We prove that if M is a CW-complex, then the homotopy type of the skeletal filtration of M does not depend on the cell decomposition of M up to wedge products with n-disks D n , when the latter are given their natural CW-decomposition with unique cells of order 0, (n i 1) and n, a result resembling J.H.C. Whitehead's work on simple homotopy types. From the higher homotopy van Kampen Theorem (due to R. Brown and P.J. Higgins) follows an algebraic analogue for the fundamental crossed complex ƒ(M) of the skeletal filtration of M, which thus depends only on the homotopy type of M (as a space) up to free product with crossed complexes of the type D n . = ƒ(D n ), n 2N. This expands an old result (due to J.H.C. Whitehead) asserting that the homotopy type of ƒ(M) depends only on the homotopy type of M. We use these results to define a homotopy invariant IA of CW-complexes for each finite crossed complex A. We interpret it in terms of the weak homotopy type of the function space TOP i (M,⁄),(|A|,⁄) ¢ , where |A| is the classifying space of the crossed complex A.


Generalized product codes (GPCs) are extensions of product codes (PCs) where code symbols are protected by two component codes but not necessarily arranged in a rectangular array. In this tutorial paper, we review a deterministic construction for GPCs that has been previously proposed by the authors together with an accompanying density evolution (DE) analysis. The DE analysis characterizes the asymptotic performance of the resulting GPCs under iterative bounded-distance decoding of the component codes over the binary erasure channel. As an application, we discuss the analysis and design of three different classes of GPCs: spatially-coupled PCs, symmetric GPCs, and GPCs based on component code mixtures.


College football bowl game associations and their organizers hold a distinct advantage over many for-profit sport and entertainment organizations as they are generally exempt from paying any income tax on profits made from their activities each year. However, recent behaviors from bowl game committees have begun to blur the lines between a for-profit company and a nonprofit organization that provides educational or charitable benefits. Specifically, critics have argued bowl associations should be taxed using the Unrelated Business Income Tax (UBIT), which examines if certain business activities are related to the purpose of an exempt organization or more in-line with a for-profit company. With this concept in mind, this review looks to see if some of the latest business ventures and activities implemented and practiced by bowl committees and their partners are protected or subject to the UBIT.


Abstract In her seminal 1998 work on 'new wars' Mary Kaldor developed a heuristic framework usefully for understanding the characteristics of armed non-state groups involved in contemporary conflicts. This framework was derived from analysing the 1992-1995 Bosnia-Herzegovina conflict. Some two decades after this however, adjustments may now be necessary. A focussed examination of the strategy used during 2014 by Islamic State Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) reveals Kaldor's framework may now need to include a more explicit focus on the transnational. Since the mid-1990s, the transnational has been made more accessible by advances in social media in particular, and by globalization more generally. ISIS's use of the transnational indicates this may be an area that astute non-state actors can advantageously exploit - perhaps better than states - although there are some difficulties involved. ISIS's success suggests that the transnational may in time have greater influence on the politics of international society.


Physiological studies of odor‐elicited responses from the olfactory epithelium and bulb in the tiger salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum, have elucidated a number of features of olfactory coding that appear to be conserved across several vertebrate species. This animal model has provided an accessible in vivo system for observing individual and ensemble olfactory responses to odorant stimulation using biochemical, neurophysiological, and behavioral assays. In this paper we have complemented these studies by characterizing 35 candidate odorant receptor genes. These receptor sequences are similar to those of the large families of olfactory receptors found in mammals and fish. In situ hybridization, using RNA probes to 20 of these sequences, demonstrates differential distributions of labeled cells across the extent and within the depth of the olfactory epithelium. The distributions of cells labeled with probes to different receptors show spatially restricted patterns that are generally localized to different degrees in medial‐lateral and anterior‐posterior directions. The patterns of receptor expression in the ventral olfactory epithelium (OE) are mirrored in the dorsal OE. We present a hypothesis as to how the sensory neuron populations expressing different receptor types responding to a particular odorant may relate to the distribution patterns of epithelial and bulbar responses previously characterized using single‐unit and voltage‐sensitive dye recording methods. J. Comp. Neurol. 474:453–467, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


The journey of a patient with a chronic rheumatic disease is a long one and most will encounter numerous «obstacles» during the course of their illness. This article discusses a number of these obstacles in order to help the physician recognize them and how to limit their impact on the patient's care. It also addresses the importance of accepting a degree of uncertainty about the diagnosis, the efficacy and tolerability of treatments, and the prognosis, and finally how the physician can encourage an 'active' participation by the patient to improve their health care.


By capitalising on positive biodiversity-productivity relationships, intercropping provides opportunities to improve agricultural sustainability1. However, intercropping is generally implemented using commercial seeds that were bred for maximal productivity in monocultures, which might limit the benefits of crop diversity on yield2,3. Plants can adapt over generations to the level of surrounding plant diversity, notably through increases in niche differentiation4. However, this adaptation potential and the corresponding yield benefit potential have not been explored in annual crop systems. Here we show that plant–plant interactions among annual crops evolved towards increased facilitation and reduced competition when the plants' coexistence history matched their current diversity setting, which led to an increase in overyielding of up to 58%. These higher yield benefits were linked to character convergence between species sharing the same coexistence history for two generations. Notably, the six crop species tested converged towards taller phenotypes with lower leaf dry matter content when grown in mixtures. This study provides the first empirical evidence for the importance of parental diversity affecting plant–plant interactions and ecosystem functioning of the following generations in annual cropping systems. These results have important implications for diversified agriculture as they demonstrate the yield potential of targeted cultivars for intercropping, which can be achieved through specific breeding for mixtures.


Secreted immunoglobulins, predominantly SIgA, influence the colonization and pathogenicity of mucosal bacteria. While part of this effect can be explained by SIgA-mediated bacterial aggregation, we have an incomplete picture of how SIgA binding influences cells independently of aggregation. Here we show that akin to microscale crosslinking of cells, SIgA targeting the Salmonella Typhimurium O-antigen extensively crosslinks the O-antigens on the surface of individual bacterial cells at the nanoscale. This crosslinking results in an essentially immobilized bacterial outer membrane. Membrane immobilization, combined with Bam-complex mediated outer membrane protein insertion results in biased inheritance of IgA-bound O-antigen, concentrating SIgA-bound O-antigen at the oldest poles during cell growth. By combining empirical measurements and simulations, we show that this SIgA-driven biased inheritance increases the rate at which phase-varied daughter cells become IgA-free: a process that can accelerate IgA escape via phase-variation of O-antigen structure. Our results show that O-antigen-crosslinking by SIgA impacts workings of the bacterial outer membrane, helping to mechanistically explain how SIgA may exert aggregation-independent effects on individual microbes colonizing the mucosae.


This article aims to provide contingency and epistemological elements to locate and discuss, within the history of medicine, the question of responsibility in clinical medicine. Grounded in authors such as Foucault, Canguilhem, Scliar and Engelhardt, Jr., the issue of medical liability and its ethics is examined in the context of the requirements of scientific discourse, and especially in the context of current clinical practice. The findings of the literature review point to the clinical importance of listening in medical practice as a major benchmark for considerations of medical liability and the care dimension from a perspective that is not restricted to diagnostic practice. As it distances itself from the clinical medicine is in danger of losing what is essential in its work with each individual clinical practice for each case.


In this article we present a modification of the algorithm for data discretized in the point values introduced in [S. Amat, J. Ruiz, C.-W. Shu, On a new WENO algorithm of order 2r with improved accuracy close to discontinuities, App. Math. Lett. 105 (2020), 106-298]. In the aforementioned work, we managed to obtain an algorithm that reaches a progressive and optimal order of accuracy close to discontinuities for WENO-6. For higher orders, i.e. WENO-8, WENO-10, etc. We have found that the previous algorithm presents some shadows in the detection of discontinuities, meaning that the order of accuracy is better than the one attained by WENO of the same order, but not optimal. In this article we present a modification of the smoothness indicators used in the original algorithm, oriented to solve this problem and to attain a WENO-2r algorithm with progressive order of accuracy close to the discontinuities. We also present proofs for the accuracy and explicit formulas for all the weights used for any order 2r of the algorithm.


The tumor microenvironment, which consists of fibroblasts, smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells, immune cells, epithelial cells, and extracellular matrices, plays a crucial role in tumor progression. Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), a class of unique liver stromal cells, participate in immunomodulatory activities by inducing the apoptosis of effector T-cells, generation of regulatory T-cells, and development of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) to achieve long-term survival of islet allografts. This study provides in vitro and in vivo evidences that HSCs induce the generation of MDSCs to promote hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression through interleukin (IL)-6 secretion. HSC-induced MDSCs highly expressed inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and arginase 1 mRNA and presented potent inhibitory T-cell immune responses in the tumor environment. Wild-type HSC-induced MDSCs expressed lower levels of CD40, CD86, and MHC II, and a higher level of B7-H1 surface molecules, as well as increased the production of iNOS and arginase I compared with MDSCs induced by IL-6-deficient HSCs in vitro. A murine-transplanted model of the liver tumor showed that HCCs cotransplanted with HSCs could significantly enhance the tumor area and detect more MDSCs compared with HCCs alone or HCCs cotransplanted with HSCs lacking IL-6. In conclusion, the results indicated that MDSCs are induced mainly by HSCs through IL-6 signaling and produce inhibitory enzymes to reduce T-cell immunity and then promote HCC progression within the tumor microenvironment. Therapies targeting the pathway involved in MDSC production or its immune-modulating pathways can serve as an alternative immunotherapy for HCC.


Health is the prime component for every person and in the world, there are different traditions have their own approaches to treat and cure illness. The dosage form of the drug may appear different but medically, however a generic medicament has the same mechanism in the body as that of the costlier brand-name drugs. They acquire the equal active ingredient and must pass the same satisfactory standards with respect to manufacturing and packaging of medicaments. The Generic medicinal drug beneath the regulation of U.S. Food and Drug Administration must have the equal quality and performance as that of the of brand-name drugs. The FDA states: "Generics have the identical quality as brand identify drugs. When a generic drug product is approved, it has met rigorous standards established via the FDA with respect to identity, strength, quality, purity, and potency. India started Jan Aushadhi scheme to make quality medicines handy to the shoppers at affordable prices. Given the socio-economic conditions and the level of ignorance and illiteracy with vast disparities of income in the country, the advantage of the scheme can be taken by the consumers or should reach the consumers particularly the poor and the needy, only when a proper multimedia publicity programmed is mounted to educate the consumers of all strata of society. India is still a developing country where quality and inexpensive remedy are still major issues.


 Abstract — Mass customization production increases the difficulty of the production line layout planning. The material distribution process for variety of parts is very complex, which greatly increases the cost of material handling and logistics. In response to this problem, this paper presents an approach of production line layout planning based on complexity measurement. Firstly, by analyzing the influencing factors of equipment layout, the complexity model of production line is established by using information entropy theory. Then, the cost of the part logistics is derived considering different variety of parts. Furthermore, the function of optimization including two objectives of the lowest cost, and the least configuration complexity is built. Finally, the validity of the function is verified in a case study. The results show that the proposed approach may find the layout scheme with the lowest logistics cost and the least complexity. Optimized production line layout planning can effectively improve production efficiency and equipment utilization with lowest cost and complexity.


PURPOSE
Evaluate functional and/or structural cardiac changes in young normotensive subjects with a family history of hypertension.

METHODS
Prospective study was performed with 62 normotensive persons, ages 15 to 30 years, divided in 32 children of hypertensive patients (group 1) and 30 children of normotensive persons (group 2) comparable in blood pressure, body surface area, heart rate, age and sex. After clinical examination, all underwent Doppler-echocardiogram to evaluate cardiac structure and left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function.

RESULTS
Systolic LV fractional shortening was increased in group 1 when compared with group 2 (38.03 +/- 4.95% and 34.7 +/- 4.48%, respectively--p < 0.01). Mitral deceleration time (DT) ranged from 85 to 160 ms--mean values 116.47 +/- 16.99 ms--in group 1 and from 100 to 220 ms--mean values 126.73 +/- 26.66 ms--in group 2 (p < 0.05). A correlation between LV mass and left atrium (LA) diameter was noted in group 1 (r-0.514, p < 0.01).

CONCLUSION
Children of hypertensive patients show increased LV function, similar to what occurs in early hypertension and in borderline hypertension, even when there is no evidence of LV hypertrophy or high blood pressure. Mitral DT (shorten in group 1) was the only diastolic parameter that differed in the groups. The correlation between LV mass and LA dimension suggests that LA size could be related to functional and hemodynamic LV changes.


ET―CSDLL (Evapotranspiration-CropSyst Dynamic Link Library) is a Microsoft (MS) COM (component object model) library containing routines to estimate reference crop evapotranspiration (ET 0 ) following the guidelines of the FAO Irrigation and Drainage Paper no. 56 for implementing the Penman-Monteith (P-M) equation. In addition, the Priestley-Taylor equation is also included for calculating ET 0 for conditions where meteorological data are insufficient to apply the P-M equation. The dynamic link library (DLL) can be used in MS Excel spreadsheets and in code developed using a visual MS Windows programming language. Examples are shown to illustrate the use of the DLL in MS Excel and MS Visual Basic applications.


In this article, I re-evaluate critiques of Levinas's Eurocentrism by exploring his openness to decolonial theory. First, I survey Levinas's conceptual confrontation with imperialism, showing that his early Eurocentric work (1930s‐1960s) is revised in his later writing (1970s‐1980s). Second, I explore the contextual reasons that led him to take that path, such as his previously overlooked conversations with the liberationist South American intellectual Enrique Dussel. Finally, I present the case for a revisitation of the current theoretical frameworks of Jewish thought. I explain how Levinas's encounter with Third World discourses helps to add a needed decolonial layer to contemporary Jewish intercultural conversations.


After reactive power compensation, voltage-dependent loads, such as constant impedance and constant current loads, consume more power because of the increase in node voltage; therefore, customers pay more for their electricity while utilities experience savings from line-loss reduction. Here, a voltage-reduction strategy plays an important role in reducing total energy consumption during reactive power compensation. In this paper, we have presented a rationale for the necessity of reducing voltage during reactive power compensation and determined the optimal voltage setting at the substation regulator. We have also analyzed the joint effects of ambient temperature, price, size, and phase kVAr of the capacitor on line loss and load demand using a 24 factorial design.


Generation of high‐titer retrovirus by transient production not only is less laborious than production of stable retroviral producer cell lines, but also has allowed the production of high‐titer retroviral supernatants from cDNAs that cannot be achieved by stable producer cell lines. Transient transfection has also increased the versatility of retrovirus‐mediated gene transfer to include the rapid testing of different constructs, viral pseudotyping, and construction of retroviral cDNA libraries. Systems based on human 293 cells, an adenovirus‐transformed human embryonic kidney cell line have produced the highest retroviral titers and are the most widely used. This unit describes methods for optimizing retroviral production from the 293‐based systems and for growing and freezing 293 cells. Methods are included for pseudotyping the virus with VSV G protein by sequential transfection or cotransfection. Virus produced by transiently transfected cells can be used to infect cells. Protocols are provided for infection of adherent cells either directly with retroviral supernatant or by spin infection. In addition, procedures are included for infection of nonadherent cells by addition of retrovirus supernatant, cocultivation with producer cells, or spin infection. These infection methods are also applicable to retrovirus produced by any of the stable producer cell lines.


The technology of laser beam cladding of metals by single-step powder delivery is analyzed with a process model which is based on balance equations of energy and mass. Effects like powder heating, clad layer formation, substrate dilution and overlapping of tracks are discussed in dependence of the process parameters. In particular, the powder catchment efficiency and the beam energy redistribution in the material can be optimized by the powder mass flow rate and by the geometrical properties of the beam and of the powder jet.


The study of the history of man's knowledge of plants and animals is all the more necessary in that it has been neglected in favor of the study of the development of tools. For instance, as Lewis Mumford has pointed out 1 ), knowledge of the modes of reproduction and growth of plants was more necessary to the development of agriculture in Neolithic times than was the invention of such tools as the spade, the hoe, and the plow, around which most conventional notions of "technological history" revolve. In presenting a paper, then, on attitudes towards the preservation of living things and their habitat in medieval China, I hope to redress the balance of interest, if only slightly, in favor of man's direct involvement with the natural world, and away from study of artifacts preserved in museums. It is, of course, necessary to do this through the study of documents. This paper is divided into two parts. In the first I will discuss some cultural factors which seem to have influenced policy relating to the conservation of nature, and in the second I will discuss some of the particular measures undertaken to make policy effective.


We examined the effect of a "mismatch" between a listener's phonological representations and speech input on spoken word recognition. Native Spanish (NS) and native English (NE) listeners were asked to write down 80 English words that were presented in noise. The words differed in neighborhood density (ND: dense versus sparse); half were Spanish-accented (produced by a NS talker), the other half were unaccented (i.e., produced by a NE talker). We hypothesized that phonological mismatches would occur when NS listeners responded to unaccented words and when NE listeners responded to Spanish-accented words. Further, the effect of the mismatch was expected to be greater for words from dense versus sparse neighborhoods because these words can be confused with many minimally-paired neighbors. The results supported the mismatch hypothesis. NS listeners showed a larger ND effect for unaccented than Spanish-accented stimuli, whereas NE listeners showed a larger ND effect for Spanish-accented than unaccented stimuli.


Oxygen uptake of liver, kidney and brain slices from cold-and heat-exposed adult, male mice was studied using the Warburg constant volume respirometer. In general, oxygen uptake showed certain similarities for both groups. The greatest oxygen increase from the control was observed after 72 hours of cold or heat exposure. For liver slices this was 21 and 6%, respectively; for kidney it was 23 and 27%; and for brain 33 and 31%, respectively. The lowest rate of oxygen uptake was seen after 48 hours of cold or heat exposure. For liver slices this was –27 and 6%; kidney, –7 and +14%; and for brain –10 and –2%, respectively. The mortality rate was increased in the heat-exposed more than in the cold-exposed animals. It is concluded that the response of oxygen uptake of these tissues from animals exposed to these divergent stresses (cold and heat) conforms to the pattern of the General-Adaptation-Syndrome.


OBJECTIVE
In order to provide help for preoperative assessment of cochlear implantation, related dissection of temporal bone was conducted guided by high resolution computerized tomography (HRCT) in accordance to the main steps of cochlear implantation, and was compared to HRCT measurements on a viewing workstation.

METHOD
Six temporal bones were dissected according to the main steps of cochlear implantation and scanned in axial and semilongitudal planes by HRCT to observe the relationship between anatomy and HRCT.

RESULT
The width of facial recess in dissection was (3.13 +/- 0.34) mm at the level of round window, and (4.12 +/- 0.44) mm at the level of oval window. The width of facial recess in HRCT was (3.20 +/- 0.38) mm at the level of round window, and (4.14 +/- 0.47) mm at the level of oval window. The whole course of facial nerve was visualized clearly in semilongitudal plane. No statistically significant differences were found between the results of dissection and HRCT.

CONCLUSION
The distance in axial between facial nerve and posterior wall of external auditory canal and the distance from facial nerve to round window in semilongitudal plane are the most important parameters which reflect the position of facial nerve. The vertical portion of facial nerve, posterior wall of external auditory canal, round window are important measurement landmarks. Related preoperative measurements of cochlear implantation by HRCT can help to guide clinic surgery.


The German Constitutional Court's recent challenge to European law supremacy, and European lawyers' strident critique of it, misdirect the conversation we need to have. The German Constitutional Court wants us to focus on a surplus of European Union power, the European Court of Justice's refusal to constrain it, the legal strategy of proportionality, and the goal of protecting national democracy. I defend national judicial pushback that is used to protect individual rights, democracy and the national constitutional order. But demanding a German right to proportionality review of ECB monetary policy does not further these goals. Judicial review of monetary policy, especially in a context of radical uncertainty, makes little sense. Nor is the German Court's doctrinal focus helpful as a way to address globalization. We need a new and different conversation focused on when and how constitutional review can effectively and helpfully push back against the adverse impacts that economic globalization is creating.


The European Community has set itself the objective of maintaining and developing an area of freedom, security and justice in which the free movement of persons is ensured. For the gradual establishment of such an area, the Community is to adopt, inter alia, measures in the field of judicial cooperation in civil matters having cross-border implications needed for the proper functioning of the internal market. According to Article 65(c) of the Treaty, those measures are to include those eliminating obstacles to the good functioning of civil proceedings, if necessary by promoting the compatibility of the rules on civil procedure applicable in the Member States. This Regulation establishes a European procedure for small claims intended to simplify and speed up litigation concerning small claims in cross-border cases, and to reduce costs. The European Small Claims Procedure is be available to litigants as an alternative to the procedures existing under the laws of the Member States. This Regulation also eliminates the intermediate proceedings necessary to enable recognition and enforcement, in other Member States, of judgments given in one Member State in the European Small Claims Procedure. The European Small Claims Procedure is a written procedure. A judgment given in a Member State in the European Small Claims Procedure is recognised and enforced in another Member State without the need for a declaration of enforce-ability and without any possibility of opposing its recognition. The court or tribunal may hold an oral hearing through video conference or other communication technology if the technical means are available. It may also admit the taking of evidence through video conference or other communication technology if the technical means are available. This article compared European Small Claims Procedure with Korean Small Claims Procedure and (along with) proposed improvements. For promoting judicial cooperation in Far East Asian countries such as Korea, China and Japan, European Small Claims Procedure may be considered to be a good model. To satisfy further revisional needs for European Small Claims Procedure, COM/2013/0794 has been submitted. Continued research is needed.


OmicsMiner is a computational platform providing systematic access to state-of-the-art data processing and mining methods with the goal of facilitating the design of customized pipelines for processing a diverse range of biological data sets. Many built-in methods are provided for preprocessing, feature selection, clustering and classification of complex datasets. The platform supports convenient integration of additional algorithms that can further expand its functionality. OmicsMiner also provides convenient and concise interactive graphical user interfaces for data processing. OmicsMiner is a Java program that is platform-independent and does not require installation.


Most distributed system specifications have performance benchmark requirements. However, determining the likely performance of complex distributed system architectures during development is very challenging. We describe a system where software architects sketch an outline of their proposed system architecture at a high level of abstraction, including indicating client requests, server services, and choosing particular kinds of middleware and database technologies. A fully working implementation of this system is then automatically generated, allowing multiple clients and servers to be run. Performance tests are then automatically run for this generated code and results are displayed back in the original high-level architectural diagrams. Architects may change performance parameters and architecture characteristics, comparing multiple test run results to determine the most suitable abstractions to refine to detailed designs for actual system implementation. We demonstrate the utility of this approach and the accuracy of our generated performance test-beds for validating architectural choices during early system development.


Cloud computing is characterized by a model in which computing resources are delivered as services in a pay-as-you-go manner, which eliminates the need for upfront investments, reducing the time to market and opportunity costs. Despite its benefits, cloud computing brought new concerns about provider dependence and data confidentiality, which further led to a growing trend on consuming resources from multiple clouds. However, building multi-cloud systems is still very challenging and time consuming due to the heterogeneity across cloud providers' offerings and the high-variability in the configuration of cloud providers. This variability is expressed by the large number of available services and the many different ways in which they can be combined and configured. In order to ensure correct setup of a multi-cloud environment, developers must be aware of service offerings and configuration options from multiple cloud providers.
To tackle this problem, this thesis proposes a software product line-based approach for managing the variability in cloud environments in order to automate the setup and adaptation of multi-cloud environments. The contributions of this thesis enable to automatically generate a configuration or reconfiguration plan for a multi-cloud environment from a description of its requirements. The conducted experiments aim to assess the impact of the approach on the automated analysis of feature models and the feasibility of the approach to automate the setup and adaptation of multi-cloud environments.


OBJECTIVE
To systematically review the therapeutic effect of continuous high positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) ventilation in patients with non-acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (non-ALI/ARDS) under general anesthesia mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit (ICU).

METHODS
PubMed, JBI Evidence-based Nursing Center Library, Cochrane Library, Embase, Medline, Wanfang Date, CNKI and VIP Database were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCT) and clinical controlled trials (CCT) using different levels of PEEP for the treatment of patients (uncombined ALI/ARDS) in ICU. The search period was from January 1st, 1990 to November 30th, 2018. Compared with the control group, the experimental group was treated with relatively high levels of PEEP ventilation. Outcome indicators were hospital mortality or 28-day mortality, partial oxygen pressure, and incidence of ARDS, atelectasis, and lung infections, etc. The RevMan 5.3 software was used for Meta-analysis.

RESULTS
Twelve articles were included, all of which were RCT studies; with 2 Chinese articles and 10 English articles. Meta-analysis showd that there was no statistically significant difference in the effect of different levels of PEEP on the mortality of patients [hospital mortality: odds ratio (OR) = 1.06, 95% confidence interval (95%CI) was 0.57 to 1.96, P = 0.85; 28-day mortality: OR = 0.34, 95%CI was 0.09 to 1.32, P = 0.12]. Compared with low PEEP, persistently high PEEP could increase the patient's partial oxygen pressure [weighted mean difference (WMD) = 48.27, 95%CI was 22.56 to 73.97, P = 0.000 2], prevent the occurrence of ARDS (OR = 0.32, 95%CI was 0.13 to 0.82, P = 0.02), and decrease the incidence of lung infection (OR = 0.52, 95%CI was 0.30 to 0.89, P = 0.02), but there was no significant difference in the incidence of atelectasis between the two groups (OR = 0.69, 95%CI was 0.23 to 2.06, P = 0.51).

CONCLUSIONS
In the treatment of patients in ICU with non-ALI/ARDS under general anesthesia mechanical ventilation, using relatively high levels of PEEP (10-16 cmH2O, 1 cmH2O = 0.098 kPa) instead of low levels of PEEP (≤ 8 cmH2O) can significantly increase the partial oxygen pressure and significantly reduce the incidences of ARDS and lung infection.


Angiogenesis is an essential requirement for the development, progression and metastasis of malignant tumours. Studies on transgenic mouse models have shown that angiogenesis begins in the pre‐malignant phase of oncogenesis, when dysplastic lesions acquire an increased microvasculature. To investigate the relationship between the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and colorectal tumour progression, we have studied VEGF expression level and splice variant pattern by semi‐quantitative RT‐PCR and the cellular source of VEGF expression by in situ hybrization (ISH) in a range of lesions that modelled the tumour‐development pathway from normal colon to invasive colorectal adenocarcinomas. Colonic adenomas showed a statistically significant up‐regulation of VEGF expression over normal tissues, with a further increase during the development of adenocarcinomas. Tumour cells formed the major source of VEGF expression, with a minor contribution from mononuclear cells in the tumour stroma and enhanced expression in tumour cells around necrotic regions. The comparable expression level in both the in situ and invasive components in the same tumours indicated that a high VEGF expression capacity had been acquired prior to establishment of the invasive phenotype. Our findings support activation of VEGF as the molecular basis for the discrete induction of angiogenesis in the pre‐malignant phase of colorectal tumour development. Int. J. Cancer81:845–850, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


The piezoelectric activity of charged cellular foams (so-called ferroelectrets) is compared against simulations based on a multi-layer electromechanical model and Townsend's model of Paschen breakdown, with the distribution of void heights determined from scanning electron micrographs. While the calculated space charge hysteresis curves are in good agreement with experimental data, the onset of piezoelectric activity is observed at significantly higher electric fields than predicted by Paschen's law. One likely explanation is that the commonly accepted Paschen curve for electric breakdown in air poorly describes the critical electric field for dielectric barrier discharges in micrometer-size cavities.


model and its efficiency on the development of entrepreneurship and innovation in selected
European countries and Turkey. This goal was achieved by examining the relationships between
debtor-friendliness of the bankruptcy law model and its efficiency on one side and entrepreneurship
and innovation on the other. The cross-sectional ANOVA test and OLS regression method were
chosen as the research method. In order to verify the research hypothesis, the following variables
were standardized: ease of second chance, severity of bankruptcy procedures index and resolving
insolvency index. In the next step, on the basis of their standardized values, factorization in pairs
(debtor-friendliness of bankruptcy law versus its efficiency and debtor-friendliness of bankruptcy
law versus risk tolerance) was performed according to the mean. Such standardization and
classification made it possible to analyse the variance of the "risk acceptance" variable in relation
to the factor of the (low and high) classes of the above-mentioned bound variables. Finally, two
studies were conducted using the classic analysis of variance. The analysis of the research results
showed that the debtor-friendliness of the bankruptcy law measured by the ease of second chance
index fails to increase the entrepreneurs' tolerance of risk. However, the efficiency of the
bankruptcy system measured with the resolving insolvency index does increase entrepreneurs' risk
tolerance risk in the countries surveyed. Next, it was checked whether the entrepreneurs' higher risk
tolerance is accompanied by the development of entrepreneurship and innovativeness. Based on
regression models, the above relations were confirmed.


The customer order decoupling point (CODP) as the link in the supply chain between processes based on uncertain information, such as sales forecasts, and certain information in the form of customer orders is crucial for production efficiency, storage costs, and the quality of logistics. This paper focuses on developing an approach for identifying a CODP that provides the highest potential for achieving business objectives. Within the context of the above-mentioned topics, this paper focuses on the interrelations and the tradeoffs that have to be made when positioning the COPD. The goal of the paper is to present an effective and chronological sequence of tasks, analyses and methods, criteria, and indicators that can help a production planner determine the CODP. In the first part of the paper, the factors affecting the positioning of the CODP (internal and external to the company) and their characteristics are identified. Based on extensive literature research, these factors are then mapped to manufacturing concepts, such as make-to-stock, assemble-to-order, and make-to-order. The factors that lead to moving the CODP are also identified and used as the foundation for the development of an iterative procedural method with four stages. In stage 1, the as-is state and current goals are captured and suitable CODPs are identified for the above-mentioned logistic factors. In stage 2, the products are combined into groups to reduce the complexity of the analysis and a procedure for accomplishing this is proposed. The number of suitable CODPs is reduced in stage 3 and the factors that influence the positioning of CODPs are taken into consideration. In stage 4, a financial and qualitative evaluation is performed on the various CODPs.


The dark age of the Universe, when no luminous object existed, ended with the birth of the first stars, galaxies, and black holes. This epoch is called cosmic dawn. Cosmic reionization is the major transition of the intergalactic medium in the Universe driven by ionizing photons emitted from luminous objects. Although the epoch through the dark ages to reionization is a milestone in the Universe, our knowledge of it is not yet sufficient. The cosmic 21 cm signal, which is emitted from neutral hydrogen, is expected to open a new window into this epoch. In this review paper, we first introduce the basic physics of the 21 cm line and how the first stars impact on the 21 cm line signal. Next, we briefly summarize how we extract astrophysical information from the 21 cm line signal by means of statistical and machine-learning approaches. We also discuss the synergy between the 21 cm line signal and other emission lines. Finally, we summarize the current status of 21 cm experiments.


Introduction Current British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines recommend DEXA scanning all patients with cirrhosis. All patients with a diagnosis of cirrhosis attending the cirrhosis clinic at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary are referred for DEXA scanning. We aimed to establish whether a risk stratification strategy using a fracture risk calculation tool (FRAX) to determine which patients should receive a DEXA scan is effective in reducing scan rates without compromising sensitivity for detecting osteoporosis. Method A retrospective analysis of 282 patients with liver cirrhosis undergoing hepatoma screening in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses were performed to assess sensitivity and specificity of FRAX calculated 10-year fracture risk thresholds of 5%, 10% and 15%. Results DEXA scan results were available for 205 patients. Mean age was 61.2(±9.1) years, of which 58.0% were male. Cirrhosis aetiology was largely a result of alcohol excess (n = 68), hepatitis C infection (n = 47) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (n = 34). The majority of patients were in good prognostic groups (88.8% Child-Pugh A, 10.7% Child-Pugh B, 0.5% Child-Pugh C). The prevalence of osteoporosis was 18.0% consistent with existing literature. The optimum FRAX 10-year fracture threshold was found to be 10%. This retained a high sensitivity of 96.2%, specificity 63.1%, and negative predictive value 98.1%. DEXA scanning rates would have been reduced from 100% (current policy) to 47.3%. Conclusion A risk stratification strategy for diagnosing osteoporosis using a fracture risk assessment tool (FRAX) and 10-year fracture risk threshold of 10% has high sensitivity for detecting osteoporosis and leads to a clinically significant reduction in scan rates. Disclosure of interest None Declared. Reference Collier, JD, Ninkovic, M, Compston JE. Guidelines on the management of osteoporosis associated with chronic liver disease. Gut 2002;50(Suppl I):i1–i9


This study examines the monthly seasonality of foreign exchange (FX) returns for eight major currencies (against the us dollar) from 1972 to 2010. It finds that five currencies exhibit significantly higher returns in the month of December and a significant reversal in January. Previous research has focused largely on the daily patterns within FX returns. With global FX daily spot transactions reaching us$4 trillion dollars, these findings have important practical implications for currency hedgers, arbitrageurs and speculators.


A novel two-dimensional dysprosium(III) complex, [Dy(L)(CH3COO)]·0.5DMF·H2O·2CH3OH (1), has been successfully synthesized from a new pyridine-N-oxide (PNO)-containing ligand, namely, N'-(2-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzylidene)pyridine-N-oxidecarbohydrazide (H2L). Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies reveal that complex 1 is composed of a dinuclear dysprosium subunit, which is further extended by the PNO part of the ligand to form a two-dimensional layer. Magnetic studies indicate that complex 1 shows well-defined temperature- and frequency-dependent signals under a zero direct-current (dc) field, typical of slow magnetic relaxation with an effective energy barrier Ueff of 33.6 K under a zero dc field. Interestingly, powder X-ray diffraction and thermogravimetric analysis reveal that compound 1 undergoes a reversible phase transition that is induced by the desorption and absorption of methanol and water molecules. Moreover, the desolvated sample [Dy(L)(CH3COO)]·0.5DMF (1a) also exhibits slow magnetic relaxation but with a higher anisotropic barrier of 42.0 K, indicating the tuning effect of solvent molecules on slow magnetic relaxation.


Although free trade law and environmental law especially contained in multi lateral environmental agreements (MEAs) are more or less compatible, however, some twenty MEAs might create a conflicting situation with the GATT/WTO regime. Efforts through CTESS are being made to make the two regimes compatible with each other. But an amicable solution towards harmonizing them still seems to be far. It is said that if all WTO Member states have the political will to agree to one suggestion, the problem can be solved. But due to politicization of the WTO, a common view is difficult to be reached. It is true that all states want protection of the environment. It is evident from the fact that many MEAs have relatively a large number of members, and their member states are sincerely working on enforcing treaty norms contained in them. But when it comes to a conflict situation with international trade, differences among them becomes eminent. In spite of this, an optimistic view that the two regimes can be made complementary to each other is still being given importance. It is for this reason that states are forwarding their suggestions to the CTESS and the discussion is being carried forward on those suggestions. The paper critically examines the reality of 'conflict or congruity' between free trade law and environmental law, evaluates various suggestions to make the two regimes compatible with each other, and offers one suggestion that can bring about harmony and will be viable.


Four design candidates for a partial admission turbine have been chosen from a preliminary design process. Their performance were estimated through the 3-D numerical analyses using a frozen rotor method. In order to select the optimum design, each flow analysis result was compared with others. Flow characteristics in the passages and some types of losses induced by shocks and wakes were found from calculation results. Based on these calculations, a new rotor blade was redesigned and compared with previous one through flow analysis.


The invention relates to a method of operating an electromechanical converter, in particular an electric variable transmission, provided with a primary shaft having a rotor mounted thereon, a secondary shaft having an interrotor mounted thereon, and a stator, fixedly mounted to the housing of the electromechanical converter, wherein, viewed from the primary shaft in radial direction, the rotor, the interrotor and the stator are arranged concentrically relative to each other. The rotor and the stator are designed with one or more windings. Further, the interrotor forms one whole both mechanically and electromagnetically, and is arranged as a conductor for magnetic flux in an at least tangential direction. The method comprises the step of variably controlling a magnetic rotor flux.


A series of activated carbons (ACs) were prepared by K2CO3 activation from kraft lignin (KL) that was recovered from papermaking black liquor. The effects of process parameters such as the activation temperature (AT), activated period, K2CO3 to KL mass ratio, and N2 flow rate on the characteristics of the final product were determined. The ACs were characterized using nitrogen adsorption, morphology, and fractal dimension analyses. The results showed that the AT was the main factor influencing the yield, surface area, and pore structure. The yield of ACs obviously decreased from 50.6% to 20.5% with increasing AT from 600 °C to 1000 °C, and decreased with increasing K2CO3/KL mass ratio. Activation time and N2 flow rate had slight effect on the yield of ACs. The surface area and total pore volume increased as the AT rose to 900 °C and then decreased with further increases in temperature. The maximum surface area and total pore volume were 1816.3 m2/g and 1.26 cm3/g, respectively, at a K2CO3 to KL mass ratio of 3:1, AT of 900 °C, activation time of 2 h, and N2 flow rate of 70 cm3/min. The pore structure of the ACs could be tailored by controlling the AT. As the AT was increased from 700 to 1000 °C, the mesoporosity increased from 11.6% to 95.9%. SEM images indicated that the morphology of ACs was modified by the AT. The K2CO3 was partially recycled.


The Spokane Research Laboratory, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, is investigating various remote sensing technologies as possible tools to detect, monitor, and mitigate hazardous situations in surface mines that could lead to catastrophic slope failure. Promising technologies include a field-portable spectro-polarimetric imager and a stationary interferometric radar device. Field tests were conducted of a prototype visible and near-infrared spectro-polarimetric imager (SPI) built at the Carnegie Mellon Research Institute. The SPI employs an acousto-optical tunable filter (AOTF) to control wavelength, a phase retarder to measure polarization signatures, and a digital camera and computer to capture data. Images obtained at the Mountain Pass and Castle Mountain mines in southeastern California showed that the instrument is capable of obtaining hyperspectral images of highwalls, outcrops, hand samples and drill core in the field. We have retrieved spectra from Mountain Pass images that closely match those of bastnaesite and have had some success in classifying images. Although radio frequency noise in the data limited spectral classification of imagery, we project that careful alignment of the AOTF should minimize the noise and greatly improve classification.


Modern complex and flexible manufacturing systems require new types of control system architectures and design methodologies. An essential new applied architectural approach is the distributed control architecture and an essential new methodology within automation is model-based engineering. There is a wide range of modeling approaches available from traditional automation, domain-oriented systems engineering, and software engineering. Unfortunately, there are very few reports on the pros and cons of these modeling approaches for the practical design tasks along the engineering process for distributed control systems (DCSs). This paper gives a first evaluation for the suitability of models for engineering DCSs to provide the researcher and practitioner with combinations of models that are well suited for their engineering projects.


Current agricultural practices rely on heavy use of fertilizers for increased crop productivity. However, the problems associated with heavy fertilizer use, such as high cost and environmental pollution, require the development of crop species with increased nutrient use efficiency. In this study, by using transgenic approaches, we have revealed the critical role of OsNLA1 in phosphate (Pi) accumulation of rice plants. When grown under sufficient Pi and nitrate levels, OsNLA1 knockdown (Osnla1-1, Osnla1-2, and Osnla1-3) lines accumulated higher Pi content in their shoot tissues compared to wild-type, whereas, over-expression lines (OsNLA1-OE1, OsNLA1-OE2, and OsNLA1-OE3) accumulated the least levels of Pi. However, under high Pi levels, knockdown lines accumulated much higher Pi content compared to wild-type and exhibited Pi toxicity symptoms in the leaves. In contrast, the over-expression lines had 50–60% of the Pi content of wild-type and did not show such symptoms. When grown under limiting nitrate levels, OsNLA1 transgenic lines also displayed a similar pattern in Pi accumulation and Pi toxicity symptoms compared to wild-type suggesting an existence of cross-talk between nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P), which is regulated by OsNLA1. The greater Pi accumulation in knockdown lines was a result of enhanced Pi uptake/permeability of roots compared to the wild-type. The cross-talk between N and P was found to be nitrate specific since the knockdown lines failed to over-accumulate Pi under low (sub-optimal) ammonium level. Moreover, OsNLA1 was also found to interact with OsPHO2, a known regulator of Pi homeostasis, in a Yeast Two-Hybrid (Y2H) assay. Taken together, these results show that OsNLA1 is involved in Pi homeostasis regulating Pi uptake and accumulation in rice plants and may provide an opportunity to enhance P use efficiency by manipulating nitrate supply in the soil.


This article analyzes the application of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) privacy laws, and the USA PATRIOT Act to the life settlement industry. The article further examines how the USA PATRIOT Act created anti-money laundering, suspicious activity reporting, and know-your-customer regulations that apply differently to various segments of the life settlement industry. In addition, the article examines the impact of modern financial and health privacy laws and how they impact insurance products that require disclosure of sensitive information from its customers.


A single-sided, gridded, gas ionization chamber with digital read-out and a dedicated gas-flow control system was built as the first stage prototype of the Twin Ionization chamber for Fission Fragment Investigation (TIFFIN) detector. The detector was tested with an α-particle source, and the operating parameters of the detector were probed to establish its response. Investigation of the operating parameters of the prototype led to an energy resolution of 8.69(1)% when running the detector with a gas mixture of 90% argon and 10% methane (referred to as P10) at a gas pressure of 1800 Torr. Digital read-out of the signal allowed signal risetimes to be successfully evaluated on an event-by-event basis. However, electric field inconsistencies limited the energy resolution achievable. An electric field cage should be installed to encourage a uniform field between the detector plates. The Nuclear Science Laboratories at Simon Fraser University are embarking upon a program of research to address various topics of interest to modern science such as the origin, production, composition and structure of exotic, neutron-rich isotopes. The study of fission fragments is an effective way to investigate neutron-rich nuclei. Ionization chambers are an appropriate and versatile tool with which to study fission fragments, and can be built in such a way as to allow energy, mass and charge measurements of both fragments. The single-sided prototype is a crucial first step towards the final design which will allow such measurements.


This paper introduces draft IEC standard 61970. This standard develops the guidelines and information model produced by the EPRI Control Centre Application Program Interface (CCAPI) project. The first part of the standard is a reference model describing the expected architecture and listing the major categories of applications. The major work completed is a common information model that is an object-oriented representation of a power system as viewed by energy management systems. One part describes physical based entities such as substation and conducting equipment. This model of network equipment and connectivity can also be used within distribution management systems. Other parts describe abstract entities related to the financial and scheduling data required for deregulated operation of power systems. Work is continuing to define the component interface standards for each of the application categories. This work is using a software design process that analyses the information exchanges described in use cases.


This paper presents likelihood processing (LP) for designing robust and energy-efficient multimedia systems in the presence of nanoscale non-idealities. LP exploits error statistics of the underlying hardware to compute the probability of a particular bit being a one or a zero. Multiple output observations are generated via either: 1) modular redundancy (MR), 2) estimation, or 3) exploiting spatio-temporal correlation. Energy efficiency and robustness of a 2D discrete-cosine transform (DCT) image codec employing LP is studied. Simulations in a commercial 45-nm CMOS process show that LP can tolerate up to 100×, and 5× greater component error probability as compared to conventional and triple-MR (TMR)-based systems, respectively, while achieving a peak-signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) of 30 dB at a pre-correction error rate of 20%. Furthermore, LP is able to achieve energy savings of 71% over TMR at a PSNR of 28 dB, while tolerating a pre-correction error rate of 4%.


Pineapple, paw-paw and orange were blended with 10% ginger respectively to form samples B1, B2 and B3, while samples C1, C2 and C3 were pineapple, paw-paw and orange blended with 20% ginger respectively. Samples D1, D2 and D3 were formed by blending pineapple, paw-paw and orange with 50% ginger respectively. Each sample was cooked in sugar to produce candy and A (Hall ginger candy bought in the market) used as control to evaluate the acceptability of the ginger-fruit candies using a 7-point hedonic scale and 10-man panel of judges. The result showed a high over all acceptability of samples D2, B1, A and C1. This sh wed that pineapple and paw-paw can form base fruit for the production of ginger-fruit candies.


Nonprofit organizations play a critical role in efforts to conserve biodiversity. Their success in this regard will be determined in part by how effectively individual nonprofits and the sector as a whole are structured. One of the most fundamental questions about an organization's structure is how large it should be, with the logical counterpart being how concentrated the whole sector should be. We review empirical patterns in the size, concentration, and growth of over 1700 biodiversity-conservation nonprofits registered for tax purposes in the United States within the context of relevant economic theory. Conservation-nonprofit sizes vary by six to seven orders of magnitude and are positively skewed. Larger nonprofits access more revenue streams and hold more of their assets in land and buildings than smaller or midsized nonprofits do. The size of conservation nonprofits varies with the ecological focus of the organization, but the growth rates of nonprofits do not.


Prior research finds young people are less satisfied with police than their older counterparts. Despite this, our understanding of youth attitudes to police is limited, as most research has focused on adult attitudes to police. This study adds to our understanding by examining the influence of parent–child dynamics on youth attitudes to police. We predict that youth attitudes to police will be influenced by their parents' attitudes. A survey of 540 school students in South East Queensland reveals that perceived parental attitudes to police are associated with youth attitudes to police. However, this effect is partially mediated by maternal, but not paternal attachment. These findings suggest that youth attitudes to police are not simply influenced by contact with police and delinquency, but that familial context is important. Consequently, our theoretical understanding of youth attitudes to police must move beyond a focus upon police contact and delinquency.


China's implementation of international refugee law and its asylum policies have long been of interest to numerous state and international non-state actors, especially regarding specific migrant groups in China. Despite China's high regards for international refugee law and a firm belief in the importance of international protection of refugees and asylum-seekers, international observers often argue that China is not meeting its legal obligations under international refugee law. The finding of this research is, despite China's past implementation of favorable asylum policies, and improvements in its application of international refugee law, including the beginning stages of drafting a national refugee law; there remains a gap between China's implementation of international refugee law and international norms. Thus, reforms are needed in China's asylum practices so that it is consistent with international practices. One key factor for this gap is, China's current legal framework and policies do not offer a long-term and durable solution for some refugees and asylum-seekers. Additionally, its asylum framework does not provide all conditions expected of a State that is a party to the "Refugee Convention". Furthermore, China's asylum policies differ among "persons in need of protection" regarding treatment and reception policy. The next crucial step for China in implementing international refugee law should be completing the drafting and adoption of national refugee law that is in line with the "1951 Refugee Convention" and "1967 Protocol".


The adolescence is a turning point in the life of an individual with varied changes in the physical and psychological growth and development, which  leads to psychosocial adjustment problems in the family . The gradual changes in the structure and conditions of the family as a result of the social and technological changes in the society play a pivotal role in mounting the problem high ever than before. Family as the primary social group of the individual to adjust with and molding a socially accepted behavior   to lead a smooth social life. The present study is to analyze and compare the psychosocial adjustment of adolescents in nuclear and joint family and it focuses on the effect of changes in the family system in the psycho-social adjustment of adolescent children. The study was conducted in the central region of erstwhile 'Travancore' state  now in the southern part of Kerala, which is known for the existence of  both type of family systems   even  in present times. Sixty families were selected from each type of family by using the purposive method of sampling constitute a sample of 120. Data collection was conducted through personal meeting with the respondents. The study reveals that, in nuclear family the adolescent is accepted with more understanding and there for they adjust with the  nuclear family and  society. They develops better coping skills to face the life situations  as against the  traditional belief of joint family system is  better environment for learning psychosocial adjustment sills.


OBJECTIVE To characterise cardiopulmonary baroreflex responses and examine the effects of a 45 minute cycling bout late after successful repair of coarctation of the aorta. SUBJECTS 10 young adults (mean (SEM) age 18.1 (2.6 years)) operated on for coarctation of the aorta 12.7 (3.5) years earlier, and 10 healthy controls. DESIGN Forearm blood flow (venous occlusion plethysmography) and vascular resistance, left ventricular internal diastolic diameter, and central venous pressure estimated from an antecubital vein were measured in the supine position at baseline and during five minute applications of lower body negative pressure (LBNP) at −15 mm Hg (LBNP−15) and −40 mm Hg (LBNP−40). Venous samples were obtained at baseline and during LBNP−40 for noradrenaline (norepinephrine), adrenaline (epinephrine), renin activity, and aldosterone. The tests were repeated after 45 minutes of moderate exercise. RESULTS Baseline heart rate (78 (9)v 64 (6) beats/min), echocardiographic cardiac output (6.9 (1.1) v 5.0 (0.2) l/min), shortening fraction (41.7 (1.8)% v 33.3 (1.3)%), and forearm blood flow (3.4 (0.4) v2.3 (0.3) ml/100 g/min) were higher in the coarctation group than in the controls (p < 0.05). Changes in forearm blood flow and forearm vascular resistance from baseline to LBNP−40 were similar in both groups, but the relation between forearm vascular resistance and estimated central venous pressure or left ventricular internal diastolic diameter was shifted downward in the coarctation group. Plasma adrenaline was increased in the coarctation group (baseline: 3.2 (0.6) v 2.4 (0.3) pmol/l in controls; LBNP−40: 687 (151) v 332 (42) pmol/l) (p < 0.05). Both groups showed a similar downward displacement of forearm vascular resistance (p < 0.05) after exercise. CONCLUSIONS There appears to be resetting of the cardiopulmonary baroreflex to a lower forearm vascular resistance in young adults operated on for coarctation of the aorta, associated with hyperdynamic left ventricular function. Raised circulating adrenaline could contribute to the lower forearm vascular resistance.


The rehabilitation of contaminated soils from phytoextraction technologies and the chemical recovery of subsequent biomass constitute a new strategy for recycling of vital minerals required by industrial chemistry. Plant wastes derived from phytoextraction constituted the raw material for the preparation of eco-friendly catalysts for organic synthesis, namely Ecocatalysis. Eco-Mn® was thus prepared starting from native plants used for rehabilitation of New Caledonian mining sites. Eco-Mn® revealed an original polymetallic composition resulting in marked Bronsted and Lewis acidities and displayed superior catalytic performances to classical Mn salts, as highlighted by the infrared study of pyridine desorption and model test reactions. The performance of Eco-Mn® was illustrated by the reductive amination of ketones, under solvent-free conditions, with the easily prepared and safe Hantzsch ester (HEH) as the reducing agent. A beneficial influence of water was observed with a model MnCl2-catalyzed reaction. Investigation of this effect revealed that water was specifically involved in the second step of the reaction, by activating both the imine substrate and the reducing agent. Finally, the Eco-Mn®/HEH methodology was applied to the reductive amination of various ketones and amines, giving good yields of products (up to 99%), including two precursors of pharmaceutical compounds.


The performance evaluation for a residential window air conditioning system with micro-channel condensers has been performed. First, a series of wind-tunnel calorimeter tests are conducted for two different prototype micro-channel heat exchangers. The measured heat transfer and pressure drop characteristics for the heat exchangers are then compared to four conventional finned round tube designs, which were obtained using a validated simulation model for identical air and refrigerant inlet conditions. Finally, two prototype micro-channel condensers are installed in the system and system performance tests are conducted. System characteristics such as capacity, energy efficiency ratio, and suction and discharge pressures and temperatures are presented, compared to those for the conventional system. Refrigerant charge amount for a window air conditioner with a micro-channel condenser is decreased by 35%, and the condenser core volume and weight can be reduced by 55% and 35%, respectively, compared to the conventional baseline system.


Abstract The ways in which Italy's parliamentary republic has functioned have changed significantly since the end of the Cold War. Following the Second World War, ideological divisions led Italy to adopt strategies of consensus that were premised on the central role of parliament. But once those divisions were overcome, Italy was able to join the family of parliamentary systems in which government was the seat of power. In the Italian case, the changes in the relationship between political institutions have not been accompanied either by coherent reform of the electoral system or of the constitution. In addition, the collapse of the old political parties and their replacement by personality-centred parties has also accentuated the weakness of the political bases of successive governments. Since the end of the Cold War, Italian politics has functioned in line with a bipolar logic, but the internal cohesion of thegoverning coalitions has repeatedly been called into question. So, too, has the leadership of the head of the government, however characterized by forms of personal leadership that had been consolidated after a lengthy period of consensual politics and collegial leadership. The consequence is that Italian democracy has changed becoming more competitive, although this change continues to be politically uncertain and institutionally unbalanced – hence it is a democracy that still continues its 'odyssey' in search of a more stable institutional equilibrium.


The accentuated importance of energy management has resulted in the introduction of ISO50001standard on energy management system. However, implementation of this standard is still at its infancy with many companies hesitant to adopt it. This paper presents a case of a Malaysian Copper manufacturer which implemented Energy Management System (EnMS) standard via the use of PDCA approach. Data was collected using participant observation approach. It was observed that the copper manufacturer achieved energy saving up to 3% in June 2013. This finding substantiates the importance of having Energy Management System in place to ensure business sustainability.


The current study was designed to assess the plaque removal efficacy of a novel experimental powered toothbrush (Crest SpinBrush Pro) compared to two leading manual toothbrushes, the Oral-B CrossAction and the Colgate Navigator. In addition, this paper reports the results of two additional studies examining the relative plaque removal efficacy of the two control manual toothbrushes and a number of other manual toothbrushes. The comparative study was a randomized, controlled, examiner-blind, nine-period crossover design, conducted among 127 adult subjects over a two-month period, that examined plaque removal with a new battery-powered toothbrush and two advanced-design manual toothbrushes. During the course of this study, subjects brushed three times with the experimental powered toothbrush and three times with each control manual toothbrush. Study participation was on a voluntary basis following written informed consent of the subjects. Plaque was scored before and after brushing using the Turesky, et al. Modification of the Quigley-Hein Index. Average baseline plaque scores were 2.68 to 2.69 for the three treatment groups. The experimental toothbrush delivered an adjusted (via analysis of covariance) mean difference between baseline and post-brushing plaque scores (i.e., a plaque removal score) of 0.69, while the control toothbrushes delivered adjusted mean differences of 0.46 (Colgate Navigator) and 0.54 (Oral-B CrossAction). All group differences were statistically significant (p < 0.001). The experimental powered toothbrush group had, on average, 49% and 28% greater plaque removal scores than the Colgate Navigator and Oral-B CrossAction groups, respectively. In addition, the Oral-B CrossAction group had, on average, a 16% greater plaque removal score than the Colgate Navigator group. This result was also statistically significant (p < 0.001). Results on buccal and lingual surfaces also demonstrated statistically significantly (p < 0.001) greater plaque removal for the experimental battery-powered toothbrush relative to the control manual toothbrushes.


Abstract Following typical forest inventory protocols, individual tree volume estimates are generally derived via diameter-at-breast-height (DBH)-based allometry. Although effective, measurement of DBH is time consuming and potentially a costly element in forest inventories. The capacity of airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) to provide individual tree-level information poses options for estimating tree-level attributes to enhance the information content of forest inventories. LiDAR provides excellent height measurements and, given the physiologic scaling connection of plant height and volume, using individual tree height-volume relationships could overcome errors associated with the intermediate step of inferring DBH from LiDAR. In this study, 60 Abies grandis (grand fir: 6 cm–64 cm DBH) were destructively sampled to assess stem volume across the Intermountain West in order to develop individual tree height-to-stem volume relationships. Results show DBH (r2 > 0.98) and height (r2 > 0.94) are significantly (p < 0.001) related to stem volume via power relationships. LiDAR-derived heights provided a 12 % RMSE improvement in accuracy of individual tree volume over LiDAR-regressed DBH estimates. Comparing height-based estimates with an existing regional allometry by mapping stem volume in a grand fir-dominated stand yielded a 6.3 % difference in total volume. This study demonstrates LiDAR's potential to estimate individual stem volume at forest management scales, utilizing height-volume relationships.


Milk is considered a complete and nutritious food for the new-born mammal and human beings, but it is considered as a good medium for many microorganisms. The consumption of raw milk and its products, which lead to the transmission of various diseases. The ability of raw milk to support the growth of several pathogenic microorganisms that can lead to spoilage of the product and infections in consumers. In the present investigation a survey was undertaken to collect raw milk samples from Local Vendorsin cuddalore district. Based on the Morphological and Biochemical characterization presence of E.coli were confirmed. Out of Twelve milk sample tested, the sample 2 sample 4, sample 7 and sample 9 exhibit the presence of E.coli. So it is observed raw milk attributed from different dairy farm is enabling cross contamination resembling growth of various microbial organism by different ways such as they are mixed fresh clean milk with mastitis milk, unclean hands of workers, unclean utensils and unhygienic water supply for washing the utensils could be the source for accelerating the bacterial contamination.

https://www.ijcmas.com/11-4-2022/Subham Prasad Beher, et al.pdf


Orbitopalpebral emphysema is not a very common condition, but when it is found it is always of traumatic origin. Ordinarily it is the result of a fracture of the nasal, lacrimal or ethmoidal bones. It may, however, occasionally be caused by the dentist during the process of drilling the dental canal, as can be seen from the case which I here report. The condition is practically harmless and requires no treatment beyond a pressure bandage. The diagnosis of the condition is comparatively easy. There is a sudden swelling of the lid and adjacent tissues, with no signs of inflammation, no redness, no pain. The swelling does not pit on pressure, but quickly rebounds, and there is a peculiar crackling sensation felt by the palpating finger, which results from the movement of air bubbles under the fingers. There is no exophthalmos in this variety of emphysema. Exophthalmos is present in emphysema


This note proposes a method of space efficient secret sharing i n which k secrets are mapped into n shares (nk) of the same size. Since, n can be chosen to be equal to k, the method is space efficient. This method may be compared with conventional secret sharing schemes that divide a single secret into n shares.


The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) flurbiprofen caused a rise in parasitaemia in goats infected with Trypanosoma vivax, Trypanosoma congolense and Trypanosoma brucei. All trypanosome-infected goats treated with flurbiprofen showed many dividing trypanosomes. This also included the short-stumpy forms of T. brucei. In T. vivax-infected goats flurbiprofen treatment resulted in 100% mortality in the acute and chronic stages of the infection. The increase in parasitaemia of T. brucei infected goats, treated with flurbiprofen, was not associated with an increase in mortality. The increase in parasitaemia of T. congolense-infected goats, treated with flurbiprofen, tended to be associated with a somewhat higher mortality but this was statistically not significant. The significant rise in parasitaemia could be reproduced in T. brucei-infected sheep without, however, killing the animals. Two other NSAIDs were also studied. Suprofen caused a rise in parasitaemia and 100% mortality when given to goats in the acute stage of T. vivax infection. Results with flunixin meglumine, when tested in T. brucei infected goats, were not conclusive.


Hecht syndrome is a rare condition that is also known as trismus pseudocamptodactyly syndrome. Short muscle and tendon units limiting the range of motion of upper and lower extremities and mouth characterize this disorder of muscle development. There is no consensus on the optimal treatment of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) ankylosis in this patient population. Endoscopic release in one patient resulted in early postoperative recurrence. The authors present a 28-month old boy who had a limited mouth opening of 6 mm. CT scan showed no bony ankylosis. The range of mouth opening did not to improve with physical therapy. The patient underwent extensive subperiosteal dissection of the mandible, bilateral coronoidectomy, and TMJ exploration. An intraoperative opening of 18 mm was achieved. The patient remained intubated until postoperative swelling resolved. He was extubated in the operating room 6 days later. The patient continued to improve with physical therapy. He had a 25-mm mouth opening at 12 months of follow-up.


Our project is the realization of monolithic loaded line phase shifters for hyperfrequency signals supplying planar antennas. Phase shifters include poly-Si microswitches taking the place of the usual PIN diodes. To this aim, undoped polysilicon cantilever beams were produced by surface micromachining. Results on the stress non uniformity and the stiction problem encountered during the process are reported.


Currently the existing computer analysis system for genomic drug discovery does not take it in to account that when cells are examined microscopically, excitation light or phosphor that is used on this occasion affects them adversely. We focused attention on phase microscope which can observe cells noninvasively. Until now, phase-contrast image has been difficult to process because recognition rate varies according to conditions, and for this, appropriate analyzing system has not been established. The study succeeded location of almost all cells. Moreover, we could segment 70 or 80 percent of those cells using hybrid watershed and region growing algorithm.


This contribution introduces a new direct measure of political media bias by analyzing articles and newscasts with respect to the tonality on political parties and politicians. On this basis we develop an index sorting the media in the political left to right spectrum. We apply the index to opinion-leading media in Germany, analysing 7,203,351 reports on political parties and politicians in 35 media outlets from 1988 to 2012. With this approach, in contrast to other indexes, we are able to achieve a more direct and reliable measure of media bias. In addition, we apply the index to study whether the media fulfil their role as the fourth estate, i.e. provide another level of control for government, or whether there is evidence of government capture.


Previous results on certain sampling series have left open if divergence only occurs for certain subsequences or, in fact, in the limit. Here we prove that divergence occurs in the limit.
We consider three canonical reconstruction methods for functions in the Paley-Wiener space $\mathcal{PW}^1_\pi$. For each of these we prove an instance when the reconstruction diverges in the limit. This is a much stronger statement than previous results that provide only $\limsup$ divergence. We also address reconstruction for functions in the Hardy space $\mathcal{H}^1$ and show that for any subsequence of the natural numbers there exists a function in $\mathcal{H}^1$ for which reconstruction diverges in $\limsup$. For two of these sampling series we show that when divergence occurs, the sampling series has strong oscillations so that the maximum and the minimum tend to positive and negative infinity. Our results are of interest in functional analysis because they go beyond the type of result that can be obtained using the Banach-Steinhaus Theorem. We discuss practical implications of this work; in particular the work shows that methods using specially chosen subsequences of reconstructions cannot yield convergence for the Paley-Wiener Space $\mathcal{PW}^1_\pi$.


Abstract The crystal structure of the high-pressure phase of potassium hydrogen carbonate, here termed KHCO3 form III, has been solved using single-crystal X-ray diffraction techniques. It adopts triclinic P1̅ symmetry and is formed on direct compression of the monoclinic ambient-pressure phase (kalicinite, form I) via a first-order phase transition at 3.2 GPa (ΔV/V ~4%). We have also used time-of-fight high-pressure neutron powder-diffraction to determine the structural changes in KDCO3 of the form I and III polymorphs to 8.3 GPa. This study indicates that the transition appears to be in response to pronounced displacements of the K+ cations and the cooperative tilting of the (DCO3-)2 dimers. The O···O hydrogen bond distance shows a monotonic compression over the entire pressure range studied with no obvious discontinuity at the phase transition. However, the O-D···O bond angle appears to exhibit an abrupt ~4° decrease across the I.III phase transition with a concomitant change in its pressure dependence. Birch Murnaghan fits to the equation of state data above and below the transition indicate that form III [B0 = 26.5(2.8) GPa, B' = 5.2(6)] is marginally less compressible than form I [B0 = 22.7(8) GPa, B' = 4.1(5)].


DC power distribution system is being considered as an attractive alternative to its traditional AC counterpart in many fields of applications and, in particular, for maritime onboard power systems. The adoption of DC power architecture would bring a broad range of benefits to the onboard power system. Not only frequency-related constraints are eliminated, which allows high-speed smaller generators to be used, but also new fault-tolerant configurations involving power electronics, generation control, as well as smart systemic management. For these reasons, DC power systems become natural alternative to the conventional AC power systems in the field of future maritime applications. Moreover, the inevitable cabin structure of maritime applications naturally separate the large-scale power system into several zonal parts. Furthermore, it is expected that the zonal parts can maintain autonomous power supply for a short time, which make the system highly consist with DC microgrids. In this content, it is foreseeable that the advanced research outcomes in the field of DC microgrid are also compatible with maritime onboard power systems. In this paper, DC power architectures, control and coordination methods, and specific issues of maritime onboard power system, fuel efficiency optimization and systemic reconfiguration are outlined, referring to state-of-the-art realizations as well as to novel concept designs presently under development and investigation. Keywords— DC Microgrid; all-electric ships; integrated power systems; marine electrical power systems; power generation


This study examines the use of five tashbīh (simile) particles which appear in close frequency in pre-and early Islamic poetry and in the Qurʾan. The particles are ka-(as), ka-mā (such as), mithl (like), and derivatives of the roots ḥsb (deem) and shbh (looks like, similar to). As well as understanding classical Arabic techniques for composition of similes, the study examines aspects of the interrelationship between the Qurʾan and the poetry corpus, the single surviving Arabic text to which the scripture was exposed. It finds greater common structural and lexical similarities between poetry and the Qurʾan in its earlier period (during the Meccan Revelation, 610–622 CE) than later, following the migration of Prophet Muḥammad to Medina (622–632 CE), when other ways of using these particles developed. This suggests surveying these techniques in other texts possibly known to Medinian society, such as the Bible. The present study outlines the premise that qurʾanic composition moved from the influence of the Arabic prototype seen in the poetry in the earliest periods of Revelation to a different form in later periods (texts, possibly biblical). This premise can be further explored by future examination of the interrelationship between the Qurʾan, pre- and early Islamic poetry and the Bible.


Abstract Let ${\mathcal A}$ be a line arrangement in the complex projective plane $\mathds{C}\mathds{P}^2$ . We define and describe the inclusion map of the boundary manifold, the boundary of a closed regular neighbourhood of ${\mathcal A}$ , in the exterior of the arrangement. We obtain two explicit descriptions of the map induced on the fundamental groups. These computations provide a new minimal presentation of the fundamental group of the complement.


It is observed that the presence of negatively charged, suspended nanoparticles significantly changes the electric-field-induced spreading and contact line dynamics of partially wetting liquid films. Image-analyzing interferometry is used to accurately measure the meniscus profile, including the spatial change in the meniscus curvature. The nanoparticle-containing meniscus exhibits enhanced spreading with an increase in the particle size and weight fraction. The instantaneous contact line velocities are measured using video microscopy and a frame-by-frame analysis of the extracted images. The effects of electric field polarity reversal on the flow toward the contact line are explored as well. The movement of the meniscus is analyzed taking into account the capillary forces and Maxwell-stress-induced flows. An analytical model based on the Young-Laplace equation is used to analyze the electric-field-induced contact line motion, and the model-predicted velocities are compared to the experiments.


Ethiopia has a rich diversity of ichthyofauna in its lakes, rivers and reservoirs. This study was conducted to identify fish species composition, estimate relative abundance, and assess length–weight relationship and condition factor for the dominant fish species in Gilo River and its nearby wetlands in Akobo district, Gambella Region, Ethiopia. Baro River in Gambella region is documented as the most diverse in fish species. Besides this, its nearby wetlands, tributaries and lakes which are expected to have rich fish species are least explored for their fish diversity. Samples were collected from selected sites using gill nets of various mesh sizes and hooks and lines. Fish sampling was done twice in dry season (December, 2016 and March, 2017) and twice in wet season (May and June, 2017). A total of 911 specimens were collected. These were identified into 27 species, 21 genera, 17 families and five orders. The Shannon diversity index (2.28) of fish species was higher in river than in wetlands (1.85); the same is true for the index of evenness for river (0.69) was also higher than the wetlands (0.67). The length-weight relationship of most of the species evaluated demonstrated positive allometric growth. Seasonal variations in the mean FCF of the most dominant species were statistically insignificant (p>0.05) except for Clarias gariepinus and Citharinus citharus. All the species identified in this study are new report to Gilo River and its nearby wetlands representing a baseline data for the study area. Anthropogenic activities i.e. fishing, farming, construction and other domestic activities were observed in the study sites. Plausible management options have to be encouraged to ensure sustainable utilization of the fisheries resources of the study area.


Acute lung injury (ALI) is characterized by alveolar epithelial dysfunction. We previously showed that early epithelial dysfunction was specifically mediated through tumor necrosis factor (TNF) p55 receptor signaling [1]. This study examined the contribution of resident alveolar macrophages (AM) to this phenomenon following acid aspiration.

C57Bl6 mice were treated intratracheally with liposomes containing either clodronate or PBS. After 48 hours, they underwent intratracheal instillation of hydrochloric acid followed by mechanical ventilation to assess respiratory parameters. Oxygenation, respiratory elastance, alveolar TNF concentration, lung caspase-8 activity and alveolar fluid clearance (AFC) were measured at 90 minutes after acid instillation.

Clodronate liposomes produced an 80% depletion of AMs. AM depletion significantly improved the deterioration in respiratory elastance (cmH2O/µl: PBS=0.06±0.008; CLOD=0.05±0.004; p<0.05) and PaO2:FiO2 (PBS=304±113; CLOD=426±41; P<0.05) induced by acid instillation. Additionally, alveolar TNF was significantly reduced (pg/ml: PBS=46.5±25.8; CLOD=15.5±2.7; P<0.05), along with attenuated lung caspase-8 activity (arbitrary units: PBS=14763±5466; CLOD=7135±372; P<0.01), and improved AFC (%/30min: PBS=3.8±2.6; CLOD=7.1±2.4; P<0.05). Caspase-8 activity showed an inverse correlation to AFC (Pearson r=-0.766; P<0.0001) implying epithelial death receptor activation.

These data suggests that during ALI induced by acid aspiration, epithelial dysfunction and hypoxemia are a result of epithelial cell death receptor activation by alveolar macrophage-derived TNF.

[1] Patel et al . Intensive Care Med. 2011;37(Supplement):S205

Supported by Wellcome Trust, UK.


The Kappa value mainly reflects the overall classification accuracy, but it is hard to evaluate whether a specific classification is optimal or not. In earthquake forecast, an indicator, R-value, is widely used to evaluate the predicting effect of a forecasting method. This paper introduces the R-value to evaluate the classifying accuracy of a specific category in image classification. The range and implication of R-value for a specific category are described and compared. As an example, analyses are performed to determine the R-value of classified building damage grade extracted from RS image, compared with building damage grade determined according to ground survey in order to get the best corresponding relationship between them. The results demonstrate that the best corresponding scheme with maximum R-values is consistent with the subjective understanding. It indicates that the R-value method gives richer classification accuracy assessment information than the Kappa method. It is expected to be applied to the evaluation of classifying accuracy of a particular category and the determination of the best scheme in image classification.


Image captioning is one of the most challenging tasks in AI, which aims to automatically generate textual sentences for an image. Recent methods for image captioning follow encoder-decoder framework that transforms the sequence of salient regions in an image into natural language descriptions. However, these models usually lack the comprehensive undemanding of the contextual interactions reflected on various visual relationships between objects. In this paper, we explore explicit and implicit visual relationships to enrich region-level representations for image captioning. Explicitly, we build semantic graph over object pairs and exploit gated graph convolutional networks (Gated GCN) to selectively aggregate local neighbors' information. Implicitly, we draw global interactions among the detected objects through region-based bidirectional encoder representations from transformers (Region BERT) without extra relational annotations. To evaluate the effectiveness and superiority of our proposed method, we conduct extensive experiments on Microsoft COCO bench-mark and achieve remarkable improvements compared with strong baselines.


I have read with interest the recent article entitled 'An in vitro direct chemiluminescence assay for assessment of plateletbound antibody in thrombocytopenic patients' (Kazemi et al. 1991). The authors, without looking at our study (Ozsoylu et al, 1977). stated that 'the interaction between phagocytes and autologous autosensitized platelets was not measured'. In our study it was looked for in vivo but could not be found (~zsoylu et al, 1977). I would also l i e to bring to the authors attention that by using the method described by Handel & Stossel (1974) we were able to detect antiplatelet antibodies (APA) in all 103 patients with acute idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) and 46 patients with chronic ITP. These antibodies could also be found during remission in all children who had had acute (100 cases) and chronic (32 cases) ITP, although the level was markedly lower than that during the thrombocytopenic period. Moreover, a rise in the APA level was seen during relapse in four chronic and two acute ITP patients. A decrease of APA was also shown by two out of four children who had re-entered remission after relapsed chronic ITP (c)zsoylu et aI, 1991). APA were not found in any of 126 control sera obtained from 67 haematologically normal individuals and 59 thrombocytopenic patients of whom 28 had acute leukaemia. 10 acquired aplastic anaemia, 10 Fanconi's anaemia and 11 sepsis with thrombocytopenia ((lzsoylu et al. 1991). The persistence of APA during remission in cases of acute and chronic ITP, previously reported by us ((lzsoylu et al, 1976), explains the shorter survival of platelets in these children. Although the results of Kazemi et al (1991) are somewhat supportive of our findings it could be concluded that the method of Handin & Stossel (1974) is more appropriate for the detection of APA in ITP cases in relapse or in remission even though the two methods are very similar in principle.


The mollusc shell is a hard tissue consisting of calcium carbonate and organic matrices. The organic matrices are believed to play important roles in shell formation. In the present study, we extracted and purified a novel matrix protein, named Prismalin-14, from the acid-insoluble fraction of the prismatic layer of the shell of the Japanese pearl oyster (Pinctada fucata), and determined its whole amino acid sequence by a combination of amino acid sequence analysis and MS analysis of the intact protein and its enzymic digests. Prismalin-14 consisted of 105 amino acid residues, including PIYR repeats, a Gly/Tyr-rich region and N- and C-terminal Asp-rich regions. Prismalin-14 showed inhibitory activity on calcium carbonate precipitation and calcium-binding activity in vitro. The scanning electron microscopy images revealed that Prismalin-14 affected the crystallization of calcium carbonate in vitro. A cDNA encoding Prismalin-14 was cloned and its expression was analysed. The amino acid sequence deduced from the nucleotide sequence of Prismalin-14 cDNA was identical with that determined by peptide sequencing. Northern-blot analysis showed that a Prismalin-14 mRNA was expressed only at the mantle edge. In situ hybridization demonstrated that a Prismalin-14 mRNA was expressed strongly in the inner side of the outer fold of the mantle. These results suggest that Prismalin-14 is a framework protein that plays an important role in the regulation of calcification of the prismatic layer of the shell.


Diamond like coatings (DLC) were deposited on silicon substrate using a filtered cathodic arc plasma deposition system. The morphology and hardness of the resulting DLC coatings were observed and determined with an atomic force microscope and a nano indenter, respectively. The friction behavior of the DLC coating sliding against SAE 52100 steel at various loads and relative humidity was investigated on a DF PM unidirectional friction coefficient measurement apparatus. The morphologies of the wear scar of the coating and of the counterpart steel ball were observed with a scanning electron microscope. The results showed that the DLC coating sliding against the steel at a lower relative humidity registered a lower friction coefficient with small fluctuation, while the friction coefficient rose significantly at increased load and relative humidity. This was attributed to the different formation mechanisms of graphitized transfer film on the counterpart steel surface. Since the graphitization and transfer film formation of the DLC coating on the counterpart steel was restrained in the presence of water, catastrophic destruction of the film occurred after only 400 sliding at a relative humidity of 100%. Thus the DLC coating prepared was not suitable to the protection of Si based elements working in environment of high relative humidity.


In the last years the interconnection and ongoing development of physical systems combined with cyber resources has led to increasing automation. Through this progress in technology, autonomous vehicles, especially autonomous trains are getting more attention from industry and are already under test. The use of autonomous trains is known for increasing operation efficiency and reduction of personnel and infrastructure costs, which is mostly considered for main tracks. However, for less-used secondary lines, autonomous trains and their underlying sensor infrastructure are not yet considered. Thus, a system needs to be developed, which is less expensive for installation and operation of these trains and underlying infrastructure for secondary lines. Therefore, this position paper describes the process of how to derive an approach to help develop a digital interlocking system at design time for the use with secondary railway lines. In this work, we motivate the necessary research by investigating gaps in existing work as well as presenting a possible solution for this problem, a meta-model. The model considers safety, security as well as interoperability like 5G and socio-technical aspects to provide a holistic modeling approach for the development of the interlocking system for industrial secondary line use cases.


The Bichat ball is fat located in the cheeks region, which can be used for various therapeutic purposes. The aim of the present study is to carry out a literature review on the use of Bichat ball and its application for aesthetic and functional issues. A search was performed on PubMed; SciELO, Scopus and Lilacs databases using the keywords we found 76 articles and 8 were selected, based on exclusion criteria (laboratory studies, articles in a language other than English, and literature reviews). The title and abstract of articles that met the inclusion criteria were evaluated. Some articles mentioned the use of the Bichat ball for the repair of small oral defects, such as oroantral communication closure, peri-orbital defects, congenital cleft palate, facial plastic surgery; some treatments were associated with pathologies. Further articles quoted its use for aesthetic purposes such as facial feminization and diminishing of the child's cheek appearance. Thus, the Bichat ball is effective for various purposes and can be used for both aesthetic and functional therapeutic treatment.


A patient with porcelain aorta underwent transcatheter aortic valve implantation with a self-expandable prosthesis for severe aortic stenosis. After postdilatation trace paravalvular regurgitation was accepted. 10 weeks later the patient returned with complete heart block and underwent pacemaker implantation. A new heart murmur prompted further investigation. A ventricular septal defect from the left ventricular outflow tract into the right ventricle was detected. It was successfully closed under direct surgical visualization and total cardiopulmonary bypass in an aortic no touch approach. Closure was accomplished with a percutaneous Amplatzer-PFO-occluder. Functional result was excellent.