Carbon materials with hierarchical morphologies, pores, and compositions have attracted extraordinary attention due to their unique structural advantages and widespread applications. However, their controllable synthesis remains a grand challenge. Herein, a solvent-mediated strategy was demonstrated for the preparation of an urchin-like superstructure via modulating the hydrothermal condition (acetic acid/water ratio) of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). The direct pyrolysis of a hierarchical NUS-6 precursor produced a well-defined carbon-based composite consisting of sulfur-doped carbon (SC) and HfO2 with an urchin-like morphology and micro-/mesoporosity, while the doped S sites and oxygen vacancies of HfO2 can help to anchor and activate Pd nanoparticles (NPs) through the strong host-guest interaction, which was further confirmed by the calculated results of the binding energy and differential charge density through density functional theory (DFT). The synthesized Pd@SC/HfO2 composite exhibited extremely high catalytic activity and stability toward the water-phase hydrodeoxygenation of vanillin (conversion >99%, selectivity >99%), as well as good universality for the hydrogenation of a series of unsaturated hydrocarbons in an aqueous system. Remarkably, the catalytic activity and structural stability of Pd@SC/HfO2 were largely maintained even after successive 10 cycles.


Soil tillage disruption is a major cause of loss of organic matter and a decline in the number and stability of soil aggregates as natural habitats are transformed into agriculture. Compared to conventional tillage, zero tillage cropping systems typically demonstrate increased aggregation and soil organic matter. To feed the rising population on a sustainable basis without degrading natural resources, there is a need to increase farm productivity and total food production. Although the country's green revolution technologies implemented during 1966-67 led to food protection, intensive agriculture, insufficient and imbalanced use of fertilizers, high yielding crop varieties, the use of heavy machinery, excess tillage, etc., resulted in degradation of soil health and quality for more than five decades and increased pollution of air, soil and water. There is a great lack of a systematic approach to relating tillage practices to chemical soil properties. The most significant pillar of conservation farming is zero tillage. The need for an hour is conservation farming. It is a win-win operation for farmers as well as for the environment. The goal of Tillage was to establish a soil environment conducive to plant growth, but to have negative effects on soil resources, structure and eventually on the environment in the long run. Zero tillage has the ability to enhance the chemical properties and environment of the soil in the long run. Keeping all of these under consideration, this analysis is compiled to create a perfect tillage scheme, i.e. zero tillage, which eliminates the adverse effects of tillage and retains soil resources and eventually contributes to sustainable agriculture. The magnitude of changes in soil organic matter in response to zero tillage, however, differs between soils and the stabilisation mechanisms of organic matter in zero tillage systems.


This study investigated climate induced distresses patterns on airfield pavements at US Air Force installations. A literature review and surveys of Pavement Condition Index indicated that the predominant factor contributing to the development of pavement distress was climate. Results suggested that, within each type of pavement distress, a geographic pattern exists which is strongly correlated to conventional US climate zones. The US Air Force Roll-Up Database, housing over 50,000 records of pavement distress data, was distilled using a process designed to combine similar distresses while accounting for age and size of samples. The process reduced the data to a format that could be used to perform krig analysis and to develop pavement behavior models for runways built with asphalt cement (AC) and Portland cement concrete (PCC). Regression and krig analyses were conducted for each distress type to understand distress behavior among climate zones. Combined regression and krig analyses provided insight into the overall pavement behavior for AC and PCC runways and illustrated which climate zone was more susceptible to specific pavement distresses. Distress behavior tends to be more severe in the eastern US for AC and in the western US for PCC runway pavements, respectively.


The paper studies the effects of regional integration on the incentives of mem - bers and non-members to undertake multilateral trade liberalization. Using a three- country political economy model with imperfect competion, it shows how regionalism can undermine support for multilateralism. Discriminatory trade policies alter the balance of gains and losses that members and non-members experience from multilateral liberalization. As the degree of preference within the PTA increases, the member countries' support for large multilateral tariff cuts, as well as the excluded countries' support for small multilateral trade liber - alization, declines.


The Cannon Street All-Stars and the 1955 Little League World Series Keynote Speech to the Twentieth Annual NINE Spring Training Conference, March 16, 2013 When Wendell Smith was seventeen years old, he pitched his Detroit American Legion team to a 1-o victory in the championship game. Baseball scouts were at the game. They signed Smith's catcher but ignored him. When Smith asked why he wasn't signed, he was told it was because of his skin color. Smith said he used this as motivation to attack the color line while working as a sportswriter for the Pittsburgh Courier. When Sam Lacy was growing up in Washington DC, he went to a lot of Senators games with his father. His father would cheer the team on--until one of the pitchers, Nick Altrock, spit in his face. Lacy's father never went to another game, but Lacy did. As a teenager, he worked at Griffith Park, seeing the major leaguers play some days and the Negro leaguers other days. He saw black players who were clearly good enough to play in the major leagues. Lacy later attacked the color line as a sportswriter for the Washington Afro-American, Chicago Defender, and Baltimore Afro-American We write a lot about the color line in baseball and how it created a parallel world of black baseball, where ballplayers played in the shadows of white America, never realizing their potential, never knowing how well they could have done in the major leagues. We don't write as much about the teenagers and children in the campaign for racial equality in baseball--when they came face to face with the inexorable reality that, for some reason beyond their comprehension, they would never be good enough--even though they could see for themselves they were good enough. Baseball tells us a lot about the Civil Rights Movement. The campaign for racial equality in baseball tells us a lot about the campaign for racial equality in American society. They are part and parcel of one another. One cannot really know the story of the Civil Rights Movement without knowing about the integration of baseball. One cannot understand the integration of baseball without knowing what was happening in American society. We know something about the involvement of children in the Civil Rights Movement--from Brown v. Board of Education. We know about Emmett Till, the fourteen-year-old Chicago boy, who on a visit to Mississippi, had the temerity to speak to--or maybe whistle at--a white woman and was then taken from his uncle's barn, beaten, one of his eyes was cut out, and then shot through the head and his body weighted down by a 70-pound cotton gin and barbed wire before being dumped into the Tallahatchie River. We know about the nine students who in 1957 integrated Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, who needed the protection of US Army's 101 Airborne. And the hundreds of children, some as young as eight years old, who marched in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1963 to demonstrate against segregation. The Birmingham police arrested them. Police Chief "Bull" Connor ordered fire hoses turned on them and unleashed dogs to attack them. During the summer of 1955--between the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision and the murder of Emmett Till--the Cannon Street all-stars tried to integrate the annual Little League baseball tournament in Charleston, South Carolina. They had hoped to play in the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. They did not get to play in Williamsport--not because of their ability, but because of the color of their skin. Even though they didn't play, they became what Little League CEO Creighton Hale called "the most significant amateur team in baseball history." The Cannon Street all-stars played a few miles away from Charleston Harbor, where the Civil War began in April 1861. They lived and played in Charleston, which is adjacent to Clarendon County, where school segregation was challenged in Briggs v. …


Relationships between wind speed and gas transfer, combined with knowledge of the partial pressure difference of CO2 across the air-sea interface are frequently used to determine the CO2 flux between the ocean and the atmosphere. Little attention has been paid to the influence of variability in wind speed on the calculated gas transfer velocities and the possibility of chemical enhancement of CO2 exchange at low wind speeds over the ocean. The effect of these parameters is illustrated using a quadratic dependence of gas exchange on wind speed which is fit through gas transfer velocities over the ocean determined by the natural-14C disequilibrium and the bomb-14C inventory methods. Some of the variability between different data sets can be accounted for by the suggested mechanisms, but much of the variation appears due to other causes. Possible causes for the large difference between two frequently used relationships between gas transfer and wind speed are discussed. To determine fluxes of gases other than CO2 across the air-water interface, the relevant expressions for gas transfer, and the temperature and salinity dependence of the Schmidt number and solubility of several gases of environmental interest are included in an appendix.


Land use change is a principal force and inherent element of global environmental change, threatening biodiversity, natural ecosystems, and their services. However, our ability to anticipate future land use change is severely limited by a lack of understanding of how major socio-economic disturbances (e.g., wars, revolutions, policy changes, and economic crises) affect land use. Here we explored to what extent socio-economic disturbances can shift land use systems onto a different trajectory, and whether this can result in less intensive land use. Our results show that the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 caused a major reorganization in land use systems. The effects of this socio-economic disturbance were at least as drastic as those of the nuclear disaster in the Chernobyl region in 1986. While the magnitudes of land abandonment were similar in Ukraine and Belarus in the case of the nuclear disaster (28% and 36% of previously farmed land, respectively), the rates of land abandonment after the collapse of the Soviet Union in Ukraine were twice as high as those in Belarus. This highlights that national policies and institutions play an important role in mediating effects of socio-economic disturbances. The socio-economic disturbance that we studied caused major hardship for local populations, yet also presents opportunities for conservation, as natural ecosystems are recovering on large areas of former farmland. Our results illustrate the potential of socio-economic disturbances to revert land use intensification and the important role institutions and policies play in determining land use systems' resilience against such socio-economic disturbances.


Fibrin glue has been used as a hemostatic and adhesive agent for many years, but its efficacy in digestive surgery is still controversial. In this study, we evaluated the effect of fibrin glue on the healing of the small and large bowel anastomotic portions by measurement of the anastomotic bursting pressure. Further, the efficacy of fibrin glue in preventing intra-abdominal adhesion formation was assessed. Our results indicated that fibrin glue enhanced the resistance towards an elevation of intraluminal pressure in small bowel, but not in large bowel. Concomitantly, the glue did not significantly attenuate postoperative adhesion formation. A sealing action of fibrin glue might protect against bleeding and microleakage, resulting in beneficial effects on small bowel anastomosis.


Trees in the urban environment provide several ecosystem benefits to the population, such as decreasing temperature, increasing humidity, shading, improving air quality, as well as physical and mental well-being. These can be enhanced through the knowledge of the growth of the trees in function of the characteristics of the place where they are inserted. Thus, the objective was to estimate the growth in diameter, height and volume of forest species in the urban environment, in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil. For this, woody individuals and palm trees present in the urban afforestation of the headquarters campus of the Federal University of Viçosa were selected based on age and had their diameter, breast height and height measured. Allometric equations specific to the study site were used to estimate their volume, and through the relationship with age, the average annual increment was obtained. Woody individuals showed a growth rate in volume of 0,0279 ± 0,0274 m³ year-1 and palm trees, 0,0139 ± 0,0119 m³ year-1. The differences in the average annual increase in volume found between woody individuals and palm trees may be due to morphological differences that affect the secondary growth of individuals. The growth rate of trees in the urban environment is higher when compared to those in forest fragments and experimental plantings. The decrease in growth rates with increasing age was expected due to the relationship between them being of the non-linear type, following a sigmoidal model.


We document the intradaily patterns of return volatility and trading activity in trade times of fixed dollar volumes --- shorter trade times reflect higher trading activity. Unlike the U-shaped intraday seasonality in calendar-time volatility, trade-time volatility plunges by 40-60% over the day: higher calendar-time volatilities near close solely reflect greater trading volumes. Controlling for time-of-day, trade-time volatilities fall sharply as trade times shorten, indicative of endogenous responses of investors to variations in liquidity. Indeed, trade-time volatilities closely proxy ITG's institutional trading cost estimates. We uncover evidence of imperfectly-competitive liquidity provision: price reversals in less active markets but momentum in active ones.


OBJECTIVE
To explore the clinical effects of surgical treatment with cable dragged reduction and cantilever beam internal fixation by posterior approach for odontoid fracture associated with atlantoaxial dislocation.

METHODS
The clinical data of 12 patients with odontoid fracture associated with atlantoaxial dislocation from January 2008 to December 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 8 males and 4 females, ranging in age from 21 to 53 years with an average of 37.2 years. Eleven cases were fresh fracture and 1 case was old fracture, all patients complicated with atlantoaxial anterior dislocation. According to Anderson-D' Alonzo typing method modified by Grauer, 3 cases were type IIA, 5 cases were type IIB, 3 cases were type IIC, and 1 case was type IIIA. All patients underwent surgical treatment with cable dragged reduction and cantilever beam internal fixation by posterior approach. JOA score and ADI method were respectively used to evaluate the nerve function and reductive condition of atlantoaxial dislocation.

RESULTS
All patients were followed up from 6 months to 2 years with an average of 1 year and 3 months. At 1 week, 6 months after operation, and final follow up, JOA scores were 13.2±1.3, 13.5±1.4, 14.3±1.5, respectively, and these data were obviously better than that of preoperative 8.3±1.4(P<0.05). Postoperative X rays and CT showed satisfactory reduction of atlantoaxial dislocation. At 1 week, 6 months after operation, and final follow up, ADI were (2.2±0.4), (2.4±0.6), (2.3±0.5) mm, respectively, and these data were obviously better than that of preoperative.(5.8±1.2) mm(P<0.05). All screws and cables had good location without looseness and breakage, and bone graft got fusion.

CONCLUSIONS
Surgical treatment with cable dragged reduction and cantilever beam internal fixation by posterior approach for odontoid fracture associated with atlantoaxial dislocation is a good method, with advantage of firm fixation and high safety. It could obtain good clinical effects.


Abstract As several cases of chimerism have been reported in pregnancy by assisted reproductive technology (ART), ART-related problems include not only an increased risk of multiple pregnancy but also a possibility of chimerism. In particular, confinedblood chimerism (CBC), which is attributable to placental vessel anastomosis between twins, has been detected in 11 cases of monochorionic dizygotic twins. It is possible that three or four alleles could be detected in patients with CBC, misleading physicians at the time of blood transfusion or genotyping for transplantation of an allograft. Therefore, sufficient informed consent and genetic counseling prior to ART are absolutely necessary for patient quality of life. ART may increase the chance of cell fusion (or cell cleavage) during embryogenesis, causing a increased risk of chimerism. Elective single-embryo transfer could avoid chimerism caused by cell-fusion after embryo transfer, but not chimerism generated before embryo transfer. To clarify the problem of chimerism in pregnancy by ART and determine solutions for this problem, both long-term follow-up of cases of chimerism and molecular genetic analysis using DNA polymorphic markers are essential.


In this article, we study two problems consisting in reordering a tree to fit with an order on its leaves provided as input, which were earlier introduced in the context of phylogenetic tree comparison for bioinformatics, OTCM and OTDE. The first problem consists in finding an order which minimizes the number of inversions with an input order on the leaves, while the second one consists in removing the minimum number of leaves from the tree to make it consistent with the input order on the remaining leaves. We show that both problems are NP-complete when the maximum degree is not bounded, as well as a problem on tree alignment, answering two questions opened in 2010 by Henning Fernau, Michael Kaufmann and Mathias Poths. We provide a polynomial-time algorithm for OTDE in the case where the maximum degree is bounded by a constant and an FPT algorithm in a parameter lower than the number of leaves to delete. Our results have practical interest not only for bioinformatics but also for digital humanities to evaluate, for example, the consistency of the dendrogram obtained from a hierarchical clustering algorithm with a chronological ordering of its leaves. We explore the possibilities of practical use of our results both on trees obtained by clustering the literary works of French authors and on simulated data, using implementations of our algorithms in Python.


Abstract : The polymer chains of a novel asymmetric polydiacetylene, namely poly((8-butoxy carbonyl) methyl urethanyl) 1-(5-pyrimidyl)-octa-1,3-diyneD), in the absence of nonlinear optically active chromophores and without recourse to poling assemble in an acentric stable polar organization upon spin coating or solution casting. Asymmetry of the side groups and the spontaneous alignment of the urethane side groups by means of hydrogen bonds appear to be responsible for this organization. An abrupt decrease of SH intensity at around 130 deg C is found to be closely related to the breaking of noncentrosymmetry in the films in conjunction with the disruption of intramolecular hydrogen bonds. The changes observed were reversible below 130 deg C but becomes irreversible above this temperature. Comparison of absorption spectra of the poly(BPOD) films before and after thermal treatment indicate that only a slight change occurred in the absorption characteristics of the polymer backbone. FT-IR and dielectric spectroscopy confirm the relaxation of the stable hydrogen bonded polar organization at higher temperatures. Activation energies involved in this process were found to be a little higher than hydrogen bonding dissociation energies calculated from polyamide and polyurethane. The larger activation energies observed here indicate the combined effect of the hydrogen bonds followed by b relaxation. Symmetric polydiacetylene, Assemble in an acentric stable polar organization, Spontaneous alignment of the urethane side groups, Hydrogen bonds, Noncentrosymmetry, Intrammolecular hydrogen bonds.


Multifractality is a generalization of monofractality in which the regularity attribute has a distribution. Multifractals have become popular as flexible models in modeling real-life data of high frequency. We developed a method of testing whether the data of high frequency is consistent with monofractality using meaningful descriptors coming from a wavelet-generated multifractal spectrum. We discuss theoretical properties of the descriptors, their computational implementation, the use in data mining, the effectiveness in the context of simulations, an application in turbulence, and analysis of coding/noncoding regions in DNA sequences.


Modern cars are equipped with many sensors that measure information about the vehicle and its surroundings. These measurements are therefore related to the ride-surface conditions over which the vehicle is passing. The paper commences by outlining a four-component vision for performing road condition evaluation based on in-vehicle sensor readings and subsequent feeding of pavement management systems (PMSs) with live condition information. This is expected to enrich the functionalities of PMSs, and ultimately lead to improved maintenance and repair decisions. Next the LiRA (Live Road Assessment) project—an ongoing proof-of-concept attempt to realize the vision components—is presented. The project elements and software architecture are described in detail, listing any assumptions, compromises, and challenges. LiRA involves a fleet of 400 electric cars operating in Copenhagen, both within the city streets and nearby highways. Sensor data collection is performed with a customized Internet of Things (IoT) device installed in the cars. Data processing and structuring involve new software tools for quality control, spatio-temporal interpolation, and map matching. A hybrid approach, combining machine learning models with physical (mechanics-based) models, is currently being applied to convert data into relevant information for PMSs. Based on the experience thus far with LiRA, the vision actualization is deemed achievable, workable, and up-scalable.


The relation between smoking, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and lung cancer (LC) is an open field of investigation. A higher frequency of adenocarcinoma has been reported in patients with COPD. Heat shock proteins (Hsps) are implicated in tumoral cell growth and differentiation. The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression of Hsp60 and Hsp10 in bronchial biopsies from smokers with COPD and in 10 lung cancer patients and to evaluate the association between Hsps expression and carcinogenetic steps of LC.


After mild ischemic insults, many neurons undergo delayed neuronal death. Aberrant activation of the cell cycle machinery is thought to contribute to apoptosis in various conditions including ischemia. We demonstrate that loss of endogenous cyclin-dependent kinase (Cdk) inhibitor p16INK4a is an early and reliable indicator of delayed neuronal death in striatal neurons after mild cerebral ischemia in vivo. Loss of p27Kip1, another Cdk inhibitor, precedes cell death in neocortical neurons subjected to oxygen–glucose deprivation in vitro. The loss of Cdk inhibitors is followed by upregulation of cyclin D1, activation of Cdk2, and subsequent cytoskeletal disintegration. Most neurons undergo cell death before entering S-phase, albeit a small number (∼1%) do progress to the S-phase before their death. Treatment with Cdk inhibitors significantly reduces cell deathin vitro. These results show that alteration of cell cycle regulatory mechanisms is a prelude to delayed neuronal death in focal cerebral ischemia and that pharmacological interventions aimed at neuroprotection may be usefully directed at cell cycle regulatory mechanisms.


Analyzed the influence of main perturbation sources including non-spherical gravitational perturbation, atmospheric drag perturbation and third body gravitation perturbation to the satellite orbit, compensates the influence through the method that biased the semi-major axis and the inclination angle, which enhanced the orbital stability of satellite. Designed the satellite autonomous orbital control system, and discussed the method that through controlling the semi-major axis, the eccentricity and the inclination angle to complete the revisions to ascending node right ascension deviation and phase deviation. Finally through the simulation and the experiment of a satellite which running on nearly earth regression, circular orbit, simulation results indicated the system scheme satisfied the demand of satellite autonomous control


With a view to establishing whether rabies antiserum derived from a species genetically identical to a challenged recipient would increase or decrease its effectiveness compared with that of allogeneic antiserum, rabies immune sera produced in an inbred strain of mice and in donkeys were tested, either alone or with a course of vaccine inoculations, in mice of the same strain a few hours after intramuscular challenge with fixed CVS rabies virus. Surviving mice were bled at intervals over a year and the rabies antibodies assayed in pooled sera.There was no evidence that the isogeneic antiserum was either more or less effective than the allogeneic, nor was there a difference between the two in the decay of passive antibody; similarly, there was no marked difference in their ability to interfere with the active production of antibody resulting from the highly potent vaccine used.


This annual meeting began in 1998 and was the first industry-led event to focus on the specific needs of industry researchers. The goal of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Structure Analysis is to provide an in-depth review of innovative technology and industry practices through open discussion of industry-related issues and needs. Education and specialized training are the foundation of all Chemical and Pharmaceutical Structure Analysis events - where technology and solutions meet.


Abstract Science education often fails to address the actual range of adolescents' interests. One such interest is music. Research shows that young people devote large amounts of time and money to music. By tapping into students' interest in music, affective outcomes can be achieved in the biology classroom. This article describes a project-based learning activity that studies the influence of music on seed germination. Part of the student project is to conduct a literature search on the influence of music on plants, and possibly also on people (its biological, psychological, and social effects). The project is contextualized in the indigenous practice of making music while planting crops. There is a growing body of literature suggesting that music can improve crop yields. Students are required to follow the key features of project-based learning to plan and execute an inquiry to determine the influence of music on seed germination. Students undertaking a literature study will find research showing that music affects the viscosity of the plasmalemma and the availability of intercellular Ca2+, which, in turn, influences the activity of membrane-based enzymes. This can lead to larger amounts of water, nutrients, and growth regulators entering the plant cell. The article also reflects on data obtained from high school biology students as they engage in the learning activity.


Abstract Genome-wide association studies identified numerous disease risk loci. Delineating molecular mechanisms influenced by cis-regulatory variants is essential to understand gene regulation and ultimately disease pathophysiology. Combining bioinformatics and public domain chromatin information with quantitative proteomics supports prediction of cis-regulatory variants and enabled identification of allele-dependent binding of both, transcription factors and coregulators at the type 2 diabetes associated PPARG locus. We found rs7647481A nonrisk allele binding of Yin Yang 1 (YY1), confirmed by allele-specific chromatin immunoprecipitation in primary adipocytes. Quantitative proteomics also found the coregulator RING1 and YY1 binding protein (RYBP) whose mRNA levels correlate with improved insulin sensitivity in primary adipose cells carrying the rs7647481A nonrisk allele. Our findings support a concept with diverse cis-regulatory variants contributing to disease pathophysiology at one locus. Proteome-wide identification of both, transcription factors and coregulators, can profoundly improve understanding of mechanisms underlying genetic associations.


Fish behaviour investigations under controlled laboratory conditions but nature like environment were conducted to clarify the efficiency of inclined and horizontal screen planes for fish protection and fish downstream passage at hydropower plants concerning different potamodromous species and various sizes. The dependency on the underlying geometric and hydraulic parameters was investigated and comprehensive models were deduced to describe these relations. Adequate geometric and hydraulic design could achieve high levels of fish protection and downstream passage efficiency, even for small fish, weak swimmers and riverbed/bottom oriented species. The results imply good transferability and accordance with field observations at large scale facilities and can provide valuable information for facility design.


The increase in the incidence of cancer has contributed to the search for new therapeutic methods. In recent years, the use of preparations of natural origin from medical fungi has increased. One such active substance is the extracellular, low molecular active fraction obtained from the medicinal fungus Cerrena unicolor. This study aimed to monitor the pharmacokinetics of different concentrations of substances isolated from the medicinal fungus Cerrena unicolor (ex-LMS) using the ECIS technique. In the study, mouse L929 fibroblasts and colon cancer CT26 cell lines were treated with different concentrations of the active fractions obtained from Cerrena unicolor: C1 = 2.285 (μg/mL); C2 = 22.85 (μg/mL); and C3 = 228.5 (μg/mL). This study demonstrated that the tested preparation from Cerrena unicolor had no considerable effect on the resistance, capacitance, and impedance of L929 fibroblast cells, which was an indicator of no significant effect on its physiological processes. At the same time, those parameters exhibited a decrease in colon cancer cell viability. Following our previous and current studies on Cerrena unicolor, ex-LMS extracts can be safely used in anticancer therapy or chemoprevention with no significant harmful effects on normal cells.


Anomalous drainage of the persistent left superior vena cava into the left atrium with partial anomalous pulmonary venous return and the atrial septal defect is relatively rare condition, and there reported various kinds of surgical procedures in correction for this lesion. This report describes the original and simple surgical procedure in total correction of these lesions performed in our institute, using a large Dacron patch connected with a knitted Dacron vascular graft in its center. Surgical correction was accomplished by anastomosis of a Dacron draft with the orfice of the persistent left superior vena cava into the left atrium, widening of the atrial septal defect, and reconstruction of a new atrial septum with a Dacron patch. Postoperative cardiac evaluation revealed good condition of blood stream through a Dacron draft from the left superior vena cava to the right atrium, with corrected pulmonary venous drainage into the left atrium without pulmonary venous congestion and superior vena cava syndrome.


A thorough biological survey and evaluation is a lengthy and expensive project. The number of technically trained persons required prevent its use by most public agencies. Since public health departments are the groups most frequently concerned with measuring the effects of pollution in streams, a need exists for a simplified method of sanitary survey. Recognizing this need, the Texas Health Department assigned the writer the problem of devising a method of survey which would require a field party of two and could be conducted entirely from a mobile field laboratory.


ABSTRACT Originally introduced a century ago by Pierre Janet, phase-oriented treatment has been independently proposed by many authors and is now widely considered by trauma specialists to be the treatment of choice for PTSD and other posttraumatic disorders. Much more recently, introduced by Francine Shapiro in 1989, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) has also become available for the treatment of PTSD and other trauma-based disorders. EMDR has become widely accepted by clinicians and has received strong support regarding its efficacy from a wide range of empirical studies. However, with a very few exceptions (highlighted in this paper), these two major approaches for treating trauma have developed largely independently. The present paper integrates the major EMDR developments with the different stages of the phase-oriented approach to assess if such an integration is conceptually and clinically useful. The EMDR developments integrated into the phases of trauma treatment include: Shapiro's prototypic protocol for PTSD and the protocols for other trauma-based disorders, safety protocols, Leeds' and Korn's work with Resource Development and Installation, and Kitchur's Strategic Developmental Model for EMDR. The usefulness of integrating phase-oriented treatment and EMDR is then assessed. These approaches were found to strongly complement each other in their clinical strengths and weaknesses, while sharing many underlying theoretical and structural elements.


Changing environment and increasing community demands encourage Public Sector Organizations to begin to focus on the community and its services. However, the majority of Public Sector Organizations are considered slow in improving their services. This service sector is considered far behind compared to services in the private sector. Therefore, the fastest way to be able to match or even goes beyond is to implement systems and governance of private sector organizations to the public sector. One of the "tools" for the private sector that has been successfully applied in improving the performance of the public sector in different countries is "Total Quality Management". Total Quality Management (TQM) is the philosophy that requires behavior change at every level of the organization to achieve competitive advantage by being customer-oriented. This study aims to examine the application of TQM on service quality at the information and complaint service office of the Directorate General of Taxation. The type of research that used in this paper is qualitative data. The result of the study found that quality is the main factor in service organization services. Total Quality Management has been implemented effectively at the information and complaint service office of the Directorate General of Taxation.


1. The locus of activity within the superior colliculus (SC) is related to the desired displacement of the eye. Current hypotheses suggest that the location of this locus of activity determines the amplitude of the saccade and that the level of activity at this locus determines eye velocity. We present evidence that suggests that, although the locus determines the amplitude of the saccade, the level of activity in the colliculus encodes dynamic motor error (the difference between desired and current eye displacement). 2. We categorized 86 neurons in the intermediate and deep layers of the superior colliculus of two rhesus monkeys by their activity in relation to the end of saccadic eye movements. In 36% of the cells (n = 31), activity was completely cut off by the end of the saccade (clipped cells). For 53% of cells (n = 46), the major burst of activity ceased by the end of the saccade, but activity continued for 30-100 ms after the end of the movement (partially clipped cells). The remaining 10% of the cells (n = 9) had no clear burst of activity (unclipped cells) but rather had activity that increased gradually before the saccade and then slowly decreased for up to 100 ms after the saccade. These categories were part of a continuum of cell types rather than discrete classes of cells. 3. We first determined whether this new categorization of cells revealed a special relation between the discharge of clipped and partially clipped cells and saccadic amplitude and peak velocity. As expected, we found a steady increase in spike count as saccadic amplitude increased up to the center of the movement field, and an increase in peak spike discharge as peak velocity increased up to a maximum radial eye velocity. Variability in the cell discharge was substantially greater than the variability of saccadic amplitude or peak velocity. We concluded that these single point or averaged measures did not reveal any new functional relationship of these cells. 4. We then examined the relationship of the temporal pattern of discharge of clipped and partially clipped cells to instantaneous changes in radial error and radial velocity. There was a monotonic decay in spike discharge with declining radial error. In contrast, there was a complex, multivalued relationship between spike discharge and radial velocity; collicular cells produced two different values of spike discharge for the same velocity, one during acceleration and the other during deceleration of the eye during a saccade.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)


Nitrato nitrosylruthenium complexes [RuNO(NO3)x(H2O)5-x] (3-x)+ readily dissociate in aqueous solutions with decrease in pH and increase in electrical conductivity of the solutions. This study aimed to elucidate the behaviours of dissociation of the complexes with time. The change in the amount of undissociated complexes was determined with time. The results indicated that the dissociation was a multi-order reaction involving both protolysis and hydrolysis. The protolysis completed in relatively short period within(several tens of minutes), but it depended on the concentration of the complexes in the solution. The completion of the protolysis and the formation of the resulting dissociation products were observed by absorption spectrometry. The dissociation products, which were assumed as aquohydroxy complexes, underwent the successive step-wise dissociation for a prolonged period as revealed by pH measurements. The rate constants involved in the step-wise dissociation, process were obtained. The degree of dissociation and dissociation constant of the complexes were measured by conductometry.


The TOTEM Experiment will measure the total pp cross-section with the luminosity-independent method and study elastic and diffractive scattering at the LHC. To achieve optimum forward coverage for charged particles emitted by the pp collisions in the interaction point IP5, two tracking telescopes, T1 and T2, will be installed on each side in the pseudorapidity region 3.1 ≤ |η| ≤ 6.5, and Roman Pot stations will be placed at distances of ±147 m and ±220 m from IP5. Being an independent experiment but technically integrated into CMS, TOTEM will first operate in standalone mode to pursue its own physics programme and at a later stage together with CMS for a common physics programme. This article gives a description of the TOTEM apparatus and its performance.


Shirpur taluka of Nasik division in Maharashtra is in draught prone area. This area suffered from water shortage before 2018. The present study was conducted to comprehend the current sustainable development in this area and revealed a typical geographical condition of that region. Lateral and vertical percolation of water through the yellow silt layers in the aquifers was scarce prior to the completion of the projectAngioplasty of water in 2018. The soil had an effective porosity to the tune of 2.5 to 3%, yet the aquifers were hardly saturated. The dug wells and bore wells in Deccan Basalt hardly yielded water till December. Water was scarcely available after December for drinking and irrigation. Only Kharif crop was possible. Scarcity of water impacted surface water reserves. More burden was experienced on ground water level. Groundwater beingan important renewable resource requires to be refilled every year by rainfall and through water dripped during irrigation. The structure of rocks, geo-morphological, hydrogeological as also hydrometeorological conditions govern the pore water levels. Suitable measures were needed to augment groundwater resources to make existing groundwater structures sustainable."Angioplasty of water" was implemented to solve water problems. Sustainable use of water was possible in draught prone areas after this project was completed. Industrial and agricultural development followed after this project. Composite Index of Development (CID) as also the levels of development in Shirpur improved considerably as compared to other areas in Dhule district.


Petroleum resources from seeps or shallow excavations have been exploited by local people in Myanmar for at least 900 years for use in lighting, for medicinal purposes or as an insect repellent. When the British took over Lower Myanmar, crude oil obtained from Yenanchaung and refined in Duneedaw was supplied to India and exported to the United Kingdom or the United States of America. After the British occupied the whole of Myanmar in 1884, the Scottish Burmah Oil Company was established in the following year and commenced commercial extraction of oil from Yenangyaung; in 1902 Chauk was discovered. After 40 years of exploitation production began to decline, and further resources were sought. In 1938–40, before the Second World War in the Pacific, geophysical methods of gravity measurement by Shell and the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (now BP) covering the whole of Myanmar were planned to aid oil exploration. A network of measurements were established along all accessible roads and navigable rivers throughout the Tertiary Belt of Central Myanmar using Holweck, Thyssen and Ising torsion balance and pendulum gravimeters.

The Holweck instrument uses an inverted pendulum to measure absolute values of gravity to an accuracy of 2–3 mGal. The best results were obtained with the Thyssen gravimeter, producing weighted deflection readings for about 90 stations a month, to an accuracy of 0.5 mGal or less. The Ising gravimeter, also using an inverted pendulum, can provide drift readings with a better productivity from 149 stations a month, with an accuracy of ±1 mGal. In all these surveys, with station intervals ranging over 1–5 km a total of 5–12 km could be covered each day. Elevation corrections were made from contours obtained during the topographic survey. The AA company completed gravity pendulum measurements over 80 000 square miles in Myanmar at a total cost …


Contiguous multiple beams are used to make use of the set of frequency bands at different beams at different geographical locations and achieve the most efficient use of precious frequency allocation. This is feasible only if the interference among cochannel beams is below some acceptable level, by carrier/interference (C/I) ratio. Individual beam patterns of very low sidelobes, which in turn necessitates narrow feed are required. A physically realizable solution to this problem entails either more than one reflector, more complicated optics, or breaking of each feed into a cluster of smaller elements, some of which would then be shared by adjacent beams. The latter, however, requires a complicated beamforming network (BFN) for the proper feeding of the elements. The feedpacking problem is not unique to reflector antennas and exists in lens type antennas as well. The BFN and associated problems are present in the phased array antennas and on a much larger scale. Poor scan capabilities are associated with reflector systems. The scan properties of offset fed reflector systems can be improved by choosing a very large focal length to parent reflector diameter ((F/Dp) ratio, which requires a longer boom to support the feed. In the case of reflectors with cluster feed arrangements, the scan capability for smaller F/Dp ratios is improved by proper adjustment of cluster element excitations. Such a system seems to be appropriate for up to 10 beamwidths scan. For a larger number of beams, systems with wider scan capabilities, such as phased arrays or phased array/reflector combinations, become more appealing.


Properties of Crystalline Lysozymes 83 Non-enzymic Reactions of Lysozyme 84 Agglutination of Bacterial Cells 84 Formation of Complexes with Acidic Substances 84 Susceptibility of Bacteria to the Lytic Action of Lysozyme 85 Sensitivity of Untreated Bacteria 85 Sensitivity of Killed Bacteria 86 Factors Affecting the Lytic Activity of Lysozyme 87 The Site of Lysozyme Action 88 Action of Lysozyme on and the Chemical Constitution of Isolated Soluble and Cell Wall Substrates 89 Soluble Substrate Isolated from Whole Bacteria 89 Susceptibility of Isolated Cell Walls to Lysozyme 89 Cell Wall Composition and Sensitivity to Lysozyme 90 The Mechanism of Lysozyme Action on Bacterial Cell Walls 92 Turbidity Reduction and Liberation of Reducing Substances 92 Physico-chemical Properties of Cell Wall Digests 92 The Nature of Some of the Fragments Resulting from Lysozyme Action 93 Protoplast Formation and Structural Analysis of Bacteria with Lysozyme 94 Conclusions 95 References 96


This paper addresses a search problem with multiple limited capability search agents in a partially connected dynamical networked environment under different information structures. A self assessment-based decision-making scheme for multiple agents is proposed that uses a modified negotiation scheme with low communication overheads. The scheme has attractive features of fast decision-making and scalability to large number of agents without increasing the complexity of the algorithm. Two models of the self assessment schemes are developed to study the effect of increase in information exchange during decision-making. Some analytical results on the maximum number of self assessment cycles, effect of increasing communication range, completeness of the algorithm, lower bound and upper bound on the search time are also obtained. The performance of the various self assessment schemes in terms of total uncertainty reduction in the search region, using different information structures is studied. It is shown that the communication requirement for self assessment scheme is almost half of the negotiation schemes and its performance is close to the optimal solution. Comparisons with different sequential search schemes are also carried out.


NbWRKY79, a transcriptional factor belonging to the WRKY family, plays important roles in salt stress responses related to abscicic acid (ABA) pathway in the plant. However, the functional characteristics of NbWRKY79 in plant development have not been investigated yet. In this study, the expression of NbWRKY79 in Nicotiana benthamiana tobacco plants was reduced by virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS). The growth of VIGS-NbWRKY79 tobacco plants was significantly decreased in height, fresh weight, and leaf size compared to the control plants. Especially, reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation was increased in leaves of VIGS-NbWRKY79 plants but not in the control plants. Reducing of NbWRKY79 expression in the tobacco plants also led to a limit in flower development and seed production. The stomata closure in leaves was significantly decreased under exogenous ABA treatment. The calli, which were generated from leaf segments of VIGS-NbWRKY79 almost, did not generate shoots. Taken altogether, the results suggested the important roles of NbWRKY79 in many development processes in plants.


It is often assumed that financial incentives of healthcare providers affect the care they deliver, but this issue is surprisingly difficult to study. The recent enactment of state laws that limit how much hospitals can charge uninsured patients provide a unique opportunity. Using an event study framework and panel data from the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, we examine whether these regulations lead to reductions in the amount and quality of care given to uninsured patients. We find that the introduction of a fair pricing law leads to a seven to nine percent reduction in the average length of hospital stay for uninsured patients, with no corresponding change for insured patients. These care reductions are not accompanied by worsening quality of inpatient care. Overall, our results provide strong evidence that hospitals actively alter their behavior in response to financial incentives, and are consistent with the laws promoting a shift towards more efficient care delivery. The findings also add to the growing evidence that hospitals can, and do, treat patients differently based upon insurance status.


The landscape architect is similar to the moviemaker in that they both want to mediate an experience with their creations. The landscape architect designs playgrounds
and the moviemaker makes movies for children, but how does the relationship between children and nature look like in the landscape formed by the movie maker's fantasy? The purpose with this thesis is to study how the relationship
between child and nature is depicted in a movie as a medium, by analysing "My neighbour Totoro", a Japanese animated movie from 1988 by Hayao Miyazaki.
The analysis consists of two combined analyses, Experiential Landscape Analysis and Gordon Cullen's Serial Vision, both of which analyse the relationship between a human being and her environment as well as the emotional changes that occur as she moves in it. Serial Vision has been used to find the scene sequence, where an interaction between the children and the nature occurs. The scene sequences have then been analysed with the Experiential Landscape Analysis.These scenes are when the children, the central figures of the movie, Mei and Satsuki, interact with nature. The result of the analysis shows that the relationship between the children and nature consists of different kinds of relationships, but that there is equality and a sense of belonging, which impregnate all of
them. The nature sees the children as a part of itself and the children sees nature
as their friend.


Anatase TiO2 nanofibers (200–300 nm in diameter) with 3-dimensionally (3D) ordered pore structure and high surface area were synthesized by electrospinning technique. The unique combination of partially acetylacetone chelated Ti-alkoxide, viscosity-controlling cum high positive charge balancing agent PVP and structure director F127 yielded nanofibers with ordered mesoporosity similar to the Pmm structure. Dynamic heating of the fibers in the temperature range 350–540 °C and simultaneous XRD studies revealed that the amorphous to anatase transformation initiated at about 400 °C with the retention of 3D mesoporosity up to the final heat-treatment stage. TEM studies also confirmed this. During amorphous to anatase conversion, the surface area decreased from 165 (350 °C) to 90 m2 g−1 (540 °C). The crystalline mesoporous nanofibers showed enhanced photocatalytic activity with reusability.


Estivating crocodiles were studied at their dry season refuge in northern Australia over six years. The crocodiles spent three or four months a year underground without access to water. Doubly labeled water was used to measure field metabolic rates and water flux, and plasma and cloacal fluid samples were taken at approximately monthly intervals during some years to monitor the effects of estivation with respect to the accumulation of nitrogenous wastes and electrolyte concentrations. Estivating crocodiles expended a mean of 26.1 kJ kg- day-'. Although environmental and, hence, body temperatures increased with increasing time in estivation, water efflux decreased with increasing time in estivation to 9.3 mL kg-' day-1, which was only 23% of the flux rate of crocodiles in water before estivation (40.2 mL kg-' day-l). The absolute size of body water pools declined proportionately with body mass and body solids; thus the crocodiles were not dehydrated even after three months without access to water. With increasing time in estivation, the following parameters increased in the cloacal fluid: osmolality, potassium, and magnesium; and the following increased in the blood plasma: osmolality, and protein concentration. Electrolytes in plasma were highest when the crocodiles were in the water and late in the estivation period. Freshwater crocodiles do not appear to have any specific adaptations for estivation, but given an adequate refuge, they can survive many months without access to water.


Melanin pigments often co-purify during preparation of nucleic acids from cells or tissues of melanocytic origin. Contaminating melanin can severely impede subsequent analyses of RNA. We attempted to eliminate melanin in RNA preparations using selected gel matrices. We show here that co-purified melanin pigments can be largely eliminated from RNA samples after passing through polyacrylamide-based beads (Bio-Gel P-60). After isolation from the pigment-containing cells or tissues, RNA was subsequently processed through batch or column purification under acidic pH conditions. The resulting RNA was devoid of contaminating melanin pigments and amenable to molecular reactions such as polymerase chain reaction and cDNA synthesis by reverse transcriptase. Although the process results in some loss of input RNA, this purification procedure is simple, robust and can easily be adopted in any laboratory for the molecular analysis of RNA that requires removal of melanin contamination.


Progesterone synthesis by the human placenta requires the conversion of mitochondrial cholesterol to pregnenolone by cytochrome P450scc. Most steroidogenic tissues use the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) to deliver cholesterol to the inner mitochondrial membrane where P450scc is located, but StAR is not expressed in the human placenta. However, the human placenta does express MLN64, which has a C-terminal domain homologous to StAR that can also transport cholesterol. We investigated the ability of bacterially expressed N-218 MLN64 and N-62 StAR to transport cholesterol between artificial membranes and to its inner membrane site of use in placental mitochondria. Urea denaturation experiments show that N-218 MLN64 undergoes a pH-dependent and denaturant-dependent structural transition to a molten globule state, as reported previously for N-62 StAR. N-218 MLN64 stimulated cholesterol transfer between artificial phospholipid vesicles with an initial rate of 6.5 mol/min.mol N-218 MLN64. Both N-218 MLN64 and N-62 StAR stimulated cholesterol transfer to the inner mitochondrial membrane, as evidenced by a 6-fold stimulation of pregnenolone synthesis with saturating transporter. This stimulation was seen only after the endogenous cholesterol in the steroidogenic pool of the isolated mitochondria was first depleted. No stimulation was observed by N-218 MLN64 or N-62 StAR when 20alpha-hydroxycholesterol was added as substrate for P450scc, confirming that these proteins stimulate P450scc activity by enhancing cholesterol transport. MLN64 levels in placental JEG-3 cells were unresponsive to stimulation by 8-bromo-cAMP over 24 h. These data show that human N-218 MLN64 and N-62 StAR have similar biophysical and functional properties and are able to stimulate steroidogenesis in a human placental system, which normally lacks StAR. The results reveal that with saturating MLN64, steroidogenesis by placental mitochondria proceeds at near-maximal rate.


The use of bulky monodentate m-terphenyl ligands in the stabilisation of d-block organometallic compounds is surveyed. Importantly, these ligands have facilitated the isolation of hitherto unknown species containing low-coordinate centres and metal-metal multiple bonds. This review reports on these advances with emphasis on the synthesis, structural characterisation and, where possible, reactivity studies of complexes featuring metal-carbon bonds between m-terphenyl ligands and the transition metals.


A numerical model for the calculation of the variable inductance during the current-sheet (CS) evolution in plasma-focus (PF) devices is presented. The model represents the CS by an articulated surface of many coaxial conical elements accelerated by the Lorentz force while collecting the mass swept in their paths. The numerical results are validated against the measurements of the time-varying inductance in a 6-kJ PF device, showing good agreement.


The author reviews scientific drilling projects investigating lacustrine sediments in Japan. The lake sediments are excellent archives for paleoenvironments and tectonic movements, and are especially useful when sediments have sequences of annual bands. The earliest deep drilling projects, namely 200 m and 1,400 m drillings, were performed at Lake Biwa in 1971 and 19821983, respectively. The results revealed detailed climate changes and tectonic movements of the Omi basin over the past 1.6 Ma. Sediment cores from Lake Suigetsu provide an excellent chronological key based on annual bands for the past 50 ka or more. Furthermore, studies on sediment cores from Lake Nojiri and the lacustrine Takano Formation provided high time resolution data on paleoclimate for the past 160 ka: these data are based on the total organic carbon content and pollen composition of the sediment cores. The impregnation method to make a thin section of lake sediment is essential for counting annual layers to avoid miscounting varves. Lacustrine sediments exposed on land may also be useful archives of the Pleistocene as shown by case studies on Takano and Yoshino Formations. Sample storage systems and sub-sampling method such as double-L channel are useful for systematic research on sediments.


ABSTRACT Some international organizations, and most prominently the World Bank, play a leading role in the supply of cross-country governance ratings. The paper draws on interviews of World Bank staff to understand why the World Bank produces cross-country comparable indicators and to bring to light the current controversies within the World Bank about existing indicators and future work on governance indicators. It also attempts to explain why so many external users rely on the Worldwide Governance Indicators, despite the limitations of these indicators and the large number of more meaningful, alternative indicators available. It argues that both robust and meaningful indicators and more qualitative research are necessary to give better reform advice to developing countries.


In the paper, we re-investigate the long run behavior of an adaptive learning process driven by the stochastic replicator dynamics developed by Fudenberg and Harris (1992). It is demonstrated that the Nash equilibrium will be the robust limit of the adaptive learning process as long as it is reachable for the learning dynamics in almost surely finite time. Doob's martingale theory and Girsanov Theorem play very important roles in confirming the required assertion.


A novel geometric method for the planning and controlling the orientation of a robot's end-effector as it moves along a prescribed translational path is presented. To eliminate the influence of geometric changes to the path and to be able to predict the orientation, the proposed method plans rotational paths with respect to a natural local coordinate frame formed by three unit vectors, namely, the tangent, normal, and binormal vectors, defined by the geometry of the path. A motion control strategy is developed to maintain the desired rotational speed or acceleration of the end effector. Examples are presented which show the practicality of the method. >


Bubble and droplet motion in binary mixtures is studied in weak heat and diffusion fluxes and in gravity by solving the linearized hydrodynamic equations supplemented with appropriate surface boundary conditions. Without gravity, the velocity field is induced by evaporation and condensation at the interface and by the Marangoni effect due to a surface-tension gradient. In pure fluids, the latter nearly vanishes since the interface temperature tends to the coexistence temperature T_{cx}(p) even in heat flow. In binary mixtures, the velocity field can be much enhanced by the Marangoni effect above a crossover concentration c;{ *} inversely proportional to the radius R of the bubble or droplet. Here c;{ *} is usually very small for large R for non-azeotropic mixtures. The temperature and concentration deviations are also calculated.


Freshwater resources and changes in those resources have been identified as one of the most important global change issues in the arid and semi-arid regions of sub-Saharan Western Africa. In these regions, most surface waters are temporary and exhibit a high spatial and temporal variability associated with seasonal rains. Wide-field-of-view satellite sensors allow mapping and monitoring of the changing surface water extent every 10 days, at a 1 km spatial resolution, at a regional scale. The accuracy of these water body detections was assessed by a time series analysis, allowing the production of a map that represented a synthesis of 10-daily water body detections from 1999 to 2007. The map included, in particular, temporary water bodies, which showed the potential of wide-field-of-view satellite sensors to add novel information to existing surface water databases. The high accuracy obtained for the regional scale water body map was confirmed during a field survey in the Republic of Niger, West Africa. The fact that water bodies can be monitored in near-real time, at low cost, at a regional scale, with a high reliability, makes them ideal ecological indicators. Relationships and interactions exist between the seasonality and extent of temporary water bodies, rainfall, and vegetation cover, and changes in one factor lead to changes in one or more of the other factors. When these changes are quantified, localized and the relative contribution of each factor is evaluated with statistical analyses, it is possible to give indications about the ecosystem state at both a catchment and a regional scale. This integrated assessment of remotely sensed rainfall, vegetation cover, and water body extent showed the potential of detected temporary water bodies to function as ecological indicators in West African drylands.


The corrosion behaviors of ferritic/martensitic steel P92, austenitic stainless steel TP347HFG and HR3C have been investigated in supercritical water (SCW) at 550°C under 25MPa with 2ppm dissolved oxygen. After 600h exposue, all the samples formed a stable oxide layer, but of varying thickness and microstructure. A typical dual-layered oxide film on P92 and a single-layered structure on TP347HFG and HR3C were observed by SEM and EDS. Further XRD studies indicated the compositions of oxide layers weren't independent to the type of the used steel. In comparison with ferritic/martensitic steel, austenitic steel showed a higher corrosion resistance.


A surface plasmon resonance (SPR) prism coupler is proposed for the high-resolution non-invasive (NI) measurement of the circular birefringence (CB) properties of turbid media. The feasibility of the proposed device is demonstrated by means of numerical simulations. It is shown that the SPR sensor enables the CB properties to be detected with a resolution of up to 8.9 × 10-7 RIU (refractive index units) for refractive indices in the range of 1.3∼1.4. Moreover, for tissue phantom solutions containing 2% lipofundin, the device has a detection limit of 3.72 mg/dL. This resolution performance satisfies the detection limit of 10 mg/dL stipulated by the U.S FDA for point-of-care glucose monitoring devices. Thus, the proposed SPR sensor has significant potential for NI glucose sensing in such applications as diabetes detection and management.


cREAtIve targets the development of novel highly-adaptable embedded deep learning solutions for automotive and traffic monitoring applications, including position sensor processing, scene interpretation based on LiDAR, and object detection and classification in thermal images for traffic camera systems. These applications share the need for deep learning solutions tailored for deployment on embedded devices with limited resources and featuring high adaptability and robustness to changing environmental conditions. cREAtIve develops knowledge, tools and methods that enable hardware-efficient, adaptable, and robust deep learning.


A universal monolithic battery charger is presented, capable of automatically detecting the number and type of battery cells, NiCd, NiMH, Li-ion and Li-polymer. Different charging modes are supported from constant-current voltage-limited to constant-voltage current-limited with a wide range of charging rates, current or voltage limitations. A novel control using continuous and switched loops regulates the current and voltage concurrently during the various phases of the charging process. In addition, various end-of-charge detections are available, namely the detection of residual charging current for Lithium batteries, peak voltage for Nickel batteries, and safety detections including under and over voltage and temperature, and time-out detection. The charger IC is implemented in a 5V, 0.5/spl mu/m triple-metal standard CMOS process, requiring 8 pins and a total silicon area of 3mm/sup 2/. Three external resistors and a charging transistor complete the charger.


Numerical simulations indicate that the filamentation of sunspot penumbrae and the associated systematic outflow (the Evershed effect) are due to convectively driven fluid motions constrained by the inclined magnetic field. We investigate whether these motions, in particular the upflows in the bright filaments and the downflows at their edges, can be reliably observed with existing instrumentation. We use a snapshot from a sunspot simulation to calculate two-dimensional maps of synthetic line profiles for the spectral lines Fe i 7090.4 Å and C i 5380.34 Å. The maps are spatially and spectrally degraded according to typical instrument properties. Line-of-sight velocities are determined from line bisector shifts. We find that the detectability of the convective flows is strongly affected by spatial smearing, particularly so for the downflows. Furthermore, the line-of-sight velocities are dominated by the Evershed flow unless the observation is made very near the disk center. These problems may have compromised recent attempts to detect overturning penumbral convection. Lines with a low formation height are best suited for detecting the convective flows.


We cloned and sequenced the gene encoding exo-β-glucosaminidase (GlcNase) from Amycolatopsis orientalis, and found that the gene has an open reading frame of 1032 residues with a calculated molecular mass of 110,557. The GlcNase has been classified as a member of family GH-2. Sequence alignments identified a group of GlcNase-related protein sequences forming a distinct subclass of family GH-2. When mono-N-acetylated chitotetraose [(GlcN)3-GlcNAc] was hydrolyzed by the enzyme, the GlcN unit was produced from the nonreducing end together with the transglycosylation products. 1H-NMR spectroscopy revealed that the enzyme is a retaining glycoside hydrolase. The rate of hydrolysis of the disaccharide, GlcN-GlcNAc, was somewhat lower than that of (GlcN)2, suggesting that the N-acetyl group of the sugar residue located at (+1) site partly interferes with the catalytic reaction. Based on the time-course of the enzymatic hydrolysis of the completely deacetylated chitotetraose [(GlcN)4], we obtained the values of binding free energy changes of +7.0, -2.9, -1.8, -0.9, -1.0 and -0.5 kcal/mol corresponding, respectively, to subsites (-2) (-1) (+1) (+2) (+3) (+4). Synergism resulting from mixing the A. orientalis GlcNase with Streptomyces sp. N174 endochitosanase was also observed when chitosan polysaccharide was used as the substrate. To identify the catalytic residue, mutations were introduced into the putative catalytic residues resulting in five mutated enzymes (D469A, D469E, E541D, E541Q and S468N/D469E) which were successfully produced. The four single mutants were devoid of enzymatic activity, indicating that Asp469 and Glu541 are essential for catalysis as predicted from sequence alignment of enzymes belonging to GH-2 family.


GaAs layers grown by the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) method at low temperatures (200 degrees C) and also MBE samples grown at 300 degrees C highly doped with Be or Si show high concentrations of As antisite-related defects in the optical absorption and in the magnetic circular dichroism of the absorption (MCDA). With optical detection of EPR it is shown that these antisite-related defects have properties similar to those of the EL2 defects except for the EL2 bleaching characteristics and the so called zero phonon line. Their spin-lattice relaxation time is strongly reduced compared with that of EL2+. These differences may be related to their high concentrations, which are of the order of approximately 1019-1020 cm-3. In MBE samples grown at higher temperatures (325 degrees C, 400 degrees C) a new As antisite-related defect was detected with a reduced 75As hyperfine splitting as compared with that of EL2+. This new As antisite-related defect has properties very similar to those of another As antisite-related defect previously detected in horizontal Bridgman n-type GaAs. A comparison of four different As antisite-related defects with similar reduced 75As hyperfine splittings is presented.


To claim to believe in God without accepting that God exists independently of human minds would mean reducing God to merely a human construct, thus not real enough for being the object of religious worship. This book sets out to challenge this common view on existence and religious belief. Arguing from concrete examples of language use in children's make-believe play and other ordinary situations, Erica Appelros suggests that what makes us consider something to be real involves our capacities to relate to our surroundings -- not only on grounds of their physical characteristics but also on grounds of human construction. This book makes a substantial contribution to the contemporary debate within philosohpy of religion on religious realism and non-realism, and suggests innovative and constructive solutions to the perennial philosophical and religious issue of what is meant by talking about God and God's existence. (Less)


C194 Background Aurora kinase functions are associated with centrosome maturation, spindle organization, chromosome separation and condensation as well as cytokinesis. Inappropriate expression of aurora kinases can induce aberrant mitosis, centrosome irregularities, and chromosomal instability, which lead to aneuploidy and cell transformation. Overexpression of EGF receptor is found in 57-81% of HNSCC. Since EGFR activates downstream pathways such as the MAPK pathway that promote cell survival and that may modulate aurora kinase function, we sought to investigate combinations of EGFR inhibitors with AS703569 (formerly known as R763), a potent ATP competitive inhibitor of aurora kinases A, B and C.
 Methods Effects of AS703569 and erlotinib, were evaluated in SCC61 and SQ20B cell lines characterized for EGFR and AKT expression. Cells were exposed to 24h AS703569 or 48h erlotinib . Simultaneous and sequential AS703569-combinations were studied using MTT assay and median effect plot analysis. Cell cycle effects (FACS), and cell signalling modifications (Western blot) were also analyzed.
 Results AS703569 induced concentration and time-dependent antiproliferative effects in HNSCC cancer cell lines with IC50s at 24h of 5+0.9, 10+1 µM in SCC61 (overexpressing aurora A/C), and SQ20B (overexpressing aurora B) cells, respectively. In our panel, antiproliferative effects of AS703569 were associated with endoreduplication, which increased with time from 9% at 24 h to 32% at 72 h. Similarly, the proportion of cells in sub-G1 increased with time with 5% at 4 h versus 36% after 72 h of exposure. In SCC61 cells, synergistic antiproliferative effects were observed when AS703569 was combined with erlotinib for both schedules of sequential additions. In SQ20B cells, synergistic effects were obtained when AS703569 was combined with erlotinib regardless of schedules of addition.
 Conclusion These results in HNSCC show that the orally available aurora kinase inhibitor AS703569 has potent antiproliferative effects and induces apoptosis. The combination with with erlotinib results in effects that are additive or synergistic and sequence-dependent. These data provide support for testing in clinical studies combinations of AS703569 with EGFR targeting agents.


A.P. Rebrov, E.l. Koshkina, A.A. Antonyan, R.V. Lyakisheva NSAID-induced gastro-duodenal bleeding: risk of development and patient management. Retrospective analysis of gastro-duodenal bleeding (GDB) report forms was performed. Pts admitted to the department of internal diseases of Saratov regional clinical hospital from 1999 to 2004 were included. 354 cases of GDB were recorded ( 282 from 1999 to 2001 and 72 from 2002 to 2004). Cause ofbleeding, influence of NSAID administration on appearance and relapse ofbleeding, source ofbleeding and pt management were assessed. NSAJD administration was considered trigger factor of GDB in 24% in 1999-2001 and in 18% in 2002-2004. The results of the study show some tendency to decrease of NSAIDinduced gastropathy frequency among causes of GDB. The main risk factors ofbleeding during NSAID treatment were age of more than 30 years, ulcer history, the first month of NSAID administration. GDB frequency did not depend on regularity of treatment and NSAID dosage.


To increase wetland acreage and biodiversity, state agencies constructed more than 220 depressional wetlands throughout Delaware. We investigated effects of landscape composition within 1,000 m and 5,000 m of 20 Kent County, Delaware constructed wetlands on their avian, macroinvertebrate, and vegetative communities. Using digital orthophotography and geographic information system (GIS), we quantified agriculture, early successional, forest, development, freshwater wetlands, roads, and streams within concentric buffers. We also calculated distance to nearest forest, wetland, and paved road edge from the wetland's center. In 2004 and 2005, we surveyed the biotic communities and regressed richness and diversity values against landscape variables. Proximity of nearest forest edge was the most important variable in explaining avian and vegetative richness and diversity. We detected negative relationships with distance to nearest forest and bird richness, bird diversity, total plant richness, facultative wetland plant cover, and native, exotic, and obligate wetland plant richness and cover. Furthermore, bird richness and diversity increased with forest area within 1,000 m and bird diversity increased with forest area within 5,000 m. To optimize biodiversity, managers should consider proximity to forest for wetlands constructed in agricultural landscapes.


The association between scientific knowledge and scientific research has a productive and motivating role in that both are related to a certain sector or field of activity and not only to research. One of the most complicated problems faced by tourism managers is the priority setting of objectives. Managers must select projects from a series of alternative investments, Following the research I have observed that, in their activity, managers in the tourism industry are based on rigorously systematized financial data, provided by accounting. In this research I studied the accounting management system of the AMS in the tourism industry in Romania and the way in which the theoretical elements are reflected, which are specific to the financial accounting field in the managerial practice of making economic decisions. This article bases the general and generalizable components of the field for which the research is carried out.


A simple and cost-effective methodology for large-area micrometer-scale patterning of a wide range of metallic and oxidic functional materials is presented. Self-assembled monolayers (SAM) of alkyl thiols on Au were micropatterned by channel-diffused oxygen plasma etching, a method in which selected areas of SAM were protected from plasma oxidation via a soft lithographic stamp. The patterned SAMs were used as templates for site-selective electrodeposition, electroless deposition and solution-phase deposition of functional materials such as ZnO, Ni, Ag thin films, and ZnO nanowires. The patterned SAMs and functional materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and tunneling AFM (TUNA).


Guidance for the traditional attest function recently has been expanded to provide directions to independent accountants performing engagements on forecasted financial statements ("Financial Forecasts and Projections," AICPA [1992, AT 200]). Although the use of forecasted financial information in lending decisions has been extensively examined in previous research, the extent to which engagements identified by "Financial Forecasts and Projections" actually affect users' decisions and perceptions has not been determined. This study examines whether decisions and perceptions of commercial lenders are influenced by the level of accountant involvement (no involvement, a compilation engagement, or an examination engagement) with a hypothetical loan candidate's forecasted financial statements. The results of this study indicate that bankers consider the extent of accountant involvement with forecasted financial statements in their lending decisions. In addition, a significant interaction between the level of accountant involvement with historical financial statements and forecasted financial statements indicates that this effect is more pronounced when the accountant also audits the loan candidate's historical financial statements. However, bankers' perceptions of the responsibilities assumed and assurances provided by the accountant in these engagements differ from statements in accountants' reports. These inconsistencies suggest the need for the AICPA to modify current accountants' reports to communicate more clearly the nature of these engagements and to provide further education to users.


SUMMARY The operating conditions for preparative chromatography, as for any industrial process, must be optimized. Such optimization is based on thorough understanding of process variables and economics. Optimization of the operating conditions is the best justification for detailed study of the fundamentals of nonlinear chromatography. It is difficult to optimize a separation without a clear understanding of how the thermodynamics of competitive phase equilibria, the finite rate of mass transfer, and dispersion phenomena combine to affect the individual band profiles of the components to be separated. The operating conditions determine the objectives of the process – yield, productivity, and, ultimately, the cost of the separation. Because of the severe nonlinearity of the chromatography model, the problem of optimization is difficult to solve, and because of the large number of operating variables and the complexity of the objective functions, the solution found can easily be the result of trapping in a local optimum. It is, therefore, necessary to use an effective mathematical tool for global optimization of nonlinear problems. In this work a chromatographic process for separation of the cis and trans isomers of furyl analogues of natural plant terpenes from a real post-synthesis mixture has been optimized. Typical problems during the optimization, which are discussed below, were: (a) formulation of a model of the process dynamics; (b) specification of model variables such as isotherm data, system efficiency, and physicochemical properties of the system; (c) specification of the objectives of the separation process and the process operating variables; and (d) selection of the optimization procedure.


Gastric peristalsis has not been studied extensively in patients with dyspepsia. The aim of our study was to further characterize gastric peristalsis in such patients using a newly described fluorographic method. Thirty-two patients with dyspepsia and 18 healthy volunteers were included in our study. Four hours after a standard solid-liquid meal, the subject swallowed 250 ml of a baryum sulfate solution and (100 mm x 100 mm) fluoroscopy of the stomach was performed every 2 s during 30 s. Spot films were analyzed using a graphic table and a amateur microcomputer program. For each subject, the instant velocity, vi, and mean velocity, V, of gastric peristalsis were calculated and used to generate a time-space diagram of contractions, a velocity histogram and an index of propagation, Ip. These parameters were compared to normal values (V = 2.2 +/- 0.2 mm/s; Ip = 2.2 +/- 0.4). When compared with normal values, 3 different motility patterns appeared in dyspeptic patients with a high correlation between V and Ip (P less than 0.01): normoperistalsis (n = 8; 1.8 less than V less than 2.6 mm/s); 1.4 less than Ip less than 30); hypoperistalsis (n = 7; V less than 1.8 mm/s; Ip greater than 3.0) and hyperperistalsis (n = 7; V greater than 2.6 mm/s; Ip less than 1.4). In a 4th group (n = 5), a retroperistalsis was effect observed with Ip less than 0. For 5 other patients, Ip or V was abnormal with atypical motor activity detected on the time-space diagram.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


One way of alleviating the suffering of laboratory animals and of extending studies in man would be to replace invasive chemical methods for determining metabolism by non-invasisve methods a hope encouraged by this book, which is partly based on a symposium of the American Society of Biological Chemists, held in New Orleans in 1980. Ten reviews consider the application of four distinct physical methods, namely, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), endogenous fluorescence, mass spectrometry, and positron computed tomography (PCT). The most widely used non-invasive method at present is NMR, but, though PCT is an imaging technique, it provides a spatial presentation of data derived from metabolic processes. These new methods have already shown discrepancies in information gained by classical invasive analytical techniques, and promise to contribute greatly to a better understanding of tissue metabolism and to the development of alternative procedures.


T here are few issues of greater significance to the long-term readiness of our military forces than the education of military officers to accomplish the vital roles they play in the defense of our nation. The resurgence of interest in the professional development of officers as a result of the DOD Reorganization Act of 1986 is thus a welcome development. Within the provisions of the Reorganization Act, Congress placed particular emphasis on senior officer education. In a related development, rhe House Armed Services Committee established the Panel On Excellence in Military Education, commonly referred to as the Skelton Panel, which initiated substantive hearings on the professional development of officers. In addition to addressing education in joint and combined matters, the Skelton Panel has analyzed the traditional pedagogical challenges faced by senior military professional development schools. Among these areas of inquiry are curriculum content and structure, educational methodology, faculty qualifications and development, student selection and evaluation, and the relationship of applied research to the academic program. It was during this period of renewed interest in military education that I took over as Commandant of the US Army War College. At that time, General Carl Vuono, who had only recently become the new Chief of Staff of the Army, provided me Terms of Reference which laid out his vision for the College. In these instructions, he charged the US Army War College to be the capstone institution in the formal development of the Army's leaders. Additionally, he instructed the College to become the cradle of military strategy and a source of innovative thought for the entire defense community. Finally, he directed a comprehensive assessment of the College, its institutes, and associated activities, with a view toward accomplishing any needed redirection of the efforts of the College. The assessment was completed this past


In this contribution we present an approach to improve organic and hybrid solar cell performance via microplasma-induced surface engineering of silicon nanocrystals (Si-ncs) without using large organic molecules. Surface-engineered Si-ncs were dispersed in aqueous solutions with poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and subsequently a hybrid nanocomposite was formed to be used as optical down-converter for blue photons (high energy photons higher ~2.7 eV) into red photons (bellow ~1.8 eV). The integration of the nanocomposite in organic devices enhanced the photocurrent generation under concentrated light and prevented ultra-violet (UV) radiation from reaching the organic active layer, therefore limiting its degradation. In additional devices, Si-ncs at different concentrations were also used in the PTB7:[70]PCBM bulk heterojunction active layer, exhibiting a contribution to carrier generation and exciton dissociation.


We report a cavity-dumped 1123 nm laser with narrow pulse width and high peak power by an MgO: LN crystal electro-optic (EO) modulator. Based on the structural optimization design of a folded biconcave cavity using the 808 nm pulsed laser diode (LD) side-pumped ceramic Nd: YAG rod, output pulses with maximum pulse energy and peak power up to 39.6 mJ and 9.73 MW were obtained, corresponding to 100 Hz repetition rate and 4.07 ns pulse width. The instabilities of pulse width and pulse energy were $\pm$ 1.55% and $\pm$ 2.06%, respectively. At the highest repetition rate of 1 kHz, the pulse energy, pulse width, and peak power were 11.3 mJ, 5.05 ns, and 2.24 MW, respectively. The instabilities of pulse width and pulse energy were $\pm$ 2.65% and $\pm$ 3.47%, respectively.


Organizations have the potential to achieve advantage through communities of practice (COPs) initiatives. However, establishing and sustaining COPs is a challenging task. Facilitation is needed to help COPs overcome difficulties throughout their life stages. Facilitators take on leadership roles within these virtual communities, yet little is known about the challenges related to their roles. This paper contributes in helping to improve leadership in COP by highlighting challenges in facilitating COP and by providing potential solutions addressing those challenges. A recent survey of facilitators reveals challenges faced by facilitators in performing their tasks within COPs. The issue of participation was identified as the main concern in COP facilitation. Several design and technology initiatives are discussed for their potential to help facilitators in coping with the participation issue and providing essential leadership roles within communities of practice.


The aim of this study is to gain knowledge on the influence of coaching on the performance of employees and on the performance of their organisation as a whole. From the literature review it was expected that there would be a positive relation between the coaching styles 'friend', 'prophet' and 'expert' and the performance of the coachee and of the organisation, and a negative relation between the coaching style 'officer' and the performance of the coachee and of the organisation. From the empirical part of the study it became clear that the coaching styles prophet and friend both have a positive influence on the performance of the individual. This means that, by adopting these two styles the performance of the employee can be improved. Furthermore, the statistics show that the coaching styles expert and officer have no significant influence on the performance of the coachee; it has neither a positive influence, nor a negative one. This means that it makes no difference when a coach uses one of these styles. More specifically, it is a useless utilisation of one's time and energy when taking on one of these styles. Furthermore, it becomes clear that only the coach as a friend has a significant direct positive effect on the performance of the organisation as a whole. This means that, by adopting this style in coaching an employee, the performance of his/her organisation can be improved. The significant relation between the prophet style and individual performance has an indirect (positive) effect on the performance of the organisation as a whole. The coaching styles expert and officer have, although expected otherwise, no significant influence on organisational performance. This can be logically explained by the fact that neither of them has a significant influence on individual performance. These findings are discussed and reflected in recommendations for organisations and further research.


Demographics and population growth are among the most important factors affecting real estate markets. Differences in population growth between U.S. metros are driven largely by domestic migration patterns.

What explains migration patterns, and can this help anticipate future conditions in commercial real estate markets? We examine the structure of local job markets and find that metros with higher concentrations of certain professions like management, business and finance, have persistently higher in-migration, while metros with greater focus on production, transport (and "material moving") saw lower in-migration or net outmigration. Jobs in computer, science, and engineering were the largest driver for international migration.

These migration patterns have a statistically significant impact on apartment and office markets, including higher rent growth, larger price increases, stronger demand growth and new construction. Among metros like Seattle and Austin, high levels of construction may be warranted by future in-migration in response to the composition of professions in the local job market.


We report the case of a 46-yr-old man with a 16-yr history of type I diabetes mellitus who developed rapid onset of nephrotic syndrome. Renal biopsy revealed diabetic nephropathy, characterized by thickened glomerular basement membranes (GBM), mild nodular glomerulosclerosis, and focal arteriolar hyalinization. Immunofluorescent (IF) studies showed strong granular IgM staining along glomerular loops, with subepithelial and intramembranous immune complex deposits along glomerular capillary loops demonstrated by electron microscopy (EM). These findings are consistent with membranous glomerulopathy with IgM as the predominant immunoglobulin. In addition, there were large aggregates of electron-dense material composed of numerous ring or spherical particles, ranging from 200 to 400 nm, in Bowman's space, which corresponded to eosinophilic aggregates on light microscopy (LM) and strong IgM stained materials by IF studies.


When a theory of electromagnetism promotes the idea that the medium for the propagation of light waves is an elastic solid comprised of electric particles, the question is always going to be asked as to why this medium would not generate friction in the planetary orbits, such as would cause the planets to spiral into the Sun. It would be impossible for a moving body to completely avoid any physical interaction with these electric particles, and so, in order to comply with Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion, this interaction must be the actual cause of the inertial forces, as opposed to being the cause of any dissipative friction.


This paper makes the case that of all of the improvement methodologies used in businesses, continuous improvement can overcome the problem of ossification in the context of new product development where the ability to engage in exploitation and exploration may be a prerequisite for business success in the future. In particular, indicators such as linking strategic objectives to improvement activity and degrees of integration of systems within and between firms have a close fit with the cultural dimension of continuous improvement, something which is largely absent from top down, output focused TQM and Lean programmes. The case is made on the basis of a review of a variety of literatures including those on TQM, Lean, continuous innovation, the extended manufacturing enterprise and bootlegging.


Stress-relaxation measurements were performed on specimens of radicular human dentin. The relaxation modulus showed a linear dependence on the logarithm of time and the approximation to the logarithmic distribution function of relaxation times was used to predict the behavior of other viscoelastic properties. This experimental technique provides significant criteria for the design of polymeric restorative and prosthetic materials.


Bernard-Soulier Syndrome is a rare hereditary thrombocytopathy that manifests clinically by excessive bleeding out of proportion to the degree of thrombocytopenia. Only eight reports of Bernard-Soulier Syndrome in pregnancy have been previously described. In some patients the pregnancy course was smooth while in others post-partum haemorrhage was the most common complication. We present a primiparous female who had immediate and delayed post-partum haemorrhage that was managed conservatively. Review of the literature is also included.


The debate on the essence of the city calls for the consideration of the role of its structural elements in the loss or strengthening of this essence. The Author's understanding of the 'essence of the city' is its accessibility and diversity: accessibility of diversity and diversified accessibility. In this context, the subject matter of this paper is an analysis of the role of railway stations and the public spaces that accompany them upon the example of Katowice.


THE educational program for early and middle childhood is composed of three and usually separate parts: the nursery school, the kindergarten, and the elementary school. The program for early and middle childhood includes children of ages three to 12 or 13. In this program the nursery school usually provides for children aged three to four, the kindergarten for children aged five (some kindergartens admit four-year-olds), and the elementary school for ages six to 12 and 13. There is an overlapping of ages at all points. The greatest amount of controversy as to institutional responsibility centers at age four. While Caswell and Foshay (3 ) , Davis (5 ) , Forest (8 ) , Hymes (16) , and Otto (30) propose that the educational program for young children be seen and planned in some continuous over-all fashion, the above units come from different historical backgrounds and sources of support and vary widely in their presence in the educational program of any given community. The elementary school is a part of all programs of public and private education for young children. The kindergarten is found much less frequently, but Deffenbaugh (7 ) , Gans, Stendler, and Almy (10) , and Goodykoontz, Davis, and Gabbard (11) indicated that the kindergarten and the primary grades are closer to the elementary school in existence and practice than to the nursery school. The inconsistencies in the support and control of educational programs for young children have been brought out by Simpson (33) . He indicated that in California, the state and school districts support the elementaryschool program; kindergartens are supported by the local district entirely; nursery schools are supported by the colleges or on a private basis; and child-care centers have been supported by the federal government. He concluded that this picture is inconsistent; it does not make sense; it does not reflect soundly developed educational policy. It is evident from the study by Goodykoontz and others (12) that the depression, and the war period which followed, accelerated the develop ment of educational services for the young child. While not as dramatic during the past dozen years, the extension of education downward to young children parallels the similar extension upward of higher education and adult programs for young men and women and adults. The motives for such extension downward are mixed and complicated. Care for children of working mothers, more adequate personal and social development for children, and the concept that the public school should provide for children of all ages, combine to actuate the interest and support for educational programs at this level.


— This paper referred a graph-coloring approached algorithm for the exam time tabling problem specificities application, with the concrete objective of achieving fairness, accuracy, and optimal exam time period allocation. Through the work, we have considered some assumptions and constraints, closely related to the handling exam time tabling problem, and this mainly driven from experience at various colleges. The performance concern of the algorithm has mention in this paper.