In this paper, blind multidimensional matched filtering techniques for Single Input Multiple Output (SIMO) communications are examined. To improve the signal-to-noise ratio prior to the equalization process, three different techniques are proposed to blindly implement the multidimensional matched filtering. Different from the blind channel identification techniques for SIMO channels in the literature, the proposed techniques require neither the implementation inefficient matrix decomposition methods nor the higher-order statistics of the received data. Therefore, they are favorable over existing methods due to their simplicity in application. The matched filter equivalents are established through the use of an adaptive filter as well as the channel equalization being performed blindly. It has been shown that the equalization performance of the proposed methods are close to the matched filter bound, and to support this, a comparison between the matched filter estimation error performances of our proposed techniques is also provided. A short discussion to improve the convergence speed of the proposed approaches is also included in this paper.


In this working paper we study the empirical viability of a double dividend (green, welfare, and employment) in the Spanish economy using a Computable General Equilibrium model. The model is of the walrasian static multisectorial kind, and it is calibrated by using a 1995 Social Accounting Matrix of the Spanish economy compiled using data from the NIPA and other sources. A relevant trait of the model is that in equilibrium all markets clear with the possible exception of the labor market. We consider a counterfactual scenario in which an ecotax is leviedon the intermediate and final use of energy goods. Under a revenue neutral assumption, we evaluate the impact of recycling ecotaxes towards lower labor taxes. We find that a double dividend can be achieved, under such policy, for the economy. That is, a better environmental quality, as measured by a reduction in CO2 emissions, an improved level for employment, and a gain in private welfare. To appraise to what extent the model structure and behavioral assumptions may influence the results, we perform simulations under a broad range of policy and model scenarios. Particularly, we contemplate different assumptionson consumers labor supply and on substitution between the two production factors, labor and capital services.


The development of venous intimal hyperplasia (IH) has been historically associated with failure of arteriovenous fistulas (AVF) used for hemodialysis. This long-standing assumption, based on histological observations, has been recently challenged by clinical studies indicating that the size of the intima by itself is not enough to explain stenosis or AVF maturation failure. Irrespective of this lack of association, IH is present in most native veins and fistulas, is prominent in many cases, and suggests a role in the vein that may not be reflected by its dimensions. Therefore, the contribution of IH to AVF dysfunction remains controversial. Using only clinical data and avoiding extrapolations from animal models, we critically discuss the biological significance of IH in vein remodeling, vascular access function, and the response of the venous wall to repeated trauma in hemodialysis patients. We address questions and pose new ones such as: What are the factors that contribute to IH in pre-access veins and AVFs? Do cellular phenotypes and composition of the intima influence AVF function? Are there protective roles of the venous intima? This review explores these possibilities, with hopes of rekindling a critical discussion about venous IH that goes beyond thickness and AVF outcomes.


A pharmacologic investigation confirmed the possibility of deliberate correction of pharmacological properties of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory preparation orthophen in a clinical setting by combining it with those drugs (cimetidin and cocarboxylase) capable of inhibiting elimination of orthophen from the body. In consequence, the level of the drug gets elevated not only in blood plasma but also in the synovial fluid of those joints affected by inflammation, which fact secures high efficiency of the antiinflammatory therapy.


Summary The distribution of tetraphenylporphinesulfonate, following its parenteral administration to rats bearing the Walker carcinosarcoma, has been studied. It was found that the concentration in the tumor was greater than that in any of the other tissues studied, but several of these tissues also had appreciable concentrations. The concentration was found to be dependent upon dose, and the distribution was affected by time following administration. Tetraphenylporphinesulfonate was found to be transported in the blood bound to the serum proteins. The concentration of this material found in the tumor was far greater than that obtained with hematoporphyrin in other studies.


Surface wave shapes are determined by analyzing underwater reflected acoustic signals. The acoustic signals (of nominal frequency 200 kHz) are forward scattered from the underside of surface waves that are generated in a wave tank and scaled to model smooth ocean swell. An inverse processing algorithm is designed and implemented to reconstruct the surface displacement profiles of the waves over one complete period. The inverse processing uses the surface scattered pulses collected at the receiver, an initial wave profile (two are considered), and a broadband forward scattering model based on Kirchhoff's diffraction formula to iteratively adjust the surface until it is considered optimized or reconstructed. Two physical length scales over which information can be known about the surface are confirmed. An outer length scale, the Fresnel zone surrounding each specular reflection point, is the only region where optimized surfaces resulting from each initial profile converge within a resolution set by the inner length scale, a quarter-wavelength of the acoustic pulse. The statistical confidence of each optimized surface is also highest within a Fresnel zone. Future design considerations are suggested such as an array of receivers that increases the region of surface reconstruction by a factor of 2 to 3.


During impact driving of open-ended piles through cohesion-less soil the internal soil column may mobilize enough internal shaft resistance to prevent new soil from entering the pile. This phenomena, referred to as soil plugging, changes the driving characteristics of the open-ended pile to that of a closed-ended, full displacement pile. If the plugging behavior is not correctly understood, the result is often that unnecessarily powerful and costly hammers are used because of high predicted driving resistance or that the pile plugs unexpectedly such that the hammer cannot achieve further penetration.Today the user is generally required to model the pile response on the basis of a plugged or unplugged pile, indicating a need to be able to evaluate soil plugging prior to performing the drivability analysis and before using the results as basis for decision. This MSc. thesis focuses on soil plugging during impact driving of open-ended piles in cohesion-less soil and aims to contribute to the understanding of this area by evaluating models for predicting soil plugging and driving resistance of open-ended piles. Evaluation was done on the basis of known soil plugging mechanisms and practical aspects of pile driving. Two recently published models, one for predicting the likelihood of plugging and the other for predicting the driving resistance of open-ended piles, were compared to existing models.The main outcomes from the model evaluations are:• Internal shaft resistance, pile diameter and pile velocity/acceleration were found to be the primary input parameters affecting the result in the models used to predict if soil plugging is likely to occur.• The pile diameter was shown to have less influence on the calculated driving resistance in the recently published model, derived from measurements of plug length ratios, compared to in the existing model.This thesis also includes a full-scale field study conducted during the initial piling operations for the construction of the new Vartahamnen seaport in Stockholm (Sweden). The soil conditions cause the piles to be driven through very dense post glacial moraine, in which little is known about soil plugging. The drivability performance of 146 open-ended and closed-ended steel pipe piles with diameters ranging from 914-1168 mm was compared through analysis of driving records. The aim was to evaluate if open-ended piles resulted in a drivability related gain and if so during which part of the installation process. The driving records were used to quantify the performance in terms of driving time and energy required to drive the piles.The main conclusions from the field study are:• Significant time savings were achieved by using open-ended piles instead of closedended piles. The time advantage was bigger during impact driving, compared to vibratory driving, and on average the impact driving of open-ended piles took 9 minutes versus 26 minutes for closed-ended piles.• Contrary to what was expected, namely that the open-ended piles would result in lower driving resistance, the results indicate that the majority of the time savings came from open-ended piles being more stable during driving and thereby requiring fewer adjustments.


There are billions of dollars in fraudulent income tax return claims filed every year due to individual(s) intentionally using someone else's personal information in order to file a tax return; resulting in identity theft. These scams are on the rise and auditors have concerns that there are billions more that will remain undetected. Taxpayers who have fallen victim to these scams seek answers from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) with little direction and months of frustration. Therefore, the taxpayer must remain vigilant, ever maintaining awareness of identity theft, and taking preventative measures to prevent identity theft. The IRS continues modernization efforts to provide the vision of a real-time taxpayer system verses the current looking-back system with the intention of reducing these scams.


This research aims to determine the optimum bitumen content for sandy soil stabilization (sandy soil obtained from Glagah beach, Kulon Progo). Variation in bitumen content being used was 0% to 5% by weight of dry soil. Against, a mixture of bitumen and sandy soil proctor compaction tests was performed to obtain optimum moisture content (OMC) mixture which then was tested its California Bearing Ratio (CBR). The addition of bitumen content in soil stabilization with bitumen causing a continuing lack of OMC (Optimum Moisture Content) and increased MDD (Maximum Dry Density) on the compaction process. The maximum CBR value, 20%,  was obtained at 2% bitumen content. . There was an increase of 150% CBR value when compared with the original soil without stabilization. CBR tends to decrease with further increase of the bitumen content  up to 5% which may due to the mixture being more plastic.


The present pilot study evaluated the efficacy of the Level 4 Group Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) with Hong Kong Chinese parents who had a child with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), using a randomised controlled trial design. It was a mixed research method involving quantitative measurement and semi‐structured focus group. Participants were randomly assigned to Triple P (n = 8) or control group (n = 9) and completed measures on child disruptive behaviours, sense of parenting efficacy and satisfaction, family stress and service needs. Outcomes were assessed at pre‐, post‐, and 3‐month follow‐up. A focus group was also conducted with the participants in the intervention group upon the programme completion. Compared with the control group, the intervention group reported a significant reduction in intensity of child behaviour problems and a significant increase in parenting efficacy at post‐intervention. The gain in reducing intensity of child disruptive behaviours maintained to 3 months after the completion of programme. Qualitative data suggested the three key elements to help both parents and children get positive changes: understanding and empathy, emotional control, and persistence in applying positive parenting strategies. The results partially provided preliminary evidence supporting the efficacy of Triple P in reducing child behaviour problems for ADHD in Chinese society.


Population genetic analyses of viral genome populations provide insight into the emergence and evolution of new variants of SARS-CoV-2. In this study, we use a population genetic approach to examine the evolution of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 in four provinces of South Africa (Eastern Cape, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, and Mpumalanga) during the first months before emergence and after early spread. Our results show that Omicron polymorphisms increase sharply from September to November. We found differences between SARS-CoV-2 populations from Gauteng and Kwazulu-Natal and viruses from the Eastern Cape, where allele frequencies were higher, suggesting that natural selection may have contributed to the increase in frequency or that this was the site of origin. We found that the frequency of variants N501Y, T478K, and D614G increased in the spike in November compared with other mutations, some of which are also present in other animal hosts. Gauteng province was the most isolated, and most genetic variation was found within populations. Our population genomic approach is useful for small-scale genomic surveillance and identification of novel allele-level variants that can help us understand how SARS-CoV-2 will continue to adapt to humans and other hosts.


We theoretically study the finite-size effects in the dynamical response of a quantum anomalous Hall insulator in the disk geometry. Semi-analytic and numerical results are obtained for the wavefunctions and energies of the disk within a continuum Dirac Hamiltonian description subject to a topological infinite mass boundary condition. Using the Kubo formula, we obtain the frequency-dependent longitudinal and Hall conductivities and find that optical transitions between edge states contribute dominantly to the real part of the dynamic Hall conductivity for frequency values both within and beyond the bulk band gap. We also find that the topological infinite mass boundary condition changes the low-frequency Hall conductivity to $ e^2/h $ in a finite-size system from the well-known value $ e^2/2h $ in an extended system. The magneto-optical Faraday rotation is then studied as a function of frequency for the setup of a quantum anomalous Hall insulator mounted on a dielectric substrate, showing both finite-size effects of the disk and Fabry-Perot resonances due to the substrate. Our work demonstrates the important role played by the boundary condition in the topological properties of finite-size systems through its effects on the electronic wavefunctions.


Glioma (GM) is an aggressive malignancy with high mortality rate across the world. Mounting studies demonstrates that abnormally expressed circular RNAs (circRNAs) act as important roles in tumor progression. In the current work, a novel circRNA, circ_0005198, was explored. Circ_0005198 level in GM tissue samples and cells was detected. The clinical implication of circ_0005198 was analyzed by Fisher's test and Kaplan‐Meier analysis. In vitro experiments were carried out to elucidate the influence of circ_0005198 on GM cell proliferation, apoptosis, and metastatic properties. Luciferase reporter and rescue experiments were conducted to clear the mechanism of circ_0005198. The expression of circ_0005198 was enhanced in GM tumors and cells. Its expression in tumor specimens was related to clinical severity and poor prognosis. Functionally, circ_0005198 could remarkably boost cell growth, clone‐forming ability, and metastatic properties and attenuate cell apoptosis in GM cells. What's more, circ_0005198 could directly sponge miR‐1294 to exert oncogenic functions. In summary, this study might provide an effective therapeutic target for GM.


Polymer retention is considered as a major challenge in polymer flooding application, especially in carbonates, due to the prevailing harsh conditions of low permeability (< 100 mD), high temperature (> 85 °C), and high salinity (>100,000 ppm). One of the many advantages of smart water technology is maintaining the viscosity of polymers for water-based Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) techniques. This research focuses on the effect of water softening on the performance and adsorption of an ATBS-based polymer in carbonate reservoirs. Four different brine recipes were investigated with the salinity of 8,000 ppm TDS and varying ionic composition designed mainly by eliminating the hardness-causing ions, including Ca2+ and Mg2+. A geochemical study was performed using the PHREEQC software to analyze the interaction between these injected brines and the rock. Further, comprehensive rheological and static adsorption studies were performed at a temperature of 25 °C using the potential ATBS-based polymer to evaluate the polymer performance and adsorption with different brine recipes. Later, dynamic adsorption studies were conducted in both single-phase and two-phase conditions to further quantify polymer adsorption.
 The geochemical study showed an anhydrite saturation index of less than 0.5 for all the brine recipes used when interacting with the rock, indicating a very low tendency for calcium sulfate precipitation. Further, the rheological studies showed that polymer viscosity significantly increased with reduced hardness, where a polymer solution viscosity of 7.5 cP was obtained in zero hardness brine, nearly 1.5 times higher than the polymer viscosity of the base make-up brine of 8,000 ppm. Moreover, it was observed that by carefully tuning the concentrations of the divalent cations, the polymer concentration consumption for the required target viscosity was reduced by 40-50%. For the single-phase static adsorption experiments, the polymer solution in softened brine recipes resulted in lower adsorption in the range of 37 – 62 μg/g-rock as opposed to 102 μg/g-rock for the base make-up brine. On the other hand, the single-phase dynamic adsorption results showed an even lowered polymer adsorption of 37 μg/g-rock for the softened brine recipe compared to 45 μg/g-rock for the base make-up brine. Additionally, the single-phase dynamic adsorption studies showed a remarkable improvement in polymer injectivity using softened brine. The polymer retention in wettability restored cores was further reduced. This study highlights the effect of water softening on polymer performance, particularly polymer adsorption. The paper shows that the softened water increases the polymer viscosity and reduces polymer adsorption, which leads to the overall reduction in polymer consumption. Hence, the softened make-up water has the potential to improve the economics of polymer flood, especially in the case of carbonate reservoirs.


In this study, all maximal hyponormal extensions are given for the degenerate first order in the Hilbert space of vector-functions on a finite interval. The extensions are defined in terms of the boundary values. The structure of the spectrum of the maximal hyponormal extensions is also investigated.


Background To determine the level of distracted walking among teenagers and pre-teens in the U.S. and China, research examined the percentage of teenagers and pre-teens crossing the street near schools while distracted in a sample of communities in both nations. Results and focus group findings were used to develop targeted interventions. Methods Observations were made of 34,325 of teens and preteens crossing streets near schools in 24 communities in the U.S, and 8,250 observations were made of teens and preteens in 8 communities in China. Data was collected near middle schools and high schools. Observers conducted two morning and afternoon sessions, on different days but held at the same time, on school days in good weather. Each observer focused on one crossing location. Students also participated in focus groups that explored attitudes and perceived risks. Results Most frequent forms of distraction in the U.S. were texting, 39%, headphone use, 39%, and talking on phones, 20%. In China, key distractions were headphones, 42.5%, texting, 22.5%, and games, 15.8%. The odds of a girl crossing the street distracted were greater than of a boy in both countries. Differences in distraction levels were also observed when traffic lights are present and at different times of the day. During focus groups in both nations, nearly 50% of students reported cell phone use while walking to school. Teens did not perceive distraction putting them at greater risk. Findings were used to build "The Moment of Silence" Campaign, which uses social media to engage teens. Conclusions Many teens and pre-teens are distracted while walking, but do not perceive this behaviour as risky. Targeted interventions are needed.


In the study of structural strength, the reserve strength ratio provides a measure of the ultimate strength capacity of a structure. Under actual site conditions, the reserve strength ratio may vary from its design values with loss of stiffness and changes in structural integrity. Changes in the vibrational response of a structure due to loss of stiffness is observed as a form of structural health monitoring (SHM). The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship and sensitivity of the reserve strength ratio of a structure to changes in natural frequency due to damage occurrences as a measure of global structural integrity. The reduction of stiffness is simulated by the sequential removal of members according loading path within the model. To obtain the values used for comparison, a non-linear pushover analysis and eigenvalue analysis is utilized to obtain the Reserve Strength Ratio (RSR) and eigenvalue for intact as well as simulated progressive damage conditions. The pattern recognized from the analysis performed indicated that as the reserve strength ratio (RSR) is reduced with reduction of stiffness by the removal of primary and secondary members, the eigenvalues for each respective model showing similar reductions.


The effect of p-type doping of the active region of multiple quantum-well (MQW) semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAs) has been studied. Spectrogram measurements of the dynamics of the SOAs reveal that using p-doped barriers for the MQWs has significantly reduced both gain and phase recovery times. 1/e phase recovery times as short as 11 ps were demonstrated using this approach


This paper describes the design of a dual-channel semi-open groove waveguide and a methodology for designing such structures. A method for forming a negative phase shift by shortening the lengths of the radiating inhomogeneities is demonstrated. Simulation experiments were performed using the Ansys HFSS package.


The effects of CO2 pressure, temperature and concentration on asphaltene precipitation induced by CO2 were studied using a high-pressure vessel, interfacial tensiometer, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and drill core displacement experimental apparatus. The results indicated that the content of asphaltene in crude oil decreased, and the interfacial tension between a model oil and distilled water increased, with an increase of CO2 pressure, decrease of temperature and increase of molar ratio of CO2 to crude oil when CO2 contacted crude oil in the high pressure vessel. The content of asphaltene in sweep- out oil and the permeability of test cores both also decreased with an increase of CO2�?RRGLQJSUHVVXUH�� The main reason for changes in content of asphaltene in crude oil, in interfacial tension between model oil and distilled water and in the permeability of the test core is the precipitation of asphaltene which is an interfacially active substance in crude oil. Precipitation of asphaltene also blocks pores in the drill core which decreases the permeability.


Dirk Schmidt, Powitec Intelligent Technology GmbH, Germany, examines the evolution of conventional video-supported pyrometer systems to digital image processing systems, including pattern recognition and data analysis for the optimisation of combustion in rotary kilns.


Congestive heart failure is the most common hospital discharge diagnosis in the United States. Increasing hospital readmission rates for this patient population translate into spiraling health care costs. One agency decided to measure the outcomes of patients enrolled in a specialized cardiac home care program that focuses on teaching and monitoring this patient population using cardiac-trained nurses. The findings suggest that patients enrolled in a cardiac specialty program may have improved outcomes, which translates into significant cost savings for payors.


Good software architecture design is crucial in successfully realising an OOA specification with an appropriate OOD model that meets the specification's functional and non-functional requirements. Unfortunately most CASE tools and software architecture design notations do not adequately support software architecture modelling and analysis, nor integration with OOA & D models. We describe SoftArch, an environment which provides flexible software architecture modelling using a concept of successive refinement. SoftArch also provides extensible analysis tools enabling developers to analyse their architecture model properties. This paper overviews the motivation for SoftArch, its modelling and analysis capabilities, and its integration with various analysis, design and implementation tools.


In the present work an intense bibliographic search is developed, with updated information on the microscopic fundamentals that govern the behavior of flotation operations of chalcopyrite, the main copper mineral in nature. In particular, the effect caused by the presence of pyrite, a non-valuable mineral, but challenging for the operation due to its ability to capture a portion of collector and float, decreasing the quality of the concentrate, is addressed. This manuscript discusses the main chemical and physical mechanisms involved in the phenomena of reagent adsorption on the mineral surface, the impact of pH and type of alkalizing agent, and the effect of pyrite depressants, some already used in the industry and others under investigation. Modern collector reagents are also described, for which, although not yet implemented on an industrial scale, promising results have been obtained in the laboratory, including better copper recovery and selectivity, and even some green reagents present biodegradable properties that generate a better environmental perspective for mineral processing.


We determine the scale setting function and the pseudo-critical temperature on the lattice in $N_f=2$ two-color QCD using the Iwasaki gauge and Wilson fermion actions. Although two-color QCD does not correspond to the real world, it is very useful as a good testing ground for three-color QCD. The scale setting function gives the relative lattice spacings of simulations performed at different values of the bare coupling. It is a necessary tool for taking the continuum limit. Firstly, we measure the meson spectra for various combinations of ($\beta,\kappa$) and find a line of constant physics in $\beta$--$\kappa$ plane. Next, we determine the scale setting function via $w_0$ scale in the gradient flow method. Furthermore, we estimate the pseudo-critical temperature at zero chemical potential from the chiral susceptibility. Combining these results, we can discuss the QCD phase diagram in which both axes are given by dimensionless quantities, namely, the temperature normalized by the pseudo-critical temperature on the lattice and the chemical potential normalized by the pseudoscalar meson mass. It makes it easy to compare among several lattice studies and also makes it possible to compare theoretical analyses and lattice studies in the continuum limit.


Numerical solutions are presented for mixed convection in rotating concentric cylinders with a porous sleeve. The porous sleeve is press-fitted to the inner surface of the outer cylinder. While the inner cylinder is rotating at a constant speed, the outer cylinder remains stationary. The main objective of the present study is to numerically investigate the flow pattern and temperature distribution as affected by the presence of the porous layer, the centrifugal force, and thermal buoyancy. A parametric study has been performed to investigate the effects of Peclet number, Rayleigh number, and Darcy number on the heat transfer results.Copyright © 2003 by ASME


We present a theoretical approach to infer information about RR Lyrae variables from the morphology of their light curves. The method, already successfully applied to the field first overtone variable U Comae, is now tested on a RRab variable in the globular cluster ! Cen. We show that, with this method, it could be possible to give an estimate of the distance modulus of the cluster with an uncertainty not larger than ±0.1 mag. The predicted variable luminosity and mass are well within the range of theoretical evolutionary expectations giving the "feeling" of a full compatibility between pulsational and evolutionary theory. How- ever, before completely relying on the method, further tests are needed; the goal is that a well tested and well calibrated pulsational theory could provide reliable distance moduli from just one (or few) RR Lyrae stars.


Purpose of the study was to provide medical oncologists and surgeons specializing in the treatment of pancreatic cancer patients with the most recent information on the importance and role of chemotherapy in the treatment of patients with resectable and borderline resectable pancreatic cancer.Material and Methods. Pubmed and COSMIC databases were used for literature search. Reports of the executive authorities in the field of Health Care of the Russian Federation, as well as worldwide data regarding morbidity and mortality of patients with pancreatic cancer were analyzed. The data of retrospective and prospective clinical trials were studied.Results. Based on the analysis of the most recent publications, the authors provided data on modern approaches to the treatment of operable pancreatic cancer.Conclusion. The data presented in the article summarize results of recent clinical trials. This will allow oncologists to choose the most correct and personalized tactics for the management of patients with resectable and borderline resectable pancreatic cancer.


A review is given of the use of trapped atomic ions for spectroscopy and for quantum optics. The article discusses the principles of operation of the different types of traps, and their advantages for work in these fields, including the use of laser cooling of trapped ions. Aspects of laser cooling are demonstrated with the help of a numerical simulation program. Then the use of spectroscopic techniques to study the oscillation frequencies of trapped ions is discussed. Finally a number of different experiments illustrating the application of trapped ions to quantum optics are presented.


Background: A number of studies have reported the association between peptidylarginine deiminase 4 (PADI4) -94G/A polymorphisms and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) risk in different populations, however, the results remained inconclusive. Objecitve: We therefore aim to address this association by performed an updated meta-analysis in multi ethnic groups. Methods: The PubMed and Chinese related databases were searched up to January 2019. The strength of association between PADI -94G/A polymorphism and RA susceptibility was assessed with odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results: A total of 22 studies with 14514 RA cases and 21138 controls were finally included in the analysis. Six ethnic groups such as China, Japan, USA, UK, Sweden and Spain were contained. In the overall population, it revealed that PADI -94G/A polymorphism was significantly associated with an increased risk of RA. In the subgroup analyses by ethnicity, significant association was found in China as well as in Japan and USA. Conclusions: This meta-analysis demonstrates that the PADI4 -94G/A polymorphisms may represent a significant risk factor for RA in China, in Japan and USA. Further studies are needed to clarify this finding, since most available studies were conducted among Chinese and Japanese in this study.


Nucleic acid isolation for amplification-based diagnostics requires techniques that do not co-purify inhibitors of DNA polymerases. Also, other requirements for an ideal sample preparation technology include ease of use, capability for automation, high recovery and the use of nontoxic reagents. Affinity purification techniques provide high purification factor with minimal sample processing. Hybridization is the affinity interaction specific to nucleic acids and thus provides a uniquely advantageous method for purifying DNA or RNA for subsequent manipulation. Nonionic (morpholino) probes (Neu-Probes, AntiVirals, Corvallis, OR, USA) have several unique hybridization properties, including resistance to nucleases and the ability to hybridize independently of salt concentration. Therefore, such probes provide advantages over DNA probes for sample preparation by hybridization capture. Three formats for hybridization-based purification of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) RNA were evaluated using RNA transcripts spiked into crude lysates of normal human plasma. Indirect capture used streptavidin-coated microparticles to capture hybrids of biotinylated capture probes and HIV RNA. Direct capture used particles precoated with probes. In addition, a novel method for acceleration of sequence-specific hybridization was developed and shown to give consistently high recoveries.


We investigated the optical light curve of T Pyx during its 2011 outburst by compiling a database of Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) and AAVSO observations. The SMEI light curve, providing unprecedented detail covering t = 1.5–49 days post-discovery, was divided into four phases based on the idealized nova optical light curve: the initial rise (1.5–3.3 days), the pre-maximum halt (3.3–13.3 days), the final rise (14.7–27.9 days), and the early decline (27.9+ days). The SMEI light curve contains a strongly detected period of 1.44 ± 0.05 days during the pre-maximum halt phase. These oscillations resemble those found in recent thermonuclear runaway models arising from instabilities in the expanding envelope. No spectral variations that mirror the light curve periodicity were found, however. The marked dip at t ∼ 22–24 days just before the light curve maximum at t = 27.9 days may represent the same (shorter duration) phenomenon seen in other novae observed by SMEI and present in some model light curves. The spectra from the 2 m Liverpool Telescope and SMARTS 1.5 m telescope were obtained from t = 0.8–80.7 and 155.1–249.9 days, covering the major phases of development. The nova was observed very early in its rise where a distinct high-velocity ejection phase was evident with initially derived Vej ∼ 4000 km s−1. A marked drop occurred at t = 5.7 days, and then a gradual increase in derived Vej to stabilize at ∼1500 km s−1 at the pre-maximum halt. Here, we propose two different stages of mass loss, a short-lived phase occurring immediately after outburst and lasting ∼6 days, followed by a more steadily evolving and higher mass loss phase. The overall spectral development follows that typical of a classical nova and comparison with the photometric behavior reveals consistencies with the simple evolving pseudo-photosphere model of the nova outburst. Comparing optical spectra to X-ray and radio light curves, weak [Fe x] 6375 Å emission was marginally detected before the X-ray rise and was clearly present during the brightest phase of X-ray emission. If the onset of the X-ray phase and the start of the final decline in the optical are related to the cessation of significant mass loss, then this occurred at t ∼ 90–110 days.


Stressor experiences during the juvenile period may increase vulnerability to anxiety and depressive-like symptoms in adulthood. Stressors may also promote palatable feeding, possibly reflecting a form of self-medication. The current study investigated the short- and long-term consequences of a stressor applied during the juvenile period on anxiety- and depressive-like behavior measured by the elevated plus maze (EPM), social interaction and forced swim test (FST). Furthermore, the effects of stress on caloric intake, preference for a palatable food and indices of metabolic syndrome and obesity were assessed. Male Wistar rats exposed to 3 consecutive days of variable stressors on postnatal days (PD) 27–29, displayed elevated anxiety-like behaviors as adults, which could be attenuated by consumption of a palatable high-fat diet. However, consumption of a palatable food in response to a stressor appeared to contribute to increased adiposity.


Quasi-crystals of the Al-Cu-Fe system, when given enough time for reaching equilibrium cannot be maintained as a single phase down to room temperature. For the first time, reversible transitions have been observed from rhombohedral microcrystals to a modulated icosahedral structure around (650 ÷ 700) °C, which transforms further into a perfect icosahedral quasi-crystal between (750 ÷ 820) °C and finally turns into a mixture of cubic and monoclinic crystals above 865 °C before total melting.


This paper presents an evaluation of e-beam assisted deposition and welding of conductive carbon nanotube (c-CNT) tips for electrical scanning probe microscope measurements. Variations in CNT tip conductivity and contact resistance during fabrication were determined as a function of tip geometry using tunneling AFM (TUNA). Conductive CNT tips were used to measure 2D dopant concentration as a function of annealing conditions in BF2-implanted samples.


Ameloblastic fibrosarcoma (AFS) is a rare malignant odontogenic tumour. To date, 60 well-documented cases have been published in the English-language literature. Two additional cases located in the posterior region of the mandible are reported. The relevant clinicopathological features of these cases, as well as those previously reported are discussed. Approximately two-thirds of AFS are malignant tumors de novo, with an average age of the affected patients being 22.9 years. This age is lower than the one observed in AFS developing from a pre-existent benign lesion (mean 33 years). Although regional and distant metastases are very infrequent, AFS is a locally aggressive lesion, with 23 (37%) of the reported cases having at least one recurrence; 12 patients (19.3%) died of the disease. Wide surgical excision with long-term follow-up remains the treatment of choice for this neoplasm.


This paper presents a comprehensive literature review on applications of deep reinforcement learning (DRL) in communications and networking. Modern networks, e.g., Internet of Things (IoT) and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) networks, become more decentralized and autonomous. In such networks, network entities need to make decisions locally to maximize the network performance under uncertainty of network environment. Reinforcement learning has been efficiently used to enable the network entities to obtain the optimal policy including, e.g., decisions or actions, given their states when the state and action spaces are small. However, in complex and large-scale networks, the state and action spaces are usually large, and the reinforcement learning may not be able to find the optimal policy in reasonable time. Therefore, DRL, a combination of reinforcement learning with deep learning, has been developed to overcome the shortcomings. In this survey, we first give a tutorial of DRL from fundamental concepts to advanced models. Then, we review DRL approaches proposed to address emerging issues in communications and networking. The issues include dynamic network access, data rate control, wireless caching, data offloading, network security, and connectivity preservation which are all important to next generation networks, such as 5G and beyond. Furthermore, we present applications of DRL for traffic routing, resource sharing, and data collection. Finally, we highlight important challenges, open issues, and future research directions of applying DRL.


The thermochemical properties of Sr-Sn alloys were determined by electromotive force (emf) measurements to evaluate liquid tin as an interacting electrode material for separating alkaline-earth elements from molten salt solutions. A Sr(s)|CaF2-SrF2|Sr(in Sn) cell was used to measure emf values for twelve Sr-Sn alloys at mole fractions xSr = 0.02‒0.43, allowing the determination of thermochemical properties such as activity and partial molar quantities of Gibbs energy, entropy, and enthalpy of Sr at 730‒1110 K. Activity values of Sr in liquid Sn were as low as 6.9×10‒12 at 800 K and xSr = 0.02 indicating highly non-ideal solution behavior between Sr and Sn. Phase transitions were also determined from the emf data and were validated via differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Through the combination of emf measurements for thermochemical properties, X-ray diffraction (XRD) for phase constituents, and DSC measurements for phase transitions, this work established more complete thermodynamic properties of the Sr-Sn binary system.


Abstract It is demonstrated that the skill of short-term regional numerical forecasts can be predicted on a day-to-day basis. This was achieved by using a statistical regression scheme with the model forecast errors (MFE) as the predictands and the initial analysis, together with the model forecast, at proximate points, as the predictors. In a first attempt to assess the utility of the method, the technique was applied in a long-term quasi-operational trial to 24 h forecasts of mean sea level pressure in two seasonal periods (one summer and one winter period) on the Australian region forecast domain. Correlation coefficients were computed between the predicted and observed root-mean-square (rms) MFE and were found to be 0.54 and 0.51, respectively, averaged over the full region, for the 90-day summer and winter periods. Using standard Student's t-tests these correlations were shown to be highly significant. In addition, the regional forecasts were divided into four categories of rms MFE, and were verified...


Matching estimators use observed variables to adjust for differences between groups to eliminate sample selection bias. When minimum relevant information is not available, matching estimates are biased. If access to data on usually unobserved factors that determine the selection process is unavailable, other estimators should be used. This study advocates the one-factor control function estimator that allows for unobserved heterogeneity with factor-loading technique. Treatment effects of vocational training in Sweden are estimated with mean and distributional parameters, and then compared with matching estimates. The results indicate that unobservables slightly increase the treatment effect for those treated.


The importance of well-specified research questions in the evaluation of early predictors of later inattention and hyperactivity is examined. In an analysis of a nationally representative sample of 2,717 children aged 4 to 10, latent growth trajectories for television viewing and inattention and hyperactivity are determined and the relationship of the two constructs examined. Analyses reveal a logistic latent growth model as the best description of the trajectory of television viewing across time, whereas a quadratic trend represents the best portrayal of the trajectory for symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity. Results do not support the presence of a meaningful relationship between television viewing and inattention and hyperactivity, which is inconsistent with previous findings from the same data set. The importance of the nature of well-specified research questions and the need to use contemporary longitudinal evaluation techniques to avoid misleading conclusions based on limited analyses and results are discussed.


This study presents a soft-switching converter for direct current microgrid applications. The studied converter includes n cells of the hybrid full-bridge converter with primary-series–secondary-parallel connection for high-voltage input and large current output applications. Thus, the voltage stress of power switches and the current stress of rectifier diodes are decreased. Therefore, the low-voltage stress and low conduction resistance of power metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors are utilised in the studied converter to reduce conduction losses on power switches. The flying capacitors are connected between each circuit cell to prevent voltage unbalance on input split capacitors. On each circuit cell, a full-bridge converter with an additional half-bridge circuit is employed to achieve low circulating current losses, less output inductance and a wide range of zero-voltage switching. Finally, the studied converter with 1800 W rated power is constructed and tested to verify the theoretical analysis.


Vegetation phenology is sensitive to climate change and has been defined as the footprint of ongoing climate change. Previous studies have shown that the spatial difference in China's vegetation phenology varies substantially in both spring and autumn. Here, we reviewed phenological dynamics at the national and the regional scale of China over the period 1982−2020 using a remote sensing-based dataset and meta-analysis from phenological studies in China. We also explored the underlying mechanisms of both spring and autumn phenology and discussed potential phenological studies under future climate conditions. We found that, over the past four decades, the spring phenology advanced at a rate of 0.23 ± 0.47 days/year, while the autumn phenology was delayed at a rate of 0.17 ± 0.46 days/year. This led to an extended vegetation growth season of approximately 5 days per decade. The trends in the spring and autumn phenology were spatially specific in the Northern region, Northwest region, Qinghai–Tibet region, and Southern region: the change in spring phenology was −0.16, −0.46, −0.18, and −0.13 days/year, respectively, while the change in autumn phenology was 0.02, 0.32, 0.09, and 0.28 days/year, respectively. We also explored the dominant climatic drivers of regional phenological changes. We found that temperature was the dominant factor for spring phenology in cold regions, while precipitation, radiation, and temperature co-determined spring phenology in warm regions. The autumn phenology was affected by all three environmental cues but the effect of temperature was larger than that of radiation and precipitation across all regions. In future climate warming conditions, we recommend that studies focus on the phenological feedback mechanisms, such as the climatic and hydrological effects of vegetation changes, and agricultural phenology to investigate its fundamental role in crop productivity, especially under extreme climate events, to ensure national food security and ecological security.


Forgery, fraud and falsification of documents are categorized as white color crime offences because they are associated with the modification of documents with the intention to deceive others and normally involve illegal monetary benefits. The existence of falsification and forgeryis always associated with the intention to commit fraud. Both falsification and forgery have similarities in nature but carry a difference in provision under the statute. As far as this matter is concerned, to establish a successful prosecution and civil claim, the prosecutor and claimantmust prove the intention and conduct of the accused person that falls under the respective statutory provision. However, in 2015, the application of evidential standard for these three types of crimes is the difference in civil action, even though this act is an offence under the PenalCode. In relation to that, this paper examines the relationship between fraud, forgery and falsification, evidential aspects together with the recent legal development and proposes a recommendation in relation to prosecutorial matters and civil claim.
Keywords: forgery, fraud, falsification, evidence


Published statistical material has been used to analyse the infant death rate in Queensland. The neonatal death rates, which tend to reflect the level of obstetric care, were approximately twice as high in the Peninsula Division as in Brisbane, and the late infant mortality rate was almost eight times as high in the Peninsula Division as in Brisbane. In the Peninsula there has been no fall in infant death rate over the 11 years studied. One small area had an infant mortality rate of 100 deaths per 1,000 live births. The. areas with the highest infant death rates were those with a significant Aboriginal population. The data show that proximity to major health facilities does not ensure low infant death rates and in the Brisbane Metropolitan Division there were threefold differences in late infant death rates. It seems likely that infant death rates are influenced by the economic status and education of parents and by the priority they place on infant care. The study has shown that published statistical data can detect areas within Queensland with high infant death rates, and could therefore be used to direct resources to improve the well‐being of infants in these areas.


This note addresses the adaptive consensus problem of first-order and second-order linearly parameterized multi-agent systems with unknown identical control directions. First, we propose a new Nussbaum-type function based on which a key lemma is established. The lemma plays an important role in analyzing the consensus of the closed-loop multi-agent systems. Second, the Nussbaum-type function is used to design adaptive control laws for first-order and second-order linearly parameterized multi-agent systems so that each agent seeks for the unknown control direction adaptively and cooperatively. Then, under the assumption that the interconnection topology is undirected and connected, it is proved that the first-order and second-order multi-agent systems can achieve consensus by choosing proper design parameters. Two simulation examples are given to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed control laws.


When they learn procedural law, students need to understand and memorize the forms of legal court action which can be carried out by parties to a case. A large proportion of this body of law is descriptive and factual, but complex too; and the constraints of academic curricula do not allow students to learn procedural law in the real environment of the court. As a result, even with the inclusion of case law, and with examples to contextualize the procedural principles, the subject can be perceived as an exercise in knowledge acquisition alone (Vaughn, 1995). DOI: 10.1080/0968776980060113


The state of the art in self-consistent numerical modeling of semiconductor devices is reviewed. The physical assumptions which are required to describe carrier transport in highly miniaturized semiconductor devices are discussed. Particular emphasis is put on the physical models for space charge, carrier mobility, carrier temperature, and carrier generation-recombination for silicon devices. The numerical solution of the semiconductor device equations is commented. Investigations about three-dimensional effects in MOS-devices are presented as typical results.


Objectives This paper aims to explore whether there is a preventive and protective effect of N-acetylcysteine for patients with contrast induced nephropathy after percutaneous coronary intervention treatment. Methods We divided the 230 patients, who have undergone elective coronary angiography or intervention on cardiovascular in the cath lab during the period of March 2010 to December 2010, into control group and NAC group. The control group which received the intravenous infusion at rate 3 ml/kg h before Coronary angiography and rate 1 ml/kg h for 6 h in surgery and after coronary angiography of 0.9% sodium chloride solution (n=114). On the basis of normal hydration, the NAC group will be given oral NAC 600 mg 1 h before the coronary angiography one time and oral NAC 600 mg 1 day and 2 days after coronary angiography twice a day. All the patients were using non-ionic permeability contrast agent iopamidol 370. We research the question by contrasting the following statistics between the two groups before using contrast medium and 24 h, 48 h after using contrast medium, which are serum creatinine (SCR) level, endogenous creatinine clearance rate (CRCL), estimated glomerular filtration rate (GFR), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum retinol binding protein (RBP) and the incidence of CIN. Results Before using contrast medium, there are no significant differences between the two groups, such as age, sex, weight, rate of cases of myocardial infarction, high blood pressure cases, the ratio of cases of diabetes ratio, ratio of cases of hyperlipidaemia cases of cerebral vascular ratio, blood lipids, Scr and Ccr, GFR, BUN, RBP and other parameters. No significant differences between the amounts of contrast agent in the two groups of patients in surgery. No significant difference between the amounts of fluid infused the same day and 1 day, 2 days later of using contrast medium. When applying the contrast agent 24 h and 48 h after the contrast medium, the NAC group of renal function (Scr and Ccr, GFR, BUN and, RBP) was significantly better than control group. There are six cases (5%) of CIN in the NAC group, while there are 12 cases (12%) in the control group. The incidence of CIN between the two groups is statistically significant (p<0.05). Conclusions N-acetylcysteine has a certain preventive and protective effect with contrast induced nephropathy after percutaneous coronary intervention treatment.


.. Objectives: The aim of study is to find out the role of chromium with biological antioxidant and how these can relate with the health of fiber glass workers. Study Design: Cross Sectional Study. Setting: Fiber glass industry Lahore. Period: July 2018 to Feb 2019. Material & Methods: Study was included the fifty workers of fiber glass industry with 4-5 years experience or time of exposure. A questionnaire was filled by each participant. Twenty individuals were taken as controls. Their blood sample was drawn to estimate the level of chromium and of biological antioxidants that include serum Catalase, Superoxide Dismutase, Glutathione and Malondialdehye. Results: Mean age of workers was 35 year with BMI 23.80 kg/m2. Their work duration in Fiber glass factory was 6-7 years. Levels of serum chromium and the biological antioxident was significantly high (P<0.001) in fiber glass workers as compared to the levels of these parameters of control. A positive weak correlation was observed between serum chromium and antioxidants MDA, SOD and catalase. On the other hand a moderate inverse correlation was observed between serum chromium and antioxidant GSH. Conclusion: It is concluded that high level of chromium in workers of fiber glass factory is responsible for increased levels of antioxidants in their body, which in long run may develop the diseases especially of respiratory tract.


The article concerns the problem of public school teachers' daily lives in the region of Masuria. The analysis has included such components of everyday life as: travel to Warmia and Masuria, the reasons for choosing the profession, education, work areas, work conditions and methods as well as the forms of alimentation in the school. The issue of teachers' daily lives deserves special attention because of a specific situation of Polish education in Warmia and Masuria in the school years 1944/1945–1945/1946. Teachers were mainly engaged in organizing the basic conditions for functioning of Polish schools in order to promote the Polish language among the youth and children of different nationalities and cultures. Their daily lives were influenced by determining the final border of the District of Masuria, the action of managing this land and the constant risk and problems with the staff, rooms and money. The article does not only discuss teachers' daily professional lives (Part I) but also their personal lives (Part II). There is certainly a need for broader studies by using a variety of source materials. In order to present the issue, the author has used mainly sources of an autobiographical nature – memories and diaries.


In tracing the interconnections of place and people in James Cowan's writing, this article argues that his widely-disseminated body of work complicates current orthodoxies and warrants more consideration in the study of settlement than it has had to date. Analyses of newspaper features and short non-fiction narratives, and of book chapters which centre on the prototype for Cowan's cultural landscapes, Ōrākau, provide the basis for an argument that even in an era when the picturesque appeared to have wrought a division between scenic and inhabited landscapes, Cowan's writing refused that distinction. The landscapes he wrote were peopled, valued for their beauty but given meaning by the traditions and the histories attached to them. I argue here that a consideration of Cowan as "nō Ōrākau"—haunted by a place to whose long historical resonances he responded over the work of a lifetime—introduces a more nuanced account of a settler imaginary which can allow not only of subjects who were "seeing men" seeking to possess what they surveyed, but also of those who lived in a complex and discomforted relationship to the indigenous past of place.


ONE of the most striking facts about the world-wide and extraordinarily fatal epidemic of " influenza " in, 1918 was that in the bad cases one of the symptoms was a peeuliar blne or violet form of cyanosis. At the time this cvanosis was attributed to bronchi-puenmonia; bTut aga;inst thi.s explanIiationi was the fact that administration of oxygen failed to abolish or diminish the cyanosis, whereas in the cyanosis which sometimes accompanies ordiniar-y lobar pteumoiia, or the lung iniflanmmation of poisoning by irritant g:as, the eyallosis cani usually be abolished easily by adding s6nme oxygen to the inspired air. In a paper puiblished in the British, Medical Joirnal of August 1st, 1925 (p. 187), on the presence pest mortem of nitric-oxide-haemoglobin, by Dr. Banham, Dr. S-ava.ge, and myse-lf, a fattal case of broneho-pneumonia (mistaken at first for carbon monoxide poisoning) was described, in whichl the blool was found to be everywhere red post nmcortem, anid to give certain of the usual tests for GO-haemoglo4ini, although the patienit was eynaosed just before death, aiid had not beeni exposed to carboni monoxide at all. The red colour was evidently due to NO-hzaemioglobini, whicll apewars )ost mortem ill poisoniiig by nitrite,1 while the eyaniosis durilng life was due to the fact that in poisonling by nlitrite methaemloglobin is formiied, pr-od-ucinlg practically the same colour in the blood as ordiniary cyanosis due to reduced haenloglobini. In this laler we mentioned the fact that Dr. Bainham, wlhen in coiimmand of the mnedical section of the mnilitary hospital at Cannock Chase during the war, had repeatedly observed that in the bodies of those who died in the 1918 influenza epidemic the blood was red on exposure post mortem. He had also made a special report on the subjeci to the War Office. Since our paper was written I have received information from the doctors anid nurses who saw the bodies in fatal cases, both in this country and in France; and they conifirm Dr. Banhiam's experienee that the blood was red post mortem, tliough cyanosis was present during life. It thus appears to be at least extremely probable that the organismresponlsible for the very, fatal character of the 1918 epidemnic was a niitrite-forming organism, and that the mailn immediate cause of death was anoxaemia due to conversion of oxyhaemnoglobin into methaemnoglobin. In fatal nitriite poisoning in animals the immediate cause of death is anoxaemia. Althoughi nitrite-forminig organisms are familiar to soil microbiologists, very little, if any, attention has hitherto beeni givein to pathtogenic organisms of a similar character. Apar-t from the 19i18 influenza epidemic I have heard of several fatal cases of broncho-pneumonia in which deep cyanosis, p)robably due to methaemoglobin, was present. It is probable, therefore, that such cases are niot v-ery rare, evelv in the absenice of an epidemic of them. I have writteni this paper in the hope that some case of this kind may be diagnosed clinically or post mortem, and a proper bacteriological investigation made. It is easy to detect methaemoglobini clinically in a drop of blood, and equally easy to recognlize nitric-oxide-haemoglobini post mortem. It seems, however, that unless there is any suspicion of carban monoxide poisoning not much attention is usually paid at post-mortem examinations to the colour of the bloodc. REFERENCE. 1 Haldane, Makgill, and Mavrogordato: Journ. of PhysiUl., xxi, 1897, p. 160.


We have optimized 1 (P5U) and urantide, two important ligands at the h-UT receptor, designing several analogues by the exchange of the Tyr9 residue with different unnatural aromatic amino acids. This study allowed us to discover novel ligands with improved activity. In particular, the replacement of the Tyr9 residue by (pCN)Phe or (pNO2)Phe within the urantide sequence led to compounds 13 (UPG-83) and 15 (UPG-95), respectively, which showed pure antagonist activity toward UT receptor in a rat aorta bioassay. More interestingly, the replacement of the Tyr9 in 1 sequence with the Btz or the (3,4-Cl)Phe residues led to superagonists 6 (UPG-100) and 10 (UPG-92) with pEC50 values at least 1.4 log higher than that of 1, being the most potent UT agonists discovered to date. Compounds 10 and 13 showed also a good stability in a serum proteolytic assay. These ligands represent new useful tools to further characterize the urotensinergic system in human physiopathology.


The region of East Attica in Greece faces stress on its water supply, caused mainly by agricultural activities and tourism in the summer. It's therefore imperative for the region to integrate water reuse in its water resources management plan. To this end, a project was conceived, which accommodated stakeholder management practices to ensure public acceptance with the challenge to transform potential project risks to opportunities. In particular, two major wastewater projects in the region were approved for co-financing by European Union (E.U) Cohesion funds and implementation by the Athens Water Supply and Sewerage Company (EYDAP S.A.) for agglomerations in East Attica (Rafina/Artemida & Marathon agglomerations). Both projects aim to achieving compliance with 91/271/E.E.C, Urban Wastewater Treatment Directive (UWWTD) and producing treated effluent wastewater that complies with the national standards for unlimited irrigation and urban reuse. Furthermore, another wastewater scheme, co-financed by EU funds with the beneficiary being the Prefecture of Attica involves the agglomerations of Koropi and Paiania respectively, which are also currently non-compliant. The aforementioned scheme is presently under development after upgrading with advanced tertiary treatment will also produce quantity of reclaimed water suitable for aquifer recharge to restore the water quality of groundwater bodies.


Using data from computer-assisted telephone interviews with 1000 18- to 24-year old Australians, the structure underlying participation in 12 gambling activities was investigated. Factor analysis indicated that activities were differentiated into those that are chance-based, involve selecting a winner and involve individuals' skills. Gambling problems, assessed using a four-item factor, were related to participation in the two skill-based activity types. Males participated in these more than females. Age was positively related to participating in activities involving selecting a winner and negatively to those involving individuals' skills. Participation in activities associated with the three factors was differentially related to individual difference factors along with family and peer participation in, and support for, gambling. Together the results indicate that young Australians do not view gambling activities homogeneously and future research should focus on the predictors and outcomes of different types of gambling among this age group.


In this thesis we consider the Grassmannian complex of projective configurations in weight 2 and 3, and Cathelineau's infinitesimal polylogarithmic complexes as well as a tangential complex to the famous Bloch-Suslin complex (in weight 2) and to Goncharov's ``motivic`` complex (in weight 3), respectively, as proposed by Cathelineau [5].

Our main result is a morphism of complexes between the Grassmannian complexes and the associated infinitesimal polylogarithmic complexes as well as the tangential complexes.
In order to establish this connection we introduce an $F$-vector space $\beta^D_2(F)$, which is an intermediate structure between a $\varmathbb{Z}$-module $\mathcal{B}_2(F)$ (scissors congruence group for $F$) and Cathelineau's $F$-vector space $\beta_2(F)$ which is an infinitesimal version of it. The structure of $\beta^D_2(F)$ is also infinitesimal but it has the advantage of satisfying similar functional equations as the group $\mathcal{B}_2(F)$. We put this in a complex to form a variant of Cathelineau's infinitesimal complex for weight 2. Furthermore, we define $\beta_3^D(F)$ for the corresponding infinitesimal complex in weight 3. One of the important ingredients of the proof of our main results is the rewriting of Goncharov's triple-ratios as the product of two projected cross-ratios. Furthermore, we extend Siegel's cross-ratio identity ([21]) for $2\times2$ determinants over the truncated polynomial ring $F[\varepsilon]_\nu:=F[\varepsilon]/\varepsilon^\nu$. We compute cross-ratios and Goncharov's triple-ratios in $F[\varepsilon]_2$ and $F[\varepsilon]_3$ and use them extensively in our computations for the tangential complexes. We also verify a ''projected five-term'' relation in the group $T\mathcal{B}_2(F)$ which is crucial to prove one of our central statements Theorem 4.3.3.


Pectinase was covalently immobilized onto the macroporous polyacrylamide (PAM) microspheres synthesized via an inverse suspension polymerization approach, resulting in 81.7% immobilization yield. The stability of the macroporous PAM support, which has a large surface area, is not impeded by the adsorbed proteins despite the fact that up to 296.3 mg of enzyme is immobilized per gram of the carrier particles. The immobilized enzyme retained more than 75% of its initial activity over 30 days, and the optimum temperature/pH also increased to the range of 50-60 °C/3.0-5.0. The immobilized enzyme also exhibited great operational stability, and more than 75% residual activity was observed after 10 batch reactions. The kinetics of a model reaction catalyzed by the immobilized pectinase was finally investigated. Moreover, the immobilized pectinase could be recovered by centrifuging and showed durable activity at the process of recycle.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
To examine racial/ethnic, nativity, and gender differences in the benefits of educational attainment on cognitive life expectancies among older adults in the United States.

DESIGN AND METHODS
We used data from the Health and Retirement Study (1998-2014) to estimate Sullivan-based life tables of cognitively healthy, cognitively impaired/no dementia (CIND), and dementia life expectancies by gender for older White, Black, U.S.-born and foreign-born Hispanic adults with less than high school, high school, and some college or more.

RESULTS
White respondents lived a greater percentage of their remaining lives cognitive healthy than their minority Black or Hispanic counterparts, regardless of level of education. Among respondents with some college or more, versus less than high school, Black and U.S.-born Hispanic women exhibited the greatest increase (both 37 percentage points higher) in the proportion of total life expectancy spent cognitively healthy; whereas White women had the smallest increase (17 percentage points higher). For men, the difference between respondents with some college or more, versus less than high school, was greatest for Black men (35 percentage points higher) and was lowest for U.S.-born Hispanic men (21 percentage points higher).

DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS
Our results provide evidence that the benefits of education on cognitive life expectancies are largest for Black men and women, and U.S.-born Hispanic women. The combination of extended longevity and rising prevalence of Alzheimer's disease point to the need for understanding why certain individuals spend an extended period of their lives with poor cognitive health.


Grass is recognized as being beneficial in reducing rainfall infiltration in some kinds of surface cover systems such as landfill cover, because rainwater discharges as surface runoff due to reduced water permeability caused by evapotranspirationinduced soil suction as well as foliage interception. However, the distributions of grass-induced suction in various compacted soils during rainfall are rarely reported. Moreover, it is not straightforward to determine an optimum soil dry density for minimizing rainfall infiltration and at the same time encouraging plant growth. This is because there are conflicting requirements for vegetated cover systems, i.e., compacted soil should not be too dense as to impede root growth, while on the other hand to minimize infiltration. This study thus aims to investigate, quantify, and compare grass-induced suction distributions in silty sand compacted at different densities when subjected to artificial rainfall in the laboratory. A grass species, Cynodon dactylon, which is common in many parts of Asia, was selected for testing. Compacted soil with and without a growing grass patch was tested at three relative compactions (RCs) of 70%, 80%, and 95%, in six test boxes. Test results reveal that at an RC of 95%, suction (40 kPa) retained in vegetated soil after rainfall is 100% higher than that (20 kPa) in bare soil. Among the vegetated soil compacted at the three RCs, suction retained was the highest at an RC of 95% (40 kPa), whereas suction decreased to 0 kPa at an RC of 70% after rainfall. As the average depth of grass roots decreased by 36% due to an increase in RC from 70% to 95%, the depth of influence of suction for vegetated soil at an RC of 95% reduced to less than half of root depth, which was the shallowest among the three compacted soil specimens.


The Acanthamoeba castellanii myosin-Is were the first unconventional myosins to be discovered, and the myosin-I class has since been found to be one of the more diverse and abundant classes of the myosin superfamily. We used two-dimensional (2D) crystallization on phospholipid monolayers and negative stain electron microscopy to calculate a projection map of a "classical" myosin-I, Acanthamoeba myosin-IB (MIB), at ∼18 Å resolution. Interpretation of the projection map suggests that the MIB molecules sit upright on the membrane. We also used cryoelectron microscopy and helical image analysis to determine the three-dimensional structure of actin filaments decorated with unphosphorylated (inactive) MIB. The catalytic domain is similar to that of other myosins, whereas the large carboxy-terminal tail domain differs greatly from brush border myosin-I (BBM-I), another member of the myosin-I class. These differences may be relevant to the distinct cellular functions of these two types of myosin-I. The catalytic domain of MIB also attaches to F-actin at a significantly different angle, ∼10°, than BBM-I. Finally, there is evidence that the tails of adjacent MIB molecules interact in both the 2D crystal and in the decorated actin filaments.


Most distributed systems contain protocols for reliable communication, which are implemented either in the microkernel or in user space. In the latter case, the microkernel provides only low-level, unreliable primitives and the higher-level protocols are implemented as a library in user space. This approach is more flexible but potentially less efficient. We study the impact on performance of this choice for RPC and group communication protocols on Amoeba. An important goal in this paper is to look at overall system performance. For this purpose, we use several (communication-intensive) parallel applications written in Orca. We look at two implementations of Orca on Amoeba, one using Amoeba's kernel-space protocols and one using user-space protocols built on top of Amoeba's low-level FLIP protocol. The results show that comparable performance can be obtained with user-space protocols.


We propose to use the stray field of a magnetic domain (e.g, a bubble) for magnetic recording. It is shown that these stray fields are large enough to write information into a conventional disc or tape. An experiment in which an audio signal is recorded on a conventional tape with the aid of a stripe domain is described. We consider the feasibility of an integrated recording head for "one head per track recording" by using a multitude of bubbles in one crystal plate as well as the possibility of realizing a scanning head for video recording. Our preliminary experiments demonstrate the feasibility of recording based on this new principle.


To coordinate, intelligent agents might need to know something about each other, and about themselves, and about how others view themselves, and how they view others, and how they think others view others, and so on. Taken to an extreme, the amount of knowledge an agent might possess to help make sense of an interaction might outstrip the agent's limited reasoning capacity (its available time, memory, etc.). Much of the work in studying and building multiagent systems has thus been devoted to developing practical techniques for achieving coordination, typically by limiting the knowledge available to or necessary for agents---that is, by keeping agents selectively ignorant. In this paper, I try to put various such efforts in perspective, characterizing different ways in which agents can beneficially be kept ignorant of some knowledge. *


The impact of the May, 1979 cyclonic storm on Visakhapatnam beach, India and the observations made on beach profiles, waves and littoral currents prior to and during the storm are discussed. In general, at Visakhapatnam beach accretion trend starts with onset of northeast monsoon by May and beach becomes more stable with well-developed berm owing to the calm weather that prevails during this month. The storm of May 1979 has caused severe erosion all along this beach. Before the onset of the southwest monsoon certain parts of the beach that have not recovered fully are likely to experience additional erosion and thereby may cause anxiety and threat to the properties along the coastline


Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) is known to possess strong antioxidative capacity mainly due to its high content of anthocyanins and ascorbic acid. This study aimed to elucidate the ratio of contribution of these compounds in Roselle extract towards superoxide anion scavenging capabilities through analysis using electron spin resonance (ESR) coupled with the hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase system and DMPO spin trapping technique. The ESR analysis indicated that the IC50 of Roselle extract against superoxide anion was 0.25 mg/ml. After depleting the ascorbate in Roselle extract (0.25 mg/ml) with ascorbate oxidase, the remaining superoxide anion scavenging capacity was determined to be 30.5%, which revealed that ascorbic acid substantially facilitated the scavenging process. By both HPLC and LC/MS analyses, the major active anthocyanins in Roselle crude pigments were identified as delphinidin-3-sambubioside (71.2% of total peak area), delphinidin-3-glucoside (8.7% of total peak area) and cyanidin-3-sambubioside (16.1% of total peak area). Approximately 80% of the superoxide anion scavenging capacities of these anthocyanins was from delphinidin-derivatives (delphinidin-3-sambubioside and delphinidin-3-glucoside); the other 20% was from cyanidin-derivative (cyanidin-3-sambubioside).


[1] A surface wave dispersion data set of unprecedented size is used to obtain a variable-resolution model of the radially anisotropic shear wave velocity structure of the upper mantle beneath North America and globally. Love and Rayleigh wave phase velocities for periods in the range 35–150 s constrain a three-dimensional model of velocity variations on a length scale of a few hundred kilometers within the North American continent and a few thousand kilometers globally. The short- and long-wavelength models are determined simultaneously. Long-period surface wave phase velocities (200–350 s) are used to help constrain longer-wavelength and transition zone structure. Laterally varying velocity sensitivity kernels are used to account for the dependence of the velocity sensitivity on lateral variations in crust and mantle velocity structure. The sensitivity kernels are updated in several iterations to avoid nonlinearities associated with the inverse problem for the determination of mantle structure. Variations in isotropic velocity in the uppermost several hundred kilometers of the mantle are found to correlate well with surface tectonic features. Within the North American craton, the locations of strongest radial anisotropy generally correlate with the locations of fastest isotropic velocity. Variations in radial anisotropy show a clear continent-ocean signature. Strong anisotropy occurs at shallow depths (<100 km) under the continents, with a secondary peak found at a depth of ∼200 km. Maximum anisotropy under the oceans occurs at a depth of ∼125 km, with no secondary maximum. Combined interpretation of isotropic and anisotropic continent-ocean differences suggests a different role for the low-velocity zone under continental and oceanic regions.


ObjectiveBased on the albumin substitution fluid, we performed plasma-free exchange in the removal of abnormal M protein for patients with multiple myeloma using Fresenius COM.TEC machine
 MethodsFrom February 2016 to August 2018, 70 patients with multiple myeloma, who have indication of plasma exchange because of increased M protein, were treated with plasma-free exchange. Record the relevant basic information, the clinical symptoms and related disease indicators, and use SPSS 20.0 to analyze the changes of erythrocyte sedimentation rate, blood routine, albumin, renal function, serum calcium and immunoglobulin, and report adverse reactions.
 ResultsAfter treatment, the patient's erythrocyte sedimentation rate, serum calcium, serum creatinine, β2-microglobulin, uric acid, IgG, IgA were significantly reduced; hemoglobin, white blood cell level were not statistically significant. The creatinine remission rate was 97%, and the platelet decline was only 17.8%, and no adverse reactions related to thrombocytopenia such as hemorrhage and ecchymoses were observed. Patients with IgG type responded better than IgA-free treatment to plasma-free exchange. There were no serious adverse reactions after treatment, 1 case of blood pressure drop, 2 cases of low calcium reaction, all in the normal range, and recovered after the end of treatment.
 ConclusionPlasma-free exchange is an effective technology reducing M protein, which can effectively improve the erythrocyte sedimentation index, renal function index and blood viscous state. Patients with IgG type or higher ISS stage have more obvious effects. Plasma-free exchange significantly get rid of the application of fresh frozen plasma.

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


This study compares Chinese students studying in Australia and Australian domestic students on awareness and interpretation of, and attitude and behavioural intention towards the concept of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and the influence on both of studying within an environment termed "socially innovative commerce". While previous research has found that age, gender, and study major of students may influence perceptions of CSR, this rsearch found these variables are not as significant as cultural background. These findings are presented and discussed along with future research directions.


ABSTRACT Introduction Molecular distillation (MD) is a physical separation method that was developed for several applications in petrochemical, food, cosmetics and pharmaceutical industries. Early industrial applications were most prominent in the petrochemical industry and in the food industry for vegetable oil refinement. During the past two decades, MD has gained a renewed attention and its applications have expanded to include purification and enrichment of bioactive compounds from natural product extracts and in nutraceuticals production. Objectives This review highlights, from a chemical perispective, applications and potential future MD development in the fields of pharmaceutics and natural product chemistry. Literature review A brief summary to outline the MD concept and the factors to be considered in designing efficient MD experiments is provided. Recent MD applications in the production and refinement of raw materials to be used in the pharmaceutical, cosmetics and nutraceutical industries are analyzed. This review further discusses future development in MD to expand its appliaction for refinement and purification of fixed oils, essential oils and plant extracts.


Peer-to-peer systems have gained momentum over the last years. This work was motivated by the necessity to analyze such systems. It proposes a distributed monitoring system, P2PMonitor, that has alerters specialized in local monitoring of entities. These alerters encode the basic events detected into streams of (Active)XML documents. A method for filtering efficiently such streams has been introduced. Also, an algorithm has been proposed for the detection of parts of a new monitoring task that are already supported by the system. Complex and efficient stream processors are needed at the heart of P2PMonitor. The work shows how to build them from views over active documents and proposes a maintenance algorithm that scales and reduces the computation time. Modeling the applications is important for being able to monitor them. At their origin, the business processes have been mainly operation-centric, but recently, business artifacts have been proposed and seem well adapted for the specification of data-centric applications. The proposed artifact model is based on active documents and captures: their state, evolution, interactions and history.


Methotrexate is an antineoplastic agent that is also used at lower doses for anti-inflammatory properties. Along with thiopurines (azathioprine and 6-mercaptopurine), it has historically been an important part of pharmacological treatment for patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Despite an increase in therapeutic options, these immunomodulators continue to play important roles in the management of inflammatory bowel disease, used either as a monotherapy in mild to moderate cases or in combination with monoclonal antibodies to prevent immunogenicity and maintain efficacy. In light of data linking the use of thiopurines with the risk of malignancies, methotrexate has regained attention as a potential alternative. In this article, we review data on the pharmacology, safety, and efficacy of methotrexate and discuss options for the positioning of methotrexate alone, or in combination, in therapeutic algorithms for Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.


We have developed a collection of tools for the design, modeling, and test of analog circuits. Sharing a common fuzzy-logic based framework, the tools are part of FASY (Fuzzy-Logic-Based Analog Synthesis), an analog design package developed at the University of Seville. The first tool uses fuzzy logic for topology selection of analog cells. It follows decision rules directly entered by a human expert or automatically generated from its experience with earlier designs. Second, a performance-modeling tool provides a qualitative description of a circuit's behavior. Alternatively, it can use a learning process to accurately model circuit performance. Finally, an analog testing tool uses a fuzzy-neuron classifier to detect and classify faults in analog circuits.


DNA methylation and histone acetylation are two most studied epigenetic markers. Aberrant methylation of gene promoter regions and histone tail lysine residue modification through acetylation and methylation play a key role in malignant disorders. Two DNA methyltransferase inhibitors, azacitidine and decitabine, have been licensed for clinical therapy for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome. New hypomethylating agents, zebularine and isothiocyanates, are in various stages of development for cancer therapy. In this review we summarize recent clinical developments on novel hypomethylating agents and new regimens from clinical trials for epigenetic therapy of cancer.


The molten globule state of alpha-lactalbumin has ordered secondary structure in the alpha-domain, which comprises residues 1 to 34 and 86 to 123. In order to investigate which part of a polypeptide is important for stabilizing the molten globule state of alpha-lactalbumin, we have produced and studied three chimeric proteins of bovine and human alpha-lactalbumin. The stability of the molten globule state formed by domain-exchanged alpha-lactalbumin, in which the amino acid sequence in the alpha-domain comes from human alpha-lactalbumin and that in the beta-domain comes from bovine alpha-lactalbumin, is the same as that of human alpha-lactalbumin and is substantially greater than that of bovine alpha-lactalbumin. Therefore, our results show that the stability of the molten globule state of alpha-lactalbumin is determined by the alpha-domain and the beta-domain is not important for stabilizing the molten globule state. The substitution of residues 1 to 34 of bovine alpha-lactalbumin with those of human alpha-lactalbumin substantially increases the stability of the molten globule state, while the substitution of residues 86 to 123 of bovine alpha-lactalbumin with those of human alpha-lactalbumin decreases the stability of the molten globule state. Therefore, residues 1 to 34 in human alpha-lactalbumin is more important for the stability of the human alpha-lactalbumin molten globule state than residues 86 to 123. The stabilization of the molten globule state due to substitution of both residues 1 to 34 and 86 to 123 is not identical with the sum of the two individual substitutions, demonstrating the non-additivity of the stabilization of the molten globule state. This result indicates that there is a long-range interaction between residues 1 to 34 and 86 to 123 in the molten globule state of human alpha-lactalbumin. The differences in the stabilities of the molten globule states are well correlated with the averaged helical propensity values in the alpha-domain when the long-range interactions are negligible, suggesting that the local interaction is the dominant term for determining the stability of the molten globule state. Our results also indicate that the apparent cooperativity is closely linked to the stability of the molten globule state, even if the molten globule state is weakly cooperative.


What impact would a fiscal expansion in Germany have on the rest of the euro area? It has been generally suggested that it could go in either of two opposite directions, depending on the relative strength of two effects: the direct trade linkage and the financial market repercussions. A review of the results from four major macroeconomic models shows that the cross-country spillover effects of fiscal policy are indeed of uncertain sign and magnitude. Different models give quite different results if used in standardised simulations in terms of the sign, magnitude and time profile of the impact of a fiscal expansion in one member country (e.g. Germany) on other euro area countries. Fewer results are available concerning the potential spillover effects of structural policies, but they are similar to the ones concerning a budgetary stimulus: the magnitude of the spillover is small and varies across countries and over time.


As a partner for the DOE Metal Hydride Center of Excellence (MHCoE), GE Global Research in Niskayuna, NY developed a robust approach for metal hydride discovery as schematically shown in Figure 1. The approach is used on a daily basis at GE and it has streamlined the metal hydride discovery process. Our research allows us to investigate large numbers of compositions simultaneously, quickly screen their hydrogen storage properties, and gain a detailed understanding of the critical hydrogen storage performance characteristics. The key features of our approach is a robust combinatorial/high-throughput screening (HTS) methodology and a unique apparatus for in situ x-ray diffraction (XRD) to "watch" the hydrogen absorption and desorption process in real time with varying temperature and/or hydrogen pressure. The integrated approach with up-front theoretical analysis, HTS methodology, and mechanistic understanding will allow us to effectively discover new hydrides to meet the DOE 2010 targets.


Let I" be the boundary of an unbounded simply connected region ÚD, and let 6(T) denote the family of all simply connected regions Ac1? such that 3A = T u y where y n r contains only the infinite point. For A G S(T) we call y the free boundary of A. Given a positive constant A, we seek to find a region Ax G C(T) with free boundary vx such that there is a bounded harmonic function V in Ax with the properties that (i) V = 0 on T, (ii) V = 1 on y, (iii) |grad V(z)\ = X for z G yx. We give sufficient conditions for existence and uniqueness of Ax. We also give quantitative properties of yx.


Orbital signatures of the methyl group in thymine are identified using information from both coordinate and momentum spaces, in comparison with RNA base uracil. The B3LYP/aug-cc-pVTZ//B3LYP/TZVP calculations show that the orbitals of methyl group may be identified as 9a′, 15a′, 2a″, and 25a′, respectively. Generally, large changes in orbital energies directly lead to large changes in orbital momentum distributions and orbital wavefunctions despite strong pyrimidine ring buffer (exceptions of 19a′ and 21a′ of thymine). A general conclusion about the chemical bindings of pyrimidine, cytosine, thymine, and uracil is obtained for the first time. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


ABSTRACT We tested the hypothesis that handling turtle eggs decreases embryo survival in a well-studied population of midland painted turtle (Chrysemys picta marginata) by comparing embryo survival in handled and nonhandled natural nests during 3 nesting seasons. All nests were protected from mammalian predators. Upon excavation of the nests in the following spring, we found no differences in survival between the 2 treatments, suggesting that the benefits in knowledge gained from nest excavation far outweigh the possibility of a small increase in mortality that could arise from handling the eggs.


Background: The Sunda pangolin, Manis javanica Desmarest, 1822, is a critically endangered species of pangolin that occurs from Indonesia to southern China. Knowledge of the biology and ecology of M. javanica is limited, however there have been previous reports of parasites, including nematodes, protozoans, ticks, and a cestode. Methods: An illegal shipment of 88 M. javanica carcasses, originally collected from wild populations throughout southeast Asia, were intercepted by Hong Kong border authorities (AFCD) and confiscated in 2018. Results: During necropsy, two different types of parasites were collected from four infected pangolins. The parasites were identified as the nematode Gendrespirura cf. zschokkei (Meyer, 1896) Chabaud 1958, which were embedded in the stomach wall, and the acanthocephalan, Oligacanthorhynchidae sp., collected from the intestine. Morphological descriptions and molecular characterization for each parasite type is provided. Conclusions: In addition, an updated list of parasites from pangolins, incorporating current taxonomic identifications and publications is presented.


In this work, we excited microwave Whispering Gallery modes in single crystal SrLaAlO4 to characterise the dielectric properties from room to milliKelvin temperatures. Whispering Gallery modes behave as sensitive probes for monitoring anisotropic lattice behaviour by selective coupling to specific mode families of varying polarization. Measurements of Q-factor while cooling reveal important information on the temperature dependance of electromagnetic losses within the crystal, improving by two orders of magnitude from room temperature to 4 K to values of order 106. Quasi-transverse-electric modes show higher Q-factors than quasi-transverse-magnetic modes due to the biaxial anisotropy. The perpendicular and parallel relative permittivities are determined at room temperature to be ϵ⊥ = 16.843 ± 0.005 and ϵ ∥ = 19.853 ± 0.006 respectively, and 16.730 ± 0.005 and 19.602 ± 0.006 at 4 K, limited mainly by the accuracy of the dimensions of the crystal. Saturation states are observed with respect to microwave power below 4 K, which implies impurity ion electron spin interactions. Q-factors are degraded by an order of magnitude at mK temperatures and at very low input powers. At high magnetic fields between 3 to 7 T, the losses due to the spin impurities are reduced as a result of the high energy of spin polarization, eliminating unfilled two-level magnetic systems in their ground state, and improving the Q-factors back to values on the order of 106.


Vagal effects were observed in isolated vagal heart preparations of Rana pipiens over periods as long as 72 hours. The normal effect was partially blocked by lowering the temperature to about 14°C, and there was a complete block at 10°C and below. On rewarming the preparation the vagal effects recurred; and this process could be repeated cyclically several times. The upper temperature limit of vagal effects seemed to be at 31°C above which the heart stopped. At 32°C however, the stopped heart was still susceptible to stimulation and it could be made to beat for a short time. Tetraethyl pyrophosphate lowered the critical temperature limit by about 3°. The activation energy of vagal effect was calculated in the neighborhood of 46,000 calories, which was similar to value of most enzymic function. It is therefore suggested that the observed phenomenon results primarily from the effect of temperature on choline esterase and acetylase systems.


The present study dealt with the assessment of ambient air quality in both commercial and residential areas like Aminabad, Indian Institute of Toxicology Research (IITR) Campus, Aliganj and Indranagar at Lucknow city of Northern India. The air quality was assessed based on measurement of four air pollutants like Suspended Particulate Matter (PM 10 ), Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (PM 2.5 ), Oxides of Nitrogen (NO x ), and Sulphur Dioxides (SO x ) and also eight heavy metals associated with PM 10 and PM 2.5 . The results suggested that the commercial area like Aminabad has the average value 284 µg/m 3 for PM 10 and residential area like Aliganj has the average value 182.3 µg/m 3 for PM 2.5 , which represented high pollution level among the four locations. In both commercial and residential area, the average concentration of PM 10 and PM 2.5 were obtained above National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) and SOx, NOx were obtained under the prescribed limits of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), New Delhi. The calculated values of air quality index revealed that the commercial area was found to have higher AQI (122.95) than residential area (97.8). The average contribution of four (PM 10 , PM 2.5 , SO x , NO x ) pollutant were obtained 31.7% in Aminabad, 25% in Aliganj, 22% in IITR and 21.3% in Indranagar. The order of metals associated with PM 10 and PM 2.5 were Fe > Zn > Pb > Cr > Cu > Mn > Co > Ni and Fe > Cr > Zn > Co > Pb > Ni > Mn > Cu respectively. The sources of heavy metals in this area are vehicular emission, industrial operation, combustion of waste, and construction activity of street dust particles etc.