Abstract In response to concern for climate change impacting sport competitions and legacies, and the need to consider climate adaptability in event planning, this paper uses a combination of historical weather and air quality data as well as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Fifth Assessment Report to predict climactic conditions for the mega-events of the 2022 through 2032. In doing so, this paper provides a preliminary overview of environmental conditions (e.g. temperatures, air quality, precipitation) that can be used by event planners to inform contingency plans for the events and their legacies. The most immediate concerns for the mega events between 2022 and 2032 include heat conditions unsuitable for competition and poor air quality, but there may be more harmful environmental concerns for the long-term legacies of these events. It is imperative that event organizers consider creating climate-resilient events, infrastructure, and legacies that can withstand environmental threats in the future.


The belief that sovereignty is at the eleventh hour has become more widespread with the progress of the globalization phenomenon. The notion that sovereignty is somehow being transformed by the process of economic globalization and that this is being exacerbated by the Internet—one of the cutting-edge tools of globalization—has become an almost uncritically accepted fact. Large swathes of public opinion in industrialized democracies have been mesmerized by the pervasive equation that more globalization (and more Internet) equals less sovereignty. In this article, we attempt to dissect the proposition that more Internet equals a further decrease in state sovereignty. We argue that, while state sovereignty is unmistakably declining, the Internet is, in the best case, one more element contributing to that decline. Indeed, in some instances the Internet can even strengthen sovereignty. Two hypotheses have been considered: the first—the "technologist/general belief"—summarizes the view of several futurologists and technologists as well as many informed individuals. Their main claim is that the more the Internet grows, the more sovereignty will decline. The second hypothesis—"politics matters"—points out that circumstances are more complex, and that the Internet growth does not immediately translate to eroding states' authority, but can even increase it. It is thus imperative to analyze the process of "politicization" of the Internet in order to identify the correct causal explanation. We have analyzed four cases in which the Internet has contributed to increasing and/or decreasing sovereignty: ICANN and other non-governmental organizations of Internet governance, the French Yahoo!, taxation on the Internet and cybercrime. The four cases appear to support the validity of our second hypothesis. We have however been careful in considering this paper as an "exploratory study" of the problem of Internet and sovereignty, which, in fact, require more detailed research to produce conclusive evidence.


Background The first author was asked to set up an Acupuncture Clinic for a limited period, within a Rheumatology Department of Barnet and Chase Farm Hospital Trust. She had been practising acupuncture for fifteen years and had recently joined the department. An audit was taken as there are few published trials on Rheumatology Clinic patients.1 Objectives To assess response of pain to acupuncture, alongside recording patients' analgesic intake. To assess whether the duration of pain or x-ray changes denoted a better result. Method A course of four to six sessions of traditional and myofascial acupuncture was offered, for a specified range of conditions, using electro-acupuncture after the first treatment. Average pain during the day and night was recorded weekly on a scale of 1 to 10, as well as the number and type of analgesics taken. An audit was analysed of the outcome for a series of 41 patients, who had a mean age of 57 years and pain for a mean duration of three years. Results The mean score for daytime pain fell from 6.8 (SD 1.2) to 4.9 (SD 2.5) points, which is highly significant (p < 0.001). A total of 30 (73%) of the patients had a reduction in pain of at least 33% and 22 (54%) had a reduction in pain of at least 50%. Analgesic intake, (without distinguishing between different analgesic medication), was reduced from a mean of 17 (SD 15.3) tablets per week, to a mean of 6 (SD 7.9). Patients with normal x-rays had a much better response to acupuncture than those whose x-rays showed significant degenerative changes. Conclusions Over 65% of patients referred for acupuncture to a designated clinic showed a significant improvement after treatment and were able to reduce their intake of analgesic drugs. Patients with moderate or severe degenerative changes on x-ray did not respond as well as those with x-rays showing no abnormality. Reference Berman BM, Swyers JP, Ezzo J. The evidence for acupuncture as a treatment for rheumatologic conditions. Rheum Dis Clin North Am. 2000;26:103–15


The authors performed a study in 14 top weightlifters, in order to make evident some effects of inosine. The athletes of A group received daily 1.5 g inosine (3 x 500 mg) for 6 weeks while the athletes of the B group (control group) received placebo. Six weeks inosine treatment induced significant changes for serum lipids and FFA (increase), urine mucoproteins (decrease), evoked muscular potential for the right median nerve and motric speed conductibility of the right external sciaticus popliteus nerve; the activity of serum CPK also increased. Some of these changes (CPK, evoked muscular potential, urine mucoproteins etc.) were evident even after 3 weeks of treatment.


Finite element analysis (FEA) simulation has been performed as a new method of evaluating the scaling trend of the nano-electro-mechanical (NEM) nonvolatile memory cell. Since FEA simulation reflects the actual memory cell structure and includes nonlinear effects, it can predict program/erase operation more accurately than analltical modeling.


SUMMARY Using special observation chambers and high resolution video-enhanced contrast microscopy, the behaviour of infective second stage juveniles of Heterodera schachtii was studied inside roots of Brassica napus seedlings. With this technique, intracellular migration of the juveniles to the site of syncytium induction near or within the vascular tissue and feeding from the initial syncytium could, for the first time, be directly observed on live animals. The function of structures inside the feeding apparatus of the nematode and in the initial syncytium, previously only recorded with the transmission electron microscope, was analysed. Feeding from the initial syncytium was invariably in a series of repeated cycles, each composed of three distinct phases : i) continuous withdrawal of nutrients from within a zone of modified cytoplasm through a feeding tube connected to the orifice of the stylet lumen. iil stylet retraction from the feeding site, gentle stylet movements within the stomatal cavity and reinsertion of the stylet-tip, accompanicd by depletion of secretory fluids from within the expanded valve membranes of the two subventral oesophageal gland ampullae. iii) release of secretory fluids from the ampulla of the dorsal œsophageal gland, forming a new feeding tube inside the zone of modified cytoplasm. Events that occurred during these three phases within the feeding apparatus of the nematode and in the initial syncytium are described and discussed.


Objective: A gas chromatography (GC) method using flame ionization (FID) and mass spectrometry (MS) was developed and validated for the determination of nine local anaesthetics in counterfeit drugs sold illegally as treatments for male premature ejaculation. Methods: The GC-FID and GC-MS method validations demonstrated reliable specificity, selectivity, linearity, precision, and accuracy, and the validated methods were successfully applied to the analyses of collected samples. Results: Approximately 60% of the samples contained, at least, one of the local anaesthetics, which included menthol, 2-phenoxyethanol, eugenol, lidocaine, prilocaine, and tetracaine. Lidocaine was the most frequently detected compound in the analysed samples and occurred in a wide concentration range (2.81–52.40 mg/g). The concentrations of the detected compounds varied greatly between 0.03–52.40 mg/g. Conclusion: Continuous use of these counterfeit products, which contain high concentrations of local anaesthetics, can cause serious human health effects. Therefore, the continued screening of illegal products is required and our proposed methods could be used for the monitoring and quantification of local anaesthetics in counterfeit products. Keywords: Local anesthetics, Premature ejaculation, GC/FID, GC/MS, Adulterants, Validation.


An achievable region is derived for the multiple-access channel under decoding mismatch conditions. It is shown that achievable rates higher than the random coding capacity of the single-user mismatched channel can sometimes be demonstrated by treating the single-user channel as a multiple-access channel. Refining these ideas we derive a lower bound on the capacity of the mismatched single-user channel, which is tighter than previously published bounds. Using this bound, we are able to answer in the negative the question raised by Csiszar and Narayan (see ibid., vol.41, no.1, p.35, 1995) as to whether equality between the mismatch capacity and the matched capacity implies that the random coding lower bound to the mismatch capacity is tight.


Abstract : Currently the only proposed treatment for ADT-induced muscle wasting is exercise based interventions. However, the intensity of exercise required coupled with the susceptibility of prostate cancer patients to fractures due to 1) the already high incidence of bone metastasis and 2) ADT-induced acceleration in osteoporosis emphasizes the need for other therapies. In order to devise effective therapies, an understanding as to how ADT results in severe and debilitating loss in skeletal muscle and overall performance is required. The goal of this proposal is to employ pre-clinical models to gain insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for ADT-induced loss of skeletal muscle regenerative potential. Specifically, the aims are designed to address how ADT affects the maintenance and function of Pax7 expressing resident stem cells of skeletal muscle, satellite cells (SCs), which are absolutely required for optimal skeletal muscle growth and regeneration. The completion of the aims outlined in this proposal should provide insights into the extent to which abnormalities in stem cell function and thereby regenerative capability contribute to the acceleration of sarcopenia observed in prostate cancer patients undergoing ADT. In addition, this proposal intends to employ pre-clinical genetic strategies to determine the utility of stimulating the expression of genes known to maintain SC number and function for the ability to resist ADT-induced loss of skeletal muscle regeneration. Ultimately, the elucidation of regenerative strategies to circumvent androgen supplementation to sustain skeletal muscle should be of tremendous benefit towards research that strives to improve the quality of life and well-being of prostate cancer patients receiving ADT.


This thesis focuses on the problem of estimating parameters in multivariate linear models where particularly the mean has a bilinear structure and the covariance matrix has a linear structure. Most of techniques in statistical modeling rely on the assumption that data were generated from the normal distribution. Whereas real data may not be exactly normal, the normal distributions serve as a useful approximation to the true distribution. The modeling of normally distributed data relies heavily on the estimation of the mean and the covariance matrix. The interest of considering various structures for the covariance matrices in different statistical models is partly driven by the idea that altering the covariance structure of a parametric model alters the variances of the model's estimated mean parameters. The extended growth curve model with two terms and a linearly structured covariance matrix is considered. In general there is no problem to estimate the covariance matrix when it is completely unknown. However, problems arise when one has to take into account that there exists a structure generated by a few number of parameters. An estimation procedure that handles linear structured covariance matrices is proposed. The idea is first to estimate the covariance matrix when it should be used to define an inner product in a regression space and thereafter reestimate it when it should be interpreted as a dispersion matrix. This idea is exploited by decomposing the residual space, the orthogonal complement to the design space, into three orthogonal subspaces. Studying residuals obtained from projections of observations on these subspaces yields explicit consistent estimators of the covariance matrix. An explicit consistent estimator of the mean is also proposed and numerical examples are given. The models based on normally distributed random matrix are also studied in this thesis. For these models, the dispersion matrix has the so called Kronecker product structure and they can be used for example to model data with spatio-temporal relationships. The aim is to estimate the parameters of the model when, in addition, one covariance matrix is assumed to be linearly structured. On the basis of n independent observations from a matrix normal distribution, estimation equations in a flip-flop relation are presented and numerical examples are given.


Abstract 3713 Poster Board III-649 Introduction B-cell receptor (BCR) signaling contributes to the growth of several types of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), and recent reports suggest there is clinical utility to targeting this pathway. Bruton9s tyrosine kinase (Btk) is an important downstream mediator of BCR signaling as evidenced by genetic mutations in Btk that cause X-linked agammaglobulinemia, a B-cell specific immunodeficiency disease. PCI-32765 is an oral, potent and selective covalent inhibitor of Btk which blocks BCR signaling and inhibits tumor growth in both mouse and spontaneous canine NHL models. Here we report preliminary results of the first-in-human study with this novel agent. Patients and Methods In this Phase I dose escalation trial, patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell NHL are being enrolled in cohorts of 6 patients each, with predefined criteria for dose escalation from 1.25 mg/kg/day in cohort 1 to 17.5 mg/kg/day in cohort 6. Dose escalation proceeds if ≤1 patient experiences dose limiting toxicity (DLT). Each cycle includes 28 days of therapy followed by a 7 day observation period. Response assessments occur every 2 cycles, and patients without disease progression or DLT may receive a maximum of 6 cycles. The primary objectives are to determine the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamic (PD) responses. The secondary objective is to evaluate tumor responses. The PD assays include a test for drug occupancy of Btk using a novel fluorescent probe derived from PCI-32765. The probe is added to peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) lysates ex vivo and probe-labeled Btk is visualized by fluorescent gel scanning. Because the probe binds to Btk at the same site as the drug, occupancy of Btk by PCI-32765 can be detected by the inhibition of probe labeling. The probe assay and other cell signaling assays are used to monitor target inhibition in patient blood samples collected pre-dose on days 1, 2, 8, 15, and 29 and at 4 hours after dosing on days 1 and 8. In the absence of DLTs, dose escalation will proceed to three cohorts above the dose level that achieves >90% occupancy of Btk by PCI-32765. Results The study is currently open and enrolling. Seven patients (1 DLBCL, 2 MCL, 4 FL) with a median of 3 prior therapies have been enrolled in the first cohort (one more patient than originally planned). Therapy has been extremely well tolerated with no DLT or greater than grade 2 hematological or non- hematologic toxicity. Six patients have completed at least 1 cycle. PD studies showed the average drug occupancy of Btk in patient PBMCs in this cohort was 89% at 4 hours post-dose and 77% at 24 hours post-dose. Ex vivo stimulation assays showed near complete functional inhibition of the FceRI signaling pathway in basophils and significant inhibition of the BCR pathway. T-cell responses were not affected, and no significant depletion of peripheral blood B, T or NK cell counts was observed. Two of 7 patients have stable disease (65 days and 135 days), 3 patients are not yet evaluable for response, and 2 have progressed. Conclusion PCI-32765 is a novel agent which targets Btk and appears to be well tolerated. The unique PD endpoint suggests high levels of Btk inhibition even at the lowest dosing cohort. Dose escalation to subsequent cohorts is ongoing. Disclosures: Smith:Pharmacyclics: Research Funding. Fowler:Pharmacyclics: Research Funding. Boyd:Pharmacyclics: Research Funding. Smith:Pharmacyclics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Sirisawad:Pharmacyclics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Honigberg:Pharmacyclics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Hamdy:Pharmacyclics: Employment, Equity Ownership. Advani:Pharmacyclics: Research Funding.


As a step in production of so-called electrofuels, ambient pressure CO2 hydrogenation has been investigated over different catalytic model systems based on metal particles (Pd, Rh and Ni) supported on various metal oxides (SiO2, Al2O3 and CeO2) and aluminosilicates (ZSM-5 and MCM-41) at different specific reactant ratios and temperatures between 150 and 450 degrees C. Catalytic activity and selectivity measurements in a flow reactor show that the highest CO2 conversion towards methane is obtained for the Rh/Al2O3 and Rh/CeO2 catalysts, followed by Ni/CeO2. Generally, the results suggest that both the support material and reaction conditions play an important role in the hydrogenation process. Further, in situ diffusive reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy reveals the intermediate species during transient CO2 hydrogenation over the Rh and Ni containing catalysts. Adsorption and dissociation of CO2 occurs over the Rh/Al2O3 catalyst in the presence of H-2, resulting in the formation of linear Rh-CO species, while formates and carbonates are formed over the Rh/CeO2 and Ni/CeO2 catalysts, likely at the metal-support interface.


Objectives: The aim was to describe falls and the perceived causes, experienced by people with multiple sclerosis shortly after falling. Design: A qualitative study using content analysis and quantitative data to illustrate where and why people report falls most commonly. Semi-structured telephone interviews were performed. Interviews were conducted shortly (0–10 days) after a fall. Subjects: In all, 67 informants who had reported at least one fall during the previous three-month period and who used a walking aid participated. Results: A total of 57 (85%) informants fell at least once during eight months resulting in 115 falls; 90 (78%) falls happened indoors, most commonly in the kitchen (n = 20; 17%) or bathroom (n = 16; 14%). Informants fell during everyday activities and walking aids had been used in more than a third of the reported falls. The falls were influenced of both intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Two categories emerged from the analysis: 'activities when falling' and 'influencing factors'. The category contained three (basic activities of daily living, instrumental activities of daily living and leisure and work) and six (multiple sclerosis–related symptoms, fluctuating body symptoms, being distracted, losing body control, challenging surrounding and involvement of walking aid) subcategories, respectively. Conclusion: The majority of falls occurs indoors and in daily activities. Several factors interacted in fall situations and should be monitored and considered to reduce the gap between the person's capacity and the environmental demands that cause fall risk. Fluctuation of bodily symptoms between and within a day is a variable not earlier targeted in multiple sclerosis fall risk research.


Due to the increasing popularity and diversity of mobile devices, developers write the same mobile app for different platforms. Since each platform requires its own unique environment in terms of programming languages and tools, the teams building these multi-platform mobile apps are usually separate. This in turn can result in inconsistencies in the apps developed. In this paper, we propose an automated technique for detecting inconsistencies in the same native app implemented for iOS and Android platforms. Our technique (1) automatically instruments and traces the app on each platform for given execution scenarios, (2) infers abstract models from each platform execution trace, (3) compares the models using a set of code-based and GUI-based criteria to expose any discrepancies, and finally (4) generates a visualization of the models, highlighting any detected inconsistencies. We have implemented our approach in a tool called CheckCAMP. CheckCAMP can help mobile developers in testing their apps across multiple platforms. An evaluation of our approach with a set of 14 industrial and open-source multi-platform native mobile app-pairs indicates that CheckCAMP can correctly extract and abstract the models of mobile apps from multiple platforms, infer likely mappings between the generated models based on different comparison criteria, and detect inconsistencies at multiple levels of granularity.


Deregulated inflammation seriously complicates life-threatening microbial infections, including tuberculosis (TB). Assembly of multiprotein inflammasome complexes is an important trigger of inflammation, but how this impacts TB progression remains unknown. Here, in vivo imaging in the zebrafish TB model revealed that mycobacterial expansion in TB granulomas is driven by inflammasomes and ensuing pyroptotic cell death of infected macrophages. We show that an Asc-independent pathway induces macrophage pyroptosis and impairs host resistance, in contrast to host-protective roles of Asc-dependent inflammasome activation and Il1b secretion. Using ASC-deficient murine macrophages, we demonstrate extracellular bacterial DNA to induce CASP11-dependent pyroptosis in a manner dependent on phagosome permeabilization. Finally, we propose that mycobacteria induce pyroptosis to escape cell-in-cell structures, formed within granulomas when living infected cells are engulfed by neighbor cells. This study provides new insight into the role of pyroptosis in TB pathogenesis and reveals a novel link between nucleic acid sensing and CASP11-dependent pyroptosis.


An important methodological challenge in the analysis of historical occupational cohort data is choosing the most appropriate metric for the average exposure of the workers under study. We describe and illustrate the many issues associated with this challenge using a recent re-analysis by Kopylev [1] of lung cancer mortality in the National Cancer Institute (NCI) acrylonitrile cohort study. Kopylev proposed the routine use of both Average Exposure and Average Intensity when analyzing epidemiological cohort data. However, due to the methodological issues that arise with these metrics, we have concerns about the validity of his finding of a significant positive association between workers' acrylonitrile exposure and increased lung cancer mortality in a subset of the NCI cohort. These include 1) the opportunity for substantial selection bias to have impacted the results; 2) the failure to account properly for latency; 3) the absence of a convincing biological rationale or other a priori justification for Kopylev's preferred exposure metrics; 4) the absence of meaningful differences in Average Exposureand Average Intensitybased risk estimates; 5) the lack of a logical basis for using either of these exposure metrics and 6) the conclusion that smoking was not a significant positive confounder, which is at odds with all other such findings for this cohort.


This article explores the Irish features of Jez Butterworth's _The Ferryman_, focussing on his use of overfamiliar Irish tropes as well as his intertextual allusions to writers such as Brian Friel, WB Yeats, and Seamus Heaney. These links are considered in the context of its first production, in 2017-18, which appeared at a time when the constitutional status of Northern Ireland within the UK was being fiercely debated. The article considers the critical reaction to that production, asking why _The Ferryman_ was so frequently described as an 'Irish' play. To respond to that question, the article explores the two forms of cultural transmission that are detectable in the play: the influence of Irish drama upon Butterworth's own practice as a playwright, and the way in which his characters' actions are over-determined by the repetition of family stories and traditions across several generations. Butterworth's decision to explore the influence of the Irish dramatic tradition on his own writing demonstrates that there are ways to reach into the past in order to find new ways forward. In the act of writing _The Ferryman_, Butterworth is offering a response to the dilemma that the play itself dramatizes. The political and artistic consequences of that strategy need to be considered, as does the way in which _The Ferryman_ builds on themes and tropes present in Butterworth's earlier plays.


Plasma configurations with shear reversal are prone to the excitation of unusual Alfven eigenmodes by energetic particles. These modes exhibit a quasiperiodic pattern of predominantly upward frequency sweeping (Alfven cascades) as the safety factor q changes in time. This work presents a theory that employs two complementary mechanisms for establishing Alfven cascades: (1) a nonstandard adiabatic response of energetic particles with large orbits and (2) toroidal magnetohydrodynamic effects that are second-order in inverse aspect ratio. The developed theory explains the transition from Alfven cascades to the toroidicity induced Alfven eigenmodes (TAEs), including modifications of the TAEs themselves near the shear reversal point.


Naizhao Guo: Shanxi University of Finance and Economics, China Robin Wills: University of Tasmania, Australia Abstract This paper discusses an investigation of a one-year experiment of teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) conducted at Shanxi University of Finance and Economics. The experiment involved three teachers and 550 non-English major undergraduates of the University, sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Education. The study aims to find the factors influencing English listening comprehension and the strategies to be taken that might improve students' listening comprehension. The study has also sought new ways of cultivating listening comprehension competence in TEFL in the Chinese context. In the light of constructivist linguistics theory and practice this paper analyses the nature of listening and comprehension and the process of listening comprehension. The paper indicates that among current problems, and their causes in English teaching practice, the most frequent is that of cultural difference and its affect on listening comprehension. According to the practice of TEFL in the University, the author puts forward the teaching approach of "listeningbased, overall development" and addresses listening comprehension strategies such as distinguishing different stages of listening teaching, matching instruction to students' individual differences, developing students' listening comprehension micro skills, and especially focusing on cultural learning in language teaching. Results of the research are of significance and may prove beneficial to English language teaching in Chinese tertiary institutions


The Reverend Ernest Richard Bulmer Gribble is a significant figure in the history of Australian missions and race relations. During his sixty-five years as an Anglican missionary to the Australian Aborigines, Gribble had a dramatic impact on the lives and destinies of thousands of indigenous people on both sides of the continent - providing many with their first experience of Christianity and Western culture. He pioneered Yarrabah Mission near Cairns, Queensland (1893-1909); was Warden of Fraser Island Mission, near Maryborough, Queensland (1900-1904); established the Mitchell River Mission on the Gulf of Carpentaria (1903-05); pioneered Forrest River Mission, near Wyndham in Western Australia (1914-1928), and was the first Anglican Chaplain of the government Aboriginal settlement of Palm Island, off the Queensland coast near Townsville.


In this paper different model-based methods of classification of global patterns in dermoscopic images are proposed. Global patterns identification is included in the pattern analysis framework, the melanoma diagnosis method most used among dermatologists. The modeling is performed in two senses: first a dermoscopic image is modeled by a finite symmetric conditional Markov model applied to L*a*b* color space and the estimated parameters of this model are treated as features. In turn, the distribution of these features are supposed that follow different models along a lesion: a Gaussian model, a Gaussian mixture model, and a bag-of-features histogram model. For each case, the classification is carried out by an image retrieval approach with different distance metrics. The main objective is to classify a whole pigmented lesion into three possible patterns: globular, homogeneous, and reticular. An extensive evaluation of the performance of each method has been carried out on an image database extracted from a public Atlas of Dermoscopy. The best classification success rate is achieved by the Gaussian mixture model-based method with a 78.44% success rate in average. In a further evaluation the multicomponent pattern is analyzed obtaining a 72.91% success rate.


Teaching is inextricably linked to learning, and there are many studies on the complexity of teaching as well as learning in computational learning theory. In this paper, we study the complexity of teaching in the situation that the number of examples is restricted, especially less than its teaching dimension. We formulate a model of teaching by a restricted number of examples, where the complexity is measured by the maximum error to a target concept. We call a concept class is optimally incrementally teachable if the teacher can optimally teach it to the learner whenever teaching is terminated. We study the complexity of the three concept classes of monotone monomials, monomials without the empty concept, and monomials in our model. We show that the boundary of optimally incremental teachability is different from that of polynomial teachability in the classical model. We also show that inconsistent examples help to reduce the maximum error in our model.


The use of social pedagogy as a paradigm for critically appraising developments within child and family social work has been largely neglected. This paper outlines the work of Augusto Boal and his adoption of social pedagogy as a method for empowering oppres-sed social groups in Brazil. It is argued that Boal's approach can be adapted by using action research techniques to analyse and effect change in situations where child care professionals face daily contradictions in their attempts to both protect children and support families. To demonstrate its relevance to child care practice, a description is provided of how the approach was used with two groups of social work students – one undertaking qualifying training, the other post-qualifying training. The results of this application suggest a new theoretical framework for practice which aims to establish communicative consensus around the needs of children and a mutual appreciation of roles and responsibilities.


A mobile underwater wireless sensor network is a system of mobile underwater sensors which are acoustically networked. Existing ocean studies using independent mobile sensors have led to many interesting discoveries. Therefore, the networking capability will extend the capability of existing approaches and enable novel applications because it provides more control and coordination of the sensors. However, network mobility and environment uncertainty create numerous challenging issues which need to be addressed before such a paradigm becomes reality. Network deployment is among the most important problems because it has a significant impact on other research areas. In this paper, we consider the reuse-based deployment scheme in which a mobile underwater sensor network operates in a bounded area and a sensor, when reaching beyond the area, is deployed back into it. We propose a deployment framework to study the connectivity and coverage of such networks and show its effectiveness through two case studies. Our framework is based on the idea that the reuse of network nodes stabilizes these network metrics. By modeling them, we can estimate the number of nodes needed to achieve a requirement on network coverage or network connectivity only by solving algebraic equations rather than running more simulations.


Studies using molecular modeling, genetic engineering, neurophysiology/pharmacology, and whole animals have advanced our understanding of where and how inhaled anesthetics act to produce immobility (minimum alveolar anesthetic concentration; MAC) by actions on the spinal cord. Numerous ligand- and voltage-gated channels might plausibly mediate MAC, and specific animo acid sites in certain receptors present likely candidates for mediation. However, in vivo studies to date suggest that several channels or receptors may not be mediators (e.g., &ggr;-aminobutyric acid A, acetylcholine, potassium, 5-hydroxytryptamine-3, opioids, and &agr;2-adrenergic), whereas other receptors/channels (e.g., glycine, N-methyl-d-aspartate, and sodium) remain credible candidates.


Abstract From 2000 to 2004, 36, 58, 72, 78, and 86 laboratories participated in an external quality assessment scheme (EQAS) organized by the Department of Transfusion Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital. Each year the staff was requested to perform ABO grouping, D typing, antibody screening, antibody identification, and DATs on eight blood samples. Each participant received information on the correct test results and a coded summary. Regarding ABO grouping, the error rate ranged from 0.3 to 1.3 percent, mostly due to human errors. Error rates in D typing ranged from 0.7 to 5.7 percent, the most problematic being weak D phenotype interpretation. Although every sample was negative by the DAT, error rates due to false positive test results were determined to be 0.4 to 2.1 percent. Antibody screening errors were also found; however, errors steadily decreased from 4.2 percent in 2000 to 0.3 percent in 2004. Only 69.4 to 87.2 percent of laboratories performed antibody identification; however, correct results increased from 78.4 to 91.0 percent. In conclusion, an EQAS in RBC serology should be used to compare results from different laboratories and to identify those laboratories that need improvement in testing procedures. Immunohematology2006;22:1–5.


The paper represents a means of substantiating the optimal politicy of transport and distribution of goods groupage using Markov's decisional processes, respectively through R. Howard's method of strategies' space. This kind of method is based on an iterative optimization algorithm, whose structure permits that, with the successive covering of each method, to limit the number of ulterior repetitions. In this way, the optimal politicy that result, constituted from a number of decisions, finite or not, aims at optimizing the following decisions in a close connection with the first decision's consequences, whatever that would be. Concretely, a logistic centre's managers have the responsibility of identifying the optimal transport policy of the unit loads prepared for being shipped in three ways: palletized, containerized and packaged, according to the ways of transport which will be used: causeway, railway and airway, and the costs associated to each shipping means.


Aim and Objective: The aim and objective of this study is to explore the real value of land and the unfavourable factors that affects the demand and supply of land. The study aims to prove my theory about land. This theory suggests that all natural resource gains its logic of 'buying and selling' by employing all other resources to limit the demand of land in production activities. Method: Two Surveys was designed from two stage stratified random sampling. The primary sampling units were selected from the main sample frame (1328, 1704 regions from 2600, 36196 regions, respectively). The final sampling units were selected randomly from the primary sampling units (12,12 families from every 1328,1704 regions, respectively) using a systematic random sample. Findings: For a chosen city, the price growth rate of land is 93.77 % yearly for residential areas and 118.98% yearly for commercial areas. However, this has exceeded the cost and the price growth rate of construction materials and has resulted to the inflation of other materials. This explains clearly why around 83.15% planned areas and 198.23% unplanned areas are raw land. Here, much less than 29.47% of the population owns a house without loan. Conclusion: Conclusively, for a market in equilibrium at a certain price, the limitation of the demand of land in production activity will make the free supply curve more elastic. It was proven that if we deactivate the nonproduction (re-sale) demand of land for a market in equilibrium at a certain price, the supply of land will be greater than the demand of land. In addition, there will be no significant output unless we consider the real value of land as a part of a house or a project.


The Gryphon Oil Field is located 320 km northeast of Aberdeen in UK Ninth Round Block 9/18b. The field was discovered by Well 9/18b-7 in 1987. This well proved the prognosed Eocene/Paleocene submarine fan system. To date, Kerr-McGee has drilled 13 wells and 10 sidetracks on the field. In 1990 a 3D seismic survey was acquired over the whole trend, in Blocks 9/18a, 9/18b, 9/23a and 9/23b. The field is a complex combination structural/stratigraphic trap formed on the northerly plunging nose of the Crawford Ridge. The principal reservoir sands are of the Balder Formation (latest Paleocene-earliest Eocene) and consist of thick, massive, well-sorted, high porosity sands deposited from high-density gravity flows. Water-escape and soft sediment deformation features are common and no primary sedimentary structures are preserved. These sands formed a 9Lowstand Fan9 complex within a lowstand systems tract. Areas of sand deposition were determined by the sea floor topography, which was controlled by basement structure, soft sediment deformation and the disposition of older sandbodies. In order to establish accurate time lines, it is important to identify the relative ages of these sands correctly. This was achieved using detailed biostratigraphy combined with the innovative techniques of 9desanding9 and petrophysical analysis of the Balder Tuff. Overlying the Balder sequence is the earliest Eocene interbedded claystone, silt and sand sequence of the Frigg Formation. These sediments were deposited within the 9Lowstand Wedge9 channel/levee complex which built out across the previously deposited Balder Fan. Oil and gas migrated into the structure via the ridge fault system from the mature Kimmeridge Clay source in the deep graben to the north and east.


Optical vortex beam exhibits a ring-shaped spatial profile and carries an orbital angular momentum (OAM), characterized by an azimuthal phase term, e−ilΦ%(l is a topological charge and Φ is the azimuthal angle) [1], and has been widely applied in a variety of fields, such as optical tweezing and manipulation, and material processing [2]. Also, flower-shaped modes, i.e. coherent superposition of optical vortices with different OAM states also receive much attention, because their unique properties provide potentially advanced applications, including optical trapping [3] and quantum optics [4]. The aforementioned applications strongly desire a versatility of wavelength and OAM state to optical vortex sources [5]. In this presentation, we report on the first demonstration of a tunable vortex laser with versatile flower-shaped modes based on an optical vortex pumped optical parametric oscillator (OPO) formed of a non-critical phasematching LiB3O5 (NCPM-LBO) crystal in a linear cavity configuration with a cavity length of 60 mm.


Modern downsized internal combustion engines benefit from high-efficiency turbocharging systems for increasing their volumetric efficiency. However, despite the efficiency increase, turbochargers often lack fast transient response due to the nature of the energy exchange with the engine, which deteriorates the vehicle's drivability. An electrically-assisted turbocharger can be used for improving the transient response without any parasitic losses to the engine while providing energy recovery for increasing overall system efficiency. The present study provides a detailed numerical investigation on the potential of e-turbocharging to control load and if possible replace the wastegate valve. A parametric study of the optimum compressor/turbine sizing and wastegate area was performed for maximum torque, fast response time and energy regeneration across the real driving conditions speed/load area of the engine. The results showed that the implementation of a motor-generator could contribute to reducing the response time of the engine by up to 90% while improving its thermal efficiency and generating up to 6.6 kWh of energy. Suppressing the wastegate can only be achieved when a larger turbine is implemented, which as a result deteriorates the engine's response and leads to energy provision demands at low engine speeds.


Utilizing the self-assembly strategy between the paddle-wheel Cu2(COO)4 cluster and a terephthalic acid ligand modified by a triazolyl group, namely H2tztp = 2-(1H-1,2,4-triazol-1-yl)terephthalic acid, a porous MOF, [Cu0.5(tztp)0.5]·0.5DMA (1), has been successfully designed and built. 1 is a three-dimensional self-interpenerated framework with a (3,6)-connected rtl topology, and contains hydrophilic and hydrophobic channels decorated with rich uncoordinated triazolyl N atoms and benzene rings from tztp ligands, respectively. The unique porous environment leads not only to high gas adsorption amounts of CO2, C2H6, C2H4 and C2H2 but also to a good separation ability of C2 hydrocarbons over CH4, CO2 over CH4, and C2H2 over CO2 in the MOF. The specific adsorption sites of CO2 and C2 hydrocarbons were explored by a molecular simulation. The breakthrough experiments demonstrated excellent dynamic separations for CO2 and CH4, C2 hydrocarbons and CH4 as well as C2H2 over CO2. The MOF also revealed excellent adsorption and separation ability for CH3OH over other bulkier alcohol molecules.


Problem statements: Nitrogen fertilizer is recognized as an important factor in crop's yield level, however more application of N fertilizers in the soil have some adverse effects on environment and especially on groundwater contamination. Perception and recognition the factors influencing nitrate transport through soil profile is helpful for fertilizer management to minimize adverse impacts on environment and nitrate leaching below the root zone. Approach: In this study, 9 large cylindrical lysimeters with 1 m height and 0.5 m diameter were filled with clay loam soil and planted with maize to investigate nitrate leaching under different types of N-fertilizer, chemical fertilizer, activated sludge and organic manure. Nitrate concentration in the soil and drainage water samples were analyzed by spectrophotometer method and the mass of nitrate was calculated in soil and drainage water. Crop productions for different treatments were compared too. Results: Results showed that cumulative mass of nitrate leaching from organic fertilizer was greater than the other treatments (229 kg ha-1). Organic manure had the greatest nitrate accumulation in soil (15.17 mg kg-1), which was significantly greater than chemical fertilizer. Conclusions/Recommendations: Experimental results showed that manure application could result in NO3--N accumulation increase in the deeper soil profiles compared with activated sludge. Results showed that maize production was significantly higher under activated sludge fertilizer. Observations made in the current study suggest activated sludge fertilizer due to a higher crop production with same level of groundwater contamination, especially in clay loam soils.


In men, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) increase steadily by the age of 35 years and reach a plateau in the 7th decade of life, whereas in women few years after the menopause, from about 50 years, the incidence of cardio‐cerebro‐vascular diseases progressively increases, becoming the leading cause of mortality and morbidity. Because of the greater incidence of CVD in men until the early 1980s, the information on cardiovascular risk factors has been gathered mainly from men and then translated in women. But sex steroid milieu has a different impact on cardiovascular risk profile, as cardiovascular risk factors have a different importance in determining future cardiovascular events in the two sexes and therapeutic strategies have a different impact on reducing cardiovascular risk in the two sexes. Aim of this study is to review the gender‐specific aspects influencing the development of cardiovascular risk factors and cardiovascular preventative strategies both in primary and in secondary prevention.


Aims

Our objective was to investigate how the after-effects of a heatwave interacted with nutrient addition in affecting the vegetation of an alpine mire. We also aimed to assess if the responses of vegetation to the environmental changes differed between mire habitats.

Location

A mire in the Dolomites (southeastern Alps, Italy, 1800 m a.s.l.).

Methods

We carried out an 8-yr (2002–2009) experiment of nutrient addition in an alpine mire that experienced, in summer 2003, an unprecedented heatwave. The cover of vascular plants and mosses was assessed non-destructively and the presence of all vascular plant and moss species was recorded in 60 plots.

Results

Interacting effects of the heatwave and experimental fertilization brought about profound changes in the vegetation of the mire. Patterns of change varied considerably between two habitats (hummocks and lawns). In the short term (2003–2005), the 2003 heatwave triggered a change in vegetation structure and PFT cover, with vascular plants expanding at the expense of mosses in both habitats. In the mid-term (2005–2009), moss cover increased in hummocks because Sphagnum mosses recovered and non-Sphagnum mosses expanded, especially under N addition. Conversely, in lawns vascular plants expanded while mosses did not recover. These trends were strengthened when N was added with no concomitant P addition. A decline in species richness was observed in lawns, most likely due to stronger interactions among species.

Conclusions

Hummocks have a greater ability than lawns to recover from extreme climatic events under higher levels of N influx. Conversely, a persistent increase in vascular plant cover at the expense of moss cover in lawns may jeopardize the carbon sink function of lawn habitats.


Spectrography was used to examine spontaneous and pain (induced by pricking the foot with a needle) cries of newborn Wistar rats of the first three days of life. Three groups of animals were employed: non-operated control rats, those which suffered hypoxia on days 17-21 of gestation (clamping of the umbilical cord), and control rats born to operated females. The cries were recorded on Kometa or Vesna tape recorders and analyzed with the use of a Sona Graph, type 7029A. Antenatal hypoxia was found to produce an increase in the minimum and maximum pitches of fundamental frequency and to a decrease in the duration of the cry. It is likely that the changes in the cry are related to the impairment of the thalamic and hypothalamic nuclei and external respiration distress because of hypoxia.


This work presents a subthreshold operational amplifier with current subtractor adaptive biasing circuit designed using a formulated design methodology based on g<inf>m</inf>/I<inf>D</inf> method. A subthreshold operational amplifier is an operational amplifier that offers ultra-low power consumption. This is to replace conventional operational amplifiers in most IC by which the application are for RFID, WSN, IoT, and other recent technologies that operates in a power scarce environment. Although many studies have been made about subthreshold operational amplifier, there are many issues regarding on its specification and its robustness. Using current subtractor adaptive biasing technique, issues involving the low slew rate and process variation are solved. Using g<inf>m</inf>/I<inf>D</inf> method to size the transistors, the study arrived to a subthreshold operational amplifier with an open loop gain of 60.5dB, a phase margin of 64.4˚ and a unity gain bandwidth of 233kHz which is well within the range of application for low speed — low switching applications such as sensor networks, RFIDs and biomedical devices, where speed performances are not critical. This work has a slew rate of 4.66V/us, CMRR of 70dB and PSRR of 74dB. It consumes power of only 0.5uW and a die area of 708 um × 648 um with a core area of 95.94 um × 68 um.


In this paper, we study dynamic protocol update (DPU). Contrary to local code updates on-the-fly, DPU requires global coordination of local code replacements. We propose a novel solution to DPU. The key idea is to add a level of indirection between the service callers and the service provider. This indirection level facilitates an implementation of simple and efficient algorithms for DPU. For example, we describe an experimental implementation of adaptive group communication middleware. It can switch between different atomic broadcast protocols on-the-fly. All middleware protocols, including those that depend on the updated protocols, provide service correctly and with negligible delay while the global update takes places. The switching algorithm introduces very low overhead that we illustrate by showing example measurement results.


The aquatic environment is highly complex and diverse, consisting of several types of ecosystems that are dynamic products of complex interactions between biotic and abiotic components. Changes in the physical and chemical properties of these ecosystems can significantly affect the balance of life forms present, especially in their microbiota. Among the main pollutants present in these environments are heavy metals. Several studies demonstrate the effects of these minerals on the structure and function of microbial communities, which may develop adaptation mechanisms for survival and permanence in these sites. In addition, the resistance to heavy metals may contribute to the evolution of resistance genes to the different types of antimicrobials due to the increase of the selective pressure in the environment, becoming a public health problem. One of the adaptive mechanisms present in bacteria from impacted environments that has been frequently investigated is the formation of biofilms. Recent studies have reported significant changes in the structure and amount of biofilm formed in the presence of different metals, and consequently, an increase in the tolerance to these pollutants and antimicrobials. This review will discuss the effects of some metals on bacterial biofilms and their consequences for the marine environment.


A comparative analysis of early developmental programs in a group of parasitic wasps reveals that closely related species can undergo dramatic evolutionary shifts in their patterns of embryogenesis. Developmental changes detected include alterations in early cleavage divisions, the establishment of embryonic anteroposterior polarity and modifications of the segmentation gene hierarchy described from Drosophila. These changes appear to be adaptations to parasitic development, taking place within the body of the host. Wasps illustrate a surprising plasticity in their early development and embryogenesis. The alterations associated with different parasitic strategies suggest that ecological adaptations may have profound influences on developmental processes in animals. BioEssays 22:920–932, 2000. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Non-targeted effects (NTE) have been generally regarded as a low-dose ionizing radiation (IR) phenomenon. Recently, regarding long distant abscopal effects have also been observed at high doses of IR) relevant to antitumor radiation therapy. IR is inducing NTE involving intracellular and extracellular signaling, which may lead to short-ranging bystander effects and distant long-ranging extracellular signaling abscopal effects. Internal and "spontaneous" cellular stress is mostly due to metabolic oxidative stress involving mitochondrial energy production (ATP) through oxidative phosphorylation and/or anaerobic pathways accompanied by the leakage of O2− and other radicals from mitochondria during normal or increased cellular energy requirements or to mitochondrial dysfunction. Among external stressors, ionizing radiation (IR) has been shown to very rapidly perturb mitochondrial functions, leading to increased energy supply demands and to ROS/NOS production. Depending on the dose, this affects all types of cell constituents, including DNA, RNA, amino acids, proteins, and membranes, perturbing normal inner cell organization and function, and forcing cells to reorganize the intracellular metabolism and the network of organelles. The reorganization implies intracellular cytoplasmic-nuclear shuttling of important proteins, activation of autophagy, and mitophagy, as well as induction of cell cycle arrest, DNA repair, apoptosis, and senescence. It also includes reprogramming of mitochondrial metabolism as well as genetic and epigenetic control of the expression of genes and proteins in order to ensure cell and tissue survival. At low doses of IR, directly irradiated cells may already exert non-targeted effects (NTE) involving the release of molecular mediators, such as radicals, cytokines, DNA fragments, small RNAs, and proteins (sometimes in the form of extracellular vehicles or exosomes), which can induce damage of unirradiated neighboring bystander or distant (abscopal) cells as well as immune responses. Such non-targeted effects (NTE) are contributing to low-dose phenomena, such as hormesis, adaptive responses, low-dose hypersensitivity, and genomic instability, and they are also promoting suppression and/or activation of immune cells. All of these are parts of the main defense systems of cells and tissues, including IR-induced innate and adaptive immune responses. The present review is focused on the prominent role of mitochondria in these processes, which are determinants of cell survival and anti-tumor RT.


Embedded electronic devices like mobile phones and automotive control units must perform under strict timing constraints. As such, schedulability analysis constitutes an important phase of the design cycle of these devices. Unfortunately, schedulability analysis for most realistic task models turn out to be computationally intractable (NP-hard). Naturally, in the recent past, different techniques have been proposed to accelerate schedulability analysis algorithms, including parallel computing on Graphics Processing Units (GPUs). However, applying traditional GPU programming methods in this context restricts the effective usage of on-chip memory and in turn imposes limitations on fully exploiting the inherent parallel processing capabilities of GPUs. In this paper, we explore the possibility of accelerating schedulability analysis algorithms on GPUs while exploiting the usage of on-chip memory. Experimental results demonstrate upto 9× speedup of our GPU-based algorithms over the implementations on sequential CPUs.


An international symposium, Perspectives of Modern Polar Research, was convened in Bad Durkeim, Germany to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the birth of Georg von Neumayer, the noted polar explorer and facilitator of German and international polar science. Neumayer, who lived from 1826 to 1909, began his career as a seaman in the merchant marine. Through his skill in geophysics and meteorology, he rose to become the founder and director of the Flagstaff Observatory in Melbourne, Australia, hydrographer to the German Navy, and director of the Hamburg Oceanic Observatory. He was instrumental in organizing the first International Polar Year (IPY) in 1882–1883.


Abstract The 22q13 deletion syndrome or Phelan-McDermid syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with developmental delay, hypotonia, delayed or absent speech, autistic-like behavior, normal to accelerated growth and dysmorphic faces. We report the occurrence of central precocious puberty in a boy diagnosed with Phelan-McDermid syndrome. At the age of 1 year, our patient presented with increased testicular volume for his age, bone age advancement and growth acceleration. Stimulated gonadotropin levels demonstrated a premature activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. Central precocious puberty was treated with gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analog. Molecular diagnosis with array-comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) revealed a major deletion of 5.8 Mb at the 22q13 chromosomal region and a 25 kb duplication at the 9q34.3 region that included the NOTCH-1 gene. On the background of 22q13 deletion syndrome and data from animals on the effect of abnormal NOTCH-1 gene expression on kisspeptin neuron formation, we discuss the probable role of Notch signaling in the premature activation of the HPG axis.


In this paper, a robust sliding mode control for a flexible transmission system is presented. This system has two very oscillatory vibration modes subject to large load variation which makes the control of it difficult. A set of design specification in time domain is to be met by a single controller on each of the three main plant models. Furthermore the tracking problem in the presence of disturbance and load variation is investigated. Results show good performance of the proposed controller. In this approach, in order to estimate the hidden states of the flexible transmission system, an observer based on sliding mode control is used.


Background: Reproductive outcomes after fresh in vitro fertilization/intracytoplasmic sperm injection–embryo transfer (IVF/ICSI–ET) cycles are diverse in infertile women with a history of ovarian cystectomy for endometriomas. We aimed to develop a logistic regression model based on patients' characteristics including number of embryos transferred and stimulation protocols to predict the live birth rate in fresh IVF/ICSI–ET cycles for such patients. Methods: We recruited 513 infertile women with a history of ovarian cystectomy for endometriomas who underwent their first fresh ET with different stimulation protocols following IVF/ICSI cycles in our unit from January 2014 to December 2018. One or two embryo are implanted. Clinical and laboratory parameters potentially affecting the live birth rate following fresh ET cycles were analyzed. Univariable and multivariable analyses were performed to assess the relationship between predictive factors and live birth rate. Results: The overall live birth rate was 240/513 (46.8%). Multivariable modified Poisson regression models showed that two factors were significantly lowers the probability of live birth: female age ≥ 5 years (aOR 0.603; 95% CI 0.389–0.933; P = 0.023); BMI range 21–24.99 kg/m2 compared with BMI <21 kg/m2 (aOR 0.572; 95% CI 0.372–0.881, P = 0.011). And two factors significantly increased the probability of live birth: AFC >7 (aOR 1.591; 95% CI 1.075–2.353; P = 0.020); two embryos transferred (aOR 1.607; 95% CI 1.089–2.372; P = 0.017). Conclusions: For these infertile women who had undergone ovarian cystectomy for endometriosis, female age <35 years, AFC > 7, and two embryos transferred might achieve better clinical fresh IVF/ICSI–ET outcomes. BMI <21 kg/m2 or ≥25 kg/m2 might also have positive effects on the live birth rate, but different ovarian stimulation protocols had no significant effects. However, a larger sample size may be needed for further study.


Neutrophils are believed to play an essential role in the pathogenesis of the adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). This concept is largely based on the observation that neutrophil depletion protects against altered pulmonary vascular permeability in several models of acute lung injury produced in laboratory animals. Four patients who developed ARDS during periods of profound neutropenia are presented. These patients met commonly accepted clinical and roentgenographic criteria for the syndrome, and each had the characteristic findings of diffuse alveolar damage by lung histologic examination. The failure of this degree of neutropenia to protect against ARDS in humans raises questions about whether neutrophils or neutrophil products are essential in the pathogenesis of the syndrome.


A 36-year-old woman without overt coronary risk factors was admitted to hospital with coma about 9 hours after mass self-injection of insulin (1,500 units). Laboratory investigation revealed severe hypoglycemia and hyperinsulinemia. During the treatment of her hypoglycemia, circulatory collapse occurred. The ECG, echocardiogram, and elevation in troponin T suggested a diagnosis of myocardial infarction. Although the patient became apallic and developed systemic spasticity due to hypoglycemic brain damage, her hemodynamics improved with supportive care alone. Coronary angiography and myocardial scintigraphy performed later demonstrated a broad area of myocardial damage despite intact coronary artery circulation. The authors hypothesize that temporary coronary arterial narrowing or coronary arterial vasospasm induced by severe hyperinsulinemia contributed to the pathogenesis of the myocardial infarction. The possibility of myocardial infarction should be considered in patients with acute insulin poisoning.


This study was undertaken to characterize the population pharmacokinetics (PK), therapeutic dose, and preferred route of administration for pyrazinamide (PZA) in elephants. Twenty-three African (Loxodonta africana) and Asian (Elephas maximus) elephants infected with or in contact with others culture positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis were dosed under treatment conditions. PZA was dosed daily at 20-30 mg/kg via oral (fasting or nonfasting state) or rectal (enema or suppository) administration. Blood samples were collected 0-24 h postdose. Population PK was estimated using nonlinear mixed effect modeling. Drug absorption was rapid with T(max) at or before 2 h regardless of the method of drug administration. C(max) at a mean dose of 25.6 (+/-4.6) mg/kg was 19.6 (+/-9.5 microg/mL) for PZA given orally under fasting conditions. Under nonfasting conditions at a mean dose of 26.1 +/- 4.2 mg/kg, C(max) was 25% (4.87 +/- 4.89 microg/mL) and area under concentration curve (AUC) was 30% of the values observed under fasting conditions. Mean rectal dose of 32.6 +/- 15.2 mg/kg yielded C(max) of 12.3 +/- 6.3 microg/mL, but comparable AUC to PZA administered orally while fasting. Both oral and rectal administration of PZA appeared to be acceptable and oral dosing is preferred because of the higher C(max) and lower inter-subject variability. A starting dose of 30 mg/kg is recommended with drug monitoring between 1 and 2 h postdose. Higher doses may be required if the achieved C(max) values are below the recommended 20-50 microg/mL range.


Water is essential for the existence of living organisms including humans. Water is
needed in farms to grow crops, firms and manufacturing industry to produce products
and services. This chapter examines water resources availability and management in
Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) in climate change perspective using vector auto-regression
(VAR) time series analysis. Water is known to be unevenly distributed among countries
and continents around the world, particularly in Sub-Sahara Africa; the water availability
varies between member countries and regions in the individual country, water supply
systems experience enormous pressure to make water accessible to people in both rural
and urban communities. Water security remains to be an integral part of the SSA's effort
to achieve food security and supply, halve poverty and eradicate hunger. This chapter
more importantly aims to investigate impact of rainfall and temperature issues––that are
climate change proxy variables––on water security and people movement in three Sub-
Saharan African countries that are Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya and Niger. This
article assesses some possible causes of migration from rural to urban area using VAR
and granger causality tests; this process involves four variables namely Rural Migration
'MR', Urban Migration 'MU', Rainfall 'Rain' and Temperature 'Temp'. The model predicts
rainfall and temperature across 10 years and examines how these changes impact
water availability and people movement in relevant countries. This study finds that some
countries are experiencing water security challenges upon which large numbers migrate
to urban areas. The study reveals that variations in rainfall and temperature have compounded
people movements from rural areas. It is noted that the agricultural production
in SSA have not improved over time and in fact, it has further decreased due to the move
away from rural areas by many farmers.


This paper aims to examine the test-retest reliability of two important political attitudes, i.e. Taiwanese/Chinese identity and issue of Unification/ Independence (UI issue), among the Taiwanese electorate by analyzing the 2004-2008 panel data from the Taiwan Election and Democratization Study. This paper further explores the socio-demographic factors that might affect the consistence of one's Taiwanese/Chinese identity and the position of the issue of Unification/Independence. This paper then examines the relationship between the two political attitudes.The findings suggest that one's Taiwanese/Chinese identity demonstrates higher stability than his/her position on the UI issue. People who identified themselves as Chinese changed to having a "joint identity". Those who hold a "joint identity" have changed to identified themselves as Taiwanese. The factors that affect one's attitude consistency include education, political generation and China experience. Those with less education, the oldest generation and have been to China are more likely to change their attitudes. Moreover, findings from the statistical model show that one's Taiwanese/Chinese identity influences one's position on the UI issue.


This report describes a whole-blood flow cytometric method for the determination of intracellular cytokines IFN-gamma and IL-4 in canine T lymphocyte subpopulations. Conjugated anti-cytokine antibodies and commercially available reagents for cell fixation and permeabilization were used. Canine peripheral blood was cultured with a combination of phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) and ionomycin to promote cytokine synthesis in each cell, along with monensin to increase the sensitivity of the method by retaining IFN-gamma and IL-4 within the cell to detectable levels. The optimum concentrations of PMA and ionomycin were determined. Maximum IFN-gamma expression from both CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes was detected after 6 h of incubation of cell culture, while maximum IL-4 production took 6 h from CD4+ cells and 4 h from CD8+ cells. This method is a simple immunologic technique for measuring intracellular cytokines which could be of value in the investigation of canine immunological response mainly in various intracellular and extracellular infections, since IFN-gamma and IL-4 are considered key cytokines activating the cellular and humoral immunity, respectively.


Measurements of hysteresis loops were performed on thin Permalloy rectangular platelets with various dimensions prepared by nanolithography. The particle coercivity H/sub c/ exhibits a sensitive size dependence. The measured values of H/sub c/ are compared with micromagnetic predictions utilizing two-dimensional models without magnetization variation through the thickness. Excellent overall agreement is found, indicating that a simplified two-dimensional approach is sufficient for characterizing reversal mechanisms for particles with thicknesses smaller than or comparable to the exchange length. >


It has been pointed out that, in many cases, results generated by non-Manhattan channel routers will be better than those generated by Manhattan routers. Non-optimal bubble sort based algorithms for non-Manhattan channel routing have been proposed in the literature by also allowing connections in the +45/spl deg/ and /spl minus/45/spl deg/ directions. In this paper, optimal algorithms are proposed for the two-layer and three-layer non-Manhattan channel routing problems based on an identical problem formulation. The time complexities of our algorithms and the existing algorithm (which produces the best results so far) are O(K/sup 2/ * N) and O(K * N/sup 2/), respectively, where N is the number of terminals (i.e., the length) of the channel and N is the number of routing tracks (i.e., the height) in the channel. K is always less than N, and in most cases is much smaller than N. Clearly, a significant improvement in time complexity over the existing algorithm (which produces the best results so far) is achieved, while ensuring optimality. >


Anthropology has mostly dismissed data concerning emotions as insignificant, overly subjective and beyond the grasp of scientific inquiry. Focusing on the expressive life of Andalusian gypsies, this article examines ways in which digital video enables researchers to effectively record and analyze individual and collective emotions. Video is not merely a way of recording data. Visual data do not simply "illustrate" ideas from fieldwork. Instead, the very activity of producing a video is an act of research in itself—it is central to the practice of a performative anthropology.


Background: A new asthma therapy combining FLUT/FORM in a single aerosol inhaler ( flutiform ®) has been shown to have comparable efficacy to FLUT/SAL (single inhaler) in adults. This study compared these combinations in a paediatric population.

Methods: Patients aged 4-12yrs (N=211) with mild/moderate persistent asthma were randomized 1:1 to 12 weeks of treatment with FLUT/FORM (100/10μg) or FLUT/SAL (100/50μg), twice daily, in an open-label, parallel-group, multicentre study. The primary endpoint was change in mean pre-dose FEV1 values from Day 0 to Day 84. Secondary endpoints included change in mean FEV1 values from Day 0 pre-dose to Day 84 120mins post-dose, discontinuations due to lack of efficacy and time to onset of action.

Results: FLUT/FORM was non-inferior to FLUT/SAL regarding change in LS mean pre-dose FEV1: +182mL for FLUT/FORM and +212mL for FLUT/SAL (treatment difference: -31mL; 95% CI: -0.093, 0.031; per protocol set (PPS), FLUT/FORM: n=102; FLUT/SAL: n=99; Day 84). Non-inferiority of FLUT/FORM to FLUT/SAL was also demonstrated for post-dose FEV1 values: change in LS mean post-dose FEV1 was +308mL for FLUT/FORM and +325mL for FLUT/SAL (treatment difference: -17mL. 95% CI: -0.089, 0.055; PPS, n: as above). No patients discontinued due to lack of efficacy. No relevant differences in time to onset of action were evident between the two treatment groups.

Conclusion: Fluticasone/formoterol was comparable to fluticasone/salmeterol with regard to pre-dose and post-dose FEV1 values and discontinuations due to lack of efficacy. FLUT/FORM and FLUT/SAL had comparable efficacy and safety profiles.


The clinical significance of respiratory-system load-compensation is unknown. We have measured the responses to random presentation of single, elastic inspiratory loads in 36 subjects: 8 normal personnel (N), 9 with obesity (O), 10 with chronic renal failure under hemodialysis (H), 5 with pneumonia (P), and 4 with interstitial lung disease (CILD). We have expressed these responses as: (1) the ratio of elastance (or rigidity) of the system during loaded breathing to the elastance without loading (E'RS/ERS); (2) the ratio of tidal volume (VT) achieved when breathing from an inspiratory load to the VT predicted in the absence of load compensation (VTL/VTP); (3) the ratio of inspiratory flow rates during loaded and unloaded breaths; (4) the ratio of inspiratory time of loaded and unloaded breaths. We found E'RS/ERS in the O, H and P groups less than that of either CILD patients or N controls (F = 6.79; p less than 0.001). Passive elastance (ERS) although greater in groups O and H than in N (F = 3.88; p less than 0.025) did not account for the difference i E'RS in all groups. When expressed as VTL/VTP, the response to a 37-cm H2O/l load for groups H, O and P was less than that for N (F = 5.51; p less than 0.05). Diminished inspiratory time was observed in H, O and P patients when inspiring from this load. In contrast, inspiratory flow did not differ from that of normal subjects. Nerve conduction velocity was slightly reduced or normal in the H patients. Respiratory load compensation is deficient in H, O and P patients. The mechanism, which does not involve peripheral neuropathy, is unclear.


Background: For the diagnosis of HIV infection, enzyme immunoassay (EIA) or chemiluminescence immunoassay (CLIA) is commonly used as a screening test. Although these methods have a high sensitivity and low cost, their high false positive rate can cause confusion in the patients and clinicians until a more specific test is done. OraQuick Advance Rapid HIV-1/2 Antibody Test (OraQuick) (OraSure Technologies, USA) is a rapid test that can detect HIV-1/2 antibodies in 20 minutes. It uses oral fluid, whole blood or serum sample. In this study, we evaluated the usefulness of the OraQuick as a screening and point-of-care test for HIV infection. Methods: From Jan 2007 to Dec 2008, 45,276 samples referred to our laboratory were tested by CLIA method using the ADVIA Centaur (Bayer Healthcare LTD., USA) for HIV-1/2 antibody detection. Among them, 74 positive and 50 negative samples were tested by the Western immunoblot assay (WIB) and OraQuick test as a case-control study. Also, oral fluids from 30 HIV patients and 48 healthy persons were tested by OraQuick test. Results: The sensitivity and specificity of OraQuick test (using serum samples) were 100% and 98.8% (95% confidence interval 96.9∼100%), respectively. OraQuick tests (using oral fluid samples) were all positive for HIV patients but all negative for healthy persons. Conclusion: This study suggests that OraQuick can be used successfully as a rapid test for the early detection of HIV-1/2 antibody in patients visiting emergency departments and for the prevention of HIV infection in the health care providers. (Korean J Clin Microbiol 2009;12:116-121)


Our knowledge of the evolution of secondary phloem and periderm anatomy in early lignophytes (progymnosperms and seed plants) is limited by the scarcity of well-preserved fossil bark. Here, I describe the bark of a Mississippian (Early Carboniferous) tree from Australia based on macro- and microscopic observation of two permineralized specimens. The bark tissues are up to 1.5 cm in thickness. The secondary phloem is organized in repeated, multicellular tangential layers of fibers and of thin-walled cells that correspond to axial parenchyma and sieve cells. Fibers are abundant even in the youngest, presumably functional, secondary phloem. Older phloem shows a proliferation of axial parenchyma that further separates the fiber layers. Successive periderm layers originate deep within the phloem and lead to the formation of a rhytidome-type bark, one of the oldest documented in the fossil record. These fossils add to our knowledge of the bark anatomy of Early Carboniferous trees, previously based on a few specimens from slightly younger strata of Western Europe. The complexity of the secondary phloem tissue in Devonian-Carboniferous lignophytes and possible anatomical differences related to growth habit are discussed.


The gasification kinetics of charcoals and biomass chars is complicated by several factors, including chemical and physical inhomogeneities, the presence of mineral matter, and the irregular geometry of the pore structure. Even the theoretically deduced gasification models can only provide empirical or semiempirical descriptions. In this study, an empirical kinetic model from the earlier works of the authors was adapted for the CO2 gasification of biomass chars. It is based on a versatile polynomial approximation that helps to describe the dependence of the reaction rate on the progress of the conversion. The applicability of the model was tested by the reevaluation of 24 thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) experiments from earlier publications. The adjustable parameters of the model were determined by the method of least squares by evaluating groups of experiments together. Two evaluation strategies were tested. In the regular evaluations, the same kinetic parameters were employed for all the experiments with a given sample. The use of experiments with modulated and constant reaction rate (CRR) temperature programs made it possible to employ another approach too, when the preexponential factor was allowed to vary from experiment to experiment. The latter approach allows a formal kinetic description of the differences in the thermal deactivation of the samples caused by different thermal histories as well as of some inevitable systematic errors of the TGA experiments. The evaluations were carried out by both approaches, and the results were compared. The evaluations were based on 12 experiments. As a test, each evaluation of the study was repeated with only 8 experiments. The results of the latter test calculations indicated that the information content of the employed experiments is sufficient for the evaluation approaches of this work.


In the initial stage of ISDN, ISDN switches (hosts) are installed in the main areas and the other areas are covered by remote systems. As the number of subscribers of a remote system increases this remote system will be replaced with a host, considering costs of hosts and remote systems. We formulate the problem of finding an optimal deployment strategy of ISDN facilities, mainly switch and remote systems, over a planning horizon using an integer programming and develop a heuristic algorithm for the problem. The heuristic algorithm developed here uses a backward approach from the final time of the planning horizon and can be efficiently implemented for determining the ISDN switch installation time.


The dissolution of whey protein concentrate (WPC) gels has been studied in detail, and the different mechanisms involved have been quantitatively analyzed. The NaOH diffusivity in gels has been determined at different pH at 22°C. Dissolution experiments of gels under several conditions have been performed and compared. Both heat-induced gels (HIG) and caustic-induced gels (CIG) have been studied as models to heat-exchanger fouling deposits. It is proposed that the constant dissolution rate observed at low pH is controlled by the reactions that break down the gel structure, particularly the β-elimination of intermolecular disulfide bonds. Alkali dissolution of CIG is reduced with increasing the gelation pH, as more crosslinks are present in the gel. It is proposed that a similar mechanism of crosslink formation may explain the low dissolution rates observed in HIG at dissolution pH above 13.1. NaOH diffusion is observed to limit the dissolution process at high temperatures and pH close to 13. © 2005 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2006


The small GTPase Cdc42 has been implicated in a number of cellular responses ranging from the regulation of the actin cytoskeletal architecture to intracellular trafficking and cell cycle progression. Cdc42 mutants that constitutively exchange GDP for GTP but still hydrolyze GTP (called 'fast-cycling' mutants) promote cellular transformation, whereas Cdc42 mutants that are unable to hydrolyze GTP and are irreversibly trapped in the GTP-bound state often inhibit cell growth. In this work, we have set out to further establish that Cdc42 needs to cycle between its 'on' and 'off' states to stimulate cell growth, by examining the consequences of manipulating its GTP-binding/GTP hydrolytic cycle in two different ways. One approach was to examine whether substitutions that act in a manner opposite to the 'fast cyclers', and extend the lifetime of the activated GTP-bound state by slowing the GTP hydrolytic reaction (i.e., 'slow-cycling' mutations), positively influence cell growth. Indeed we show that one such slow-cycling mutant, Cdc42[Y32A], which is insensitive to Cdc42GAP but still exhibits a measurable intrinsic GTP hydrolytic activity, gives rise to increased levels of activated Cdc42 in NIH 3T3 cells. We go on to show that the Y32A mutant stimulates the actin cytoskeletal changes that lead to filopodia formation, confer growth advantages to fibroblasts under low serum conditions, and enable cells to grow to high densities when exposed to normal levels of serum. The second approach was to determine whether the transforming activity of the fast-cycling Cdc42[F28L] mutant can be reversed by compensating for its accelerated nucleotide exchange reaction through the expression of the GTPase-activating protein (Cdc42GAP) and the ensuing stimulation of GTP hydrolytic activity. We showed that expression of the limit functional domain of Cdc42GAP inhibited Cdc42[F28L]-induced transformation, as well as selectively reversed the transformed phenotypes caused by the hyperactivation of wild-type Cdc42 in cells expressing the oncogenic version of Dbl (for Diffuse B cell lymphoma), a guanine nucleotide exchange factor for Cdc42 and the related Rac and Rho GTPases. Overall, the results reported here establish the requirement for Cdc42 to cycle between its signaling-on and -off states in order to positively influence cell growth and highlight how the Cdc42GAP can play an important role in regulating cell proliferation.


In Bacillus subtilis, FtsZ ring formation and cell division is favoured at the midcell because the inhibitor proteins MinC and MinD are indirectly restricted to the cell poles by the protein DivIVA. Here we identify MinJ, a topological determinant of medial FtsZ positioning that acts as an intermediary between DivIVA and MinD. Due to unrestricted MinD activity, cells mutated for minJ exhibited pleiotropic defects in homologous recombination, swarming motility and cell division. MinJ restricted MinD activity by localizing MinD to the cell poles through direct protein–protein interaction. MinJ itself localized to cell poles in a manner that was dependent on DivIVA. MinJ is conserved in other low G+C Gram‐positive bacteria and may be an important component of cell division site selection in these organisms.


Abstract The main aim of this study is twofold: first, to examine the underlying structure of coauthorship in Indian economics; and second, to explore the link between the participation in scientific collaborations and academic visibility. We decipher the structure of co-authorship by presenting collaboration networks of scholars who published articles in six Indian economics journals during 1966-2005, which is split into four windows: 1966-75, 1976-85, 1986-95, and 1996-2005. In this study, the following social network measures are applied: the size of the network, the size of the main component, average degree, path length, and clustering coefficient. The study presents the following three features of Indian economics: first, a substantial proportion of Indian authors are isolated, albeit declining very slowly over a period of time; second, it appears that the structure of scholarly collaboration in Indian economics is highly fragmented, and the observed size of main components accounts for a small proportion of the total authors; third, and more importantly, the size and composition of co-authorship networks presented in the paper seldom impact the scientific visibility of authors.


Suitability of storing infected allantoic fluid (AF) and cell culture supernatants (CCS) with strain I-2 of  Newcastle disease virus ( NDV) on Whatman filter papers at room temperature (22-25°C) and 37°C was determined. RNA was extracted from filter papers or liquid aliquots and subjected to reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reactions (RT-PCR). The results showed that filter papers soaked with NDV infected AF or CCS stored at 37°C yielded amplicons with intensity similar to that kept at room temperature for up to 150 days. The study demonstrates that NDV infected samples can be soaked onto filter papers, stored and subsequently detected by RT PCR. This method might be safely used for storage and transportation of NDV samples to the designated laboratories for molecular studies without the need for cooling. Keywords: Allantoic fluid, chicken embryo fibroblast, Newcastle diseases virus, polymerase chain reaction, RNA storage onto filter paper, strain I-2


Medulloblastoma (MB) accounts for approximately 25% of childhood brain tumors with 70% of the cases occurring in children under 10. Prognosis for children less than three years old is considerably worse and, due to its destructive effects on the developing nervous system, irradiation is largely avoided in this age group. The p53 pathway is considered a key determinant of anti-tumor responses in many tumors; however, its role in the regulation of cell survival, chemo-sensitivity and chemo-resistance in MB is much less well defined. It has been shown that p53 pathway defects, mutations and nuclear levels increase significantly from MB diagnosis to relapse and correlate with an adverse prognosis. We recently reported on the highly novel and unexpected finding that both the genetic (sh-RNA) and chemical silencing of p53 led to a significant increase in cell death by the drug VMY in MB cell lines with elevated basal p53 (e.g. in D556 cells which express wild type p53 and in DAOY cells that contain mutant p53) as measured by colony forming assays, DNA degradation assays and annexin-V staining, suggesting a surprising commonality in the p53 signaling in both cell lines despite the differences in their p53 status. Equally surprising was the observation that the silencing of p53 in D556 cells enhanced cell death by the clinically used drugs doxorubicin and vincristine. Conversely, we now find that suppressing p53 with sh-RNA in D283 cells, which express much lower levels of wild type p53 compared to D556, resulted in the more classical chemoresistance profile, suggesting a form of p53 'addiction' in D556 and DAOY cells. Mechanistically, we observed that suppressing p53 with sh-RNA in D556 cells treated with VMY or doxorubicin significantly increased the levels of phosphorylated Chk1, S6K, gH2AX, and MDM2. Importantly, phospho-mTOR levels were also significantly increased in the D556/p53 sh-RNA cells and the suppression of mTOR enhanced chemoresistance. These somewhat paradoxical findings suggest that activated Akt/mTOR may induce MB cell death and that suppression of mTOR by p53 enhances chemoresistance. Our data provide new mechanistic insights into the role of p53 in primitive neuroectodermal tumors and may provide new approaches for enhancing the clinical outcome of patients with MB. Citation Format: Aisha Naeem, Muhammad U. Choudhry, Maria L. Avantaggiati, Olga C. Rodriguez, Chris Albanese. The p53 tumor suppressor protein paradoxically drives chemo-resistance in human medulloblastoma cells through suppressing the mTOR AKT pathway [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 3178. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-3178


A novel approach of path planning for unmanned aerial vehicle(UAV) is presented based on immune genetic algorithm(IGA) with elitist. IGA introduces immune operator and concentration mechanism which improve the inherent defects of premature and slow convergence speed existing in genetic algorithm (GA). Simulation results show that an ideal flight path can be more quickly searched using IGA, under conditions of meeting the requirements for UAV and the given constraints. Correctness and effectiveness of IGA are verified.


Post-bariatric weight loss can cause iatrogenic malnutrition and micronutrient depletion. In this study, we evaluated the impact of gastric bypass surgery (GB) and multivitamin supplement use on maternal micronutrient status before and across pregnancy. A retrospective medical chart review of 197 singleton pregnancies after GB with a due date between 2009 and 2019 was performed at a bariatric expertise center in the Netherlands. Hemoglobin, calcium, iron status, folate, vitamin D, vitamin B12 and ferritin levels were determined before and after GB during standard follow-up and at all gestational trimesters and analyzed using linear mixed models. Patients were prescribed standard multivitamin supplements or multivitamins specifically developed for post-bariatric patients (FitForMe WLS Forte (FFM)). Overall, hemoglobin and calcium levels decreased after surgery and during pregnancy, whereas folate, vitamin D, and vitamin B12 levels increased, and iron levels remained stable. FFM use was associated with higher hemoglobin, folate, vitamin D, and ferritin levels. In conclusion, through adequate supplementation and follow-up, GB does not have to result in impaired micronutrient status. Supplements developed specifically for post-bariatric patients generally result in higher micronutrient values than regular multivitamins before and during pregnancy. These data emphasize the urgent need for nutritional counseling including dietary and multivitamin supplement advise for post-bariatric women contemplating and during pregnancy.


In this paper, the focus was on improving tensile mechanical properties of FDMmanufactured parts by adjusting FDM processing parameters and analyzing stress concentration features between adjacent roads of material. FDM processing parameters are specified by the user via Insight – the file preparation software for most FDM machines. Even though Insight gives the impression that adjacent roads are to be deposited and connected throughout, an optical imaging observation of the deposited material revealed that adjacent roads are not consistently connected forming voids that reduce mechanical performance. Therefore, this work reports the tensile mechanical properties of specimens built using three sets of parameters: standard/default parameters, an Insight revision method, and a visual feedback method. When compared to the default build parameters, the experimentally determined, visual feedback approach produced specimens, in some cases, exhibiting as high as 19% improvement in ultimate tensile strength.


Continuous mono-cropping of rice has resulted in decline or stagnation of yield output due to the occurrence of multiple nutrient deficiencies and worsening of soil physicochemical properties accompanying increased pressure of insect pests and diseases. The basic concept of integrated nutrient management (INM) is maintenance or adjustment of soil fertility and supply of plant nutrients to an optimum level for sustaining the desired crop productivity through optimisation of benefits from all possible sources of plant nutrients in an integrated way. Augmenting a rice-based cropping system with pulses is a prevalent and indigenous cropping system under rainfed conditions. Considering the above facts, experiments were conducted to evaluate the impacts of integrated nutrient management on productivity of aromatic rice–greengram cropping system and nutrient balance of the post-harvest soil for agricultural sustainability under rainfed conditions in two consecutive years (2017–2018 and 2018–2019) with six main plots and three subplots. The experimental findings revealed that the treatment comprised of 50% recommended dose of fertiliser (RDF) through chemicals + 50% recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN) through farmyard manure (FYM) increased the plant height, tillers, dry matter accumulation, leaf area and leaf area duration, and yield parameters in short grain aromatic rice. Similarly, preceding application of 50% RDF + 50% RDN through FYM to rice and further application 75% RDF + Rhizobium+ phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB) to greengram increased the growth characteristics and yield parameters—such as pods/plant, seeds/pod, grain yield, stover yield, and harvest index—in greengram. It was concluded that the treatment consisting of 50% RDF (chemical fertiliser) + 50% RDN (FYM) to rice and 75% RDF + Rhizobium + PSB to greengram increased the productivity of the rice–greengram cropping system. Furthermore, the adoption of INM has positively impacted post-harvest soil nutrient balance.


The objective of this research was to determine the minimum number of years with observations needed to obtain the medium number of total monthly consistent precipitation values and the area of coverage of the pluviometric station located in the Vacacai river watershed, in the Rio Grande do Sul state, Brazil. It were used the historic series of precipitation data of 13 pluviometric stations located in the area and around the watershed. The minimum number of years was calculated from the relation between the number of years with observations and the stability of coeffi cients of determination. The station's area of coverage was determined from the relation between the coeffi cients of determination of the total monthly precipitation between each station and the base station (Santa Maria), and the linear distances between the base station and each station. From those equations, the distance between stations in which 80%, 85%, 90%, 95% e 99% of the values has concordance was determined. It was found that, to have a reasonable precision in the total monthly precipitation in the Vacacai river watershed, it is necessary between 30 and 40 years of observation and, in December, January and February months the coverage of the pluviometric stations is less than 1.0km and on the other months to achieve a precision of 99% distances between 1.3 and 2.2km, 95% distances between 6.3 and 11.1km and 90% for distances between 12.5 and 22.5km.


This document examines the design and adminstration of intergovernmental transfers in recent decentralized governments. Even in decentralized systems, central government structures have permanent objectives relative to the efficiency and equity of the provisions of services by subnational government. The study, in light of these objectives, evaluates the Latin American experience using specific transfers in the education, health and rural highway sectors, and it suggests alternatives in the design of grants. The study suggests more frequent use of specific well designed sector transfers, and it emphasizes the way in which the weak administrative capacity of both government structures, central and subnational, seriously hinder the utility of incentives and conditions of the grants. Given these administrative weaknesses, the development of mechanisms that promote the yield of accounts on behalf of the local government to the local citizens is of special importance. The central government could play an important role in providing the required information for the citizens to supervise the provision and financial administration of local services.


Abstract The concept of dignity is widely used in society, particularly in reference to human rights law and bioethics. Several conceptions of dignity are identified, falling broadly within two categories: full inherent dignity (FID) and non-inherent dignity (NID). FID is a quality belonging equally to every being with full moral status, including all members of the human natural kind; it is permanent, unconditional, indivisible and inviolable. Those beings with FID ought to be treated deferentially by others by virtue of their belonging to a noble caste. FID grounds fundamental human rights, such as the rights to freedom and equality. The concept of dignity forms a network of interconnected ideas related to worth and value particularly within legal and ethical discourse; it is a rich and meaningful concept, irreducible to one or two quasi-legal principles. Fundamentally, dignity matters because it forms the foundation of civilized society; without it, serious abuse of people is more likely to occur.


This paper addresses the question of whether a citrus crop has the same need for water at all stages of development or whether it is possible to withhold water at times when the crop is less sensitive to water stress, thus, reducing total water use and improving water use efficiency while still maintaining yield. To answer this question water applied by irrigation was reduced by up to 33% relative to standard full irrigation by extending the intervals between applications from 3 to 17 days during fruit growth stages II and III in the annual growth cycle. As expected, the longer intervals resulted in greater depletion in soil moisture and significant water stress developed as soil water deficits approached the lower limits of plant available water. Stressed trees exhibited mean pre-dawn water potential (ψl) values of –0.93 MPa and midday ψl values decreased to between –2.0 and –2.5 MPa. Periodic soil water deficits in late summer and autumn reduced shoot growth, but fruit yield was unaffected, and there was no evidence of reduced canopy size. Water use efficiency (mass of fruit produced per unit water applied) improved, but fruit growth was extremely sensitive to moisture stress and extended irrigation intervals in summer and autumn reduced fruit size. Fruit juice quality was also affected, as there was an increase in both total soluble solids and juice acidity, but the practical consequences of these were limited because there were only small changes to the sugar : acid ratios. This work has demonstrated that deficient irrigation during summer can be used to manipulate growth and reduce water use, but at the risk of a marginal reduction in fruit size.