OBJECTIVES
To explore the application of random forest algorithm in screening the risk factors and predictive values for postpartum depression.

METHODS
We recruited the participants from a tertiary hospital between June 2017 and June 2018 in Changsha City, and followed up from pregnancy up to 4-6 weeks postpartum.Demographic economics, psychosocial, biological, obstetric, and other factors were assessed at first trimesters with self-designed obstetric information questionnaire and the Chinese version of Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). During 4-6 weeks after delivery, the Chinese version of EPDS was used to score depression and self-designed questionnaire to collect data of delivery and postpartum. The data of subjects were randomly divided into the training data set and the verification data set according to the ratio of 3꞉1. The training data set was used to establish the random forest model of postpartum depression, and the verification data set was used to verify the predictive effects via the accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and AUC index.

RESULTS
A total of 406 participants were in final analysis. Among them, 150 of whom had EPDS score ≥9, and the incidence of postpartum depression was 36.9%. The predictive effects of random forest model in the verification data set were at accuracy of 80.10%, sensitivity of 61.40%, specificity of 89.10%, positive predictive value of 73.00%, negative predictive value of 82.80%, and AUC index of 0.833. The top 10 predictive influential factors that screening by the variable importance measure in random forest model was antenatal depression, economic worries after delivery, work worries after delivery, free triiodothyronine in first trimesters, high-density lipoprotein in third trimester, venting temper to infants, total serum cholesterol and serum triglyceride in first trimester, hematocrit and serum triglyceride in third trimester.

CONCLUSIONS
Random forest has a great advantage in risk prediction for postpartum depression. Through comprehensive evaluation mechanism, it can identify the important influential factors for postpartum depression from complex multi-factors and conduct quantitative analysis, which is of great significance to identify the key factors for postpartum depression and carry out timely and effective intervention.


There's a developing body of prove that Diabetes Mellitus leads to a particular cardiomyopathy separated from vascular malady and bring almost tall dreariness and mortality all through the world. Later clinical and exploratory thinks about have broadly illustrated that this cardiomyopathy causes disabled cardiac execution showed by early diastolic and late systolic brokenness. This impeded cardiac execution most likely have risen upon the expression and movement of administrative proteins such as Na+/Ca2+ exchanger, sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase, ryanodine receptor and phospholamban. Inorganic components have been recommended to have anti-diabetic impacts due to their recommended capacity to control glucose homeostasis, decrease oxidative stretch or smother phosphatases.


A new photo-sensitive voltage-controlled differential negative resistance device called the LAMBDA bipolar photo-transistor is presented. The basic structure of the Lambda bipolar photo-transistor consists of the simultaneous integration of a bipolar junction transistor and a merged metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor. The IV characteristic of this new device will exhibit a voltage-controlled differential negative resistance when the device is exposed to light. The operational principle of this new device will be described and the characteristics of the fabricated device are discussed.


A common objective in longitudinal studies is to characterize the relationship between a longitudinal response process and a time-to-event. Considerable recent interest has focused on so-called joint models, where models for the event time distribution and longitudinal data are taken to depend on a common set of latent random effects. In the literature, precise statement of the underlying assumptions typically made for these models has been rare. We review the rationale for and development of joint models, offer insight into the structure of the likelihood for model parameters that clarifies the nature of common assumptions, and describe and contrast some of our recent proposals for implementation and inference.


A serum reacting with the immediate early polypeptides (175K, 136K, 110K, 87K, 63K), with at least three early (beta) polypeptides (146K, 44K, 32K) and with the capsid polypeptide 155K of herpes simplex virus (HSV(, was used to stain sections from trigeminal ganglia of rabbits with established latent HSV infection. Alternating sections were stained with a serum to partially purified HSV particles. The results of the anticomplementary immunofluorescence by the first serum were compared with the results of the indirect immunofluorescence staining by the second serum in serial sections from both noncultured and cultured halves of the same ganglion. Nonstructural polypeptides were detected in ganglion cells before culturing only in 1 out of 12 rabbits. A good correlation was found between the occurrence of nonstructural and structural antigens in the explanted fragments starting from 72 hr in culture. The findings were consistent with the hypothesis of static latency provided that spontaneous activation of the silent genome would occasionally occur in a few ganglion cells.


Cervical cancer and other diseases related to human papillomavirus (HPV) represent a global public health problem. Safe and effective vaccines are now available and already used in many industrialized countries. Immunization offers the best hope for protecting the population against a disease that is the second most deadly cancer in the developing world and the first most deadly in Africa. The World Health Organization currently recommends introduction of HVP vaccination in developing countries. Widespread vaccination could be beneficial in numerous domains other than primary prevention of cervical cancer. Efforts to overcome the numerous obstacles and speed up implementation of HVP vaccination programs are now underway in many areas ranging from related scientific issues such as epidemiology and clinical research to administrative concerns such as healthcare economics, vaccination guidelines, public acceptation, program funding, and universal access. Vaccine manufacturers have committed themselves to working in partnership with national and international organizations to ensure access to HPV vaccine for all countries regardless of economic level, Although numerous issues must be resolved to optimize the use of HPV vaccines and ensure synergistic integration of vaccination, screening and treatment, current initiatives and efforts should allow introduction of HPV vaccination in developing countries in a not too distant future.


Optimal load of mobile robots, while carrying a load with predefined motion precision is an important consideration regarding their applications. In this paper a general formulation for finding maximum load carrying capacity of flexible joint mobile manipulators is presented. Meanwhile, overturning stability of the system and precision of the motion on the given end-effector trajectory are taken into account. The main constraints applied for the presented algorithm are torque capacity of actuators, limited error bound for the end-effector and overturning stability during the motion on the given trajectory. In order to verify the effectiveness of the presented algorithm, a simulation study considering a compliant joint two-link planar manipulator mounted on a differentially driven mobile base is explained in details.


OBJECTIVE
To investigate the estrogen-like activity of 4-NP and BPA in the immature SD rats.

METHODS
The vehicle, ethinyl estradiol (EE, 0.3 mg/kg, positive control), 4-NP (50 mg/kg, 100 mg/kg, 200 mg/kg), bisphenol (BPA, 200 mg/kg, 400 mg/kg, 600 mg/kg) were given orally (by gavage) q.d. to immature female Sprague-Dawley rats on the 21st, 22nd, 23rd postnatal days. The rats were sacrificed 24 hours after the last administration. Uterine wet weight, uterine/body weight ratio, height of the luminal epithelium, thickness of the myometrium and protein level of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) of rat uterine were analysed by one-way ANOVA.

RESULTS
In animal experiments, uterine wet weight and uterine/body weight ratio were significantly higher in the 4-NP 200 mg/kg and 100 mg/kg, BPA 600 mg/kg and 400 mg/kg (P < 0.05). Height of luminal epithelium, thickness of myometrium, as well as protein level of PCNA of rat uterine were significantly increased in the three groups of 4-NP, the three groups of BPA, and the mixture group (P < 0.05), and a dose-response relationship was observed.

CONCLUSION
4-NP and BPA had weak estrogen-like activities. They were the main environmental endocrine disruptors, and could influence the healthy of immature animals and children.


The liver is largest organ for humans, functioning as formation and secretion of bile, and as detoxification of toxins. Liver disease difficult to detect at early stage, but treatment of Liver disease in early stages will greatly help patient's recovery. With increasing number Liver Patients other than caused by unhealthy lifestyle, also caused by delay factor handling early symptoms. So this research aims to design Expert System Liver Disease based Website, that it can facilitate access information society need information about liver disease. Website based system design using K-NN Method because it is considered flexible enough and has tolerance to data that is'not appropriate and based on natural language. Expert system as a tool in determining whether the patient was suffering from Liver disease or not with the concept of K-NN. The results discussion that system design with a simple model so that can be used by all community.


Blue electroluminescence of boron doped diamond thin film is reported. The boron doped diamond thin films were deposited by microwave plasma assisted chemical vapor deposition on silicon substrate. The electroluminescence device was driven by a frequency-modulated power supply. The optimum frequency is near 3 kHz. The dependence of electroluminescence intensity on boron impurity has been investigated. The intensity with increasing boron impurity. This is expected results according to "Band A" electroluminescence mechanism of donor-accepter pairs recombination.


Rare diseases affect around 350 million individuals globally, yet at least half of those with suspected Mendelian disorders remain without a precise molecular diagnosis despite advanced genetic testing using short read sequencing (SRS). Long-read sequencing (LRS) holds a promise in addressing this diagnostic gap although its clinical application is hampered by its complicated workflow, demanding sample requirements, and exorbitant cost. Genomic disorders represent an opportunity to demonstrate the unique capability of LRS. This study addresses the challenges of identifying missing disease-causing breakpoints in complex genomic disorders by employing multiple LRS strategies, including a novel strategy named nanopore-based rapid acquisition of neighboring genomic regions (NanoRanger). NanoRanger requires neither detailed prior genetic mapping nor large amounts of ultrahigh-molecular-weight DNA, and it stands out for its ease of use and ultra-rapid acquisition of large genomic regions of interest with deep coverage. We describe a cohort of 13 families, each harboring a different homozygous disease-causing genomic rearrangement that defied breakpoint determination by SRS and Optical Genome Mapping (OGM). In each case, NanoRanger identified the breakpoints with a single base-pair resolution. This has enabled the accurate determination of the carrier status of unaffected family members as well as the founder nature of these genomic lesions and their frequency in the local population. It has also enabled an unprecedented analysis of the DNA motifs to discern the mechanism that predisposed to these recessive rearrangements. Our data suggest that NanoRanger can greatly accelerate the clinical adoption of LRS and expand its access for the benefit of patients with rare diseases.


The thermal properties of simple metals, Al and Cu, have been studied using the molecular dynamics simulation method and the effective medium theory (EMT). The results obtained from EMT have a strongly predictive nature, because the model includes many-atom interactions and is based on ab initio-calculations within the framework of the density-functional theory. We have calculated the thermal expansion coefficient of solid and melt phase, melting point and latent heat of fusion for both metals. All the results are in good agreement with the experimental data. The long-range interactions (beyond the nearest neighbours) have been found to be important in the simulations of high-temperature processes (melting, disordered structure) and also in the case of extended crystal defects. The theory gives a good description of the vacancy formation energy and the stacking fault energy. The presence of vacancies lowers the simulated melting point of Al indicating the importance of crystal defects in the melting mechanism. No significant temperature dependence of the vacancy formation energy in Al was observed.


ABSTRACT To investigate the prevalence of Staphylococcus aureus with reduced susceptibility to vancomycin among methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) strains in Asian countries, a total of 1,357 clinical isolates of MRSA collected from 12 Asian countries were screened by using brain heart infusion agar plates containing 4 mg of vancomycin per liter. The presence of strains that were heterointermediately resistant to vancomycin (hVISA) was confirmed by population analysis. Of 347 (25.6%) MRSA isolates that grew on the screening agar plates, 58 isolates (4.3%) were hVISA. hVISA strains were found in India, South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. However, neither vancomycin-intermediate S. aureus nor vancomycin-resistant S. aureus isolates were found among MRSA isolates from Asian countries in this survey.


This research evaluated the influence of different liquid diets on carcass yield, and components of retail cuts weight of crossbred calves slaughtered at 60 days of age. It was used 24 crossbred calves distributed in a completely randomized design with four treatments and six replications: whole milk, 50% whole milk + 50% of cheese whey, 50% whole milk + 50% cheese whey supplemented with a whole egg; whole milk and 50% + 50% of cheese whey supplemented with a egg added with biotin. It was evaluated intake, weight gain and slaughter weight. After slaughter at 60 days, it was collected all data related to carcass characteristics, commercial cut yields and components of body weight. The data were analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey mean comparison (P<0.05). The substitution of milk by cheese whey in nature can be adopted as a way to reduce the cost of production in lactating since such a substitution will not adversely interfere with the development of animals.


OBJECTIVE
The chemokine receptors CXCR1 and CXCR2 play a role in mediating neutrophil recruitment and neutrophil-dependent injury in several models of inflammation. We undertook this study to investigate the role of these receptors in mediating neutrophil adhesion, subsequent migration, and neutrophil-dependent hypernociception in a murine model of monarticular antigen-induced arthritis (AIA).

METHODS
AIA was induced by administration of antigen into the knee joint of previously immunized mice. Intravital microscopy studies were performed to assess leukocyte rolling and adhesion. Mechanical hypernociception was investigated using an electronic pressure meter. Neutrophil accumulation in the tissue was measured by counting neutrophils in the synovial cavity and assaying myeloperoxidase activity. Levels of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) and the chemokines CXCL1 and CXCL2 were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Histologic analysis was performed to evaluate the severity of arthritis and leukocyte infiltration.

RESULTS
Antigen challenge in immunized mice induced production of TNFalpha, CXCL1, and CXCL2 and also resulted in neutrophil recruitment, leukocyte rolling and adhesion, and hypernociception. Treatment with reparixin or DF2162 (allosteric inhibitors of CXCR1/CXCR2) decreased neutrophil recruitment, an effect that was associated with marked inhibition of neutrophil adhesion. Drug treatment also inhibited TNFalpha production, hypernociception, and the overall severity of the disease in the tissue.

CONCLUSION
Blockade of CXCR1/CXCR2 receptors inhibits neutrophil recruitment by inhibiting the adhesion of neutrophils to synovial microvessels. As a consequence, there is decreased local cytokine production and reduced hypernociception, as well as ameloriation of overall disease in the tissue. These studies suggest a potential therapeutic role for the modulation of CXCR1/CXCR2 receptor signaling in the treatment of arthritis.


The UN has identified an ambition to "develop effective gender-sensitive early warning mechanisms and institutions" 1 as part of the women, peace and security agenda, and in recent years a range of research and guidance has been produced by INGOs, UN agencies and academics on gender-sensitising conflict early warning systems. Despite this, early warning systems have generally been gender-blind in their analyses and failed to include women as participants in their processes.


As the largest bread basket in Zhejiang Province, Hangjiahu area is facing more and more serious water pollution, while the N loss loading by runoff from the paddy field during its submersed period is the main cause of the pollution. Through field experiment and fixed spot observation, the model of precipitation - runoff in Yangtze delta was testified, and the results showed that the precipitation - runoff model from HE Baogen was basically accorded with the fact after considering the impact of field overflow mouth, and the error was between - 19. 9% and + 18. 0%. The model of N concentration with precipitation - runoff in paddy field during submersed period was brought forward, with the R value being 0. 948. These two models consisted of the model of N loss loading by runoff from paddy field during submersed period. Based on this model as well as the past 30 years data of fertilization and precipitation, 1: 250,000 topography map, land use map, and water system map, the N loss loading and its distribution were estimated by using GIS method, and the results showed that the N loss loading was different from place to place, with an average of 35.26 kg N x hm(-2), and accounting for 12. 69% of the applied N. The N loss loading in Anji and Yuhang with obviously more precipitation was higher than that in other places, while Haining also had a serious N loss problem because of the huge amount of applied N.


Marx's theory of value arose out of the bid to understand the basis on which goods were exchanged. What is it that determines the quantity of a product that is exchanged with another? How is it that a bag of rice can be exchanged with two bales of cloth or why is it that both products share the same monetary value? Marx's theory was a build-up on the theories of bourgeois classical political economists, notably, Adam Smith, David Ricardo, et al. who laid down the foundation for modern day economic theory economic theory from their investigations of what exactly determined the value of a commodity. For Barbon (1696:2) "things have an intrinsic value and that the greatest number of things have their value from supplying the wants of the mind". Others like Ricardo and Smith posited that the reward for labour (wage) determined price of value of the commodity. Locke (1777:280), studying the issue of the consequences of lowering interest rates posited that "the natural value of anything consists in its fitness to supply the necessities or serve the convenience of human life". Also, some thought that this 'value' seen in exchange was a result of the importance of products, what is regarded as its usevalue. 'but that 'this property of a community is independent of the amount of labour required to appropriate its useful qualities.


Aircraft flight collision with bird is a threat to aviation industry in most global large commercial airports, according to international aviation"s report. For instance, John F. Kennedy International (New York) tops the list of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report data in which aircraft suffered serious damage with 80 from 1990 to mid- 2008. The study examined the frequency, period of the year, birds species and aircraft models involved in flight collision with bird around Aminu Kano International Airport in Nigeria. Data were sourced from oral interview, personal observation and questionnaire administration to the port authority and the villages at the airport periphery. The study reveals that twelve (12) bird species were involved in forty four (44) strikes at the airport between the year 2001 to 2010 and mostly during the rainy seasons. Distribution of these strikes by flight stage indicated that 32, 25 and 20% occurred on approach, landing roll, and takeoff stage respectively, while the remaining 23% occurred at other phases. Using the International Bird Strike Committee strike rate (per 10,000 flights), the computed strike rate for this airport is 8 per 10,000 flights. It is therefore recommended that "Bird Strike Avoidance Radar" equipment is to be installed at major airports in the country, while land uses like cereal farming that attracts birds around the airport be discouraged.


Misinformation and disinformation, popularly known as 'fake news' have assumed a disturbing dimension in recent times. Its damaging implications cut across every fiber of a people's communal life; from politics to religion, from business to social life. Perhaps, the most pronounced area of concern over fake news, particularly in Nigeria is national security, which unarguably is, the greatest challenge of the country at the moment. National security is a sine qua non for economic development and the total wellbeing of a nation. This paper therefore adopted a conceptual framework to basically examine the implications of the menace of fake news for national security. Effort was made to x-ray the conceptual overview and historical evolution of fake news, the strategies for curbing fake news as a way of promoting national security and consequently national economic development. Tips on how to identify fake news were equally suggested. The paper submitted that, fake news is fueling electoral violence, ethno-religious conflicts, leadership mistrust, jungle justice, among others. Consequently, the paper recommends that, efforts must be made by all relevant stakeholders to ensure that Nigerians are sensitize to understand the dangers posed by fake news as it threatens not only the peace and security, but the very corporate existence of the country.


Radical prostatectomy (RP) continues to be the «gold standard» in the treatment of localized prostate cancer (PC) for patients with a life expectancy of 10 years. The purpose of this article is to review pertinent literature to the several surgical approaches for PC and compare both functional outcomes and oncological results of radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP), laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP) and robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RARP). We chose and systematically reviewed 44 articles published between 1999 and 2013. Comparison analysis showed that the mean blood loss during RRP, LRP and RARP was 935, 442 and 191 ml respectively. Intraoperative transfusion required 19,9; 6,3 and 4,6 % patients respectively. We'd like to outline in our functional outcomes that within the 6-months and 12-months period of follow-up acute urinary retention experienced 89,1 and 92,7 % patients undergoing RARP. However, lack of certain data and absence of standard assessment methods made objective evaluation of erectile function quite complex. Oncologic results revealed that positive surgical margin rates were higher for RARP in comparison to patients after RRP and LRP (the difference was statistically significant). Nevertheless, the absence of randomized approach in an overwhelming majority of cases, as well as the short follow-up period are serious deterrents limiting the number of such trials. Therefore it's still impossible today to draw certain conclusions about the superiority of any surgical approach for RP


Confocal laser scanning microscopy was utilized to compare the chloroplast morphology and ontogeny among five strains of the green alga Asterochloris. Parsimony analysis inferred from the rDNA ITS sequences confirmed their placement in three distinct lineages: Asterochloris phycobiontica, Trebouxia pyriformis and Asterochloris sp. Examination by confocal microscopy revealed the existence of interspecific differences in the chloroplast ontogeny of Asterochloris; this was based upon either specific chloroplast structures observed in a single species, or on the differential timing of particular ontogenetic sequences. The occurrence of flat parietal chloroplasts prior to cell division, considered as a basic morphological discriminative character of Asterochloris, was clearly associated with the process of aplanosporogenesis. By contrast, chloroplast transformation prior to the formation of autospores proceeded simply by the multiple fission of the chloroplast matrix in the cell lumen.


The Education Evaluation Committee of the American Association for Cancer Education (AACE) attempted to employ the neoplastic-related items from the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME) Part II examination in a study correlating program characteristics at various medical schools with performance on the neoplastic-related items. All questions on the September, 1977 and April, 1978 NBME Part II examinations were reviewed by board certified medical oncologists who found an approximate 20% discordance between the AACE and NBME classifications. Content analysis of the neoplastic-related items disclosed a preponderance of questions related to gynecologic cancer with few questions concerning the major solid tumors: lung, breast and colorectal cancer. In addition, virtually no questions related to the psychologic impact of cancer or to the therapy of cancer were asked. We conclude that the use of item by item performance scores from the neoplastic-related items is inadequate for program analysis due to disagreements over what constitutes such an item and to content bias in the agreed upon items. We propose a coding system that may allow the results from current NBME examinations to be used in program evaluation.


In this paper, we propose a directional routing protocol (DRP) for MANETs. DRP is an on-demand directional routing protocol which assumes a cross layer interaction between routing and MAC layer. The main features of DRP include an efficient route discovery mechanism, establishment and maintenance of directional routing and directional neighbor tables (DRT and DNT, respectively), and novel directional route recovery mechanisms. We have implemented DRP on top of an existing MAC protocol for directional antennas and have compared its performance with the popular dynamic source routing (DSR) protocol over both omni-directional and directional antenna models. Preliminary, simulation results are found to be very promising.


Nothofagus dombeyi is distributed on very diverse sites in the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina. In Chile, studies on its dynamics and productivity in forests, where it is the dominant species, have been carried out mainly in the foothills of the Andes, but the productivity and growth of these forests in the Coastal Range are almost unknown. The objective of this study was to evaluate the construction of a single dominant height/age growth model for two homogeneous edaphoclimatic zones (ZEH 2 and 5) previously defined for this species in the Coastal Range of southcentral Chile. The results showed that the Chapman-Richards model was the best candidate function, in terms of goodness of fit and predictive capabilities. Using this function, specific parameters (a, b and c) were obtained for each zone, from which site models were constructed by the Algebraic Difference Approach method for a base age of 35 years. This model is intended to contribute to better estimations of site productivity for N. dombeyi forests in the Coastal Range of south-central Chile, and thus facilitate private and public decisions regarding their management.


The present invention relates to a switching power supply comprising a voltage protection, there is no for installing a new terminal for the over-voltage protection for the switching control IC, can be carried out even over-voltage protection due to a failure in the part prior method, which can not be protected that is to provide a switching power supply device. Peak detecting the coil Lo and the voltage Vsw of the series connection point Ps of the switch Q1 of the switching power-supply unit (20) to the second detection voltage Vdet of the over-voltage protection. Because of this, it carried out reliably over-voltage protection if the connection of the components of, and the feedback circuit or a rectifier diode Do for without having to install a new terminal for the over-voltage protection for the switching control IC (10) to the open state.


This discussion paper brings together the ideas and insights discussed in preparation for PPP Americas 2023. Three concept notes were developed, and three virtual seminars (PPP Talks) were held to discuss crosscutting and relevant themes in the Public-Private Partnerships sector. In each panel discussion, one of the six axes was addressed: Climate Investment, Digital Transformation, Supply Chains, Job Creation, Driving Inclusion, and Impact Measurement. This document registers the panelists' discussions and will serve as the foundation for the sessions on July 18, 19, and 20, 2023, during PPP Americas in Panama.


In dividing vertebrate cells multiple microtubules must connect to mitotic kinetochores in a highly stereotypical manner, with each sister kinetochore forming microtubule attachments to only one spindle pole. The exact sequence of events by which this goal is achieved varies considerably from cell to cell because of the variable locations of kinetochores and spindle poles, and randomness of initial microtubule attachments. These chance encounters with the kinetochores nonetheless ultimately lead to the desired outcome with high fidelity and in a limited time frame, providing one of the most startling examples of biological self-organization. This chapter discusses mechanisms that contribute to accurate chromosome segregation by helping dividing cells to avoid and resolve improper microtubule attachments.


Prominent British biographer Hermione Lee declares that "the telling of narrative life-stories is the dominant mode of our times" (17). But how much does an individual life matter? How and where should its significance be weighed? In beginning work on a biography of the Australian writer Dorothy Hewett, some of the epistemological problems inherent in the genre have manifested with perhaps predictable force. Despite (or perhaps as an effect of) its booming success as a contemporary form of history, biography remains troubled by assumptions about the role of the singular subject in the national/ historical frame, and these assumptions can play out in ways that render idiosyncratic, or even illegible, non-conformist forms of living that may contest the dominant narrative of an age. When one puts together the terms cosmopolitanism, women, and biography, the questions at issue become concentrated through the valencies of place. Where is it that lives are made legible? Where do we locate the frames through which individual lives become representative, distinctive, or significant? Is biography as a mode of history dependent on older forms of belonging that globalisation's new world order is rendering unviable? To make narrative, do lives need to be contained by familiarised space and time? Does biography need the nation state? Dorothy Hewett left home many times, turning her back on embedded belonging, the forms of which nonetheless haunt and preoccupy her writing across the genres. She left home, family, jobs, husbands, her first child, sites of memory, tangled relations of desire, and she left four or five times; such reiterative leaving, of course, enabled by the key trope of return. But she was never a cosmopolitan writer in the way that Soren Kierkegaard posited for the Romantics--never exiled from "all the substantial categories of family, state and race." (1) Unlike a number of Australian writers from her own and earlier generations, Hewett did not leave Australia for an expatriate writing career overseas and did not seek to position herself outside or "beyond the nation," to use the subtitle of Cosmopolitics, Peng Cheah's and Bruce Robbins's pivotal 1998 volume on the political theory of cosmopolitanism. She never declared, as did Virginia Woolf (disingenuously, one could argue, as the self-conscious and profoundly Edwardian Englishness of Woolf's fiction shows), that "as a woman, my country is the whole world." Even in her involvement in what can be couched as the mid-century socialist "quest for global justice" (in ways similar to those through which Richard Rorty in Cosmopolitics sought to redefine cosmopolitanism as a "larger loyalty," though Rorty would probably have repudiated such a comparison), Hewett's passionately articulate imaginary was rooted and lodged in the local details of quotidian living, distinctively inhabited community, and inherited memory. More than this, in common with other leftist Australian writers through the 1950s and 1960s, and even into the 1970s, Hewett's aesthetic project had an identifiably nationalist lean, engaged as were she and her contemporaries in a cold-war tussle with the intellectual right over who could speak for Australia and whose culture would count. In her ambitious early poetry and in her vernacular theatre of the new wave, the settler postcolonial imperative to make national culture is often clearly at work, compelling her to affectionate nostalgia and to rousing critique. To speak and write as expressly Australian still had a radical edge, even or perhaps insofar as the realist mode for doing it--representatively, "authentically," analytically--began to come under increasing pressure. In 1971, theatre critic Katharine Brisbane could declare that the most significant achievement of the new "impressionist" theatre was "to teach our actors to speak their native language" (167). The horizon of the white nation state and the licence to speak collectively in the literary field were newly-enough made, it can seem, to tempt the staking of redistributive claims. …


Studies carried out in synchronized swimming are very scarce, namely those which include biomechanical analysis of the sculling technique. The purpose of this study was to measure the maximal force produced in standard and contra-standard sculling, using a 30s maximal tethered synchronized swimming test. One former female synchronized swimmer and one former female swimmer performed a 2x30s maximum intensity tethered synchronized swimming test, in standard and contra-standard sculling conditions, respectively. Parameters studied were maximal, mean and minimum force, the time when maximal and minimum force occurred, and fatigue index. Results showed that the higher values of maximal and mean force were found in standard sculling, both for the synchronized swimmer and the swimmer. The swimmer attained higher values of absolute and relative maximal force in the standard sculling, but lower values in the contra-standard technique, when compared to the synchronized swimmer. Fatigue Index results evidence that the maximal force declined during the 30s in both participants and in both sculling conditions. This parameter was higher for the contra-standard sculling performed by the swimmer, and for the standard sculling for the synchronized swimmer. In conclusion, there were differences in force production in standard and contra-standard sculling between a swimmer and a synchronized swimming. Those differences could probably be explained by differences in skill competence.


New integral conditions are proposed that are sufficient for the existence of conjugate pointpairs along causal geodesics. As to maximal incomplete causal geodesics the upper bound on the rate of possible divergency of the tidal curvature is examined.


Aims and Methods: The authors analyzed the public dataset of Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study to examine the association of glucose dysmetabolism with HIV-related peripheral neuropathy. Results: Among 5,622 participants in the data, 282 (5%) had peripheral neuropathy, of which 225 had sensory neuropathy. Of 225 participants with sensory neuropathy, 191 (84.8%) had exposure to highly active antiretroviral therapy. Of 225 with sensory neuropathy, 46 had fasting sugars measured; 26 of them (56.5%) had either impaired fasting glucose (fasting glucose ≥110 mg/dl) or diabetes (fasting glucose ≥126 mg/dl). Among 693 participants without neuropathy, who had fasting sugars measured, 441 (63.7%) had glucose dysmetabolism (p = 0.33). The mean HbA1c levels in participants with sensory neuropathy (5.1 ± 1.02, n = 51) were significantly higher than in those without sensory neuropathy (4.8 ± 0.6, n = 164, p = 0.02), though its clinical relevance is unclear. Among 739 participants who had fasting sugars measured, 63.2% had glucose dysmetabolism, showing high prevalence of glucose dysmetabolism among participants with HIV infection. Conclusions: Except for slightly higher HbA1c levels, there was no significant difference in prevalence of glucose dysmetabolism among participants with and without sensory neuropathy. The study brings up important aspects of using public datasets for epidemiologic studies including its limitations and a unique opportunity for pilot studies for new investigators.


Ecological Intensification (EI) is the enhancement of ecosystem services to complement or substitute for the role of anthropogenic inputs in maintaining or increasing yields. EI has potential to increase farming's environmental sustainability, for example reducing environmentally harmful management activities while sustaining yields. EI is based upon ecological processes which in turn are influenced by biodiversity. We review how biodiversity — particularly vascular plant diversity — can regulate ecosystem processes relevant to EI at multiple spatial scales. At an individual plant genotype level, complementarity in functional traits has a direct impact on productivity. At in-field, population level, mixtures of crop types confer resilience to minimise the risk of pest and disease incidence and spread. Scaling up to the field level, a diversity of non-crop plants (i.e. weeds) provides resources necessary for in-field functional processes, both below ground (carbon inputs, decomposition) and above ground (resource continuity for pollinators and natural enemies). At the landscape scale, mosaics of semi-natural and managed vegetation provide buffers against extreme events through flood and drought risk mitigation, climate amelioration and pest population regulation. Overall this emphasises the importance of heterogeneity across scales in maintaining ecosystem functions in farmland. Major research challenges highlighted by our review include the need: to better integrate plant functional diversity (from traits to habitat scales) into cropping system design; to quantify the (likely interactive) contribution of plant diversity for effective EI relative to other management options; and to optimise through targeted management the system function benefits of biodiversity for resilient, efficient and productive agroecosystems.


PurposeExperiencing academic difficulty can deter students' academic momentum, decreasing the speed with which they complete coursework and increasing the odds that they will not persist to a credential. The purpose of this paper is to expand upon an existing framework that investigates students' academic difficulty in co-enrolled courses by adding additional co-enrollment variables that may influence academic performance in introductory gateway courses.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses quantile regression to better understand academic difficulty in co-enrolled courses and the impact that students' co-enrollment patterns may have on their success in focal introductory gateway courses.FindingsThis study revealed significant relationships between student success and co-enrollment patterns, including: the disciplinary alignment of the course with a student's major, the student's co-enrollment in other difficult courses and experiencing below average academic performance in a co-enrolled course. Further, impact of these relationships often differed by students' performance quantile in the focal course.Practical implicationsThe results point to factors related to the student and their co-enrolled courses that faculty, academic advisors and curriculum committees can consider as they design general education requirements within and across disciplinary majors.Originality/valueThis approach advances the understanding of how a prescribed curriculum produces interdependent pathways that can promote or deter students' success through the organization of curricular requirements and student course taking. The paper provides a generalizable methodology that can be used by other universities to investigate curricular pathways that have the potential to reduce student success.


Breast tomosynthesis is currently an investigational imaging technique requiring optimization of its many combinations of data acquisition and image reconstruction parameters for optimum clinical use. In this study, the effects of several acquisition parameters on the visual conspicuity of diagnostic features were evaluated for three breast specimens using a visual discrimination model (VDM). Acquisition parameters included total exposure, number of views, full resolution and binning modes, and lag correction. The diagnostic features considered in these specimens were mass margins, microcalcifications, and mass spicules. Metrics of feature contrast were computed for each image by defining two regions containing the selected feature (Signal) and surrounding background (Noise), and then computing the difference in VDM channel metrics between Signal and Noise regions in units of just-noticeable differences (JNDs). Scans with 25 views and exposure levels comparable to a standard two-view mammography exam produced higher levels of feature contrast. The effects of binning and lag correction on feature contrast were found to be generally small and isolated, consistent with our visual assessments of the images. Binning produced a slight loss of spatial resolution which could be compensated in the reconstruction filter. These results suggest that good image quality can be achieved with the faster and therefore more clinically practical 25-view scans with binning, which can be performed in as little as 12.5 seconds. Further work will investigate other specimens as well as alternate figures of merit in order to help determine optimal acquisition and reconstruction parameters for clinical trials.


AbstractThis paper explores the convergence of musical and architectural theory in Vitruvius' De Architectura. Section 1 describes Vitruvius' architectural lexicon, borrowed from Aristoxenus (I.2), and explores his description of the laws of harmony, modeled on Elementa Harmonica (V.4). Section 2 explores how Vitruvius proposes using music theory in practical architectural design, including construction of columns using architectural orders analogous to Aristoxenian genera (I.2.6; IV.1); acoustical designs for theatres (V.5); and the development of machines, including siege engines 'tuned' like musical instruments (X.12) and water-organs [hydrauli] constructed to execute all the different varieties of tuning (X.8). Section 3 reflects on Vitruvius' use of analogies with a musical instrument, the sambuca, to explain his understanding of cosmic harmony and architectural form, and his possible sources (VI.1). Finally, Section 4 discusses Vitruvius' ideas about the importance of a liberal arts education that includes study of music theory. The best architects, Vitruvius explains, can discover in music the secrets to forms they both encounter in nature and create themselves.


ABSTRACT Canine DNA samples from South Africa were found to contain 16S rRNA gene nucleotide and citrate synthase gene nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequences that were most similar to Anaplasma phagocytophilum: 98%, 66%, and 69% similarity, respectively. This suggests that a new Anaplasma species closely related to A. phagocytophilum occurs in Africa.


The immunological and biological gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH)-like activities in the acid extract of shrimp hepatopancreas (SHE) were studied. The immunological activity determined by a GnRH radioimmunoassay was 22.3 +/- 2.7 ng per ml of SHE. SHE increased luteinizing hormone (LH) release from rat anterior pituitary glands (APs) in vitro, and its biological activity was 42.9 +/- 28.5 ng per ml. No immunological activity was found in the acid extracts of eye ball, eye stalk, nerve and heart. These results suggest that the shrimp hepatopancreas has both immunological and biological GnRH-like activity.


: A circular coil equipped with magnetic core of finite length and constant permeability is difficult to analyse by traditional analytical methods in consequence of the complicated boundary conditions. The difficulties can be overcome by using the truncated region eigenfunction expansion method, and with the aid of a special source function K ( z ) introduced in the work, this method can be simplified remarkably and concise expressions of the inductance of coils with magnetic cores are obtained. In addition, the calculations can be extended readily to a pair of coaxial coils with magnetic cores of finite length and different permeability. The eigenvalues and inversions of matrices are implemented numerically in the solving process, while most of calculations are accomplished by analytic integrations and matrix algebra, by which the deduced expressions are quite suitable for numerical evaluations. The proposed method is verified by the numerical results compared with those of finite-element method simulations, from which it is confirmed that the proposed method is much faster and more memory efficient.


Introduction Active reformation of school education is a tendency of recent decades in Russia.  However, carried out by administrative-bureaucratic methods, it sometimes does not reduce the number of problems, but increases them.  In many respects, therefore, the parent community of large Russian cities is beginning to show more activity and interest towards the situation in school education.  According to recent studies, parents become more organized and focused on solving real problems of the school where their children study.  In this regard, in the framework of our study, the task was to identify the attitude of parents to the educational conditions of their children, as well as their ideas about the most pressing problems that require special attention from the educational authorities. Materials and methods The article is based on the materials of the research project of the scientific team of the Ural Federal University called  "Parents and the School: Interaction in the City's Education System" (2019), implemented with the support of the Department of Education of Yekaterinburg.  Using an online questionnaire, parents of children studying in Yekaterinburg were interviewed.  The sample size is 7281 people, quota sampling, quotas are set by city districts and types of schools. The quantitative data obtained over a large sample made it possible to use statistical methods such as cluster and correlation analysis to solve the scientific problem, which allowed us to identify the typology of the parent community and describe its basic characteristics. Results of the research Using a two-stage cluster analysis based on a wide range of indicators, an empirical typology of parents was formed according to the criterion of satisfaction with the conditions of the educational activity of their children.  Two clusters of parents were identified: those who rated the conditions for teaching children at school higher (61.9%) and less highly (38.1%).  The use of correlation analysis made it possible to see that there are no fundamental differences in the socio-demographic characteristics of these groups of parents, however, significant differences between the clusters of parents exist in assessing the most pressing problems of the Russian school.  The group of "dissatisfied" parents is characterized by increased requirements for the level of organization of the educational process, the professionalism of teachers and the level of training of students in general. They consider it necessary to reduce the level of bureaucratization and corruption in the school system; creating conditions for dialogue between teachers, students and parents. Conclusion The results of the study provide an opportunity not only to see the differences in the needs, goals and interests of different segments of the parent community, but also to draw a conclusion about the formation of a social order for the public participation of parents in solving problems of school education, as well as about determining ways of its development.


The Ross Ice Shelf, a thick, floating tongue of solid ice the size of Spain, is the biggest of the many such barriers that ring Antarctica and keep its ice sheets from sliding into the sea. Yet the shape of the sea floor beneath—a critical factor in how fast the shelf might melt—is virtually unknown. The ice keeps sonar-carrying ships out, and the water beneath it blocks radar. Now, geophysicists at Columbia University"s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, New York, plan to fill in the giant blank spot, using an ultrasensitive airborne gravity detector. The sensor detects tiny changes in gravity: the boosts caused by the extra mass of seafloor hills and the decreases from troughs. The team plans to crisscross the Ross shelf in 36 flights over two 3-week-long campaigns, one in November and a second in 2016. They hope to map features as small as 50 meters tall—dramatically better than the present map, which scientists pieced together in the 1970s by setting off small explosions on the ice every 50 kilometers and recording the echoes.


Abeles formulae for the reflectance and transmittance of a thin film on a non-absorbing substrate have been used to compute the angles of intersection between any two surfaces chosen from those of constant Rp, Rs, Tp and Ts in a coordinate system with axes n, k and d/ lambda . The value of this information in the determination of n, k and d/ lambda from photometric measurements is discussed. The computation and discussion are extended to cases where d/ lambda can be determined independently.


A novel selectable multiband isolation of Double Pole Double Throw (DPDT) switch with switchable transmission line stub resonators has been proposed for applications of WiMAX and LTE in 2.3 and 3.5 GHz bands. In this paper, two DPDT switch designs are proposed; the first design is fixed DPDT switch and the second is selectable DPDT switch. The second design allows selecting only one band and unselecting the other or selecting both of them, while the first does not. The transmission line stub resonator used in this design is an open stub resonator with quarter wave of the electrical length. By using a simple mathematical model, the theory of the transmission line stub resonator was discussed where it can be cascaded and resonated at center frequencies of 2.3 and 3.5 GHz. Moreover, the cascaded transmission line stub resonators can be reconfigured between allpass and bandstop responses using discrete PIN diodes. The key advantage of the proposed DPDT with switchable transmission line stub resonators is a multiband high isolation with minimum number of PIN diodes. Therefore, the simulated and measured results showed less than 3 dB of insertion loss, greater than 10 dB of return loss and higher than 30 dB of multiband isolation in 2.3 and 3.5 GHz bands.


The story of echinomycin is of an antibiotic whose anti-cancer activity was rediscovered thanks to scientific investigation of its mode of action at the molecular level. It was the first DNA bis-intercalator identified (in 1974). Molecular models for echinomycin and its congeners are now well-founded on crystallographic data. These are beginning to throw light on significant variations in conformation which affect the ability of the antibiotics to recognise specific nucleotide sequences in DNA. Kinetic and other physical experiments have revealed much about the stability and selectivity of antibiotic-DNA complexes: stacking forces are important, as are hydrogen bonding interactions. Echinomycin preferentially recognises sites in DNA containing the CpG step, but other sites of lower occupancy exist and the antibiotic can migrate between them. Currently a good deal of attention is being paid to the suggestion that echinomycin might change Watson-Crick base pairs to a Hoogsteen form.


This paper uses micro-data to define aggregate human capital stock indicators and proposes various specifications to test for the role of human capital accumulation on economic growth. An empirical evaluation on the Taiwanese experience over the 1975-96 period suggests that: (i) the use of alternative human capital measures does not allow for the identification of significant differences with usual indicators when estimating the direct contribution of human capital accumulation to economic growth, (ii) specifying indirect channels through which human capital accumulation may affect economic growth allows for a clear identification of external effects arising through intersectoral interactions.


In order to predict overpressures by basin modelling, it is essential to understand the process of mechanical compaction and its effect on the porosities and permeabilities of sedimentary rocks. Two fundamental issues for modelling overpressure history are the functional relationships between porosity and effective stress, and between permeability and porosity. This article is concerned with the first of these relationships in shales, since they comprise the majority of rocks in sedimentary basins and their low permeabilities restrict the rate at which excess fluid pressure can be dissipated. My key point is that porosity reduction during mechanical compaction of a sediment depends on the mean effective stress, not the vertical effective stress. This must be recognized if we wish to understand the
origin of overpressures observed in sedimentary basins.


Background: Workers of textile industry are mainly exposed to a variety of toxic dyes, bleaching agents, salts, acids, alkalis and heavy metals like arsenic through evaporation and inhale by workers or direct skin contact during the textile mordant process and possibly health effect through the printing processObjectives : to assess the health effects of mild to moderate long term exposure to Arsenic trioxide on textile printing workers and to evaluate and compare the clinical utility of blood and urine arsenic for predicting arsenic poisoning.Methods: In this historic cohort study, measurement of serum and urine levels of arsenic of 65exposed workers and 63non exposed workers was carried out during march 2014 through march 2015 All of the studies cases were worked in a cotton textile factories and considered as target population for detection of any possible industrial chronic arsenic exposure associated sign and symptoms . The non-exposed workers were randomly selected from office personnel of the same factories. Clinical examination, signs and symptoms and a questionnaire method used for analysis in both groups.Results: both groups have a similar age structure. Statistical difference was present between the serum arsenic and arsenic in urine mean values for both the exposed and non-exposed groups. The prevalence ratio for the exposure was higher than one for arsenic in urine. The best cut-off values of arsenic in urine to diagnosis arsenic poisoning based on Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis( ROC) was >90 μg/L and the areas under the curve equal to 0.98 was determined for the prediction early chronic arsenic poisoning.Conclusion: measurement of arsenic in urine in early stage was useful to detect mild to moderate health effects based on Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis (ROC) among textile printing workers exposed to arsenic.


Existing evidence has demonstrated that educators often lack the competencies required to address science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) related issues and problems when teaching. As such, a need existed to identify ways to help preservice students negotiate meaning, construct knowledge, and become empowered to facilitate the teaching and learning of STEM in agriculture – a concept known as STEM identity development. One method of instruction used to achieve such is service-learning (SL). This study's purpose, therefore, was to describe the role of SL in empowering agricultural education majors at North Carolina A&T State University to expand their STEM identity over one academic semester. Findings revealed that as the project progressed, students articulated their SL experiences helped them evolve in three dimensions: (1) competence, (2) performance, and (3) recognition. However, students' ability to construct a more mature STEM identity was also filtered their unique contextual lenses as they engaged with racially diverse populations during the SL project. Moving forward, we recommend that teacher preparation programs more purposefully feature STEM-focused, SL experiences in teaching methods courses. Perhaps, such a curricular change could help better recognize, support, and leverage the identity trajectories of students while also ensuring that opportunities to feature STEM concepts in agricultural education continue to be expanded.


P. aeruginosa chronically colonizes the respiratory tract of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchiectasis and Cystic Fibrosis. These patients experience debilitating and life-threatening viral exacerbations of unknown etiology. Cif, a bacterial toxin secreted by P. aeruginosa, promotes the degradation of several ABC transporters involved in innate immunity, including CFTR and Pgp. The current study tests the hypothesis that Cif enhances the degradation of the transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP), resulting in reduced adaptive T-cell responses to viral pathogens. Cif inhibited the deubiquitinating enzyme, ubiquitin specific protease 10 (USP10), resulting in a time-dependent increase in the polyubiquitination and proteasomal degradation of TAP1. Cif inhibited USP10 activity by stabilizing an inhibitory protein-protein interaction between USP10 and G3BP1. The Cif-mediated decrease in TAP1 expression resulted in decreased MHC class I viral antigen presentation, CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) recognition of influenza virus-infected cells and dramatically reduced MHC class I cell surface levels on CD11c+ cells in the BAL of mice treated with P. aeruginosa. We propose that P. aeruginosa, by secreting the Cif toxin, inhibits the ability of CTL to recognize and eliminate viral infections, severely compromising the immune defenses of the lung. This is the first identified bacterial toxin that inhibits the viral immune response of the host.


Excessive application of swine manure to a field over long durations can increase nitrate-nitrogen (NO 3 -N)
leaching as a result of accumulation of more nutrients in the root zone than the subsequent crops may need. The objective
of this study was to use the GLEAMS (V.2.1) model to compare measured versus simulated effects of swine manure
application with urea-ammonium-nitrate (UAN) on subsurface drain water quality from beneath long-term corn (Zea
mays L.) and soybean (Glycine max L.) plots. Four years (1993-1996) of field data from an Iowa site were used for model
calibration and validation. The SCS curve number and effective rooting depth were adjusted to minimize the difference
between simulated percolation below the root zone and measured subsurface drain flows. Model predictions of
percolation water below the root zone followed the pattern of measured drain flow data, giving an average difference of
10%, and –5% between predicted and measured values for manured and UAN-fertilized plots, respectively, for four years
from 1993 to 1996. Model simulations for overall NO 3 -N losses with percolation water were comparable to measured
NO 3 -N losses with subsurface drain water giving an average difference of 20% for manured plots. The model
overpredicted NO 3 -N losses, particularly for soybean on plots, which received manure in the previous year. Predicted
NO 3 -N losses with subsurface drainage from fertilized plots were much lower than measured values with an average
difference of –32%. The best fit line with zero intercept showed correlation coefficients of 0.73 and 0.66 between monthly
predicted and measured NO 3 -N losses with subsurface drain flows for manured and UAN-fertilized plots for four years
from 1993 to 1996, respectively. The results of the study show that the N-transformation processes and the associated rate
factors based on soil temperature and soil water levels may need to be refined for consistent simulation of NO 3 -N losses
with subsurface drainage water when fertilized with either swine manure or UAN for corn production.


With the advent and popularity of social network, more and more users like to share their experiences, such as ratings, reviews, and blogs. The new factors of social network like interpersonal influence and interest based on circles of friends bring opportunities and challenges for recommender system (RS) to solve the cold start and sparsity problem of datasets. Some of the social factors have been used in RS, but have not been fully considered. In this paper, three social factors, personal interest, interpersonal interest similarity and interpersonal influence, fuse into a unified personalized recommendation model based on probabilistic matrix factorization. The factor of personal interest can make the RS recommend items to meet users' individualities, especially for experienced users. Moreover, for cold start users, the interpersonal interest similarity and interpersonal influence can enhance the intrinsic link among features in the latent space. We conduct a series of experiments on real rating datasets. Experimental results show the proposed approach outperforms the existing RS approaches .


Glass ceramics are polycrystalline materials of fine microstructure that are produced by the controlled crystallization of a glass. The previous review of other researchers revealed that knowledge and expertise has been accumulated on the process of transformation of silicate waste into useful glass ceramic products. The aim of this research is to study the thermal diffusivity of a glass ceramic made from a mixture of soda lime silica and coal fly ash. The effect of sample compression pressure, sintering temperature and sample composition on the thermal diffusivity value was investigated in detail. All samples were measured using the Laser Flash Apparatus (LFA), X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD).
It was found that the thermal diffusivity value of the samples is dependent on the pressure, sintering temperature and sample composition. Higher sintering temperature, coal fly ash content and compression pressure resulted in higher thermal diffusivity value. The experimental results showed that the thermal diffusivity value is in the range of 0.102 mm2/s to 0.858 mm2/s. As the ambient temperature increased from room temperature up to 300°C, the thermal diffusivity values were also increased. This suggests that thermal diffusivity is basically influenced by phonon interaction that determines the phonon mean free path.
The density value and linear shrinkage increase as the coal fly ash content and sintering temperature increased. XRD results revealed the formation of Diopside (CaMgO6Si2) and Wollastonite (CaSiO3) phases.


-Steganography is fetching attraction because of rapid growth & use of internet as a communication medium. A steganography is a technique of invisible or secret communication. In steganography the secret message can be hidden into a cover_media which results in the stego_media, so that no one can realize its subsistence except the sender & receiver. There are various medium used as a cover such as image, audio, video, protocol, DNA etc. But image is mostly used as a cover media. There are several type and techniques of steganography, each having its own confines and rewards. In this paper we have explicated & analyzed the different spatial domain steganography techniques.


Nanoparticles (NP) stabilized oil-water emulsion flow is studied experimentally and theoretically for both hydrophilic and hydrophobic NP, under Water Sweep (WS) and Oil Sweep (OS) conditions. Novel and highly accurate experimental data are collected for different NP concentrations and different pump speeds. The Legacy-Texaco skid flow loop is modified to enable data acquisition, and the microscopic camera is modified with Vector Control Module (VCM), as well. The phase inversion is measured utilizing a Circular Differential Dielectric Sensor (C-DDS), a Rectangular DDS (R-DDS), pressure transducer and mass flow meter. Droplet size distribution data are acquired with a microscopic camera for dilute dispersed-phase volume fractions. Data are acquired from all 5 instruments simultaneously.
 Hydrophilic NP, even at low concentrations, consistently delay the occurrence of phase inversion as dispersed phase fraction is increased. Concentration of 1 wt% hydrophilic NP delays the phase inversion up to 93% of organic volume fractions for o/w dispersions. The transient phase inversion period is shorter (1.5 to 2 min.) for hydrophilic NP emulsions; longer phase inversion durations (greater than 2 min) occur for the hydrophobic NP emulsions.
 With increase of hydrophobic NP concentration, the viscosity of mineral oil increases significantly. Hydrophobic NP stabilized emulsions (in higher concentrations) exhibit shear thinning behavior indicating that yield stress must be applied in order to initiate flow. Concentrations of 0.05 and 0.11 wt % of Hydrophobic NP cause early phase inversion at all 3 pump RPMs. However, at concentration of 0.5, 0.8 and 1 wt % lead to delay in phase inversion.
 Extension of Pereyra (2011) correlation for dMAX is carried out for NP stabilized emulsion flow. Log Normal distribution and modified Rosin Rammler distribution are recommended for prediction of the cumulative droplet size distributions of NP stabilized emulsions for OS flow. Optimized parameter sets are generated from experimental data for in both these distributions. Comparison between the acquired data and both log normal distribution and Rosin Rammler distribution predictions show Normalized Root-Mean-Square Deviation (NRMSD) discrepancy values less than 13%.


ABSTRACT Objective: To evaluate the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships of morning cortisol with trunk fat and resting blood pressure (BP) in children. Methods: Participants included 72 children aged 4-10 years (mean 7.4 yrs) for the cross-sectional analysis and 58 for the longitudinal analysis. Height, weight, waist circumference, body fat by dual x-ray absorptiometry, and resting BP measures were obtained during a laboratory visit. Saliva samples were collected at home on a single morning and assayed for cortisol. Results: Approximately 21% were overweight (15.3%) or obese (5.6%). Mean morning cortisol was 0.25 ± 0.12 μg/dL (6.99 ± 3.46 nmol/L). There were no significant correlations between morning cortisol and any of the measures of fatness (r<-0.17) or BP (r<-0.10) at baseline. Cortisol at baseline was not associated with changes in body size parameters after the 1- and 2- year follow-up period. Conclusion: Morning cortisol was not associated with body fatness or BP. Future studies should examine the associations between the diurnal cortisol patterns, trunk fat, and BP by collecting samples throughout an entire day.


BACKGROUND
The screening mammography is the most highly effective procedure for early breast cancer detection. This study is aimed at ascertaining the differences in the factors related to Spanish women 40-70 years of age having had mammograms in 1994 and 2000 and among those having had at least one mammogram within the two years prior.

METHOD
Comparison of the results of two surveys conducted in 1994 and 2000, each on samples of women representative of Spanish women 40-70 years of age (3,218 in 1994 and 2,409 in 2000). An analysis was made of sociodemographic, sociosanitary and the women's attitude and awareness-related variables.

RESULTS
Statistically significant differences were found between 1994 and 2000, the intention of having a mammogram in the future (96% in 2000 vs. 79% in 1994) (p<0.0001). A total of 59% of the 51-65 age group had a mammogram in 2000, as compared to the 50% who had one in 1994.

CONCLUSIONS
The profile of Spanish women has undergone a change from 1994 to 2000, although those women who had had a mammogram were of similar sociodemographic and sociosanitary characteristics. However, the screening is being done to a greater extent on the age 51-65 age group in 2000, and the women are showing more positive attitudes toward having a mammogram.


ŠINDELÁŘOVÁ M., ŠINDELÁŘ L. (2005): Isolation of pathogenesis-related proteins from TMV-infected tobacco and their influence on infectivity of TMV. Plant Protect. Sci., 41: 52–57. The composition of pathogenesis-related proteins (PR-proteins) in the intercellular fluid (ICF) and leaf tissue of the hypersensitive tobacco cultivar Xanthi-nc inoculated with Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), and their inhibitory influence on TMV multiplication were studied. The ICF PR-proteins of infected plants were separated after solubilisation by decreasing gradient of ammonium sulphate, the cell PR-proteins were separated after acidic homogenisation of leaf tissues. The ICF and cell PR-proteins were further purified by ion exchange chromatography on DEAE cellulose. Using discontinuous non-denaturating polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of DEAE cellulose fractions the PR-proteins were detected. Their molecular weights were estimated by SDS-PAGE. The ICF and cell proteins of infected leaves included PR-proteins of the molecular weights 15–16 kDa (Group 1), 27–28 kDa (Group 3: chitinases) and 36–40 kDa (Group 2a: β-1,3-glucanases). Fractions with different PR-proteins were tested for their effect on infectivity of TMV. Particularly the PR3 and PR2a proteins seem to decrease the infectivity of TMV.


This paper will give a short overview about a multi‐scale modelling approach for bituminous asphalt concrete. The goal is to describe the micro‐heterogeneous medium by a homogeneous surrogate medium, which has similar effective mechanical properties. Starting from the varying constitutive behaviour on the micro‐scale, our up‐scaling procedure is realised via volume averaging techniques. By use of a Finite‐Element model, the results for different types of boundary conditions (BCs) and their influence on the properties of the compund are investigated on the effective scale. (© 2012 Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)


The forced circumcision of men is a widespread human rights abuse that often accompanies other human rights violations. It occurs in clashes between circumcising and non-circumcising cultures, or when individuals in circumcising cultures reject circumcision. This article documents the forced circumcision of men against their will, shows how evidence of forced circumcision has been downplayed and discounted, and outlines and discusses some measures that could help to reduce its prevalence.


The presystemic sulfate conjugation of the stereoisomers of 4'-methoxyfenoterol, (R,R')-MF, (S,S')-MF, (R,S')-MF, and (S,R')-MF, was investigated using commercially available human intestinal S9 fractions, a mixture of sulfotransferase (SULT) enzymes. The results indicate that the sulfation was stereospecific and that an S-configuration at the β-OH carbon of the MF molecule enhanced the maximal formation rates with (S,R')-MF  (S,S')-MF  (R,S')-MF ≈ (R,R')-MF, and competition studies demonstrated that (S,R')-MF is an effective inhibitor of (R,R')-MF sulfation (IC(50) = 60 μM). In addition, the results from a cDNA-expressed human SULT isoform screen indicated that SULT1A1, SULT1A3, and SULT1E1 can mediate the sulfation of all four MF stereoisomers. Previously published molecular models of SULT1A3 and SULT1A1 were used in docking simulations of the MF stereoisomers using Molegro Virtual Docker. The models of the MF-SULT1A3 and MF-SULT1A1 complexes indicate that each of the two chiral centers of MF molecule plays a role in the observed relative stabilities. The observed stereoselectivity is the result of multiple hydrogen bonding interactions and induced conformational changes within the substrate-enzyme complex. In conclusion, the results suggest that a formulation developed from a mixture of (R,R')-MF and (S,R')-MF may increase the oral bioavailability of (R,R')-MF.


This work presents an alternative formulation for plate bending analysis in which the boundary equation of displacements and its derivative in directions normal and tangential to the boundary are used. This formulation considers three nodal values in displacements: w, dw/dn and dw/dt for each boundary node, but according to KirchhofFs hypothesis, only two nodal values are used for the efforts that remains the normal bending moment n\ and the equivalent shear force ¥". Some examples are presented and the results compared with those of the finite element analysis.


Structural properties of the β phase and transport properties of the superionic (α), β and molten phases of Ag3SI are investigated by molecular dynamics simulation (MD), using Vashishta–Rahman (VR)-type potentials. In the β phase, the pair distribution functions are quite different from those in the α phase, because anions form the order arrangement in a bcc structure in the β phase, whereas anions occupy the lattice points randomly in the α phase. The silver distributions obtained in the β phase are in good agreement with experimental results, which are quite different from those in the α phase, as we reported in a previous paper. The conductivities obtained in the α and β phases by MD are also in good agreement with experiments. The frequency dependent diffusion coefficients in the α and β phases, which are derived from the temporal Fourier transformation of the velocity autocorrelation function, have similar features to the neutron TOF spectra data.


Date Presented 04/05/19
 The purpose of this study was to identify the causes of falls in Skilled-Nursing (SNF) and Long-Term Care (LTC) facilities. Data was acquired via fall reports and staff surveys in four facilities. Staff perceived that most falls occurred due to general weakness (96%) and between 8 pm and 8 am (52%). Fall reports indicated that most falls occurred due to unsafe transfers (58%) and the majority occurred between 8 pm and 8 am (42%). This study provides a basis for the development of fall-prevention programs.
 Primary Author and Speaker: Patti Calk
 Additional Authors and Speakers: Whitney Francis, Jonann Arrant, Mary Doss
 Contributing Authors: Linda Jones


The shape memory effect (SME) of Fe-15Mn-5Si-9Cr-5Ni-(0.5–1.5)NbC alloys pre-extended at room temperature was investigated. It shows that the pre-deformation result is similar for the SME of three composition alloys, i.e., the SME increased with increasing pre-extension and then decreased when they were over 12–14% pre-extended at room temperature. X-ray diffraction showed that there are two kinds of martensite transformations � (fcc) ! " (hcp) and � ! " ! � 0 (bcc) occurring in the Fe-15Mn-5Si-9Cr-5Ni-(0.5–1.5)NbC alloys when the alloys were deformed at room temperature. It was found by magnetic saturation measurements that when the alloy was 8% extended at room temperature, � 0 phase appeared and obviously increased with increasing deformation. Furthermore, TEM observations showed that � 0 phase exists in the cross section of the " martensite and reverses in the different path of � ! ". The effect of pre-deformation and aging on SME was correspondingly explained in view of martensite transformations and its nucleation, i.e., stacking faults and associated contribution of NbC precipitation, for � ! " transformation. [doi:10.2320/matertrans.47.1328]


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

Abstract: Real-time, single-cell multiplex immunophenotyping of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) is hypothesized to inform diagnosis of tissue of origin in patients with carcinoma of unknown primary (CUP). In 20 to 50% of CUP patients, the primary site remains unidentified, presenting a challenge for clinicians in diagnosis and treatment. Invasive tissue biopsy is the gold standard for diagnosis but improved methodology is needed. We developed a post-CellSearch CTC assay using multiplexed Q-dot or DyLight conjugated antibodies with the goal of detecting multiple markers in single cells within a CTC population. We adapted our approach to size-based CTC enrichment protocols for capturing CTCs and subsequent immunofluorescence (IF) using a minimal set of markers to predict the primary sites for common metastatic tumors. The carcinomas are diagnosed with cytokeratin 7 (CK7), cytokeratin 20 (CK20), thyroid transcription factor 1 (TTF-1), estrogen receptor (ER) or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) as the minimal set of informative markers. IF has been optimized in cultured tumor cells with individual antibodies, then with conjugated antibodies to form a multiplex antibody set. With IF, we evaluated antibodies specific to these 5 markers in lung, breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer cell lines and blood samples from metastatic prostate and breast cancer patients. Our technological advance provides a noninvasive, inexpensive, diagnostic blood test as an adjunct to routine tissue biopsy. Its further implementation requires prospective clinical testing.

Citation Format: Elizabeth M. Matthew, Lanlan Zhou, Namrata Vijayvergia, David T. Dicker, Karen S. Gustafson, Harry S. Cooper, Eric A. Ross, Bora Lim, Ramdane Harouaka, Si-Yang Zheng, Nicholas E. Lamparella, Joseph J. Drabick, Cristina I. Truica, Zhaohai Yang, Wafik S. El-Deiry. A multiplexed marker-based algorithm for diagnosis of carcinoma of unknown primary using circulating tumor cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 1600. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-1600


Problem: Planning aspires to intervene and make positive change. However, our ideas about how to create institutional reform need to be revisited because they do not fully account for the changes we have witnessed. Purpose: This article assesses the state of our knowledge about institutions and of how we construct and change them. It identifies the major deficiencies in new institutionalism in planning theory and searches for ideas about how to influence positive institutional change. Methods: I analyzed over 90 publications in the planning literature and other social sciences that discussed "institutions," and identified the varying definitions and underlying epistemologies and philosophies that are at odds with each other. I then examined empirical studies of successful economic development cases in order to critically appraise the efficacy of different theories to account for the observed changes. Results and conclusions: Disparate new institutionalism theories in the social sciences have been starting to converge by focusing on social cognition. The unimaginable, fundamental changes that have occurred in our lifetimes have not been the result of rational state planning, manipulation by political elites, or activist organizations. A society-wide process of tacit learning from peers and exemplars built new paradigms and practices, ultimately normalizing new realities. Takeaway for practice: Planning practice that aims toward large institutional changes rather than incremental ones should incorporate the empirical lessons of contemporary history and the latest findings in cognitive science. Knowing more about the social cognition process can help planners to more effectively engage in fundamental change. Furthermore, if it retains its strengths in empirical research and multiscalar, interdisciplinary analysis, planning practice and research can make policy-relevant contributions to our understanding of social cognition change. Research support: None.


This paper considers a novel problem in rechargeable wireless sensor networks (WSNs), given a set of locations with one or more targets, determine the minimum number of sensor nodes to deploy in order to ensure a given coverage quality. This problem is significant as sensor nodes are often used to monitor one or more valuable assets or critical infrastructure. We formulate the problem as an integer linear program (ILP) and use it to compute the minimum number of sensor nodes required to monitor targets in small-scale WSNs. For large-scale WSNs, we relax the integer variables of the ILP and devise three approximation algorithms: greedy round node placement, target protection node placement, and energy efficient node placement (EENP). We prove the worst case performance bound of these algorithms. We also conducted simulation to compare these algorithms against the optimal solution produced by the ILP. Our results show that the solution computed by EENP is within one percentage point from the optimal solution.


In the following work, the vibrational spectroscopic characteristics of artepillin C are reported by means of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and Raman spectroscopies, surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS), and coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS) microscopy. Artepillin C is an interesting compound due to its pharmacological properties, including antitumor activity. It is found as the major component of Brazilian green propolis, a resinous mixture produced by bees to protect their hives against intruders. Vibrational spectroscopic techniques have shown a strong peak at 1599 cm−1, assigned to C=C stretching vibrations from the aromatic ring of artepillin C. From these data, direct visualization of artepillin C could be assessed by means of CARS microscopy, showing differences in the film hydration obtained for its neutral and deprotonated states. Raman-based methods show potential to visualize the uptake and action of artepillin C in biological systems, triggering its interaction with biological systems that are needed to understand its mechanism of action.


Background Burkitt lymphoma (BL) is the most common form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in children. Although curable in most cases, those patients who relapse have a dismal prognosis with a 4-year survival of 16% (Cairo, Blood 2007). Identification of biomarkers to predict relapse/refractory disease is needed, and an understanding of the underlying mechanisms is vital to develop novel targeted therapies. We previously identified a recurrent gain of chromosome 13q31 that was associated with relapse and increased expression of miR-17-92 in pediatric BL (Schiffman/Miles, Br J Haematol, 2011). In the present study, we sought to determine the role of miR-17-92 expression in vitro using TALENs mediated deletion of the miR-17-92 locus (MIR17HG) in Raji BL cells that express high levels of miR-17-92 (Shiffman/Miles, 2011).

Methods The modified restriction enzyme and ligation assembly method (Lee/Cairo, ASH 2012) was used to construct MIR17HG TALENs. Expression of miR-17 was assayed by TaqMan assay, and expression of the miR-17-92 target PTEN mRNA and protein were assayed by RT-PCR and western blot, respectively. Proliferation and caspase activity were measured at baseline and after treatment with cyclophosphamide. AKT and phospho (p)AKT were assayed by western blotting. To evaluate mTOR and MAPK pathway activation, pS6 and pERK were assayed by phosphoflow cytometry. In addition, caspase 3 activity was assayed by phosphoflow cytometry to assess induction of apoptosis. Cells were treated with chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide or 4-hydroperoxycyclophosphamide, 4HC), rapamycin, the PI3 kinase inhibitor PIK90, and the dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitor BEZ235 (Axon Medchem). To further validate the role of miR-17 in chemoresistance, miR-17 expression levels were measured by RT-PCR TaqMan assay in the previously developed rituximab-chemotherapy resistant Raji cell lines (RCRCL) Raji 2R and Raji 4RH (Barth et al. Br J Haematol, 2012).

Results MIR17HG TALENs were used to generate two Raji cell lines with a hemizygous deletion of MIR17HG, #31(+/-) and #48(+/-). Relative to vector control Raji cells, cell lines with hemizygous MIR17HG deletion showed lower expression of miR-17: Raji = 1.0, #31= 0.80-fold, and #48= 0.71-fold. PTEN mRNA was higher in #31 and #48 cells than in the control (Raji = 1.0, #31 = 1.38-fold, and #48 = 2.24-fold), but there was no apparent difference in PTEN protein by western blot. Western blotting showed decreased pAKT with no difference in total AKT. Cyclophosphamide (10mM) induced a significant decrease in proliferation at 48 hours (90.5 +/- 2.9%, p=0.007) in #31 cells vs. control cells that was associated with a trend toward increased caspase 3/7 activity (148.3+/-8.9%, p=0.08). By phosphoflow cytometry, Raji #48 cells showed decreased pS6 compared to control cells and a modestly greater induction of caspase 3 in response to 4HC (3.4 uM) or PIK90 after 48 hours. The combination of 4HC and PIK90, however, significantly induced caspase 3 in Raji #48 cells relative to control Raji cells. Raji cells showed high basal levels of pERK and pS6. BEZ235 or PIK90 treatment decreased p-ERK. Rapamycin did not affect p-ERK but did decrease pS6. While BEZ235 and 4HC each modestly induced caspase alone in Raji cells, the combination caused a much greater increase in caspase 3. In RCRCLs Raji 2R and Raji 4RH, which show high pAKT levels by western blot and phosphoflow cytometry, miR-17 levels were increased (1.73- and 1.69-fold, respectively) relative to chemosensitive Raji cells (1.0) that exhibit lower pAKT levels.

Conclusions Increased miR-17-92 expression in BL may contribute to therapy resistance, which is further supported by finding increased miR-17 expression in chemotherapy resistant Raji cell lines. Hemizygous deletion of the miR-17-92 locus in BL cells led to increased PTEN mRNA, decreased mTOR pathway activation (decreased pAKT and pS6), and increased sensitivity to chemotherapy. Resistance to PIK90 and 4HC in parental Raji cells that overexpresses miR-17-92 may be due in part to a compensatory upregulation of the MAPK and mTOR pathways, as demonstrated by increased pERK and pS6. Inhibiting this survival mechanism with the PI3K/mTOR inhibitor BEZ235 restored sensitivity to cytotoxic chemotherapy. These findings suggest potential mechanisms underlying BL therapy resistance as well as targeted therapies to overcome resistance.

Disclosures: Cairo: Roche/Genentech: advisory board Other.


Mathematics is constantly evolving in accordance with the human need for technology. Therefore, mathematics is a subject that is taught at each level of education, according to the needs of all levels of education. In Indonesia, mathematics is one of the major subjects in primary up to secondary school. It aims to provide learners the ability of higher order thinking skills (HOTS). In order to measure the achievement of the objectives of mathematics learning, the government annually conducts the national examination for mathematics courses. It causes mathematics became one of subjects that is feared by most students and consequently make some teachers and students changed mathematics course "learning objectives" from reaching HOTS to just passing the national examinations. So, many unreliable quick ways emerge to solve the math problems. Some of the ways sometimes led to misconceptions in mathematics, which would obstruct the ability of the students' HOTS. This article aims to show some of the misconceptions that are often encountered in solving mathematics problems. By recognizing the misconceptions, teachers are expected to avoid them and optimally anticipate the achievement of the "true" objectives of learning mathematics.


In October of 2016, an international symposium was held on the campus of Indiana University, Bloomington, devoted to the belatedly emerging work of the early twentieth-century author Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky. The phenomenon of Krzhizhanovsky's re-discovery and introduction to English readers as a major figure of European Modernist literature, hidden from the world until the last decade of the twentieth century, provides an ideal scenario for how the institutions of publishing—through selection, translation, editing, design, and marketing—help to shape our understanding of which texts are included within the category of "world literature," along with the very idea of what "world literature" means.


Highly permeable, thermally rearranged polymer membranes based on bismaleimide derivatives that exhibit excellent CO2 permeability up to 5440 Barrer with a high BET surface area (1130 m2 g-1) are reported for the first time. In addition, the membranes can be easily used to form semi-interpenetrating networks with other polymers endowing them with superior gas transport properties.


The Thakali people of lower Mustang have a long history of economic success fostered through community systems that function due to cooperation, but are also characterized by competition. One of these traditional systems is dhikur, a system of rotating credit composed of approximately twenty members. This study examines the roles of traditional savings and credit institutions within communities in lower Mustang in the context of the emergence of private financial institutions in Jomsom over the last ten years. My research displayed the strength of these community based organizations in the face of a private financial sector where organizational requirements make access unattainable for many of Mustang's residents. Research was conducted through semistructured interviews in Jomsom, Tukuche, Larjung and Marpha to gain a varied understanding of how financial groups have evolved across communities, in different contexts. The change and continuity that exists within traditional organizations, like dhikur, is indicative of both the adaptation and preservation of social, cultural and economic norms in Thakali culture. keywords: Thakali, Mustang, dhikur, credit


Dairy industry is highly concentrated industry with the top five sectors constituting the majority of the country's Gross Domestic Product and national income. This paper is an attempt to evaluate the financial performance of the selected cooperative dairy units in the state of Andhra Pradesh with the help of some financial indicators, regression and chi square test. Measuring current and past profitability and estimating future profitability is very important. For this purpose the study of the cooperative sector units were selected.


disorders, namely schizophrenia and affective disorders, as well as symptoms and syndromes of the obsessiveimpulsive spectrum (e.g., trichotillomania and other grooming disorders, pathological gambling, and substance misuse). There is only one published case report of treatment of skin-picking disorder with NAC. No controlled studies or case series of this treatment have been reported. Below, we report three cases treated at our Impulse Control Disorder clinic of patients who, among other disorders, presented with skin picking. Case 1. A 45-year-old woman was diagnosed with depressive episode, trichotillomania, and skin picking (history of hair-pulling since she was 4 years old). She was started on sertraline up to 100 mg/day, with no improvement in mood or grooming disorder, then switched to venlafaxine 75 mg/day. At that time, she was also given NAC 1,200 mg/day. Her mood and trichotillomania improved partially and the skin picking resolved completely. Following this improvement, she decided to discontinue her medications unilaterally, with subsequent worsening of all symptoms. In December 2011, she was restarted on venlafaxine 75 mg/day and NAC 1,800 mg/day, with improvement of depressive symptoms and trichotillomania and complete recovery from skin picking. Case 2. A 40-year-old woman complained of excessive buying coupled with irritability, pressured speech, inflated self-esteem, and inadequate behavior. At the time of presentation, she was on haloperidol 2.5 mg/day, biperiden 2 mg/day, imipramine 25 mg/day, and diazepam 10 mg/day. There was no history of alcohol or illicit drug use. All medications were discontinued and she was started on lithium 600 mg/day (up to 1,200 mg/day) and quetiapine 50 mg/day (up to 500 mg/day). One month later, she developed skin picking, despite good mood control. NAC 1,200 mg/day was initiated. Skin picking stopped until 10 months later, when she discontinued NAC by herself. NAC was subsequently reintroduced with great improvement in skin picking. Case 3. A 31-year-old woman sought treatment for a moderate depressive episode, pathological jealousy, internet addiction, and severe skin picking. She was prescribed sertraline up to 250 mg/day, but did not respond. She was then switched to fluoxetine 20 mg/day and started on NAC 1,200 mg/day, with substantial improvement in skin picking and partial improvement of affective symptoms. Medication had no effect on her pathological jealousy or internet addiction. The patient was later referred elsewhere for psychotherapy. The patients described in this report experienced major improvement of skin-picking behaviors resistant to other treatments following use of NAC. We also observed that discontinuation of NAC treatment led to worsening of symptoms, with remission of symptoms achieved again after rechallenge with NAC, suggesting a direct relation between NAC therapy and remission of skin-picking behavior. Taking into account that skin picking is a highly prevalent and insufficiently studied condition, randomized controlled studies are warranted to ascertain the potential benefits of NAC for patients with this disorder.


Abstract: Eotetranychus cendanai Rimando was found on six different citrus species of which one is new host record: Citrus hystrix DC., Citrus aurantifolia Swingle, Citrus reticulata Blanco, Citrus maxima (Burm. f.) Merr., Citrus madurensis Lour. (new record) and Murraya paniculata (Linn.) Jack in 34 provinces of Thailand. Studies on life history of E. cendanai on 5 different host plants were conducted at 28±1 °C and 58±5 % RH. The egg, larva, protonymph and deutonymph stages on 5 different host plants ranged 4.9–5.8, 1.9–3.0, 1.9–2.6 and 1.8–2.7 days, respectively. Completion of the life cycle required 11.2–14.0 days. A fertilized female lived 6.55–10.52 days and produced 6.30–26.38 eggs (0.96–2.43 eggs/day). Fertilized females produced offspring with a sex ratio of male: female 1:1.02–1:2, whereas unfertilized females produced only male offspring. Longevity of an unfertilized female lasted 7.52–11.62 days and 14.35–17.73 eggs (1.40–1.97 eggs/day) were laid per female. A life table study of E. cendanai indicated that net reproductive rate of increase (Ro) = 14.1 times, cohort generation time (Tc) = 17.37 days, intrinsic rate of increase (rm) = 0.156 individual/day and finite rate of increase (&lgr;) = 1.165. Major mortality occurred during the larval stage followed by the nymphal and egg stages.


This paper descnbes a knowledge representation and reasoning system that performs a limited but interesting class of inferences over a restricted class of first-order sentences with optimal efficiency. The proposed system can answer yes-no as well as wh-queries in time that is only proportional to the length of the shortest derivation of the query and is independent of the size of the knowledge base. This work suggests that the expressiveness and the inferential ability of a representation and reasoning systems may be limited in unusual ways to arrive at extremely efficient yet fairly powerful knowledge based systems.


The Program for All-Inclusive Care of the Elderly (PACE) is a Medicare/Medicaid managed care benefit for frail adults aged 55 years and older who, although certified by the state as nursing home eligible, choose to live in the community. The PACE model features comprehensive medical and social services coordinated by an interdisciplinary team whose goal is to promote independence and quality of life.


This paper presents the performance analysis of a recursive least square algorithm with error-saturation in mixture noise. The algorithm is referred to as nonlinear RLS (NRLS). A generalized clipping function is considered for the error-saturation nonlinearity. An improved mean square behavior of NRLS is carried out. It is shown that the theoretical analysis and the simulation results are close to each other. From the analysis, we can relate the convergence and the mean square error in terms of the slope and clipping level of the nonlinear function. Based on the normalized mse, an instrumental variable is derived for yielding a variable clipping function to provide fast convergence and small mean square error.