product concept decision process was developed, supported with tools and techniques, and codified as a decision support process for product development teams. This process (Concept Engineering) was then introduced into a number of product development teams in different companies. A comparative analysis of actual product concept development activities, with and without the use of Concept Engineering, was conducted. All of the observed teams viewed time to market as a critical measure of their success. However, the development processes differed significantly depending on whether relatively more emphasis was placed on time or market considerations. Key variables associated with the product concept development decision process and time-to-market dynamics were identified and a theory of the concept development process was developed using the inductive system diagram technique, a research methodology developed in the course of this work. We believe this work contributes to the operations management literature in three ways. First, it introduces a very detailed, structured decision process for product concept development, enhancing the literature on Quality Function Deployement (QFD). Second, it presents a theory of product concept development that can improve understanding of success and failure in product concept development. Third, this work develops new methodology (Inductive Systems Diagrams) for field work in operations management. This methodology marries the grounded theory methods familiar to sociologists with causal-loop modeling familiar to systems dynamicists, yielding a rigorous tool for systematically collecting, organizing, and distilling large amounts of


A photoredox catalyzed approach enabling use of alkynes as surrogate of 2-oxoaldehydes/1,2-diones is reported. The method overcomes the difficulty associated with application of unsubstituted aliphatic α-oxoaldehydes, which has hitherto limited their general use. Indoles, tryptamine, and tryptophan methyl ester participated in the reaction to give a variety of α-oxo based analogues. Quantum yield investigations support a radical chain mechanism.


Visuotactile sensors are gaining momentum in robotics because they provide high-resolution contact measurements at a fraction of the price of conventional force/torque sensors. It is, however, not straightforward to extract useful signals from their raw camera stream, which captures the deformation of an elastic surface upon contact. To utilize visuotactile sensors more effectively, powerful approaches are required, capable of extracting meaningful contact-related representations. This paper proposes a neural network architecture called CANFnet that provides a high-resolution pixelwise estimation of the contact area and normal force given the raw sensor images. The CANFnet is trained on a labeled experimental dataset collected using a conventional force/torque sensor, thereby circumventing material identification and complex modeling for label generation. We test CANFnet using GelSight Mini sensors and showcase its performance on real-time force control and marble rolling tasks. We are also able to report generalization of the CANFnets across different sensors of the same type. Thus, the trained CANFnet provides a plug-and-play solution for pixelwise contact area and normal force estimation for visuotactile sensors. The models, dataset, and additional information are open-source at https://sites.google.com/ view/canfnet.


[1] We have applied association analysis to 17 years of climate index observations and predicted net ecosystem production on land to infer short-term (monthly to yearly) teleconnections between atmosphere-ocean climate forcing and terrestrial carbon cycles. The analysis suggests that on a global level, climate indices can be significantly correlated to net ecosystem carbon fluxes over more than 58% of the nondesert/ice-covered land surface, commonly with a lead period of 2–6 months. The Southern Oscillation (SO) and Arctic Oscillation (AO) indices explain nearly equal portions of these significantly correlated area carbon fluxes. These significant teleconnections detected between surface climate and seasonal carbon gain or loss in terrestrial vegetation offer important capabilities for making inferences about the variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle of natural and agricultural ecosystems worldwide.


Persistent unrest in Long Valley Caldera-characterized by recurring earthquake swarms, inflation of the resurgent dome in the central sections of the caldera, and emissions of magmatic carbon dioxide around Mammoth Mountain-during the last two decades and continuing into the 21st century emphasize that this geologically youthful volcanic system is capable of further volcanic activity. This document describes the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) response plan for future episodes of unrest that might augur the onset of renewed volcanism in the caldera or along the Inyo-Mono Craters chain to the north. Central to this response plan is a four-level color code with successive conditions, GREEN (no immediate risk) through RED (eruption under way), reflecting progressively more intense activity levels as summarized in table 1 and 2 and described in detail in section II.


Our initial RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) revealed that the Serum amyloid A1 (SAA1) gene was differentially expressed in the mammary glands of lactating Holstein cows with extremely high versus low phenotypic values of milk protein and fat percentage. To further validate the genetic effect and potential molecular mechanisms of SAA1 gene involved in regulating milk production traits in dairy cattle, we herein performed a study through genotype-phenotype associations. Six identified SNPs were significantly associated with one or more milk production traits (0.00002< P < 0.0025), providing additional evidence for the potential role of SAA1 variants in milk production traits in dairy cows. Subsequently, both luciferase assay and electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) clearly demonstrated that the allele A of g.-963C>A increased the promoter activity by binding the PARP factor while allele C did not. Bioinformatics analysis indicated that the secondary structure of SAA protein changed by the substitution A/G in the locus c. +2510A>G. Our findings were the first to reveal the significant associations of the SAA1 gene with milk production traits, providing basis for further biological function validation, and two identified SNPs, g.-963C>A and c. +2510A>G, may be considered as genetic markers for breeding in dairy cattle.


This work is a proposition of an experimental platform to observe quantum fictitious anticentrifugal force. We present an analytical and numerical treatment of a rectangular toroidal dielectric waveguide. Solving the Helmholtz equation, we obtain analytical solutions for transverse spatial modes and estimate their number as a function of system characteristics. On top of that, the analysis of the structure is extended onto a real material platform, a thin-film lithium niobate on insulator rib waveguide. The framework presented here can be applied directly to analyze the phenomenon of quantum anticentrifugal force.


The first aim of the study was to introduce a practical approach to the recovery of CYCLODEXTRIN GLYCOSYLTRANSFERASE (CGTase) from Bacillus cereus using polyethylene glycol (PEG)/potassium phosphates aqueous two-phase flotation (ATPF) system. The optimal condition for purification of CGTase was attained at 18.0 % (w/w) PEG 8000, 7.0 % (w/w) potassium phosphates, VR of 3.0, 20 % (w/w) crude load at pH 7, and 80 min nitrogen flotation time at a flow rate of 5 L/min. With this optimal condition, purification factor (PFT) of 21.8 and a yield (YT) of 97.1 % were attained. CGTase was successfully purified in a single step using the ATPF. Another aim of the study was on the extractive bioconversion of CGTase using ATPS. Aqueous two-phase system (ATPS) extractive bioconversion provides a platform to integrate bioconversion and purification into a single step process. Thus, the investigation focused on the design of different ATPSs to reduce the steps in bioconversion and purification, thereby increasing the yield and reducing the cost and time of production. Each of the ATPS was evaluated independently. Extractive bioconversion of gamma-cyclodextrin (γ-CD) was evaluated using polyethylene glycol (PEG)/potassium phosphates based ATPS with ATPF-purified CGTase enzyme and soluble starch. The optimum condition was attained in the ATPS constituted of 30.0 % (w/w) PEG 3000 and 7.0 % (w/w) potassium phosphate. A γ-CD concentration of 1.60 mg/mL with a 19 % concentration ratio was recovered after 1 hour bioconversion process. The γ-CD was primarily partitioned to the top phase (YT = 81.88%), with CGTase partitioning in the salt-rich bottom phase (KCGTase= 0.51). Alcohol/salt based ATPS for the extractive bioconversion of γ-CD was studied after the PEG/potassium phosphate-based ATPS experimentation. The effects using alcohols (ethanol, 1-propanol, and 2-propanol) on CGTase bioactivity were investigated. The results showed that the optimum condition for extractive bioconversion of γ-CD was achieved in ATPS of ethanol 24 % (w/w) with potassium phosphates 20 % (w/w) system in the presence of 3.0 % (w/w) sodium chloride (NaCl). The 1 hour extractive bioconversion process recorded a concentration of 0.23 mg/mL of γ-CD harvested. Finally, extractive bioconversion of γ-CD from soluble starch with CGTase enzyme was studied using ethylene oxide-propylene oxide (EOPO)/potassium phosphates ATPS. Different molecular weights of EOPO with potassium phosphates were tested to study their partitioning effect on γ-CD and CGTase. The results showed that the optimum top phase γ-CD yield condition (74.4 %) was achieved in 35.0 % (w/w) EOPO 970 and 10.0 % (w/w) potassium phosphate with 2.0 % (w/w) NaCl. A total of 0.87 mg/mL concentration of γ-CD was produced in EOPO/phosphates ATPS top phase after two hours. The PEG/potassium phosphates ATPS was found to be a better system for extractive bioconversion of γ-CD. The main conclusion of this study was ATPS has a good potential to be applied industrially for the recovery of CGTase and γ-CD production.


The setting reaction of an equimolar β-tricalcium phosphate/monocalcium phosphate monohydrate (β-TCP/MCPM) cement was monitored in real time with ATR-FTIR at 23 and 37 °C using powder to liquid ratios (PLRs) of 2.0 and 3.3 g ml−1 and aqueous retardant citric acid concentrations of 800, 1000 and 1500 mM. The final set products, for PLRs of 2.0 to 3.3 g ml−1 and citric acid concentrations of 300 to 1500 mM, were characterised with regard to phase composition, compressive strength, density and relative porosity. FTIR provided evidence for the formation of an intermediate dicalcium phosphate–citrate complex (DCPC). As the concentration of citric acid in solution increased so did the maximum level of citrate intermediate. Decreasing the PLR reduced the rate of citrate removal, but had no effect on its rate of formation or maximum level. FTIR also indicated a time delay before formation of any observable dicalcium phosphate (DCP) in solution. This delay increased as the citric acid solution concentration was raised or the temperature reduced, but was less affected by the PLR. There was then an additional delay between DCP formation in solution and its precipitation. Both Rietveld analysis of XRD patterns and density measurements 24 h after setting confirmed that the final product was primarily dicalcium phosphate dihydrate (DCPD or brushite) when the citric acid concentration was less than 1000 mM, irrespective of temperature or PLR. On the other hand, with 1500 mM citric acid significant levels of dicalcium phosphate anhydrous (DCPA or monetite) also present, this led to increased porosity and a dramatic decline in strength. As the levels of the intermediate phase increased, the final wet compressive strength of the resulting cements also deteriorated. It is therefore proposed that strength reduction may be due to formation of the intermediate at early stages of setting or DCPA formation in the final product, both causing increased material inhomogeneity. This study thereby illustrates that real time ATR-FTIR monitoring of a setting reaction clearly indicates that there is an upper limit to the use of citric acid as a setting retardant for a fast setting brushite-forming cement system, a limit that can also be expected for the use of other setting retardants, and that ATR-FTIR monitoring comprises a useful complement to the traditional before–after investigations.


A new technique has been developed for direct measurement of the differential X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectrum by the energy-modulation method. To acquire the energy-oscillating incident X-ray beam, a piezoelectric actuator is used to control the double-crystal monochromator. A logarithmic converter circuit and a lock-in amplifier are used to extract the modulated signals. The normal and differential XAFS spectra of the Mn K-edge of Li2MnO3 have been collected. The X-ray-absorption near-edge-structure (XANES) spectra verify that the signal-to-noise ratio has been greatly improved by the new technique, and the extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectra demonstrate that this new technique can efficiently enhance the signals of the backscattering atoms.


It was observed in the course of other studies that rat fetal lung extracts inhibited proliferation of fetal lung cells in culture. The purpose of the present study was to isolate and characterize this cytostatic factor. It was found that fetal lungs contained a 16 kDa cytostatic factor and its concentration was twofold greater in fetal lungs of diabetic rats compared with control rats. This fetal lung cytostatic protein (FLCP) was purified by reversed-phase, heparin-affinity and gel filtration high-performance liquid chromatography and SDS-PAGE. The purified protein was electroblotted onto polyvinylidene difluoride membrane and subjected to sequence analysis. The amino-terminal sequence of this fetal lung cytostatic protein was P E P A K S A P A P X K G I G K Q X X K A X X K A ... and showed significant homology with histone H2B; however, the amino acid composition of FLCP suggested that it may be structurally distinct from histone H2B. Ion-spray mass spectrometry suggested that FLCP was made up of at least two species of the protein with molecular weights of 13,776.1 and 14,007.3 and was different from the molecular weight of rat histone H2B predicted by its cDNA sequence. The concentration of FLCP, based on amino acid compositions, was 0.32 nmol/g and 0.83 nmol/g wet fetal lung from non-diabetic and diabetic rats respectively. These findings suggest that the fetal rat lung produces a regulatory factor bearing considerable homology with but possibly different from histone H2B and that fetal lung immaturity during diabetic pregnancy might be contributed to by an increase in this factor.


The World Health Organization identifies road trauma as a major public health issue in every country; most notably among low-to-middle income countries. More than 90% of all road fatalities occur in these countries, although they have only 48% of all registered vehicles [1]. Unprecedented focus has been placed on reducing the global road trauma burden through the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety (2011-2020).

China is rapidly transitioning from a nation of bicycle riders and pedestrians to one where car ownership and use is increasing. This transition presents important public health, mobility, and safety challenges. Rapid motorisation has resulted in an increased road trauma burden, shouldered disproportionately among the population. Vulnerable road users (bicyclists, pedestrians, and motorcyclists) are of particular concern, representing 70% of all road-related fatalities [1]. Furthermore, those at greatest risk of sustaining a crash-related disability are: male, older, less educated, and earning a lower income [2] and residing in urban areas [3], with higher fatality rates in north-western poorer provinces [3].

Speeding is a key factor in road crashes in China [1, 4] and is one of two risk factors targeted in the Bloomberg Philanthropies-funded Global Road Safety Program operating in two Chinese cities over five year [5] to which the first author has provided expert advice. However, little evidence exists to help understand the factors underpinning speeding behaviour. Previous research conducted by the authors in Beijing and Hangzhou explored personal, social, and legal factors relating to speeding to assist in better understanding the motivations for non-compliance with speed limits. Qualitative and quantitative research findings indicated that speeding is relatively common, including self-reported travel speeds of greater than 30 km/hour above posted speed limits [6], and that the road safety laws and enforcement practices may, in some circumstances, contribute to this [7]. Normative factors were also evident; the role of friends, family members and driving instructors were influential. Additionally, using social networks to attempt to avoid detection and penalty was reported, thereby potentially reinforcing community perceptions that speeding is acceptable [8, 9].

The authors established strong collaborative links with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Zhejiang Police College to conduct this research. The first author has worked in both institutions for extended time periods and recognises that research must include an understanding of culturally-relevant issues if road safety is to improve in China. Future collaborations to assist in enhancing our understanding of such issues are welcomed.

References

[1] World Health Organization. (2009). Global status report on road safety: Time for action; Geneva.
[2] Chen, H., Du, W., & Li, N. (2013). The socioeconomic inequality in traffic-related disability among Chinese adults: the application of concentration index. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 55(101-106).
[3] Wang, S. Y., Li, Y. H., Chi, G. B., Xiao, S. Y., Ozanne-Smith, J., Stevenson, M., & Phillips, M. (2008). Injury-related fatalities in China: an under-recognised public-health problem. The Lancet (British edition), 372(9651), 1765-1773. [4] He, J., King, M. J., Watson, B., Rakotonirainy, A., & Fleiter, J. J. (2013). Speed enforcement in China: National, provincial and city initiatives and their success. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 50, 282-288.
[5] Bhalla, K., Li, Q., Duan, L., Wang, Y., Bishai, D., & Hyder, A. A. (2013). The prevalence of speeding and drink driving in two cities in China: a mid project evaluation of ongoing road safety interventions. Injury, 44, 49-56. doi:10.1016/S0020-1383(13)70213-4.
[6] Fleiter, J. J., Watson, B., & Lennon, A. (2013). Awareness of risky behaviour among Chinese drivers. Peer-reviewed paper presented at 23rd Canadian Multidisciplinary Road Safety Conference, Montreal, Quebec.
[7] Fleiter, J. J., Watson, B., Lennon, A., King, M. J., & Shi, K. (2009). Speeding in Australia and China: A comparison of the influence of legal sanctions and enforcement practices on car drivers. Peer-reviewd paper presented at Australasian Road Safety Research Policing Education Conference, Sydney.
[8] Fleiter, J. J., Watson, B., Lennon, A., King, M. J., & Shi, K. (2011). Social influences on drivers in China. Journal of the Australasian College of Road Safety, 22(2), 29-36.
[9] Fleiter, J. J., Watson, B., Guan, M. Q., Ding, J. Y., & Xu, C. (2013). Characteristics of Chinese Drivers Attending a Mandatory Training Course Following Licence Suspension. Peer-reviewed paper presented at Road Safety on Four Continents, Beijing, China.


Customer Experience Management (CEM) appeared as a complementary solution to overcome CRM limitations. CEM enhances profitability through building long-term relations with customers by understanding their experiences. This study aims at investigating the impact of customer experience quality on the willingness to pay more through customer satisfaction in the hotel businesses. The survey for this study was carried out on customers who had domestic hotel experience s within the last 6 months. Out of the 306 questionnaires retrieved, 225 valid responses were used for the empirical analysis that utilizied the statistical package programs SPSS 18.0 and AMOS 18.0. The research findings may be summarized as follows. First, as an outcome of the research hypothesis that each component of customer experience management would influence satisfaction, 'the peace of mind' & 'the moment of truth' were shown to have a significantly positive (+) impact on it. On the other hand, 'the product experience' was shown not to significantly influence it in a positive (+) way. Second, as an outcome of the research hypothesis that satisfaction would influence willingness to pay more. From the findings of the study, theoretical implications are as follows. It can be predicted that customer experience management will likely make customers more profitable because customers are willing to pay more with a sense of loyalty built through satisfaction of the hotel industry. In the practical implications, the dimension of experience quality examined by the study can be used as an index to measure and manage customer experience in the hotel industry.


A new approach is proposed for the design of perfect hash functions. The algorithms developed can be effectively applied to key sets of large size. The basic ideas employed in the construction are rehash and segmentation. Analytic results are given which are applicable when problem sizes are small. Extensive experiments have been performed to test the approach for problems of larger size.


During a long-term implantation (307 days) of a tripolar split cuff electrode around the palmar digital nerve to the radial side of the left index finger, branching off the median nerve in a medullary lesioned C6 patient, the physiological state of the nerve was intensively monitored. The resulting sensory nerve action potential (SNAP) amplitude was recorded, using both near-nerve electrodes and the implanted cuff electrode. The SNAP amplitude declined within 10 days to approximately 50% of the first SNAP cuff amplitude measured on Day 2 after implantation and recovered to the initial amplitude within 3 months. The SNAP amplitude measurements made with near-nerve electrodes were consistent with the cuff results; the SNAP conduction velocity (CV) recorded by the near-nerve electrodes and the cuff electrode was constant during the whole implantation period. This is in agreement with the results from two other patients: one with a cuff implanted around the sural nerve, and the other with a cuff implanted around a branch of the tibial nerve. These results and animals studies show that the cuff electrode is an electrically stable neural-electrical transducer.


A novel SCR-LDMOS structure is presented and discussed. The proposed device combines the features of the conventional LDMOS and SCR-LDMOS, resulting in an improved ESD protection capability for high voltage application. Simulated TLP results show that the proposed structure with 40 μm width and 0.1 mA external injection current exhibits a 86 V trigger voltage and a 31 V holding voltage. ESD characteristics of the proposed device can be adjusted to different applications by altering the value of the external injection current and the length of the SDT (Spacing between Drain and Trigger). Moreover, the process of the proposed device is compatible with the stand CMOS process.


Carrier multiplication (CM) is an interesting fundamental phenomenon with application potential in optoelectronics and photovoltaics, and it has been shown to be promoted by quantum confinement effects in nanostructures. However, mostly due to the short lifetimes of additional electron–hole (e-h) pairs generated by CM, major improvements of quantum dot devices that exploit CM are limited. Here we investigate CM in SiO2 solid state dispersions of phosphorus and boron codoped Si nanocrystals (NCs): an exotic variant of Si NCs whose photoluminescence (PL) emission energy, the optical bandgap, is significantly red-shifted in comparison to undoped Si NCs. By combining the results obtained by ultrafast induced absorption (IA) with PL quantum yield (PL QY) measurements, we demonstrate CM with a long (around 100 μs) lifetime of the additional e-h pairs created by the process, similar as previously reported for undoped Si NCs, but with a significantly lower CM threshold energy. This constitutes a significant step ...


We demonstrate that the chemical-feature model described in our original paper is distinguishable from the nongeneralizable models introduced by Chuang and Keiser. Furthermore, the chemical-feature model significantly outperforms these models in out-of-sample predictions, justifying the use of chemical featurization from which machine learning models can extract meaningful patterns in the dataset, as originally described.


The objective of this study was to examine a monoclonal antibody-based immunohistochemical staining method for its efficacy in diagnosis of bovine virus diarrhea virus (BVDV)-induced abortion and neonatal calf death. This method was compared to viral isolation and immunofluorescence staining of frozen tissue sections. Tissues from 105 cases, 53 fetuses and 52 neonates, were tested by the 3 methods. There were significant numbers of both false negatives and false positives with the immunofluorescence method and significant numbers of false negatives with the viral isolation method. Of the methods tested, immunohistochemical staining using monoclonal antibody 15C5 performed best, differentiating 97% of positive and negative cases. These results indicated that immunohistochemical staining can be applied to improve the accuracy of BVDV diagnosis in cases of abortion and perinatal death.


— This paper aims to develop a method for assessing the sustainability of sustainable use units through indicators. The specific objectives are to identify the characteristics of sustainability assessment criteria in Extractive Reserves (1), to elaborate a method for sustainability evaluation to those Extractive Reserves (2) and to develop a critical analysis bout the efficiency of the proposed method (3). The focus on Theory U, present in the work, allows an adequate operational interpretation about the use of indicators for the evaluation of sustainability. As a result, the GEITEC Method of Sustainability Endogenous Assessment was elaborated, in which the logical convergence of the object searched was pointed out. In this way, it presents the alignment of the academy, through strictosensu programs, in a search for means that guide appropriate technologies to be applied, not only as a phatic interpretation, but also to support actions to benefit the environment, to the social that should be adequately protected, to the economy in view of its importance for endogenous development and to the organizational structures that must be managed with skill for the success of the common interest. This research is a contribution to those involved in decisions related to sustainability.


We have measured the atomic lifetime of the argon 2p4 level by the laser-induced-fluorescence spectroscopy to be 30.5 ns. This contradicts the recent measurement using the high-frequency plused electron-beam excitation. We conjecture that, in their experiment, the radiation trapping not only affects the decay of the upper-level population but also relaxes the alignment initially produced by the electron-collision excitation in the upper-level population. Thus, the directly observed decay of the emission-line intensity is different from the decay of the upper-level population. We have observed the radiative relaxation of alignment on the neon 2p2 level which is a complementary effect to coherence narrowing.


This paper presents the effects Of acidity and additive pretreatment on the filtering rate and Spirarnycin (SPM) concentration in the filter liquor of SPM fermentation broth. The experimental results show that the SPM peak value in filter liquor iS obtained at pH5.5 with either 0.1% methanal or 0.1% BAPE. It is also indircatedt that there exists a dissolution equilibrium of proteins from the experiment results. The soluble proteins are denatured due to the too high/low acidity and then precipitate. Usually, the amount of soluble proteins reaches its lowest leve1 in pH range of 6.0–6.5. The protein precipitation will, together with other suspended solids, particles, contribute to the final SPM concentration in the filter liquor. This paper assumes that the contribution is the result of the adsorption equilibrium of SPM on the surfaces of suspened solids. For satisfactory explanation, the revised Landgmuir adsorption theory was employed and a model was developed.


In the (South) Korean language several terms have been coined to define North Korean refugees, but there seems to be a lack of consensus on the most appropriate label to define this group. This seems to apply also to scholarly communication. Although in recent years South Korean researchers have increasingly contributed to expanding our knowledge of North Korea and North Korean refugees, there is still little knowledge about the usage patterns of labels to define North Korean refugees among scholars. The main purpose of the current study is to identify such patterns in the context of scholarly communication. Specifically, this quantitative analysis will focus on the patterns of the three labels for North Korean refugees that have been more commonly used over the last two decades: "t'albukja" (Escapees from the North), "pukhan it'al chumin" (Residents who left North Korea), and "saet'ŏmin" (New Settlers).


Patients with relatively higher endogenous EPO levels (> 100 U/L) in the Arkansas study showed late responses or failed to respond, analogous to earlier observations by Ludwig et al, as well as by Fischl et al, and colleagues, who studied r-HuEPO administration in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome patients receiving r-HuEPO for anemia associated with zidovudine therapy. Thus, r-HuEPO substitution therapy is more likely to benefit patients whose anemia is associated with inappropriately low EPO serum levels. Granulopoiesis and thrombopoiesis were unaffected, and multiple myeloma cell stimulation has not been observed. The relative lack of toxicity from subcutaneously administered r-HuEPO at a dose of 150 U/kg three times weekly makes this approach an effective adjunct in the management of patients with multiple myeloma, especially those unresponsive to chemotherapy and remaining symptomatic from their anemia.


It is a critical issue to reduce the enormous amount of data in the processing, storage and transmission of a hologram in digital format. In photograph compression, the JPEG standard is commonly supported by almost every system and device. It will be favorable if JPEG standard is applicable to hologram compression, with advantages of universal compatibility. However, the reconstructed image from a JPEG compressed hologram suffers from severe quality degradation since some high frequency features in the hologram will be lost during the compression process. In this work, we employ a deep convolutional neural network to reduce the artifacts in a JPEG compressed hologram. Simulation and experimental results reveal that our proposed "JPEG + deep learning" hologram compression scheme can achieve satisfactory reconstruction results for a computer-generated phase-only hologram after compression.


Rattail fescue infestations are increasing in dryland conservation-tillage winter wheat cropping systems in the inland Pacific Northwest (PNW) region of Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Rattail fescue typically is controlled with cultivation in conventional tillage farming systems. However, reduced soil disturbance has allowed infestations to increase significantly. The objectives of this research were to determine the effectiveness of glyphosate rates and application timings on control of rattail fescue during a chemical-fallow period in winter wheat cropping systems. Chemical-fallow field studies were conducted during two growing seasons at nine sites throughout the PNW. Glyphosate was applied early POST, late POST, or sequentially in early plus late POST timings. Additionally, paraquat + diuron was applied early and late POST alone or sequentially with glyphosate. Sequential application treatments (glyphosate followed by [fb] glyphosate, paraquat + diuron fb glyphosate, and glyphosate fb paraquat + diuron) controlled rattail fescue (∼ 94% in Idaho and Washington, ∼ 74% in Oregon) and reduced panicle number (∼ 85% in Idaho, ∼ 30% in Oregon and Washington) equivalent to or greater than one-time treatments. Rattail fescue control and panicle reduction generally increased with increasing rates of glyphosate within application timings. Paraquat + diuron usually provided similar control and reduced rattail fescue panicle number compared to glyphosate treatments applied at the same application timing. Although not completely effective, sequential applications of either glyphosate or paraquat + diuron, fb glyphosate will provide effective control during chemical fallow. Nomenclature: Diuron; glyphosate; paraquat; rattail fescue, Vulpia myuros L.; winter wheat, Triticum aestivum L


Unlike playback of a video where a user can only interact by altering the video's playback, a recorded Virtual Reality (VR) experience when played back in VR allows unprecedented avenues for interaction, including alteration of the content. Thus, we present Vuja De, the propensity of finding novelty in familiar experiences. It enables re-experiencing VR recordings anew each time because of the multiple interaction outcomes made possible. Subsequently, we discuss comprehensive interaction scenarios demonstrating the utility of interactive recordings in realizing diverse possibilities.


This paper discusses the preservice teacher education practicum experience from the perspective of preservice teachers at a regional Australian university. It locates the practicum in the broader context of work integrated learning and associated principles of good practice. The paper argues that there are some perceived disconnections between the in-field and on–campus components of the teacher education program as well as an endorsement of some aspects of the practicum experience in closing the theory-practice gap. Our research adds to international debate about the balance between theory and practice and contributes a much needed student perspective on these issues. The paper concludes with suggestions on ways to improve the quality of the practicum.


Recombinant protein expression in the cytosol of Escherichia coli represents a standard low-cost and high-yield production process in academia and industry. However, in vivo, the solubility of the recombinant proteins is often limited. Approximately half of the proteins overexpressed in E. coli are insoluble and require solubilization and subsequent refolding. This refolding step represents a significant bottleneck in process development as suitable refolding conditions have to be determined by trial and error, leading many scientists to avoid these approaches and leaving many highly interesting but aggregation-prone target proteins unexplored. This chapter describes the basic principles of in vitro protein refolding and reoxidation approaches. Additionally, standardized protocols for solubilization and refolding of insolubly expressed proteins and also strategies to screen efficiently for optimum refolding conditions are provided.


The development of technology is one of the factors that help humans in doing their daily work. Turtlebot3 is a mobile robot that can move from one place to another using wheels. The problem with turtlebot3 is that both cameras cannot be used to detect and measure the depth of objects, especially spherical objects. One way to detect objects is to use color selection. The color selection method is HSV, and other way to measure distance is to use left and right vision. The method used to measure distance is using binocular disparity which is applied to a stereo camera. The research was carried out to test detect objects using the HSV method and measuring object distances using the binocular disparity method applied to stereo cameras. The research was conducted at different lighting conditions, for 106 lux the highest percent error value at distance of 30cm is 1.65% and for 53 lux it has the highest percent error value at distance of 120cm, which is 4.48%.


Abstract This article analyzes process of marginalization of SeranganIsland community in Denpasar, Bali, as a result of the island'scoastal reclamation project began in the early 1990s. The studyuses qualitative research methods whereas data collection techniquesincluded participant observation, in-depth interviews,and documentation study. Data were critically analyzed applyingsome cultural studies theories. Results of the study are asfollows. First, the form of marginalization of fishermen lookedin economic marginality, and urgency in the use environment.Second, there were external and internal factors that cause marginalization.External factors included the role of governmentthrough product legislation in force, the involvement of investorsthrough reclamation, and utilization of coastal areas for thebenefit related to tourism and other business services. Internalfactors caused by low human resource fisherman seen from hiseducation and lifestyle consumerism. Third, the marginalizationof the fisherman has a meaning of its own that is concerning themeaning of existence, the meaning of solidarity, and the meaningof life struggle.


We performed basic and clinical studies on the effects of a new oral antimicrobial agent, fleroxacin (FLRX), a new quinolone derivative in male gonococcal urethritis. The antibacterial activity of FLRX against clinical strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae was roughly comparable to that of norfloxacin and ofloxacin. FLRX was administered to 58 males with gonococcal urethritis. Two different schedules of administration were adopted. One was a single-dose of 300 mg given orally (17 cases) and the other was the oral administration of 200 mg once a day for 3 to 10 days (41 cases). Clinical evaluation was made according to the criteria of the Japanese UTI Committee. The overall efficacy rate was 98% (49/50). For complications of Chlamydia trachomatis (11 cases), the efficacy rate was 90.9% (10/11). No subjective or objective adverse reaction occurred.


Mobile edge computing is capable of providing high data processing capabilities while ensuring low latency constraints of low power wireless networks, such as the industrial internet of things. However, optimally placing edge servers (providing storage and computation services to user equipment) is still a challenge. To optimally place mobile edge servers in a wireless network, such that network latency is minimized and load balancing is performed on edge servers, we propose a multi-agent reinforcement learning (RL) solution to solve a formulated mobile edge server placement problem. The RL agents are designed to learn the dynamics of the environment and adapt a joint action policy resulting in the minimization of network latency and balancing the load on edge servers. To ensure that the action policy adapted by RL agents maximized the overall network performance indicators, we propose the sharing of information, such as the latency experienced from each server and the load of each server to other RL agents in the network. Experiment results are obtained to analyze the effectiveness of the proposed solution. Although the sharing of information makes the proposed solution obtain a network-wide maximation of overall network performance at the same time it makes it susceptible to different kinds of security attacks. To further investigate the security issues arising from the proposed solution, we provide a detailed analysis of the types of security attacks possible and their countermeasures.


Objective: To make comprehensive feature of previous researches on moxibustion, then build a basis of strategy for development of moxibustion-derived therapeutics. Methods: Surveyed 326 abstraction-containing Literatures from total 467 of moxibustion-related papers in PubMed and 29 papers in Korea. Analysis was performed according to distribution by study subject, number by year, nation, research method, and its efficacy. Results: Moxibustion-related researches have been rapidly increased since 2001. The main contributive country for moxibustion research was China whileas few researches was done by Korea. The main subjects of moxibustion research are associated with immunity, inflammation, neurosystem, and digestive function. The most therapeutic roles of moxibustion were on pain control, modulation of immunity, anti-fatigue and anti-stress. Conclusion: This study will help Korean Oriental medical doctors to systematically review the moxibustion researches, and to develop more competitive therapeutics using moxibustion in global CAM field.


We have benchmarked the quantum mechanical molecular dynamics (MD) code CP2K for systems of several sizes for different numbers of cores, and found that recent advances in algorithms have increased the code's performance, but decreased the scalability for a given system. The performance gains significantly outweigh the loss of scalability allowing us to increase our simulation through-put. We have started simulations on thermally-shocked nanodiamonds at various temperatures. We have also begun simulations of nanodiamonds colliding in an oxygen environment. We expect both sets of simulations to be completed this fiscal year.