Typical frequency-time spectra of narrow-band hiss obtained near plasmapause latitude from ISIS VLF electric field data (50 Hz to 30 kHz) telemetered at Syowa Station, Antarctica, under quiet conditions, are similar to those of narrow-band 5-kHz hiss observed at mid-latitudes and low-latitudes on the ground. This hiss in the topside ionosphere first appeared as a thin, bar-shaped emission around 5 kHz at geomagnetic invariant latitude of about 56° and grew into a wider band between 3 and 6 kHz at invariant latitudes around 60° which is the average plasmapause latitude. Then, at higher latitudes, the band narrowed somewhat and disappeared around 65°. The hiss had no lower-frequency cutoff, and its center frequency remained approximately constant at 5 kHz, between about 56° and 65°. This narrow-band hiss is completely different from the electrostatic LHR hiss which is also observed above the ionosphere with an electric antenna, but which has latitude dependent lower-frequency cutoff. Since the narrow-band 5-kHz hiss occurs often around plasmapause latitude (60°), hereafter we will call this hiss narrow-band plasmapause hiss. Latitude and local time distributions of the occurrence rate for narrow-band plasmapause hiss were obtained by analyzing six-frequency narrow-band data processed from the wideband VLF signals received at Syowa Station from ISIS 1 and ISIS 2 during 507 passes between December 1976 and January 1983. Although when taken over the whole latitude range, 55° to 64°, the occurrence rate of narrow-band plasmapause hiss under various geomagnetic conditions (Kp = 0–6) is 0.83, the rate at any given latitude is below 0.35. Thus it is rather a rare phenomenon as compared with LHR hiss. The peak occurrence rate lies at 58° to 59°, under geomagnetically quiet and moderate conditions (Kp = 0–3) and extends over the somewhat broader range of 56° to 60° under disturbed conditions (Kp = 4–6). The occurrence rate under disturbed conditions is about one third that under quiet and moderate conditions. The magnetic local time (MLT) distribution of the occurrence rate has a significant maximum at 1800–2100 hours MLT under quiet and moderate conditions, and a maximum at 0000–0300 hours MLT under disturbed conditions. The similarity between frequency-time spectra of narrow-band hiss observed by the ISIS satellites and on the ground suggests that the narrow-band hiss generated in the magnetosphere propagates toward the Earth in the whistler mode. The peak occurrence rates of the hiss at invariant latitude 60° (average plasmapause latitude) in the late evening sector under quiet and moderate conditions, and in the midnight sector under disturbed conditions, suggest that narrow-band plasmapause hiss is generated by cyclotron resonant instability of energetic electrons which are injected from the magnetotail and drift eastward around the equatorial plasmapause.


Background Neurofibromatosis type 1, also known as NF1, is a disorder that is passed down in an autosomal dominant manner. It manifests in a wide variety of tumors and affects several organ systems. It is expected that those carrying the NF1 gene will develop a rare mesenchymal tumor known as a gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) more than general population. Case report This research discusses a 42-year-old female patient with NF1 who was identified with a duodenal GIST but clinically and radiographically misinterpreted as having a retroperitoneal neurofibroma. She had minimally invasive retroperitoneal laparoscopic surgery to remove the tumor and primary anastomosis of the affected duodenal wall. A spindle cell GIST was entirely excised during surgery, as indicated by the pathologist. As a consequence of dialogue at a multidisciplinary team meeting, the patient was discharged from the hospital on the fourth postoperative day and is presently undergoing regular clinical follow-up. Conclusion Anatomically problematic sites, such as the duodenal GIST in NF1 patients, can be treated safely with the laparoscopic retroperitoneal approach even when retroperitoneal neoplasia arises from the intrabdominal structure and protrudes into the retroperitoneal region.


PURPOSE
To compare the long-term (two-year) efficacy between transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) after prostatic artery embolization (PAE) and TURP only for patients with giant (>100 mL) benign prostatic hyperplasia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed data from 61 and 150 patients with giant benign prostatic hyperplasia treated with PAE+TURP or TURP alone, respectively, from January 2015 to March 2020. We compared index changes before and after surgery.

RESULTS
The operative time, intraoperative blood loss, postoperative bladder irrigation time, and catheter retention time in the PAE+TURP group were lower than those of the TURP group, while the speed of resection of the lesion and hospitalization costs were more significant (P < 0.05). International prostate symptom score (IPSS), quality of life (QoL), prostate volume, maximum urinary flow rate, detrusor pressure of maximum urinary flow rate, prostate-specific antigen, and urodynamic obstruction were better in the PAE+TURP group than the TURP group at 24 months (P < 0.05). Regarding IPSS and QoL scores at 24 months postoperatively compared with the preoperative period, the PAE+TURP group was better than the TURP group in terms of the storage period, voiding period, and QoL (P < 0.05). The distribution of postoperative adverse event severity classes was comparable between the groups (P = 0.984).

CONCLUSION
In contrast to TURP alone, PAE + TURP is more expensive but provides better postoperative outcomes; there is no significant difference in terms of the severity grade distribution of postoperative complications.


Sperm from infertile males who desire children is frequently used for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).Concerns about the chromosome quality of these donated sperm and the risk for the transmission of genetic defectsare under-recognized. We conducted a chromosome study using sperm from 15 Thai men (26-40 years of age; mean,32 years of age) who were classifi ed as normoteratozoospermia (NT; 7 cases) and oligoasthenoteratozoospermia (OAT;8 cases). The multi-color FISH (Fluorescence in situ hybridization) assay for the analysis of chromosomes 18, X, and Ywas used on 13,428 sperm from these donors, and we observed statistically signifi cant differences in numerical chromosomeabnormalities between these two groups (p = 0.011). The median (range) for numerical chromosome abnormalitieswere 1.07% (0.18-2.35%) and 9.21% (0.48-29.84%) for sperm from the NT and OAT donors respectively. XY disomywas the most frequent abnormality observed. Correlation with semen parameters indicated that there were signifi cantinverse correlations between sperm chromosomal abnormalities and both normal motile sperm (r = -0.554; p = 0.032),and normal head sperm (r = -0.686; p = 0.005). From our data, statistical analyses indicated that semen samples withnormal motility of ≤60% or normal head morphology of ≤85% had an increased risk of sperm chromosomal abnormalities.The results of this study indicated that OAT men were at increased risk for paternal transmission of genetic defectsto their offspring. Therefore, sperm chromosome analyses and semen analyses are needed to be carefully evaluated onOAT men before performing the ICSI procedure. Key words: Multi-color-fl uorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay; Sperm aneuploidy, Semen parameters, Infertility,Chromosome abnormality


Specifically radiolabeled [14C-lignin] lignocellulose and uniformly [U-14C] lignocellulose from the salt marsh grass Spartina alterniflora were incubated with the ascomycete Phaesphaeria s spartinicola. This fungus is the predominant one found on decaying standing dead S. alterniflora leaves in the salt marsh ecosystem. After 45 days of incubation at 20°C, 3.3% of the lignin moiety was mineralized to 14CO2 and 2.7% solubilized to DO14C. Mineralization of the polysaccharides was seven times faster than that of the lignin. About 22% of the radioactivity was evolved as 14CO2 but merely 4% was solubilized to DO14C within the incubation time. Experiments monitoring the ergosterol content of the mycelium incubated with S. alterniflora plant material were done to elucidate the carbon conversion efficiency of the fungus as well as the influence of the cinnamyl phenols p-coumaric and ferulic acid on lignocellulose degration. After 21 days of incubation, P. spartinicola showed a growth yield of 0.45 and 0.38 with and without the additional cinnamyl phenols, respectively. Grown on unextracted S. alterniflora the fungus caused a loss of organic plant material of about 50% with a corresponding growth yield of 0.38 during the incubation period. Investigation of cupric oxide oxidation products of sound and degraded lignocellulose revealed a preferential utilization of the syrinyl and cinnamly phenols compared with vanilly phenols.


N-Ferrocenylsulfonyl-2-methylaziridine (fcMAz) is synthesized in a convenient three-step protocol from ferrocene. It represents the first aziridine-based monomer suitable for the anionic polymerization, carrying a ferrocenyl-substituent. Sulfonamide-activated aziridines can undergo (mostly living) anionic polymerization and fcMAz is also the first example of a functional sulfonamide-based aziridine monomer. It can be polymerized with different initiators to homo and copolymers (block or statistical) with adjustable molecular weights. The homopolymer is insoluble in common organic solvents, while the copolymers with other aziridines are soluble and exhibit molecular weight dispersities of 1.1–1.5. FcMAz thus broadens the scope of ferrocenyl-containing polymers and may be combined with other anionic polymerization techniques in the future.


The research aimed to investigate the profile of self medication services by pharmacy staff in Surabaya including patient assessment, recommendation, medicine information, and non medicine information. A descriptive study using a simulated patient method was conducted in 90 randomly selected pharmacies.In patient assessment, data about "who the patient is" and "how long the symptoms have been present" were collected by 8,9% and 2,2% pharmacy staff, respectively. Other data related to the symptoms such as heartburn (5,6%) and nausea (2,2%) were also asked.Of all medicines recommended, 83,3% were made with the involvement of client. The medicines recommended included antacids 83,2%, H2 blocker 3,3%, antacids and H2 blocker 7,7%, and proton pump inhibitors 5,5%. The cost of medicines mostly ranged from Rp. 1.000 to Rp. 4.999. Almost all medicines were patent drugs (98,9%) which were categorised as OTC (88,9%).
Medicine information provided included the use of medicines (88,9%), dose (33,3%), and time management (64,4%). The information was mostly given only after being asked. Other information provided was related to dietary management (2,2%).
To conclude, all pharmacy staff has provided self medication service. However, there is still a need of improvement, in order to reach optimal therapy, improve patient's quality of life and assure safety, effective, acceptable, and rational therapy.


This paper is motivated by the fact that (part-time) individual farming is commonly observed among rural households in a number of transition economies but it is not clear prima facie if such resource allocation is optimal. A conceptual model of household labor allocation between individual farming and off-farm wage employment is developed. The model explicitly accounts for the role of household endowments in labor allocation as the analysis is conditioned on the status of factor markets. The hypotheses are empirically tested using 1998 data from a country-representative survey of rural households in Hungary, an advanced transition country, which only recently became EU member state. Results provide evidence that capital market imperfections still remain. Implications for the policies related to agricultural sector restructuring, employment and rural development are discussed. Classification-


BACKGROUND
Until the early 1980's there was a general consensus that no relationship existed between occupational silica exposure and lung cancer, in spite of a number of reports to the contrary. Confirmation arrived later from animal experiments and in 1997 the IARC modified its carcinogenic agents classification to include silica in group 1, human carcinogens. This fact brought about a change in insurance practice regarding occupational diseases due to silica, with greater attention dedicated to pneumoconiosis-related lung cancers.

OBJECTIVE
To describe a clinical case of lung cancer due to occupational exposure to silica in a worker of a ceramics industry already receiving compensation for silicosis.

METHODS
Diagnosis and recognition of the occupational origin of the disease were achieved via assessment of exposure to silica in the past and review of the medical examinations over the years.

RESULTS
The pathogenesis and the causative relationship between pneumoconiosis and cancer is debated and lung cancer was recognized as an occupational disease.

CONCLUSIONS
It is concluded that a causative relationship can exist more due to the presence of silicosis than due to occupational exposure to silica.


With the popularization of the new computation environment, internet, traditional software form has gradually not adapted the development and application under the internet environment. So a new generation software form with many characteristics such as independence, collaboration, response, evolution and multi-object, internetware is proposed. Its establishment depends on the effective collaboration among various distributed and asynchronous autonomous software entities in the opening environment. In the collaboration process, one important problem is how to effectively plan and adjust the topology structure among software entities to realize users' demand in the dynamic environment. Aiming at this problem, several aspects including the organization and the assembling of the software entity and the evolvement of the topology are studied in this article, and concrete works include giving an internetware collaboration framework and flow model based on the Petri net and the mobile Agent technology, where the integrated model of internetware entities based on the Petri net reflects the ordered organization of the internetware entities in the problem space, and proving the support mechanism for the dynamically assembling among software entities based on the assembling model with the XML format, and using the influencing factors and the dynamic operation rules to describe several basic system evolvement activities.


Abstract Burning mouth syndrome (BMS) is defined as a chronic pain condition characterized by a burning sensation in clinically healthy oral mucosa. Incidence BMS diagnosed in the Department of Oral Medicine - Oral Pathology Dental Faculty of Medicine, "Carol Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy Bucharest is 16,23%. The etiology of BMS remains far less known. This article makes an overview of the latest theories about possible etiopathogenic factors involved in the occurrence of BMS.


In order to estimate the individual noise exposure in a factory using several types of hand tools, it is unsatisfactory to measure the sound level emitted from the tools or to simply measure the sound level at various points in the work space. The authors tried to compare the results of a personal noise dosimeter, Rion Co. Ltd., Japan (type : NB-02A), with the results of stationary sound level meters, 10 channel noise dosimeters (Rion, type NA-76) and a digital sound level meter (Rion, type NA-76). Two workshops, welding and repairing by sixteen and fourteen workers respectively, in an airplane repair factory, were surveyed.The personal noise dosimeters were set to measure the time duration exposed equal to or more than 80 dB (A) and were carried individually in the breast pocket of each worker from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the same day. The exposure time data were also given from stationary measurement points.Sound levels of all the hand tools, for example, hand hammer, air grinder, rivett gun, air drill etc., were more than 85 dB (A) at the point of one meter (1 m) apart from the tools. So the sound from the tools will be accumulated from the time when the workers switched them on. The workers used the tools individually, according to the various work processes. Stationary noise measurements showed that 75 dB (A) was L50 in the welding shop, and the duration exposed equal to or more than 80 dB (A) was 109 and 97 minutes at two points. Measurements by the personal noise dosimeters varied from 103 to 221 minutes for twelve workers in the welding shop who used mainly hand tools. A longer term survey on individual noise exposures will give more precise data on the relationship between the noise dose and the noise induced permanent threshold shift of workers.


Let $E$ be a Bedford-McMullen carpet determined by a set of affine mappings $(f_{ij})_{(i,j)\in G}$ and $\mu$ a self-affine measure on $E$ associated with a probability vector $(p_{ij})_{(i,j)\in G}$. We prove that, for every $r\in(0,\infty)$, the upper and lower quantization coefficient are always positive and finite in its exact quantization dimension $s_r$. As a consequence, the $k$th quantization error for $\mu$ of order $r$ is of the same order as $k^{-\frac{1}{s_r}}$. In sharp contrast to the Hausdorff measure for Bedford-McMullen carpets, our result is independent of the horizontal fibres of the carpets.


MOTIVATION Cerebral aneurysms have presented considerable challenges to effective treatment since their first clinical observation. For some 100 years the only clinical solution was dangerous and often debilitating open-surgery in the form of a craniotomy. The safety and efficiency of cerebral aneurysm treatment was greatly improved in the early- 1990s with the introduction of minimally invasive procedures such as endovascular coiling. The development in the mid-2000s of low-porosity stents, known as flow- diverters, presented a more sophisticated treatment rationale that focussed on vessel reconstruction, and addressed cases that would otherwise be problematic to treat by other endovascular means. However, current designs of flow-diverter (and all known designs in development) are limited to near-identical products that risk under-exploiting the potential benefits of the treatment method. These devices are of a cylindrical, woven construction that necessitates a fixed mesh design, which means that any variation in design focusses on device porosity alone. As such, the precise hemodynamic mechanisms, and the resulting quality of aneurysm treatment by flow-diverter, are under-developed and poorly understood. There is also concern in the clinical community that the cylindrical nature of current flow-diverter devices may lead to daughter vessel sacrifice when used to treat bifurcation aneurysms. This thesis specifically focusses on the effect of flow-diverter mesh topology on the complex hemodynamic environment within the treated aneurysm, and the resulting implications for treatment success. METHODOLOGY In this study, a number of both novel and commercially available flow-diverter designs are virtually implanted into idealised and patient-specific aneurysm geometries. These devices are then modelled under realistic blood flow conditions with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) techniques. The devices chosen encapsulate a range of features that allow the effects of device porosity and device mesh design to be controlled for and evaluated independently. Conventional cylindrical devices are also compared to a novel, non-cylindrical device for the dedicated treatment of bifurcation aneurysms. The aneurysm hemodynamic environment both pre- and post-treatment is quantified with a number of in-silico measures, such as flow rate, velocity, pressure, and wall shear stress. Finally, a model of angiographic contrast agent transport is developed in-silico to begin to verify the complex flow patterns predicted by CFD simulations with the corresponding in-vivo behaviour seen clinically. A number of inaccuracies of previous 'virtual contrast' models, as presented in the literature, are addressed and quantified by comparison to a gold-standard in-vivo porcine model. RESULTS In a number of aneurysm geometries, novel flow-diverter designs are shown to out-perform current commercially available devices. The strong influence of device porosity on aneurysm inflow reduction is confirmed with a 10p decrease in device porosity correlating with around 10-20p reduction in inflow. Variation attributed to device design alone is also seen; in a number of geometries, differences in flow-diverter mesh design, at constant porosity, are shown to introduce approximately 10-30p variation in aneurysm inflow reduction. Such variation is significant and potentially very important to the development of future endovascular treatment devices. The greatest variation in inflow reduction seen across the device designs also corresponds to changes in vorticity and secondary flow effects. The flow reduction achieved by the novel bifurcation aneurysm device discussed compares favourably to conventional devices in half of the geometries simulated, achieving a flow reduction of approximately 30-70p. Across all bifurcation aneurysms studied, conventional devices produce a relatively uniform flow reduction of 50-70p. Little change in flow rates for vessels jailed by a conventional flow diverter suggest that concerns of daughter vessel sacrifice appear unfounded, at least immediately following device deployment and prior to any neointimal formation. A number of unusual flow phenomena, which are almost entirely unreported in the literature, are observed in several aneurysm geometries. In particular, the emergence of stable and unstable laminar flow patterns under stationary conditions lead to oscillatory behaviour in one aneurysm geometry. Pseudo-stable behaviour is also observed in another aneurysm geometry whereby steady state and transient simulations conducted under identical conditions converge to solutions with radically different flow patterns. A good in-silico prediction of contrast residence is possible for a pre-treatment aneurysm geometry, where mixing is prominent. Aneurysm flow patterns after device placement reveal large spatial-variation in contrast infiltration that challenge the validity of quantifying contrast residence with a spatially-averaged decay curve. The most significant source of error between aneurysm contrast decay rate predicted in-silico and the in-vivo porcine model is found to be the variation in parent vessel flow rate, and not the density and viscosity changes of the contrast-blood mixture. CONCLUSIONS In addition to porosity, flow-diverter device design has a substantial effect on aneurysm inflow reduction and aneurysm flow pattern. When coupled with improved knowledge of aneurysm thrombosis mechanisms, appropriate changes in flow-diverter mesh design have the potential to improve the success rate of flow-diverter treatment. However, the clinical implications of these effects are currently unknown due to the lack of design variation in commercially available devices. In cases of bifurcation aneurysms, conventional flow-diverter devices have been shown to equal or outperform a novel device designed exclusively for bifurcation cases. Although no immediate complications were predicted from daughter vessel occlusion, the long-term integrity of treatment with conventional cylindrical devices is uncertain, and dedicated devices designed to preserve daughter vessel patency may become necessary. The complexity of the flow environment within a cerebral aneurysm has been reinforced, and a number of effects have been observed that demand further investigation. In particular, the role that the observed flow instabilities and the resulting changes in aneurysm wall shear stress may have in aneurysm rupture mechanisms is an emerging area of the literature. Verification of CFD simulations with in-vivo results remains a significant challenge. The virtual modelling of angiographic contrast residence currently offers the best route to such verification; although contrast transport may be integrated into current CFD simulations with relative ease, washout behaviour appears highly sensitive to parent vessel flow rates. As such, any contrast-based validation requires knowledge of patient-specific flow rates, which begins to challenge how representative flow conditions seen during angiography may be.


The main purpose of this project was the eco-valorisation of the tomato plant residues. The chemical product design method was used to select the best idea based on 4 steps: needs, ideas, selection, and manufacturing.Liquid xylitol is here proposed for the valorisation of tomato plant residues, which is an alternative sweetener with a lower glycemic index that can be produced from the hemicellulose found in leaves and stems. Its production would require an alkaline extraction with sodium hydroxide, enzymatic hydrolyses using endo-1,4-β-xylanase, and yeast fermentation with Candida tropicalis.Liquid sweetener with 72% xylitol and other components (D-glucose, D-mannose, D-galactose, L-arabinose, and lignin), commercialised as NITS - Natural Incredible Tomato Sweetener, could be sold for 2.25 €·L-1 for companies and the same price per bottle of 500 mL for individual consumption.


This study aimed to estimate genetic correlation between carcass grading and retail productivity traits and to estimate the correlated response on retail productivity traits through selection for carcass grading traits in order to assess the efficacy of indirect selection. Genetic parameters were estimated with the data from 4240 Hanwoo steers using mixed models, and phenotypes included carcass weight (CWT), back fat thickness (BFT), eye muscle area (EMA), marbling (MAR), and estimated lean yield percentage (ELP) as the carcass grading traits, and weight and portion of retail cuts (RCW and RCP), trimmed fats (TFW and TFP) and trimmed bones (TBW and TBP) as the lean productivity traits. The CWT had positive genetic correlations with RCW (0.95) and TFW (0.73), but its genetic correlation with RCP was negligible (0.02). The BFT was negatively correlated with RCP (−0.63), but positively correlated with TFW and TFP (0.77 and 0.70). Genetic correlations of MAR with TFW and TFP were low. Among the carcass grading traits, only EMA was positively correlated with both RCW (0.60) and RCP (0.72). The EMA had a relatively strong negative genetic correlation with TFW (−0.64). The genetic correlation coefficients of ELP with RCP, TFW, and TFP were 0.76, −0.90, and −0.82, respectively. These correlation coefficients suggested that the ELP and EMA might be favorable traits in regulating lean productivity of carcass.


Motivated by the high capacity of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) broadcast channels, this paper investigates the use of only linear signal processing (and hence conventional codec) at the transmitter and receivers to realize the rich diversity (or capacity) of the channel. In particular, we combine a recently developed orthogonal space division multiplexing (OSDM) scheme and orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) to decompose per-subcarrier channel into many uncoupled single-user spatial modes. Issue like channel mismatches arising from pilot-aided channel estimation and Doppler spread is examined, and a method exploiting the frequency correlation of the channel to reduce processing complexity is proposed. Simulation results show that for HiperLAN II, the scheme can achieve good performance with four simultaneous downlink users at Doppler spread of 40 Hz (or speed of 8.5 km/h at 5 GHz).


The successive stages of a high-energy collision are conjectured to end up with chemical and thermal freezeout of the produced particles. We utilize generic (non)extensive statistics which is believed to determine the degree of (non)extensivity through two critical exponents due to possible phase-space modifications. This statistical approach likely manifests various types of correlations and fluctuations and also possible interactions among the final-state produced particles. We study the baryon-to-pion ratios at top RHIC and LHC energies including the so-called proton anomaly.


This paper describes the development and testing of Nonlinear Display Mapping (NDM), which is highspeed digital signal processing to quickly manipulate displayed images. The identification performance of observers using an automated algorithm and observers using NDM are compared. The observer utilizes NDM to improve image understanding. No algorithm or automatic method can optimize thermal displays for every environment, condition and target. Often, the manual controls are used when "auto mode" does not work well. The commonly available manual brightness and contrast controls are difficult to use and do not fully realize the potential of digital systems. Also, recent experiments showed that the auto mode might combine contrast shades such that targets or target features are hidden from the observer. Current display algorithms employ a wide variety of methods, including histogram equalization, local area processing, and region of interest processing. Non-linear Display Mapping (NDM) differs from these because it allows the user to manipulate the displayed intensity of different regions of the sensor output by real-time non-linear mapping to pixel values. The user can thus allocate or "tune" pixel intensities (gray shades) to output regions expected to contain targets. This avoids squandering the system's limited dynamic range on image features such as cold sky, clouds, trees or water. In other words, NDM enables the user to tune the sensor to the scene.


Internet supports all areas of human interaction, however; the omnipresence of this phenomenon could have a double-edged sword impact in our lives. Thus, evidence suggests that some individuals can lose control over the use of the Internet, and end up with a pattern of internet use that is also characterized "by preoccupation, conflict, withdrawal symptoms, and use of the Internet as a coping strategy" (Meerkerk et al., 2010: 729). This has been coined Compulsive Internet Use (CIU). Because of the high reliance that we have on the internet in our work and personal lives, we are faced with the challenge of identifying risk factors that make individuals vulnerable to develop a pattern of problematic usage. In this study we build on David's cognitive-behavioral model to examine those drivers in a sample of employed and recently unemployed individuals. Since the ultimate aim of this paper is to explain how work and technology can affect well-being, this paper fits in the investing in the future of individuals strand.


Field investigations show that the northern segments of the Chelungpu surface rupture zone form a right-stepping echelon with an antidilatational jog where the ground surface was flexure-folded during the 1999 Chi-Chi, Taiwan, earthquake. A circular well located on the jog was deformed into an ellipsoid shape, with the horizontal long axis oriented N70°-80°W, perpendicular to the strike of the main surface rupture zone. Deformation increases downward from the top to the bottom in the well. Based on the geometric characteristics of the surface rupture zone and deformed well, we interpret the well as having been deformed by a local NNE-SSW compressive stress in an antidilatational jog area, which was caused by left-lateral faulting in the NNE-SSW-trending right-stepping Chelungpu surface rupture zone. This study presents an example that the recognition and identification of jog between two rupture segments has the potential to provide new insight into understanding the controls and mechanisms of rupture initiation and termination during a large earthquake.

Manuscript received 26 July 2000.


High Risk Neuroblastoma is a pediatric cancer that arises from immature nerve cells. While low and intermediate risk neuroblastomas remain curable with high survival rates, high risk neuroblastoma (HRNB) patients have less than a 50 percent chance of survival. Due to this disparity HRNB patients undergo intense multimodal treatment, while researchers attempt to find the best variants and combinations of treatments that will improve this statistic. One factor of interest in treatment is the autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT). ASCT have been found to improve event free survival (EFS) when compared to continuing chemotherapy, however overall survival (OS) rates remain unchanged. Similarly, tandem ASCT has improved EFS significantly compared to a single transplant, while OS remains the same. While OS is the standard for measuring the efficacy of oncological treatments, with a cancer as aggressive as HRNB improved EFS is satisfactory. Thus, single transplants should be continued, and tandem transplants should be implemented when indicated. characteristics, including MYCN , contemporary induction, and pre-minimal residual disease (MRD)-positivity. This suggest that there is a need for reevaluation of stem cell transplants in the treatment of HRNB. concludes that ASCT does not have a significant effect on improving EFS or OS when local RT, anti-GD2 and are used for consolidation after dose-intensive induction chemotherapy and suggests reevaluating the use of ASCT in treating HRNB


Objective To characterize and evaluate CT and MRI features of extremity soft tissue adult fibrosarcoma. Methods CT and MRI images from 10 adult patients with pathologically proven fibrosarcomas were retrospectively analyzed with regard to tumor location, size, number, shape, margins, attenuation, signal intensity, and enhancement patterns on MR images. Additionally, the relationships between lesions, deep fascia, and change in adjacent bones were also assessed. Results Nineteen tumor lesions in 10 patients were selected for this study. Eighteen lesions were lobulated and one was oval in shape. Most cases were located under the deep fascia, including seven cases that had a nodular lump adjacent to the deep fascia and one case that had broken lesion through the deep fascia. On CT, the adult fibrosarcomas mostly showed iso-attenuated soft tissue masses (n = 6). On MRI, all the cases (n = 9) displayed low signal on T1-weighted imaging (T1WI) and heterogeneous low and high intensity signals on T2-weighted imaging (T2WI), with band-like areas of low signal on both T1WI and T2WI. On contrast-enhanced MRI images, three cases showed heterogeneous peripheral enhancement and one case demonstrated a spoke-wheel-like enhancement. Eight cases showed muscle edema signals in the peritumoral muscle and one case involved adjacent bone. Conclusion CT and MR imaging have respective advantages in diagnosing adult fibrosarcoma. Combined application of CT and MR is recommended for patients with suspected adult fibrosarcoma.


Developmental plasticity allows individuals with the same genotype to show different phenotypes in response to environmental changes. An example of this is how neuronal diversity is protected at the expense of neuronal number under sustained undernourishment during the development of the Drosophila optic lobe. In the development of the Drosophila central nervous system, neuroblasts go through two phases of neurogenesis separated by a period of mitotic quiescence. Although during embryonic development much evidence indicates that both cell number and the cell fates generated by each neuroblast are very precisely controlled in a cell autonomous manner, after quiescence extrinsic factors control the reactivation of neuroblast proliferation in a fashion that has not yet been elucidated. Moreover, there is very little information about whether environmental changes affect lineage progression during postembryonic neurogenesis. Using as a model system the pattern of abdominal leucokinergic neurons (ABLKs), we have analyzed how changes in a set of environmental factors affect the number of ABLKs generated during postembryonic neurogenesis. We describe the variability in ABLK number between individuals and between hemiganglia of the same individual and, by genetic analysis, we identify the bithorax‐complex genes and the ecdysone hormone as critical factors in these differences. We also explore the possible adaptive roles involved in this process. J. Comp. Neurol. 525:639–660, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


This paper deals with the design and implementation of a multilevel voltage source converter based static synchronous compensator (STATCOM) employing an effective modulation control technique simulated in a MATLAB Simulink environment. The main objective of this paper is to maintain the voltage stability by compensating the reactive power in the power system. Hence, a new efficient control strategy is proposed, in order to reduce the voltage fluctuations like sag and swell conditions and also to isolate current and voltage harmonics in the transmission system. The multilevel STATCOM which can be used at the point of common coupling (PCC), for improving power quality is modelled and simulated using proposed control strategy and the performance is compared by applying it to an 110kV line with and without STATCOM. Relative Harmonic analysis is also discussed in this paper based on the total harmonic distortion (THD) calculations.


Central nervous system (CNS) actinomycosis is a rare, serious, life-threatening, suppurative infection caused by Actinomyces species. Actinomyces are anaerobic Gram-positive bacteria, which can be normally isolated from the polymicrobial flora of the gastrointestinal- and genital tracts. They are considered very low virulent bacteria to humans. However, they can lead to several types of local or disseminated infections, if certain pathologic states or immunodeficiency occur. Intracranial abscesses caused by Actinomyces meyeri are rarely reported in adults. In this case report, we describe a 66-year-old woman who presented to the emergency department due to progressive complaints of altered sensorium and low-grade fever, due to an A. meyeri-related brain abscess. The only risk factor was represented by immunodeficiency due to the therapy with Methotrexate and steroids.


Periodic composites such as acoustic metamaterials use local resonance phenomenon in designing low frequency sub-Bragg bandgaps. These bandgaps emerge from a resonant scattering interaction between a propagating wave and periodically arranged resonators. This paper develops a receptance coupling technique to combine the dynamics of the resonator with the unit cell dynamics of the background medium to analyze flexural wave transmission in a periodic structure, involving a single degree of freedom coupling between the medium and the resonator. Receptance techniques allow for a straightforward extension to higher dimensional systems with multiple degrees of freedom coupling and for easier experimental measurements. Closed-form expressions for the location and width of sub-Bragg bandgaps are obtained. Rigid body modes of the unit cell of the background medium are shown to set the bounding frequencies for local resonance bandgaps. Results from the receptance analysis compare well with Bloch wave analysis and experiments performed on a finite structural beam with periodic masses and resonators. Stronger coupling and inertia of the resonator increase the local resonance bandgap width. Two-fold periodicity widens the Bragg bandgap, narrowed by local resonators, thus expanding the design space and highlighting the advantages of hierarchical periodicity.


The effect of monetary and fiscal policy on the output depends on the frequency of price changes. When the prices change infrequently or prices change slowly, monetary and fiscal policy have a real effects on the output. Developed countries generally have a rigid prices but developing countries have a relatively flexible prices. This difference is originated from the reality that the developing countries have higher average inflation than the developed countries. Economic literature focuses on the micro reasons of the frequency of price changes, on the other hand, the inflation is seen the main factor which affects the frequency of price changes in the macro perspective. This study holds down the assumption that the frequency of price changes is a function of the inflation rate in the macro perspective. In addition to this, it is also focused on the direct relationships between the frequency of price changes and the macro variables which affect the inflation rate. It is revealed the effect of macro factors on the frequency of price changes in this work. It is concluded that the determinants of the frequency of price changes in the macro perspective in Turkey are the expected inflation and the exchange rate rather than output gap. It can be said that firms' price frequency behavior directly depends on cost push factors in Turkey.


ABSTRACT Filamentous fungal genomes contain two distantly related cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase A catalytic subunits (PKAs), but only one PKA is found to play a principal role. In Aspergillus nidulans, PkaA is the primary PKA that positively functions in vegetative growth and spore germination but negatively controls asexual sporulation and production of the mycotoxin sterigmatocystin. In this report, we present the identification and characterization of pkaB, encoding the secondary PKA in A. nidulans. Although deletion of pkaB alone does not cause any apparent phenotypic changes, the absence of both pkaB and pkaA is lethal, indicating that PkaB and PkaA are essential for viability of A. nidulans. Overexpression of pkaB enhances hyphal proliferation and rescues the growth defects caused by ΔpkaA, indicating that PkaB plays a role in vegetative growth signaling. However, unlike ΔpkaA, deletion of pkaB does not suppress the fluffy-autolytic phenotype resulting from ΔflbA. While upregulation of pkaB rescues the defects of spore germination resulting from ΔpkaA in the presence of glucose, overexpression of pkaB delays spore germination. Furthermore, upregulation of pkaB completely abolishes spore germination on medium lacking a carbon source. In addition, upregulation of pkaB enhances the level of submerged sporulation caused by ΔpkaA and reduces hyphal tolerance to oxidative stress. In conclusion, PkaB is the secondary PKA that has a synthetic lethal interaction with PkaA, and it plays an overlapping role in vegetative growth and spore germination in the presence of glucose but an opposite role in regulating asexual sporulation, germination in the absence of a carbon source, and oxidative stress responses in A. nidulans.


Abstract. This paper presents the state-of-the-art technologies and development trends of wind turbine drivetrains – the energy conversion systems transferring the kinetic energy of the wind to electrical energy – in different stages of their life cycle: design, manufacturing, installation, operation, lifetime extension, decommissioning, and recycling. Offshore development and digitalization are also a focal point in this study. The main aim of this article is to review the drivetrain technology development as well as to identify future challenges and research gaps. Drivetrain in this context includes the whole power conversion system: main bearing, shafts, gearbox, generator, and power converter. The paper discusses current design technologies for each component along with advantages and disadvantages. The discussion of the operation phase highlights the condition monitoring methods currently employed by the industry as well as emerging areas. This article also illustrates the multidisciplinary aspect of wind turbine drivetrains, which emphasizes the need for more interdisciplinary research and collaboration.


: This chapter aims to enhance our understanding of the relation between public innovation and organizational legitimacy. On the basis of the literature, we formulate the expectation that top-down innovation results in strengthening of a bureaucratic logic to producing legitimacy whereas bottom-up innovation results in more emphasis on a network logic. To investigate this expectation empirically, the chapter analyses the introduction and use of social media by the Dutch police. The outcomes challenge the expected relation: top-down innovation resulted in a more networked arrangement for legitimacy. We explain this finding by pointing out that the innovation process was infrastructural and empty in content: the content was provided through bottom-up innovation. We conclude that combinations of top-down and bottom-up practices can form a conceptual lens for studying the involvement of different organizational actors in processes of public innovation.


In this report, we present evidence that the CTL response directed against MHC Class I allo-determinants can be inhibited as a result of IL-10 expression in vivo. The presence of localized IL-10 secretion at the site of allogeneic tumor cell challenge resulted in marked inhibition of the CTL response and allowed growth of the tumor in the allogeneic host. Using purified CD4+ T cells from mice immunized in the presence or absence of IL-10, we have shown that the loss of alloreactivity as a consequence of IL-10 expression results from the inhibition of CD4+ T cell function. The expression of either IL-2 or IFN-gamma with IL-10 locally at the time of allogeneic cell challenge completely restored CTL alloreactivity, suggesting that the action of IL-10 could be bypassed by providing helper T lymphocyte-derived cytokines of the Th1 type at the site of immunization. Inhibition of alloreactivity by IL-10 was observed using either purified macrophages or dendritic cells as APC in an in vitro assay. Thus, the expression of IL-10 following antigenic challenge (such as that observed in Th2-like immune responses) may profoundly limit the ability for generating functional CTL in vivo.


Abstract A form of contract law constitutionalization known by most European legal systems is the horizontal effect of fundamental rights and constitutional principles. This paper presents a comparative overview of fundamental rights adjudication in the private law of ten EU Member States. It draws attention to the spontaneous judicial convergences in contract law, which enable us to speak of the common 'fact patterns' of horizontal effect. This paper aims to demonstrate two theses: first, this horizontal effect is a pan-European phenomenon, not necessarily linked to a particular national legal culture. Second, horizontal effect in contract law is not politically neutral but inspired, at least in its application by national courts, by policies of social justice.


Three-dimensional (3D) object detection is essential in autonomous driving. There are observations that multi-modality methods based on both point cloud and imagery features perform only marginally better or sometimes worse than approaches that solely use single-modality point cloud. This paper investigates the reason behind this counter-intuitive phenomenon through a careful comparison between augmentation techniques used by single modality and multi-modality methods. We found that existing augmentations practiced in single-modality detection are equally useful for multi-modality detection. Then we further present a new multi-modality augmentation approach, Multi-mOdality Cut and pAste (MoCa). MoCa boosts detection performance by cutting point cloud and imagery patches of ground-truth objects and pasting them into different scenes in a consistent manner while avoiding collision between objects. We also explore beneficial architecture design and optimization practices in implementing a good multi-modality detector. Without using ensemble of detectors, our multi-modality detector achieves new state-of-the-art performance on nuScenes dataset and competitive performance on KITTI 3D benchmark. Our method also wins the best PKL award in the 3rd nuScenes detection challenge. Code and models will be released at https://github.com/open-mmlab/mmdetection3d.


The influence of the microstructure on the electrical properties and polarization behavior of thin porous ceramic electrodelayers used in solid oxide fuel cells has been investigated. Thin layers (2–10 µm) of the cathode materialSr0.15La0.85MnO3 (15SLM) were film coated on YSZ substrates from classified suspensions. Narrow particle-size distributionsin the suspension resulted in close-packed layers with a very homogeneous porosity and pore-size distribution. Thespecific conductivity of the layers decreased significantly with increasing porosity and mean pore size. A specific conductivityof 109 S · cm–1 was obtained at 1000°C for a 2.9 µm thick layer from a suspension with particles in the range 0.10–0.25 µm. The current-overvoltage behavior of the film-coated layers presented in this study did not, however, show anysignificant dependence on the thickness and the microstructure of the porous layers. Overvoltages (eta) at a current densityof 0.1 A/cm2 at 898°C were quite low, i.e., in the range 60–70 mV. In comparison with other studies it is shown that filmcoating improves the microstructure of the ceramic electrode layers, which in turn lowers the cathodic overvoltages forthe oxygen reduction reaction.


The objective was to evaluate subjective estimation and objective performance of drivers depending on Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) and driving experience. Assuming that during monotonous driving performance should be impaired with alcohol at a moment of alertness decrease, the hypothesis was that this impairment would be significant greater for Young Novice Drivers (YND) than for Young Experienced Drivers (YED). 16 YND (18 years, two months of driving) and 15 YED (21 years, 3 years of driving) participated in three simulated driving sessions in which BACs were randomly assigned (0.0, 0.2 and 0.5 g/L). Every session took place between 2 and 4 pm, around one hour after the drink. The circuit represented a typical highway road, the task was to drive during 45 min and to maintain a steady speed (110 Km/h) and a stable position on the lane. After each driving session participants estimated their workload (NASA-TLX questionnaire) and their subjective alertness (Thayer checklist). Driving performance was analysed for steps of 5 min. Results indicated that placebo session produced higher estimation of alertness, lower estimation of time pressure, physical demand, frustration and effort than BAC sessions. Driving performance was also worse with alcohol. A decrease of alertness and an increase of physical and mental effort were noted with the time-on-task. Thus, evaluation of alertness and effort during monotonous driving task were relatively well correlated with objective performance under the influence of alcohol and with time-on-task. YND had a lower subjective alertness level and estimate to have higher mental and physical workload than YED, their subjective performance and objective driving performance showed an effect of alcohol. YED performance and subjective evaluation are clearly sensitive to alcohol but also to time-on-task (combined effect).


Abstract Human capital in corporate governance is composed of both individual knowledge, skills and capabilities, as well as the experience of employees and management staff. The translation of human capital, namely the knowledge, skills and degree of involvement of employees, into positive organizational results is an objective of performance management. This objective is based on the relations between management and subordinates regarding the establishment of future tasks, the ways of solving them, but also on the benefits granted following the materialization of the results. Starting from these aspects, the present work aims to analyze the link of intensity that is established between the creation of the knowledge asset and its effective use in solving the tasks. In this sense, we proceeded to identify those aspects related to the structural elements of human capital that refer to the knowledge asset, the accumulation of information and its transmission between employees, because a correct assessment of the level of employee involvement in increasing the general level of knowledge of the enterprise will have a positive and direct impact in the surplus of financial results.


[1] A new glaciohydraulic model is tailored to Trapridge Glacier, Yukon, Canada, where long-term measurements of subglacial water pressure provide parameter constraints and a platform for model evaluation. Using digital elevation models and meteorological data as input, we investigate hydrology on diurnal and seasonal timescales. Quantitative comparisons of simulated and observed pressure records allow us to select a reference model objectively, from which we gain first insights into the gross spatial characteristics of the drainage system. Equilibrium simulations highlight target areas for water storage and potential sticky spots, both of which have established relevance to glacier dynamics. Seasonal simulations capture the key signatures of spring and autumn transitions and corroborate our understanding of the processes involved. Successfully modeled features of the spring transition include increased hydraulic coupling between the surface and bed with time, temporary augmentation of subglacial storage, and rapid subglacial transitions from a hydraulically unconnected to connected state. Autumn transitions are characterized by deterioration of the basal drainage network, drawdown of subglacial storage reservoirs, and heightened sensitivity to precipitation and surface refreezing. Finally, we draw attention to the important role of groundwater transport in cold glacial environments where permafrost can impede drainage from the ice margin.


【Objectives : This study is performed to develop the oriental medical rating scale of knee pain and to assess its validity. Methods : 250 knee pain patients completed the previously accepted rating scale of knee pain(VAS, WOMAC(pain, function, stiffness), 6 minute walk test(number of steps, distance)) and oriental medical rating scale of knee pain which was developed by Hwang et al at 2012, before and after the 6 weeks acupuncture treatment. Comparing these results, we assessed the validity of oriental medical rating scale. Results : Comparing oriental medical rating scale of knee pain before acupuncture treatment with VAS, WOMAC(pain, function, stiffness) and 6 minute walk test(number of steps, distance), oriental medical rating scale showed correlation with VAS, WOMAC(pain, function, stiffness) and showed the highest correlation with WOMAC(function). Comparing the change of oriental medical rating scale of knee pain after 6 weeks of acupuncture treatment with the change of VAS, WOMAC(pain, function, stiffness) and 6 minute walk test(number of steps, distance) after 6 weeks, change of oriental medical rating scale showed correlation with the change of VAS, WOMAC(pain, function, stiffness) and showed the highest correlation with the change of WOMAC(function). Through factor analysis of oriental medical rating scale items, 4 factors(pain, swelling, deformation of the knee, thermal sense of the knee), 17 items were extracted. Conclusions : Oriental medical rating scale of knee pain reflected the patient's pain, functional limitation and stiffness well. And oriental medical rating scale reflected the patient's functional improvement after the treatment well.】


Pilgrimage in this study tries to investigate from the perspective of cultural study, they are form (significant), function (application, interaction) and meaning (signifie). This study aimed to obtain information about the process of pilgrimage ritual at the tomb of Mbah Priuk, also trying to comprehend the function and meaning contained in the pilgrimage ritual activities conducted at the tomb of Mbah Priuk. The results obtained in this study show that all the informants who researcher encountered have similar view about Mbah Priuk. The people's motive who do pilgrimage, in general, is to pray and make Mbah Priuk as a mediator. The unique ritual done by pilgrims is throwing banknotes or coins into a small pond. In this ritual many pilgrims choose the pool eventhough there is already a place to put the money provided by the cemetary organizer.


To the Editor:— Your editorial "Toward Better Baby Burping" ( JAMA 190 :540 [Nov 9] 1964), is more remarkable for that which it omits than for that which it includes. With x-ray films it is easy to demonstrate that the gastrointestinal tract of almost any 2-month-old infant can be made to fill rapidly with gas by the simple expedient of causing the baby to cry vigorously for a few minutes. For centuries parents have believed that babies cry " because they have gas." It's about time someone pointed out that the cause-and-effect relationships have been traditionally reversed in the minds of most adults, including learned doctors.


This paper uses a general latent variable framework to study a series of models for non-ignorable missingness due to dropout. Non-ignorable missing data modeling acknowledges that missingness may depend on not only covariates and observed outcomes at previous time points as with the standard missing at random (MAR) assumption, but also on latent variables such as values that would have been observed (missing outcomes), developmental trends (growth factors), and qualitatively different types of development (latent trajectory classes). These alternative predictors of missing data can be explored in a general latent variable framework using the Mplus program. A flexible new model uses an extended pattern-mixture approach where missingness is a function of latent dropout classes in combination with growth mixture modeling using latent trajectory classes. A new selection model allows not only an influence of the outcomes on missingness, but allows this influence to vary across latent trajectory classes. Recommendations are given for choosing models. The missing data models are applied to longitudinal data from STAR*D, the largest antidepressant clinical trial in the U.S. to date. Despite the importance of this trial, STAR*D growth model analyses using non-ignorable missing data techniques have not been explored until now. The STAR*D data are shown to feature distinct trajectory classes, including a low class corresponding to substantial improvement in depression, a minority class with a U-shaped curve corresponding 3 to transient improvement, and a high class corresponding to no improvement. The analyses provide a new way to assess drug efficiency in the presence of dropout.


In this letter, we consider a population of digital nodes (such as phones, computers, etc.) that are under the attack of two competing malware. These malware infect the nodes in order to exploit their computational resources for specific purposes such as mining crypto-currency, cloud computing, etc. We suppose that each virus spreads following the susceptible-infected-susceptible (SIS) compartmental model. Additionally, we assume that the malware designers can tune the percentage of resource utilization from their host nodes. A higher resource utilization implies a higher instantaneous profit but will also lead to faster detection and elimination (node recovery) of the malware. Once the malware is detected, complete protection of the infected node by means of anti-malware software is also possible at a smaller rate. The proposed setup results in a non-cooperative game between the two players (the malware designers) trying to maximize their profit i.e., the resources utilized from the infected nodes. We characterize and analyze the Nash equilibrium for such a game using a time-scale separation approximation. Finally, we numerically validate the approximation and we compute the price of anarchy.


In literature there exists manifold techniques for measuring the permittivity of substrates. Printed circuit board (PCB) based methods like dielectric resonators are in general limited to determine the absolute value of the complex permittivity since e.g., a half wave resonator only provides information on the electrical length, which is inversely proportional to the square root of the absolute value of the permittivity. Additionally, dielectric loss measurements are more difficult, expensive and often limited to discrete frequency points due to resonance based measurement principles. In this paper, a PCB based dielectric loss measurement system is presented, operating from a few GHz up to 110 GHz, which is based on a differential measurement of a microstrip line on dense low temperature cofired ceramics (LTCC) and a microstrip on a LTCC layer with an embedded cavity. The cavity reduces the dielectric loss of the transmission line by replacing a certain amount of substrate with air. Subsequent electromagnetic time domain field simulations allow the dielectric loss assignment over the measured transmission frequency range.


Objective To determine the thickness of the calvarium in patients with spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks. Study Design Case control study. Setting University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Patients Those with a confirmed spontaneous CSF leak compared to non-obese (body mass index, BMI < 30) and obese (BMI ≥ 30) cochlear implant (CI) control groups. All patients had to have temporal bone CT scans that fit specified criteria. Intervention Bilateral volumetric analysis of the squamous temporal bone and the zygoma in all patients. Assessment of patient age, sex, BMI, and medical comorbidities. Main Outcome Measure Assessment of the average thickness of the squamous temporal bone and zygoma compared to control groups. Results The average BMI of patients with spontaneous CSF leaks was significantly higher than non-obese CI controls (43.73 ± 9.19 vs. 24.60 ± 3.10; P < 0.0001). The calvarium in patients with spontaneous CSF leaks was 23% thinner than both non-obese CI controls (3.29 ± 0.68 vs. 4.25 ± 0.58; P < 0.0001) and obese CI controls (3.29 ± 0.68 vs. 4.27 ± 0.68; P < 0.0001). In addition, the skull thickness of obese CI patients (body mass index, BMI = 37.34 ± 6.1) was not significantly different from non-obese CI controls (4.27 ± 0.68 vs. 4.25 ± 0.58; P = 0.92). The extracranial zygoma was not significantly different among the three groups (ANOVA = 0.9). In our study groups, 5.8% of both CI control groups had the diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), whereas 46.2% of the spontaneous CSF leak patients presented with the diagnosis of OSA. Conclusion Patients with spontaneous CSF leak are more likely to be obese, have the diagnosis of OSA, and show thinning of their entire calvarium that is independent of BMI. These data suggest an additional obesity-associated intracranial process contributes to skull thinning.


Rationale: Converging evidence suggests that cannabis use can induce psychosis and is a distinct risk factor for schizophrenia. Taken together with the effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on neural systems, dopamine and endocannabinoids it is likely that cannabis use may also produce sub- clinical psychosis-linked changes in a much larger number of regular recreational users; observable in schizophrenia-sensitive assessments. Use of the drug by individuals with genetic risk factors for schizophrenia appears to magnify the chances of pathology, and so changes in recreational users with one or more of these genetic markers may be more evident or pronounced.
Method: 50 cannabis users and 50 non cannabis users were assessed in each of two studies. Study one assessed selective attention in the Latent Inhibition (LI) and Kamin Blocking (KB) paradigms and examined schizophrenia-linked traits using the short form of the Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (the SPQ-B; Raine and Benishay, 1995). Study two assessed executive control (using an Anti-Saccade Test), decision-making (using the Iowa Gambling Task), and selective/sustained attention and inhibitory control (Continuous Performance Test). Study two included additional personality measures to explore paranoia, emotional processing, ambivalence and impulsivity. Across both studies, the relative contribution of seven genetic risk markers in five candidate genes for schizophrenia (DAOA, COMT, NRG1, FAAH and CNR1) were assessed.
Key Results: Cannabis use was associated with abolished latent inhibition and significantly riskier decision making, especially in those who used the drug more frequently. Cannabis users reported significantly higher scores for psychosis-linked personality traits and there was a dose-response effect with heavier users experiencing more of these schizotypal traits. Some key trends existed in the genotyping data for the cannabis group. The psychosis-risk C allele in the NRG1 gene was linked to higher SPQ-B scores and more errors on the AST; and was also associated with longer use of cannabis. Cannabis users without the protective three-way T-G-G haplotype COMT gene had higher scores for the SPQ-B disorganised thinking subscale than users with the protective haplotype.
Discussion: The data in this thesis suggests that cannabis users are showing differences in brain inhibitory function and decision-making akin to previous research with schizophrenic patients, their first degree relatives and high schizotypy scorers. Exposure to THC may contribute to changes in individuals by pushing them further along a schizophrenia-spectrum resulting in the display of more psychotic-like traits and cognitive dysfunction at sub-clinical levels. These preliminary findings need expansion and replication, particularly with regards to the COMT three-way haplotype.


The study group consisted of 8 men with congestive heart failure. They ranged in age from 33 do 63 years (mean 48). Three patients were in class III NYHA, five in class IV. Idiopathic cardiomyopathy was diagnosed in 6 patients, one individual displayed ischemic heart disease and one patient was after mitral and aortic-valve replacement despite a normally functioning prosthetic valve. L-dopa was given orally beginning with 250 mg every six hours until a total daily dose of 4.0 g was achieved with no side effects (patients additionally received 50 mg of pyridoxine hydrochloride). Afterwards L-dopa was withheld for 24-36 hours. Having completed this washout period, patients underwent right heart catheterization, with placement of a balloon-tipped thermodilution catheter in a pulmonary artery, so that balloon inflation allowed recording of the pulmonary capillary wedge pressure. Right atrial and pulmonary arterial pressures were monitored continuously. Systemic arterial pressure was measured by mercury manometer. Cardiac output was determined by the thermodilution technique. Rest and effort hemodynamic measurements were repeated before and one, three hours after administration of 1-dopa. The base-line hemodynamic values were consistent with the clinical presentation of severe congestive heart failure. The average cardiac index (CI-1/min/m2--rest--1.93; 25 Watt-3.1) and stroke volume index (SVI-m1/m2--rest--22.2; 25 Watt-32.0) were markedly lowered. Left ventricular filling pressure and pulmonary artery pressure were elevated. The systemic vascular resistance was significantly increased (SVR -j.W.--rest--22.7; 25 Watt-14.2). Administration of 1-dopa resulted in the increase in cardiac index and stroke volume index accompanied by a substantial reduction in systemic vascular resistance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


Acetaminophen overdose is the leading cause for calls to Poison Control Centers (>100,000/year) and accounts for more than 56,000 emergency room visits, 2,600 hospitalizations, and an estimated 458 deaths due to acute liver failure each year. Data from the U.S. Acute Liver Failure Study Group registry of more than 700 patients with acute liver failure across the United States implicates acetaminophen poisoning in nearly 50% of all acute liver failure in this country. Available in many single or combination products, acetaminophen produces more than $1 billion dollars in annual sales for Tylenol products alone. It is heavily marketed for its safety compared to nonsteroidal analgesics. By enabling self‐diagnosis and treatment of minor aches and pains, its benefits are said by the Food and Drug Administration to outweigh its risks. It still must be asked: Is this amount of injury and death really acceptable for an over‐the‐counter pain reliever? (HEPATOLOGY 2004;40:6–9.)


Modern intelligent systems researchers form hypotheses about system behavior and then run experiments using one or more independent variables to test their hypotheses. We present SIERRA, a novel framework structured around that idea for accelerating research development and improving reproducibility of results. SIERRA accelerates research by automating the process of generating executable experiments from queries over independent variables(s), executing experiments, and processing the results to generate deliverables such as graphs and videos. It shifts the paradigm for testing hypotheses from procedural ("Do these steps to answer the query") to declarative ("Here is the query to test--GO!"), reducing the burden on researchers. It employs a modular architecture enabling easy customization and extension for the needs of individual researchers, thereby eliminating manual configuration and processing via throw-away scripts. SIERRA improves reproducibility of research by providing automation independent of the execution environment (HPC hardware, real robots, etc.) and targeted platform (arbitrary simulator or real robots). This enables exact experiment replication, up to the limit of the execution environment and platform, as well as making it easy for researchers to test hypotheses in different computational environments.


The next review of exemption 8(e) about lead in high melting temperature type solders (i.e. lead based alloys containing 85% by weight or more lead) will be take place in 2014. An alternative to lead base alloy has to be defined before this dead line in order to comply with lead free regulation for automotive high power electronics. Lead free soldering is known to generate more voids than the current high lead content solder. Therefore, new processes, such as vacuum or forming gas reflow soldering, have been investigated in order to reduce the void within the solder joint and to improve the packaging reliability. First, this paper focuses on the lead free die attachment process optimization by using a die laser soldering technology, second on the reliability evaluation of the different test samples, and third onto a reliability simulation procedure for characterizing future assemblies. Several commercial lead free alloys have been evaluated throughout Design of Experiments considering the following quality criteria: porosity rating of the solder joints, thermal shock and power cycling tests withstanding. An acceptable lead-free solder solution is proposed for highly constrained power application. It satisfies both process requirements and reliability objectives compared to standard high lead solders.


The changing demographics of today's urban schools coupled with the corresponding shortage of bilingual teachers to provide an education for language minority students means that monolingual English teachers will have to carry out content area instruction for students with limited English proficiency (LEP) in the foreseeable future. This paper explores the cultural and linguistic complexity of teaching these students, focusing on the areas of social studies and history. It also provides a rationale for using oral history in classrooms with language minority students, offering examples from an oral history project being carried out with an extended Puerto Rican family to demonstrate the potential for such an approach. The oral history approach allows students to practice their oral skills in both languages, improves writing skills since students need to transcribe the oral tapes and summarize what is important, and enhances their knowledge of historical concepts because they can relate these concepts to real information from their own families or community. (Contains 16 references.) (BT) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ********************************************************************************


This paper is not a target by itself. It is part of a project to research and analyze certain aspects of foreign investments in different jurisdictions. In certain countries, some industries, such as car manufacturing, are granted specific treatment, benefits or incentives resulting from a kind of international competition for new investments. A movement that, sometimes, results in more benefits to the industry than to the country or the community where they are located, and which has been properly described as a "race to the bottom". When this phenomenon occurs within the boarder of a given country, some regulation may be effective. However, in the international context the questions gain much more complexity.These are basically incentives to attract new investments and they are ordinarily granted to specific market agents. However, incentives may be a "Siren´s song", attracting new entrepreneurs without giving them real protection for their ventures. In this sense, predictability and a stable legal framework may be an effective incentive for direct investments. New problems emerge from international transactions involving technology companies as well. For instance, Amazon, a global player has started operations in different jurisdictions bringing several legal challenges regarding transactions taking place outside (virtual environment) the country were the services are rendered or goods delivered. In other words, how to deal with operations conducted by a company with local presence, including distribution and logistics systems, but closed outside the country? In such context, it is essential that judicial decisions and arbitral awards be recognize as valid and enforced in different jurisdictions. In most of international deals, the parties elect specific rules for their businesses, such as CISG, UNIDROIT, Principles of European Contract Law, the law of one of the contracting parties or a "neutral law" from another country. At the same time, arbitration has been the most frequent method of dispute resolution in the international arena. Therefore, it is an important part of international transactions to enforce decisions taken in one jurisdiction in another country were the practical result is actually effective. However, in most of the countries, a foreign award must be acknowledged by local courts in order to obtain the "exequatur" of such decision. Usually, the courts would evaluate only formal aspects to ensure that a local resident had the chance to present a proper defense according to a "due process of law" in the foreign jurisdiction ("loci arbitrii"). The merits of the cause should not be disputed again in the place of enforcement, except in very restrict matters. Public policy is certainly the most relevant one.


This final project is written based on the job training which has been done in SD
N Palur 04. This final project discusses the process of teaching descriptive text
and the problems encountered in teaching process and the solutions to face the
problem.
The steps in teaching descriptive text consist of building knowledge of the field
(BKOF), modeling, joint construction of text, and independent construction of
text. The writer also involves the four language skills in the process of teaching
descriptive text
There are many problems faced in teaching process. Problems coming from the
students are lack of paying attention, motivation in learning English, mastering
the four language skills, and writing descriptive text. Problems coming from the
writer are handling the students and the material.
To overcome all those problems, the writer gives some solutions and suggestions
to improve the quality in teaching descriptive text.


A case study was conducted in 2006–07 to explore how one US campus implemented a centralised e‐assessment system. The study specifically measured the extent of adoption by faculty members, identified their reasons for adoption and evaluated the impact on teaching and learning. The purposes of the system, entitled researching learning (REAL, a pseudonym), were to measure student learning, meet accountability requirements and assist the university in becoming a learning organisation. An electronic database included programme assessment plans, results and sample instruments. The system also included a peer review process to improve plans by an assessment committee of faculty and administrators.


In the coming decades, a massive shift in the aging segment of the population will have major social and economic consequences around the world. One way to offset this increase is to expedite the development of geroprotectors, substances that slow aging, repair age‐associated damage and extend healthy lifespan, or healthspan. While over 200 geroprotectors are now reported in model organisms and some are in human use for specific disease indications, the path toward determining whether they affect aging in humans remains obscure. Translation to the clinic is hampered by multiple issues including absence of a common set of criteria to define, select, and classify these substances, given the complexity of the aging process and their enormous diversity in mechanism of action. Translational research efforts would benefit from the formation of a scientific consensus on the following: the definition of 'geroprotector', the selection criteria for geroprotectors, a comprehensive classification system, and an analytical model. Here, we review current approaches to selection and put forth our own suggested selection criteria. Standardizing selection of geroprotectors will streamline discovery and analysis of new candidates, saving time and cost involved in translation to clinic.


Indonesia is frequently seen as the country of what will be. It has enormous – and still largely untapped – potential with a huge and growing domestic market, a youthful workforce and an abundance of natural resources that make it appear to investors as one of the last great places for global expansion. Virtually every major American corporate brand name has sought a presence in Indonesia in recent years. From consumer goods producers to fast-food outlets, entertainment giants to technology and e-commerce players, many big international companies see being in Indonesia as a strategic necessity. Less visibly, venture capital firms and financial service providers find Indonesia a lucrative destination where the future seems almost limitless. As American companies seek expansion and new horizons in Indonesia, they join forces with established US energy and mining companies that have built vast industries here employing tens of thousands of Indonesians over several decades. In the process, they have provided a large chunk of government revenues. For all these companies, big and small, newcomers or veterans, Indonesia is a partner in their business future just as they are partners in Indonesia's growth and development. It is with that in mind that we engage with the government of Indonesia to promote a more vibrant investment climate and greater communication between US businesses, government policymakers and the people of Indonesia. We are on a mutual search with Indonesian policymakers and the private sector to find the right combination of policies and incentives that will allow investors to feel confident and welcome and will provide the government with the employment, revenues and growth it needs to succeed long into the future. This report, along with our other advocacy and engagement efforts, is our way of trying to unlock the door to progress. A joint AmCham Indonesia-U.S. Chamber of Commerce study in 2013 concluded that American companies had invested $65 billion in Indonesia over the previous eight years, making the US likely the country's largest source of foreign direct investment during a period of intensive growth. The same survey found that $61 billion was poised to come into the country given a conducive investment climate. Much of that investment – like Indonesia's own vast potential – remains in limbo, waiting for the time to be right. As friends and partners in Indonesia's progress, we share the concerns expressed by senior government officials about overly complex regulations that can stunt economic growth and blunt Indonesia's competitive edge in the race to attract the kind of investment that will make the difference between ho-hum growth and true dynamism. Frankly, the more the government tries to tell investors how to run and manage their businesses (e.g. ownership levels, restrictive manpower rules, curbs on finances, etc.) the less attractive the investment market will be, especially if there are other "easier" alternatives within Southeast Asia that would still give companies access to the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). As we go to print, we are encouraged by the deregulation and stimulus packages recently unveiled by the government. There have been four packages of revised rules and regulations so far with many more to come including changes to the Negative Investment List (DNI). This is all welcome. It is time, frankly, for bold steps to unlock the doors to renewed progress in the Indonesian economy. This report was another piece of Paramadina Public Policy Institute. We highlight challenges and opportunities in letting Indonesia grow better and better. The most important thing is the potential of bettering off FDI climate to support the development of the country.


Critical analysis questions literature quality through positive and negative critique. The paper guides students and novice researchers on objective critical thinking and writing for assignment excellence and publication acceptance respectively, and helps clinicians evaluate healthcare and behavioural literature thus taking better decisions for the patient. The article touches the hierarchy of study designs and the critical appraisal principles of causality, reliability, validity and execution including statistical issues. Moreover, it looks at other aspects like title appropriateness, standardised English writing style, data presentation, referencing quality and extraneous factors such as competing interests. Objective measurements should also be critically evaluated. Even a review paper of other peer-reviewed reviews has to be critically evaluated. Creating debate between authors is recommended. Triangulation and reflexivity are important for qualitative research rigour. Issues of originality versus repeatability and ethical aspects including risk assessment and sample size justification are appropriately covered. Critical evaluation questions what the research has contributed to society. An element of scepticism is essential for critical thinking. Critical analysis should first be applied to one's own work by going through a set of ask-yourself-questions.


In the study reported herein, we aimed to isolate a trypsin inhibitor from Ricinus communis leaves through chromatographic and spectrometric techniques and evaluate its toxic effects on the development of Spodoptera frugiperda larvae. Plant extracts were submitted to fractionation in adsorption column. The fraction 10, which showed the highest inhibitory activity, were incorporated into an artificial diet at the concentrations of 0, 0.06, 0.12, 0.25 and 0.5%, and offered to S. frugiperda larvae. Fresh weight of larvae, food consumed and weight of eliminated faeces were registered. Based on these parameters the following nutritional index were calculated: Relative Consumption Rate (RCR), Relative Metabolic Rate (RMR), Relative Growth Rate (RGR), Approximated Digestibility (AD), Efficiency of Ingested Food Conversion (EIC), Efficiency of Digested Food Conversion (EDC) and the Metabolic Cost (100 - EDC). The inhibitor at 0.5% concentration was deleterious to S. frugiperda , extending the larval stage in 11 days, with higher RCR and ECD, and lower RGR, ECI and ECD. Therefore, the trypsin inhibitor from leaves of R. communis affected the S. frugiperda larval development, being promising in studies of alternative and sustainable control methods for lepidopteran pest species. Keywords: Castor beans, enzymatic inhibition, integrated pest management, plant defense against herbivory


The collection of Floating Car Data (FCD) is very important for dynamic traffic forecasts. For this purpose, sensor notes in cars are supposed to transmit traffic information via Long Term Evolution (LTE). In this paper, we evaluate this data transmission with regard to several Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for a channel aware transmission. These indicators are the negative impact on human communication, the power consumption of the mobile devices and the local distribution of cars sending FCD in the scenario. As methodology for performance evaluation a close-to-reality parameterized Markovian model, laboratory data rate as well as power consumption measurements and ray tracing simulations are used. By applying channel aware transmission the Quality of Service (QoS) level of human communication can be obtained and simultaneously the power consumption is significantly reduced. In addition, the fraction of active FCD devices on the highway can be increased.


The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (formerly International Committee on Nomenclature of Viruses) has made decisions about family and generic names for viruses belonging to three families. Definitions and distinguishing features of these families and genera, as approved by International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, have been published in 'Intervirology' (Fenner et al. 1974). In order to disseminate this information widely and rapidly, a brief summary of the decisions follows.
Family Togaviridae. A family that includes all the viruses that were previously classified as Alphavirus and Arbovirus Group B (Wildy, 1971).
Genera Alphavirus = Alphavirus (Wildy, 1971). Flavivirus (note spelling) = Arbovirus group B (Wildy, 1971).
Family Reoviridae. Non-enveloped spherical viruses with genomes consisting of several pieces of double-stranded RNA encapsidated within a single virus particle.
Genera Reovirus (Wildy, 1971). Orbivirus (suggested by Borden et al. 1971; for description of genus, see Fenner et al. 1974).


Prion diseases have recently emerged as a significant challenge to health-care workers, including those involved in dentistry. Abnormal prion proteins are resistant to complete inactivation by conventional sterilization techniques. In the last decade, a new form of prion disease emerged in the UK, termed "variant CJD", thought to be acquired by consumption of bovine spongiform encephalopathy-contaminated food products. At present, CJD is an invariably fatal disease with no immediate prospect of treatment or vaccination. Of concern with the variant form of CJD, unlike the more classic forms of the disease, is the appearance of significant levels of infectivity outside the central nervous system. This raises concerns for the potential transmission of prion proteins via surgical procedures from individuals in the asymptomatic stage of the disease. This article reviews the existing knowledge base on the nature of prions, their distribution in oral tissues, and the implications for dental treatment.


Background: At the aim of this study, we investigated the effects of different kind of cytokines and the combinations of which on human carbonic anhydrase IX ( hCAIX) expression in HT-29 cell selected as colon carcinoma model for different doses and time of exposure to determine role of cytokines for treatment of colon carcinoma cells. Results: To sum up, h CA9 expression in the levels of gene and protein increased in HT-29 cells when stimulated with 1000 U/mL TGF-β for 24 h. The stimulation of HT-29 cells with IL1 α alone and IL1α- TGF-β combination has not revealed any effect on hCA9 expression in both levels of gene and protein in contrast to, 1000 U/mL IL1α-TNFα and especially TGFβ-TNFα have reducing effect on h CA9 expression level in HT-29 cells for time ranges of 24 h, 48 h, 72 h. In addition to this data, it was observed that HT-29 cells at the phase of G0G1 are arrested in cell cycle when stimulated with either of 1000 U/mL IL1α-TNFα and TGFβ-TNFα. Moreover, it was observed that h CA9 expression level in HT-29 cells decreases at the phases of synthesis (S) and G2M. Discussion: We concluded that combination of TNFα-TGFβ has created antagonistic effect on hCA9 expression in HT-29 colon cancer cell model. On the other hand, combination of TNFα-IL1α caused sinergistic effect on h CA9 expression level in this cell model. When these results are demonstrated decrease in the cytokine exposed hCA9 expression is a finding to develop a novel approach for anticancer therapy. Conclusion: Our finding related to the change in the expression of hCA9 following cytokine stimulate to colon cancer cell line gives an idea about the effect of cytokine stimulation on the expression of this gene which will be a hot spot research in colon carcinogenesis. Methods: HT-29 colon cells were chosen as a colorectal adenocarcinoma model. hCA9 gene expression in the level of mRNA was measured in cytokines stimulated HT-29 cells by Quantitative Real-time PCR. Meanwhile, hCAIX expression in the level of protein and cell cycle aassay were detected by flow cytometry.


Balearic Port Authority has developed an instrumentation system for the #8 caisson of the Botafoc breakwater that integrates 12 pressure sensors located at three surfaces, two in contact with the sea water and another with the bottom. This design was completed with an inertial system that measures the angular velocities and the accelerations over the three Cartesian axes. Consequently, the system measures actions (pressures) and reactions (movements and accelerations) experimented by the caisson, due to sea waves and/or other service loads. R+D department of the Port Authority and Polytechnic University of Madrid are working on two directions, the development of new theories on vertical breakwater design that go beyond Goda and Sainflou, and on the creation of a real-time critical structure alarm system, based on the instrumentation installed. This alarm system has two main parts: the instrumentation itself that collects data and processes it on real-time (the data processing compares the pressure law suffered by the caisson in every step process with the design critical state of the caisson, in this case the Goda pressure law for a 6.5 m wave), giving a security coefficient that points out the risk level on real-time; and the alarm system consisting of a monitoring panel located in the Port Control Center that shows the risk level and advises in case of an incidental evacuation of this critical portuary installation.


The paper presents a novel method of controlling switched reluctance generators (SRGs) for maximum efficiency with active current regulation. The effect of varying the input control parameters on the efficiency of the SRG is first analyzed through exhaustive data collection through simulation and experiments. The analysis of the collected data showed that the input control parameters that minimize the dc-link current ripple simultaneously also maximize the generating efficiency. A novel control strategy based on the analysis is then developed to maximize the efficiency indirectly through the control parameters that minimize the dc-link current ripple in real time while delivering the commanded generation power. The controller algorithm has been implemented with a 1kW experimental three-phase SRG drive system charging a NiMH battery pack.


The aim of this study was to measure the thickness of the hard palate and its overlying mucosa using cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), for purposes of miniscrew placement. The sample comprised 36 CBCT scans of patients aged 12 to 52 years from a database of the Orthodontics Department of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. Paracoronal views of the palatal region were reconstructed at 4, 8, 16 and 24 mm posterior to the incisive foramen. In each reconstruction measurements were taken at the suture, 3 mm and 6 mm bilaterally to it. Wilcoxon's test verified the differences between the selected regions. Total bone height decreased from the anterior to the posterior region. In cross sections 4, 16 and 24, bone height decreased from the suture laterally to the 3 mm region and then increased in the 6 mm region. The cortical thickness does not seem to be a concern because it presented a mean thickness of at least 1 mm at all sites evaluated. The measurements of the mucosa thickness decreased from lateral to median and from anterior to posterior regions. The most suitable areas for miniscrew placement in the palate are located 4 mm posterior to the incisive foramen, in the median or paramedian regions 3 mm adjacent to the suture.


A questionnaire relating to reasons for withdrawing from the University was administered to 627 University of Alberta students during the 1978-79 winter session. Almost half the students withdrawing were in the first year of their program, with the percentage of men and women withdrawing closely paralleling their representation in the intramural popula tion. Faculty withdrawal rates were generally lower than was the case in an earlier attri tion study undertaken in 1971, these decreases possibly reflecting recent quota restric tions. In decreasing order of frequency, the reasons for withdrawing labelled by students as "relevant" were as follows: to take employment or transfer to a different educational or training program, personal reasons (such as boredom, family problems, etc.), need for a break from studies, academic problems (wrong faculty, coursework irrelevant), failing courses or not measuring up, and financial difficulties. Six other reasons were included on the questionairc but were considered relevant by relatively few respondents. Some of the implications for universities interested in lowering their attrition rate arc discussed and the need to regularly monitor attrition is recommended as a readily available index of an institution's "health."


A recently formulated intermolecular potential has been adapted to describe the interaction of the N-methylacetamide (NMA) dimer and of the NMA-H(2)O adduct. The pure electrostatic component of the intermolecular potential functional representation is as usual expressed in terms of a set of punctual charges distributed over the molecular frames, consistently with the permanent molecular dipole values. In contrast, the remainder of the intermolecular potential is expressed in terms of Improved Lennard Jones effective pair potential functions, referred to multiple interaction centers (or sites) placed on the N-methylacetamide molecule and to a single interaction center placed on the water molecule. The characteristic of this pair potential relies on a mix of transferable and non-transferable descriptions of the parameters. The first set of parameters has a structural connotation bearing a site-site interaction nature and exploiting the molecular polarizability decomposability. The second one, depending on the particles clustering and charge distribution and transfer, bears a delocalized and ambient bulk nature. This choice has been tested against ab initio calculations and molecular dynamics simulations. The results show that the model potential is appropriate for describing the energetic of the various stable configurations of NMA-NMA and NMA-H(2)O weakly interacting aggregates, including the formation of hydrogen bonds.


Author(s): Guza, Robert T. | Abstract: It is shown theoretically that surface waves incident on a beach from deep water can excite edge waves. In particular, a monochromatic wave train normally incident and reflected on a beach of constant gentle slope is found to transfer energy to edge waves through a weak resonant interaction resulting from an instability of the incident wave with respect to perturbation by edge waves. The analysis is based on the shallow water approximation and ignores the earths rotation and consequently applies only to relatively low mode, high frequency waves. Coupling coefficients. frequencies and longshore wave numbers of the excited waves are given. In accord with Hasselmann's (1967) rule, only edge waves with frequencies lower than the incident wave are excited by this mechanism. Viscous effects suggest that an edge wave with mode number zero and frequency one-half that of the incident wave (a subharmonic edge wave) is preferentially excited. The minimum incident wave amplitudes for which this resonance can occur are predicted by consideration of viscous effects. Higher order terms, not studied in detail, suggest that an edge wave with frequency equal that of the incident wave (a synchronous edge wave) may also be resonantly excited when the incident wave is strongly reflected.Experiments show that a very strong subharmonic edge wave resonance occurs on nonerodable plane laboratory beaches when single frequency incident waves are surging and strongly reflected at the beach. Smaller synchronous edge waves occur when the basin geometry or viscous effects exclude the subharmonic. Neither type edge wave is visible on the beach face when the incident wave is so large that it plunges rather than surges, incident wave energy being dissipated in the surf zone rather than reflected at the beach face as assumed in the resonance theory. This observation is quantified, and leads to a classification of beach face dynamics into reflective and dissipative systems.Large subharmonic edge waves on plane laboratory beaches are shown to rearrange sand tracers into accumulations which resemble natural beach cusps. These edge wave induced morphologies, however, interfere with the edge wave excitation process so the edge wave amplitudes decrease as the cusps grow.Small edge waves can form longshore periodic morphologies by providing destabilizing perturbations on a berm properly located in the swash zone. In this case, the retreating incident wave surge is channelized into breeches in the berm caused by the edge waves.Various theories for edge wave generation on dissipative beaches with complex incident wave fields are briefly reviewed, and differences and similarities with the reflective beach case are stressed.