In order to against the activities of alcoholic beverages in Bintan Regency, Regional Government of Bintan launched Regional Regulation No. 6 of 2011 concerning supervision and control of alcoholic beverages. This research is descriptive and kualitatif methods is used as research methods. Research data sources is a primary and secondary data. The informations is gathering from a number of books and through direct interviews with respondents in Bintan Regency Area. As the result, this Regional Regulation still need a few correction. This regulation is considered weak because it has not touch the distributors of alcoholic beverages but only the merchants. If this going so, the activities of alcoholic beverages in Bintan Regency will remain. The punishment of Regional Regulation breakers is still not strong enough and there is no real action for drinkers. As for islamics perspective, this regulation is not worked. Because in Islam alcohol is definitely forbidden. For moslems specially, this alcoholic beverages activities still be a nuisance.However, so far this Regional Regulation is giving a positive effects for alcoholic activities in Bintan Regency. It can be seen with the activities pre and post publication of the regulation. At the end of writing this research, Author have a suggestions that might be could give a contributes. Bintan Regency Government and Law Enforcement of Bintan could increase the effort to reducing alcoholic beverages activities by establishing a special agency against alcoholism. And hopefully could makes Bintan Regency is a "Alcohol Free Zone".


A set of three algorithms is presented for solving single-row routine problems with a fixed street capacity using the least number of layers. The main difference among these algorithms is in the strategy used to search for an optimal solution, which greatly affects the performance. At the extreme points of the strategy are algorithms Q and S. The worst-case time complexity is linear for algorithm Q and exponential for algorithm S. The best-case time complexity of all the algorithms is linear. The main disadvantage of algorithm Q is that the constant associated with its time complexity bounds is large. On the other hand, the constant associated with the best-case time complexity bound for algorithm S is small. An experimental evaluation of the performance of the algorithms is presented. >


The influence of the Atlantic multidecadal variability (AMV) on the North Atlantic storm track and eddy-driven jet in the winter season is assessed via a coordinated analysis of idealized simulations with state-of-the-art coupled models. Data used are obtained from a multimodel ensemble of AMV± experiments conducted in the framework of the Decadal Climate Prediction Project component C. These experiments are performed by nudging the surface of the Atlantic Ocean to states defined by the superimposition of observed AMV± anomalies onto the model climatology. A robust extratropical response is found in the form of a wave train extending from the Pacific to the Nordic seas. In the warm phase of the AMV compared to the cold phase, the Atlantic storm track is typically contracted and less extended poleward and the low-level jet is shifted toward the equator in the eastern Atlantic. Despite some robust features, the picture of an uncertain and model-dependent response of the Atlantic jet emerges and we demonstrate a link between model bias and the character of the jet response.


Abstract The Egyptian swift Rock Pigeon is a breed of fancy pigeon developed over many years of selective breeding. In this work, we report the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Egyptian swift Rock Pigeon. The total length of the mitogenome was 17,239 bp and its overall base composition was estimated to be 30.2% for A, 24.0% for T, 31.9% for C and 13.9% for G, indicating an A–T (54.2%)-rich feature in the mitogenome. It contained the typical structure of 13 protein-coding genes, 2 ribosomal RNA genes, 22 transfer RNA genes and a non-coding control region (D-loop region). The complete mitochondrial genome sequence of Egyptian swift Rock Pigeon would serve as an important data set of the germplasm resources for further study.


Abstract We sequence, assemble, and annotate the genome of Atopsyche davidsoni Sykora, 1991, the first whole-genome assembly for the caddisfly family Hydrobiosidae. This free-living and predatory caddisfly inhabits streams in the high-elevation Andes and is separated by more than 200 Myr of evolutionary history from the most closely related caddisfly species with genome assemblies available. We demonstrate the promise of PacBio HiFi reads by assembling the most contiguous caddisfly genome assembly to date with a contig N50 of 14 Mb, which is more than 6× more contiguous than the current most contiguous assembly for a caddisfly (Hydropsyche tenuis). We recover 98.8% of insect BUSCO genes indicating a high level of gene completeness. We also provide a genome annotation of 12,232 annotated proteins. This new genome assembly provides an important new resource for studying genomic adaptation of aquatic insects to harsh, high-altitude environments.


The problem of estimation of time shift of an inhomogeneous casually filtered Poisson process in the presence of additive Gaussian noise is discussed. Approximate expressions for the likelihood function, the MAP estimator, and the MMSE estimator that becomes increasingly accurate as the per-unit-time density of superimposed filter responses becomes small are obtained. The optimal MAP estimator takes the form of a cascade of linear and memoryless nonlinear components. For smooth point process intensities, the performance of the MAP estimator is studied via local bias and local variance. A rate distortion type lower bound on the MSE of any estimator of time delay is then derived by identification of a communications channel that accounts for the mapping from time delay to observation process. Results of numerical studies of estimator performance are presented. Based on the examples considered it is concluded: (1) the small-error MSE of the nonlinear MAP estimator can be significantly better than the small-error MSE of the optimal linear estimator: (2) the rate distortion lower bound can be significantly tighter than the Poisson limited bounds determined in previous studies. >


Abstract A general model is presented for electron emission yield from planar photocathodes that accounts for arbitrary cathode thickness and finite recombination velocities at both front and back surfaces. This treatment is applicable to negative electron affinity emitters as well as positive electron affinity cathodes, which have been predicted to be useful for energy conversion. The emission model is based on a simple one-dimensional steady-state diffusion treatment. The resulting relation for electron yield is used to model emission from thin-film cathodes with material parameters similar to GaAs. Cathode thickness and recombination at the emissive surface are found to strongly affect emission yield from cathodes, yet the magnitude of the effect greatly depends upon the emission mechanism. A predictable optimal film thickness is found from a balance between optical absorption, surface recombination, and emission rate. A general model is presented for electron emission yield from planar photocathodes that accounts for arbitrary cathode thickness and finite recombination velocities at both front and back surfaces. This treatment is applicable to negative electron affinity emitters as well as positive electron affinity cathodes, which have been predicted to be useful for energy conversion. The emission model is based on a simple one-dimensional steady-state diffusion treatment. The resulting relation for electron yield is used to model emission from thin-film cathodes with material parameters similar to GaAs. Cathode thickness and recombination at the emissive surface are found to strongly affect emission yield from cathodes, yet the magnitude of the effect greatly depends upon the emission mechanism. A predictable optimal film thickness is found from a balance between optical absorption, surface recombination, and emission rate. V C 2012 American Institute of Physics . [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4764106]


Over the 20-year span of my investigation of patients with heritable disorders of immunity on Duke University's (Durham, NC) Rankin Clinical Research Unit, remarkable progress has been made worldwide in defining the cellular basis of such defects and in improving treatment for them. Considering the vast literature on this subject, it is often difficult to realize that the first human immunodeficiency disease was discovered just 33 years ago.1Since then information regarding such defects has accrued at an enormous rate. The World Health Organization appreciated this in the late 1970s and created a committee whose charge was to develop a classification of the then-recognized syndromes. In the first such classification, the authors attempted to separate the conditions according to postulated cellular levels at which the defects occurred and on the basis of consistent patterns of inheritance or clinical manifestations. At the time of the first classification, however, none of


In literary theory, there are two common proposals about the nature of literature: that literariness is a distinctive characteristic of literary texts and that literariness is mostly characterized by highly foregrounded textual features. Our studies focused on the effects of genre expectations. In two experiments, we examined whether particular rhetorical figures (features, such as oxymora, synesthesia, and personification) are processed differently when readers think they are embedded in literary sentences. Participants were first induced to think that the sentences they were reading were taken either from literary texts (literary group) or from newspaper articles (news group). They then read sentences containing rhetorical figures and control sentences that did not contain figurative language. Results of Experiment 1 were consistent with prior research indicating that genre expectations influence how a text is processed (Zwaan, 1991, 1994). Moreover, specifically in the news group, genre expectations similarly affect reading times for sentences with rhetorical figures and sentences containing low frequency and long words, suggesting that foregrounding presents a lexical challenge elicited by micro-level linguistic and rhetorical "obstacles." However, Experiment 2 did not replicate the findings of Experiment 1. These conflicting results prompt consideration of the limitations of an exclusive focus on foregrounding; in literary texts there is always an interchange between backgrounding and foregrounding elements.


The synthesis of supported, small sized, monodisperse, surfactant free bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) is of great importance in the field of catalysis. In this paper, we report a facile and green method to synthesize AgxNi100−x (x = 25, 50, 75, and 100) alloy NPs decorated on reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanosheets by an in situ chemical co-reduction process for the first time. The resulting products were well characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), high resolution TEM (HRTEM), X-ray photoelectron microscopy (XPS) and inductively coupled plasma atomic absorption spectroscopy (ICP-AES). The in situ synthesized AgxNi100−x/RGO alloy nanocomposites showed remarkable composition dependent catalytic activity towards the reduction of 4-nitrophenol by NaBH4 with one of the best activity parameters (968 s−1 g−1). The enhanced catalytic performance was observed for RGO supported NPs as compared to that of bare AgNi alloy NPs and the in situ synthesized Ag50Ni50/RGO sample was identified to be the highest active among the as-obtained nanocomposite samples. The Ag50Ni50/RGO sample catalyzed the reduction of other nitroarenes in such a way that we obtained the best ever activity parameter for those reactions also. Furthermore, the effect of support materials (activated carbon, SBA-15 or RGO) and reducing agents (ammonia borane or sodium borohydride) was studied on the catalytic activity of Ag50Ni50 alloy NPs. In addition, AgxNi100−x/RGO nanocomposites showed excellent recycling stabilities which may lead to the use of the present nanocatalyst in many more industrially important catalytic applications.


Public procurement is one of the core activities of each government and as such it draws attention of many stakeholders in a society. This is why governments pay special attention to providing frameworks and standards for public procurements that guaranty openness, transparency and non-discrimination of the overall process. In this paper we will describe the EU framework for public procurement that supports electronic business. As we can see the electronic nature of the framework allows for collection of additional data about procurement. This data can be used to create public database appropriate for creation of knowledge about experiences with particular procurement orders. We will present the concept of proposed knowledge base and its implementation within the described framework. The knowledge from experiences is generated using case-based reasoning conducted over depersonalized data. This is why this public knowledge can be made available to all interested stakeholders – participants of the procurement process. Publicly available knowledge base can encourage main goals of public eProcurement goals and make national economy more competitive as procurement contractors start to take advantage of competing for public eProcurement tenders in neighboring countries. Key-Words: knowledge management, public procurement, case-based reasoning, e-business, e-government


Native advertising is a type of online advertising that matches the form and function of the platform on which it appears. In practice, the choice between display and in-feed native advertising presents brand advertisers and online news publishers with conflicting objectives. Advertisers face a trade-off between ad clicks and brand recognition, whereas publishers need to strike a balance between ad clicks and the platform's trustworthiness. For policy makers, concerns that native advertising confuses customers prompted the U.S. Federal Trade Commission to issue guidelines for disclosing native ads. This research aims to understand how consumers respond to native ads versus display ads and to different styles of native ad disclosures, using randomized online and field experiments combining behavioral clickstream, eye movement, and survey response data. The results show that when the position of an ad on a news page is controlled for, a native ad generates a higher click-through rate because it better resembles the surrounding editorial content. However, a display ad leads to more visual attention, brand recognition, and trustworthiness for the website than a native ad.


Adult guinea pigs were made unresponsive to a heterologous protein (e.g. bovine gamma globulin, or BGG) or a hapten-protein conjugate (e.g. p-aminobenzoic acid-bovine gamma globulin, or PABAγmiddot;BGG) by intraperitoneal injection of 80 mg cyclophosphamide and the specific antigen. This immunologic unresponsiveness developed to the specific antigen administered simultaneously with the cyclophosphamide, and not to any variants. Thus, animals unresponsive to PABAγmiddot;BGG remained unresponsive to the original antigen on challenge with a variant, but formed delayed hypersensitivity and circulating antibody to the variant. The specificity of immunologic unresponsiveness, therefore, seems more closely related to the whole antigen molecule than does delayed hypersensitivity.


This paper presents a method for target-specific feature extraction from ground penetrating radar (GPR) signatures and examines the applicability of such features to classification of minelike targets. The signatures of a set of targets measured in soils with different dielectric permitivities and at various burial depths are used in the experiments. Each target, buried in one soil and at one particular depth, is represented by a set of complex poles computed from the ensemble of neighbouring target-specific signatures. The empirical probability density of the corresponding set of pole frequencies is modelled as a mixture of univariate Gaussian functions. Robust partial modelling algorithm is applied to determine the number of Gaussians in the mixture and to estimate their parameters. The procedure that uses the resulting target-specific Gaussian mixtures to compute the class-conditional probabilities of a target is applied for target classification.


Collagen fiber organization in the articular surfaces of the cricoarytenoid joint (CAJ) was studied using a pinpricking technique used in biomechanical research in orthopedics. Four male human formalin preserved specimens (3 months to 20 years) and 6 male freshly autopsied specimens (19 to 30 yrs) were studied. Specimens were dissected using the stereomicroscope. Distinctive patterns of articular cartilage slits reflect the orientation of collagen fibers in the cricoid and arytenoid articular surfaces. The orientation of the collagen fibers reinforces the articular surfaces along the principle path of CAJ motion. No age related differences were found. This suggests that the orientation of collagen fibers in the CAJ articular surfaces is prenatally determined rather than significantly influenced by postnatal mechanical factors.


Parallel file systems have become a common component of modern high-end computers to mask the ever-increasing gap between disk data access speed and CPU computing power. However, while working well for certain applications, current parallel file systems lack the ability to effectively handle concurrent I/O requests with data synchronization needs, whereas concurrent I/O is the norm in data-intensive applications. Recognizing that an I/O request will not complete until all involved file servers in the parallel file system have completed their parts, in this paper we propose a server-side I/O coordination scheme for parallel file systems. The basic idea is to coordinate file servers to serve one application at a time in order to reduce the completion time, and in the meantime maintain the server utilization and fairness. A window-wide coordination concept is introduced to serve our purpose. We present the proposed I/O coordination algorithm and its corresponding analysis of average completion time in this study. We also implement a prototype of the proposed scheme under the PVFS2 file system and MPI-IO environment. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed scheme can reduce average completion time by 8% to 46%, and provide higher I/O bandwidth than that of default data access strategies adopted by PVFS2 for heavy I/O workloads. Experimental results also show that the server-side I/O coordination scheme has good scalability.


This paper aims to present information about the provision of gingival prostheses or gingival veneers. These appliances are most commonly provided for patients with gingival recession and attachment loss. The paper will highlight the indications and advantages for providing prostheses, and inform the reader of the risks or complications that may arise. The clinical and laboratory stages will be explained and advice provided on maintenance. A case series will demonstrate some of the patient-related benefits and difficulties that can be encountered. A final aspect to the paper will present the results of a survey undertaken in the north-east of England, exploring the provision of these appliances in primary care. CPD/Clinical Relevance: Good aesthetics relating to the gingival margin can be difficult to achieve and the use of gingival veneers may provide a solution.


Tailor System is developedto ease the tailor or tailoress to manage and maintain the tailoring shop. It is an integrated system which combines several modules. The modules are Reservation Maintenance Module, Finance Management of Tailoring Shop Module, Information Management of Tailoring Shop Module and Maintenance STock of Tailoring Equipments Module. The function of the reservation Maintenance Module is to schedule the tailoring process. This module also acts as a reminder if the tailoring process of any reservation is still not done on the dtermined date. The finance Management of Tailoring Shop Module can ease to manage the financial process taht is before done manually such as accounting management. The function of Maintanence Stock of Tailoring Equipments Module is to maintain the clothes and tailoring equipments stock. It is also act as a reminder if there are stock shortages. Lastly, the function of Information management of Tailoring Shop Module is to manage the retrieving and keeping customer information such as personal and reservation information of the customer. This system has been developed using visual programming technique. Visual basic with windows environment has been used as a programming language to develop this system.


Would improvements in port performance increase trade in countries on the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans? Previous studies attempted to answer this question using ad hoc measures of port efficiency that do not control for the actual use of port assets or measures that can be very noisy. To avoid these problems, this paper builds a measure of economic efficiency based on the use of port inputs to deliver port output. Using data envelop analysis, it ranks countries on the Indian and Western Pacific Oceans in terms of their port efficiency, and assesses the effect of increased efficiency. It finds that becoming as efficient as the country with the most efficient port sector would reduce their average maritime transport costs by up to 14 percent and increase their exports by up to 2.2 percent.


In vitro micropropagation is an alternative to conventional (vegetative) propagation of potatoes whereas aseptically meristem cultures were used which gave pathogen free plants. Different sterilization protocols were used for disinfecting the isolates potato sprouts from two potato genotypes named Excuisita and Bergerac. After 35-40 days of culture shoot height, number of shoots per explants, and number of roots were measured. It was found that the suitable sterilization protocol giving high percentages of survived individuals was that of 1% HgCl2. The sterilized sprouts were cut to isolate apical meristems which were cultured on shoot induction medium containing solidified MS media with vitamins and exogenous plant growth regulators and incubated at optimized culture conditions in room culture. The cultivar Bergerac showed greater ability for in vitro propagation with 6.3 shoots per explants but Excuisita plantlets presented higher shoot length (72.5 mm). The aim of the study was the presentation of suitable protocol for in vitro induction of potato plantlets stocks free of pathogens.


This paper discusses the design, analysis, and development of a large Ka-band slot array for digital beam-forming application. The array consists of 160 times 160 elements in 16 subarrays for producing 16 digital beams in the receive mode. Infinite array mutual coupling model has been employed in the design and analysis models. Challenges posed in meeting the pattern and return loss specifications because of manufacturing tolerances are discussed. Measured return loss and pattern characteristics of 10 times 40 slot array modules as well as results on a 1 m times 1 m demonstration array are presented.


BACKGROUND
We examined the expression of estrogen and progesterone receptors in patients with uterine leiomyosarcoma (LMS) to determine their influence on prognosis (overall survival and disease-free survival) and to evaluate the association between the steroid receptor expression and various clinicopathological parameters.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Estrogen and progesterone receptor expression was investigated by immunohistochemistry from paraffin-embedded tissue in 21 patients with uterine LMS. The immunohistochemical findings were correlated with different clinicopathological parameters of the patients.

RESULTS
Estrogen and progesterone receptors were expressed in 57% and 43%, respectively. The relationship between estrogen and progesterone receptor expression and clinical stage, age, vascular space involvement and recurrence of disease did not reach statistical significance (p > 0.05). Neither estrogen nor progesterone receptor expression significantly influenced overall survival and disease-free survival (p > 0.05). Early tumor stage (p = 0.0001), age at diagnosis < 50 years (p = 0.02) and the absence of vascular space involvement (p = 0.04) were prognostic factors associated with a lengthened overall survival.

CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the present study observed that estrogen and progesterone receptors are frequently expressed in uterine leiomyosarcoma. However, their expression did not correlate with clinical stage, age, vascular space involvement and recurrence of disease and had no influence on overall and disease-free survival. Despite the lack of prognostic impact, further clinical studies with larger numbers of cases need to be performed to verify if estrogen and progesterone receptor-positive tumors can be treated by hormonal manipulation.


Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA

Abstract

Background: Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common malignant skin carcinoma. Although mortality is low as BCC rarely metastasizes, this malignancy has a tendency for local recurrence. As such, it is of great practical utility to assess which is the best therapeutic choice in the management of BCC recurring after different treatments. Here, we describe six cases of recurrent BCC treated with carbon ion radiotherapy and review the cases previously reported in the literature.

Methods: Case records of six patients with biopsy-proved, recurrent BCC, who were given total doses of 60-70 GyE, administered in 6-11 fractions over 6-11 days, with a fraction dose of 7-10 GyE in the therapy terminal at Heavy Ion Research Facility in Lanzhou (HIRFL) at the Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IMP-CAS), China, were retrospectively reviewed.

Results: Tumor response rate was 100%, including 6 CR, at 12 months after completion of carbon ion radiation. In a minimum follow-up period of 55 months, overall survival and no recurrence were achieved. No grade 3 or higher toxicity and complication occurred.

Conclusions: Carbon ion radiotherapy is well tolerated and should be considered as a potential salvage modality for recurrent BCC in certain cases.

Note: This abstract was not presented at the meeting.

Citation Format: Yingtai Chen, Feng Dong, Yantao Tian, Chengfeng Wang, Liang Cui, Xuezhong Chen. Carbon ion radiotherapy for recurrent basal cell carcinoma: preliminary report of six cases and review of the literature. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 860. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-860


–  Body sizes of young-of-the-year (YOY) perch (Perca fluviatilis) at the end of their first summer are extremely variable and range in different studies between 4 and 15 cm. To analyse whether size divergences in YOY perch may be attributed to alternative use of food resources, adult perch were stocked into two previously fishless ponds and growth, size distribution and food intake of the YOY perch were recorded. In addition to perch, adult bream (Abramis brama) were introduced to produce juvenile bream that could serve as a food resource for YOY perch. The body sizes of YOY perch at the end of the experiment ranged from 32 to 168 mm with a bimodal size distribution. The combination of stomach content analyses and stable isotope signatures revealed that the small size cohort were planctivorous/benthivorous while the large size cohort was piscivorous/cannibalistic. Results implicated that different feeding behaviour contributed to the size divergences in YOY perch and that the extreme growth of the large size cohort was induced by piscivory.


The paper describes the development of automatic direction-finders primarily intended for measuring the bearings of aircraft, on signals radiated in the frequency band 100–150 Mc/s. The basic system employs fixed elevated-H Adcock antennas and a single receiver, and, with the exception of the earliest model, all instruments give cathoderay oscillograph indication.An examination of the advantages and limitations of fixed*antenna automatic direction-finders employing two or more receivers leads to an account of the reasons for the adoption of a single-receiver system in the present development. The principles and evolution of this system are explained with reference to the original experimental models, whose performance is discussed.A naval direction-finder based on one of the experimental models is described in detail, and statistics are presented to show that the probable instrumental error varies from about 0.6–1.25 deg over the frequency band, after compensation for octantal error. Bearings can be measured on signals of field strength down to 7 μV/m or less.The paper concludes with a description of direction-finders for use on land. One of these, under current development, will be capable of unattended operation on two alternative frequency-channels, with bearing indication and full remote-control at points up to twenty miles distant.


It has been envisaged that Sub-Saharan Africa would remain the region with the highest level of food insecurity over the 2015-2025 period. This study, therefore, further investigates food insecurity and food imports in some selected African countries. The regression results based on the fixed effects model show that food imports, employment in agriculture, and food production have helped to reduce food insecurity in the five biggest African economies. However, livestock production, crop production, cereal yield as well as agricultural land area have not been able to reduce food insecurity in these countries. Agriculture value added per worker/food insecurity nexus was insignificant. Although, food importation remains a strong option for African countries in reducing their levels of food insecurity, policy measures by each country should be conceptualized based on their food security historical paths, environmental concerns, as well as their political, social and economic health.


Abstract We conducted preliminary studies testing the relevance of a new construct for understanding women's uninvolvement in regular physical activity: negative self-perception due to past PA experiences (NSPPPAE). In study 1, we tested the clarity of a three-item scale and computed principal component analysis, standardized Cronbach's alpha coefficients, and test-retest reliability using Pearson's correlation coefficient. In study 2, we performed principal component analysis, Pearson's correlation tests, and multiple regression analysis to determine (1) NSPPPAE's association with variables related to PA involvement and (2) NSPPPAE's power to predict time spent in vigorous or moderate recreational activity. The scale showed satisfactory internal consistency and good test-retest reliability. NSPPPAE was positively associated with time barrier (r = .31), tiredness barrier (r = .52), age (r = .15), and BMI (r = .28), and negatively associated with time in recreational activity (r = −.36). It significantly predicted (β = −.20, p = .003) time in recreational activity. This construct provides deeper insight into women's uninvolvement in regular PA.


The objectives of the research were to make: (1) a list of Cryptogamic plants at Jobolarangan forest in mount Lawu, and (2) the actual condition of biodiversity conservation of the plants. All Cryptogamic plants on the forest were studied. The procedures of data collection were including species collection in the field, make up herbaria, observation of flora vegetation using transect method, morphology observation in the laboratory, and interview to residents and government administrations. The results showed that in the forest were found 77 species Cryptogamic plants, consisting of 27 species of fungi, 5 species of lichens, 20 species of Bryophyta and 25 species of Pterydophyta. Government and residents had successfully conserved the forest; however fire and illegal logging damaged another part. © 2001 Jurusan Biologi FMIPA UNS Surakarta


Hinged on the Job Demand-Resource model and Source Attribution Theory, this study assessed the relationship between work-family conflict (family-towork and work-to-family conflicts) and workplace deviant behaviours (organizational and interpersonal deviance) among bank employees in Ghana. The quantitative two-wave longitudinal design was used, and data collected from 301 respondents. Unique self-generated codes were used to match the responses from each respondent in both times. Work-to-family conflict predicted interpersonal deviant behaviour in both Time 1 and Time 2, and organizational deviant behaviour in Time 2 but not in Time 1. Also, family-to-work conflict predicted interpersonal deviant behaviour in both Time 1 and Time 2 and also predicted organizational deviant behaviour in Time 1 only. This is one of the few empirical studies assessing the relationship between work-family conflict and workplace deviance, and in particular, among bankers. Assessing such relationships in this study over time has shown that variations in nature of the hypothesized relationships could be a result of extraneous variables (dynamic employee behaviour or environmental changes) not anticipated. Banks must pay particular attention to the job demands imposed on employees and again take interest in the out-of-job experiences of staff that could affect their job performance and involvement in deviant behaviours.
Keywords: Work-family conflict; workplace deviance; bankers; Ghana; antecedents


The aim of this study is to examine the previous studies published in the literature on whether crypto currencies are an alternative investment tool for short and long-term investors. For this purpose, crypto currencies, which are among the newest and most popular topics in the financial world, have been examined as an alternative investment tool. Studies in the international literature on this subject are analyzed and the findings obtained in these studies are evaluated. Throughout the studies, it has been determined that crypto currencies, especially Bitcoin, attract a lot of attention by investors, but due to excessive volatility in price movements, it is not yet a complete alternative to basic financial instruments such as gold, foreign exchange and the stock market.


ObjectiveRecently, it was found that resting heart rate (HR) measured at home (home HR), as well as self-measured blood pressure (BP) at home (home BP), was a strong predictor of the risk of cardiovascular disease mortality in the general Japanese population. It was also reported that home BP levels were not adequately controlled in hypertensive patients. Little information, however, is available on the current status of home HR control in treated patients with hypertension. The objective of this study was to examine the current status of home HR control and home BP control among treated patients with hypertension. MethodsHome HR and BP were measured using a self-monitored BP measuring device. Morning home HR and BP were obtained in 3183 patients and evening home HR and BP were obtained in 3106 patients. On the basis of an earlier study, we defined a home HR value of ≥70 beats/min as 'high home HR'. ResultsThe mean home HR value was 67.2±9.1 beats/min in the morning and 69.6±9.2 beats/min in the evening. Of the 3183 patients, 35.7% had a high home HR in the morning and 46.7% of the 3106 patients had a high home HR in the evening. The prevalence of patients with a high home HR and a controlled home BP (<135/85 mmHg) was 11.3% in the morning and 24.2% in the evening. ConclusionResting home HR control and home BP control were inadequate.


Objectives: The aim of this project was to describe how Indigenous health students and staff have experienced and responded to racism, in order to identify strategies that promote resilience and to explore how this knowledge can be translated into an organisational response in health service and tertiary education settings. It was thought that an exploration of bulletproofing might provide useful additional strategies to the main aim of reducing racism itself.

Design and setting: This was a two-phase exploratory qualitative study involving interviews and a literature review conducted between 2004 and 2005. The twenty-six participants were Indigenous health service and academic staff and health students.

Results: Each participant was able to recount many experiences of racism in classroom and health service settings, some of the most disturbing being that directed at patients. Participants described a small number of different racist events that were highly predictable and repeated over and again. Staff described the long-term stresses associated with racism, including the considerable stress associated with deciding whether and how to respond and the sense of success or failure associated with how this went. A strong sense of guilt was associated with not responding or responding in a way that was self-appraised as being ineffective. Long term staff described factors that promoted their personal resilience, which included having a number of 'successes' dealing with racist events, having support of other Indigenous staff and family and working in a supportive institutional environment. There have been a range of training programs, though few directly about racism, that have useful lessons for Indigenous resilience building.

Conclusion: Racism was reported as a major stresser and was commonly experienced by Indigenous health students and staff. Resilience training is the under-explored flip-side of current cross-cultural training and along with improved institutional responses has the potential to increase the sense of well-being of Indigenous staff and students and their participation in the health professions. Bulletproofing Indigenous health students and staff, offers benefits while racism persists.


The study of the Halal Insurance examines the literature on Islam-related insurance. Halal insurance is to protect each other, please help among a number of people/parties through investment in the form of assets or tabarru' which gives the pattern of returns to face certain risks through contract (the Alliance) that in accordance with the Sharia. There are many differences between sharia insurance with conventional insurance in terms of the concept, the elements of gharar, maisir and usury, Syariah Supervisory Board, Akkad, the handling of risks, fund management, investment fund, ownership, source of payment claims, and advantage. The goal of insurance halal is more directed toward the mission of aqidah, worship, iqtishodi (economy) and the empowerment of the people. The principle used in Islamic insurance is the principle of unity, justice, help each other, mandate, mutual pleasure, avoid gharar, maisir and usury. The type of income in the Insurance Fund's income consists of halal tabarru' and the company's revenue.


AlGaN-based vertical type high power ultraviolet-C light emitting diodes (UV-C LEDs), which have a Ga-face n-contact structure, were fabricated on a LED epilayer transferred to a carrier wafer through a laser lift-off (LLO) process. A significant light extraction enhancement of the vertical chip by using a highly reflective ITO/Al p-type electrode is demonstrated, along with surface roughening. A GaN-free LED epi structure is employed to prevent light absorption in the UV-C wavelength region. The vertical chip with the ITO/Al reflector and n-AlGaN surface roughening exhibited a high light output power of 104.4mW with a peak wavelength of 277.6nm at an injection current of 350mA. Comparing the device characteristics of the vertical chip and the flip chip showed that the light output power of the vertical chip was 1.31 times higher than that of the flip chip at 350mA. In particular, with the high power vertical type UV-C LED, a maximum light output power of 630mW could be achieved at a current of 3.5A, and this is mainly attributed to efficient heat dissipation through a metal substrate and the resulting relatively lower junction temperature of the vertical chip.


OBJECTIVE
To relate engagement and academic burnout with curriculum evaluation among speech therapy students.

METHODS
This observational, cross-sectional study was conducted at the end of the first academic semester for each level and at the end of a theoretical class in order to ensure the maximum participation rate at the University of Concepción, Concepción, Chile, and comprised students of a speech and language therapy programme.Curriculum evaluation scale, academic engagement and academic burnout questionnaires were used. STATA SE 11 was used for statistical analysis.

RESULTS
Of the 200 participants, 157(78.50%) were women and 43(21.50%) men. The overall mean age was 20.81±2.15 years (range: 18-30 years). Emotional burnout was inversely correlated with the evaluation of teaching and evaluation methods, distribution of fields, teaching team and achievement of objectives (p<0.05 each). Depersonalisation was inversely associated with the distribution of teaching and learning activities (r=-0.13; p<0.05). Lack of personal accomplishment was also significantly and statistically associated with seven out of the eight factors of the curriculum evaluation scale (p<0.05 each). Involvement in studies was statistically and significantly related to all factors (p<0.05 each), except the achievement of objectives. Finally, satisfaction with studies was directly, statistically and significantly related to six of the eight factors (p<0.05 each).

CONCLUSIONS
A more positive evaluation of the academic curriculum was associated with lower levels of burnout and higher levels of academic engagement.


In order to ensure the belt conveyor operation safe and reliable, centralised monitoring and control is very necessary. The main objective of this proposal is to monitor and detect the fault occurring in the coal conveyor using delta series PLC and SCADA. Faults such as belt tear up faults, oil level reduction fault, fire occurrence faults in the belt conveyor are not identified properly and thus leading to serious damage to the belt conveyor. In order to avoid this type of serious conditions, we are applying here various types of sensors in their operations using PLC and SCADA to provide proper protection for the belt conveyor in Thermal Power Plant. Manual control at present is more disadvantageous and is being the major reasons for frequent accidents. In order to reduce these accidents and for increasing further enhancements, automation is used. All parameters will be processed, controlled, and managed in the coal conveyor with help of sensors and plc.


Choice feminism is motivated by a fear of politics. It arises in response to three common criticisms of feminism: that feminism is too radical, too exclusionary, and too judgmental. In response, choice feminism offers a worldview that does not challenge the status quo, that promises to include all women regardless of their choices, and that abstains from judgment altogether. Moreover, it enables feminists to sidestep the difficulties of making the personal political: making judgments and demanding change of friends, family, and lovers. Yet judgment, exclusion, and calls for change are unavoidable parts of politics. If feminists are not to withdraw from political life altogether, we have to acknowledge the difficulty of engaging in politics. Political claims are partial; we will inevitably exclude, offend, or alienate some of those whom we should wish to have as allies. The political concerns and dilemmas to which choice feminism responds are very real. However, we can take seriously the political motivations behind choice feminism without withdrawing from politics. Instead, we need to complement an acknowledgment of the political dilemmas facing feminists with a celebration of the pleasures of engaging in politics with those who differ from and disagree with us.


Foot and mouth disease virus (FMDV) is the etiological agent of an important disease in livestock. Despite the considerable amount of information accumulated in recent years, FMD still affects extensive areas of the world and is the most transmissible viral disease in animals: FMDV has been diagnosed in 34 countries during the past 18 months and 1,000 cases in the recent outbreak are accounted for in Great Britain alone. One of the difficulties in controlling FMDV is its occurrence in seven distinct serotypes and immunity conferred by vaccination against one serotype leaves the animals susceptible to infection by the other six. Vaccination is the first treatment against FMDV. The current vaccines consist of virus inactivated with imines and formulated with A1(OH)3/saponin (for ruminants) or incomplete oil-based formulations (for pigs and cattle). Based on previous results, a synthetic vaccine against FMDV was developed following the concept of adjuvant-carrier-epitope. Here we describe the synthesis and the development of novel synthetic adjuvants and carriers and their use in synthetic vaccines against foot and mouth disease virus. Different sets of lipophilic compounds were prepared in order to act as build-in adjuvants/carriers. They include cyclic and linear polyalcohols containing different numbers of alkylic chains. In-solution synthetic chemistry was used and separation and characterization of closely related lipid products, although successful, proved difficult. A synthetic dendrimeric polylysine carrier was also prepared but, following promising results of compounds lacking the MAP carrier, it was not linked to the constructs. The lipophilic constructs were then coupled to different copies of synthetic peptides corresponding to the VP1 (140-160) FMDV serotype C. Different kinds of synthetic liganding approaches were used for the conjugation, following the attachment of a residue of cysteine to the carboxy terminus of the peptides. The different approaches led to investigations of the role and the importance of different spacers between the adjuvant/carrier and the epitope.


Twice in my professional life, the myocardial sinusoids have received prominence as agents of possible importance in the microcirculation of the myocardium. The first was during my medical school years, when Joseph Wearn, Professor of Medicine at the Case Western Reserve Medical School, Cleveland, published a series of articles suggesting that blood in the chambers of the left side of the heart might make a significant contribution to the myocardial circulation in the presence of main coronary occlusion. He proposed that this took place via the openings in the atrial and myocardial walls known as the veins of Vieussens and Thebesius. He made wax models of the myocardium that demonstrated the configuration of the passages leading from these openings. Finding that they communicated with small branches of the coronary arteries, he named them arterial-luminal and arterial-sinusoidal vessels. Leary and Wearn 1 observed two young patients who died with complete occlusions


Integrating Business Intelligence (BI) processes in an information system requires a form of strategic scanning system for which the information is the main source of efficiency and decision support. A process of strategic scanning system network is primarily a cooperative approach to sharing knowledge that actors are "producers" of information. The dynamics of the actor's interactions allow gradual building of shared knowledge. This paper proposes Multi Agent System (MAS) architecture which facilitates the integration of a process of strategic scanning system network in the information system, to emerge relevant information from simple information while ensuring the quality and safety information . In particular, this approach is geared towards supporting system properties specially focused on cooperative multi-agent system. It gives finally an overview of implementation of a prototype of the proposed solution limited for the moment to the integration of processes most used in the majority of information systems.


This is an interesting and generally well-written paper that makes a good contribution to understanding the groundwater surface water interactions and estimating the lacustrine groundwater discharge in mountainous proglacial lakes in the QTP. The abstract is correctly informative with some remarks (see below). The introduction and the site description take into account previous papers in exhaustive way. The methodological approach for data analysis is modern without particular novelties. High-resolution 222Rn activities, water level, both in water temperature and ,wind speed together with stable isotopic data are quite impressive.Many studies have done to explain the high


In this paper, we present a numerical algorithm for computing a local ISS Lyapunov function for systems which are locally input-to-state stable (ISS) on compact subsets of the state space. The algorithm relies on a linear programming problem and computes a continuous, piecewise affine ISS Lyapunov function on a simplicial grid covering the given compact set excluding a small neighborhood of the origin. We show that the ISS Lyapunov function delivered by the algorithm is a viscosity subsolution of a partial differential equation. Index Terms--Nonlinear systems, Local input-to-state stability, Local ISS Lyapunov function, Linear programming, Viscosity subsolution


The unit to be installed at Lebanon Veteran's Affairs Medical Center will prove that circulating fluidized bed combustion can provide economically viable and efficient hospital waste destruction and steam generation. The State permitting process is proceeding. The air quality division of the Department of Environmental Resources has requested the use of anthracite coal only. Anthracite has a much lower sulfur content than bituminous coal. The use of the anthracite coal has been approved by the Department of Veteran's Affairs. The DER permit will specify the use of antrhacite coal. The State permitting approval is expected in the near future. Testing with the shredding system at the Donlee Pilot facility has been completed. The results predict the Lebanon VA facility will meet both NSPS regulations and the BAT guidelines proposed by the State of Pennsylvania. There have been no significant problems encountered to date.


Author(s): Pope, Lianne | Advisor(s): Minor, Daniel L | Abstract: Two-pore potassium (K2P) channels are responsible for regulating the resting membrane potential of excitable cells. Though K2P channels are heavily implicated in disease, no approved therapies exist to specifically target K2P channels. Defined pharmacology for these channels has lagged, as K2Ps differ from traditional potassium channels in a number of ways. By harnessing these differences, we aim to discover and characterize new K2P modulators to aid in the study of this unique channel class. Through the structural and functional characterization of small molecule K2P modulators, we will facilitate the understanding of how these channels contribute to physiology and disease. The introduction of this thesis aims to define and describe the scope of K2P pharmacology, with a specific focus on TREK family modulation. High throughput methods for identifying new classes of TREK family modulators are reviewed, and a synthesis of the selectivity of small-molecule TREK family modulators has been compiled, with special attention to those compounds for which structural information has been elucidated. In chapter two, the action and selectivity of K2P activator BL-1249 is presented and, using a chimeric functional approach, subtle differences between K2P2.1 (TREK-1) and K2P4.1 (TRAAK) channels and their differential response to BL-1249 were pinpointed to specific areas involving M2 and M4 helices. This work highlights how channels within K2P families can differ from one another in their pharmacological profiles and how selective molecules can help to tease apart these important differences. Chapter three presents structural and functional studies of polyruthenium amine inhibitors of K2Ps and creation of a ruthenium red super-binder with low nanomolar efficacy. Through our studies, we define the mechanism of polyruthenium amine inhibitors as an electrostatic block positioned above by coordinating acidic residues. Furthermore, we provide a template for future development of K2P modulators which may target this novel binding site. From these and other recent studies, a multi-site model for K2P pharmacological regulation has emerged and future work will require precise dissection to establish how each of these sites may preferentially affect gating in TREK, and more broadly, all K2Ps.Finally, chapter four presents the synthetic modulation of a protein-protein interaction (PPI) using stapled peptides in a different context, departing from a focus on K2P channels onto another voltage-gated ion channel (VGIC) family member, voltage-gated calcium channels (CaV). Stapled peptide mimics of the alpha-interacting domain (AID) were found to inhibit the high affinity interaction of the channel domain (CaV-alpha) with its cytosolic subunit (CaV-beta) to affect calcium channel properties. Establishing and improving the modulation of this type of PPI informs the future development of inhibitors of K2P interactions with important cellular partners.


Between 1949-1968 China--which has more than one-fifth of the world's people--experienced an upward trend in population growth rate. China's one-child family policy was introduced in the late 1970s. It aims to limit population to around 1200 million by the year 2000. In order to achieve this goal, birth rates will need to decrease dramatically.


BackgroundThe issue of consent for vaccine programmes has been highlighted recently by global pandemic caused by COVID – 19 and the need for rapid uptake of vaccinations. 'Vaccine hesitancy' is now an ordinary part of the conversation when discussing population-based programmes aimed at reducing the spread of disease. To provide, refuse or delay consent is has often seen as tangible expression of the acceptability of public health intervention, but debate has started to include the consent process itself, particularly where one person is making the decision for another e.g parent for child. In developed countries parental consent is required prior to vaccination of children. Health professionals are trained to provide medical facts to parent to help them make a choice but not to interfere in personal decisions. However, deciding whether to consent to or refuse vaccination on behalf of a child can be a difficult task for some parents and there is little understanding of the influences that facilitate or impede parents' decision making.The following question was posed: What influences parents' decisions to provide or refuse their consent for inclusion into public health programmes aimed at their school age children (4-18 years) in developed national healthcare systems?MethodsThis is a systematic review that uses qualitative meta-synthesis. PsychINFO, PsycARTICLES, MEDLINE and the International Bibliography of the Social Sciences were searched for papers. After screening abstracts and full texts, 14 papers were subject to quality standards review and ultimately nine papers were included in the final review. First, second, and third order constructs were identified. First order constructs were taken as participant views, interpretations put forward by the papers' authors were deemed second order constructs, before any commonalities were identified and grouped into third order constructs that were subsequently arranged into seven major analytical themes.FindingsParents' provide or refuse consent based on more than the factual, evidence-based information supplied by health professionals. Personal information from a trusted source often has more influence, with parents valuing this 'evidence' as much as traditional scientific information. Consent decisions reflect the fact that people are inherently social beings that are politically and economically located in society. Parents' consent decisions are influenced by a complex web of circumstances. ConclusionWe should not think of consent for public health interventions in simplistic terms i.e. where medically factual information is provided by health professionals on with no other input and on which we expect parents to make a decision. This is an outdated mode of operating based on medical model of health.


The stability of three aqueous perchlorate formulations used in nuclear medicine was studied as a function of the formulation and storage temperature. The formulations were intravenous potassium perchlorate solution, oral sodium perchlorate-sorbitol solution and oral potassium perchlorate in cherry syrup solution. The assays were conducted gravimetrically by precipitation with tetra-n-pentylammonium bromide. All formulations were found to be stable at least nine months. It is recommended that any formulation containing potassium perchlorate be kept at room temperature since precipitation of the active ingredient may occur if refrigerated. Sodium perchlorate formulations, however, may be refrigerated if desired because of their greater solubility.


Background

Lower circulating levels of total melatonin is associated with adverse cardiovascular (CV) events in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients. Free melatonin is easier to measure in clinical practice compared with total melatonin. Whether free melatonin is associated with follow-up CV events in AMI patients has not been determined yet.

Methods

A total of 732 consecutive AMI patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention between January 2013 and January 2015 participated in the study. Blood samples were collected as fast samples on the first morning after admission. The plasma levels of free melatonin were determined using non-extraction radioimmunoassays. The cox regression was used to explore the association between circulating melatonin and endpoints. The median follow-up was 31.6 months.

Results

Patients with high melatonin levels were more likely to be younger and to have poorer blood lipid control. Multivariate cox-regression analyses (adjusted for confounding variables) showed that one unit increase in log-transformed melatonin was not associated with increased risks of major adverse CV events (MACE, composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke and heart failure, hazard ratio [HR], 1.74; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.94 to 3.21; p =0.078).

Conclusions

Higher free melatonin levels on the onset of AMI is not associated with MACE in AMI patients, independent of established conventional risk factors.


Abstract A method of treating array responses is presented. The entire statistical distribution from the array is used for either direct visual estimation, or for processing in a scanning machine. An estimate of a coherent signal and the character of the noise can be made visually. Most correlative techniques, in addition to digitizing, could be performed simultaneously through using the scanning machine.


Rationale: Signet-ring cell is a rare morphological finding in bone marrow, which usually indicates metastatic carcinoma from either the gastrointestinal tract or a primary hematolymphoid neoplasm. Here, we present a very unusual case of lobular breast carcinoma with metastasis to the bone marrow. Patient concerns: A 67-year-old female with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive lobular breast carcinoma was staged as T3N3M0, and treated with modified radical mastectomy followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy. One year after treatment, she was noted to have moderate thrombocytopenia on complete blood count with the remainder of the parameters within normal limits. Radiographic examination revealed no evidence of recurrent disease. Diagnosis: Bone marrow biopsy was performed to exclude therapy-related myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), which demonstrated hypercellularity with "hyperplastic" hematopoiesis. Upon closer inspection, a few signet-ring cells were identified which morphologically resembled histiocytes. These formed an interstitial infiltrate among the predominantly hematopoietic elements, and could have been easily overlooked. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated that these signet-ring cells were positive for pancytokeratin as well as ER which confirmed metastatic lobular breast carcinoma. On retrospective review of the aspirate smear, rare signet-ring cells were identified. Interventions: The patient was treated with additional chemotherapy. Outcomes: The patient eventually succumbed to overt dissemination after 14 months. Lessons: Due to the relative discohesiveness of lobular breast carcinoma, the cells frequently assume single-cell infiltration in bone marrow. This attribute, along with small cell size, bland cytologic features and paucity of tissue response, contributes to its escaping from identification on hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) sections. In this case, the signet-ring cells were hidden in apparently hyperplastic hematopoiesis. Careful inspection raised the possibility of occult metastasis which was readily detected and confirmed with immunohistochemistry.


Yoweri Museveni battled to power in 1986 and his government impressed many observers, some of whom recommended it as a model for other African states struggling to develop their resources in the best interests of their people. But where was change to start and how was it to continue in order to resolve the dilemmas facing Uganda? North America: Ohio U Press; Uganda: Fountain PublishersBR>


A procedure for the rapid and accurate mapping of the depth to the texture contrast horizon of duplex soils was trialled. Data were collected using ground-penetrating radar with a 250 MHz antenna at 4 sites in the Esperance region of Western Australia. The contrast at the B horizon was identified using a 'picking' process similar to seismic surveys. The GPS data were integrated and depth to B horizon maps produced by kriging. The results were related to core data taken for sites and showed that GPR can provide accurate and detailed subsurface maps with ±0.1 m accuracy for B horizon depth. The influence of B horizon material composition on GPR response was also investigated using amplitude mapping. The spacing between GPR transects can affect map quality, particularly if the lateral variation in the B horizon depth is not adequately sampled by the line spacing selected. With further integration of the data collection and post-processing procedures, this would prove to be a useful tool for farmers and natural resource managers.


Abstract Background and aims Nalmefene has been approved in Europe for the treatment of alcohol dependence and subsequently recommended by the UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). This study examines critically the evidence base underpinning both decisions and the issues arising. Methods Published studies of nalmefene were identified through a systematic search, with documents from the European Medicines Agency, the NICE appraisal and public clinical trial registries also examined to identify methodological issues. Results Efficacy data used to support the licensing of nalmefene suffer from risk of bias due to lack of specification of a priori outcome measures and sensitivity analyses, use of post‐hoc sample refinement and the use of inappropriate comparators. Despite this, evidence for the efficacy of nalmefene in reducing alcohol consumption in those with alcohol dependence is, at best, modest, and of uncertain significance to individual patients. The relevance of existing trial data to routine primary care practice is doubtful. Conclusions Problems with the registration, design, analysis and reporting of clinical trials of nalmefene did not prevent it being licensed and recommended for treating alcohol dependence. This creates dilemmas for primary care clinicians and commissioning organisations where nalmefene has been heavily promoted, and poses wider questions about the effectiveness of the medicines regulation system and how to develop the alcohol treatment evidence base.


My commentary 1 concerning CFS was not written from the traditional role of a physician as a patient advocate. My opening statement was that "increasing administrative and legal responsibilities have been added to the traditional roles of physicians." I was functioning as a medical advisor to an administrative law judge who was considering the appeals of claimants with CFS who had previously been denied total disability benefits under Social Security regulations. I did not examine these patients but heard their testimony and reviewed the medical record prior to the hearing. In most of the situations, the claimants were represented by attorneys. My comments also indicated that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Office of Disability of the Social Security Administration recognized CFS as an entity. Lapp and Hyman write from the standpoint of a CFS advocate and, I suspect, treat a large number of patients with CFS.


We examined the prostaglandin E (PGE) synthesis of cultured adherent synovial fibroblast-like cells (SFC) from patients with osteoarthritis (OA) in the noninflammatory state as well as with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In cells from RA patients the spontaneous PGE release was generally higher compared to that of OA patients, but decreased fast with time in culture. After cell passage, similar PGE baseline levels were seen in cells of the two patient groups. The cells could then be stimulated by the terminal complement components C5b-9 or C5b-8. PGE synthesis was also stimulated by the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), interleukin-1 (IL-1), or lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The amount of PGE synthesis after incubation with PDGF, LPS and IL-1 was comparable to that released after C5b-9. Thus, like other inflammatory mediators C5b-9 and PDGF trigger the increased PGE production by SFC and thus may participate in the development of synovial inflammation and contribute to the pathogenesis of RA.


Proceedings: AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010‐‐ Apr 17‐21, 2010; Washington, DC

Background. The association between breast cancer (bc) and hormonal influence is well known. Associations to certain hormonal risk factors in the different histopathological bc types could indicate that exposure to hormones during different stages of breast development could give rise to different types of bc. We wanted to get an overview of several risk factors with a known or a possible hormonal effect in relation to the classical histopathological groups of breast cancer to explore our hypothesis.

Materials and method. A clinical series of 1676 patients diagnosed with bc were investigated. In the present study we investigated possible associations between classical histopathological bc and possible risk factors such as occurrences of spider telangiectasias, varicose veins, HRT-ever use, number of childbirths and combined oral contraceptive pill (COCP) before first child. Analyses were performed using a binary logistic regression model, and were adjusted for age at diagnosis and for each factor simultaneously. A confidence interval (CI) of 95% was used.

Results. COCP use before first child was significantly positively associated with pure invasive ductal bc and invasive ductal bc combined with ductal carcinoma in situ (ductal/DCIS), odds ratio (OR) 1.5 (CI 1.2-2.1) and 3.3 (CI 1.6-7.0) respectively. Comedo bc was associated with a large number of childbirths (p-value 0.004), whereas mucinous bc (ductal bc was borderline significant p-value 0.006), on the other hand, was associated with a low number of childbirths (p-value 0.004). HRT-ever use was associated with an increased risk for pure lobular, mixed lobular, mixed ductal bc, OR 1.5 (CI 1.0-2.3), 1.9 (1.2-3.1) and 1.7 (1.2-2.5) respectively. The occurrence of spider telangiectasias was nonexistent in comedo breast cancer, but increased the risk of ductal cancer/DCIS (OR 4.7 (CI 2.2-10.1)). Varicose veins were significantly associated with pure comedo (OR 2.8(CI 1.2-6.8) and tubular bc (OR 4.4(CI 1.3-15.4)).

Conclusions. Before first pregnancy the lobules are not completely developed, therefore COCP use before first pregnancy possibly affects the duct system to a larger extent then the lobules, in line with our findings. However, HRT is used by women in menopause, and could therefore have a greater influence on the lobules. The association between HRT use and lobular bc has been shown in other studies. Varicose veins are thought to be induced by an increased hormonal level, either during pregnancy or menopause, and could be used as an indicator of large hormonal exposures or specific phenotypes regarding the estrogen receptor. Different histopathological groups respond differently to the hormonal risk factors in the present study, which could indicate that there is a slight difference in the biology between them. We propose that based on risk factors it might be possible to locate the origin of different tumors within the breast.

Note: This abstract was not presented at the AACR 101st Annual Meeting 2010 because the presenter was unable to attend.

Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5745.


Summary The aim of the research was to analyse the costs of the integrated plant protection during the six year period in wheat, sugar beet and oilseed rape crops. The data analysed was collected from a large-scale farm located in wielkopolskie voivodeship. The simplified system of cultivation (zero-tillage) as well as the rules for the integrated production have been applied by the farm for 15 years. The following elements were subject of the analysis: expenditure on plant protection, the use of active substance of plant protection products per 1 ha of crops, calculated in weight units and monetary units and the costs of plan protection.


Agricultural and forestry wastes are the popular renewable resources due to its price and efficiency. In recent decades, there are a lot of successful researches about bioethanol from lignocellulose to decrease the fossil fuels consumption. To produce bioethanol from lignocellulose materials, the prerequisite step is pretreatment step to remove lignin, to break the tight structure of lignin-cellulose-hemicellulose complex, to facilitate the contact between hydrolysis agent and cellulose. Alkaline pretreatment has been known as the most popular method. In this study, NaOH solution after the first pretreatment will be used again, adding a minimum amount of NaOH. The addition is calculated so that the total amount is reduced while maintaining the pretreatment efficiency. Analysis results showed that an aqueous solution of 2.0 wt.% NaOH can be used to pretreat the biomass for the first time in 24h, the first pretreatment allow the cellulose enrichment of raw materials from 41.2 % to 53%, in the second reused pretreatment, the addition give the same efficiency. The total amount of alkaline solution decreases 30.3% and the pure water decrease 41.2%, compared to the traditional method. The proposed method achieves the main goal: reduce significantly chemical costs, have a positive and practical meaning in contributing to solve the economic - technical problem of the second generation bioethanol's production technology.


BACKGROUND
It has been suggested that arnica can reduce postoperative edema and ecchymosis associated with cosmetic surgical procedures and improve outcome. Despite a high incidence of arnica use among upper blepharoplasty patients, evidence to support its treatment effect is lacking. The authors performed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial to investigate the efficacy of arnica ointment after upper blepharoplasty.

METHODS
One hundred thirty-six bilateral upper blepharoplasty patients were randomized between arnica ointment 10% and placebo ointment. In both study arms, one periorbital area was designated as the treatment side (either arnica or placebo ointment), and the contralateral side served as an untreated (no ointment) internal control. As the primary endpoint, the overall periorbital appearance as based on light photography and judged by a medical and nonmedical panel, was assessed after 3 days, 7 days, and 6 weeks. Secondary endpoints were swelling, ecchymosis, erythema, pain, and patient satisfaction with recovery and outcome.

RESULTS
There was no significant difference between arnica and placebo in overall judgment of periorbital appearance 3 days, 7 days, and 6 weeks after surgery. Furthermore, swelling, ecchymosis, erythema, pain, and patient satisfaction with recovery and outcome did not differ between arnica and placebo. Postoperative outcome in untreated eyelids was not different from eyelids treated with either arnica or placebo on any of the studied outcome measures.

CONCLUSION
The authors' study demonstrates that topical arnica ointment after upper blepharoplasty does not improve postoperative outcome.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Therapeutic, II.


Background: Inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) is a rare but highly aggressive form of the disease but the immune profile associate with pathology and disease progression is poorly characterized. The cells of the innate immune system including natural killer (NK) and dendritic cells (DC) can establish the conditions for an adaptive response to the tumor and can actively kill tumor cells. Alternatively, the inflammatory conditions created by these cells can promote processes like metastasis and invasion. Here we report that immune activation in IBC is associated with a poor prognosis. Methods: A total of 76 breast cancer (BC) patients starting a new line of therapy (22 IBC, 23 metastatic IBC, 8 locally advanced breast cancer, and 23 metastatic) were evaluated for immune phenotypes and cytokine synthesis by DC activated through toll-like receptors (TLR) 7 and 8. Results: Among evaluable patients, 39 (58%) had hormone receptor positive (HR+) primary tumors, 20 (31%) were Her2 positive, and 18 (26%) were triple negative (TN). Among IBC patients, 23 (49%) were HR+, 15 (33%) were Her2+, and 14 (31%) were TN. Among non-IBC patients, 16 (73%) were HR+, 5 (22%) were Her2+, and 4 (17%) were TN. With a mean follow-up time of 7.8 months, 11 (16%) of the patients (10 IBC) died of disease. Most strikingly, BC survivors had a higher median CD4 count than deceased patients (p = .023) and was a significant predictor of outcome (p = 0.01). CD3 and CD19 lymphocytes of BC survivors had higher expression of CXCR4 than deceased patients (p = .038 and p = .029). In contrast, survivors also had lower lymphocyte percentages of all NK sub-types including ADCC NK (p = .008), non-ADCC NK (p = .001), exhausted (p = .014) and non-exhausted NK (p = .005) than deceased patients. Although DC counts were not significantly different, the percentage of TLR-induced pDC producing IFN-α was lower in BC survivors than deceased patients (p = 0.025). Conversely, the percentage of pDC constitutively producing the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was higher in survivors compared to non-survivors (p = .007). Compared with IBC non-survivors, IBC survivors had a higher % of pDC producing IL-10 (p = 0.005) and fewer mDC producing TNF-α (p = .030) following TLR activation. With respect to antigen presentation, mDC of BC survivors had lower expressions of the co-stimulatory molecules CD40 (p= .036), CD80 (p = .013) and CD86 (p = .006) than mDC of deceased patients. Conclusion: We observed low CD4 counts in IBC that were associated with a poor prognosis. Additionally, immune activation as evidenced by DC pro-inflammatory cytokine production, expression of costimulatory molecules, and increased NK counts was associated with poor prognosis. Together, these data suggest that the innate immune system is highly active in the late stages of disease but the adaptive response is severely compromised by factors still unknown that can contribute to the peculiar clinical presentation and aggressive features of the disease. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5583.


The Cuale mining district, situated in the Cordillera Madre del Sur, ~30 km southeast of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, comprises a number of small, polymetallic Pb, Zn, Cu, volcanogenic massive sulfide deposits (VMS), and vein and stockwork-hosted deposits with low-sulfidation epithermal characteristics. Massive sulfide mineralization contains high Ag ± Au grades when compared to similar deposits in western Mexico. The massive sulfide bodies are hosted by an interbedded rhyolitic volcanic and volcaniclastic succession, herein termed the Cuale volcanic sequence. Regionally, the Cuale volcanic sequence is part of the Zihuatanejo subterrane belonging to the Guerrero terrane, which is interpreted to be a complex Mesozoic accreted arc terrane hosting the majority of VMS deposits in Mexico. The rocks of the Cuale volcanic sequence are not metamorphosed and are only weakly deformed but exhibit intense chlorite, sericite, and quartz hydrothermal alteration. Three stratigraphic units are identified within the Cuale volcanic sequence: (1) a more than 400-m-thick footwall unit of quartz and plagioclase phyric rhyolite flows, related hyaloclastites, and subordinate heterolithic volcaniclastic breccias; (2) an ore horizon characterized by sedimentary rocks ranging from volcaniclastic conglomerates to black shales, as well as aphyric to quartz and plagioclase phyric rhyolite; and (3) late intrusions composed of quartz and plagioclase phyric rhyolite and subordinate andesitic dikes intruding all units. The sedimentary rocks of the ore horizon are intercalated with rhyolite tuff horizons, some of which exhibit welding or accretionary lapilli that are interpreted as evidence for shallow submarine or subaerial deposition. The rhyolites of the Cuale volcanic sequence are calc-alkaline with only limited compositional variations. However, the trace element signatures reveal a weak trend from the footwall rhyolites, which are characterized by low Zr/Y (1‐1.9) and low chondrite normalized La/Yb ratios (9 of 11 samples between 1.24 and 3.3), to slightly higher values in the ore horizon and late intrusive phase (Zr/Y = 1.6‐7.6 and chondrite normalized La/Yb ratios between 2.25 and 15). This compositional evolution can be explained by slightly decreasing degrees of partial melting related to a transition from amphibole-free assemblages for the footwall to amphibole-bearing assemblages in the residuum for the ore horizon and intrusive rhyolites. This interpretation is supported by the observed volcanic stratigraphy and indicates increasing pressure at the site of melt generation as the volcanic edifice was built. Zircons from five samples of the Cuale volcanic sequence have been dated by the U-Pb method, using isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry (ID-TIMS). Although some samples show evidence of a minor inherited Pb component, an age range of 157.2 ± 0.5 to 154.0 ± 0.9 Ma has been established. Cuale represents the oldest dated VMS camp in western Mexico as other VMS districts of western Mexico are between 151.3 and 138 Ma. Two styles of mineralization are recognized: volcanogenic massive sulfide mineralization (VMS) and late lowsulfidation epithermal vein and stockwork mineralization characterized by high Au (1.89 ppm) and Zn (2.35%) but low Cu (0.2%) contents. The VMS mineralization is contained in more than 15 small orebodies, which exhibit a range of mineralization styles. Orebodies interpreted as proximal are characterized by stockwork vein networks with high Au and Cu contents, underlying massive pyrite bodies, which grade laterally and vertically into sphalerite- and galena-rich massive sulfide ore. Stockwork mineralization is locally hosted by aphyric rhyolite. More distal orebodies, rich in Pb, Zn, and Ag, are hosted by black shale and locally exhibit laminated or brecciated sedimentary textures in the galena-sphalerite-pyrite ore. The sedimentary textures observed in some massive sulfide orebodies suggest that the sulfide has been transported and deposited in anoxic basins adjacent to the rhyolite domes. Some of the more significant orebodies show evidence of both distal sedimentary ore textures and proximal features indicated by intense quartz-sericite-pyrite alteration in the immediate footwall.


PURPOSE
The results of a prospective study of topical budesonide versus topical dexamethasone therapy for oral manifestations of chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) are presented.

METHODS
In a prospective single-center investigation, a cohort of patients who developed oral symptoms of cGVHD after allogeneic stem cell transplantation were assigned to topical treatment with 0.03% budesonide rinse (group A, n = 26) or 0.01% dexamethasone rinse (group B, n = 24). Diagnosis of oral cGVHD symptoms, clinical staging, and treatment response scoring were performed at baseline and one month later according to current National Institutes of Health consensus criteria.

RESULTS
At one-month follow-up, there was a significant decrease in the median oral cGVHD examination score in both groups (p < 0.001); the decrease in the median examination score was greater with budesonide versus dexamethasone therapy (2.5 points versus 1.0 point, p = 0.045). The rates of overall treatment response, including complete and partial responses, were 53.8% and 29.2% in groups A and B, respectively (p = 0.093). In addition, there was a significant decrease from baseline in the median self-rated oral pain severity score in group A (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION
Patients who received topical budesonide or dexamethasone rinse to treat oral manifestations of cGVHD had decreased cGVHD severity and pain scores after 30 days compared with baseline scores, though no statistical differences were seen between groups.


BRL 26830A, a beta adrenoceptor agonist, has been shown to have antiobesity and antidiabetic properties in rodents. The aim of this study was to study the effects of chronic BRL 26830A treatment (20 mg/kg/day for 9 weeks) on weight gain and the development of insulin resistance in gold-thioglucose-injected mice (GTG). BRL 26830A slowed the rate of weight gain in GTG such that mice weighed significantly less between 2 w and 7 w of treatment. However, at the time of sacrifice (9 w), there was no difference in body weight between treated and untreated GTG. The obesity-induced reduction in lipogenesis in brown adipose tissue (BAT) was increased 9 fold to greater than CON levels. However, weight and fatty acid (FA) content of BAT were reduced, suggesting increased lipid turnover and thermogenesis. Lipogenesis, FA content and fat pad weight were unchanged in white adipose tissue (WAT) and decreased in liver of GTG. Glucose tolerance was improved in both CON and GTG. Hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia and changes in cardiac and hepatic glucose oxidation as indicated by PDHC activity were normalized. Serum triglycerides and non-esterified fatty acids were reduced. Thus, chronic BRL 26830A treatment prevented the development of insulin resistance and attenuated weight gain, but did not prevent the development of obesity in this model.


To stabilize the superconducting condition of field winding of a superconducting generator and to ensure high-efficiency operation of the machine, heat penetrating the inner rotor of the superconducting rotor must be suppressed. This makes it necessary to recognize quantitatively and accurately heat penetrating from such parts as current leads, torque tubes, and radiation shields. Since the temperatures of such structures and the coolant rise from around 4K to 300K, such physical quantities as density of the coolant and thermal conductivities of the structures depend nonlinearly on temperatures. This prevents adequate accuracy from being obtained simply by the analysis of penetrating heat by using the mean values of properties. To improve this inaccuracy, we developed nonlinear thermal analysis methods. Many experiments, including those with a 3000kVA superconducting generator, have proved that this technique accurately estimates the temperature distribution in structures and the heat penetrating an inner rotor. The technique enabled us to obtain important knowledge on parameters concerning heat penetrating from current leads, torque tubes, and radiation shields for trial designing of a 1000MVA machine.


The problems of periodontal and prosthetic treatment are demonstrated with a typical case of oral erosive lichen planus with gingival involvement. The results attained suggest that oral lichen can be improved by optimum plaque control and periodontal treatment. Prosthetic treatment should be based on bridgework and not on removable partial dentures owing to the isomorphous irritant effect that characterizes lichen planus. Once the plaque situation is firmly under control, even teeth with advanced destruction of the supporting tissues may be used as abutments. In the event of all molars being absent, cantilever bridges should be fitted. In this case it is not essential to replace all the molars provided that the masticatory function is subjectively adequate.


The authors examined the advantage of addition of the adenylate cyclase inhibitor demeclocycline (DMC) versus placebo to haloperidol therapy in the treatment of excited psychosis. Sixteen manic or excited schizoaffective patients completed a double‐blind controlled five week trial. Nine patients were assigned to DMC and haloperidol and seven patients were assigned to placebo and haloperidol. Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) was used as an assessment tool at baseline, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 weeks. BPRS scores showed no significant difference between the two study groups. However, the reduction in BPRS score was 23·5 units in the DMC group and 16·7 units in the placebo group; power analysis showed that this trend would be significant if the size of the study were doubled. Adenylate cyclase inhibitors might have a therapeutic role in the treatment of excited psychosis. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


This research investigates the institutional factors that have driven firms equipped with additive manufacturing (AM) capabilities to repurpose those capabilities as part of the COVID-19 pandemic response. We also examine factors that affected the response outcomes as well as the overall lessons learned from engaging in the pandemic response. Critically, in each of these considerations, we seek to understand the role played by specific AM design capabilities. To answer these questions, we adopted an inductive theory building approach, leveraging a two-wave multiple case study design, to study the research questions. Our rich examination of 33 cases, each entailing interviews with multiple representatives conducted both in the Spring and late Fall of 2020, reveals that core/COVID-19 product similarities and regulatory familiarity are important drivers of participation, along with the unambiguous presence of demand pressure. High usage of generative design (GD), a category of computational technologies enabling novel and optimized design options, appears to compensate for lower levels in part similarity and regulatory familiarity. Firms making COVID-19-related parts, particularly those with extensive GD experience, also report the value of both AM agility and supply chain partners much more frequently than firms that did not participate and are far less likely to cite revelations of inventory risk during the pandemic. Taken together, our study informs both research and practice regarding the potential for GD experience to facilitate resource pivoting during pandemics and related crises, as well as its spillover effects regarding broader experiential learning.


A total of 189 patients with senile keratosis and 490 with seborrheic keratomata have been treated with cryotherapy. Relapses have been recorded in 6.1% of patients.


This letter proposes an approach for building detection from single very high resolution optical satellite images by fusing the knowledge of shadow and urban area information. One of the main contributions of this work is in the integration of urban area information: unlike previous studies, we use such information to substantially revise and improve the initial shadow mask. Additionally, we present an effective way to discriminate dark regions from cast shadows, a task that has continuously been reported to be very difficult. In this letter, we benefit from graph cuts to produce a comprehensive solution for automatic building detection: a flexible multilabel partitioning procedure is proposed, in which the number of optimized classes is automatically selected according to the contents of a scene of interest. The results of the evaluation of 14 demanding test patches confirm the technical merit of the proposed approach, as well as its superiority over three recently developed state-of-the-art methods.


There is considerable evidence for specific pathology of lipid metabolism in schizophrenia, affecting polyunsaturated fatty acids and in particular sphingolipids. These deficits are assumed to interfere with neuronal membrane functioning and the development and maintenance of myelin sheaths. Recent studies suggest that some of these lipid pathologies might also be detected in peripheral skin tests. In this study, we examined different skin lipids and their relation to schizophrenia. We assessed epidermal lipid profiles in 22 first-episode antipsychotic-naïve schizophrenia patients and 22 healthy controls matched for age and gender using a hexan/ethanol extraction technique and combined high-performance thin-layer chromatography/gas-chromatography. We found highly significant increase of ceramide AH and NH/AS classes in patients and decrease of EOS and NP ceramide classes. This is the first demonstration of specific peripheral sphingolipid alterations in schizophrenia. The results support recent models of systemic lipid pathology and in particular of specific sphingolipids, which are crucial in neuronal membrane integrity. Given recent findings showing amelioration of psychopathology using fatty acid supplementation, our findings also bear relevance for sphingolipids as potential biomarkers of the disease.


The most of today's global oil production comes from mature fields. Oil companies and governments are both concerned about increasing oil recovery from aging resources. To maintain oil production, the mature field must apply the Enhanced Oil Recovery method.  water-alternating-gas (WAG) injection is an enhanced oil recovery method designed to improve sweep efficiency during  injection with the injected water to control the mobility of . This study will discuss possible corrosion during  and water injection and the casing load calculation along with the production tubing during the injection phase. The following study also performed a suitable material selection for the best performance injection. This research was conducted by evaluating casing integrity for simulate  water-alternating-gas (WAG) to be applied in the X-well in the Y-field, South Sumatra, Indonesia. Corrosion prediction were performed using Electronic Corrosion Engineer (ECE®) corrosion model and for the strength of tubing which included burst, collapse, and tension of production casing was assessed using Microsoft Excel. This study concluded that for the casing load calculation results in 600 psi of burst pressure, collapse pressure of 2,555.64 psi, and tension of 190,528 lbf. All of these results are still following the K-55 production casing rating. While injecting , the maximum corrosion rate occurs. It has a maximum corrosion rate of 2.02 mm/year and a minimum corrosion rate of 0.36 mm/year. With this value, it is above NORSOK Standard M-001 which is 2 mm/year and needs to be evaluated to prevent the rate to remain stable and not decrease in the following years. To prevent the effect of maximum corrosion rate, the casing material must use a SM13CR (Martensitic Stainless Steel) which is not sour service material.


According to energy crisis and increasing number of small electronics, energy harvesting is one of the most promising technologies for scavenging several types of wasted energy. Especially, with regard to vibrational energy harvesting, triboelectric nanogenerators and electromagnetic generators stand out due to their working mechanisms. Here, an oscillating charge pump-based hybrid generator with two triboelectric nanogenerators and an electromagnetic generator using a switching-free characteristic was fabricated with material optimization. To enhance the electrical output of the triboelectric nanogenerator, a concept of charge pumping with simply connecting an additional charge pump device and the nanostructure formation process on the contact metal layer were adopted. The electrical outputs were characterized as an output current of 9.17 μA with a current density of 83.2 mA m-3 in the triboelectric nanogenerator. The power density of the triboelectric nanogenerator reached 4.45 W m-3 with a 40 MΩ resistor. The electromagnetic generator showed an output current density of 0.91 A m-2. Moreover, with the cuboid structure, the device can sense the collision force with different angular displacements from 5 to 30°. The proposed hybrid generator with a simple structure can be applied to sensing applications with the one-point-fixed state.


Based on first-principles calculations, we have investigated the magnetic properties of non-transition-metal doped semiconductors Al(N,X) and Zn(O,X), where X is a first row atom. It is revealed that the dopant can remain magnetic only if it is less electronegative than the substituted host anion atom and the dopant 2p states are located within the energy gap of the host. The calculated magnetic moment per dopant in μB is the atomic number difference between the dopant and the host anion atom. The global magnetic order is determined by the hole number, the interaction between the 2p dopant states and their exchange splitting. It is found that the Curie temperature is highest when the atomic number of the dopant is smaller than that of the anion by two.


This paper investigates the heat transfer properties of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in a corrugated plate heat exchanger and explores its application in cold energy recovery for enhanced energy efficiency. The study aims to integrate this technology into a 500 MW gas-fired power plant and a district cooling system to contribute to sustainable city development. Using computational fluid dynamics simulations and experimental validation, the heat transfer behaviour of LNG in the corrugated plate heat exchanger is examined, emphasising the significance of the gas film on the channel wall for efficient heat transfer between LNG and water/ethylene glycol. The study analyses heat exchange characteristics below and above the critical point of LNG. Below the critical point, the LNG behaves as an incompressible fluid, whereas above the critical point, the compressible supercritical state enables a substantial energy recovery and temperature rise at the outlet, highlighting the potential for cold energy recovery. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of cold energy recovery above the critical point, leading to significant energy savings and improved efficiency compared to conventional systems. Optimal operational parameters, such as the number of channels and flow rate ratios, are identified for successful cold energy recovery. This research provides valuable insights for sustainable city planning and the transition towards low-carbon energy systems, contributing to the overall goal of creating environmentally friendly and resilient urban environments.


A scheduling method for implementing a generic linear QR array processor architecture is presented. This improves on previous work. It also considerably simplifies the derivation of schedules for a folded linear system, where detailed account has to be taken of processor cell latency. The architecture and scheduling derived provide the basis of a generator for the rapid design of System-on-a-Chip (SoC) cores for QR decomposition.


The paper focuses on the forecasting risk analysis in the supply chains with the intermittent demand, which is typical for the inventory management of the "slow moving items" such as service parts or high-priced capital goods. The adopted demand model is based on the generalised beta-binomial distribution, which is capable to incorporate the additive distortions in the demand historical records as parameters. For this settings, there are proposed explicit expressions for the forecasting risk and the prediction function, which minimises the error impact on the risk. The efficiency of the proposed approach is confirmed by computer simulation and is illustrated by an application example for forecasting of the intermittent demand values for car spare parts.


Surface magic clusters (SMC) are clusters exhibiting enhanced stability at certain sizes on a particular surface. Through the formation of SMC, it is possible to grow an ensemble of nanostructures on a particular surface with extremely narrow size dispersion. Such monodispersed nanostructures are highly desirable for the realization of some emerging nanotechnology. This review summarizes the recent experimental observations and current theoretical understanding of SMC and discusses the possibility of exploiting the formation of such unusual clusters as a pathway to the growth of monodispersed nanostructures on surfaces.