Residue number system (RNS) has emerged as a knocking field of research due to its high speed, fault tolerant, carry free and parallel characteristics. Due to these features it has got important role in high performance computing especially with reduced delay. There are various algorithms have been found as a result of the research with respect to RNS. Additionally, since RNS reduces word length due to the modular operations, its computations are faster compared to binary computations. But the major challenges are the selection of moduli sets for the forward (decimal to residue numbers) and reverse (residue numbers to decimal) conversion. RNS performance is purely depending on how efficiently an algorithm computes / chooses the moduli sets [1]-[6]. This paper proposes new method for selecting the moduli sets and its usage in cryptographic applications based on Schonhage modular factorization. The paper proposes six moduli sets {6qk1, 6qk+1, 6qk+3, 6qk+5, 6qk+7, 6qk+11} for the RNS conversions but the Schonhage moduli sets are expressed as the exponents that creates a large gap between the moduli's computed. Hence, a new method is proposed to for computing moduli sets that helps in representing all the decomposed values approximately in the same range.


The purpose of this study is to compare the mathematical formalism obtained by using linear elasticity with the formalism obtained by using large elastic deformation in the calculation of the stress in the myocardium. This study is motivated by previous results based on the theory of linear elasticity that have shown consistency in the calculation of the stress expressed as a sum of an active and a passive component. The myocardium is represented as a thick-walled elastic cylinder contracting symmetrically in which the active force is expressed as a force/unit volume of the myocardium.


Objectives
Pre- and post-migration environments have differing demographic, social and economic characteristics which can affect health (Figure 1). What level of variance in bodyweight is attributable to individual-, country of origin-, and state of resettlement-level factors?

Methods
We test what portion of the variance (as captured through intra-cluster correlations (ICCS)) in bodyweight is attributable to multi-level factors. Data come from the New Immigrant Survey (NIS), a nationally representative, longitudinal study of international migrants. The outcome of interest is BMI (kg/m2) (n = 7329). We utilize a cross-classified multi-level model approach (CCMM), where clustering in both country of origin and state of resettlement are modeled simultaneously using Bayes estimation.

Results
Preliminary results are based upon the public version of the NIS, which condenses states of resettlement into 15 states/regions and countries of origin into 27 countries/regions. For the conference, access to the restricted-access dataset will allow for expansion of level-2 clusters to include specific states and countries. Table 1 presents results of initial models for country-only, state-only, and CCMM-predicted BMI. In the null model (Model 1), the between-level variance in BMI was driven largely by the country of origin (4.3) and not by the state of resettlement (0.04). In the CCMM, the country ICC was 7.5% and the state ICC was 0.09% indicating that state-level variance was minimal. Throughout, estimates for CCMM are closely aligned with estimates in the country-only model, further indicating that country-level variance is playing a much larger part than state-level variance in individual-level BMI after being in the country for eight years on average.

Conclusions
The large share of the variance in BMI at the point of legal permanent residency in 2003 is attributable to individual-level factors. Some variance in this baseline BMI is also attributable to where an individual was born. This research helps contribute to our understanding of how environments shape health behaviors.

Funding Sources
Research reported in this presentation was supported in part by the NIDDK of the NIH. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

Supporting Tables Images and/or Graphs


s must be submitted by September 15, 1981, to: NWAVE Committee c /o William Labov Linguistics Laboratory 3732 Locust Walk Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 COLING 82: Call for Papers The Ninth International Conference on Computational Linguistics will be held July 5-10, 1982, in Prague, Czechoslovakia. The Conference is sponsored by the International Committee on Computational Linguistics, in association with the Linguistic Institute of L. Stnr, Slovak Academy of Science, Bratislava, and the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague. Papers are invited for presentation especially from the following domains: • theories, methods and problems of computational linguistics • relations of computational linguistics to computer science, mathematics, linguistics, artificial intelligence, etc. • representation of knowledge and inferencing as they relate to language understanding • applications of natural language processing: information retrieval, database query languages, question-answering, man-machine communication, machine translation and machine-aided translation, automatic understanding of texts, speech recognition and synthesis, etc. Four copies of a 3-4 page, double-spaced summary must be submitted by December 1, 1981, to: COLiNG 82 MFF UK, Linguistics Malostranske n. 25 118 00 Prague 1, CZECHOSLOVAKIA A Call for Papers, Panelists, and Suggestions for the 1982 NCC You are invited to attend and to participate in the National Computer Conference (NCC) to be held June 7-10, 1982, in the Houston Astrohall. Part of the famed Astrodomain complex, the Astrohall is touted as "America's largest one-level, air-conditioned convention facility." Its 550,000 square feet will help to fulfill the ever-increasing demand for exhibit space at the country's oldest and most prestigious computer conference. The NCC provides a unique annual forum for computer professionals in all fields and for data processing users to share their knowledge, experience, and research developments. In addition to the technical and professional program consisting of papers, panels, surveys, and tutorials, participants will find many other important features at NCC '82, including the largest exhibit of computer products and services in the world, a series of one-day professional development seminars, featured addresses and special conference activities. You can participate by: • volunteering to be a panelist • proposing a technical or panel session • writing a paper • suggesting special activities Deadline for submission of proposals for technical or panel sessions is September 15, 1981. Deadline for submission of papers is October 30, 1981. Authors will be notified by February 1, 1982, regarding acceptance. Send all submissions to: Dr. Howard L. Morgan NCC'82 Technical Program Chairman Department of Decision Sciences The Wharton School/CC University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104 Eurocon '82 to be held in Copenhagen The Fifth European Conference on Electrotechnics, will take place in Copenhagen at The Technical University of Denmark, June 14-18, 1982. The Conference theme is Reliability in Electrical and Electronic Components and Systems. The conference program will be structured in such a way that it will be useful to electrical and electronic engineers, marketing experts, and other persons who are concerned with research and development, manufacturing, and applications of electrical and electronic systems. 122 American Journal of Computational Linguistics, Volume 7, Number 2, Apri l-June 1981 The FINITE STRING News le t te r Announcements Further details of the Conference may be obtained from: DIEU, Danish Enguneers' Post Graduate Institute The Technical University of Denmark, Bldg. 208 DK-2800 Lyngby, DENMARK Sixth European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research The Sixth European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research will be held April 12-15, 1982, at the University of Vienna, Austria, organized by the Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies. There will be plenary lectures and symposia on General Systems Methodology, Mathematical Systems Theory, Cybernetics in Biology and Medicine, Cybernetics in Cognition and Learning, Structure and Dynamics of SocioEconomic Systems, Cybernetics in Organizational Control, Engineering Systems Methodology, Fuzzy Sets Meeting of the EURO Working Group, Health Care Systems, Semiotic Systems, Artificial Intelligence, Systems Research on Science and Technology, and Cybernetics and Philosophy. For a Preliminary Program and Call for Papers, contact the Chairman: Professor Robert Trappl Department of Medical Cybernetics University of Vienna Freyung 6 /2 A-1010 Vienna, AUSTRIA To get further information about the society, or to become an international affiliate, contact: Ms. Ingeborg Steinacker Vice President, ASAI c /o Department of Medical Cybernetics University of Vienna Freyung 6 A-1010 Vienna, AUSTRIA AI at EMCSR 82: Call for Papers The Austrian Society for Artificial Intelligence and the Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies are coorganizing a symposium on Artificial Intelligence at the Sixth European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research, April 13-16, 1982, in Vienna. (See announcements above.) Contributions concerning all aspects of AI will be considered. Acceptance of contributions will be determined on the basis of extended abstracts, summarizing the new material to be presented. Authors will be notified about acceptance not later than two months after receipt of the extended abstract. They will be provided with detailed instructions for the preparation of the full paper. Three reproducible copies of extended abstracts (2-4 double-spaced pages, 600-1200 words, in English), carrying the full title of the paper, the author's name, and the author's affiliation, in that order, must be submitted by December 1, 1981, to: Organizing Committee of the 6th EMCSR 82 Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies Schottengasse 3 A-1010 Vienna, AUSTRIA Austrian Al -Soc ie ty Founded The Austrian Society for Artificial Intelligence (ASAI) has been founded to promote the dissemination of information on AI, to facilitate cooperation between different AI researchers, and to support AI projects and training in Austria. Activities will include organizing lectures, workshops and conferences and issuing a (presumably) quarterly magazine. ASAI is organizing a symposium on AI at the Sixth European Meeting on Cybernetics and Systems Research (EMCSR 82) in cooperation with the Austrian Society for Cybernetic Studies. (See announcement above.) The symposium will be chaired by Patrick Winston, director of the MIT AI Laboratory, and Werner Horn, president of the society. Winston will also give a plenary lecture at the meeting. ASAI hopes to work in cooperation with people and organizations from European and non-European countries. Special SIGART Issue on Natural Language A special issue of the S I G A R T Newsletter on Natural Language Processing is being planned for next year. The intent of the issue is to provide a survey of current research activity in Natural Language Processing and Computational Linguistics. In February of 1977, Dave Waltz prepared a special issue of the Newsletter on this subject. People were asked to send in brief descriptions of their efforts. These notes were assembled and published, cross-referenced by topic. The result was a tremendously valuable compendium of current work in the field. Over 4 years have passed since the issue was published, so it seems appropriate to prepare an updated version at this time. Any individual or group that would like to have their current activities included is invited to submit a brief summary of their work. Submissions should include a title, names and affiliations of people involved American Journal of Computational Linguistics, Volume 7, Number 2, Apri l -June 1981 123 The FINITE STRING Newslet ter Announcements in the project, and recent or selected bibliographical references. Suggested content would be a summary of the main ideas of the effort, accomplishments, current focus, and future goals. Information about new or proposed projects is welcome, as well as information about work on languages other than English and from countries other than the United States. (Submissions must be written in English, however.) Summaries are limited to 3 double-spaced pages, including references and examples, and should be as brief as possible, avoiding details of representations, techniques and protocols beyond short examples. Long submissions will be subject to editing. Submissions should be sent to the Guest Editor at the address below (via ARPAnet if possible) prior to November 1, 1981. S. Jerrold Kaplan Computer Science Department Stanford University Stanford, California 94305


Abstract:This article examines negotiations over teak and rifle sales during the reign of King Mindon (1853–1878) to consider the relationship between religious formations and the economic control of teak in the last Burmese kingdom. This article focuses on archival documents from 1864–1865 that describe the Konbaung court's struggle to purchase Enfield Rifles from a private British merchant while the British government would not allow the guns to pass through its territory. King Mindon was finally able to buy a stockpile of rifles when he threatened to stop exporting teak—the tropical hardwood highly coveted by the British for its suitability to shipbuilding. King Mindon convinced the British that he had a special Buddhist right to reserve this particular timber for monasteries and royal buildings in Mandalay. This article argues that these Enfield-teak negotiations hinged on traditional Buddhist understandings of the king as owner of the earth (bhūmisāmika) as well as on a British practice of defining Buddhism as an elevated world religion. By studying the rhetorical strategies used in these negotiations—and in related commercial treaties and royal pronouncements—this article shows how control of material resources was established through expressions of concern for the future of Buddhism. Furthermore, this article examines documents from the archives of the American Baptist mission to Burma to reveal how the powerful teak industry worked with Buddhist and Christian institutions to promote particular political leaders, ethnic groups, and religious communities at the expense of those with less access to material resources and social mobility. This collection of Burmese, British, and American sources reveals the influence of teak in the fight for religious, political, and economic control of nineteenth-century Burma.


Background: Based on the role of bone marrow (BM) stem cells in regeneration of endometrium, refractory cases of Asherman's syndrome (AS) and endometrial atrophy (EA) may benefit with BM-derived intrauterine stem cell instillation. Aims and Objectives: To evaluate the role of BM-derived autologous stem cell therapy in endometrial regeneration and restoration of menstruation and fertility in refractory cases of AS and EA. Setting: This study was conducted at a tertiary care center. Design: This was a prospective, single-arm longitudinal study. Materials and Methods: Twenty-five cases with refractory AS or EA were included. BM-derived mononuclear stem cells were instilled into the subendometrial zone followed by oral estrogen therapy for 3 months. Menstrual flow and endometrial thickness (ET) were assessed at 3, 6, and 9 months and 5 years. Results: Statistical analysis was carried out using statistical software STATA version 12.0. Mean prestem cell transfer ET (mm) was 3.3 ± 1.0. At the end of 3 months, there was a significant increase in ET (mm) to 5.1 ± 1.9 (P = 0.001), but there was no significant change at 6 months (5.6 ± 1.5; P = 0.164), at 9 months (6.1 ± 1.7; P = 0.135), or at the end of 5 years. Six of the seven amenorrheic patients resumed menses. Three patients had a successful pregnancy outcome. Conclusion: Intrauterine stem cell treatment is a promising novel approach for refractory cases of AS and EA.


Coronary artery disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the kidney transplant population. We compared the long‐term outcomes of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for multivessel coronary disease in a contemporary cohort of US kidney transplant recipients. From the U.S. Renal Data System, we identified all adult kidney transplant patients with ≥6 months of Medicare A+B undergoing first recorded multivessel coronary revascularization from 1997 to 2009. The associations of CABG versus PCI with death and the composite of death or myocardial infarction (MI) were compared using proportional hazards regression. Of the 2272 patients included in the study, 1594 underwent CABG and 678 underwent PCI. The estimated 5‐year survival rate was 55% [95% confidence interval (CI) 53% to 57%] following coronary revascularization, with no significant association between revascularization type and death [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) = 1.08; CI 0.94–1.23] or the composite of death or MI (aHR = 1.07; CI 0.96–1.18). Separate propensity score‐matched analyses yielded similar results. In this analysis of kidney transplant recipients undergoing multivessel coronary revascularization, we found no difference between CABG and PCI in terms of survival or the composite of death and MI.


Three new iodobenzoyl derivatives of acebutolol, a cardioselective beta antagonist, were synthesized and labeled with iodine-125. The biodistributions of these labeled compounds were determined in normal rats and compared with that of thallium-201. Fifteen minutes following i.v. administration, the iodine-125-labeled meta- and para-iodobenzoyl acebutolols possessed the greatest ventricular uptake and the highest ventricle-to-blood and ventricle-to-lung ratios of the new agents. The corresonding values for thallium-201 were 2.5 to 3.0 times as high. The data in this study suggest that more lipophilic derivatives of the cardioselective beta antagonists will possess increased uptake and cardioselectivity, and thereby will compare more favorably with thallium-201 as myocardial imaging agents.


Game which is very efficient in each period of a child's development has a great importance. That is, game which is such an effective resource to facilititate his harmony with the outside world, contributes to discover a child's environment, be aware of his abilities when making new experiences and increase them, express his emotions and opinions when speaking, communicate with his environment, adopt some social roles. In this study, it was focused on the importance of game for children in the period which involves the ages 3-6, is called "Pre-School Period", in other words, "Game Period". The relevant literature was studied, based on the study findings about this period; a theoretical basis was presented about the effect of game on this period and evaluated as well. In light of this information, when considering the development levels of pre-school children, game must be given necessary importance for children to be healthier in every aspect. The characteristics to be given to children must be provided to them in amusing ways, that is, games as entertaining items of children. Depending on this, all activities must be done in a game format, not only game activities.


Empirical studies involving the Implicit Association Test (IAT) have often revealed a general implicit preference for European-American as opposed to African-American stimuli. While it has been pointed out that this does not establish the existence of an implicit negative attitude toward the less preferred target concept, the existence (or absence) of such attitudes is empirically difficult to ascertain. We describe a computational model of performance on the Race-IAT through which the influence of attitudinal positivity or negativity on expected IAT performance is explored using simulations in which the strengths and nature of target-attribute associations in memory are manipulated. Results indicate that IAT effects readily emerge from different patterns of implicit associations without any need for absolutely positive or absolutely negative implicit attitudes. Pitting a simulation of the standard IAT against a simulated Sorting Paired Features Task demonstrates an advantage for the latter in distinguish...


Commercial inactivated avian influenza H5 vaccine is used as an essential control strategy for avian influenza disease in Egypt. Since the initial outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8, the virus has diverged with new genotypes and variant viruses continuing to emerge which mainly stand behind vaccination failure. In the present work, four different commercial avian influenza vaccines were inoculated in specific pathogenic free chickens for assessing its efficacy against local highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 virus isolated in 2018 and 2020. Two hundred and forty specific pathogenic free chickens were clustered into four groups; each group was inoculated with the corresponding vaccine (60 specific pathogenic free chickens/vaccine). Sixty specific pathogenic free chicks were kept as control unvaccinated group. Sera collected from vaccinated chicken groups at 3 rd and 4 th week post vaccination were examined for calculating neutralizing antibodies using heterologous highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 2018 and 2020. At 4 th week post vaccination, vaccinated chickens were challenged; moreover, oropharyngeal swabs were collected from challenged vaccinated chickens to calculate the viral shedding. Our findings revealed the groups vaccinated with vaccine code n o 1 and 2 that contains two vaccine strains (H5N1 and H5N8) of local origin exhibited the highest hemagglutination inhibition titer, protection (%) and reduction in viral shedding titer when examined by highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 2018 while, vaccine code n o 3 induced lower antibody response, protection (%) and reduction in viral shedding, but still within satisfactory level when compared to previous groups. When highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 2020 was used, it was found the seroconversion rate, protection (%) and mean titer of reduction of viral shedding decreased in comparison to those recorded for highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 2018. Vaccine code n o 4 was impotent to either highly pathogenic avian influenza 2018 or 2020. Accordingly, it was recommended to update vaccine strain according to epidemiological condition and used the predominant circulating strain isolate in challenge test.


In the human body, turbulent flow is associated with many complications. Turbulence typically occurs downstream from stenoses and heart valve prostheses and at branch points of arteries. A proper way to study turbulence may enhance the understanding of the effects of stenoses and improve the functional assessment of damaged heart valves and heart valve prostheses.The methods of today for studying turbulence in the human body lack in either precision or speed. This thesis exploits a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) phenomenon referred to as signal loss in order to develop a method for estimating turbulence intensity in blood flow.MRI measurements were carried out on an appropriate flow phantom. The turbulence intensity results obtained by means of the proposed method were compared with previously known turbulence intensity results. The comparison indicates that the proposed method has great potential for estimation of turbulence intensity.


Background: Spectral-Domain Optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) provides non-invasive, high speed, high resolution, three-dimensional cross-section imaging of macula. This study was aimed to investigate the diagnostic value of multimodal imaging technique of three-dimension (3D) optical coherence tomography (OCT) (3D-OCT) for diagnosis and characterizing of acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Methods: The 3D-OCT examinations of 82 cases of acute CSC were performed on the macular area, and the image characteristics were analyzed. Our study included a total of 87 eyes from 82 cases of CSC patients, 67 males and 15 females, aged 27 to 56 years, mean age 42.89±7.80 years old.Results: According to B-scan images, 87 (100%) eyes had ERD, 38 (44%) eyes had bulge of RPE, 36 (41%) eyes had PED, 8 (9%) eyes had membrane -like structure, 2 (2%) eyes had subretinal dot-like precipitates, 1 (1%) eyes had focal choroidal excavation (FCE), and 1 (1%) eye had fluctuation of internal limiting membrane (FI). In ILM-RPE thickness map, all eyes had a round or round like regular uniform domes. Total of 57 (66%) domes were limited in exam area and 30 (44%) domes beyond the scope of this examination and only part of the dome could be observed. In the Shadowgram image, all eyes had a round or round like black figure that correspond with domes In ILM-RPE thickness map. In RPE surface, 76(87%) eyes had a shallow plate depression, 71(82%) had small focal uplift and 1 (1%) eye had a focal concave.Conclusions: In OCT ILM-RPE thickness map, Shadowgram, and RPE surface, acute CSC had special images and can be helpful for diagnosis and difference diagnosis.Trial registration: Not applicable.


The application of nanotechnology for the treatment, diagnosis, monitoring, and control of biological systems has recently been determined by the National of Health (NIH) as nanomedicine. The strategy of Nanoparticle delivery plays a significant impact on global Pharmaceutical planning and marketing. Polymeric nanoparticles are used to control the drug release, to improve the dissolution of poorly soluble drugs in addition to improve the bioavailability of degradable substances such as protein. They also enhance the uptake of hydrophilic substances across the epithelial layers and have the potential for intracellular drug delivery. The submicron size range of nanoparticles is not only suitable for parenteral application but also applicable for mucosal routes of administration, i.e., oral, nasal, and ocular mucosa which are non-invasive route. Thus nanoparticle formulations are more advantageous over traditional dosage forms. The main aim of the present review deals with the nanoparticles of chitosan, which is a natural and bio-degradable polymer. The review focuses on the isolation, purification, characteristic features, derivatives of chitosan, preparation techniques, evaluation methods and applications of chitosan nanoparticles.


Collaborative robots that can directly interact with humans have become a new trend in the robotics field. To achieve safe and friendly human-robot interaction, the compliant control of collaborative robots is extremely important, especially the compliant control of each joint. Also, the number of publications has increased yearly. In this article, we summarize the compliant control methods that have been proposed and applied in the robot system and classify compliant control methods into three categories: force-based which needs to know the joint torque/force and limited by the performance of force controller; model-based which can achieve high control accuracy but limited by the model accurate; external force-based which can increase the transparency but needs to know the external force. Then we propose possible future research directions.


With the advance in remote sensing, various machine learning techniques could be applied to study variable relationships. Although prediction models obtained by using machine learning techniques are suitable for predictions, they do not explicitly provide means for determining input-output variable relevance. The relevance information is often of interest to scientists since relationships among variables are unknown. In this thesis, we investigated the issue of relevance assignment for multiple machine learning models applied to remote sensing variables in the context of terrestrial hydrology. The relevance is defined as the influence of an input variable with respect to predicting the output result. We follow the classical conceptual definition of relevance, and introduce a methodology for assigning relevance using various machine learning methods. The learning methods we use include Regression Tree, Support Vector Machine, and K-Nearest Neighbor. We derive the relevance computation scheme for each learning method, and propose a method for fusing relevance assignment results from multiple learning techniques by averaging and voting mechanism. All methods are evaluated in terms of relevance accuracy estimation with synthetic and measured data. The main contribution of this thesis is a methodology for relevance assignment for multiple learning methods based on local regression, and the fusion methods better robustness.


Li and Shaked (2007) introduced the family of generalized total time on test transform (TTT) stochastic orders, which is parameterized by a real function h that can be used to capture the preferences of a decision maker. It is natural to look for properties of these orders when there is an uncertainty in determining the appropriate function h. In this paper we study these orders when h is nondecreasing. We note that all these orders are location independent, and we characterize the dispersive order, and the location-independent riskier order, by means of the generalized TTT orders with nondecreasing h. Further properties, which strengthen known properties of the dispersive order, are given. A useful nontrivial closure property of the generalized TTT orders with nondecreasing h is obtained. Applications in poverty comparisons, risk management, and reliability theory are described.


Purpose: To assess the ability of a noninvasive, objective, multimodal system to compare the efficacy and optical quality of 4 different groups of 5 over-the-counter tear drops. Methods: Wavefront sensing and optical coherence tomography (OCT) were used to objectively assess visual quality and tear volume, respectively, after the over-the-counter tear drops [2 polyethylene glycol (PEG)-400, 1 carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), 1 polyvinyl alcohol/PEG-400 (PVA), and 1 glycerine/polysorbate-80] were administered to 23 patients with aqueous-deficient dry eye in a randomized, controlled, double-masked trial. Measurements at each of the 5 visits were taken from both eyes at baseline and 5, 20, and 40 minutes after drop instillation. Results: At 5 minutes after drop instillation, the 2 PEG drops showed significant worsening of visual quality (−128.87%, P = 0.001) compared with CMC, PVA, and glycerine drops. Tear volume was elevated significantly with PEG and CMC drops at 5 minutes (+33.2%, P = 0.002; +29.9%, P < 0.001) compared with the other groups. Subjects with a Schirmer score of less than 5 mm at 5 minutes showed improvement in visual quality with PEG drops, whereas those with a fluorescein staining score of 1 to 2 showed improvement with both PEG and CMC drops. A trend toward decreasing visual quality with increasing tear meniscus was noted. Conclusions: Noninvasive multimodal imaging has the potential to evaluate tear dynamics and the efficacy of artificial tears objectively. Certain artificial tear components and the temporary increase in tear volume after instillation of artificial tears may contribute to transient reduction of visual quality.


Safety concerns in the operation of autonomous aerial systems require safe-landing protocols be followed during situations where the mission should be aborted due to mechanical or other failure. This article presents a pulse-coupled neural network (PCNN) to assist in the vegetation classification in a vision-based landing site detection system for an unmanned aircraft. We propose a heterogeneous computing architecture and an OpenCL implementation of a PCNN feature generator. Its performance is compared across OpenCL kernels designed for CPU, GPU, and FPGA platforms. This comparison examines the compute times required for network convergence under a variety of images to determine the plausibility for real-time feature detection. References Altera. Implementing FPGA design with the OpenCL standard. White Paper, Altera Inc., November 2012. http://www.altera.com/literature/wp/wp-01173-opencl.pdf Bittware. S5-PCIe-HQ user guide. Technical report, Bittware, Inc., September 2013. M. T. DeGarmo. Issues concerning integration of unmanned aerial vehicles in civil airspace. Technical Report mP 04W0000323, MITRE Corporation, 2004. https://www.mitre.org/sites/default/files/pdf/04_1232.pdf R. Eckhorn, H. J. Reiboeck, M. Arndt, and P. W. Dicke. A neural network for feature linking via synchronous activity: Results from a cat visual cortex and from simulations. In Models of Brain Function , pages 255–272, Cambridge, UK, 1989. Cambridge University Press. Khronos OpenCL Working Group. The OpenCL specification. Technical report, Khronos Group, October 2009. http://www.khronos.org/registry/cl/specs/opencl-1.0.pdf X. Gu, Y. Fang, and Y. Wang. Attention selection using global topological properties based on pulse coupled neural network. Computer Vision and Image Understanding , 117:1400–1411, 2013. doi:10.1016/j.cviu.2013.05.004 X. Gu, L. Zhang, and D. Yu. General design approach to unit-linking pcnn for image processing. In Proceedings of International Joint Conference on Neural Networks , pages 1837–1841, 2005. doi:10.1109/IJCNN.2005.1556159 Z. Li, R. F. Hayward, R. A. Walker, and Y. Liu. A biologically inspired object spectral-texture descriptor and its application to vegetation classification in power-line corridors. IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters , 8(4):631–635, 2011. doi:10.1109/LGRS.2010.2098391 A. Lu, W. Ding, J. Wang, and H. Li. Automonmous vision-based safe area selection algorithm for UAV emergency forced landing. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Information and Computer Applications 2012 , pages 254–261, 2012. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-34041-3_37 L. Mejias and P. Eng. Controlled emergency landing of an unpowered unmanned aerial system. Journal of Intelligent and Robotic Systems , 70:421–435, 2013. doi:10.1007/s10846-012-9767-5 L. Mejias and D. L. Fitzgerald. A multi-layered approach for site detection in uas emergency landing scenarios using geometry-based image segmentation. In Proceedings of the 2013 International Conference on Unmanned Aerial Systems , pages 366–372, Atlanta, Georgia, 2013. IEEE Control Society. doi:10.1109/ICUAS.2013.6564710 L. Mejias, D. L. Fitzgerald, P. C. Eng, and L. Xi. Forced landing technologies for unmanned aerial vehicles : towards safer operations. In Aerial Vehicles , pages 415–442, Kirchengasse, Austria, 2009. In-Tech. doi:10.5772/6481 US-OSoD. Unmanned systems integrated roadmap fy2011-2036. Technical report, Office of the Secretary of Defense, US, 2011. http://info.publicintelligence.net/DoD-UAS-2011-2036.pdf Z. Wang, Y. Ma, F. Cheng, and L. Yang. Review of pulse-coupled neural networks. Image and Vision Computing , 28:5–13, 2010. doi:10.1016/j.imavis.2009.06.007


This paper evaluates the effects of a high school curriculum reform on students' probability to choose Arts as college major. The reform was introduced in 2006 and involved, among other things, the creation of the Art and Expression track in the last two years of the upper secondary level, incorporating for the first time multi-artistic education as a high school diploma. Based on administrative data covering students from the Social and Artistic Area (ASYA, in Spanish) of the Universidad de la Republica (UdelaR) between 2004 and 2016, the empirical analysis is carried out by applying a difference-in-differences model. After controlling for sex, age and year of graduation from high school as well as place of residence, the results show that the reform increased the probability of choosing a major in Arts by 8.98 pp., conditional on choosing a free entry career of the ASYA, in students who finished public day-time high school between 2004 and 2010. Furthermore, being a woman reduces the impact of the reform, while finishing the secondary school in Montevideo Metropolitan Area increases it. The age of graduation from high school does not have significant effects on the studied probability. Based on Amartya Sen's (1985) Capabilities Approach and Akerlof and Kranton's (2000, 2002) Identity Economics, this research constitutes a first approach to the decision making process of students who chose arts in high school to later pursue university artistic formation. In this sense, the contribution to national production on educational evaluation, in general, and to the capabilities and identity literature applied to Uruguay, in particular, stands out.


Based on Slavoj Žižek's reading of Hegelian and Lacanian theories, this article analyses the concept of the sublime in the filmic work of one of today's most prominent filmmakers : David Lynch. We intend to show that the sublime in Lynch's pictures can be described in terms of what the narrative (the field of representation) fails to represent, to make sense of or to assimilate, that is to say what, by quoting Lacan, Žižek defines as the Real : the emptiness, the central impossibility embedded in the reality principle.


We present a method of terahertz generation in which both the amplitude and polarity of the terahertz pulse can be manipulated. A pair of temporally separated and orthogonally polarized collinear propagating femtosecond pulses with the same central frequencies are focused onto a (110) oriented ZnTe crystal. By adjusting the relative time delay between the pulses, the amplitude and polarity of the generated terahertz pulse based on difference frequency generation can be controlled. Theoretical derivation and simulation based on the one-dimensional propagation equation of the terahertz wave are carried out under simplified conditions of perfect phase matching, plane-wave approximation and no absorption.


Keeping cGAS silent Cells detect microbial and self-DNA in the cytosol as a danger signal that triggers immune and inflammatory responses. Paradoxically, a large fraction of a DNA-sensing enzyme called cGAS is tightly associated with the chromatin, especially during mitosis. Li et al. uncovered two mechanisms that prevent cGAS from being activated by the chromatin DNA (see the Perspective by Ablasser). First, cGAS is hyperphosphorylated as cells enter mitosis, thereby inhibiting its DNA-binding and liquid-liquid phase separation, which promotes cGAS activation. Second, chromatin-bound cGAS is unable to oligomerize, a process required for its activation. Together, these mechanisms ensure cGAS inactivation during cell division to prevent autoimmune reactions. Science, this issue p. eabc5386; see also p. 1204 Cyclic GMP-AMP synthase is inactive when associated with chromatin during mitosis to prevent autoimmune reactions. INTRODUCTION Cyclic guanosine monophosphate (GMP)–adenosine monophosphate (AMP) synthase (cGAS) detects microbial DNA in the cytosol to trigger innate immune responses. cGAS also senses self-DNA in the cytoplasm to promote sterile inflammation and cellular senescence. cGAS binds to double-stranded DNA in a sequence-independent manner, and the multivalent interactions between cGAS and DNA lead to their liquid-liquid phase separation and cGAS activation in the resulting liquid droplets. Once activated, cGAS catalyzes the synthesis of cyclic GMP-AMP (cGAMP), a second messenger that activates the adaptor protein stimulator of interferon genes (STING), leading to the induction of type I interferons and other immune mediators. Paradoxically, a large fraction of cGAS is tightly associated with chromatin, especially during mitosis when the nuclear envelope breaks down. How cGAS activity is regulated during mitosis remains poorly understood. RATIONALE Accumulating evidence reveals both cytoplasmic and nuclear localization of cGAS in cells. In the nucleus, cGAS is tethered to the chromatin through binding to histones that form the nucleosome core; this interaction has been shown to inhibit cGAS activation by chromatin DNA. However, it is unclear whether additional mechanisms exist to regulate cGAS activity, especially during the cell cycle transition. In particular, the nuclear envelope disassembles when cells enter mitosis, allowing cytoplasmic cGAS to mix with the chromosomes. Direct measurements of cGAS activity and posttranslational modifications at different stages of the cell cycle might unravel the mechanism of cGAS regulation and lead to a better understanding of how cells prevent inadvertent activation of cGAS by chromatin DNA, which might otherwise lead to inflammation and autoimmune responses. RESULTS Using a biochemical assay, we found that cGAS activity in human cell lines was selectively suppressed during mitosis. We further showed that when cells enter mitosis, cGAS is hyperphosphorylated by Aurora kinase B and other kinases at its disordered and positively charged N terminus, a region important for DNA binding and liquid phase separation. Mutations that mimic N-terminal hyperphosphorylation abolished cGAS activity, whereas those blocking hyperphosphorylation led to enhanced expression of interferon-stimulated genes. We also developed a split green fluorescent protein (GFP) complementation assay to detect cGAS oligomerization. Chromatin-associated cGAS could not oligomerize, which elucidates how chromatin tethering inhibits cGAS activity in live cells. We found that cGAS mutants defective in chromatin tethering were activated by chromatin DNA in a manner dependent on an unphosphorylated N terminus, underscoring the importance of the cGAS N terminus in sensing chromatin DNA. Unexpectedly, deletion of the N terminus from cGAS exposed a cryptic mitochondrial localization sequence that targeted cGAS to the mitochondrial matrix, where mitochondrial DNA activated cGAS. This result explains why cGAS that lacks the N terminus is constitutively active. Together, our results revealed that hyperphosphorylation and chromatin tethering act in parallel to suppress cGAS activity during mitosis. CONCLUSION This work presents direct evidence that cGAS activity is suppressed during mitosis through two mechanisms: hyperphosphorylation at the N terminus and chromatin tethering that inhibits cGAS oligomerization. Both mechanisms prevent cGAS phase separation into liquid droplets where cGAS could efficiently synthesize cGAMP. This fail-safe mechanism of inhibition keeps cGAS silent across the normal cell cycle transition, potentially thereby avoiding autoimmune reactions to nuclear DNA. Regulation of cGAS activity during cell cycle transition. When cells enter mitosis, cGAS loses its ability to be activated by DNA (top). During interphase (bottom left), cGAS is poised for activation by DNA in the cytoplasm (blue) but cannot be activated in the nucleus by chromatin (orange). During the G2-M transition (bottom middle), the N terminus of cGAS is hyperphosphorylated by Aurora kinase B (AurB) and other kinases, thereby blocking cGAS liquid phase separation and activation (red). Upon nuclear envelope breakdown, cytoplasmic cGAS is recruited to condense chromosomes and becomes further inhibited by chromatin tethering, which prevents cGAS oligomerization during mitosis (bottom right). +, positive charge; P, phosphorylation. The cyclic guanosine monophosphate (GMP)–adenosine monophosphate (AMP) synthase (cGAS) detects microbial and self-DNA in the cytosol to activate immune and inflammatory programs. cGAS also associates with chromatin, especially after nuclear envelope breakdown when cells enter mitosis. How cGAS is regulated during cell cycle transition is not clear. Here, we found direct biochemical evidence that cGAS activity was selectively suppressed during mitosis in human cell lines and uncovered two parallel mechanisms underlying this suppression. First, cGAS was hyperphosphorylated at the N terminus by mitotic kinases, including Aurora kinase B. The N terminus of cGAS was critical for sensing nuclear chromatin but not mitochondrial DNA. Chromatin sensing was blocked by hyperphosphorylation. Second, oligomerization of chromatin-bound cGAS, which is required for its activation, was prevented. Together, these mechanisms ensure that cGAS is inactive when associated with chromatin during mitosis, which may help to prevent autoimmune reaction.


Abstract
Purpose
To introduce the concept of cultural equity and provide a theoretical framework for managing cultural equity in multi-cultural markets.

Methodology/approach
Recent research on the social psychology of globalization, cross-cultural consumer behavior, consumer culture, and global branding is reviewed to develop a theoretical framework for building, leveraging, and protecting cultural equity.

Findings
Provides an actionable definition for a brand's cultural equity, discusses consumer responses to brands that relate to cultural equity, identifies the building blocks of cultural equity, and develops a framework for managing cultural equity.

Research limitations/implications
Research conducted mainly in large cities in North and South America, Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia. Generalizations to less developed parts of the world might be limited.

Practical implications
A very useful theoretical framework for managers interested in building cultural equity into their brands and for leveraging this equity via new products and the development of new markets.

Originality/value
The paper integrates past findings across a variety of domains to develop a parsimonious framework for managing cultural equity in globalized markets.


Abstract Background Fieldwork is a core element of health professional and education student training that is often a professional registration and practice requirement. There are many personal, social, and professional factors that impact on students' fieldwork performance. The impact of professionalism, resilience, and reflective thinking on fieldwork performance is not well described in the literature. Aim To examine the relationship between health professional and teacher education university students' perceptions of professionalism, resilience, reflective thinking and their links to fieldwork performance. Methods Ten focus group interviews were conducted with university undergraduate or master's students across four disciplines: occupational therapy (n = 18), pharmacy (n = 6), social work (n = 38), and education (n = 16). Thematic analysis was used to identify codes and categories in focus group transcripts. Commonalities of ideas and constructs were identified and interpreted to create meaningful themes. Results Six themes were identified. Fieldwork placement created real-world opportunities for developing technical and nontechnical skills, professional acclimatization, psychosocial traits, and behaviors for coping with the transition from student to proto-professional. However, these outcomes had consequences related to bridging the gap between university course theory and the reality of the workplace, adapting to cultural differences and local practice as well as seeking their own resources, supports, and learning. Conclusion Despite the personal, professional, and practical challenges of fieldwork, students independently establish mental models of professionalism, resilience, and reflective thinking, which support their fieldwork performance. However, developing these mental models should be underpinned by theory, and coordinated university and industry supports should be provided to augment this process.


When Leonardo da Vinci contended that fossil shells of Monferrato (Lombardy, Italy) were not left there by the biblical deluge, he argued the point by observing that neither live bivalves nor their empty shells possibly could have traveled 250 miles from the Adriatic to Monferrato in 40 days (MacCurdy, 1938; Cadee, 1990). Five centuries later, the approach pioneered by the Tuscan scholar has become a discipline in its own right: it will be referred to here as Actualistic Taphonomy. Taphonomy denotes the study of fossilization processes: a search for principles governing the transition of organismal remains from the biosphere to the lithosphere (Efremov, 1940). Actualistic denotes the study of present-day patterns and processes in search for clues helpful in investigating their historical records. Practitioners of Actualistic Taphonomy collect observations on death, decay, and burial of organisms in contemporary settings to aid and guide interpretations of diverse data offered by the fossil record.

This special issue of PALAIOS includes eight case studies representing a diverse cross-section of the research themes of modern actualistic taphonomy. All projects have been conducted in the same study area (San Juan Islands, Washington State, USA), and represent the efforts of students who attended a 5-week field course offered in summer 2002 at Friday Harbor Laboratories of the University of Washington (Fig. 1). The fact that the eight projects offer such a diverse spectrum of research themes despite the similarity in geographic setting and logistics is an excellent demonstration of the remarkable intellectual breadth of actualistic taphonomy.

FIGURE 1 —Diverse taphonomic research settings available around the San Juan Islands. (A) A sample of live and dead invertebrates obtained by dredging off the coast of San Juan Island (photograph by Adam Tomasových). (B) The well-sorted sand tidal flats of False Bay, San Juan Island; a few miles …


For most real-world applications, robots need to adapt and learn continually with limited data in their environments. In this paper, we consider the problem of Few-Shot class Incremental Learning (FSIL), in which an AI agent is required to learn incrementally from a few data samples without forgetting the data it has previously learned. To solve this problem, we present a novel framework inspired by theories of concept learning in the hippocampus and the neocortex. Our framework represents object classes in the form of sets of clusters and stores them in memory. The framework replays data generated by the clusters of the old classes, to avoid forgetting when learning new classes. Our approach is evaluated on two object classification datasets resulting in state-of-the-art (SOTA) performance for class-incremental learning and FSIL. We also evaluate our framework for FSIL on a robot demonstrating that the robot can continually learn to classify a large set of household objects with limited human assistance.


Current "regulatory reform" in the U.S. Congress is seeking to eliminate the Food and Drug Administration. The author discusses the forces behind this reform and traces the impact of campaign contributions from various industries opposed to FDA regulations, stock held by members of Congress in companies regulated by the FDA, and a variety of organizations with ties to House Speaker Newt Gingrich that have received donations from industries that Gingrich has helped in their efforts to loosen FDA regulations. The article also examines the myth that the FDA is an overzealous watchdog imposing unnecessary burdens on the companies that it regulates. The controversy over the cow hormone rBGH is given as an example.


With the collapse of the Soviet Union Kyrgyz agriculture went through deep structural changes and the new small subsistence farmers were ill-prepared, lacking technical knowledge and entrepreneurship. Pilot activities demonstrated that Integrated Pest Management (IPM) as topic for Farmer Field Schools (FFS) could effectively fill the gap in extension services and enable farmers to become more efficient and self-reliant managers of their scarce agricultural resources, not so much in the sense of reducing the use of pesticides, but to improve the management of their crops. The objective of this study was to develop an Impact Monitoring and Evaluation System (IMES) to measure the effectiveness of FFS in terms of resources allocation, participation, outcome and impact that could be useful for donors, partner organisations and potential FFS-participants, taking into account the Kyrgyz context and the particular framework of IPM FFS. In the period of 2003 to 2006, 174 Farmer Field Schools were conducted in Kyrgyzstan and altogether approximately 2600 farmers were trained. Since 2006, the IPM Farmer Field School approach in Kyrgyzstan is no longer in the pilot phase. There was a need to prove its effectiveness in improving farmers' livelihoods and conduct an outcome monitoring of the FFS. The existing monitoring system of the IPM programme in Kyrgyzstan focused mainly on results and outputs. However, farmers can best define indicators reflecting their livelihood situation and rating scales realistic to their specific condition, a participatory Monitoring and Evaluation within the FFS-group and a longitudinal (before/after) comparison was proposed. A spider diagram was used as a framework to visualise quantitative, rated core indicators, which were the basis of the qualitative questioning on reasons for changes, making it possible to attribute certain impacts to FFS-trainings. The generated feedback and self-reflection additionally motivates and empowers participants, an effect highly appreciated by the FFS approach.


The article considers the problems of evaluation of operability of cutting tools, used for multipurpose machining centers. The use of such systems allows to make automatic replacement of the cutting tool in proper time, ensuring the implementation of an automatic cycle of the machine.


Introduction Stroke places a huge burden on the socioeconomic systems. Hemorrhagic stroke (HS) is the second most common type of stroke and the second leading cause of disability and death. The updated data on the prevalence of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) stroke and related physiological risk factors in Saudi Arabia were limited. The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence of ICH stroke and the related physiological risk factors. Methods This was a retrospective, hospital-based, and chart review study that utilized the BESTCare system at King Abdulaziz Medical City (KAMC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Patients who attended the neurology department (inpatient/outpatient) between 2015 and 2020 were studied. The statistical tool JMP (JMP Inc., Cary, NC, USA) was used for data entry and analysis. Results Patient data (N = 1,870, 58.6 ± 13.87 years old) were screened for comorbidities, hypertension (66.1%), diabetes mellitus (DM) (57.7%), hyperlipidemia (28.4%), and history of an old stroke (22.3%). Ischemic stroke (IS) was more dominant than ICH stroke with ratios of 94.5% (n = 1767) versus 5.5% (n = 103), respectively. The prevalence of ICH stroke among the patients (n = 103) was 10.6%, 20.3%, 24.2%, and 28.1% in the age groups of <40, 41-50, 51-60, and 61-70 years old, respectively. There was a significant gender effect on the distribution of both IS and ICH (p = 0.003). ICH strokes were more prevalent in males than in females. Body mass index (BMI) has no significant effect on the prevalence of IS and ICH stroke (p = 0.081). ICH stroke was significantly associated with DM (p = 0.032), hypertension (p = 0.01), and hyperlipidemia (p = 0.002). Regression analyses show that only hypertension (positive association) and hyperlipidemia (negative association) were significantly associated with the incidence of ICH stroke. Conclusion IS was more prevalent than ICH stroke. ICH strokes were more prevalent in males than in females. Also, hypertension was the most common factor leading to ICH stroke, unlike hyperlipidemia, which was revealed to be protective against ICH stroke.


We investigate the effects of rare regions on the dynamics of Ising magnets with planar defects, i.e., disorder perfectly correlated in two dimensions. In these systems, the magnetic phase transition is smeared because static long-range order can develop on isolated rare regions. We first study an infinite-range model by numerically solving local dynamic mean-field equations. Then we use extremal statistics and scaling arguments to discuss the dynamics beyond mean-field theory. In the tail region of the smeared transition the dynamics is even slower than in a conventional Griffiths phase: the spin autocorrelation function decays like a stretched exponential at intermediate times before approaching the exponentially small equilibrium value following a power law at late times.


Fieldwork and interviews gathered over more than two years with members of the Garda, the Garda Inspectorate, and scholars of policing in Ireland, are used to assess the nature of accountability of the An Garda Síochána. Beginning with an overview of police accountability, the paper advances a perspective integrating the historical, emotional and symbolic aspects of police legitimacy and the extant mandate. While the Garda are well respected by the public, they demonstrate the power of politics, sentiments, emotions and memory in shaping this level of police trust and accountability. This is suggested by an analysis of the origins of the An Garda Síochána, their current status, their on-going dilemmas and their current resilience. It is argued that the Garda are sacred and viewed as legitimate as a result of their connections to the origin of the state. This fact insulates them from swings in public opinion even in the face of scandal. Their obligations to central government and a tight connection to national security insulate them from direct accountability to the public. As a result, efforts to produce accountability via case law, complaints systems and external assessments have had thus far only modest impact on the structure and function of the Garda.


A review of the methods for the most common parameters determined in wine—namely, ethanol, SULFUR dioxide, reducing sugars, polyphenols, organic acids, total and volatile acidity, iron, soluble solids, pH, and color—reported in the last 10 years is presented here. The definition of the given parameter, official and usual methods in wineries appear at the beginning of each section, followed by the methods reported in the last decade divided into discontinuous and continuous methods, the latter also are grouped in nonchromatographic and chromatographic methods because of the typical characteristics of each subgroup. A critical comparison between continuous and discontinuous methods for the given parameter ends each section. Tables summarizing the features of the methods and a conclusions section may help users to select the most appropriate method and also to know the state-of-the-art of analytical methods in this area.


At the dawn of the Victorian era, London Zoo became one of the metropolis's premier attractions. The crowds drawn to its bear pit included urban promenaders, gentlemen menagerists, Indian shipbuilders and Persian princes - Charles Darwin himself. This book shows that the impact of the zoo's extensive collection of animals can only be understood in the context of a wide range of contemporary approaches to nature, and that it was not merely as a manifestation of British imperial culture. The author demonstrates how the early history of the zoo illuminates three important aspects of the history of nineteenth-century Britain: the politics of culture and leisure in a new public domain which included museums and art galleries; the professionalisation and popularisation of science in a consumer society; and the meanings of the animal world for a growing urban population. Weaving these threads altogether, he presents a flexible frame of analysis to explain how the zoo was established, how it pursued its policies of animal collection, and how it responded to changing social conditions. Dr Takashi Ito is Lecturer in Modern British History, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies.


Without strength or warmth we die; food imparts these, and is proportionably valuable; hence it is "nutritious," that is, nourishes, sustains, supports life The elements of food which do this are called carbon, yielding warmth, and nitrogen, yielding strength or flesh. Butter, fat, and oil are almost wholly carbon—contain no nitrogen—can not make flesh or give strength ; on the other hand apricots, cherries, and peaches contain no car bon; A man who fed on them exclusively would freeze to death, would die for want of the warming part of nutriment. Meats give both warmth and strength, and so do most articles of food, but in varying proportions. For those who work, that food is cheapest which, dollar's worth for doL lar's worth, affords the most strength, the most power to labor. The in vestigations and experiments of Baron Liebig and others seem to show that one bushel of oats at sixty-eight cents a bushel, yields five pounds of the muscle, flesh, or strength element, costing thirteen cents per pound, while the same amount of " muscle," in the now common acceptation of the term, derived from roast beef, at twenty-five cents per pound at the butcher's stall, would cost two dollars and six cents! The Irish masses do not eat meat once a week, yet they work hard, live healthily, and when temperate, live long. The Scotch glory in oatmeal, and are a hardy race. One third of the human family live chiefly on rice. It would be as healthful as economical for the industrious poor of our land to live chiefly on cereals, as wheat, corn, oats, rye, and barley, and when they can afford it, have fruits and berries, raw, ripe, and perfect in their natural state, as desserts.


Background: Atopic dermatitis (AD) is frequently associated with skin infections that may be a consequence of an impaired function of the innate immune response. Conversely, the frequent bacterial colonization may also influence the systemic immune reactions, including the Toll-like receptor (TLR) system, through the translocation of bacterial components into the circulation. Therefore, we characterized phenotypic and functional properties of the TLR system in patients with extrinsic and intrinsic AD. Methods: The absolute number of surface CD14, TLR2, TLR4 and CD180 and the CD14-mediated uptake of bodipy-labeled endotoxin and bacteria by whole blood leukocytes was studied by flow cytometry. We measured the serum soluble CD14 concentration by an inhibitory flow cytometric method. Results: We observed a significant overexpression of TLR2 and TLR4 on monocytes, TLR2 and CD14 on granulocytes and CD180 on lymphocytes of intrinsic AD patients compared to healthy controls. The serum soluble CD14 was not different in the intrinsic AD patients, while it was diminished in the extrinsic AD group compared to the controls. The endotoxin and bacterium uptake showed no differences. Conclusions: The observed upregulation of CD14, TLR2, TLR4 and CD180 on peripheral leukocytes seems to be rather a consequence than the cause of the repeated bacterial infections in AD.


In this treatise we demonstrate, how a high spatial and frequency diversity can be achieved by combining differential space-time block coding (DSTBC) and fast frequency hopping (FFH). The proposed FFH assisted DSTBC scheme is capable of achieving a high diversity order given by the product of the frequency diversity order achieved by FFH and by the spatial diversity order offered by the DSTBC arrangement. Hence, the system is capable of exploiting the advantages of both DSTBC and FFH. Furthermore it is less vulnerable to some of their individual disadvantages, such as the performance degradation of DSTBC due to fast fading and the large bandwidth requirement of the FFH system. The proposed system also benefits from the employment of sphere packing and iterative turbo detection


Due to the advancement of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, robots, autonomous vehicles, healthcare, virtual reality, augmented reality, etc. and the popularization of smartphones, it stimulates customer interest and leads voluntary participation in order to maximize interactive communication in all industries The gamification strategy incorporating games began to emerge. A representative field that generates results by easily introducing such a gamification strategy is the education industry that seeks to improve the educational effect by utilizing the elements of corporate marketing strategies and games such as challenge, competition, achievement, and reward. Recently, gamification research is being conducted to effectively apply AI and big data, the core technologies of the 4th industrial revolution in all industries. Gamification is actively forming markets in Europe and the US, and it can increase customer loyalty and productivity by applying various roles applied to games in other industries as well as serious games. The purpose of this study is to design and implement a gamification service platform based on artificial intelligence technology and operate the implemented system to expand the area where the gamification service applied to the existing marketing and consulting fields can be used. The designed gamification service platform can be applied to education services that increase learning efficiency by analyzing the predicted learning attitudes of trainees, and through successful research cases, it will be able to provide immersion effect to trainees and teaching method research to educators.


Many of rural Alaskan communities operate their own, stand-alone electrical microgrids as there is no state-wide power distribution network. Although the fossil fuel-based power generators are the primary energy source in these isolated communities, an increasing number of microgrids have started to diversify their power supply by including renewable wind, hydro and photovoltaic energy sources. The integration and optimization of the multiple energy sources requires a design of a new power management system that can anticipate how much electricity will be drawn by the community and how much electricity will be generated from the renewable sources in order to control the fossil fuel-based generators to meet the community power demand. To address this problem, we designed a hybrid machine learning algorithm to predict community power draw as one module for the next generation microgrid power management system. The algorithm divides the task of a power load prediction into two sub-models: the first temporal model predicts the future weather conditions and the second model is trained to associate the predicted weather conditions with the community power demand. The results illustrate (1) the feasibility of building a machine learning algorithm that uses relatively small data for model training and validation, (2) the ability to predict the near-future community power load for the microgrids operating in the environments with highly dynamic weather conditions and (3) how the integration of multiple low quality future weather conditions produced high accuracy power load prediction.


Short peptides are attractive building blocks for supramolecular biomaterials for their low-cost, scalability of production and purification, possibility to encode biological messages, and to be processed by enzymes to fine-tune their lifetime toward controlled biodegradation. Over the last few decades, great progress has been made in the understanding of these building blocks for their tailored design to a variety of biological applications. This chapter reviews the design strategies to achieve hydrogels that have been applied to address a variety of biomedical needs. As more knowledge has been gathered in the field, a higher complexity could be achieved, for instance to target subcellular organelles, specific cells, and even to stimulate the immune response. Overall, self-assembling short peptides are reaching their full potential and have opened the gates to new paradigms in therapy to realize futuristic medicine.


and key words Working on a feasibility study of wheatears counting, a colour component texture's analysis method was developed. The agronomic goal is yield prediction before harvest evaluating mean number of wheatears per squared meter according to the field variation knowledge. To this counting system, we evaluate six textural parameters (two statistical parameters and four Haralick features from co-occurrence matrix) on the main colour systems and vegetation indices used in agronomic applications. A new hybrid system provides a representation of wheatears' pictures taken under natural conditions with a better extraction of wheat. A method based on distances measurements (Euclidian, Mahalanobis) allows to extract wheatears with few errors corrected by mathematical morphology. Although we encounter difficulties from light intensity's variation and high entropy in the scene (ears' covering and shadows), results allow to extract disturbed wheatears and last recent images give an higher accuracy in segmentation.


Academic libraries are going through major changes and leadership of these libraries plays a vital role. In the past, academic library directors' strategic decision-making process has been infrequently researched. This study researched academic library directors' strategic decision-making process and resources. During this pilot project, seven LIBER member library directors from five different countries were interviewed. As a result, two main generalizations based on these interviews can be made. First, academic library directors use various resources to make strategic decisions and second, library directors are not individualists who make important decisions alone; instead, early in the decision-making process they involve their staff and library stakeholder as well as users.


Coarse-grained protein lattice models approximate atomistic details and keep the essential interactions. They are, therefore, suitable for capturing generic features of protein folding and amyloid formation at low computational cost. As our aim is to study the critical nucleus sizes of two experimentally well-characterized peptide fragments Aβ16-22 and Aβ37-42 of the full length Aβ1-42 Alzheimer's peptide, it is important that simulations with the lattice model reproduce all-atom simulations. In this study, we present a comprehensive force field parameterization based on the OPEP (Optimized Potential for Efficient protein structure Prediction) force field for an on-lattice protein model, which incorporates explicitly the formation of hydrogen bonds and directions of side-chains. Our bottom-up approach starts with the determination of the best lattice force parameters for the Aβ16-22 dimer by fitting its equilibrium parallel and anti-parallel β-sheet populations to all-atom simulation results. Surprisingly, the calibrated force field is transferable to the trimer of Aβ16-22 and the dimer and trimer of Aβ37-42. Encouraged by this finding, we characterized the free energy landscapes of the two decamers. The dominant structure of the Aβ16-22 decamer matches the microcrystal structure. Pushing the simulations for aggregates between 4-mer and 12-mer suggests a nucleus size for fibril formation of 10 chains. In contrast, the Aβ37-42 decamer is largely disordered with mixed by parallel and antiparallel chains, suggesting that the nucleus size is >10 peptides. Our refined force field coupled to this on-lattice model should provide useful insights into the critical nucleation number associated with neurodegenerative diseases.


The persistence of social disparities in educational achievement in contemporary societies is a matter of concern to social theory. Sociology of education has distinguished between the primary and secondary effects of socialization in order to construct explanatory theories of inequality of educational opportunity. Empirical evidence from the recent OECD PISA research is analysed to suggest that causes of the primary effect are the most important. The case is made with close reference to Goldthorpe's attempt to provide a rational action model of social disparities in education. An approach informed by scientific realism is held to offer a more adequate explanation.


handwriting, show distinct improvement, while the translation, introduction, and notes are all printed in a good clear type. The Kitab al-Hiyal fVl-Fiqh appears to be the only work of this kind belonging to the Shafi'ite sect which has survived, and even it has only survived in one single MS. belonging to the Sprenger Collection in the Staatsbibliothek at Berlin. The author, al-QazwInl, died somewhere between A.H. 440 and 460, and of course used earlier authorities for his work; the MS. is dated A.H. 1140 (A.D. 1727), but fortunately gives a good sound text. The translation and annotation appears to be scholarly and sound, and both Herr Schacht and his teacher, Professor Bergstrasser, are to be congratulated.


After the report of an outbreak of dengue virus serotype 2 in 2014 in Nampula and Pemba cities, northern Mozambique, a surveillance system was established by the National Institute of Health. A study was performed during 2015-2016 to monitor the trend of the outbreak and confirm the circulating serotype of dengue virus (DENV). After the inclusion of consenting patients who met the case definition, samples from 192 patients were tested for the presence of nonstructural protein 1 antigen, and 60/192 (31%) samples were positive. Further analysis included DENV IgM antibodies, with 39 (20%) IgM positive cases. Reverse transcriptase (RT) PCR was performed for identification of the prevailing DENV serotype; 21/23 tested samples were DENV-2 positive, with DENV-2 present in both affected cities. When sequencing DENV, phenotype Cosmopolitan was identified. The surveillance indicates ongoing spread of DENV-2 in northern Mozambique 2 years after the first report of the outbreak.


A mathematical model of silicon Schottky barrier FET with submicron scales is developed. The model allows to calculate the integral and differential characteristics taking into account the transport and localization processes as well as an investigation of different operating modes. The simulation carries out by PIC method in kinematical approximation.


IEEE 802.16 OFDMA systems have gained much attention for their ability to support high transmission rates and broadband access services. For multiuser environments, IEEE 802.16 OFDMA systems require a resource allocation algorithm to use the limited downlink resource efficiently. The IEEE 802.16 standard defines that resource allocation should be performed with a rectangle region of slots, called a burst. However, the standard does not specify how to construct bursts. In this paper, we propose a heuristic burst construction algorithm, called HuB, to improve the downlink capacity in IEEE 802.16 OFDMA systems. To increase the downlink capacity, during burst constructions HuB reduces resource wastage by considering padded slots and unused slots and reduces resource usage by considering the power boosting possibility. For simple burst constructions, HuB makes a HuB-tree, in which a node represents an available downlink resource and edges of a node represent a burst rectangle region. Thus, making child nodes of a parent node is the same as constructing a burst in a given downlink resource. We analyzed the proposed algorithm and performed simulations to compare the performance of the proposed algorithm with existing algorithms. Our simulation study results show that HuB shows improved downlink capacity over existing algorithms.


Most medical events in prostate seed brachytherapy may be attributed to physician or physicist error, but human failures resulting in patient harm often can be attributed to inadequate mechanisms to prevent failures from propagating to the patient. Quality assurance (QA) of permanent seed brachytherapy is particularly important because this modality, unique to radiotherapy, leaves a permanent record of the implant quality within the patient. This symposium aims to review the properties of permanent LDR brachytherapy that have made it so successful and the challenges that have prevented the full realization of its theoretical advantages. The temporal interplay between radioactive decay, resolution rate of procedure‐induced edema, and cellular processes will be discussed along with their effect on the design and evaluation of LDR prostate brachytherapy. Recent recommendations of AAPM TG‐137 on prostate brachytherapytreatment planning and dose reporting will be reviewed. An analysis of actual medical events and typical errors, for example seed strength in the plan versus the strength ordered versus the strength implanted, will help focus on critical components of the process map. A methodology to score failure modes and effects via the product of Likelihood × Severity × Undetectability will allow users to score procedural steps dynamically. Quality control steps such as second checks or calibrations will be seen as vital in keeping the scores below a level of concern. Finally, the physicist has a responsibility to offer suggestions to improve dosimetry when systematic trends are evident and to identify and report errors. Learning objectives: 1. Discuss recent developments and insights in LDR prostate brachytherapy 2. Identify critical physics components and their impact on QA and treatment evaluation 3. Highlight factors that require special attention in the planning and execution of implants 4. Demonstrate implementation of QA practices in an LDR prostate brachytherapy program


Background To induce disease remission, early arthritis patients should adhere to their disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARD) in the first months after diagnosis.1 It remains unknown why some patients do not adhere to their therapy. Objectives In this study we aimed to identify which patients are at risk for non-adherence in the first 3 months of treatment. Methods Adult DMARD-naïve early arthritis patients who started synthetic DMARDs were recruited for a cohort study. At baseline, patients filled out items on potential adherence predictors. These items were based on a literature review and focus group interviews.2 Items included amongst others questions on coping with pain and the disease, anxiety and depression, and beliefs and expectations about medication. Adherence was in the first 3 months of treatment continuously measured with electronically monitored pill bottles. Items were reduced and clustered using principal component analysis. Per cluster of items, latent trait models were constructed to extract the most discriminating items. Per DMARD and per day non-adherence was defined as not opening the pill bottle when it should have been. We conducted a multilevel multivariable logistic regression model to find predictors for non-adherence. Results 301 patients agreed to participate of which 259 completed follow-up. Adherence was high and declined over time. Principal component analysis led to 7 dimensions, while the subsequent latent trait models analyses led to 15 dimensions. Of these dimensions, "information seeking" and "having positive expectations about the disease" were associated with adherence and the dimension "adjusting to the pain" was associated with non-adherence (see table 1). Conclusions Our findings suggest that patients who experience autonomy through information seeking behavior and having positive expectations about the course of the disease are more prone to be adherent than patients who feel less autonomous and become passive because of pain: these patients are at risk for non-adherence. References Smolen JS, Landewe R, Breedveld FC, Buch M, Burmester G, Dougados M et al. EULAR recommendations for the management of rheumatoid arthritis with synthetic and biological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs: 2013 update. Ann Rheum Dis 2014 Mar;73:492–509. Pasma A, Hazes JMW, Luime JJ, Busschbach JJV, van 't Spijker A. How to study determinants related to medication adherence in newly diagnosed polyarthritis patients for the development of a prediction instrument. Patient Preference and Adherence 2014;8:1437–47. Disclosure of Interest None declared


Over the past decade, it has become common practice for rating agencies to assign a domestic currency rating to the debt of sovereign nationals in addition to a foreign currency one. Often the domestic rating is higher, reflecting the presumed greater ability and willingness of sovereigns to service debtdenominated in their own currency. However, the gap between the two ratings is neither omnipresent nor uniform. These rating differences are likely to have increasingly important implications for the development of global capital markets. Many governments have embraced the goal of developing local currency bond markets as an alternative to inflows of foreign capital,2 and differential rating policies for foreign and domestic currency debt are likely to reinforce this policy intention through their effect on investor acceptance and market pricing. Rating differences may also be relevant in the light of the expanding use of ratings for regulatory purposes.This feature begins by reviewing the development of the two types of sovereign ratings. Local currency bond ratings tend to be of newer vintage, in line with the more recent emergence of local currency bond markets. We then examine the frequency and size of the markup of local over foreign currency ratings. Our investigation reveals not only differences among borrowers, but also surprising differences across the agencies themselves, suggestive of greater disagreement among the agencies over the risk assessment of domestic currency denominated obligations.


A Hobart mixer was instrumented with a slip ring torque sensor, signals were amplified and the output was recorded using a Bascom-Turner recorder. The relative dynamic torque on the paddle was measured in millivolts as a function of granulating fluid added and time. The data generated from a formulation containing lactose, corn starch and povidone were reproducibile. The maximum relative standard deviation was less than two percent at any time point on the torque curve. Formulations containing lactose, dicalcium phosphate and mannitol matrices (with four different drugs) showed five distinct phases in the torque profile. Phases I, II, and III of the wet granulation process were studied for formulations containing five drugs (phenylpropanolamine, theophylline, hydrochlorothiazide, phenytoin and acetaminophen). Granule properties were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy, particle size measurement and determination of bulk physical properties, including flow rate as well as compressibility. A computer-interfaced instrumented tablet press was used to generate compression profiles from which the compressibility of the granules was assessed. The instrumented tablet press data substantiated a simple theory for the relationship between granulation properties and ease of compaction. The data suggest optimum flowable and compressible granulations can be obtained only from phase III of the process irrespective of the drug, drug concentration and matrix. The disintegration and hardness for some formulations (theophylline, phenylpropanolamine and hydrochlorothiazide) were sensitive to variations in the wet granulation process. However, dissolution and friability for these formulations were relatively insensitive to changes in the processing variables. A (3x2x3) factorial experimental design was used to investigate the effect of binder, binder level and granulating fluid on the wet granulation process. It was found that all these factors exerted statistically significant effects on granulations flow rate, tablet ejection force, hardness, disintegration and dissolution at fifteen and thirty minutes. A second factorial experimental design (4x5x3) was used for the study of the effect of disintegrant, disintegrant concentration and percent intragranular disintegrant on the dissolution rate of tablets made by wet granulation process. The data indicate that these factors exerted statistically significant effects on disintegration and dissolution at fifteen and thirty minutes. This instrumentation can be used to determine the optimum amount of granulation fluid necessary for the wet granulation process. In addition, it can be a valuable tool for validation of the wet granulation process.


Runx1/AML1 is a key regulator of hematopoiesis and leukemic transformation, as RUNX1(−/−) mice do not develop definitive hematopoietic stem cells, and sever alleukemic oncogenes, e.g. AML1-ETO, CBFβ-SMMHC, or TEL-AML1, inhibit Runx1activities. We have investigated regulation of cell cycle progression by Runx1. Runx1stimulates G1 to S cell cycle progression in hematopoietic cell lines and in transduced myeloid progenitors, and inhibition of Runx1 by CBFβ-SMMHC or AML1-ETO slows G1 progression. Runx1 induces cdk4 and cyclin D3 transcription, and exogenous cdk4, cyclin D2, or c-Myc overcomes inhibition of G1 progression by CBF oncoproteins. In addition to regulating cell cycle progression, Runx1 protein levels are themselves increased as hematopoietic cells progress from G1 to S to G2/M, though mRNA levels remain constant. Runx1 contains three consensus cdk sites, (S/T)PX(R/K), S48, S303, and S424, and using phospho-specific antisera we find that each of these is modified in hematopoietic cells. Mutation of these serines to aspartic acid, mimicking phosphorylation, increases trans-activation of a reporter containing four CBF sites or the TCRβ promoter, whereas mutation to alanine reduces trans-activation. p300 interacts similarly with Runx1(tripleA) and Runx1(tripleD). We have now evaluated interaction of HDACs1–8 with these variants and Runx1 and find that both HDAC1 and HDAC3 have reduced affinity for RUNX1(tripleD), as assessed by co-immunoprecipitation from transiently transfected 293T cells. Evaluation of single serine residue mutants (S48D, S303D, and S424D) demonstrates reduced affinity of HDAC1 or HDAC3 specifically for the Runx1(S424D) mutant, consistent with previous mapping of the Runx1:HDAC1 and Runx1:HDAC3 interactions to this region of Runx1. Thus, cdk phosphorylation of Runx1 S424 reduces affinity for HDAC1 and HDAC3, increasing Runx1 trans-activation potency. Regulation of Runx1 activity by cdks may control key developmental processes, including expansion of definitive HSC during development and regulation of the balance between adult HSC quiescence and proliferation.


Nonmuscle myosin II (NMII) is uniquely responsible for cell contractility and thus defines multiple aspects of cell behavior. To generate contraction, NMII molecules polymerize into bipolar minifilaments. Different NMII paralogs are often coexpressed in cells and can copolymerize, suggesting that they may cooperate to facilitate cell motility. However, whether such cooperation exists and how it may work remain unknown. We show that copolymerization of NMIIA and NMIIB followed by their differential turnover leads to self-sorting of NMIIA and NMIIB along the front–rear axis, thus producing a polarized actin–NMII cytoskeleton. Stress fibers newly formed near the leading edge are enriched in NMIIA, but over time, they become progressively enriched with NMIIB because of faster NMIIA turnover. In combination with retrograde flow, this process results in posterior accumulation of more stable NMIIB-rich stress fibers, thus strengthening cell polarity. By copolymerizing with NMIIB, NMIIA accelerates the intrinsically slow NMIIB dynamics, thus increasing cell motility and traction and enabling chemotaxis.


The effect of high pressure on the crystal structure of thiourea dioxide has been investigated by Raman spectroscopy and angle-dispersive X-ray diffraction (ADXRD) in a diamond anvil cell up to 10.3 GPa. The marked changes in the Raman spectra at 3.7 GPa strongly indicated a structural phase transition associated with the distortions of hydrogen bonding. There were no further changes up to the maximum pressure of 10.3 GPa and the observed transition was completely reversible when the system was brought back to ambient pressure. This transition was further confirmed by the changes of ADXRD spectra. The high-pressure phase was indexed and refined to an orthorhombic structure with a possible space group Pbam. The results from the first-principles calculations suggested that this phase transition was mainly related to the changes of hydrogen-bonded networks in thiourea dioxide.


Planning is an important activity in military coalitions and the support of an automated planning tool could help military planners by reducing the cognitive burden of their work. Current AI planning paradigms use two different types of formalism to represent the planning problem. Each of these formalisms entails different inference algorithms and representation of results. On the one hand plans in non-stochastic domains are represented using declarative logic-based formalisms, an example of which is Hierarchical Task Networks (HTNs). In HTNs, domains are represented in terms of task decompositions of increased detail in relation to the actions that must be carried out. In general, declarative formalisms are easier for humans to understand. On the other hand, stochastic planning is often represented in terms of large probability functions that exhaustively specify the likelihood of relevant world changes when actions are executed, as exemplified by Markov Decision Processes (MDPs). Stochastic domain specifications can easily become challenging to a human designer as the problem size increases, worse still, solver algorithms degrade quickly with increased domain size. In order to facilitate domain modeling for planning under uncertainty, we propose a method of deriving stochastic domain specifications in the MDP formalism from a description using the HTN formalism. This method can reduce the resulting MDP state-space through an intermediate representation using Binary Decision Diagrams (BDDs). The benefits of the approach are twofold: (a) the reduction of the state space, and consequent reduction of computational burden is beneficial since it enables the representation and solving of realistic planning problems, and (b) starting from a declarative representation makes planning more comprehensible to humans, while extending the representation to stochastic domains.


Introduction With the rapid increase in climate shocks and hazards, policies governing climate change have proliferated while the integration of gender considerations to address gender-differentiated needs and impacts has remained a challenge. Stakeholder engagement is touted as a critical ingredient in climate change decisions and governance at different levels to achieve equitable outcomes. However, effective methods and outcomes of gender-responsive stakeholder engagement processes for climate change policy development are rarely published. Methods We apply the framework of 10 principles for effective agricultural research for development programs to analyze the stakeholder engagement processes in the context of the CGIAR's Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security gender and climate change policy projects. We analyze both primary and secondary data to understand the categories of stakeholders engaged, methods of engagement, the outcomes and lessons learned across five regions. Results and discussion Our results show that analysis of the existing policies and programs is a very critical entry point for identifying the points of leverage, the types of stakeholders to engage and how to engage them in the processes that focus on integrating gender in climate policies. Co-learning and co-development of knowledge products cultivate interest and commitment among stakeholders to address gender dynamics, although systematic monitoring and evaluation remains a challenge. This has implications for effective stakeholder engagement in mainstreaming gender in climate policies and evidence-based policy formulation for sustainable agriculture and food systems. Working with influential stakeholders, with the capacity and interest to address gender considerations yields more positive results. Mechanisms to address power relations need to be in place for gender considerations to be voiced and integrated and include women in decision-making processes.


Background: The popularity of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is growing globally among adult and pediatric populations, but little is known about its use in children with Asthma in Egypt. Aim: The aim of this study was to explore CAM use among children with asthma in Egypt. Sample: The convenient sample of 550 mothers of children with asthma. Design: A descriptive correlational cross-sectional design was used to conduct the study. Sitting: The study was conducted in Cairo University Specialized Pediatric Hospital at out-patient clinic Tools: Data were collected using a questionnaire sheet designed by the researchers. Included demographic profile, mothers were asked about CAM use including dietary supplement (DS) and non-DS remedies. Results: The majority of women were young with a mean age of twenty six, live in Cairo, unemployed; secondary schools educated, and were multi-gravida. The mean age of the children was three and more than half of them were male .The majority of mothers used some type of CAM remedy for their kids. The most common types used as DS including: Anise seeds& herbal cough. Only few mothers were used Non –DS remedies. The most commonly used ND remedies were massaging the child chest with olive oil and spiritual healing. Relatives, friends and neighbors were the main source of information about CAM for the majority of the mothers. Decrease the respiratory secretions, improve breathing patterns, no side effect were the most important reasons of using CAM as mentioned by the mothers .Eighty-sex percent of mothers were willing to discuss the use of CAM with their doctors or nurses but were not asked. There was a significant positive correlation between's mother usage of CAM for themselves and their usage for their kids. Conclusion: The prevalence of reported CAM use among Egyptian children with asthma was high with dietary remedies being the most popular modalities. CAM use was associated with older child's age and perceived poor asthma control. Key words :( Complementary and Alternative Medicine- Dietary Supplement - Non Dietary Supplement remedies - children with asthma)


Phrenic nerve palsy is a rare condition but it can lead to disabling dyspnoea. The following are reports of four patients who developed unilateral nerve palsy due to neuralgic amyotrophy and viral infections. They all were males with age ranging from 43 to 62 years. All of them developed acute exertional shortness of breath and were found to have unilateral phrenic nerve palsy. All the patients had radiological evidence of unilateral diaphragmatic paralysis and all of them had clinical neurophysiology assessments which confirmed the presence of unilateral nerve palsy. This was proceeded by viral infections in two patients, the other two patients developed severe shoulder pain typical of neuralgic amyotrophy followed by phrenic nerve palsy which was isolated in one and associated with upper limb weakness in the other. Two of them had diaphragmatic plication, a surgical procedure where the paralysed diaphragm is stabilised surgically so the diaphragm does not paradoxically move into the thorax during inspiration and, therefore, improves ventilation to the affected site. Furthermore, the procedure also favours the healthy diaphragm, which as a result will perform less work. There were good improvements in their symptoms with no significant morbidity. Repeated pulmonary function tests showed clear objective improvements. The other two patients continue to have dyspnoea.


Abstract Background Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells directed against CD19 (CART19) are effective in B-cell malignancies, but little is known about the molecular factors predicting clinical outcome of CART19 therapy. The increasingly recognized relevance of epigenetic changes in cancer immunology prompted us to determine the impact of the DNA methylation profiles of CART19 cells on the clinical course. Methods We recruited 114 patients with B-cell malignancies, comprising 77 patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and 37 patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma who were treated with CART19 cells. Using a comprehensive DNA methylation microarray, we determined the epigenomic changes that occur in the patient T cells upon transduction of the CAR vector. The effects of the identified DNA methylation sites on clinical response, cytokine release syndrome, immune effector cell-associated neurotoxicity syndrome, event-free survival, and overall survival were assessed. All statistical tests were 2-sided. Results We identified 984 genomic sites with differential DNA methylation between CAR-untransduced and CAR-transduced T cells before infusion into the patient. Eighteen of these distinct epigenetic loci were associated with complete response (CR), adjusting by multiple testing. Using the sites linked to CR, an epigenetic signature, referred to hereafter as the EPICART signature, was established in the initial discovery cohort (n = 79), which was associated with CR (Fisher exact test, P < .001) and enhanced event-free survival (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.36; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.19 to 0.70; P = .002; log-rank P = .003) and overall survival (HR = 0.45; 95% CI = 0.20 to 0.99; P = .047; log-rank P = .04;). Most important, the EPICART profile maintained its clinical course predictive value in the validation cohort (n = 35), where it was associated with CR (Fisher exact test, P < .001) and enhanced overall survival (HR = 0.31; 95% CI = 0.11 to 0.84; P = .02; log-rank P = .02). Conclusions We show that the DNA methylation landscape of patient CART19 cells influences the efficacy of the cellular immunotherapy treatment in patients with B-cell malignancy.