Summary Between January 1968 and December 1977, 635 cases of acute bacterial meningitis were admitted to hospitals in the Birmingham Area Health Authority. The epidemiology of these cases was analysed and compared with the 270 cases which were admitted to the regional infectious diseases unit at East Birmingham Hospital (E.B.H.). In children and young adults the meningococcus was the commonest causative organism while over the age of 25 pneumococcal meningitis predominated. Although Haemophilus influenzae was the second commonest infecting organism it was a rare cause of meningitis in school children and adults, only four cases presenting in these age groups in the Birmingham Area. A detailed analysis was made of the symptoms, signs, laboratory investigations and clinical course of the 270 cases treated at E.B.H. The mortality in the patients with pneumococcal meningitis was 30%. In the meningococcal group it was 3·5% and in the haemophilus groups 7·7%. An analysis of the various treatment regimes employed in the 270 E.B.H. patients supports the view that a single antibiotic is sufficient for the therapy of most forms of bacterial meningitis. Intrathecal antibiotic administration is unnecessary in pyogenic meningitis caused by meningococci, pneumococci or H. influenzae.


A unified optimization framework for rate allocation among multiple video multicast sessions sharing a wireless network is presented. Our framework applies to delivery of both scalable and non-scalable video streams. In both cases, the optimization objective is to minimize the total video distortion of all peers without incurring excessive network utilization. Our system model explicitly accounts for heterogeneity in wireless link capacities, traffic contention among neighboring links, as well as different video rate-distortion (RD) characteristics. The proposed distributed rate allocation scheme leverages cross-layer information exchange between the media access control and application layers to achieve fast convergence at the optimal, media-aware allocation. Performance of the proposed media-aware rate allocation protocol is compared against a heuristic scheme based on TCP-friendly rate control (TFRC). In network simulations of standard-definition video streaming over single or multiple multicast trees, the proposed scheme consistently achieves higher overall video quality than the TFRC-based heuristics. When delivering scalable streams, the flexibility of per-peer rate adaptation inside each multicast tree yields a further slight improvement in overall video quality over multicast of non-scalable streams.


The principle of maximum subjective entropy is presented in the paper. Two options of subjective risk are proposed, namely for subject alternatives and, subject preferences respectively, rating alternatives and, accordingly, rating preferences. In both cases, all subjective categories relate to a certain "individual carrier": a set of alternatives, distribution of preferences, maximizing functionals. An additional assumption of the entropy space structure is introduced: entropy thresholds make the final area of changing the entropy on subareas so that the entropy transition from one area to another radically alters the behavior of the subject "decision maker." Also, thresholds for subjective risks are introduced. The proposed theory can serve as a basis for improving the methods of active system management for self-government process analysis.


This study measured the prevalence of inadequate prenatal care and identified associated factors using different criteria in postpartum women in Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil, in 2010. A standardized questionnaire was applied within 24 hours after delivery to all mothers of children born in the two local hospitals. We used the chi-square test to compare proportions and Poisson regression with robust variance in the multivariate analysis. The study interviewed 2,395 mothers (97.2% of the total). The rates of inadequate prenatal care were 28%, 27%, and 58% according to the criteria proposed by Takeda, Coimbra et al., and Silveira et al., respectively, with large differences across categories. Poor mothers showed the highest prevalence ratio for inadequate prenatal care. After adjustment, nearly all the model's variables were significantly associated with inadequate care according to the Takeda and Coimbra et al. criteria, but few were associated when the Silveira et al. criteria were used. The study showed that the criteria proposed by Silveira et al. were more robust, and that it is necessary to improve quality of prenatal care, especially for poor mothers.


Samples of lung tissues were obtained and analysed for Aspergillus carriage in 56 patients undergoing thoracic surgical intervention and 18 people who had an unexpected death. Out of 74 samples, 46 (63%) had evidence of pulmonary fungal colonization. The surgery population had a rate of 62% of fungal growth, Aspergillus was present in 39%. The autopsy population had a rate of 61% of fungal colonization, Aspergillus was present in 41%. In these cases eradication of fungal spores residing in the lung prior to aggressive chemotherapy and prevention of further spore uptake during hospitalization is indispensable in preventing pulmonary aspergillosis.


Spine has joint connections with all ribs and has muscle attachments with a part of diaphragm, suggesting a key role in respiratory mechanics. In this study, we aimed to investigate movement of the spine during tidal and deep breathing at a seated posture in which the spine was free from artificial restriction. Three-dimensional motion analysis using an eight-camera system (60Hz) was performed in fifteen male healthy volunteers (mean age; 27.1±5.7 years). During tidal breathing, the spine moved very little (< 1 mm) while ventral parts of the ribs and the sternum well moved (1.9-5.2mm) as "pump-handle". Lumber spine moved toward ventral direction with deep inspiration to TLC while upper thoracic spine did with deep expiration to RV. These results suggested that spine was almost fixed during tidal breathing as the pivot of the ribcage. Breathing to RV or TLC recruited varieties of supplemental respiratory muscles, and transformed spine.


From 1965 to 1985, 76 patients were admitted to Sacré-Coeur Hospital, Montreal, with a diagnosis of penetrating chest trauma (PCT). The majority were under the age of 30 years and almost two thirds suffered gunshot wounds. Sixty-seven (88.1%) sustained a lateral or thoracic (T) injury and in nine (11.8%) the lesion was central or mediastinal (M). In the first group (T), 53.7% were treated surgically with thoracotomy, laparotomy, and chest tube (CT) insertion or both; 46.2% were managed conservatively. In the second group (M) the pericardium or the heart was involved, eight patients (88.8%) were managed surgically without the use of extracorporeal circulation and one patient was observed only. Eight (11.9%) died in the thoracic group; all survived in the mediastinal group, for an overall mortality of 10.5%. Shock was associated with increased morbidity and mortality in the thoracic group (T) and infection was the most frequent complication for the entire group of patients under study. There has been a steady increase in the total number of PCT at our hospital during the last two decades suggesting an increase in crime and violence in our urban surroundings.


This article presents a review of main sociological theories that underlie to scientometric articles that aim to present study cases. This review presents three fundamental models categorized as: Functionalists Scientometric Models, Translation Scientometric Models and Systemic Scientometric Models. Theoretical and methodological principles are explained. At the end a contrasts is made.


An experiment was conducted at Agricultural Research Station, Faculty of Agriculture (SabaBasha), Alexandria University, Egypt, during 2017 summer season to study response of single cross 10 (S.C. 10) to four plant population densities (19000, 23000, 27000 and 30000 plants/ fed) as main plot factor and four nitrogen fertilizer levels (100, 120, 140 and 160 kg/ fed) as sub-plot factor using split-plot design in three replications. The lowest plant density (19000 plants/ fed.) produced the shortest plants (216.38 cm), lowest ear height (139.42 cm), lowest leaf area index (4.36), earliest 50% silking (64.11 days), lowest barren stalks (2.17%) and lowest grain yield/ fed. (3.769 ton).Conversely, it produced the highest number of ears/ plant (1.22), tallest ears (26.62 cm), thickest ears (4.54 cm), highest number of kernels/ row (48.74), heaviest 100-kernel weight (43.29 g) and highest grain yield/ plant (200.09 g). However, the highest nitrogen fertilizer level (160 kg/ fed) produced the highest values for all the studied traits, except barren stalks percentage, where it reached the lowest level (4.04%). Sowing maize at 30000 plants/ fed under 140 or 160 kgN/ fed/., produced the highest leaf area index values (9.11 and 9.47), respectively, while 100 kgN/ fed., application gave the highest barren stalks (14.73%). The lowest plant density (19000 plants/ fed) treated with 160 kgN/ fed produced the highest number of ears/ plant, kernels/ row and grain yield/ plant (1.58, 56.92 and 225.19 g), respectively. The highest grain yield/ fed (4.673, 4.811 and 4.841 t/ fed) resulted from sowing 23000 plants/ fed fertilized with 140 or 160 kgN/ fed and 27000 plants/ fed under 160 kgN/ fed application, respectively.


Objective: To evaluate the outcome of fetuses with prenatally diagnosed omphalocele and to investigate the predictive value of the omphalocele circumference/abdominal circumference (OC/AC) ratio – a measure for the relative size of the omphalocele. Materials and Methods: This study includes all fetuses prenatally diagnosed with omphalocele at our centre between 1995 and 2007. Medical records and footage of ultrasound examinations were reviewed. Omphalocele was classified in four groups: isolated, chromosomal, syndromic, and multiple anomalies. Results: Eighty-eight cases were identified: 21 (24%) were isolated and 67 had additional structural anomalies. Of the 44 fetuses (50%) with chromosomal anomalies, 2 had omphalocele as a solitary finding. Fifty-three pregnancies (60%) were terminated because of the size of the lesion or associated structural or chromosomal anomalies. Twenty-one cases resulted in a live birth, of which 17 were vaginal deliveries (81%, all uncomplicated) including 3 cases of giant omphalocele (≧5 cm). The OC/AC ratio was found predictive for herniation of the liver, respiratory insufficiency and type of surgical reconstruction. Currently, 12/88 fetuses (14%) are alive and well, including 2 infants with multiple anomalies. Conclusion: Identification of omphalocele should arouse suspicion of genetic abnormalities, even in cases that appear isolated. The OC/AC ratio may influence counselling regarding the postnatal course.


A bacterium strain DB-1 capable of degrading DDT under the aerobic condition was isolated and screened from the sewer sludge of a pestcide factory. Based on the phenotype, physiological and biochemical characteristics, and the phylogenetic analysis of 16S rDNA sequence, the strain DB-1 was identified preliminarily as Sphingomonas sp. This strain could degrade DDT in inorganic salt liquor culture base of DDT (40mg/L) containing yeast cream (40mg/L), with degradation efficiency reaching 83.6% in 10 days. The strain DB-1 growed better at 25~30℃, with most adaptable pH value of 8.0.


BACKGROUND
Indications for intervention after high-grade renal trauma (HGRT) remain poorly defined. Certain radiographic findings can be used to guide the management of HGRT. We aimed to assess the associations between initial radiographic findings and interventions for hemorrhage after HGRT and to determine hematoma and laceration sizes predicting interventions.

METHODS
The Genito-Urinary Trauma Study is a multi-center study including HGRT patients from 14 Level-1 trauma centers from 2014-2017. Admission CT scans were categorized based upon multiple variables, including vascular contrast extravasation (VCE), hematoma rim distance (HRD), and size of the deepest laceration. Renal bleeding interventions included: angioembolization, surgical packing, renorrhaphy, partial nephrectomy, and nephrectomy. Mixed effect Poisson regression was used to assess the associations. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was used to define optimal cut-offs for HRD and laceration size.

RESULTS
In the 326 patients, injury mechanism was blunt in 81%. Forty-seven patients (14%) underwent 51 bleeding interventions including 19 renal angioembolizations, 16 nephrectomies, and 16 other procedures. In univariable analysis, presence of VCE was associated with a 5.9-fold increase in risk of interventions, and each centimeter increase in HRD was associated with 30% increase in risk of bleeding interventions. An HRD ≥3.5cm and renal laceration depth of ≥2.5cm were most predictive of interventions. In multivariable models, VCE and HRD were significantly associated with bleeding interventions.

CONCLUSION
Our findings support the importance of certain radiographic findings in prediction of bleeding interventions after HGRT. These factors can be used as adjuncts to renal injury grading to guide clinical decision making.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Prognostic and Epidemiological Study, Level III.


Abstract. The aims of the present research are (1) to provide empirical evidence on animalization and, especially, mechanization in childhood and (2) to determine if outgroup stereotypical characteristics influence the dehumanization strategy chosen by children. In Study 1 (Study 1A: N = 77, Mage = 13.18; Study 1B: N = 140, Mage = 12.28), we investigated whether children associate machine-related words with the outgroup (Japanese) to a greater extent than with the ingroup (Spanish). In Study 2 (Study 2A: N = 118, Mage = 11.72; Study 2B: N = 142, Mage = 11.66), we examined whether the perception of competence (Japanese-high competence vs. Arabs-low competence) determines the dehumanization strategy used by children. The results show that children are capable of animalizing but also mechanizing and that the stereotypical characteristics of outgroups affect the form of dehumanization used.


After the analysis of the Chinese intellectual property system in aspects of the legislation, the execution and the law abidance, this article proves that the Chinese intellectual property system is still more or less influenced by its traditional culture. The passive transplantation under the external power and the law instrumentalism mindset in traditional political culture result that there is a little bit radical ideology in the process of Chinese intellectual property legislation. In execution level, the strong administration and weak judicature in traditional political culture and the Confucianism both play the important role in affecting China's Double Track System. Moreover, the law abidance comprises two aspects which are the obligations and the rights. After the process of accession of WTO and the experiences on international intellectual property conflicts between China and other Western countries, Chinese public know the intellectual property much better than before. However, the acknowledge of the intellectual property for most Chinese still stay in the stage of piracy and anti-piracy rather than know the real meaning of IP. Many people are still affected by Confucianism. In Confucianism, there is no concept of private property on spiritual properties. Meanwhile, the Confucian scholars also think that it is a good thing to share their minds in public. The rule of "Li" in Confucianism results that it is difficult for the public to arise the strong consciousness of standard of right. They also do not think that the action of piracy is as same as stealing other people's real properties such as cash. More importantly, the intellectual property legal system suffers continual influences coming from this strongly traditional culture, which not only results that the typical intellectual property objects can not be protected by intellectual property law in China very well, but it also embeds a bomb for protection of folklore by intellectual property system in the future.


We present a method for simultaneously recording topography images and localizing specific binding sites with nm positional accuracy by combining dynamic force microscopy with single molecule recognition force spectroscopy. For this we used lysozyme adsorbed to mica, the functionality of which was characterized by enzyme immunoassays. The topography and recognition images were acquired using tips that were magnetically oscillated during scanning and contained antibodies directed against lysozyme. For cantilevers with low Q-factor (approximately 1 in liquid) driven at frequencies below resonance, the surface contact only affected the downward deflections (minima) of the oscillations, whereas binding of the antibody on the tip to lysozyme on the surface only affected the upwards deflections (maxima) of the oscillations. The recognition signals were therefore well separated from the topographic signals, both in space (Delta z approximately 5 nm) and time (approximately 0.1 ms). Topography and recognition images were simultaneously recorded using a specially designed electronic circuit with which the maxima (U(up)) and the minima (U(down)) of each sinusoidal cantilever deflection period were depicted. U(down) was used for driving the feedback loop to record the height (topography) image, and U(up) provided the data for the recognition image.


Data Mining is a process used in the industry, to facilitate decision making. As the name implies, large volumes of data is mined or sifted, to find useful information for decision making. With the advent of E-business, Data Mining has become more important to practitioners. The purpose of this paper is to find out the importance of Data Mining by looking at the different application areas that have used data mining for decision making.


Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) drying is a novel method of non-thermal processing. In this drying method, drying can be carried out using either AC or DC high voltages. The thermodynamic considerations regarding the lowering of temperature under EHD drying include rapid rates of evaporation and exothermic interaction of the electric field with a dielectric material. Multi-point and plate electrode systems are efficient in accelerating drying of agricultural materials. The electrode produces corona wind, which resembles a round jet, impinges and removes moisture from the surface. The enhancement of drying rate by corona discharge from needle electrodes has been experimentally evaluated in this study. Effects of three different categories, one needle, nine needles and seventeen needles on drying rate of kiwi fruit were studied, moreover in each category, Experiments were carried out using DC voltage levels of 6, 10.5 and 15 kV and field intensities 4.5 kV/cm. Results showed that the effect of needle number on drying rate was significant and drying rate of kiwi fruit reduced with increasing in needle numbers.


Many shellfish-growing areas along the Gulf Coast cannot meet the bac teriological standards established by the USPHS for shellfish-growing wa ters.1 In some of these areas, sanitary surveys have shown that the high total coliform and fecal coliform levels can not be attributed to wastes of human or domestic animal origin. A sampling program conducted by the Mississippi State Board of Health revealed that the bacterial quality of water and oys ters in an area remote from pollution by human and domestic animals fre quently failed to meet USPHS stan dards.2 The present study, requested by the Mississippi State Board of Health, Division of Sanitary Engineer ing, was designed to determine the levels of coliform and fecal coliform bacteria in polluted and unpolluted waters and soils adjacent to and rela tively remote from Graveline Bayou and to determine, if possible, the sources and sanitary significance of these organisms. Water and soil samples collected from polluted and unpolluted stations were examined for total coliform and fecal coliform content. In addition, soil samples from selected polluted and unpolluted stations were submitted to quantitative tests for salmonellae. The study was also designed to determine the levels of coliforms, fecal coliforms,


Project retrospectives are an established "best practice" in software process improvement. As a tool for learning how to perform better as a development organization, retrospectives may provide an additional learning opportunity for students in software engineering project courses. This paper describes a project retrospective approach that has been adapted to the academic setting. Academic project retrospectives not only provide students with the opportunity to reflect on their project performance, it gives the instructor additional information on improving the delivery, management, and learning outcomes. Key elements and suggestions f or improvements of the retrospective are described.


DNA repair genes are involved in several diseases such as cancers and autoimmune diseases. Previous studies indicated that a DNA repair system was involved in the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In this study, we aimed to examine whether four polymorphisms in the DNA repair genes (xeroderma pigmentosum complementation group D [XPD], X-ray repair cross-complementing group 1 [XRCC1], and X-ray repair cross-complementing group 4 [XRCC4]) were associated with RA. Sixty-five patients with RA and 70 healthy controls (HCs) were examined for XPD (A-751G), XRCC1 (A399G), and XRCC4 (intron 3 VNTR and G-1394T) polymorphisms. All polymorphisms were genotyped by PCR and/or PCR-RFLP. The association between the polymorphisms and RA was analyzed using the chi-square test and de Finetti program. The intron 3 VNTR polymorphism in the XRCC4 gene showed an association with RA patients. The DI genotype was found lower in RA patients (χ(2)=8.227; p=0.0021), while the II genotype was higher in RA patients (χ(2)=5.285; p=0.010). There were deviations from the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) in both intron 3 VNTR and G-1394T polymorphisms in the XRCC4 gene and in the polymorphism in the XRCC1 gene, and the observed genotype counts deviated from those expected according to the HWE (p=0.027, 0.004, and 0.002, respectively); however, there was no deviation in the other gene polymorphisms. There is no statistical difference between the RA patients and HCs for XPD (A-751G), XRCC1 (A399G), and XRCC4 (G-1394T) gene polymorphisms (p>0.05). Although XPD (A-751G), XRCC1 (A399G), and XRCC4 (G-1394T) gene polymorphisms have been extensively investigated in different clinical pictures, this is the first study to evaluate the role of these polymorphisms in the genetic etiopathogenesis of RA in Turkish patients. In conclusion, we suggested that the intron 3 VNTR polymorphism in the XRCC4 gene may be associated with the etiopathogenesis of RA as a marker of immune aging.


This thesis examines market discipline exercised by Indonesian depositors and peer banks from January 1980 to December 1999. Discipline exists if risky banks are forced to pay higher interest and suffer deposit withdrawals. However, to be effective, market discipline requires monitors to access and process reliable accounting information. In the case of Indonesian peer banks, these may serve as better monitors than depositors because they have better resources to collect and process information about their counterpart banks. In order to test discipline by depositors, this research uses Indonesian banks' call reports from January 1980 to December 1999 submitted to Bank Indonesia (the central bank). Detailed call money transactions from April 1993 to December 1999 are used to test the market discipline exercised by peer banks. Another data source relates to Indonesian business groups, whereby this research classifies banks according to their ownership associations with Commercial Power Centres. The results suggest market discipline barely existed in Indonesian banking. Indonesian depositors only punish banks without associations to pressure groups. Moreover, within the population of bank pairs, the borrowing banks' financial performance does not determine the lending banks' call money exposures. Within the sample of pairs that engage more frequently, both the borrowing banks' financial performance and the lending and borrowing banks' interlock (in this study a term denoting the special relationship between bank pairs based on banks' share ownership, or owners' kinship, or bank rescue) determine the lenders' call money exposures. However, the effect of interlock is stronger. Although convincing support for the existence of market discipline is lacking, this research contributes to knowledge about how two types of monitors - the depositors and the peer banks - exercise discipline in a country such as Indonesia. This is also the first research to study interbank interlock in market discipline exercised by peer banks. The overall findings suggest that Basel II's reliance on market discipline in its third pillar may prove less effective in the context of developing countries. Therefore, regulators may need to place greater emphasis on the first pillar (the capital requirements) and the second pillar (bank supervisory review of capital adequacy and internal assessment).


The electronic structure of the layered semiconductor InSe along is studied by spin resolved photoelectron spectroscopy using circularly polarized radiation from the BESSY 6.5 m normal incidence monochromator beamline. The experiments were performed in the highly symmetric set-up of normal incidence and normal emission. The photon energies were varied between 7.8 eV and 18 eV. The spectra show a pair of weakly dispersing peaks arising via direct transitions from valence-band states with symmetries 59, 69 and 57, 68. Our data determine the spin-orbit splitting in the valence bands to be {E}so = 0.3±0.1 eV. In addition the existence of a gap in the unoccupied bands along above the fundamental gap is proven. Correlating measured peak positions and calculated bands (by a linearized augmented-plane-wave method) require an energy-dependent correction of the valence-band positions toward higher binding energies. The changing sign of photoelectron spin polarization reveals that between 7.6 eV and 12.5 eV above the valence-band maximum unoccupied states with symmetries 57, 68 and 59, 69 exist.


Fear is powerful and pervasive in English schools and central to many education discourses. However, it has received very little focussed attention in the education literature, despite the increasing interest afforded to it in other disciplines. Understanding how fear works is extremely important as fear and wellbeing are inextricably linked. However, currently we are a long way from knowing how fear operates in education. In this paper I argue that it would be beneficial for educational researchers to focus more attention on the diverse and often contradictory ways that fears operate in education, and on how they are constructed and sustained. I illustrate the value of focussing on fear by considering two aspects of secondary education – academic and social "success" and "failure" – and exploring the ways that fears operate in these spheres.


Finding shortest feasible paths in a weighted graph has numerous applications including admission and routing in communication networks. This paper discusses a game theoretic framework intended to incorporate a concept of path stability into the process of shortest path selection. Route stability is an important issue in a wire-line and especially in wireless network due to node mobility as well as limited node reliability and power supply. The framework assumes that the link weights are selected within certain "confidence intervals" by an adversary or set of adversaries. The width of the confidence interval for the path weight represents the path stability. One of the immediate benefits of this framework is justification for randomized routing interpreted as a mixed Nash equilibrium strategy in the corresponding game. To demonstrate a wide range of possible applications of the proposed framework the paper briefly discusses possible application to robust traffic engineering.


The consumer's constant search for novelties in the area of ornamental plants has inspired the use of species that are normally used for other purposes, such as fruit-bearing plants, to be introduced into floriculture. The physalis, a fruit-bearing plant, with a beautiful accrescent fruiting calyx that envelops the berry, can be used for these purposes. However, this plant can reach 70 cm high, which makes it unviable to be used as an indoor plant. The objective of this research was to decrease the size of the physalis (Physalis angulata) for ornamental use, pot it and apply the plant growth regulator Paclobutrazol (PBZ). The PBZ growth regulator was applied only once, via foliar spray at the concentrations of 0, 30, 60, 90, 120 and 150 mg a.i L- 1, as well as via irrigation in the substrate at concentrations of 0, 5, 10, 15, 30 and 60 mg a.i L- 1. Along with the quantitative variables, a plant acceptability test was carried out when it was considered ideal for commercialization. The obtained results clearly show that it is possible to reduce the size of the physalis for use as a potted plant by using PBZ with foliar applications at the concentration of 90 mg a.i L-1 or by using irrigation applications directly in the substrate at a concentration of 5 mg a.i L-1.


An incomplete skeleton of a theropod dinosaur, Bagaraatan ostromi gen' et sp' n., was found in the Nemegt Fm. at Nemegt, Mongolia. The mandible in B. ostromi has a shallow but massive dentary, relatively deep postdentary portion with two surangular foramina and somewhat elongated retroarticular process; on the lateral surface of the postacetabular process of the ilium there are two large depressions for muscle origins separated by a crestlike projection; the fibula is fused distally with the tibiotarsus and the coalesced astragalocalcaneurnBagaractan represents the Tetanurae and displays some synapomorphies with the Avetheropoda, however, incompleteness of the skeleton of B. ostromi does not allow to determine its more precise affiliation. Bagaraatan was about 3'0-3.5 m long, had a relatively small head and slender hind limbs. The presence of strongly developed hyposphenes in a long series of anterior caudals rendered its tail only slighily fl exible proximally.


The selective logging that characterizes most timber extraction operations in the tropics leaves large patches of logging blocks (i.e., areas allocated for harvesting) intact, without evidence of direct impacts. For example, in ~10,000 ha sampled in 48 forest management enterprises in Africa (Gabon, Republic of Congo, and the Democratic Republic of Congo), Indonesia, Suriname, and Mexico, an average of 69% (range 20–97%) of the area in logging blocks was not directly affected by timber harvests. The proportion of intact forest within logging blocks decreased very slightly with increases in harvest intensity in the accessed portion of the logging blocks (9–86 m3 ha−1) but decreased strongly with harvest intensity in entire logging blocks (0.3–48.2 m3 ha−1). More forest was left intact in areas farther from roads, on slopes >40%, and within 25 m of perennial streams, but the effect sizes of each of these variables was small (~8%). It is less clear how much of the intact forest left after one harvest will remain intact through the next. Conservation benefits without reductions in timber yields will derive from better management planning so that sensitive and ecologically critical areas, such as steep slopes and riparian buffers, constitute large and permanent proportions of the intact forest in selectively logged landscapes in the tropics.


SmCo5 thin film has been considered as one of several promising candidates for extremely high areal density recording media because of the demand of media with extremely small but thermally stable grains. In this paper, Sm(Co, Cu)5 films with perpendicular anisotropy were successfully fabricated by dc sputtering with relatively small grain size. Zero in-plane coercivity and 11 kOe out-of-plane coercivity were obtained on Ta(3 nm)/Sm-Co-Cu(10 nm)/Ru(20 nm)/Ta(4.2 nm) thin films. Effects of deposition temperature, film composition, and film thickness on the magnetic properties of SmCoCu films were investigated and reported.


Biomass of aboveground vegetation is a useful descriptor for studies of grazing, fire and wildlife habitat use in grassland systems. The traditional method to estimate biomass, hand-clipping, is time intensive and other indices of biomass have been used successfully. In southern Africa, the disc pasture meter has been the tool of choice and the use of visual obstruction has been much less prevalent than in North America. Our goal was to determine if visual obstruction could be used as a correlate to aboveground grass biomass in grassland systems in Namibia. We gathered clipping and visual obstruction samples at three study sites in Highland Savanna and Woodland Savanna in northern Namibia. Dry biomass of grass was correlated with visual obstruction readings when samples from all study sites were pooled (r  2 ≤0.64, P<0.0001), but the strength of the relationship varied among the three study sites. We also evaluated the number of samples needed to characterise biomass at a study site. Variation in the cumulative mean was very low at sample sizes of 15–20 samples. Visual obstruction can be a useful method to evaluate biomass of grassland systems in a quick manner.


Using a sensitive, specific Raji cell radioimmunoassay we have analyzed the sera of 35 patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) for IgA-containing circulating immune complexes. In addition, the 125I-Clq binding assay and the Raji IgG radio-immunoassay were used to measure IgG or IgM containing circulating immune complexes. Twenty-eight of thirty five (80%) patients with PsA were found to have IgA-containing circulating immune complexes. In contrast, only 13 of 35 (37%) had IgG-containing circulating immune complexes detected using the Raji IgG assay and 10 of 33 (33%) had IgG- or IgM-containing immune complexes detected using the 125I-Clq binding assay. There was no significant difference in the frequency, level, or type of immune complexes detected in any of the clinical subtypes. There was however a significant correlation between the level of IgA-containing circulating immune complexes and the severity of the arthritis as determined by linear regression analysis (p less than 0.05). The finding of IgA-containing circulating immune complexes in 80% of patients with psoriatic arthritis as well as the significantly higher levels of these complexes in the patients with more severe arthritis suggests that IgA-containing circulating immune complexes may play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriatic arthritis.


Cancer is one of the major causes of death. For cancer, the general conventional treatment and standard of care for clinical oncology remains surgery followed by radiation and/or systemic chemotherapy as deemed appropriate based on the clinical findings. Chemoimmunotherapy is an approach to treat cancer where chemotherapy is given along with immunotherapy. Chemoimmunotherapy may be useful to enhance survival time in cancer by improve immunity of the patients. This approach may enhance the therapeutic efficacy. A comparative study was done to assess the therapeutic efficacy of the whole cell vaccine and the tumor extract with or without combination chemotherapy with the synthesized glutamine and glutamic acid derivatives and analogs as well as the standard drug etoposide against Ehrlich Ascites Carcinoma (EAC) cells in Swiss Albino mice. The study showed promising results with the compound 5-N-n-hexyl-2-(4-iso-butylbenzenesulphonyl)glutamine. The compound when combined with the whole cell vaccine as well as the tumor extract increases the survival time and the therapeutic efficacy which is comparable with that of standard drug etoposide.


Tribolium castaneum (Herbst) and Rhyzopertha dominica (F.) are common cosmopolitan pests of stored grain and grain products. We evaluated the relative attraction of T. castaneum and R. dominica to wheat, sorghum and cotton seeds in the field, near grain storage facilities and well away from storages in southern and central Queensland using multiple trapping techniques. The results show that T. castaneum is more strongly attracted to linted cotton seed relative to wheat, whereas R. dominica did not respond to cotton seed at all and was attracted only to wheat. Significantly more adults of T. castaneum (10–15 times) were attracted to traps placed on the ground, near grain storage, than to equivalent traps that were suspended (1.5 m above the ground) nearby. These results suggest that Tribolium beetles detect and respond to resources towards the end of their dispersal flight, after which they localize resources while walking. By contrast R. dominica was captured only in suspended traps, which suggests they fly directly onto resources as they localize them. The ability of both species to colonize and reproduce in isolated resource patches within the relatively short time of 1 month is illustrated by the returns from the traps deployed in the field (at least 1 km from the nearest stored grain) even though they caught only a few beetles. The results presented here provide novel insights about the resource location behaviours of both T. castaneum and R. dominica. In particular, the relationship of T. castaneum with non‐cereal resources that are not conventionally associated with this species suggests an emphasis on these other resources in investigating the resource location behaviour of these beetles. This new perspective on the ecology of T. castaneum highlights the potential role of non‐cereal resources (such as the lint on cotton seed) in the spread of grain pest infestations.


Changes of granulocyte macrophage colony forming units (CFU-GM) were assessed in peripheral blood of patients treated with 5-Fluorouracil-Leucovorin adjuvant chemotherapy after removal of colon cancer. The clinical and hematological state of the patients was steady and as far normal as possible. Leucocyte counts did not show significant changes. The mean peripheral blood level of CFU-GM significantly decreased following 5FU-LV infusion, reaching nadir by day 15. These changes of hemopoietic progenitors, not detected by routine hematic cell counts, point to a perturbation of the granulopoietic system by the 5FU-LV association also at doses used in adjuvant chemotherapy.


We present photometric analysis of three bright red nova progenitor contact binary systems: ASAS J082151-0612.6, TYC 7281-269-1 and TYC 7275-1968-1. The primary components in all three systems are solar-type low mass stars with radii somewhat larger than their zero age main sequence counterparts. The secondaries, as in most contact binary systems, have radii and luminosities well above their main sequence counterparts. All three have extremely low mass ratios ranging from 0.075 to 0.097 and two have high degrees of contact, in excess of 75%. All three have mass ratios and separations below the theoretical values for orbital stability. Chromospheric activity, a hallmark of magnetic activity and magnetic braking, considered important in mediating angular momentum loss, is also explored. All three systems demonstrate the O'Connell effect, and all systems require the introduction of star spots for a better light curve solution. In addition, we show that ASAS J082151-0612.6 and TYC 7281-269-1 have a UV color excess in the range indicating high chromospheric activity. Another measure of potential significant magnetic activity is X-ray luminosity; TYC 7275-1968-1 and probably also TYC 7281-269-1 have X-ray luminosity well above other contact binary systems. We conclude that it is likely that all three are unstable and hence are potential merger candidates.


For helium liquefaction/refrigeration systems, conventional design theory always fails in cryogenic applications and heat exchangers operating at low temperatures are usually sensitive to longitudinal heat conduction, heat in-leak from surroundings and variable fluid properties. Governing equations based on distributed parameter methods are developed to evaluate performance deterioration caused by these effects. The model synthetically considering these loss mechanisms is validated against experimental data and design results obtained by commercial software Aspen MUSETM. Sample multistream heat exchangers are further studied to discuss quantitative effects of these heat losses. In accordance with previous researches, the comprehensive effects of various losses are analyzed qualitatively in order to reveal their influences and investigate on the strategies of improving the heat transfer performance. The numerical method is useful in the design procedure of cryogenic heat exchangers and can be adopted to predict heat transfer and pressure drop performance under the actual low temperature environment.


This book from two paediatric neurologists from North Carolina is on an important subject on which no comprehensive text at present exists. The clinical chapters are grouped on a pathological basis and the review of the literature is comprehensive. It is this good referencing which is the main value of the book. The reviews ofeach pathological entity are only gently critical and some rather more rigorous examination of the evidence would have been helpful. However, some of the reviews of particular conditions are very good; for example Sturge-Weber syndrome is well discussed. It is not very comprehensive on the congenital angiomatous syndromes. There is a particular problem for anybody who wanted to see a clear discussion of how to manage a child with an unexplained stroke, since information about this clinical syndrome can be found in several chapters. Quite a bit of the general paediatric neurology that is included, for example that young children recover better from vascular damage than adults and the information about survival and for language functions, is in traditional terms without critical discussion. The book therefore has its uses as a source of information and can be recommended for this purpose. It does not answer the dilemmas about, for example, the use of angiography in acute stroke.


Prediction markets for future events are increasingly common and they often trade several contracts for the same event. This paper considers the distribution of a normative risk-neutral trader who, given any portfolio of contracts traded on the event, would choose not to reallocate that portfolio of contracts even if transactions costs were zero. Because common parametric distributions can conflict with observed prediction market prices, the distribution is given a nonparametric representation together with a prior distribution favoring smooth and concentrated distributions. Posterior modal distributions are found for popular vote shares of the U.S. presidential candidates in the 100 days leading up to the elections of 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004, using bid and ask prices on multiple contracts from the Iowa Electronic Markets. On some days, the distributions are multimodal or substantially asymmetric. The derived distributions are more concentrated than the historical distribution of popular vote shares in presidential elections, but do not tend to become more concentrated as time to elections diminishes.


The well-established role of dendritic cells in antigen presentation demonstrates their important role in development of T cells. In hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) donor T cells are essential for engraftment, immune reconstitution, and graft vs. leukemia effect. Surprisingly, the role of Dendritic cells (DCs) in facilitating donor engraftment of hematopoietic stem cells has not been studied. Previously, we have demonstrated the importance of ex vivo expanded regulatory T cells (Tregs) in facilitating thymic engraftment after HSCT. Here we show the addition of dendritic cells given simultaneously with murine stem cells significantly improves engraftment after HSCT. Histological analysis demonstrated that thymic recovery was faster and more robust when dendritic cells were administered along with hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). Cell recovery and immune reconstitution was observed to occur more quickly in the thymus, spleen, bone marrow, and peripheral blood in experimental samples given additional DCs in HSCT. FACS analysis also confirmed immune reconstitution and donor cell engraftment was faster and increased survival was observed in experimental animals given DCs as well as stem cells. We hypothesize that the additional DCs establish themselves in the recipient thymus and assist in educating donor T cells, hastening immune reconstitution and improving cell engraftment.


It has been shown by Lo, Ng and Yuk (see IEEE JSAC issue on CDMA Networks III, 1996) that the throughput-delay performance of a CDMA ALOHA network, where each station is assigned a spreading code so that each effectively has its own 'virtual channel', and where channel sensing and collision detection are also used, is much better than that of a simple CSMA-CD network. Such a system, however, is difficult to implement. A simpler system that may provide good performance and that is easy to implement is a CDMA ALOHA network with just channel sensing. The channel sensing can be provided by a simple correlator and threshold device. The performance of such a network is investigated, and some comparisons are made with those of the simple CSMA-CD network and the CDMA ALOHA network with both channel sensing and collision detection. It is shown that when the CDMA-CS network is stable, its performance is not much worse than that of a CDMA-CS/CD network, and much better than that of a simple single channel CSMA-CD system.


Several in‐frame linker insertions have been made in various positions in the faeG gene encoding the K88ab fimbrial subunit protein from porcine enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli. The effects of the linker insertions have been investigated with regard to the ability of the mutated fimbrial subunits to be exported to the surface of the bacterial cell and assembled into a fimbrial structure. The structure/function relationship of the subunit protein is discussed in the light of the phenotypes of the mutations constructed, secondary structure predictions, and hydrophilicity plots.


Advanced mobile devices increasingly provide innovative services and applications that can be accessed anywhere and anytime. The actual challenge is to take into account the dynamically changing conditions of the heterogeneous resources (equipments, data sources, services, etc) required for providing in ubiquitous environments an optimized, self-adaptive and personalized task management according to the context of use. In addition, the constantly changing availability and capabilities of these distributed resources make the discovery and mobilization of the appropriate resources required by user tasks difficult. In this paper, we propose a framework based on ontological models, object oriented components, a rule base, and an inference engine, to support services and applications operation in mobile systems. We also present an application example from the mobile health (mHealth) field to demonstrate how the proposed framework can support resources discovering according to user tasks specifications and environment conditions as well as to the accessibility and usability of the discovered resources.


BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
Despite the growing rate of deaths caused by firearms, it is not clear what role physicians should play in counseling patients about firearm safety. This study aims to delineate the perceptions and experiences of family physicians regarding firearm safety counseling.

METHODS
Data were gathered as part of the 2020 Council of Academic Family Medicine's (CAFM) Educational Research Alliance (CERA) survey of family medicine practicing physicians. Participants were practicing physicians and members of one of four major academic family medicine organizations comprising CERA. The survey was delivered to a sample of 3,665 family physicians between January 15, 2020, and March 2, 2020. This was a mixed-methods epidemiological study that analyzed quantitative and qualitative survey data. We calculated a χ2 test of independence to examine interactions between demographic characteristics and beliefs and perceptions about firearm safety counseling.

RESULTS
The overall response rate for the survey was 32.52%, with 92.7% answering questions in the firearm safety set; 93.7% of study participants viewed firearm safety as a public health issue and 95.3% felt family physicians should have the right to counsel patients on firearm safety. Family physicians who had received formal training on firearm safety counseling were significantly more likely to indicate a higher level of comfort with asking their patients about firearms (P<.0001).

CONCLUSIONS
Firearm safety is an important public health issue and family physicians would benefit from receiving formal training on firearm safety counseling early in their training. More education is needed around physician-initiated firearm safety counseling.


Broadleaf signalgrass control from preemergence (PRE) herbicides was usually lower in no-till than in tilled plots. Broadleaf signalgrass control was most nearly complete in tilled plots treated with metolachlor in 1995, a year that favored an herbicide with more soil persistence. Broadleaf signalgrass control was most nearly complete in tilled plots treated with acetochlor in 1996, a year in which rainfall to activate the herbicides did not occur until 9 d after planting. The 1996 data indicated that acetochlor was more stable on the soil surface under the drier conditions. There was no difference in broadleaf signalgrass control between the two acetochlor formulations. Alachlor, metolachlor, and dimethenamid controlled broadleaf signalgrass > 80% for about 4 wk, acetochlor provided control for about 4 wk under no-till conditions and about 8 wk in tilled plots, and pendimethalin provided about 2 wk broadleaf signalgrass control. Acetochlor provided consistent control regardless of the rainfall pattern after application.


Although Hong Kong and Singapore have remarkably similar social, economic, and historical profiles, their policies to promote economic and technological progress constitute an on-going natural experiment and provide a stark contrast. The well-documented, state-led information technology (IT) effort in Singapore is used here to benchmark the lesser known policies and interventions of the Hong Kong government and to examine their impact on IT innovation. Economic restructuring and political uncertainty in Hong Kong, resulting in the mass emigration of manufacturing operations and the professional elite, have prompted a traditionally noninterventionist state to selectively complement the invisible hand of market forces. The Hong Kong government has supported knowledge building and diffusion and helped to create public goods such as electronic commerce, but it has stopped short of guiding or directly subsidizing IT innovation efforts. Emerging IT issues and policy options are considered as Hong Kong becomes part of the People's Republic of China (PRC) under the principle of "one country, two systems". Free trade and information flows, efficient telecommunications, property rights protection, and technology management expertise are identified as critical factors if Hong Kong is to remain an attractive conduit for and recipient of technology transfer, and if its businesses are to sustain their fast-follower and focus strategies, synergize technological innovations from China and the West, and capitalize on the vast new domestic market.


Health data sharing with and among practices is a method for engaging rural and underserved populations, often with strong histories of marginalization, in health research. The Institute of Translational Health Sciences, funded by a National Institutes of Health Clinical and Translational Science Award, is engaged in the LC Data QUEST project to build practice and community based research networks with the ability to share semantically aligned electronic health data. We visited ten practices and communities to assess the feasibility of and barriers to developing data sharing networks. We found that these sites had very different approaches and expectations for data sharing. In order to support practices and communities and foster the acceptance of data sharing in these settings, informaticists must take these diverse views into account. Based on these findings, we discuss system design implications and the need for flexibility in the development of community-based data sharing networks.


ABSTRACT International comparison of development indicators is a perennial challenge in global development studies. The challenge is especially difficult when measuring urban household food security using experience-based metrics that are influenced by countless contextual factors. This article presents a gender-based analysis of household food security surveys conducted in Nanjing, China and Maputo, Mozambique. The analysis demonstrates the value of a gender lens for understanding the intersecting household characteristics associated with urban food insecurity. While Maputo had much higher food insecurity overall, our analysis leads to nuanced insights into shared and divergent connections between gender inequality and food insecurity in both cities.


This is the fourth annual bibliography of works pertaining to the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, as well as to the peoples of those countries settled in Canada, published by Canadian scholars. The primary purpose of the bibliography is to provide an up-to-date research tool for persons working in the area. It is also hoped that it will make known the range of activities and areas of expertise of Canadian scholars.


A simple model for the electromagnetic deceleration of a moving metallic projectile is described. It incorporates the influence of magnetic field parameters, time-dependent field diffusion, and device geometry on braking action, albeit in an approximate fashion. The model predicts that a viable experimental braking device can be designed.


Roughening of nanoscale polymer masks during plasma etching (PE) limits feature critical dimensions in current and future lithographic technologies. Roughness formation of 193 nm photoresist (PR) is mechanistically explained by plasma-induced changes in mechanical properties introduced at the PR surface (∼2 nm) by ions and in parallel in the material bulk (∼200 nm) by ultraviolet (UV) plasma radiation. Synergistic roughening of polymer masks can be prevented by pretreating PR patterns with a high dose of He plasma UV exposure to saturate bulk material modifications. During subsequent PE, PR patterns are stabilized and exhibit improved etch resistance and reduced surface/line-edge roughness.


Background: Ruptures of the patellar tendon are debilitating injuries requiring surgical repair. Reliable data about the most appropriate suture technique and suture material are missing. The standard procedure consists of refixing the tendon with sutures in transpatellar tunnels, sometimes combined with augmentation. Hypothesis: Suture anchors provide at least equal results concerning gap formation during cyclic loading and ultimate failure load compared with transosseous suture repair. Study Design: Controlled laboratory study. Methods: A total of 30 human cadaveric patellar tendons underwent tenotomy followed by repair with 5.5-mm titanium suture anchors, 5.5-mm resorbable hydroxyapatite suture anchors, or transpatellar suture tunnels with No. 2 Ultrabraid and the Krackow whipstitch technique. Biomechanical analysis included pretensioning the constructs at 20 N for 30 seconds and then cyclic loading of 250 cycles between 20 and 100 N at 1 Hz in a servohydraulic testing machine with measurement of elongation. After this, ultimate failure load and failure mode analysis was performed. Results: Compared with transosseous sutures, tendon repairs with suture anchors yielded significantly less gap formation during cyclic loading (P < .05) and resisted significantly higher ultimate failure loads (P < .05). Common failure mode was pullout of the eyelet within the suture anchor in the hydroxyapatite anchor group and rupture of the suture in the titanium anchor group and—at lower load to failure—in the transosseous group. Conclusion: Patellar tendon repair with suture anchors yields significantly better biomechanical results than repair with the commonly applied transosseous sutures. Clinical Relevance: These findings may be of relevance for future clinical treatment of patellar tendon ruptures. Randomized controlled clinical trials comparing suture anchors to transosseous suture repair are desirable.


This paper presents a deep-magnetic-field generator for thermotherapy, which has several advantages over traditional hard-copper coils. First, the new device is flexible and can therefore be used to treat different zones of the body. The device enables electromagnetic cauterization in thermotherapy of tumors deep within the body. Another advantage is that the flexible coil produces a magnetic field that penetrates deeper into the body compared with traditional helical hard-copper coils of the same diameter. For a treatment depth of 10 cm, we compare the results for in vitro electromagnetic-induction ablation experiments on porcine liver tissue done: 1) with a flexible laminated copper coil and 2) with a hard-copper coil. The results of the experiments show that the temperature increases 3.9 times better for the flexible coil than the traditional hard-copper coil.


As we are living in 21st century, new technologies are being invented in almost every sector to make human life fast and easier. Beside this we are still finding the solutions to problems related to our environment, energy and natural resources.Construction industry produces large amount of waste throughout the year. Most of the time construction and demolition waste ends up in landfills disturbing environmental, economical and social life cycle. Construction and demolition waste is the waste materials that are produced in the process of construction, renovation or demolition of residential or nonresidential structures. Components of construction and demolition waste typically include concrete, asphalt, wood, metals, gypsum wallboard, roofing, paper, plastic, drywall and glass.Sustainable development is a development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs; and can be considered as one of the solution to solve construction and demolition waste problem. Sustainable development in construction will help a lot to reduce the problems related to environment and natural resources as construction industry is a major user of world's resources. Sustainable design, proper use and reuse of the resources/construction materials will make construction industry more economical and green.Concrete is the second most consumed material after water, so recycling of concrete can save construction costs also it will help to keep environment healthy. Concrete collected from sites is put through crushing machine, usually uncontaminated concrete i.e. free from wood, plastic, paper and other unwanted materials. Metals such as rebar are removed with the help of magnets and other sorting devices.In many countries like Japan, United States, United Kingdom various recycling techniques are being used and returning good results. Process of recycling construction and demolition waste includes storage, sorting, collection, transportation, recycling and disposing. Recycling methods used in japan are heating and rubbing methods, eccentric-shaft rotor method and Mechanical grinding method.Recycling of Construction and demolition waste has many benefits such as reduction in transportation cost, it keeps environment clean and reduces natural resource exploitation. To promote recycling and reuse of waste, awareness about its effects and benefits should be communicated with people, contractors, engineers and architects. More numbers of recycling plants should be installed and allowing the use of recycled aggregate instead of natural aggregate for some purpose.In this paper I am going to focus on different recycling techniques and reuse of construction and demolition waste.


We consider a model, introduced by Boldrighini, Minlos and Pellegrinotti [3, 4], of random walks in dynamical random environments on the integer lattice Z with d ≥ 1. In this model, the environment changes over time in a Markovian manner, independently across sites, while the walker uses the environment at its current location in order to make the next transition. In contrast with the cluster expansions approach of [4], we follow a probabilistic argument based on regeneration times. We prove an annealed SLLN and invariance principle for any dimension, and provide a quenched invariance principle for dimension d > 6, providing for d > 6 an alternative to the analytical approach of [4], with the added benefit that it is valid under weaker assumptions. The quenched results use, in addition to the regeneration times already mentioned, a technique introduced by Bolthausen and Sznitman [6]. AMS 2000 subject classification : 60J15,60F10,82C44,60J80.


The relative amount of high-temperature plasma has been found to be a useful diagnostic to determine the frequency of coronal heating on sub-resolution structures. When the loops are infrequently heated, a broad emission measure (EM) over a wider range of temperatures is expected. A narrower EM is expected for high-frequency heating where the loops are closer to equilibrium. The soft X-ray spectrum contains many spectral lines that provide high-temperature diagnostics, including lines from Fe xvii–xix. This region of the solar spectrum will be observed by the Marshall Grazing Incidence Spectrometer (MaGIXS) in 2020. In this paper, we derive the expected spectral line intensity in MaGIXS to varying amounts of high-temperature plasma to demonstrate that a simple line ratio provides a powerful diagnostic to determine the heating frequency. Similarly, we examine ratios of AIA channel intensities, filter ratios from a XRT, and energy bands from the FOXSI sounding rocket to determine their sensitivity to this parameter. We find that both FOXSI and MaGIXS provide good diagnostic capabilities for high-temperature plasma. We then compare the predicted line ratios to the output of a numerical model and confirm that the MaGIXS ratios provide an excellent diagnostic for heating frequency.


In this paper, I aim to charitably summarize and analyze McDowell's diagnosis of and cure for the characteristic anxieties that permeate discourse on the mind-world relation. Speci cally, though, I will focus on the importance that McDowell affords to a new conception of nature, demonstrating the signi cance of this conception to the sort of "cure" he offers. By introducing second nature, McDowell resolves the quandary of the seesaw between Davidson's self-contained coherentism and Evans' lapse into the Myth of the Given, without completely natural- izing reason. Nonetheless, his partial re-enchantment of nature fails to break free from the ideological force that pervades the majority of this discourse—namely, epistemological hegemony. In his book, Local Histories/Global Designs: Coloniality, Subaltern Knowledges, and Border Thinking, Walter Mignolo offers a critique of epistemolog- ical hegemony, deconstructing the geopolitics of knowledge and offering a vision for a new way of thinking about knowledge. My focus in this paper is the disenchantment of nature in philosophy and the implications of this disen- chantment in light of Mignolo's thesis. Consequently, a great deal of this examination involves a discussion of epis- temology and the nature of knowledge. I survey the works of McDowell, Mignolo, Churchland, Rorty, and Stone in order to provide a multi-dimensional picture of the disenchantment of nature and its implications for knowledge.


The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) will give $4.8 million to 21 U.S. universities for new instruments for energy-related research, it was announced last week. The 24 successful proposals were selected from 188 applications. Four of the University Research Instrumentation Awards are designated for geoscience research.

The minute sources of remanent magnetization in rocks will be investigated by John Geissman of the Univeristy of New Mexico in Albuquerque (UNM) with a magnetometer of special design, funded by a DOE grant of $115,000. Paleomagnetic measurements are generally based on a bulk determination of magnetization of 11 cm3 or so of rock. "But the size of particles that are the source of geologically stable remanent magnetism is very small," says Geissman. His magnetometer is designed to analyze particles as small as a micron. It will be used with a scanning/transmission electron microscope (STEM) at UNM to explore where the small grains reside in rocks and to gain a fuller understanding of the paleomagnetism measured by conventional means. Future work may also involve using a laser to destroy selected magnetic phases and minimize the effects of parts of the magnetic mineralogy, permitting examination of any magnetic material that remains.


A good data corpus lies at the heart of progress in both perceptual/cognitive science and in computer vision. While there are a few datasets that deal with simple actions, creating a realistic corpus for complex, long action sequences that contains also human-human interactions has so far not been attempted to our knowledge. Here, we introduce such a corpus for (inter)action understanding that contains six everyday scenarios taking place in a kitchen / living-room setting. Each scenario was acted out several times by different pairs of actors and contains simple object interactions as well as spoken dialogue. In addition, each scenario was first recorded with several HD cameras and also with motion-capturing of the actors and several key objects. Having access to the motion capture data allows not only for kinematic analyses, but also allows for the production of realistic animations where all aspects of the scenario can be fully controlled. We also present results from a first series of perceptual experiments that show how humans are able to infer scenario classes, as well as individual actions and objects from computer animations of everyday situations. These results can serve as a benchmark for future computational approaches that begin to take on complex action understanding.


In this data-centric world, as web services and service oriented architectures gain momentum and become a standard for data usage, there will be a need for tools to automate data retrieval. In this paper we propose a tool that automates the generation of joins in a transparent and integrated fashion in heterogeneous large databases as well as web services. This tool reads metadata information and automatically displays a join path and a SQL join query. This tool will be extremely useful for performing joins to help in the retrieval of information in large databases as well as web services.


Aprotic Li-O2 batteries offer an appealing opportunity to make use of our immediate environment; harvesting the air for oxygen and further reducing and combining it with Li+ to form LiO2 or Li2O2 at the cathode/electrolyte interface. Although the electrochemistry of such a device could in principle be operated reversibly, side-reactions interfere with the main reactions and limit the lifetime of practical Li-O2 cells – so far operated only in pure O2. Preventing these parasitic reactions, in particular by developing more stable solvents/electrolytes, is critical for progress.
Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is a promising solvent for Li-O2 battery applications [1], but there are conflicting opinions on the long-term stability of DMSO. Experimental work by Kwabi et al. [2] and computational results by Laino et al. [3] suggest that DMSO is readily oxidized to dimethyl sulfone (DMSO2) at Li2O2 surfaces – also forming LiOH. These results have, however, recently been challenged by Schroeder et al. [4], claiming that DMSO is sufficiently stable in the presence of Li2O2, as long as there are no sources of acidic protons present (e.g. from water impurities or carbon electrodes) that can initiate decomposition by forming more reactive hydroperoxy species. More fundamental research on the reaction mechanisms of DMSO with reduced oxygen species is needed to resolve this contradiction.
In this work we make use of quantum chemistry calculations to model alternative DMSO decomposition mechanisms in gas, solution phase, and at surfaces. We present reaction energies and barriers to reactions for proton abstraction (DMSO-H), methyl abstraction (DMSO-CH3), and addition reactions (DMSO2) with the aim of better understanding the relative importance of different reaction pathways and the impact of the reactants immediate environment.


Trade space exploration is a promising decision-making paradigm that provides a visual and more intuitive means for formulating, adjusting, and ultimately solving design optimization problems. This is achieved by combining multi-dimensional data visualization techniques with visual steering commands to allow designers to "steer" the optimization process while searching for the best, or Pareto optimal, design(s). In this thesis, results from an empirical assessment of the performance of these visual steering commands are presented. This is done by performing a study that compares the performance of different combinations of these visual steering commands to automated samplers, including a multi-objective genetic algorithm, that are executed "blindly" on the same design problems with no human intervention. The resultant Pareto frontiers generated by the combinations of visual steering commands and automated samplers are compared to one another using the ε-performance metric to assess the extent to which they have identified the reference (or best known) Pareto frontier. Specifically, three test problems are examined: (1) a sandwich beam, (2) an aircraft wing, and (3) a vehicle configuration problem. The results of this study indicate that the visual steering commands – depending on the complexity of the test problem – can provide a 3x 6x increase in the number of Pareto solutions that are obtained when the human is "in-theloop" during the optimization process compared to an automated sampler. The improvements are even more dramatic in cases where automated samplers have a difficult time finding feasible solutions. In addition user-guided trials can provide from a 10x 32x increase in the number of Pareto solutions obtained over random searching. As such,


Rationale Multiple Myeloma (MM) is characterized by the presence of multiple disease foci disseminated throughout the skeleton suggesting continuous circulation and metastasis of myeloma cells from one site of the bone marrow (BM) to another leading disease progression. However the metastatic process in MM has not been well characterized. In addition, the role of specific subclones that have the propensity for metastasis and tumor colonization in the BM niche has not been investigated. In this study, we developed a new BM metastasis xenograft model to examine clonal heterogeneity in tumor colonization of distant bone niches. We identified a set of genes that characterize potential driver genes for metastasis in MM by genomic and transcriptomic profiles of metastatic and primary tumor clones. Methods The model was developed by performing bilateral femur transplantation from donor SCID-bg mice to the dorsum of recipient mice of the same background. To study metastasis, the donor femurs were injected with MM cells (human MM1S, IM-9 and murine 5TGM1) and then implanted in the recipient mice. At the time of hind limb paralysis, the BM cells were flushed from the host or implanted femurs and analyzed by flow-cytometry. To investigate clonal heterogenity, IM-9 cells were transformed with four fluorescent proteins (FPs) simultaneously and sorted into fifteen subpopulations of all combinations of FPs. A mixture composed by equal proportion of all 15 FPs-labeled cells (rainbow mixture) was prepared and then used for in vivo experiment. At the time of sacrifice, clonal distribution of metastasized tumors were analyzed and the predominant clones (winner clones) were flow-sorted for genomic and transcriptomic studies. Library preparation and sequencing were performed according to manufacturer9s protocols. Sequencing data was processed by bcbio_nextgen. Briefly for RNA-seq data, raw reads were aligned to reference human genome GRCh37, and gene-level read counts were calculated. Data normalization and differential expression were analyzed with DESeq2. For DNA-seq data, raw reads were aligned to GRCh37. Somatic single nucleotide variants and INDEL were called by MuTect and Indelocator, respectively. Results All myeloma cell lines studied were able to metastasize from the BM of transplanted femurs to the host BM and mice eventually developed paralysis after 6 to 11 weeks. Experiments using rainbow cells consistently showed that only a sub-clone of single color was able to invade and populate the host BM after metastasis, while all 15 color populations were developed in primary tumors. Interestingly, metastatic clones from different mice had similar expression profiles, although these were labeled by different colors. The studies were confirmed in a second MM cell line (MM1S) showing a similar metastasis gene signature (Fig. A). Differential expression analysis identified 238 genes significantly down regulated in both IM-9 and MM1S metastatic tumors compared to matched primary tumors (FDR Conclusions Here we show a new model of bone metastasis that can be used to examine mechanisms of cell dissemination and colonization of the BM niche. Our studies demonstrate that specific winner subclones have a higher metastatic potential and are likely driver clones for tumor metastasis in MM. On the molecular level, a metastatic gene signature was found to be consistently down regulated in metastatic tumor samples, and 11 genes were identified as potential drivers. Disclosures Munshi: Janssen Research & Development: Membership on an entity9s Board of Directors or advisory committees. Anderson:Celgene: Membership on an entity9s Board of Directors or advisory committees; Millennium: Membership on an entity9s Board of Directors or advisory committees; BMS: Membership on an entity9s Board of Directors or advisory committees; Onyx: Membership on an entity9s Board of Directors or advisory committees; Acetylon: Scientific Founder Other; Oncopep: Scientific Founder Other. Scadden:Fate Therapeutics: Consultancy, Equity Ownership. Ghobrial:Sanofi: Research Funding; Noxxon: Research Funding; BMS: Advisory board, Advisory board Other, Research Funding; Onyx: Advisory board Other.


AIM
To monitor the quality of life of patients after periradicular surgery when two different flap designs were used.

METHODOLOGY
Forty patients with teeth having a periradicular lesion of endodontic origin were included according to specific selection criteria. Patients were randomly assigned to two groups. In one group a sulcular incision (SI) with complete papilla mobilization was made, and in the other group a papilla-base incision (PBI) was used. Periradicular surgery was performed using a surgical microscope. Parameters related to life quality were recorded daily in the first week post-surgery using a questionnaire. Pain was evaluated with a 0-100 visual analog scale (VAS). Other symptoms (swelling, bleeding and nausea), plus functions (chewing, speaking, sleeping, daily routine and work) were assessed using a five-point scale. Analgesic intake was recorded. Fisher's test and unpaired t-test were used to assess the difference between groups.

RESULTS
The VAS score for pain, and the scores for swelling, chewing and phonetic impairment, peaked on days 1 and 2 postoperatively. A significant difference in favour of the PBI group was found for chewing and swelling in the first 4 days. Starting from day 3 post-surgery, the PBI group reported a significantly more rapid decrease in pain levels and analgesics use than the SI group (P < 0.05). The other parameters were similar in the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS
The papilla-base incision technique may be preferred as reduction of pain levels, swelling and drug intake were more rapid in the first week postoperatively compared with cases in which a sulcular incision was used.


Objectives
The winter holiday period is associated with weight gain from overconsumption of calories from fat and sugar. Such short-term lifestyle change has the ability to decrease diversity of the gut microbiome and enhance the harvest of energy from the hosts' diet, both of which are relevant factors in obesity. Exercise may influence gut microbial diversity and prevent diet induced obesity related health outcomes. The study aim to determine the impact of exercise on taxonomic diversity of the gut microbiota (GM) and cardiometabolic health parameters after four weeks of consuming a fat-sugar supplemented diet.

Methods
Healthy overweight/obese (BMI 29.8 ± 3.5 kg/m2, age 29 ± 7 yrs, waist circumference (WC) 99.8 ± 10 cm) males (n = 18) supplemented their diet with 2 donuts per day (606 kcal, 50% fat, 46% carbs, 4% protein), 6 days/week, for 4 weeks. Subjects were randomized to sedentary control (n = 4) or 1000 kcal/week on a cycle ergometer 4 days/week of supervised exercise (n = 14). We measured WC (cm), flow mediated dilation (FMD, %) and insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). GM diversity was analyzed, in stool samples collected pre- and post-intervention, with DADA2 and vegan, and visualized with ggplot in R. SILVA v.132 was used for taxonomic assignment. Differences in GM alpha (Shannon Index) and beta (Bray-Curtis) diversity were evaluated with Mann-Whitney U and Permutational Multivariate Analysis of Variance (PERMANOVA) tests.

Results
Microbial diversity analysis revealed no significant (P > 0.05) alpha (Shannon Index) or beta diversity (Bray-Curtis) differences between the control and exercise group after 4 weeks intervention. GM alpha and beta diversity also did not differ (P > 0.05) by HOMA-IR and FMD categories. We did observe that participants with a lower WC (<102 cm) had a significantly (P < 0.05) different microbial beta diversity than men with a WC of 102-109.99 cm but not compared to those with a WC > 110 cm.

Conclusions
In this study, exercise training during 4 weeks of consuming a fat-sugar supplemented diet did not appear to influence GM diversity. However, beta-diversity was heterogeneous across WC classes suggesting a potential link between central adiposity and GM community structure. Further studies with a larger sample size should be done to confirm these findings.

Funding Sources
This study was partially funded by the Arizona State University Graduate and Professional Student Association Research Program.


The synthesis reaction of potassium dicyanoaurate-hexacyanoferrate electrolyte and the pertinence of this electrolyte for gold nanowire synthesis are reported. Gold nanowires were synthesised in anodic aluminium oxide (AAO) nanopores using an improved design of the electrochemical cell. AAO templates with thick gold layers were placed on the surface of the electrolyte, thus the ends of the nanopores were opened, allowing the electrolyte to freely diffuse into the nanopores, extruding gases. The presented procedure simplifies the preparation before nanowire synthesis: AAO templates before synthesis do not need to degas and isolate themselves from contact with the electrolyte by a parafilm or a non-conductive adhesive. A considerably faster nanowire growth in the given conditions in the case of a semi-immersed AAO template when compared with the complete immersion method is reported. For comparison with literature data, gold nanowires were synthesised by the classical electrochemical cell using potassium dicyanoaurate-citrate electrolyte. Long, smooth and high purity nanowires were obtained using semi-immersed templates.


Efforts to build "secure" computer systems have now been underway for more than a decade. Many designs have been proposed, some prototypes have been constructed, and a few systems are approaching the production stage. A small number of systems are even operating in what the Department of Defense calls the "multilevel" mode some information contained m these computer systems may have a clasmfication higher than the clearance of some of the users of those systems. This paper revmws the need for formal security models, describes the structure and operation of military security controls, considers how automation has affected security problems, surveys models that have been proposed and applied to date, and suggests possible d~rectlons for future models


In this paper we present an approach for 3D face recognition based on extracting principal components of range images by utilizing modified PCA methods namely 2DPCA and bidirectional 2DPCA also known as (2D) 2 PCA.A preprocessing stage was implemented on the images to smooth them using median and Gaussian filtering. In the normalization stage we locate the nose tip to lay it at the center of images then crop each image to a standard size of 100*100. In the face recognition stage we extract the principal component of each image using both 2DPCA and (2D) 2 PCA. Finally, we use Euclidean distance to measure the minimum distance between a given test image to the training images in the database. We also compare the result of using both methods. The best result achieved by experiments on a public face database shows that 83.3 percent is the rate of face recognition for a random facial expression. Keywords—3D face recognition, 2DPCA, (2D) 2 PCA, Range image


Enterprise architecture (EA) is a description of an enterprise from an integrated business and IT perspective intended to improve business and IT alignment. EA literature describes many detailed EA methodologies, artifacts and frameworks to organize them. However, establishing EA practice still remains a challenging endeavor with a low success rate. On the other hand, this is not surprising since most organizations successfully practicing EA do not follow EA methodologies and frameworks strictly but adapt them to their own needs or even use them only as idea contributors. Therefore, in order to improve the success rate of EA initiatives, it is necessary to understand better how exactly successful companies adapt EA methodologies in practice. In particular, we argue that the most significant problems in EA practice arise because the usage of individual EA artifacts in practice is poorly understood. In this paper we describe how we are going to investigate the usage of EA artifacts to close this gap.


A double imprinting approach was used to generate polymer layers with recognition properties for the detection of atrazine. This straightforward technique enabled us to transfer the biological information of antibodies to plastics. At first, natural antibodies were utilized to pattern the nanoparticles to generate imprints. In a consecutive step, these nanoparticles were assembled onto stamps for surface imprinting the polymer layer to produce replicas. Thus, the generated artificial antibodies show an approximately four times higher sensor response than their natural counterparts. Furthermore, the patterned nanoparticles can be used many times for structuring new sensor layers. Additionally, the synthetic receptors are more robust and allow us to include pre-concentration with organic solvent extraction. Even so, a higher selectivity pattern was observed in case of antibody replicas.


A convenient synthesis of 3,11-dimethylnonacosan-2-one (1) is described. Our strategy involves the use of well known C-alkylation and ethyl acetoacetate synthesis reactions as key steps. We expect that this method will prove to be useful for large scale preparation of 1 and modification of dimethylnonacosanones.


Just talk to people! This phrase refers to the test of learning-by-doing with which graduate students – and even more experienced researchers – are often confronted when carrying out fieldwork. The reason? Most graduate programmes in political science neglect to provide formal training in interview-based research. The starting point of this book is precisely the paradox that in spite of the fact that there is a long tradition in some subfields of political science of relying on field-intensive research, a considerable gap exists in the literature related to the use of interviews as a methodological tool. This book aims to fill this gap by addressing different elements of interview-based research. With that purpose in mind, this volume brings together 12 contributions from across different subfields of political science, but where they all share the goal of giving 'advice, both practical and theoretical, about how to effectively use interviews as part of the research process' (p. 26). The book is comprised of three main parts, preceded by an introduction in which the editor broadly outlines the main discussions associated with the use of interviews within political science. The first part touches upon general considerations such as aligning sampling strategies with analytical goals, the ethical treatment of human subjects, the power of the interviewer and the best ways to report interview data. These are valuable contributions for any researcher employing interviews as a methodological tool. The second part addresses the particular challenges of interview research like, for example, working with interpreters or facing the problem of extraterritorial legality. Readers might find particular aspects from here relevant for their own research, although other aspects might not be. The last part of the volume illustrates specific uses of interview data. Examples include, among others, elite interviewing in Washington and interviews to understand racial group identity and political behaviour. Apart from its value for filling a gap in the literature, this book has one additional merit: it reflects the epistemological diversity within the discipline, facilitating a dialogue between positivist and interpretivist scholars. Overall, the book is a valuable source for understanding the key challenges behind interview-based research – such as ethics, sampling, validity and reliability – and also contains practical advice for coping with interviews in the different stages of research. However, it should be clarified that, more than a handbook for interview-based research, it is a collection of texts interested in appraising interviews as a methodological tool.


My dissertation dispels the belief that "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (Buffy) is a feminist text. Through the notion of punishments as well Buffy's inclusion of racial bigotry Buffy can be established as a text that adheres to socially constructed notions of gender, race and sexuality. As such, through the exploration of Buffy's protagonist Buffy as well as Willow, Angel, Spike, Giles and Xander I will determine how Buffy uses the notion of punishments to segregate any character that does not meet a supposed normative male, white, heterosexual criterion. Thus Buffy punishes the female characters and the characters that are presumed to be racial Others. Buffy and Willow's lack of control over their own lives cause both to suffer and Angel and Spike's status as racial Other establishes both as dangerous until their assimilation. Buffy's positive portrayal of assimilation enables continued abuses of racial Other characters despite assimilation often leading to death. Consequently Buffy's positive portrayal of strong, assertive femininity is undermined through consistent punishments as is Buffy's supposed positive images of the racial Other.


We compare beginning special and general education teachers' access to school-based colleagues. Our findings demonstrate that colleague relationships are critical for the experiences of beginning teachers, as are the school organizational norms that these beginning teachers experience. For special education teachers in particular, perception of colleague support was a strong predictor of retention plans. Similar results were seen with respect to their perception of the level of collective responsibility among the faculty. Taken together, these results suggest that schools and districts should make efforts to facilitate productive relationships between general and special education faculty, as well as to differentiate induction support for beginning special educators.


The lack of knowledge and skills for transitioning to motherhood places first-time mothers at greater risk of depression and stress, may lower their perceived self-efficacy and satisfaction with the maternal role, and potentially affects the mother-infant bond. The purpose of this study was to test the efficacy of a multimodal nursing intervention (AMACOMPRI), based on Mercer's Becoming a Mother Theory, in supporting the process of becoming a mother in first-time mothers of term infants. This study was a parallel-group, double-blind, randomized, controlled trial with a 4-month postpartum follow-up. The outcome measures were the process of becoming a mother, functional social support, mother-infant bond, and perceived maternal self-efficacy. Sixty-six first-time mothers completed the study: 33 in the intervention group and 33 in the control group. The intervention was effective in supporting the process of becoming a mother, with a large effect size (Cohen's d = 1.50) and higher scores on the Becoming-a-Mother Scale in the intervention group compared with the control group (intergroup difference 13.04 points; 95% confidence interval: 8.72-17.34). Participants in the intervention group demonstrated higher scores in functional social support, perceived maternal self-efficacy, and mother-infant bond. This study provides evidence for the efficacy of an innovative nursing intervention that supports the process of becoming a mother. Further testing of the intervention is required in different settings and first-time mothers of low and high risk newborns.


Cloud Computing is a generic term for delivering hosted services over the Internet. It follows a pay-as-you-go approach. Cloud Computing offers numerous benefits for the enterprises, however, there are also many issues, as with any new paradigm or technology. One of the main issues relate to the security and confidentiality of customer data in terms of its location, relocation, availability and security. This paper outlines the Cloud benefits, briefly explains the delivery and deployment models and discusses in detail the issues relating to data in the Cloud. The aim is to provide some useful background information for organizations preparing to migrate to the Cloud to take advantage of this latest computing paradigm.


Although comparative studies of the cholesterolemic properties of trans fatty acids relative to cis-unsaturates and saturates have been conducted in humans and animals, there is no recent information relating these lipid responses to susceptibility to atherosclerosis. Therefore, hamsters were fed diets containing equivalent amounts of cholesterol (0.12% wt/wt) and test fats (20% wt/wt) for 8 weeks. Each test fat contained between 50-52% of the-total triacylglycerols as a single fatty acid, i.e., 8:0, 14:0, 18:0, cis-18:1, or trans-18:1 while the balance consisted of 16:0, cis-18:1 and 18:2 that were the same for all groups. Plasma total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels were not different for 8:0, cis-18:1, and trans-18:1, whereas 14:0 caused a significant rise in plasma TC, LDL-C, and HDL-C. LDL oxidation measurements showed that the lag phase of conjugated diene formation was longest for the trans-18:1 and cis-18:1 groups while rate of conjugated diene formation was lowest for the trans-18:1 and cis-18:1 groups. The trans-18:1- and cis-18:1-fed animals had significantly higher levels of LDL alpha-tocopherol relative to the 8:0- and 14:0-fed animals. Aortic fatty streak formation was highest for the 14:0- and 8:0-fed animals and lowest for the trans-18:1. In conclusion, the plasma lipid and antioxidant properties of trans-18:1 and cis-18:1 were comparable while the trans-18:1-fed hamsters had the least amount of early atherosclerosis. In addition, 8:0-fed animals unexpectedly had early atherosclerosis formation similar to the 14:0-fed animals.


Background: Psoriasis is a non-infectious chronic inflammatory disease of skin characterized by well-defined erythematous plaques with silvery scales having chronic fluctuatory course affecting both sex and different age groups. In India, its prevalence varies from 0.84% - 6%. Psoriasis can be correlated to different varieties of (Skin diseases) like or due to the resemblances of signs and symptoms. The etiological factors explained for can be classified as and. Each plays an important role in the manifestation of the disease. As Ayurveda emphasizes as the first line of treatment to treat a disease, so it is essential to prevent the manifestation of the disease and further to check the progression of the disease through and which the unique contributions of Ayurvedic science are. Aim & Obective: The objective of this review is to assess dietary factors which play a role in psoriasis. Discussion: The risk of dietary factors & their interactions in psoriasis is discussed. Conclusion: In this review, dietary factors which play a role in psoriasis are assessed and their potential benefit is evaluated.
Keyword:  Psoriasis, Kushtha, Pathya, Apathya, Ahara Vihara, Sadvritta.


It has been made many achievements on neurosciences in television. Herein, it is communicated via the author a new hypothesis raised by a US Member of Satellite Group, which has also been manifested in television together with the unification of four forces in physics with electromagnetism. It was newly suggested that the external noxious stimulus would elicit both neural and immune responses in inflammation, with the neural responses amplifying the immune activation against the external stimulus by such cells as the helper T cells, basophils and so on; while the healthy tissues elsewhere could not elicit these neural and immune responses, there with the immune suppression predominating by such cells as the suppressor T cells, eosinophils and so on. Besides, herein it is also collected some updated evidence to support this hypothesis from the US Member of Satellite Group, including the autoimmune diseases, the evolutionarily ancient neuroinflammation, and the neural immunoregulation of gut commensal microbes.


This article shows that nonlinear transaction costs generate external effects between accounts due to trade-volume-dependent marginal transaction costs. For an asset manager with multiple clients, this raises the question of fairness: How do I ensure that all clients are treated fairly? In general, two possible solutions exist. The first is the so-called COURNOT/NASH solution, where each account is optimized under the assumption that trading in the remaining accounts is given. However, in a COURNOT/NASH equilibrium, each client pays the average costs of trading but creates higher marginal costs (under the assumption of nonlinear transaction costs) on the "community" of accounts. Ignoring this interdependence will hurt performance in all accounts. The authors model optimal trading with mean variance preferences as a duopoly game. This allows the use of well-developed microeconomic tools for analyzing the optimal trading problem and linking it with the literature on external effects and their solution, i.e., the COASE theorem.


The geology, geomorphology and recent history of deforestation are briefly reviewed and the coincidence of recent increase in flood deposition rates and deforestation is noted. The activity of the N.Z. Forest Service in reforestation of part of the Waipaoa head waters is documented and a description given of the debris control techniques employed in the more critical eroding areas. The experience of the ten years following planting in Homestead Creek is more particularly described, as are the results apparently attributable to reforestation. A theoretical basis for these results is postulated and the conclusions in terms of future forest practice derived. In addition, some measure of the return from protection and production forest investment is attempted in terms of downstream values and future industrial potential.


Abstract: We studied the characteristics of the marking behavior of Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) at rub trees. We recorded the tree-marking (tree-rubbing and bark-scratching) and associated (stomping) behaviors in Japan between 2010 and 2015 using automatic cameras and compared the results with those from previous studies on other bear species. We recorded 22 visits to trees by ≥6 different individuals. During these visits, there were no differences in the frequency or duration between the 3 body orientations of back rubbing, front rubbing, and body-side rubbing, which differs from the findings for other bear species. However, bipedal standing was the most common posture, as observed in other species. We also analyzed the order of tree-marking actions. For a better understanding of the Asiatic black bear's marking behavior, further examples of marking behavior and anatomical studies of secretory glands are needed.