BACKGROUND: Delayed myocardial preconditioning by volatile anesthetics involves changes in DNA transcription and translation. Mitochondria play a central role in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury and in ischemic or pharmacologic preconditioning. In this study, we investigated whether there are alterations in myocardial mitochondrial protein expression after volatile anesthetic preconditioning (APC) to examine the underlying mechanisms of delayed cardioprotection. METHODS: Thirty-six Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups (n = 12 for each group). Rats in the delayed APC group were exposed to sevoflurane (2.5% for 60 minutes) 24 hours before myocardial ischemia was induced. Myocardial ischemia in the I/R and APC groups was induced by left coronary artery occlusion for 30 minutes, followed by 120 minutes of reperfusion. The control group received no treatment. The mitochondria fractions were prepared by differential centrifugation with density gradient isolation for proteomic analysis. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization with time-of-flight mass spectrometry was used to identify differences in the protein expression from mitochondria of the rat hearts. RESULTS: Fifteen differentially expressed mitochondrial proteins between the APC group and I/R group were identified and the expression patterns of 2 of the proteins were confirmed by Western blot analysis. These proteins were associated with mitochondrial substrate metabolism, respiration, and adenosine triphosphate (ATP)/adenosine diphosphate transport. The modifications of the mitochondrial proteome suggest an enhanced capacity of mitochondria to maintain myocardial ATP levels after I/R injury. CONCLUSION: Delayed sevoflurane myocardial preconditioning induces mitochondrial proteome remodeling, which mainly involves proteins that are related to ATP generation and transport. Therefore, proteomic changes related to bioenergetic balance may be the mechanistic basis of delayed anesthetic myocardial preconditioning.


The hospice movement may demonstrate America's effort to rebuild and replace the family unit. Rather than permit hospices to spring up randomly, Americans must strive to build a society where helping networks eventually replace hospices.


The migraine disease is a chronic headache presenting symptomatic crisis that causes high economic costs to the national health services, and impacts negatively on the quality of life of the patients. Even if some patients can feel unspecific symptoms before the onset of the migraine, these only happen randomly and cannot predict the crisis precisely. In our work, we have proved how migraine crisis can be predicted with high accuracy from the physiological variables of the patients, acquired by a non-intrusive Wireless Body Sensor Network. In this paper, we derive alternative models for migraine prediction using Grammatical Evolution techniques. We obtain prediction horizons around 20 minutes, which are sufficient to advance the drug intake and avoid the symptomatic crisis. The robustness of the models with respect to sensor failures has also been tackled to allow the practical implementation in the ambulatory monitoring platform. The achieved models are non linear mathematical expressions with low computing overhead during the run-time execution in the wearable devices.


Quorum sensing is a cell-density dependent regulatory system, which orchestrates that quorum-sensing (QS) systems use extracellular signals to modulate the expression of a particular gene(s) in a bacterial cell, which results in virulence gene expression or biofilm formation and occasionally causes deadly plant and animal diseases. The frequent use of antibiotics to treat deadly diseases has led to the development of multiple drug-resistant bacterial strains. The increasing presence of pathogenic bacteria has thus forced us to develop alternative methods for controlling pathogen virulence. One such possible method, quorum quenching (QQ), has emerged as an interesting approach. A variety of bioactive molecules or drugs from prokaryotic or eukaryotic sources have been identified as QQ molecules, some of which are chemically synthesized, and the agonist or antagonist of their cognate receptor or metabolic intermediate was determined. Current strategies to attenuate the virulence of gene expression can be grouped into the following categories: (a) blockage of AHL–Lux-R-type binding sites, (b) inhibition of AHL–Lux-R- and Lux-I-type interactions, (c) inhibition of transporters, (d) degradation of existing AHLs by QQ enzymes and (e) inhibition of enzymes involved in the metabolic synthesis of QS molecules. This review summarises several potential QQ molecules that have been reported to attenuate QS-based virulence gene expression in serious Gram-negative pathogenic bacteria. These QQ molecules suggest possible ways of controlling the virulence effects of pathogenic bacteria in the post-antibiotic era.


This paper presents an experimental route for testing the existence of Lorentz violation in the infrared (IR) regime by means of a universal minimum speed in spacetime and its effects on time when an atomic clock given by a certain radioactive single-atom (e.g.: isotope $Na^{25}$) is a thermometer for a ultracold gas like the dipolar gas $Na^{23}K^{40}$. So, according to the Symmetrical Special Relativity (SSR), where there emerges an invariant minimum speed in the subatomic world, one expects that the proper time of such a clock moving close to the minimum speed in thermal equilibrium with the ultracold gas is dilated with respect to the improper time given in lab, i.e., the proper time at ultracold systems elapses faster than the improper one for an observer in lab, thus leading to the so-called proper time dilation so that the atomic decay rate of a ultracold radioactive sample (e.g: $Na^{25}$) becomes larger than the decay rate of the same sample at room temperature. This means a suppression of the half-life time of a radioactive sample thermalized with a ultracold cloud of dipolar gas to be investigated in Cold Atom Lab (CAL).


Abstract Non-native tree species – defined as those species intentionally or unintentionally introduced by humans – have long been a part of the Alpine Space, providing numerous benefits, but also posing a potential threat to native biodiversity and related ecosystem services. Compared to the urban space where non-native trees comprise most tree species, the number of non-native trees in forests and plantations is relatively low. To evaluate potential risks and benefits of non-native trees in the Alpine Space, a transnational strategy for the responsible use and management of non-native trees is needed. The goals of the strategy are to tailor management practices for a sustainable and responsible use or admixture of non-native trees, to reduce the risks connected with the invasive potential of some non-native tree species, to help forests and urban areas to adapt to climate change, and to improve coordination and cooperation regarding best practices between different regions of the Alpine Space. A proposal was developed in a four-step process including expert-based assessment, stakeholder mapping, an extensive data review, and a public consultation. For implementing the strategy fully, strong collaboration among diverse stakeholders is anticipated and robust governance and an adequate long-term and fair funding scheme is needed.


1. Stainless steel mould arthroplasty of the knee is described and a ten-year follow-up study of sixty-two operations is reported. Fifty-four were for rheumatoid arthritis and eight for osteoarthritis. 2. Forty-nine of the sixty-two joints retained mobility, six had become ankylosed and five were later arthrodesed ; two limbs were amputated. The forty-nine mobile knees included twenty-seven which were painless at all times, and fourteen in which only an occasional twinge was felt. 3. The range of movement was increased in twenty-two joints as compared with the state before operation, diminished in twelve and unaltered in five. In ten knees measurements before operation were not available. 4. Flexion deformity, swelling, stability and function were improved in a significant number of joints. 5. Patients suffering from active rheumatoid arthritis often found that the joint operated upon no longer took part in generalised flares of the disease.


The on-going global shift toward democratic government, vividly joined in recent years by the Arab World, is tempered by the many challenges of democratic transitions. The toppling of an autocratic leader does not automatically mean the rise of democracy. Elections do not guarantee the protection of civil liberties. And democratic leaders are not immune from the seductions of power and the incentives of dismantling democracy's institutional checks and balances. The costs to a society and the international community for democratic reversals are high in terms of civil liberties, human rights, human development and political instability. Strengthening international legal instruments including mechanisms to enhance accountability for violence against journalists and proscribe the subversion of democratic institutions as a crime against democracy can help overcome these conundrums.


In 1985 Canada became the first country to replace its funds flow statement by a cash flow statement. By mid 1991, South Africa, the USA and New Zealand had done the same. Britain, Australia and the IASC all issued statements announcing their intention to follow suit. Thus we have the first example in accounting history of the replacement of one of the three final accounts by an entirely new report. The new report, the cash flow statement, when compiled under the direct method, is a receipts and payment account rearranged under the three headings of operations, financing and investment. A receipts and payments account is the earliest and simplest form of final account, long predating the profit & loss account and balance sheet, and long predating Pacioli's "De Summa Arithmetica" in 1492. The statement which the Cash Flow Statement replaces is less than 120 years old (Rosen & De Coster 1969) and was only mandatory in published British accounts since SSAP 10 came into force in 1975. The purpose of this article is to hold an inquest into the death of the funds statement to determine the cause of death.


There is increasing evidence for steroid hormone effects in lung cancer. Estrogens are involved in lung cancer proliferation and progression, and human lung tumors express estrogen receptor β (ERβ) as well as aromatase, the enzyme which catalyzes the final step in 17-β-estradiol synthesis. We have previously demonstrated that high ERβ expression in lung tumors was an independent negative prognostic predictor of survival, and the contribution of aromatase expression resulted in further effects on survival in both men and women. To determine if the aromatase inhibitor anastrozole prevents the development of lung tumors induced by the tobacco carcinogen, NNK, alone or in combination with the ER antagonist fulvestrant, ovariectomized FVB/N female mice were exposed to NNK along with daily supplementation of 0.1mg androstenedione, the substrate for aromatase. Placebo control, anastrozole (0.1mg/kg/day; oral gavage) and/or fulvestrant (30mg/kg, 2X/week, s.c.) were administered in both an initiation model and a progression model of lung tumorigenesis. In the initiation model, the combination of fulvestrant and anastrozole was administered during NNK exposure and resulted in significantly fewer NNK-induced lung tumors (mean=0.5; range 0-1) compared to placebo (mean=4.6; range 2–8, P<0.001), fulvestrant alone (mean=3.4; range 1–4, P<0.001) or anastrozole alone (mean=2.8; range 0–5, P=0.002). Although a significant decrease in tumor size was not observed among treatment groups, a significant decrease in the cell proliferation index as assessed by Ki67 immunostaining within the tumors treated with anti-estrogens was observed. Beginning anti-estrogen treatment 9 weeks after NNK exposure in the lung tumor progression model, when preneoplastic areas had already formed, also yielded maximum anti-tumor effects with the combination group. In this model, tumor size was modulated by hormonal treatment with the smallest tumors observed in the combination treated group. These results suggest that targeting the estrogen pathway can inhibit lung cancer development during induction of damage to the airways by tobacco carcinogen exposure as well as after damage has occurred. In both animal models, aromatase expression was found mainly in macrophages infiltrating preneoplastic and tumor cells of the lungs, while ERβ was found in both macrophages and tumor cells. An important source of estrogen synthesis may be inflammatory cells that infiltrate the lungs in response to carcinogens, beginning early in the carcinogenesis process. ERβ expressed by inflammatory and neoplastic epithelial cells in the lung may signal in response to local estrogen production. In summary, the effects of combining two endocrine agents with different modes of actions suggest that complete blockade of estrogen action by inhibition of estrogen synthesis and down-regulation of ER has a greater effect on the prevention of tobacco carcinogen-induced murine lung tumorigenesis, and may be useful for lung cancer prevention in both males and females. Additionally, a greater understanding of the inflammatory state of the lung in relation to estrogen signaling is necessary to understand the early stages of lung tumorigenesis. This work was supported by NIH P50CA090440, SPORE in Lung Cancer to JMS and in part by the Comprehensive Cancer Center award P30CA047904.


The effect of live yeast Rhodoturula glutinis was evaluated on juvenile Oreochromis niloticus cultivated in a Biofloc system. Growth performance and the expression of innate response and relevant oxidative stress genes were evaluated after a 12-week feeding trial. Three experimental treatments were evaluated in a conventional tilapia culture (control), Biofloc culture (BFT), and Biofloc with the addition of the live yeast R. glutinis 1×106 CFU g-1 (BFT+Rg), with four replicates per treatment. In all cases, commercial food was supplied to the organisms (32% protein and 5% lipids). O. niloticus juveniles (7.02 ± 0.04 g) were randomly distributed in 12 tanks, each with 15 animals. BFT+Rg treatment showed a significant increase in weight gain compared with the other treatments. Significant improvements were found in Fulton's condition factor, feed conversion rate, and hepatosomatic index under Biofloc conditions, BFT, and BFT+Rg treatments. No significant differences were observed in survival. R. glutinis directly influenced gene expression in the liver and intestine. The expression of tnfa, tgfb, hsp70, and gpx, genes in the liver significantly increased in the BFT+Rg treatment compared with the other treatments. Similarly, a significant increase was found in intestinal il1b, tnfa, tgfb, trf, hsp70 gpx, and cat expression patterns in the BFT+Rg treatment. Based on the performance and immune response, the present study suggests the use of R. glutinis as a strategy to increase the productivity of tilapia in Biofloc culture.


A low grade chalcopyrite ore was leached with H2O2/(NH4)2SO4 and the leach liquor contained 42.96 mol m copper, 3.52 mol m zinc and 11.23 mol m magnesium. From this leach liquor separation of copper was carried out with supported liquid membrane using LIX84I as mobile carrier. Celgard 2400, a microporous polypropylene film was used as the solid support for the liquid membrane. The effect of pH of the feed solution and carrier concentration in membrane phase on copper flux was investigated. It was observed that copper flux increased from 0.92 to 6.3110 mol m s with increase in pH of the feed solution from 1.5 to 3.0 but the flux decreased to 5.9510 mol m s with increasing the feed solution pH to 3.5. Also, the copper flux increased with the increase of LIX 84I concentration (0.361 – 1.44 mol L) in the membrane phase from 1.02 to 6.6010 mol m s and thereafter decreased to 5.2310 mol m s at 1.805 mol L LIX84I. From the slope analysis data, the number of hydrogen ions released and the number of extractant molecules associated with the extracted complex was determined. The forward reaction rate constant, k1 and aqueous film diffusion constant, kw were calculated to be 3.34 10/9.1310 m s and 2.4010 m s, respectively. The separation factors PCu/PZn and PCu/PMg were calculated and reported in the paper.


Mutations in the p53 tumor suppressor gene occur in >50% of human malignancies, but are exceedingly rare in benign tumors. The malignant potential of fibrous tumors of children may be unpredictable at microscopic examination. We therefore sought to determine whether malignant fibrous tumors could be distinguished from their benign counterparts by the presence of mutations in p53. We screened 27 fibrous tumor samples from 20 young patients. Tumors were classified as benign, borderline, or malignant by conventional microscopic criteria. RNA extracted from each specimen was used as the template for reverse transcription followed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification, with six pairs of primers covering the whole coding region of the p53 gene. All PCR products were screened for the presence of mutations using single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. In addition. PCR products encompassing exons 5–9. the sites of the most frequent mutations in human tumors, were sequenced directly. Both methods detected a single point mutation in a highly malignant tumor (malignant fibrous histiocytoma). The mutation was a silent one at codon 36 (CCG-CCA, Pro-Pro). We conclude that p53 mutations are infrequent in childhood fibrous tumors. consistent with previous observations of low malignant potential (<10%) and better prognosis in this tumor group. Therefore, screening for p53 mutations is not a useful prognostic indicator in fibrous tumors with borderline pattern at microscopic examination.


Smart irrigation controllers are capable of substantially decreasing landscape water applications under residential highwater-use conditions in Florida. Their implementation has been incentivized by governmental agencies and water utilities in an effort to reduce public-supply water demand and conserve water resources. However, the bulk of the research on smart controllers for urban landscapes has focused on performance dimensions. To successfully promote them, feedback from end-users is critical. This paper provides an evaluation of homeowner response to evapotranspiration (ET)-based and soil moisture sensor (SMS)-based smart controllers installed as part of a pilot project conducted in Orange County, FL. The objectives of the study were to collect demographic information, assess conservation attitudes and irrigation system knowledge, and gather feedback on the use of smart controllers from the pilot project's residential cooperators. Data were collected through an online survey and analyzed using relative frequency distributions, text analysis, independent means t tests, and logistic regression. Results indicated that a majority of survey participants were satisfied with their controllers and planned to continue using them. Both ET and SMS controllers were consistently praised for saving money and irrigating efficiently. However, the likelihood that participants would continue using their controllers after the completion of the project was only significantly predicted by their levels of technical knowledge regarding the workings of the devices and whether they had experienced any challenges operating them. Efforts to promote both initial and long-term adoptionmay bemost effective by emphasizing the economic benefits of investing in smart irrigation controllers and by disseminating best management practices that facilitate their understanding and successful operation.


Background The African Program for Onchocerciais Control (APOC) with a main strategy of community directed treatment with ivermectin (CDTI) was established with the aim of eliminating Onchocerciasis as a disease of public health and socio-economic importance. The study area was a hyper endemic area just before the implementation of CDTI. It has been implemented for six years in this district but yet not been evaluated. So, the objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of six years CDTI on parasitological and clinical indices of Onchocerciasis Methods This study employed a pre-post impact evaluation design. The minimum sample size for this study was 1318; the respondents were selected by multi-stage sampling technique. Data on socio-demographic characteristics using a semi-structured questionnaire, clinical examination for skin signs and symptoms of Onchocerciasis and two bloodless skin snips from each side of the gluteal fold were taken from the entire study participants. SPSS version 16.0 and Medcalc version 184.108.40.206 were used for analysis. Result The microfilaridermia reduced from the pre-intervention value of 74.8% to 40.7%, indicating a 45.6% reduction, mean intensity from 32.1(SD = 61.5) mf/mg skin snip to 18.7(SD = 28.7)indicating 41.75% reduction, CMFL from 19.6 mf/mg skin snip to 4.7 indicating 76% reduction. The result also showed that microfilaridermia and mean intensity decreased as the number of treatment taken increased. Pruritis, leopard skin, onchocercomata and hanging groin reduced by 54.4%, 61.3%, 77.7% and 88.5% respectively. Conclusions The implementation of CDTI significantly reduced the parasitological and clinical indices of Onchocerciasis, so, efforts should be made to improve the annual treatment coverage and sustainability of CDTI to drastically reduce the micro filarial load to the level the disease would no longer be a public health problem.


We give a comprehensive explanation for an unexpected strong polarization conversion effect in periodically loaded strip waveguides, which was detected experimentally some years ago. The effect can be put down to the occurrence of hybrid supermodes. Based on this knowledge, design proposals for new, highly efficient polarization converters can be given.


There exist no systematic longitudinal studies concerning the acceptance of hearing aids in Germany. This study examines the acceptance of a hearing aid (defined by its daily/weekly use) in the management of children with persistent sensorineural hearing loss over a period of years. 35 children with monaural or binaural hearing loss were treated with a hearing aid. All children had at least a 25-dB averaged mid-frequency pure-tone hearing loss (500, 1000, 2000, 4000 Hz). The data consist of standardized parent ratings at 4 points in time over a period of nearly 30 months. Unilateral-impaired children wore their hearing aids less often than bilateral-impaired children. This effect was not significant at the beginning (P = 0.85) but increased over time. By the end the difference was significant (P = 0.004). Mild to moderate monaural hearing-impaired children accepted their hearing aids, whereas children with severe to profound hearing loss refused to wear them. Bilateral hearing-impaired children demonstrated, a priori, a better wearing acceptance that even improved with time. There was never a significant difference between boys and girls in their average wearing time. A significant correlation of age and wearing acceptance was also not observed at any time. Hearing aids are an effective treatment with high acceptance and compliance, especially by children with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss. The quality of acceptance of monaural hearing-impaired children needs to be studied further.


Nowadays, the scarcity of cheap energy sources requires a particular effort in optimizing the performance of all conversions. The electric power vector is particulary expected to grow in importance, in conjunction with the development of renewable energy sources. Research in the field of power electronics considers several aspects, including conversion topologies, command strategy as well as the structure and performance of power switches. This work focusses on the power component and the study of dedicated power converting structures. One goal is the use of active switches to replace elements with spontaneous behaviors presenting dissipative phenomena, in order to attempt to reduce switching and conduction losses. Indeed, several works introduce bidirectional monolithic switches adopting new structures, and predict high efficiency components in the near future. On the other hand, the emergence of components without spontaneous properties leads to a redefinition of switching mechanisms in power converters in order to enable the replacement of diodes by active devices. One aspect of this work is the investigation of a close control system including the detection of zero-crossings based on the measurement of both voltage and current in bidirectional switches. A voltage-current representation for the exploitation of experimental results is provided in order to allow for comparison with theoretical behaviors. Several material and internal structure types of components are compared in terms of switching performances. The concept of automatic switching was recently introduced to describe mechanisms based on the detection of non-compliant situations in the switching cell, namely the short-circuit of a voltage source and the opening of a current source. The proposal of applying a new control strategy allows to compensate for the absence of spontaneous extinction. Where sources of a classic switching cell are in a situation of energy exchange or isolation, a third state appears in which source values (converter input/output currents and voltages) are subject to fast changes. The use of passive elements becomes compulsory in order to allow a limitation in the theoretical infinite variations of source values. An intelligent close control system allowing a bidirectional component to switch its state on the basis of measurements of both current and voltage was designed and implemented. An automatic diode with synthesized spontaneous switching functions was studied and experimented for the validation of the proposed self-switching mechanisms model including passive circuits. The use of bidirectional switches allows the extension of conventional converter topologies to new modes of operation. This work presents the modification of a current converter topology traditionally implemented with thyristors, to allow for compensation of reactive power. The spontaneous extinction of thyristors is replaced by a controlled extinction which becomes independent of the polarity of source values. However, the forced opening of the input line inductors current path requires to be absorbed by an input filter whose study is proposed in this work.


Host symbionts are often considered an essential part of the host phenotype, influencing host growth and development. Bumble bee is an ideal model for investigating the relationship between microbiota and phenotypes. Variations in life history across bumble bees may influence the community composition of gut microbiota, which in turn influences phenotypes. In this study, we explored gut microbiota from four development stages (early-instar larvae, 1st instar; mid-instar larvae, 5th instar; late-instar larvae, 9th instar; and adults) of workers and queens in the bumble bee Bombus terrestris using the full-length 16S rRNA sequencing technology. The results showed that morphological indices (weight and head capsule) were significantly different between workers and queens from 5th instar larvae (p < 0.01). The alpha and beta diversities of gut microbiota were similar between workers and queens in two groups: early instar and mid instar larvae. However, the alpha diversity was significantly different in late instar larvae or adults. The relative abundance of three main phyla of bacteria (Cyanobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes) and two genera (Snodgrassella and Lactobacillus) were significantly different (p < 0.01) between workers and queens in late instar larvae or adults. Also, we found that age significantly affected the microbial alpha diversity as the Shannon and ASVs indices differed significantly among the four development stages. Our study suggests that the 5th instar larval stage can be used to judge the morphology of workers or queens in bumble bees. The key microbes differing in phenotypes may be involved in regulating phenotypic variations.


A viscous boundary element method involving a convolution-integral formulation is developed to determine directly the fluid actions and velocity flow field associated with a body manoeuvring in a viscous fluid. The proposed general approach is analogous to a potential flow singularity distribution panel method with the singularity replaced by a fundamental viscous solution. From the developed nonlinear mathematical model based on an integral identity relation, it is seen that the Oseen equation, its variant or modified form is central to the theoretical development of the fundamental viscous solution. Analytical expressions are presented for the fundamental solutions (or transient oseenlets) appropriate to two-dimensional and three-dimensional steady, and unsteady (transient) manoeuvring problems involving prescribed translational, rotational and their combined motions. The examples considered, and hence the fundamental viscous solutions, relate to model towing tank experiments (i.e. steady state, rotating arm, planar motion mechanism oscillatory tests, etc.) used extensively to derive fluid action data on manoeuvring ships and submersibles. Examples of combined translational and rotational motions are investigated and these relate to an elementary idealization of a propeller rotating in an axial flow and an idealization of a body moving ahead with parasitic oscillatory roll motion. The predicted fluid flow patterns associated with the various fundamental solutions are presented and these clearly illustrate the generation, shedding and decay of vortices in the wakes.


Inspired by the fact that humans use diverse sensory organs to perceive the world, sensors with different modalities are deployed in end-to-end driving to obtain the global context of the 3D scene. In previous works, camera and LiDAR inputs are fused through transformers for better driving performance. These inputs are normally further interpreted as high-level map information to assist navigation tasks. Nevertheless, extracting useful information from the complex map input is challenging, for redundant information may mislead the agent and negatively affect driving performance. We propose a novel approach to efficiently extract features from vectorized High-Definition (HD) maps and utilize them in end-to-end driving tasks. In addition, we design a new expert to enhance the model performance by considering multi-road rules. Experimental results prove that both proposed improvements enable our agent to achieve superior performance compared with other methods.


ABSTRACT Scientific advances in genetic analysis have been made possible in recent years by technical developments in computational biology, or bioinformatics. Bioinformatics has opened up the human genome to diverse analyses involving automated laboratory hardware and machine learning algorithms and software. As part of an emerging field of social genomics, recent educational genetics studies using big data have begun to raise challenging findings linking DNA to predicted life outcomes. Bioinformatic technologies and techniques including 'genome-wide association' and 'polygenic scoring' are producing new kinds of genetic biodata and expert knowledge for rethinking the upbringing and education of children. This article takes as an empirical opening a recent epistemic and ethical controversy over the use of biodata to make genetic predictions about educational, socio-economic and life outcomes, detailing the forms of expert knowledge and technologies involved these predictions, and exploring the social and ethical implications of data-intensive bioinformatics.


The access economy is rising in importance in the marketplace. In this conceptual article, we chronicle access practices in market and nonmarket economies. In nonmarket economic systems, access is gained via social exchange and primarily takes the form of sharing. That is, sharing is non-market-mediated access. In the contemporary market economy, economic exchange practices, such as renting, dominate access practices, explaining why the so-called sharing economy is not about sharing. Further, we propose that culture and social class moderate this relationship by creating contexts where social exchange (e.g., sharing) can provide access to resources in market economies. We demonstrate that access and sharing should not be essentialized, as their nature is dependent on the social system in which they are embedded. Thus, future research can focus on parsing out the nuances of how, when, and why access practices are utilized in particular societies and communities.


This article discusses how techniques from reinforcement learning (RL) can be exploited to transition to a model-free and scalable wide-area oscillation damping control of power grids. We present two control architectures with distinct features. Performing full-dimensional RL control designs for any practical grid would require an unacceptably long learning time and result in a dense communication architecture. Our designs avoid the curse of dimensionality by employing ideas from model reduction. The first design exploits time-scale separation in the generator electro-mechanical dynamics arising from coherent clustering, and learns a controller using both electro-mechanical and non-electro-mechanical states while compensating for the error in incorporating the latter through the RL loop. The second design presents an output-feedback approach enabled by a neuro-adaptive observer using measurements of only the generator frequencies. The controller exhibits an adaptive behavior that updates the control gains whenever there is a notable change in the loads. Theoretical guarantees for closed-loop stability and performance are provided for both designs. Numerical simulations are shown for the IEEE 68-bus power system model.


The limit values prescribed by German drinking water regulations for "pesticides and their toxic main metabolites" (PBSM) protect the consumer from imponderable toxicological risks. It therefore complies with the "principle of concern" which is part of several statutory instruments of the FRG to protect ground and drinking water. Moreover, for about 10% of the permissible active ingredients, health-based limit concentrations in drinking water can be derived which are of the same order of magnitude as the legal limit value for PBSM. The main purpose of the "PBSM Recommendation" of the Federal Health Office of July 1989 is to preserve and to restore a pesticide-free ground and drinking water situation mainly by agricultural measures with at the same time maximum possible health protection for the consumers of drinking water. The bureaucratic handling of this "Recommendation" by the Commission of the EC and the standardised pesticide admittance procedure as envisaged by the EC could seriously endanger this purpose. A consequence would be that, as already in the USA, the same situation could arise in Europe that more and more active ingredients are found in ground water in concentrations which are up to 1,000 fold higher than the respective toxicological limit values for drinking water.


Background: Vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) is the hallmark complication of sickle cell disease (SCD) (1), and usually requires intravenous (IV) opioid treatment in emergency room (ER) or acute care center (ACC), a designated observation unit to manage uncomplicated VOC (2). Starting October 2017, there was a critical nationwide drug shortage in parental hydromorphone, a commonly used medication to treat VOC. In April 2018 the University of Illinois Health System (UI Health) adopted a standardized pain management protocol that limited opioids in the ER or ACC to two doses of IV or IM morphine and/or oral opioid. This study evaluates the impact of this standardized pain management protocol on managing VOC in SCD. Methods: A total of 373 SCD adults treated at UI Health from May 2017 to Oct 2018 had at least one ER or ACC visit or hospitalization for VOC. Data on VOC-related patient visits to the ACC, ER, and admissions to the inpatient floors were collected from the electronic medical record and evaluated based on three time periods (prior to shortage: May 2017-Oct 2017; transition: Oct 2017-Apr 2018; and post protocol: Apr 2018-Oct 2018). Descriptive statistics, the Cochrane trend test and Jonckheere-Terpstra trend test were used for data analysis. The study was approved by the Institutional Review Board prior to the initiation of chart review. Results: Between May 2017 and Oct 2018, the 373 SCD adult patients had a total of 1,915 ACC, 2,635 ER and 1,832 inpatient visits. After implementation in April 2018, the compliance rate with the standardized pain protocol was 99.7% in the ACC and 85.1% in the ER. In the ACC, the number of visits decreased after standardized pain protocol implementation, whereas the number of visits increased in the ER (Figure 1). The admission rate to the inpatient service from the ACC increased significantly while the admission rate from the ER remained relatively stable (Table 1). The numbers of opioid doses and the total opioid dose to treat VOC decreased in the ACC, but not in ER. Utilization of oral opioids increased in both settings (Table 1). The number of inpatient hospitalizations increased with implementation of the standardized protocol (542 vs. 626 vs. 664), and the 30-day readmission rate increased (49% vs. 51% vs. 57%, p = 0.003), but the length of hospital stay was reduced (p < 0.001). Summary: Implementation of a standardized pain treatment protocol due to the parenteral hydromorphone shortage decreased the utilization of the ACC compared to the ER and the inpatient service, and resulted in reduced opioid dose but increased admission rates from the ACC. The 30-day readmission rate to inpatient service increased but the length of stay was reduced. A standardized pain protocol that limits opioids to two doses in the acute setting may not be an optimal approach. Reference: F. B. Piel, M. H. Steinberg, D. C. Rees, Sickle Cell Disease. N Engl J Med376, 1561-1573 (2017).J. Han et al., Program expansion of a day hospital dedicated to manage sickle cell pain. Am J Hematol93, E20-E21 (2018).

 Saraf: Novartis: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees; Pfizer: Research Funding. Gordeuk:CSL Behring: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Global Blood Therapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Novartis: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Modus Therapeutics: Consultancy, Honoraria; Imara: Research Funding; Ironwood: Research Funding; Inctye: Research Funding; Pfizer: Research Funding; Emmaus: Consultancy, Honoraria.


As I have argued elsewhere (Mocini 2009; 2011; 2013), emotions play a decisive role in promotional discourse. The power of logical argument may not be sufficient to convince customers. For this reason, writers or speakers usually appeal to the audience's emotional response to achieve persuasion. Ekman (1999) claims that surprise is one of the basic universal emotions, and only the basic emotions are the real emotions.1 Following DeLancey (1997; 2001) and other researchers (Dickinson 2000; Aikhenvald 2004; Peterson 2010, 2013), we use the term mirativity to refer to the semantic category employed to mark the fact that some information is new or surprising.


The invention discloses a manufacturing method of Chinese caterpillar fungus, which is characterized by the following: establishing greenhouse booth moth culturing field according to culturing temperature and moisture; reducing the danger of natural enemy of moth to accelerate weak plant root of herb and bush; releasing certain quantity of moth fertilized ovum, larva, pupal or and imagine in the culturing field; elevating moth larva breeding density with 110-3500000 per hectareha; breeding the moth from one year to 6-8 years within 365-425d; forming sac fungus; collecting 530000-1570000 Chinese caterpillar fungus per hectareha.


The current research was carried out to determine the impact of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) phenomena in social life on the consequences. Conducted through qualitative method, such systematic approach was chosen because it was in line with the concept and scope of the problems related to issues, data or information on particular facts and events. The results of this study demonstrated that any behavior that was contrary with the expectations of society or did not conform to social norms and values were called as deviant behaviors. Currently, LGBT phenomena in Indonesia are still considered deviant and do not follow dominant norms in society. Phenomenon focuses its intervention on the process of interaction among well-beings and their environment, using theories of behavioral deviance in use, as tools or ways to govern the behaviors of community members to meet the norms and values in society. The findings of the present study revealed that LGBT has impacts on health, social, education, and also the security in society. Moreover, LGBT seen from the sociology of structural functionalism is kind of deviation because it is contrary to socially human nature and also contrary to the dominant values and norms in society.


Material handling is the preparation, placing and positioning of materials to facilitate their movement or storage. In many industries, handling of materials, articles, equipment, etc. becomes a main source of injury. Material handling is of two types; manual and mechanical. To avoid unsafe acts and other hazards like slipping, falling, striking, etc. in manual handling, it is being substituted by more and more mechanical handling. It reduces such hazards and manpower and increases productivity. Regardless of automation and mechanization, it appears that repetitive as well as excessive muscular exertions are still very common during many occupational tasks. Overuse of muscular loads has been found to develop musculoskeletal injuries, especially the back and upper extremity muscles. Through the study of ergonomics, it has been found that a heavy emphasis should be placed on human factors to reduce these injuries. Shapoorji Pallonji Construction Limited (contractor of NIT Rourkela construction site) used to import and handle different material on the site like bricks, rebar's, IS beams, cement bags, scaffoldings, formwork and manufacturing of brick and tiles, etc. At the receiving area, employees were required to perform manual lifting of supplies, push and pull carts, as well as the use of manual forklifts to move heavy materials. Thus lifting, pulling and pushing of materials incorrectly that can cause back injury, these symptoms are the indications that ergonomic risk factors may exist in the material handling area if these risk factors are present at the site, and there are no corrective measures are taken to tackle the problems, then employees would experience frequent work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs).From the above observation, it is appropriate to suggest to use the advanced practices during handling equipment and materials at various construction sites inside NIT Rourkela. The work-method analysis will be used with NIOSH, RULA, REBA, QEC tools.


Local thermal and chemical conditions may favor minerals' scaling which can cause undesirable operational problems to standing column well systems. Precipitation may reduce heat exchange in the well and the heat exchanger and increase pressure drops in the systems components, as well as the drawdown in the well. In this paper, a coupled thermo-hydro-geochemical model simulating the operation of a standing column well is used to illustrate the link between the temperature and the reaction rate of calcite. The results demonstrate that bleeding only 10% of the pumped water allows to get rid of calcium ions in solution in the well and reduces substantially the precipitated calcite mass. Our simulations clearly indicate that groundwater flow induced by the bleed mainly occurs in the fracture since significant chemical variations are observed downstream of the fracture. We expect that the findings presented in the paper will help demystify the complex thermo-hydro-geochemical behaviour of standing column wells installed in sedimentary rocks.


Modern pendant drop tensiometry relies on the numerical solution of the Young-Laplace equation and allows us to determine the surface tension from a single picture of a pendant drop with high precision. Most of these techniques solve the Young-Laplace equation many times over to find the material parameters that provide a fit to a supplied image of a real droplet. Here, we introduce a machine learning approach to solve this problem in a computationally more efficient way. We train a deep neural network to determine the surface tension of a given droplet shape using a large training set of numerically generated droplet shapes. We show that the deep learning approach is superior to the current state of the art shape fitting approach in speed and precision, in particular if shapes in the training set reflect the sensitivity of the droplet shape with respect to surface tension. In order to derive such an optimized training set, we clarify the role of the Worthington number as a quality indicator in conventional shape fitting and in the machine learning approach. Our approach demonstrates the capabilities of deep neural networks in the material parameter determination from rheological deformation experiments, in general.


In 2003, a random survey was conducted across the Western Australian wheatbelt to establish the frequency and distribution of herbicide resistance in ryegrass populations infesting crop fields. Five hundred cropping fields were visited at crop maturity, and ryegrass seed was collected in 452 of these fields. Subsequently, each crop field population was screened with herbicides of various modes of action that are commonly used for ryegrass control in Australian cropping systems. Most of these ryegrass populations were found to be resistant to the ACCase-inhibitor herbicide diclofop-methyl (68%) and the ALS-inhibitor herbicide sulfometuron (88%). A comparison of resistance levels in the same agronomic zones surveyed 5 years earlier determined that there had been an increase of 20 percentage points in the frequency of resistance over this 5-year period. This survey also determined that the majority (64%) of populations were found to be multiple resistant to both diclofop-methyl and sulfometuron. The distribution patterns of the collected populations indicated that there were higher frequencies of resistant and developing resistance populations occurring in the intensively cropped regions of the wheatbelt, which had greater herbicide selection pressure. Of concern is that 24% and 8% of populations were found to be developing resistance to trifluralin and clethodim, respectively. Currently these herbicides are heavily relied upon for control of ACCase and ALS herbicide resistant ryegrass. Nearly all populations remain susceptible to glyphosate. Ryegrass across the WA wheatbelt now exhibits multiple resistance across many but not all herbicides, posing severe management and sustainability challenges.


Grain number per panicle (GNPP), determined mainly by panicle branching, is vital for rice yield. The dissection of the genetic basis underlying GNPP could help to improve rice yield. However, genetic resources, including quantitative trait loci (QTL) or genes for breeders to enhance rice GNPP, are still limited. Here, we conducted the genome-wide association study (GWAS) on the GNPP, primary branch number (PBN), and secondary branch number (SBN) of 468 rice accessions. We detected a total of 18 QTLs, including six for GNPP, six for PBN, and six for SBN, in the whole panel and the indica and japonica subpanels of 468 accessions. More importantly, qPSG1 was a common QTL for GNPP, PBN, and SBN and was demonstrated by chromosome segment substitution lines (CSSLs). Considering gene annotation, expression, and haplotype analysis, seven novel and strong GNPP-related candidate genes were mined from qPSG1. Our results provide clues to elucidate the molecular regulatory network of GNPP. The identified QTLs and candidate genes will contribute to the improvement of GNPP and rice yield via molecular marker-assisted selection (MAS) breeding and genetic engineering techniques.


OBJECTIVE
The objective of our study was to evaluate the image quality of 64-MDCT for coronary angiography.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS
Fifty consecutive CT coronary angiograms obtained on a 64-MDCT scanner were independently reviewed by two reviewers. Segments were scored as showing no motion (score of 1), minimal motion (2), moderate motion (3), respiratory motion (4), or vessel blurring (5). Opacification was graded as good (score of 1) or limited (2). Segments < 2 mm were graded as well seen; or as poorly seen or not seen. The scores for motion artifact, opacification, and visibility were combined for overall vessel assessment. Segments with a motion score of 1 or 2 that had good opacification and were well seen were judged to be assessable.

RESULTS
A total of 714 segments were analyzed in 50 patients. Seven hundred segments were assessed in all patients (segments 1-3, 11-20, 4, or 27), and a ramus intermedius segment was evaluated in 14 patients. Combining the scores for both reviewers, the average motion score was 1 for 619 segments (86.7%), the average motion score for all segments in an individual patient was 1.14 (range, 1-3.35), and the average opacification score for all segments in a patient was 1.02 (range, 1-1.38). A total of 374 segments were less than 2 mm in diameter. Combining the scores for both reviewers, an average of 36 segments (5.0% of 714) could not be identified by the reviewers, 319.5 segments (85.4%) were well seen, and 18.5 segments (4.9%) were poorly seen. Overall, an average of 637 segments (89.2%) were judged assessable by the reviewers. On a per-patient basis, 10 or more vessel segments were judged assessable in 47 patients (94%).

CONCLUSION
On 64-MDCT, 89% of coronary artery segments are assessable. Ten or more vessel segments are assessable in 94% of patients.


— The paper deals with the development of a system for automatic weld recognition using new information technologies based on cloud computing and single-board computer in the context of Industry 4.0. The proposed system is based on a visual system for weld recognition, and a neural network based on cloud computing for real-time weld evaluation, both implemented on a single-board low-cost computer. The proposed system was successfully verified on welding samples which correspond to a real welding process in the car production process. The system considerably contributes to the welds diagnostics in industrial processes of small-and medium-sized enterprises.


Deep Neural Network (DNN) accelerators provide high-accuracy data recognition that are commonly used in edge devices. However, resource constrained edge devices usually have small form factors and limited amounts of resources, whereas DNN accelerators require large amounts of computations and memory footprint. In particular, the memory requirements of DNNs become a major bottleneck for realization of accelerators on small footprint devices. To reduce the memory footprint, fused-layer convolutional neural network (CNN) accelerators have been proposed for image recognition networks. Fused-layer CNNs reduce off-chip memory accesses by executing a set of CNN layers on-chip and by replacing the off-chip memory accesses with on-chip memory accesses between the layers. Although fused-layer CNNs reduce the off-chip memory accesses, they still require large amounts of on-chip memories that occupy significant chip area, making impractical their realization on small footprint devices. We address this problem by proposing a design technique that generates fused-CNN accelerators with small memory footprints, demonstrate its potential via a case study.


Helicobacter pylori are the causative agents of gastroduodenal disorders, such as peptic ulcer, acute gastritis and even stomach cancer. It is believed to infect over half the world's population. Recently, there have been cases of chemotherapy – failures and emergence of resistant strains. This necessitated the search for more active drugs. Crude n -hexane and methanol extracts were used to screen Helicobacter pylori ATCC 43504 and forty-two other clinical isolates of Helicobacter pylori , using the agar diffusion method in Mueller-Hinton agar supplemented with 5% defibrinated horse blood. The strains were incubated in a microaerophilic incubator, and it was observed that the standard strain and twenty-eight out of the forty-two clinical strains were susceptible to the methanol extract with the diameter of zone of inhibition ranging from 10 + 0.00 to 20 + 0.00 mm at test concentrations of 100 mg/mL to 200 mg/mL. The minimum inhibitory concentrations of susceptible strains ranged between 100 mg/mL to 200 mg/mL. The kill kinetics showed that at 4×MIC, equivalent to the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC), the methanol extract of Allium ascalonicum gave 96-98% and 100% kill of the organisms within the contact time of 6 and 24 hours respectively. The n -hexane fraction did not show any inhibitory potential against any of the strains. Phytochemical screening of the extract showed the presence of alkaloids, saponins, flavonoids, essential oil and cardiac glycosides. Anthraquinones, tannins and terpenoids were not detected. The presence of these secondary metabolites and the observed activity of Allium ascalonicum provide a scientific rationale for the use of this plant in folk medicine in Nigeria and other parts of the world. Keywords : Allium ascalonicum , Helicobacter pylori , antimicrobial activities, bactericidal kinetics


This report deals with the experimental study of seismic response behavior of piping systems in industrial facilities such as petrochemical, oil refinery, and nuclear plants. Special attention is focused on the nonlinear dynamic response of piping systems due to frictional vibration appearing in piping and supporting devices. A three-dimensional mock-up piping and supporting structure model wherein piping is of 30-m length and 200-mm diameter is excited by a large-scale (15 m x 15 m) shaking table belonging to the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention in Tsukuba, Ibaraki. Power spectra of the response vibration and the loading-response relationship in the form of a hysteresis loop under several loading conditions are obtained. The response reduction effect caused by frictional vibration is evaluated and demonstrated in terms of response reduction factor.


BilVideo-7: VIDEO PARSING, INDEXING AND RETRIEVAL Muhammet Bastan Ph.D. in Computer Engineering Supervisors: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ugur Gudukbay and Prof. Dr. Ozgur Ulusoy July, 2010 Video indexing and retrieval aims to provide fast, natural and intuitive access to large video collections. This is getting more and more important as the amount of video data increases at a stunning rate. This thesis introduces the BilVideo-7 system to address the issues related to video parsing, indexing and retrieval. BilVideo-7 is a distributed and MPEG-7 compatible video indexing and retrieval system that supports complex multimodal queries in a unified framework. The video data model is based on an MPEG-7 profile which is designed to represent the videos by decomposing them into Shots, Keyframes, Still Regions and Moving Regions. The MPEG-7 compatible XML representations of videos according to this profile are obtained by the MPEG-7 compatible video feature extraction and annotation tool of BilVideo-7, and stored in a native XML database. Users can formulate text, color, texture, shape, location, motion and spatio-temporal queries on an intuitive, easy-touse visual query interface, whose composite query interface can be used to formulate very complex queries containing any type and number of video segments with their descriptors and specifying the spatio-temporal relations between them. The multithreaded query processing server parses incoming queries into subqueries and executes each subquery in a separate thread. Then, it fuses subquery results in a bottom-up manner to obtain the final query result and sends the result to the originating client. The whole system is unique in that it provides very powerful querying capabilities with a wide range of descriptors and multimodal query processing in an MPEG-7 compatible interoperable environment.


Bovine Viral Diarrhea Virus (BVDV) causes reproductive and economic losses in cattle. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of BVDV exposure on reproductive success (AI and breeding season conceptions). Well vaccinated cows (n = 367) and heifers (n = 540) from 9 different herds were synchronized using the 7-d CO Synch + CIDR protocol and were fixed-time AI (FTAI). On d 28 following insemination, blood samples were collected, and pregnancy status was determined by transrectal ultrasonography and the IDEXX Rapid Visual Pregnancy Test. Non-pregnant animals were resynchronized and FTAI a second time. In six herds bulls were comingled with females beginning 10-15 d after the second AI. Final pregnancy status was determined 33–80 d following the first pregnancy diagnosis. Blood samples were tested for the presence of BVDV antigen using the IDEXX BVDV PI X2 Kit. Positive samples were indicative of animals with an active infection. Herds were determined as having BVDV exposure by the presence of at least one animal having a positive test for active antigen (n = 4 exposed herds, n = 5 non-exposed herds). Statistical analyses were performed using the GLIMMIX procedure of SAS. Herds that had BVDV exposure during the breeding season had significantly decreased (P < 0.01) first service AI conception rates compared to herds that had no exposure (34 ± 2.3% vs. 54 ± 2.3%). Additionally, breeding season pregnancy rates were decreased (P < 0.01) in herds that had BVDV exposure compared to non-exposed herds (69 ± 3.4% vs. 80 ± 3.6%). There was no significant effect of BVDV exposure on embryonic loss (P = 0.42) or percentage of animals which lost a pregnancy and rebred by the end of the breeding season (P = 0.63). In conclusion, BVDV exposure in well vaccinated herds still had a negative effect on both first service AI conception rate and overall breeding season pregnancy success.


In order to improve the security of image transmission and reduce the complexity of encryption algorithm, an efficient color image encryption algorithm is developed based on 3D-DCT and coupled chaotic system. Firstly, the plain color image is decomposed into three grayscale plain images, which are transformed by DCT to obtain the corresponding frequency coefficient matrices. Then, the novel 2-D chaotic system is designed and used to generate the embedded matrices, which is implanted to the frequency coefficient matrices and forms the embedded frequency coefficient matrices. And then, the embedded matrices were scrambled and encrypted by Diagonal scrambling method and the encryption matrix generated by the 2-D chaotic system respectively, which resulted in the production of the ultimate color cipher image. In order to meet the requirement of the era of big data, the hash function SHA-256 is introduced to generate the key of encryption algorithm. This scheme is thoroughly validated on different sized plain-images with modern statistical analyses to prove the security and sensitivity. Eventually, compared with other schemes further demonstrates its competence and superiority in robustness and anti-interference.


SUMMARY The paper shows how to a create strain maps from a repeated geodetic measurements by appropriate on-line tools and explain why applying of the theory of continuum is useful to deformation analyses obtained from repeated positional survey in geodesy. The independency of resulting deformation parameters to applied coordinate frame is shown, too. By correct processing of repeated geodetic measurements the errors originated from erroneous pre-requisites about stability of some selected points that are taken during normal calculation as stable (in the stable part of such location) will be completely eliminated. When compared to the sole listening of displacements then the strain maps enable to present deformation parameters in much more objective way and serves as a tool to demonstrate the relatively geodynamical trends of the territory in question.


Honeybees are important managed pollinators that perform important ecological and economic functions. In recent decades, the obligate ectoparasite Varroa destructor severely affected survival of honeybees as it either feeds on hemolymph and fat bodies or acts as a vector for viruses. A common treatment against the varroa mite is formic acid, which has been used for many years by beekeepers. This treatment is known to be effective, but the therapeutic index is very narrow. Many beekeepers report negative effects of formic acid on bees, which include damage to brood, worker bee mortality, and queen loss. Little is yet known about the molecular mechanisms of formic acid detoxification in honeybees. Our previous study shows the upregulation of predicted 10-formyl tetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase (10-FTHFDH) transcripts in honeybees exposed to formic acid. Here, the predicted honeybee-specific 10-FTHFDH is recombinantly expressed, and its hydrolase and dehydrogenase activities are investigated. As a result, the enzyme shows similar dehydrogenase activity in comparison to known 10-FTHFDHs. This study provides further knowledge to better understand the detoxification mechanisms of formic acid in Apis mellifera.


Whole-cell variations of patch-clamp techniques were applied to human term placental cells. The inward rectifier K currents were recorded. The current-voltage relationship in some cells crossed the voltage axis at two different potentials. Such cells showed two stable levels of the membrane potential. The current-clamp method could switch the membrane potentials between those two levels. The present results provide evidence that the inward rectifier K conductance could set two changeable levels of the membrane potential in some human term placental cells.


The field of Learning Analytics is progressing at a rapid rate. New tools, with ever-increasing number of features and a plethora of data-sets that are increasingly utilized demonstrate the evolution and multifaceted nature of the field. In particular, the depth and scope of insight that can be gleaned from analysing related data-sets can have a significant, and positive, effect in educational practices. We introduce the concept of Degree Pictures, a symbolic overview of students' achievement. Degree Pictures are small visualizations that depict graphically 16 categories of overall student achievement, over the duration of a Higher Education course. They offer a quick summary of students' achievement and are intended to initiate appropriate responses, such as teaching and pastoral interventions. This can address the subjective nature of assessment, by providing a method for educators to calibrate their own marking practices by showing an overview of any cohort. We present a prototype implementation of Degree Pictures, which was evaluated within our School of Computer Science, with favourable results.


We have studied the effect of combination antiemetic therapy (ondansetron and droperidol) with morphine delivered by patient‐controlled analgesia following major gynaecological surgery. Sixty patients were randomly allocated to one of three treatment regimens; ondansetron alone (4 mg bolus and 0.13 mg.ml‐1 in the morphine solution), droperidol alone (1.25 mg bolus and 0.05 mg.ml‐1 in the morphine solution), or both drugs in combination. For the first 12 postoperative hours, patients receiving combination therapy experienced significantly less nausea than those receiving single antiemetic therapy (p < 0.001). There was no difference between the regimens from 12 to 18 h. We conclude that a combination of ondansetron and droperidol added to morphine in a patient‐controlled analgesia system reduces postoperative nausea to a greater extent than treatment with either drug alone following major gynaecological surgery.


This paper presents a geostatistical analysis of transmissivity in the Euganean geothermal field (northeast Italy). Few transmissivity values are known while specific capacity values are more common. However, transmissivity is more important than specific capacity in the characterization of aquifers. In this work, therefore, after a simple statistical analysis, an empirical relation with a high determination coefficient (r2= 0.95) is found between the above values. Subsequently, In T structural characteristics of the variable are studied by variogram analysis, identifying a second‐order pseudostationarity and two geometrical anisotropies. The second‐order pseudostationarity and the variogram fit allow a linear kriging procedure to be used to produce a map of transmissivity and kriging standard deviation of the Euganean geothermal field. The fit between geostatistical and hydrogeological analyses shows that a geostatistical approach is useful for both mapping purposes and hydrogeological interpretation.


The grocery goods healthy products, as the blueberry and other berry fruits, have grown up substantially as a demand increasement effect in the market of that kind of goods. There are some studies about this issue, and the project purpose is to contribute with relevant information to increase the results at Universidad de la Sierra work in the theme. With the information generated, the regional producers will be able to develop better practices and save time and resources in the blueberry market. Is a tradition from the past for regional producers to concentrate only in livestock and farming in a low scale level, and the blueberry will add a great option in the foreign market, especially in the current opportunity of the positive trend in the market.


The major part of this thesis is dedicated to a biography of the Swedish architect Harald Boklund (1868-1924), but also deals with the problematic concepts of cosmopolitism, regionalism and National romanticism i Scanian architecture 1890-1930. Harald Boklund was the son of Johan Boklund, a famous painter and director of the Swedish Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. Harald Boklund got his education i Berlin, where he also worked for some years as a practising architect. Returning to Sweden in 1894, he settled in Malmo, where he entered a creative partnership with the architect August Lindvall. During 1895-1899 Lindvall & Boklund designed a wide variety of buildings - residential-flats mansions, churches and various cometition projects - mostly in Gothic Revival or Nordic Neo-renaissance styles. During the first decades of the following century, Boklund designed buildings and builing project in the Art Nouveau (Jugend) manner and in what may be described as a personal interpretation of National romanticism. He founded an association of building technicians, was a member of the Scanian artists guild and a number of other societies. From 1908 until his death in 1924 he published a periodical rewiew of architecture, where he among other things propagated ideas for the general improvement of dwelling conditions, criticised the dominating. Stockholm-cntered, Swedish architecture, and argued the cause of regional styles. Boklund's works, written as well as designed, are all pervaded by his particular brand of cosmopolitism, regionalism and National romanticism, derived from German sources. Building on Swedish, Scanian and German traditions,past and present, Boklund sought for an architectural idiom relevant to his own time and region. During the whole post-war period, the architectural history of southern Sweden has been hampered by a general reluctance to deal with German influences. In addition, the history of Swedish architecture has almost exclusively been focused on Stockholm, and regional architects, devolopments and styles have habitually been treated as derivate and per definition of secondary importance. My ambition in this thesis, is to present an alternative - i. e. regional - perspective on Swedish architecture of the period 1890-1930.


The role of the voltage-dependent anion channels (VDAC) harbored in the outer membrane of mitochondria in the regulation of cellular metabolism was investigated using an experimental model of ethanol toxicity in cultured hepatocytes. It was demonstrated that ethanol inhibits State 3 and uncoupled mitochondrial respirations, decreases the accessibility of mitochondrial adenylate kinase localized in the intermembrane space of mitochondria, and suppresses ureagenic respiration and synthesis of urea in cultured hepatocytes. Increasing the permeability of the outer mitochondrial membrane with closed VDAC with high concentrations of digitonin (> 80 microM), which creates pores in the membrane, allowing the alternative bypass of closed VDAC, and restores all reactions suppressed with ethanol. It is concluded that the effect of ethanol in hepatocytes leads to global loss of mitochondrial functions due to the closure of VDAC, which limits the free diffusion of metabolites into the intermembrane space of mitochondria. Our studies demonstrated that ethanol affects the main mitochondrial functions and revealed the role of VDAC channels in the outer mitochondrial membrane in the regulation of liver specific intracellular processes such as ureagenesis. The data obtained can be used for the development of pharmaceutical drugs that prevent the closure of VDAC in mitochondria of ethanol oxidizing liver, thus protecting liver tissue from the hepatotoxic action of alcohol.


The aim of this article is to present and discuss a narrative approach to the investigation of learning mediated by ePortfolio. It is a qualitative study within nursing education. The method was inspired by the French philosopher, Paul Ricoeur, with focus on Ricoeur's theory of narrative and interpretation. Data were generated through participant observations, narratives and portfolio documents. The discussion revolves around the extent to which the method was effective in the generation of data, how the data were interpreted, and how the study contributed to the discourse on learning in clinical settings. The principal conclusion is that the method was practicable for the generation and interpretation of data. Thus, the study contributed to a more detailed understanding of learning in nursing education, especially as regards the discourse on learning in clinical settings.


Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) are a serious and prevalent complication of diabetes. Current diagnostic options are limited to macroscopic wound analysis such as wound size, depth, and infection. Molecular diagnostics promise to improve DFU diagnosis, staging, and assessment of treatment response. Here, we developed a rapid and easy-to-use fluorescent pH-sensing bandage for wound diagnostics. In a fluorescent dye screen, we identified pyranine as the lead compound due to its suitable pH-sensing properties in the clinically relevant pH range of 6 to 9. To minimize the release of this dye into the wound bed, we screened a library of ionic microparticles and found a strong adhesion of the anionic dye to a cationic polymeric microparticle. These dye-loaded microparticles showed a strong fluorescence response in the clinically relevant pH range of 6 to 9 and a dye release below 1% after one day in biological media. The dye-loaded microparticles were subsequently encapsulated in a calcium alginate hydrogel to minimize the interaction of the microparticles with the wound tissue. This pH-sensing diagnostic wound dressing was tested on full thickness dorsal wounds of mice, and a linear fluorescence response (R2 = 0.9909) to clinically relevant pH values was observed. These findings encourage further development of this pH-sensing system for molecular diagnostics in DFUs.


It is no longer felt that atypical (viral) pneumonia is always as innocuous as it was originally described. Many patients have experienced recurring episodes of this disease over a period of several years. In some the symptoms have continued unabated; a productive cough has developed, and the presence of bronchiectasis has been confirmed by bronchographic examination. Other patients have had residual ulcerative tracheobronchitis associated with hemoptysis and production of sputum. These patients may show roentgenographic evidence of bronchial and bronchiolar dilatation and occlusion, atelectasis or obstructive emphysema. In others the convalescence has been prolonged and characterized by neurasthenia, chronic cough, production of sputum, pain in the chest, generalized weakness, easy fatigability, occasional hemoptysis, loss of weight or failure to regain previous weight lost, elevated sedimentation rate and low grade fever. Twenty-nine of 150 patients having bronchoscopic examinations during the first six months of 1944 were found to have ulcerative lesions


Lung macrophages are an important defence against influenza infection, but macrophage function can be dysregulated by infection. Recent work has shown that acute immune responses to influenza in the murine lung are regulated by PDL1 expression leading to rapid modulation of CD8+ T cell responses via the PD1 receptor 1 . This PD1/PDL1 pathway may modulate acute inflammatory responses to prevent tissue damage. The aim of the present study was to investigate how human macrophages regulate their PDL1 expression in response to influenza infection. Human lung and monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs) were exposed to H3N2 X31 influenza virus or UV-irradiated virus (UVX31). No infection of lung macrophages or MDM was seen upon exposure to UVX31 but incubation with X31 resulted in a mean infection rate of 18% and 29% respectively. Infection significantly increased cell surface expression of PDL1 on lung macrophages and MDM. Using RT-PCR, we observed an increase of PDL1 mRNA after X31 as well as an increase in type I interferon expression by MDMs in response to X31 infection. Using siRNA targeting IFNα and IFNβ, we observed a ∼45% reduction in the mRNA expression of both of these cytokines in response to infection, but only IFNβ siRNA reduced the influenza-induced expression of PDL1 mRNA by ∼30%. Furthermore, when MDM were incubated with IFNβ, this cytokine caused increased expression of PDL1 mRNA. These data indicate that influenza-induced release of IFNβ by macrophages regulates surface expression of PDL1, which may have implications in viral exacerbations of chronic respiratory diseases where IFNβ is deficient. 1. Erickson et al (2012) J Clin Invest.


Text documents often embed data that is structured in nature. This structured data is increasingly exposed using information extraction systems, which generate structured relations from documents, introducing an opportunity to process expressive, structured queries over text databases. This paper discusses our SQoUT1 project, which focuses on processing structured queries over relations extracted from text databases. We show how, in our extraction-based scenario, query processing can be decomposed into a sequence of basic steps: retrieving relevant text documents, extracting relations from the documents, and joining extracted relations for queries involving multiple relations. Each of these steps presents different alternatives and together they form a rich space of possible query execution strategies. We identify execution efficiency and output quality as the two critical properties of a query execution, and argue that an optimization approach needs to consider both properties. To this end, we take into account the userspecified requirements for execution efficiency and output quality, and choose an execution strategy for each query based on a principled, cost-based comparison of the alternative execution strategies.


The etiopathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD) has been elusive. Recently, several lines of evidence have converged to suggest that defects in the ubiquitin‐proteasome system and proteolytic stress underlie nigral pathology in both familial and sporadic forms of the illness. In support of this concept, mutations in α‐synuclein that cause the protein to misfold and resist proteasomal degradation cause familial PD. Similarly, mutations in two enzymes involved in the normal function of the ubiquitin‐proteasome system, parkin and ubiquitin C‐terminal hydrolase L1, are also associated with hereditary PD. Furthermore, structural and function defects in 26/20S proteasomes with accumulation and aggregation of potentially cytotoxic abnormal proteins have been identified in the substantia nigra pars compacta of patients with sporadic PD. Thus, a defect in protein handling appears to be a common factor in sporadic and the various familial forms of PD. This hypothesis may also account for the vulnerability of the substantia nigra pars compacta in PD, why the disorder is age related, and the nature of the Lewy body. It has also facilitated the development of experimental models that recapitulate the behavioral and pathological features of PD, and hopefully will lead to the development of novel neuroprotective therapies for the disorder. Ann Neurol 2003;53 (suppl 3):S73–S86


The purpose of this study was to establish security measures assessment criteria that link to the practices of the private sector. Research methods used to develop criteria development security measures for the private sector in this study were a document analysis and group discussion through a one-round focus group with eight security professionals. Data retrieved from documentary analysis and focus group were integratedly synthesized and analyzed to develop security measures assessment criteria. Results found five components that could be used to establish security measurement assessment criteria in a private organization, which include security-related technologies awareness, integration of architectural elements, security system, human resources management, and security practices. Delphi technique and factor analysis were recommended for the next research in order to develop the proper indictors for security measures assessment criteria for a private organization.


This paper discusses how economic ethics can profit from taking into account the results of behavioral economics. In contrast to the neo-classical mainstream of economics, behavioral economics does not presuppose the model of 'economic man', but explores the ways in which real human beings make economic decisions. The example of akrasia and its effects on old-age saving shows that behavioral economic research opens new fields for economic ethics. A central ethical aspect in this context is the question about the moral autonomy of economic agents. A Rawlsian approach shows that opt-out systems, which take into account typical behavioral tendencies, can, under certain conditions, be a way of combining the desiderata of supporting rational behavior and safe-guarding autonomy.


When undertaking surgical maneuvers about the midfoot, caution must be used to avoid injury to the dorsalis pedis artery, which courses along the dorsum of the foot on the dorsolateral aspect of the tarsal navicular. In an effort to better understand the relationship of the course of the dorsalis pedis artery relative to the tarsal navicular, 128 embalmed feet (31 [48.4%] female and 33 [51.6%] male cadavers aged 15 to 91 years) were measured. The dorsalis pedis artery was dissected from its origin to its termination (i.e., the first dorsal metatarsal artery and the deep plantar perforating artery), and the distance from the medial cortex of the navicular tuberosity to the medial margin of the artery and the location of the artery as a percentage of the medial-to-lateral width of the navicular were measured. In the male cadaver specimens, the distance from the navicular tuberosity to the dorsalis pedis was 23.75 ± 3.1 mm, the width of the navicular was 37.41 ± 5.0 mm, and the location of the artery as a percentage of the width of the navicular was 64.34% ± 13.1%. In the female cadaver specimens, the distance from the navicular tuberosity to the dorsalis pedis was 22.81 ± 5.5 mm, the width of the navicular was 36.11 ± 4.0 mm, and the location of the artery as a percentage of the width of the navicular was 63.29% ± 9.9%. For the right foot specimens, the distance from the navicular tuberosity to the dorsalis pedis artery was 20.29 ± 3.3 mm, and the width of the navicular was 37.21 ± 4.4 mm. For the left foot specimens, the distance from the navicular tuberosity to the dorsalis pedis was 21.40 ± 2.5 mm, and the width of the navicular was 35.92 ± 4.4 mm. The statistical comparisons between the males and females showed no statistically significant differences. In contrast, those between the right and left feet showed significant differences in the distance from the navicular tuberosity to the dorsalis pedis artery and the location of the dorsalis pedis artery as a percentage of the width of the navicular. Knowledge of these distances and the location of the dorsalis pedis artery relative to the width of the tarsal navicular should aid surgeons in preparation for, and during, dissection of the midfoot.


Introduction: In this study we analysed the most important parameters necessary for the hystopathologic diagnosis of urothelial carcinoma, a tumor which frequently develops at the vesical urothelial's level. Material and metods: It is presented a study which contained a number of 150 cases of urothelial carcinoma of the bladder, selected during year 2011. We described histopathological aspects corresponding to the growing pattern, tumoral differentiation and invasion depth, as well as the associated lesions, especially those of the urothelium adjacent to the tumors. Results and discussions: The urothelial carcinoma located at the bladder level had various histopathological features. The evaluation of the cytologic atypia and neoplastic configuration, as well as the identification of atypical mitosis, allowed us to graduate the tumors.The analysis of biopsies allowed us to identify the invasion at muscularis propria level in most cases. The lesions associated with invasive urothelial carcinoma were represented by carcinoma in situ, dysplasia, squamous metaplasia, inflamation. Conclusions: The tumoral differentiation degree was correlated with the growing pattern and also with the invasion depth. Some tumors have few associated modifications, enhancing the complexity of the lesions and posing diagnosis setting problems.


Objectives This paper aims to build a structured literature review to the field of E-Marketing. This literature review will provide an archive of past research points and methodologies related to the studies of E-Marketing to explore, analyze and develop a clear understanding about the different research topics and methodologies implemented in E-Marketing published articles between 2003 and 2010. Prior work The paper is trying to build on the current body of knowledge in the field of E-Marketing by preparing a complete archive of the past publications in the field of E-Marketing from 2003 to 2010. Approach The paper systematically reviews and categorise the published literature in the field of E-Marketing depending on the Hanson Internet marketing framework by implementing a three stages methodology and thereafter analyses and reviews this literature methodologically. Results The literature review covers many areas such as: E-business, E-marketplace, Electronic Commerce, Electronic platforms, Mobile marketing and many other research areas. Many research gaps were identified in the field especially in the areas of E-Marketing performance as well as E-Marketing adoption in Small Business enterprises (SBEs). To fill these gaps and extend previous studies within the field, there is a need for conducting research to investigate the relationship between implementing E-Marketing and small businesses performance. Based on the findings the author highly recommends depending on a triangulation approach in conducting future research in the field of E-Marketing. Implications The study will provide great benefits for entrepreneurs, policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and educators though providing a clearer view and deep understanding for all the issues related to the field of EMarketing. Value This paper will add to the body of knowledge by investigating and illustrating a survey and systematic review of the published work in the field of E-Marketing. Depending on this review, researchers and scholars in the field of E-Marketing can have a clearer view to set their attitude towards suitable future research studies and methodologies which in turn will contribute to the related accumulated knowledge in the field.


In recent years, a large variety of reported works on silicon photonics related topics have shown the attraction of this platform, which is providing high performance, low cost, low power consumption and high reliability, as a promising alternative to enable the integration of passive and active components at chip scale. However, most of them only focus on a narrow window of operation wavelengths that spans from the visible range up to near infrared, typically up to the telecom wavelength 1.55 µm. Currently, some research groups have proposed the use of silicon photonics not only for the visible-telecom range, but also at longer wavelengths located within the mid-IR window [1]. The strong molecular absorption experienced by several relevant chemical and biological substances [2, 3] is providing strong motivation to the development of new chip-scale integrated mid-IR sensors. Moreover, Si and Ge offer an extended transparency window up to 8 µm and 14 µm respectively, which enables the design of new mid-IR devices in a broadband wavelength range. At the meanwhile, some recent works have proven the benefits of using Si 1-x Ge x alloy as an attractive platform to realize active and passive mid-IR devices [4, 5]. However, in order to demonstrate the full potential of this platform some keys structures still need to be developed, such as resonant structures, which will be crucial when targeting devices for sensing applications and for the study of non-linear properties where strong light-matter interaction is desired for both. In that line, ring resonators entail strong challenges from a design view point taking into account the weak mode confinement in these structures. Alternatively a Fabry-Perot cavity using Bragg grating mirrors based on waveguide might be a promising option to develop mid-IR SiGe cavities with high performance. Therefore, in this work we design Bragg grating in graded Si 1-x Ge x waveguides and evaluate the performances of integrated cavities at 7.3 µm wavelength. The waveguide design is based on a 6 µm-thick graded Si 1-x Ge x layer that departs from Si and increases its Ge concentration up to pure Ge. The rib height is 4 µm and the width is 5 µm as illustrated in Fig 1.b. The Bragg grating is obtained by patterning the top of the waveguide as illustrated in Fig 1.a. In order to avoid the leakage into substrate, a maximum etching depth of 400 nm is obtained. With 250 µm grating length, the reflectivity per mirror up to 93% is obtained, within a 50 nm spectral bandwidth. The transmission of a 600 µm-long cavity using these mirrors is plotted in Fig 1.c. The simulated Q-factor is around 7100. Furthermore, a double-period Bragg grating has also been designed to broaden the operation bandwidth of the device, providing an increase of the spectral bandwidth from 50 nm (single-period Bragg mirror) to 130 nm (double-period Bragg mirror). These cavities may be a fundamental building block for resonant structures targeting mid-IR integrated devices for sensing applications.


The Water Safety Plan approach set out in the WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality is based upon scientific
consensus, best available evidence and broad expert participation. The approach has been successfully tested in urban areas
and building on this knowledge, work is being carried out in rural areas and small islands. This Saint Lucia case-study
is part of work conducted in the Caribbean assessing islands for their status in the WHO safe drinking-water framework
and how it might lead to improved safety. The Water Safety Plan approach is a holistic analysis assessing all aspects of
water safety enabling stakeholders to engage and collaborate with one another potentially resulting in a consensus of
opinion based on knowledge and goal-orientated motivation. The time based action plan resulting from the Water Safety
Plan approach allows for context specific achievable, incremental and sustainable improvements in drinking-water safety
whilst planning for the over-arching goal of a safe drinking-water framework.


This article presents the results of extensive tests of a stereovision safety system performed using real and artificial images. A vision based protective device (VBPD) analyses images from 2 cameras to calculate the position of a worker and moving parts of a machine (e.g., an industrial robot's arm). Experiments show that the stereovision safety system works properly in real time even when subjected to rapid changes in illumination level. Experiments performed with a functional model of an industrial robot indicate that this safety system can be used to detect dangerous situations at workstations equipped with a robot, in human–robot co-operation. Computer-generated artificial images of a workplace simplify and accelerate testing procedures, and make it possible to compare the effectiveness of VBPDs and other protective devices at no additional cost.


Hopefully the quality of life for billions of people will improve considerably during the coming decades. This implies that the production of virtually every commodity will have to increase dramatically. Agriculture related activities ought to provide food, feed and non-edible plant-based products. The availability of natural resources per person will, however, continue to decline. Resource degradation such as erosion, soil fertility decline and water pollution further constrain production increase. Hence, the efficiency of use of natural resources will have to be boosted drastically, while variability should be curtailed through enhanced buffering capacity of the production base to prevent shock to food systems. These changes in agricultural strategies also call for disciplinary groups, such as researchers on nitrogen or fertilisers, to seek for synergies with disciplinary groups of other production factors. This paper provides an overview of the challenges and stresses the need for agro-ecological intelligence in choosing agricultural development strategies and therefore, in designing agro-ecosystems.


Injuries to the thoracic duct resolve over a period of up to three weeks. Reabsorption of chyle occurs spontaneously into the venous system via the left subclavian vein. Should this have been damaged, a collateral system will be established. If the drainage persists in spite of strict conservative management including total parenteral nutrition, exploration of the duct is recommended.


Diacapitular fracture of the mandibular condyle occurs quite commonly following trauma to the jaws. However, many surgeons shy away from its surgical treatment because of the technical difficulties involved and would rather manage it conservatively. The difficulties range from surgical access and proper repositioning of the fractured segments to the application of mini- or micro-plates. Inadequate treatment can result in limitations in mouth opening, among other complications. Over the years, no clear-cut guidelines and common ground have been agreed upon across the surgical world with regard to the treatment of this very challenging fracture. Different surgeons at different times have put forward their experiences in the management of diacapitular fractures, and the controversy seems to linger despite advances in surgical techniques and armamentarium. This review article, therefore, is an overview of current thought on the management of diacapitular fractures of the mandibular condyle that is intended to harmonise some of the views in the literature.


Introduction Breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women worldwide. Pathogenic variants in BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes account for approximately 50% of all hereditary BC, with 60-80% of patients characterized by Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC) at an early stage phenotype. The identification of a pathogenic BRCA1/2 variant has important and expanding roles in risk-reducing surgeries, treatment planning, and familial surveillance. Otherwise, finding unclassified Variants of Unknown Significance (VUS) limits the clinical utility of the molecular test, leading to an "imprecise medicine". Methods We reported the explanatory example of the BRCA1 c.5057A>C, p.(His1686Pro) VUS identified in a patient with TNBC. We integrated data from family history and clinic-pathological evaluations, genetic analyses, and bioinformatics in silico investigations to evaluate the VUS classification. Results Our evaluation posed evidences for the pathogenicity significance of the investigated VUS: 1) association of the BRCA1 variant to cancer-affected members of the family; 2) absence of another high-risk mutation; 3) multiple indirect evidences derived from gene and protein structural analysis. Discussion In line with the ongoing efforts to uncertain variants classification, we speculated about the relevance of an in-depth assessment of pathogenicity of BRCA1/2 VUS for a personalized management of patients with BC. We underlined that the efficient integration of clinical data with the widest number of supporting molecular evidences should be adopted for the proper management of patients, with the final aim of effectively guide the best prognostic and therapeutic paths.


Using a "QMS" (Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer), the authors detected a significantly large amount (1020-1021 [cm-3]) of helium (42He), which was concluded to have been produced by a deuterium nuclear reaction within a host solid. These results were found to be fully repeatable and supported the authors' proposition1) that solid state plasma fusion ("Cold Fusion") can be generated in energetic deuterium Strongly Coupled Plasma ("SC-plasma"). This fusion reaction is thought to be sustained by localized "Latticequake" in a solid-state media with the deuterium density equivalent to that of the host solid. While exploring this basic proposition, the characteristic differences when compared with ultra high temperature-state plasma fusion ("Hot Fusion") are clarified. In general, the most essential reaction product in both types of the deuterium plasma fusion is considered to be helium, irrespective of the "well-known and/or unknown reactions", which is stored within the solid-state medium in abundance as a "Residual Product", but which generally can not enter into nor be released from host-solid at a room temperature. Even measuring instruments with relatively poor sensitivity should be able to easily detect such residual helium. An absence of residual helium means that no nuclear fusion reaction has occurred, whereas its presence provides crucial evidence that nuclear fusion has, in fact, occurred in the solid.


The paper provides an overview of processes and underlying physics governing tungsten melt erosion in the fusion plasma environment. Experiments with three different bulk tungsten test-limiters were performed in TEXTOR: (i) thermally insulated solid plate fixed on a graphite roof-like limiter heated up by the plasma to the melting point, (ii) macro-brush of the ITER-relevant castellated structure and (iii) lamellae structure developed for the JET divertor. The main objectives were to determine the metal surface damage, the formation of the melt layer and its motion in the magnetic field. PHEMOBRID-3D and MEMOS-1.5D numerical codes were used to simulate the experiment with the roof-like test-limiter. Both experiments and simulation showed that the melting of tungsten can lead to a large material redistribution due to thermo-electron emission currents without ejection of molten material to the plasma.


A class of linear degenerate second-order parabolic equations is considered in arbitrary domains. It is shown that these equations are solvable using special weighted Sobolev spaces in essentially the same way as the non-degenerate equations in $R^d$ are solved using the usual Sobolev spaces. The main advantages of this Sobolev-space approach are less restrictive conditions on the coefficients of the equation and near-optimal space-time regularity of the solution. Unlike previous works on degenerate equations, the results cover both classical and distribution solutions and allow the domain to be bounded or unbounded without any smoothness assumptions about the boundary. An application to nonlinear filtering of diffusion processes is discussed.


In seasonal frozen soil area, the engineering problems caused by the excessive moisture content of the subgrade soil are widespread. In view of this phenomenon, author proposes to employ a new type of research and development of the seepage drainage geogrid (SDG) to cool and drain the soil. Through indoor model test, after two freeze-thaw cycles, the experimental comparison of the size and laying method of various SDG was carried out. The test result shows that the model with a natural grit layer has the most drainage effect. While, the model contains two layers of interconnected grilles has the best cooling effect. The indoor model test is simulated by accurate numerical simulation. The simulation results are compared with the indoor test results. The fitting results of the two results are very high, which provides theoretical support and data guarantee for the application of seepage drainage grille to strengthen the roadbed in the cold road.