Preamble Decompression Sickness (DCS) is the collective name of the pathogenic adverse health effects of excess inert gas load in a human body due to a reduction in ambient pressure. The severity of these effects depends mainly on the gradient and the speed of the pressure reduction. This does not only affect divers or tunnel-/caisson workers but as well aviators and astronauts. Catastrophe Theory is a part of the mathematical fields of non-linear dynamics and differential topology for the study of bifurcations and singularities of polynomial, non-linear, so-called "potential functions". Is DCS a "CUSP" catastrophe? Page # [4] _____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Albi @ www.SMC-de.com So the following is an essay on some aspects of DCS and the relation to just one of the 7 socalled elementary catastrophes, the cusp. Thus it is not a strict scientific paper, neither in form nor in contents but delineates a couple of preliminary thoughts on the topic, intended to raise awareness or as a basis for further discussions. As well this should help to unearth again the purely mathematical and useful tools for the qualitative study of catastrophic behavior: these have been buried now for the 2nd. time for ca. 40 years. I want to put it together with a pragmatic, physiologic approach to create an innovative and fresh (and, maybe, a completely unsubstantiated ... ) new look at dcs-related phenomena.


Abstract Recent researches state that the categorization of retinal vessels into artery/vein (A/V) is a critical phase for automating the detection of vascular adjustments and for the calculation of function symptoms related to numerous systemic illnesses which includes diabetes, high blood pressure, and different cardiovascular situations. This paper affords an automatic method for A/V class, primarily based on the evaluation of a graph extracted from the retinal vasculature. The proposed method classifies the entire vascular tree choosing the kind of each intersection factor (graph nodes) and assigning one of two labels to every vessel phase (graph links). Very last category of a vessel phase as A/V is achieved through the combination of the graph primarily based labeling results with a fixed of intensity features. The proposed model applies it to three open retinal picture datasets (two datasets of shading fundus photography and one fluorescein angiography dataset). The proposed model beats its rivals when analyzed with other generally utilized unsupervised and administered techniques. For test, the affectability (0:742), particularity (0:982) and precision (0:954) achieved on the DRIVE dataset are close to second onlooker's explanations. File terms vessel, division, neighborhood stage. Keywords: A/V: Artery and Vein, optical disc, ANN, GMM, GRF Cite this Article Kumar Parasuraman, Selva Gayathri B, Senthamarai Kannan K. Automated Vessel Segmentation of Retinal Vessels using Hybrid Region Information. Research & Reviews: Journal of Statistics . 2018; 7(3): 28–36p.


The pattern of DNA methylation plays an important role in regulating different genome functions. To test the hypothesis that DNA methylation is a reversible biochemical process, we purified a DNA demethylase from human cells that catalyzes the cleavage of a methyl residue from 5-methyl cytosine and its release as methanol. We show that similar to DNA methyltransferase, DNA demethylase shows CpG dinucleotide specificity, can demethylate mdCpdG sites in different sequence contexts, and demethylates both fully methylated and hemimethylated DNA. Thus, contrary to the commonly accepted model, DNA methylation is a reversible signal, similar to other physiological biochemical modifications.


Power wastage is one of the most serious problems at present. The slogan "turn off lights when not in use" has long been going around, but lights turned on in unoccupied rooms are frequently seen, particularly in public agencies or schools. The power line communication protocol frame work differs from ones used in the past such as X-10 [1], CEBus [3], LonWorks [6], etc. This system is intended for public spaces, where efficient management and control on lighting devices are implemented. Hopefully, simple circuit designs will help to achieve the purpose of power saving. By means of existing internal power line of buildings as communication media, module inductive circuits are compatible with current power switches. Through the system power lines and RF communication techniques, all school luminaries are managed by PDA remote monitoring method. Lights not in use are switched off to achieve power saving.


As we have observed previously, rat liver Golgi complexes are very useful cell organelle in investigating the effectiveness of various drugs with cytoprotective or normalizing activities in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. The diabetes-associated biochemical and morphological alterations in the organelle were investigated in four groups of rats: control and STZ-diabetic (C and D groups) and compared with the same groups treated with 1.5 mM metavanadate administered as drinking solutions in 0.09 M NaCl over 7 days (C+V and D+V groups). Apart from the untreated group C, a decrease of body weight during the experiment was noted in the remaining three groups, reaching a statistically significant level in the diabetic groups (c. 15%). Fluid and food intake were statistically significantly (p<0.001) limited in both the vanadium treated groups. In the diabetic group treated with metavanadate, the free blood sugar level decreased, but euglycemia was not achieved. In groups C+V, D and D+V, the activity of Golgi marker enzyme, i.e. galactosyltransferase (GalT), was statistically lower as compared with group C (p<0.001). The treatment of diabetic rats with 1.5 mM NaVO3 [V(V)I in 0.09 M NaCl as a drinking solution during 7 days did not normalize the yield of Golgi membrane preparations or the Golgi marker enzyme activity. Electron microscopy revealed marked ultrastructural changes triggered by the employed vanadium compound. A striking change was seen in the presence of giant intracytoplasmic vacuoles. These alterations were seen in both experimental groups, i.e. C+V and D+V. Group C+V showed more advanced ultrastructural changes, what was expressed in a poorer state of mitochondrial membranes, a greater number of vesicular structures and less frequently seen Golgi structures. In spite of the fact that the animals were exposed to two compounds with a strong biological activity, the group of diabetic rats treated with metavanadate (D+V) showed no such advanced changes: more numerous Golgi structures were noted and their form was practically ring-like, i.e. characteristic for this group of organelles.


An important issue for video transmission over IP networks is preservation of perceived video quality despite packet loss. Packet loss can be detrimental to compressed video. However, reducing packet loss to a very low level is difficult with current loss control techniques. Furthermore, even a very low objective loss probability can still seriously distort perceived video quality. This paper proposes a loss control scheme using video characteristics. It increases maximum loss tolerance for a desired level of video quality, providing better quality at equal loss ratios, as compared to a conventional packet discard scheme. Meanwhile, network efficiency is also improved.


On the basis of the two-dimensional cellular automaton model, a three-dimensional cellular automaton model of austenitizing process was established. By considering the orientation of pearlite layer and the direction of austenite grain growth, the velocity of the interface was calculated during the austenitizing process. The austenitizing process of GCr15 steel was simulated, and the anisotropy of grain growth rate during austenitization was demonstrated by simulation results. By comparing the simulation results with the experimental data, it was found that the calculated results of the three-dimensional cellular automaton model established in this paper were in good agreement with the experimental results. By using this model, the three-dimensional austenitizing process of GCr15 steel at different temperatures and under different processing times can be analyzed, and the degree of austenitization can be predicted.


Resistance to therapy is a major obstacle to a favorable outcome in cancer treatment. For rectal cancer, neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) can lead to complete tumor regression in a significant proportion of patients (up to 40%) but approximately 60% of patients have only partial or no tumor remission after nCRT. A number of works searching for a differential gene expression signature has failed. As those gene signatures relies on the sample set, there is an increasing agreement that biological understanding is necessary to produce a signature in terms of pathways and biological processes. In this regard we applied pathway enrichment analysis to RNA-Seq data in order to identify biological pathways involved in tumor resistance and discriminate rectal cancer patients that is refractory to neoadjuvant treatment. Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation and phosphatidylinositol signaling were identified as the main pathways involved in resistance to nCRT in patients with rectal cancer. Both pathways have been reported as involved in resistance to radiotherapy and chemotherapy in solid tumors but according to the status of gene regulation observed and the literature, there is evidence that Akt pathway could be central in promoting resistance.Therefore, we evaluated the status of Akt activation by immunohistochemistry of pre-treatment biopsies of rectal tumors as well as by immunoblot of colorectal cancer cell lines utilizing antibodies against phosphorylated Akt (pS473). As a result, we observed an increased proportion of Akt phosphorylation in the resistant cell line, SW480, and in patients with TRG 0-2 in comparison to those with TRG 3-4 and in the sensitive cell line, SW48. To evaluate the implication of Akt in promoting nCRT resistance, we performed colony formation assays using Akt inhibitors as radiosensitizers. We observed an additive effect using MK2206 at sub-doses in combination to radiotherapy (2 Gy) in the resistant cell line. In fact, Akt inhibition improved in approximately 40% the tumoricidal effects of radiotherapy. Moreover, at IC50 dose this effect is even higher, reaching 60% the improvement of radiotherapy. Furthermore, the treatment of MK2206 with radiotherapy alone or in combination with 5-FU have similar effectiveness. In this setting, as Akt is involved in a range of cellular functions that promote tumor progression and metastasis, we propose that combination of Akt inhibitor and radiotherapy as neoadjuvant treatment would maximize tumor remission and improve the rectal cancer treatment. Citation Format: Fernanda C. Koyama, Camila Ramos, Angelita Habr-Gama, Venâncio Avancini Ferreira Alves, Rodrigo O. Perez, Anamaria Aranha Camargo. Implications of Akt inhibition for neoadjuvant radiotherapy: improving the rectal cancer treatment. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 391.


In the present work, we have developed a new indicator displacement system based on pillararene for anionic water-soluble carboxylato pillar [6] arene (WP6) and aromatic fluorescent dye safranine T (ST). A large fluorescence enhancement and colour change of ST were observed after complexation with electron-rich cavity in WP6 because of host-guest twisted intramolecular charge-transfer interactions. The constructed pillararene-indicator displacement system can be applied for caffeine selective detection in water.


Aim:To find out the socio-demographic and clinical features of adolescent who attended the outpatient psychiatric clinic of the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Enugu over a five-year period (1995 – 1999)
Method:Case notes of all the patients who attended this clinic for this five-year period were extracted from the medical records department of the hospital and examined. The case notes of all the adolescents who attended the clinic were then isolated from the lot and studied.
Results: Out of a total of 3277 patients seen in this clinic for this period, 583 were found to be adolescent representing a period prevalences of 17.8%; 60.2% of the adolescents were students. The average age of the adolescents was 14.5years, 31.2% of the adolescents presented with schizophrenic symptoms followed by substance abuse, which recorded 20% of attendance. There were 62.6% males and 37.3% females giving a male: female ratio of approximately 2:1.
Conclusion: In view of large number of adolescent who attended the out-patient psychiatric clinic of this hospital, it was concluded that government should lay more emphasis on the improvement of the mental health status of adolescents by creating an enabling socio-economic environment through better youth employment and educational opportunities as well as counseling in schools among others.
Key words: Socio-demographic, Adolescents, Psychiatric Out-patient Clinic.
(J College Med: 2003 8(1): 47-49)


Nigeria was depicted to be the fastest growing telecommunications nation in African. Presently, all members of the Nigeria banking industry have engaged the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) as a platform for effective and efficient means of conducting financial transactions. This paper focuses on determining the level of users' acceptance of the electronic banking services and investigating the factors that determine users' behavioral intentions to use electronic banking systems in Nigeria. The survey instrument employed involved design and administration of a total of 500 survey questionnaires within the Lagos metropolis and its environs. An extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was employed as a conceptual framework to investigate the factors that influence users' acceptance and intention to use electronic banking. To test the model, data was collected from 292 customers from various commercial banks in Nigeria. The model measured the impact of Perceived Credibility (PC), Computer Self-Efficacy (CSE), Perceived Usefulness (PU), and Perceived Ease of Use (PEOU) on customer attitude and customer attitude on customer adaptation. The result of this research shows that ATM still remains the most widely used form e-Banking service. Banks' customers who are active users of e-Banking system use it because it is convenient, easy to use, time saving and appropriate for their transaction needs. Also the network security and the security of the system in terms of privacy are the major concerns of the users and constitute hindrance to intending users.


Abstract The effects on the regional precipitation climate by the construction of an artificial lake, in a semiarid region are studied. The study is performed using a mesoscale model to identify the larger-scale meteorological conditions when precipitation enhancement is to be expected and to estimate the amount of precipitation enhancement in such situations. The model results are combined with a ten-year synoptic observations dataset to estimate the mean annual increase in precipitation for the region. The results show a significant increase in precipitation partly over the artificial lake itself, due to land/sea-breeze type circulations during periods when the large-scale wind is weak and the surface temperature of the sea is higher than that of the surrounding areas, and partly over the mountains north of the area in cases with sufficiently strong southerly winds causing the air to be lifted. Being aware of the uncertainty in the quantitative estimates presented here, this paper shows how a combinatio...


Graphical User Interface (GUI) is an integral part of the contemporary software. Testing GUI poses different challenges compared to those applications not involving GUI. The main reason is that GUI involves interactive input, where as the output produced is often graphical. One of the approaches in testing GUI is functional testing. The goal is to find the difference between the actual behavior and desired behavior mentioned in specification. A standard method of generating specification based functional tests is to partition the input space, and then select test data from each partition. One such systematic approach, the category partition method, is however exhaustive in nature. In order to reduce the number of test cases generated by the category partition method, pairwise sampling can be used. Pair-wise sampling is based on the observation that most of the errors occur because of interaction of at the most two factors. In this paper we empirically compare fault-detection ability and the cost of applying category partition method (exhaustive) and pair-wise sampling. Our results, based on the subject applications, show that pair-wise sampling can be used at much lower cost and without losing much of the fault-finding ability.


Data clustering acts as an intelligent tool, a method that allows the user to handle large volumes of data effectively. The basic function of clustering is to transform data of any origin into a more compact form, one that represents accurately the original data. Clustering algorithms are used to analyze these large collection of data by means of subdividing them into groups of similar data. Fuzzy clustering extends the crisp clustering technique in such a way that instead of an object belonging to just one cluster at a time, the object belongs to one or more clusters at the same time with appropriate membership values assigned to the object in a cluster. This paper addresses the major issues associated with the conventional partitional clustering algorithms, namely difficulty in determining the cluster centers and handling noise or outlier points. Integration of fuzzy logic in data mining subjugates these traditional methods to handle natural data which are often vague. The study provides an analysis of two fuzzy clustering algorithms videlicet fuzzy c- means and adaptive fuzzy clustering algorithm and its illustration on different fields.


A successful campaign by the right, coupled with an ignominious and unimaginative retreat by the left, has meant that socialism has taken a heavy political battering over the last two decades. Peter Hain, a leading figure in the current battle for the soul of the Labour Party, presents in this book the case for a modern and participatory socialism. He makes a case for a radical, popular and decentred socialism - an alternative to both the social democratic and communist traditions. This offers policies for regenerating the economy, democratizing the British state and creating a people's Europe.


In this paper, we present a hardware architecture for very high resolution (VHR) scalable video coding using the virtual zerotree (VZT) algorithm, a variant of the embedded zerotree wavelet (EZW) algorithm. The VZT architecture is regular and modular and is suitable for VLSI implementation. The output of the architecture is a data stream containing the virtual map, significance map and successive-approximation quantization symbols of the VZT algorithm. The approach is based on an efficient scheme to determine ancestor-descendant relationships in the wavelet coefficient data stream by rearrangement of the data stream for simpler VLSI implementation. The approach uses the sign-magnitude binary representation of the rearranged wavelet coefficients to form a single bit data stream as the input into the architecture. The coding and quantization for the VZT algorithm are formulated in view of the single bit data stream input and the corresponding VLSI architecture to implement the formulated requirements is presented.


Code obfuscation is a popular approach to turn program comprehension and analysis harder, with the aim of mitigating threats related to malicious reverse engineering and code tampering. However, programming languages that compile to high level bytecode (e.g., Java) can be obfuscated only to a limited extent. In fact, high level bytecode still contains high level relevant information that an attacker might exploit. In order to enable more resilient obfuscations, part of these programs might be implemented with programming languages (e.g., C) that compile to low level machine-dependent code. In fact, machine code contains and leaks less high level information and it enables more resilient obfuscations. In this paper, we present an approach to automatically translate critical sections of high level Java bytecode to C code, so that more effective obfuscations can be resorted to. Moreover, a developer can still work with a single programming language, i.e., Java.


Advances in the field of paediatric regional anaesthesia have specific applications to both acute and chronic pain management. This review summarizes data regarding the safety of paediatric regional anaesthetic techniques. Current guidelines are provided for performing paediatric regional techniques, with a focus on applications for postoperative pain management. Brief descriptions of relevant anatomy followed by indications for commonly performed blocks are highlighted along with the potential of adverse side-effects.


This article evaluates what Drakeford and Vanstone (2000) have called "doing good by stealth"—the quiet embrace of progressive penal policies, often twinned with contradictorily punitive rhetoric—in order to critically examine both the motives of policymakers under the pressures exerted by the "penal populism calculus" and the consequences for penal policymaking processes and outcomes. It offers a typological model of penal policymaking strategies and outcomes based on two polar dimensions: covert (quiet) vs. transparent (loud), and fair/effective (high-roading) vs. unfair/ineffective (low-roading). It provides examples of each strategy, examines the arguments for and against each one, and proposes alternative ways to achieve the legitimation goals of penal populism, informed by theories of public deliberation and participatory democracy.


The mechanistic aspects of supramolecular ordering of synthetic β-amino acid based peptides in different organic solvents and fuel oils are reported. The peptide Boc-cis-ACHC-Aib-Phe-OMe (Boc=tert-butyloxycarbonyl, cis-ACHC=cis-2-aminocyclohexanecarboxylic acid, Aib=α-amino isobutyric acid, Phe=phenylalanine; 1) is able to entrap various organic solvents and oils, leading to the formation of self-supporting gels. Spectroscopic studies confirm the turn-type β-sheet arrangement of peptide 1 in the gel phase. A morphology study shows that a bundle of nanofibers form from self-assembled peptide 1. Peptide 1 is capable of entrapping organic or oil layers selectively over the aqueous layer. Furthermore, the phase-selective gelation behavior of peptide 1 is effectively used as a model study for oil spill recovery from a biphasic mixture of oil and water.


The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of Savannah Hypothesis to identify the most preferred visually attractive tree species in a form/context that would confer maximum comfort in workplaces and determine any feelings associated with trees at the workplace. A cross sectional cross national study, two-stage cluster sampling design involving 890 randomly selected Kenyan workers and Japanese students participated. Participants shared their feelings on trees in the workplace and rated the workplace conditions with respect to heat, dust, darkness and noise and attractiveness of 5 tree silhouettes and 5 form/context using paired comparison method with a 5-point rating scale. To determine preferences, the average score for each tree and for every form/context was calculated and the resulting data statistically analysed using repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA). Post Hoc multiple comparisons' analysis was conducted using Student-Newman-Keuls (comparisons of means only) and the Tukey Method (comparison of ratios). This was because potted plants were rated significantly higher than all other form types, effectively laying credence to the Savannah Hypothesis. Results showed that workplaces in Kenya were dusty (69.6%), with poor thermal conditions (73.3%), poor lighting (52.6%) and very noisy (3.4%) and that noise was cause for worry in 44.6% of the respondents. The repeated measures ANOVA revealed that there was significant main effect of tree shapes (F = 81.796, p< 0.05). Acacia and Mango were in the same sub-group (this means that there were no significant differences between any pairs of them) followed by Palm (2 nd sub-group, and significantly higher than Baobab which fell singly in the third sub-group. Euphorbia was the least preferred among the 5 tree species studied. There was a strong and consistent preference for Acacia tortilis (Acacia), Mangifera indica (Mango) and Cocos nucifera (Palm) across most respondent categories studied. The three were also rated highly even when the differences were not significant. So, Acacia tortilis (Acacia), Mangifera indica (Mango) and Cocos nucifera (Palm) were considered the most attractive species for maximum workplace comfort. On the hand , potted plants were rated higher than all the 5 forms studied. These findings suggest that as a way of bonding and connecting with nature, there is no substitute for the 'real' thing. Further study, involving larger samples is however recommended to confirm these findings. It is also recommended that nature conservation efforts should consider such preferences to ensure active participation by citizens and workers, unconsciously driven by knowledge of perceived benefits.


Picric acid is known to react with metals to form highly unstable metallic picrates, which are known to have been involved in serious explosive accidents. In this study, transition-metal picrates of chromium, manganese, cobalt and nickel salts are synthesized, and the thermodynamic and explosive properties (for example, initiation sensitivity) are examined. The decomposition of Mn-picrate or Co-picrate determined through differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) begins at a lower temperature than that of picric acid, and the heat of decomposition of transition-metal picrates is found to be lower than that of picric acid. Thermogravimetry and Karl Fischer analysis confirm that transition-metal picrates contain crystal water, and the amount of crystal water in metastable-phase picrates is determined experimentally. Thermogravimetric analysis reveals that crystal water begins to dehydrate in a temperature range extending from slightly above room temperature to approximately 470 K. The activation energies of the decomposition reaction of these transition-metal picrates are 204.1 kJ·mol for Cr-picrate, 108.1 kJ·mol for Mn-picrate, 132.3 kJ·mol for Co-picrate, and 184.3 kJ·mol for Ni-picrate. Drophammer test results show that Cr-picrate has higher strike sensitivity than picric acid, and friction tests reveal that all of the transition metal-picrates examined here have equal or lower friction sensitivity compared to picric acid. Science and Technology of Energetic Materials, Vol.65, No.1, 2004 1


Background : Fast food comes to a meal that is prepared fast and identically high in energy and fat contents since fast food is prepared using oil and fats. Excessive eating of fast food which is Indonesian typical fast foods and international fast foods will deliver obesity risk. Satiety and hunger are known as the two main keys to obesity prevention. Furthermore, Cholecystokinin (CCK) hormone is the one of bio-indicator that can indicate both satiety and hunger. Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the difference between CCK plasma level of Indonesian and international fast food. Method: A post-test only group design was done at 16 male adult subjects. This research measured CCK plasma of adult subjects with normal nutritional status whether consumed Indonesian typical fast foods and international fast foods. CCK plasma was measured by Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) between 0-120 minutes. Results: Subjects who consumed Indonesian typical fast foods had significantly lower CCK plasma at 30,60 and 120 minutes measurement than that counterpart (p = 0.000). Conclusion : There is a different level of CCK after consuming Indonesian typical fast food and International fast food.


The paper analyses the e-commerce chapter of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) from the perspective of the ASEAN Economic Community. Part One traces the RCEP origins, evolution and interim results. Part Two is focuses on the provisions of Chapter Twelve that outlines the RCEP e-commerce-related parameters of cooperation. Arguably, their most salient features suggest that China may well use them to its best advantage by synergizing the RCEP institutional mechanisms with its mega-strategy the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Part Three assesses the impact of the RCEP e-commerce chapter on the Association, most importantly, on the establishment of the ASEAN Economic Community 2025. The author argues that for the association the RCEP e-commerce provisions can be a point of vulnerability rather than a reason for optimism, as ASEAN's spectrum of the AECrelated instruments may narrow. By adapting the digital transformation to the ASEAN context, the paper takes a step forward in increasing knowledge on ASEAN evolution amidst the current global trends. In light of this, the paper contributes to the existing research on ASEAN and ASEAN-led multilateralism, as the implications of the RCEP e-commerce component have not yet been analyzed from an AEC perspective. The findings and assessments of the paper are of both academic and practical significance.


In 1990, a target of universal access to basic education by the year 2000 was set by two global conferences. Ten years later, however, it was clear that the target had not been met. Too many countries had made insufficient progress, and although many of the reasons for this inadequate progress were country-specific, one factor stood out in virtually all countries: inadequate public finance for primary education. In 2000, the Millennium Summit set a new target date for achieving 'education for all' of 2015. This article updates the global and regional cost estimates for reaching that target. The estimates are based on the most recent country-by-country data on budgetary expenditure, population and enrolment trends, and unit cost. The annual additional cost of achieving 'education for all' in developing countries by 2015 is estimated at US$ 9.1 billion. Although this is affordable at the global level, individual countries will need considerably more resources than are currently available. However, official development assistance (ODA) has been declining, and the share of ODA allocated to basic education has changed little over the past decade. Therefore, although affordable, the target of universal basic education by 2015 is likely to be missed, just as it was in 2000, without a major change both in ODA and national budgets.


The effect of Cross breeding and reciprocal crossing on birth, weaning and growth traits of two strains [Chinchilla (CH) and New Zealand white (NZW)] of rabbits aged between 3-4 months were investigated. A total of eighteen (18) does (nine does per strain) and six (6) bucks (three bucks per strain) were used in this study. Three (3) does per strain were assigned to a buck from the opposite strain for mating and the treatment was replicated. The does were mated when they attained the age of 5 months. Birth traits like litter size, litter weight, gestation length, gestation gain, kindling loss and neo-natal mortality were observed. At weaning, litter size, litter weight, litter weight gain, sex ratio and survival rate were monitored. Growth traits like body weight, nose to shoulder length, shoulder to tail length, trunk, ear length and heart girths were monitored at 21, 35 and 49 days. Results obtained showed that Chinchilla (CH) buck crossed with New Zealand white (NZW) does produced offspring with significantly (P< 0.05) better body weight, nose to shoulder length, shoulder to tail length, heart girth, trunk and kindling loss. However, results obtained for neo-natal mortality was better in the offspring from NZW bucks and CH does. It was concluded that progenies from the crosses between CH bucks and NZW does, were better than progenies from the crosses between NZW bucks and CH does.


In the design of a construction dewatering system in a fine-grained soil it is necessary to consider not only the steady state flow rate that must be pumped, but also the time it will take to achieve a given drawdown. This may be weeks because the soil will usually remain saturated, and the mechanism of pore-water pressure reduction is consolidation rather than dewatering per se. If the response time is not taken into account in programming an excavation, the cost implications could be considerable. In this Paper approximate methods based on the assumption that the isochrones are parabolic are developed for the estimation of time-drawdown relationships for dewatering systems in fine soils. The parabolic isochrone analyses are compared with exact solutions where these exist, and with field data from five case studies. The parabolic isochrone approximation is shown to be suitable for flow to lines of wells, and to rings of wells, provided that the distance of influence remains small compared with the radius...


One of the leading causes of death worldwide is hypertension. Indonesia still has a very low level of hypertension prevention awareness. Support from the family can help people prevent hypertension. Family support is a type of interpersonal interaction that involves accepting family members and having positive views toward them, so that they feel cared for. An action taken to avoid hypertension is called a hypertension preventative habit. This study aims to examine how family support and hypertension prevention behavior relate to one another in middle adulthood in the Baros ward, which is the service area for the Baros Public Health Center in Sukabumi City. This study has a cross-sectional design and is a correlational investigation. Cluster random sampling was used to collect data from 116 respondents in 8 hamlets in the Baros district. Collecting data using a questionnaire and bivariate analysis with Chi-square. The results of this study were 88 (75, 9%) respondents were known to have family support and as many as 67 respondents (76,1%) had good behavior in preventing hypertension. The results of Chi-square test showed p-value = 0.000 (< 0.05) indicating a connection between family support and hypertension prevention behavior in middle adulthood and it is hoped that this research will be an input for improving outreach programs about the importance of family support for hypertension prevention behavior.
Keywords: family support, behavior, hypertension


One of the oldest topics in the calculus of variations is the study of the elastic rod which, according to Daniel Bernoulli's idealization, minimizes total squared curvature among curves of the same length and first order boundary data. The classical term elastica refers to a curve in the plane or IR which represents such a rod in equilibrium. While the elastica and its generalizations have long been (and continue to be) of interest in the context of elasticity theory, the elastica as a purely geometrical entity seems to have been largely ignored. Recently, however, Bryant and Griffiths [1, 3] have found the elastica and its natural generalization to space forms (where arc length is generally not constrained) to be an interesting example in the context of the general theory of exterior differential systems. Independently, the present authors have studied 'free' elastic curves in space forms and have drawn connections to well-known problems in differential geometry [4, 5]. From the geometric point of view, the closed elasticae and their global behaviour are naturally of particular interest. In the present paper we maintain this emphasis but return to the classical setting of Euclidean curves with fixed arc length. Specifically, we give a complete classification of closed elastic curves in U" and determine the knottedness of these elasticae. We note that the integrability of the equations for a classical elastica was known already to Euler in the planar case and (essentially) to Radon in the case of IR (see Blaschke's Vorlesungen iiber Differentialgeometrie I); to determine the closed elasticae, however, the chief problem is to understand the dependence of the resulting elliptic integrals on certain parameters. Since the closed planar elasticae were well described already by Euler, and since uniqueness of solutions in the initial-value problem implies that any elastica in U" must in fact lie in U, it will suffice to present the following.


Nowadays, it is clear that the old mathematical models are incomplete because of the large size of image data set. For this reason, the Deep Learning models introduced in the field of image processing meet this need in the software field. In this study, Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) model from the Deep Learning Algorithms and the Optimization Algorithms used in Deep Learning have been applied to international image data sets. Optimization algorithms were applied to both datasets respectively, the results were analyzed and compared. The success rate was approximately 96.21% in the Caltech 101 data set, while it was observed to be approximately 10% in the Cifar-100 data set.


Instantaneous head posture (IHP) can extensively alter resting hyoid position in humans, yet postural effects on resting hyoid position remain poorly documented among mammals in general. Clarifying this relationship is essential for evaluating interspecific variation in hyoid posture across evolution, and understanding its implications for hyolingual soft tissue function and swallowing motor control. Using Didelphis virginiana as a model, we conducted static manipulation experiments to show that head flexion shifts hyoid position rostrally relative to the cranium across different gapes. IHP-induced shifts in hyoid position along the anteroposterior axis are comparable to in vivo hyoid protraction distance during swallowing. IHP also has opposite effects on passive genio- and stylohyoid muscle lengths. High-speed biplanar videoradiography suggests Didelphis consistently swallows at neutral to flexed posture, with stereotyped hyoid kinematics across different head postures. IHP change can affect suprahyoid muscle force production by shifting their positions on the length-tension curve, and redirecting lines of action and the resultant force from supra- and infrahyoid muscles. We hypothesize that demands on muscle performance may constrain the range of swallowing head postures in mammals. This article is part of the theme issue 'Food processing and nutritional assimilation in animals'.


Background. Health-related quality of life (HRQL) scores are used extensively to quantify the effectiveness of medical interventions. Societal preference-based HRQL scores aim to produce societal valuations of health by aggregating valuations from individuals in the general population, where each aggregation procedure embodies different ethical principles, as explained in social choice theory. Methods. Using the Health Utilities Index as an exemplar, we evaluate societal preference-based HRQL measures in the social choice theory framework. Results. We find that current preference aggregation procedures are typically justified in terms of social choice theory. However, by convention, they use only one of many possible aggregation procedures (the mean). Central to the choice of aggregation procedure is how to treat preference heterogeneity, which can affect analyses that rely on HRQL scores, such as cost-effectiveness analyses. We propose an analytical-deliberative framework for choosing one (or a set of) aggregation procedure(s) in a socially credible way, which we believe to be analytically sound and empirically tractable, but leave open the institutional mechanism needed to implement it. Conclusions. Socially acceptable decisions about aggregating heterogeneous preferences require eliciting stakeholders' preferences among the set of analytically sound procedures, representing different ethical principles. We describe a framework for eliciting such preferences for the creation of HRQL scores, informed by social choice theory and behavioral decision research.


The kinetics of uptake of ozone to deliquesced potassium iodide (KI) aerosol particles has been investigated in an aerosol flow tube at 72-75% relative humidity, room temperature, and atmospheric pressure. The observed loss of ozone was further analyzed in terms of a numeric model to explicitly track the iodide concentration in the particles. This allowed retrieving a value alpha(b) = 0.6 +/- (0.5)(0.4) for the bulk accommodation coefficient (alpha(b)). The second order rate constant in the bulk phase agreed with available literature (k(b) = (1.0 +/- 0.3) x 10(9) M(-1) s(-1)) even for the high ionic strength conditions of the present experiments. As long as iodide remained in excess, the average uptake coefficient was gamma = (1.10 +/- 0.20) x 10(-2). Different experiments were performed where the iodide to chloride ratio, the ozone concentration, and the surface to volume ratio of particles were varied. In combination, the results obtained indicate that uptake was driven by fast bulk accommodation and reaction in the bulk for all conditions investigated. The results further suggest that ozone uptake is not limited by the bulk accommodation coefficient alpha(b) under atmospheric conditions.


The present study attempts to investigate di erent factors a ecting the resilient modulus of hot mix asphalt. So a fractional factorial analysis of experiment was carried out considering ve factors, each at two di erent levels. These factors were the maximum nominal aggregate size, specimen diameter and thickness, the load pulse form and duration. During the course of analysis, two types of hot mix asphalts with di erent maximum aggregate sizes were taken into consideration, while Marshall compaction method was used to prepare the specimens. Furthermore, measuring the resilient modulus, sinusoidal and triangular load pulse forms were applied. Finally, our investigation examined the di erent factors interrelations which a ect the resilient modulus. Analysis of the factorial experimental design showed that the maximum nominal aggregate size was the most important factor a ecting the resilient modulus, then the load duration, the specimen geometry (thickness and diameter), and nally the interactions between the di erent factors. Keyword: Resilient modulus; Specimen's geometry; Load factors; Factorial experimental; Asphalt mixtures.


It is an optimal way of analysis not to permit public policy justifications under Article 102 TFEU advanced by dominant undertakings. The reason is that there is always the potential for state involvement in the public interest to occur, triggered, in part, by the incitement of dominant undertakings as part of the democratic processes.
Claims based on public policy justifications have never been shown to be genuine, as an evidential matter, but, rather, have been strategically used in litigation, whereas there is exceptionally little case law that finds incitement to public authorities to act as an abuse of rights. In addition, there is added-cost in terms of legal analysis if one permits, in principle, public policy justifications under Article 102 TFEU, since competition law analysis may potentially be distorted in the majority of cases, as has already happened in the case of margin squeeze abuse.
Genuine public policy justifications are more mythical than real, and given the potential for state involvement, academic debate and reasoned Court judgments should, instead, elaborate on the issue of attribution of the market-distorting effect to the undertaking or the state.


State and federal accountability continues to be a major part of public education. The impact that federal legislation has had when working with special needs students adds another facet to public education. Both state and federal accountability play a part in how teachers perceive their attitudes when working with students with disabilities This quantitative study investigated the relationship between teacher perceived knowledge and attitude towards students with disabilities at elementary, middle, high school and K-12 levels in rural school districts in south Texas. Through the use of the Regular Education Teacher Perceptions Survey (RETPS) instrument, data were collected and analyzed. The survey instrument utilizes a five-point Likert type scale to collect data. Identifying areas of needs through the study may assist school districts in better preparing staff to work with students with special needs. Correlations were computed among all attitudes for knowledge of policies and procedures and knowledge of instructional strategies. Secondary scored significantly less than K-12 on total attitudes.


Background Positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) is widely used to improve oxygenation and prevent alveolar collapse in mechanically ventilated patients with the acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Although PEEP improves arterial oxygenation predictably, high-PEEP strategies have demonstrated equivocal improvements in ARDS-related mortality. The effect of PEEP on tissue oxygen delivery is poorly understood and is difficult to quantify or investigate in the clinical environment. Methods We investigated the effects of PEEP on tissue oxygen delivery in ARDS using a new, high-fidelity, computational model with highly integrated respiratory and cardiovascular systems. The model was configured to replicate published clinical trial data on the responses of 12 individual ARDS patients to changes in PEEP. These virtual patients were subjected to increasing PEEP levels during a lung-protective ventilation strategy (0–20 cm H2O). Measured variables included arterial oxygenation, cardiac output, peripheral oxygen delivery, and alveolar strain. Results As PEEP increased, tissue oxygen delivery decreased in all subjects (mean reduction of 25% at 20 cm H2O PEEP), despite an increase in arterial oxygen tension (mean increase 6.7 kPa at 20 cm H2O PEEP). Changes in arterial oxygenation and tissue oxygen delivery differed between subjects but showed a consistent pattern. Static and dynamic alveolar strain decreased in all patients as PEEP increased. Conclusions Incremental PEEP in ARDS appears to protect alveoli and improve arterial oxygenation, but also appears to impair tissue oxygen delivery significantly because of reduced cardiac output. We propose that this trade-off may explain the poor improvements in mortality associated with high-PEEP ventilation strategies.


PAX 8 is a transcription factor involved in the regulation of organogenesis of the thyroid gland, kidney, and Müllerian system. Recent studies have shown that, among tumors, PAX 8 is commonly expressed in epithelial tumors of the thyroid and parathyroid glands, kidney, thymus, and female genital tract. Although PAX 8 expression has also been reported in certain neuroendocrine tumors, including well-differentiated pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, and duodenal and rectal carcinoids, as well as in B-cell lymphomas, it has recently been shown that the PAX 8 positivity reported in these tumors was due to a cross-reactivity of the antibody used with the N-terminal region of PAX 6 and PAX 5, respectively. Owing to its restricted expression, PAX 8 has proved to be a useful immunohistochemical marker with a wide range of diagnostic applications in surgical pathology, some of which are briefly reviewed.


A total of 84 amphibians and reptiles were collected in southern Illinois and cultured for leptospires. All cultures were negative. Sera from 182 specimens were tested, and leptospiral agglutinins were detected in 6 of the 12 species examined. Sera from 18 (26%) of 69 seropositive turtles reacted to Leptospira ballum and 59 (86%) reacted to L. hyos. Inversely, 6 of 9 seropositive snake sera (67%) reacted to L. ballum, but only 1 (11%) reacted to L. hyos. Agglutinins were also detected for L. canicola, L. icterohaemorrhagiae, L. pomona, L. sejroe and L. hardjo. The highest percentage (89.1%) of reactors was in red-eared turtles (Pseudemys scripta elegans). There was no diference in the response of either sex or size classes of the red-eared turtles, although no small turtles were collected. It was postulated that high titers and high reactor rates developed in aquatic turtles in response to continue exposure to water-borne leptospires. In terrestial snakes the mode of infection was probably associated with preying on infected rodents.


Background Single health risk behaviours are negatively associated with educational outcomes, but any relationship between multipe risk behaviours (MRB) and educational attainment has not been explored. We assessed the extent to which simultaneous engagement in MRB during adolescence is associated with examination performance at age 16 years. Methods Data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC), a population based birth cohort study of children born in England between 1991 and 1992 were used in linear and logistic regression analyses. We estimated the association between the total number of a wide range of health risk behaviours (including tobacco smoking, hazardous alcohol use and TV viewing) ranging from 0 to 13 behaviours, and educational attainment. The outcomes were: capped General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) score and odds of attaining five or more GCSEs at grades A*-C. Multiple imputation was used to account for missing data. Results We found that engagement in MRB was strongly associated with poorer educational attainment and each additional risk equated to a one grade reduction in capped GCSE score or a reduced odds of attaining five or more A*-C grades of 23%. The average cohort member engaged in 3 MRB and would therefore have an associated reduction in their GCSE examinations equivalent to three grades in one examination, or reduced odds of attaining five or more A*-C grades of 69%. Conclusion Our findings show for the first time that engagement in a greater number of MRB during adolescence is strongly associated with poorer educational attainment at age 16 years. Preventing MRB could improve educational attainment and thereby directly and indirectly improve longer term health outcomes.


Abstract Employing evapotranspiration models is a widely used method to estimate reference evapotranspiration (ETREF) based on weather data. Evaluating such models considering site-specific boundary conditions is recommended to interpret ETREF-calculations in a realistic and substantiated manner. Therefore, we evaluated the ASCE standardized ETREF-equations at a subhumid site in northeastern Austria. We calculated ETREF-values for hourly and daily time steps, whereof the former were processed to sum-of-hourly values. The obtained data were compared to each other and to ET-values measured by a weighing lysimeter under reference conditions. The resulting datasets covered daily data of the years 2004 to 2011. Sum-of-hourly values correlated well (r2 = 0.978) with daily values, but an RMSE of 0.27 mm specified the differences between the calculation procedures. Comparing the calculations to lysimeter measurements revealed overestimation of small ETREF-values and underestimation of large values. The sum-of-hourly values outperformed the daily values, as r2 of the former was slightly larger and RMSE was slightly smaller. Hence, sum-of-hourly computations delivered the best estimation of ETREF for a single day. Seasonal effects were obvious, with computations and measurements being closest to each other in the summer months.


Over the last thirty years, the shareholder conception of corporate governance has established itself as the foundation of the power structure and management principles of the corporation. It is based on a specific theorization of the firm: agency theory. Our aim is to explain the full significance of this theorization, by considering the context in which it was developed and the project – of a fundamentally political nature – that it conveys. For that purpose, we return to the questions raised during the first half of the twentieth century, in the seminal book of Berle and Means and in subsequent works by Berle; questions of a much broader scope that the relationship between shareholders and managers. We will show that agency theory can be considered a response to the most important ideas advanced by Berle and Means, and then by Berle (and others), after the New Deal and the Second World War. Comparison of these two themes of reflection leads us to identify two theorizations, and two radically different conceptions of the firm and the corporation. To address these issues, we start by considering the questions raised in the early twentieth century about the nature of the corporation and the status of managers; and how, in response to these questions, Berle constructed a certain conceptualization of the corporation and of managerial capitalism; we shall then revisit the contract-based approach of Jensen and Meckling, to assess the theoretical and ideological content and show how it was actually strongly opposed to Berle's vision. Lastly, by way of conclusion, we shall endeavor to show how the opposition between these two theorizations should be seen, above all, as an opposition between two theories that are both "performative" rather than positive, and that the apparent success of agency theory and the dominance of shareholder primacy in corporate governance can only be understood in an institutional and political perspective.


The aim of this paper is to shine some light on the effect of oil price movements on unemployment in Central and Eastern Europe. In order to do so, we disentangle oil prices movements by their sign. From there we analyse the separate effect of positive and negative movements of oil prices on unemployment rates. We find that although oil prices and unemployment are not very much correlated in the short run, the effect of oil price shocks on the natural rate of unemployment goes in the same direction, i.e. increases or decreases in oil prices increase or decrease the natural rate of unemployment.


Rationale: In heart failure, Ca/calmodulin kinase (CaMK)II expression and reactive oxygen species (ROS) are increased. Both ROS and CaMKII can increase late I Na leading to intracellular Na accumulation and arrhythmias. It has been shown that ROS can activate CaMKII via oxidation. Objective: We tested whether CaMKII (cid:1) is required for ROS-dependent late I Na regulation and whether ROS-induced Ca released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) is involved. Methods and Results: 40 (cid:2) mol/L H 2 O 2 significantly increased CaMKII oxidation and autophosphorylation in permeabilized rabbit cardiomyocytes. Without free [Ca] i (5 mmol/L BAPTA/1 mmol/L Br 2 -BAPTA) or after SR depletion (caffeine 10 mmol/L, thapsigargin 5 (cid:2) mol/L), the H 2 O 2 -dependent CaMKII oxidation and autophosphorylation was abolished. H 2 O 2 significantly increased SR Ca spark frequency (confocal microscopy) but reduced SR Ca load. In wild-type (WT) mouse myocytes, H 2 O 2 increased late I Na (whole cell patch-clamp). This increase was abolished in CaMKII (cid:1) (cid:3) / (cid:3) myocytes. H 2 O 2 -induced [Na] i and [Ca] i accumulation (SBFI [sodium-binding benzofuran isophthalate] and Indo-1 epifluorescence) was significantly slowed in CaMKII (cid:1) (cid:3) / (cid:3) myocytes (versus WT). CaMKII (cid:1) (cid:3) / (cid:3) myocytes developed significantly less H 2 O 2 -induced arrhythmias and were more resistant to hypercontracture. Opposite results (increased late I Na , [Na] i and [Ca] i accumulation) were obtained by overexpression of CaMKII (cid:1) in rabbit myocytes (adenoviral gene transfer) reversible with CaMKII inhibition (10 (cid:2) mol/L KN93 or 0.1 (cid:2) mol/L AIP [autocamtide 2–related inhibitory peptide]). Conclusions: Free [Ca] i and a functional SR are required for ROS activation of CaMKII. ROS-activated CaMKII (cid:1) enhances late I Na , which may lead to cellular Na and Ca overload. This may be of relevance in hear failure, where enhanced ROS production meets increased CaMKII expression. ( Circ Res . 2011;108:555-565.) link was missing. In this study, we show that SR Ca release in required for ROS-dependent CaMKII oxidation and autophosphorylation, which leads to increased late I Na , intracellular Na accumulation and Ca 2 (cid:1) overload. Moreover, ROS-activated CaMKII leads to action potential prolongation and cellular arrhythmias. These results provide novel insights into the Ca 2 (cid:1) dependence of the ROS activation process for CaMKII. Moreover, they highlight the importance of CaMKII for the ROS-induced disturbance of excitation–contraction coupling and arrhythmogenesis. Taken together, the present study suggests ROS-activated CaMKII as a promising new target for the treatment of heart failure.


How climatic variability and anthropogenic pressures interact to influence recruitment is a key factor in achieving sustainable resource management. However, the combined effects of these pressures can make it difficult to detect non-stationary interactions or shifts in the relationships with recruitment. Here we examine the links between climate and Irish Sea cod recruitment during a period of declining spawning stock biomass (SSB). Specifically, we test for a shift in the relationship between recruitment, SSB and climate by comparing an additive (generalized additive model, GAM) and non-additive threshold model (TGAM). The relationship between recruitment success, SSB and the climatic driver, sea surface temperature, was best described by the TGAM, with a threshold identified between recruitment and SSB at approximately 7900 t. The analysis suggests a threshold shift in the relationship between recruitment and SSB in Irish Sea cod, with cod recruitment being more sensitive to climatic variability during the recent low SSB regime.


Accretion occurs across a large range of scales and physical regimes. Despite this diversity in the physics, the observed properties show remarkably similarity. The theory of propagating fluctuations, in which broad-band variability within an accretion disc travel inwards and combine, has long been used to explain these phenomena. Recent numerical work has expanded on the extensive analytical literature but has been restricted to using the 1D diffusion equation for modelling the disc behaviour. In this work we present a novel numerical approach for 2D (vertically integrated), stochastically driven α-disc simulations, generalising existing 1D models. We find that the theory of propagating fluctuations translates well to 2D. However, the presence of epicyclic motion in 2D (which cannot be captured within the diffusion equation) is shown to have an important impact on local disc dynamics. Additionally, there are suggestions that for sufficiently thin discs the log-normality of the light-curves changes. As in previous work, we find that the break frequency in the luminosity power spectrum is strongly dependent on the driving timescale of the stochastic perturbations within the disc, providing a possible observational signature for probing the magnetorotational instability (MRI) dynamo. We also find that thinner discs are significantly less variable than thicker ones, providing a compelling explanation for the greater variability seen in the hard state vs the soft state of X-ray binaries. Finally, we consider the wide-ranging applications of our numerical model for use in other simulations.


Endometrial stromal sarcoma (ESS) is a mesenchymal neoplasm that usually occurs as a primary tumor of the uterine corpus, but rarely arises in other sites, such as the ovary, pelvic cavity, mesentery, omentum and intestine. Herein, we present a rare case of low-grade ESS presented as prevesical mass. A 60-yr-old woman who had undergone total hysterectomy for endometriosis eleven years ago was presented with incidentally detected prevesical pelvic mass. Since malignant transformation of urachal remnants was possible, the mass was suspected to be a urachal tumor. Extraction of the mass was performed, and the histopathologic diagnosis was low-grade ESS. In summary, prevesical tumor is rare but in patients with endometriosis, we suggest endometriosis and its possible malignant changes should be taken into account in the differential diagnosis of prevesical mass.


Abstract : Values of the rate constants for processes that deactivate the lowest excited singlet state of 1,12 benzperylene were determined between -196C and 23C from measurements of the quantum yields of triplet formation, fluorescence, and the fluorescence lifetime. The rate constant for intersystem crossing to the triplet state is nearly same at -196C and +23C. The rate constant for direct radiationless deactivation to the lowest singlet is probably zero at -196C but increases to 600000/sec at +23C. This is similar to results obtained for other aromatic hydrocarbons. However, the fluorescence of 1,12 benzperylene is atypical. An increase in the rate constant of fluorescence, k1, from -196C to +23C is observed resulting from an increase in fluorescence with temperature while fluorescence lifetime decreases over the same temperature range. The increase in k1 with increasing temperature is attributed to a temperature dependent emission from the second excited singlet state. Since the second excited singlet state of 1,12 benzperylene lies only 1275 to 1400/cm above the (1)Lb state, there is significant thermal population of the (1)La state of +23C. The observation of a temperature dependent anti stokes fluorescence supports this interpretation. The effect of solvent upon the energy gap between the (1)La and (1)Lb state and the fluorescence properties of 1,12 benzperylene is discussed. (Author)


Amide proton assignments of partially deuterated Anabaena Sensory Rhodopsin, investigation of solvent exchangeability and deuterium isotope effects David Bolton Advisors: Dr. V. Ladizhansky University of Guelph, 2017 Dr. L. Brown Magic angle spinning solid-state NMR has been used with great success in studying membrane proteins in a native-like environment. These typically carbon-detected experiments are very time consuming, require a large amount of multiple samples with various levels of isotopic labeling. Through the use of proton detected experiments coupled with fast MAS we can reduce the total experimental time and number of required samples. Technological developments and labelling techniques (ultrafast MAS and isotopic dilution with H) have made proton detection in solid-state NMR a powerful tool. Membrane proteins however, remain a difficult subject of study. In this thesis, assignments of both exchangeable and non-exchangeable amide protons were made. Solvent accessibility as well as deuterium isotope effects on chemical shifts were evaluated to help the assignment and adjustment of assignment of the chemical shifts of proteins in future studies.


Providing quality information on health-threatening contamination incidences can improve consumer welfare, because the consumers can, and often do, take self-protective actions given the information provided. Unfortunately, important contamination information often comes from private or quasi-private sources and the distinction between private and public information is also sometimes ambiguous. Thus, the regulatory authority may need to manage 'private' incentives of providing publicly useful information. There is no lack of literature arguing that supply of public goods is smaller than optimal when provision of those goods are in the hands of private agents seeking their own economic rents. The same argument seems to apply here --- private provision of publicly useful information is less or later than optimal. Though the argument makes an intuitive sense, there appears to be lack of empirical research investigating this issue. We provide one such study, examining a unique EPA dataset on the public notification enforcement and compliance for the Safe Drinking Water Act. The data contain 2,062 observations of maximum contaminant level violation incidences in Illinois from 1980 to 2006. The dataset allows us to estimate the determinants of the observed public notification timings. More importantly, we also estimate the impact of the new public notification rule on the coefficient for the contamination severity level. The new rule, issued May 2000 and fully enforced May 2002, (i) extended the PN compliance deadline (for tier 2 violations) of 14 days to 30 days and (ii) gives the primacy agency discretion to extend the PN deadline in some appropriate circumstances. Our results are disconcerting and indicate that the new rule has had welfare-decreasing effects. With linear models, one point increase in the severity level of a contamination incidence is significantly associated with an increase in PN delay of 8-9 days after the new rule but is not statistically significantly associated with PN delay before the new rule. Moreover, the new rule per se increases the PN timing by 21-24 days, which is approximately the simple effect of the extension rule. These results were robust to other specifications, in particular, to the Tobit specifications to account for censoring issues. Our empirical results seem to suggest that even in the case of mandated public notification, private or quasi-private managers of the public water systems still make private calculation of the benefits and costs of making information public --- the PN timing is significantly associated with various covariates, which one should not observe if the managers were truly welfare-maximizing agents. These findings should be taken seriously in lieu of guiding future information disclosure/public notification policies.


Results of Monte Carlo simulations of XY and Heisenberg spin glass models in three dimensions are presented. A finite-size scaling analysis of the correlation length of the spins and chiralities of both models shows that there is a single, finite-temperature transition at which both spins and chiralities order.


Recent years have witnessed companies abandon traditional open-loop supply chain structures in favour of closed-loop variants, in a bid to mitigate environmental impacts and exploit economic opportunities. Central to the closed-loop paradigm is remanufacturing: the restoration of used products to useful life. While this operational model has huge potential to extend product life-cycles, the collection and recovery processes diminish the effectiveness of existing control mechanisms for open-loop systems. We systematically review the literature in the field of closed-loop supply chain dynamics, which explores the time-varying interactions of material and information flows in the different elements of remanufacturing supply chains. We supplement this with further reviews of what we call the three 'pillars' of such systems, i.e. forecasting, collection, and inventory and production control. This provides us with an interdisciplinary lens to investigate how a 'boomerang' effect (i.e. sale, consumption, and return processes) impacts on the behaviour of the closed-loop system and to understand how it can be controlled. To facilitate this, we contrast closed-loop supply chain dynamics research to the well-developed research in each pillar; explore how different disciplines have accommodated the supply, process, demand, and control uncertainties; and provide insights for future research on the dynamics of remanufacturing systems.


Introduction Incisional hernia is common after liver transplantation (LT) affecting between 5–23% of recipients. Operative repair is feasible but complications may be increased given co-morbidity in LT recipients. Hernia recurrence rates after repair range between 16–50% in other series. Method A retrospective review of incisional herniorrhaphy identified from our institutional LT database was conducted to determine post-operative complication and recurrence rates. Complications were categorised into chest: PE, chest sepsis, re-intubation; Renal: acute renal failure defined by RIFLE criteria, requirement for RRT and one year follow-up renal function; Wound: wound infection by clinical or microbiological diagnosis. Hernia recurrence was defined by clinical or radiological diagnosis. Results Sixty-nine herniorrhaphy procedures were identified in 59 individuals (38 male (64%); mean age 59.3 (range (25.9–77.6)); 16 (23%) diabetics) performed at a median 1053 days (range 130–6932) after LT Median length of in-hospital stay was 7 days (range 1–33). There were no liver-related complications. Chest sepsis occurred in 13 of 69 (19%) cases; 12 settled with antibiotics; 1 patient with cystic fibrosis required mechanical ventilation. There were no pulmonary emboli. There was a significant rise in creatinine from pre-operative median of 102 μM (57–545 μM) to post-operative of 125 μM (75–575 μM) (p <0.0001). However, one year follow-up creatinine (101 μM (49–563 μM) was not different to preoperative values (p =0.16); 9 of 69 (13%) cases were complicated by a 50% rise in creatinine, 1 case by a 100% rise and 1 case by 200% rise in creatinine. Restricting analysis to subjects with pre-existing renal impairment revealed a significant rise in post-operative creatinine (p =0.0023), but no change in one year follow-up creatinine values (p =0.17). No patient required initiation of RRT. Wound infection occurred in 6 of 69 (9%) cases; 1 required operative drainage.3 patients suffered long-term wound pain. One patient developed one each of urinary infection, C. difficile-diarrhoea and wound seroma. After each repair subjects were followed for a median 928 days (range 18–3323). 18/69 (26%) procedures were complicated by recurrent hernia at a median of 407 days (6–1572) of which 2 were incarcerated. Kaplan-Meier analysis determined a 1, 2 and 3 year hernia-free survival of 87%, 74% and 72% respectively. Conclusion There were significant rates of chest and renal complications following incisional herniorrhaphy in liver transplant recipients, but few long-term sequelae. Incisional hernia repair was complicated by a 26% 2-year recurrence rate.


The genus Burkholderia is composed of functionally diverse species and it can be divided into several groups. One of these, designated as the plant-beneficial-environmental (PBE) Burkholderia group, is formed by non-pathogenic species, which in most cases have been found to be associated with plants. It was previously established that members of the PBE group share an N-acyl-homoserine lactone (AHL) quorum-sensing (QS) system designated Bral/R that produces and responds to 3-oxo-C14-HSL (OC14-HSL). In the present study, we further studied the Bral/R system in several members of the PBE group determining the AHL production profile as well its regulons. Major results include that different levels of AHLs are produced by different species and that the regulon is species specific. The biosynthesis of exopolysaccharide was the only common phenotype found to be regulated by Bral/R in several species of the PBE cluster. In addition, Bral/R was shown not to be important for plant nodulation by B. phymatum spp. nor for endophytic colonization and growth promotion of maize by B. phytofirmans PsJN. Moreover, the genome of the rice endophyte B. kururiensis M130 was sequenced and analysed in order to detect potential loci involved in its endophytic lifestyle and plant growth promotion. Two experimental approaches (plate screening of a transposon-promoter probe library and RNAseq) were then performed in order to identify loci that were regulated in response to plant macerate. The results indicated that B. kururiensis undergoes major regulatory changes affecting the expression of 27.7% of its protein coding genes. Interestingly, a great number of differentially expressed genes encode membrane transporters and secretion systems, which indicates that the exchange of molecules is an important aspect in planta. In addition, genes related to mobility, chemotaxis and adhesion were also over-represented suggesting recognition and an intimate interaction between bacteria and plant. This work highlights the close signalling taking place between plants and bacteria and helps us to understand the adaptation of an endophyte in planta.


Morphological operators transform the original image into another image through the interaction with the other image of certain shape and size which is known as the structure element. Mathematical morphology provides a systematic approach to analyze the geometric characteristics of signals or images, and has been applied widely too many applications such as edge detection, objection segmentation, noise suppression and so on. Fuzzy Mathematical Morphology aims to extend the binary morphological operators to grey-level images. In order to define the basic morphological operations such as fuzzy erosion, dilation, opening and closing, a general method based upon fuzzy implication and inclusion grade operators is introduced. The fuzzy morphological operations extend the ordinary morphological operations by using fuzzy sets where for fuzzy sets, the union operation is replaced by a maximum operation, and the intersection operation is replaced by a minimum operation. In this work, it consists of two articles. In the first one, fuzzy set theory, fuzzy Mathematical morphology which is based on fuzzy logic and fuzzy set theory; fuzzy Mathematical operations and their properties will be studied in details. As a second part, the application of fuzziness in Mathematical morphology in practical work such as image processing will be discussed with the illustration problems. Keywords—Binary Morphological, Fuzzy sets, Grayscale morphology, Image processing, Mathematical morphology.


We present a 36-year-old woman who had been taking oral dasatinib for 3 years for the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Although adverse events such as thrombocytopenia and pleural effusion developed, she showed a major molecular response (MMR) 22 months after the initiation of oral dasatinib administration, and the therapy was thus continued. Approximately 34 months after oral dasatinib initiation, she developed severe exertional dyspnea and had to be urgently hospitalized. There was no apparent pleural effusion increase, and neither imaging nor blood test results suggested pneumonia or other infections. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) was suspected on the basis of transthoracic echocardiography. PAH was then confirmed by right heart catheterization. Though dasatinib was discontinued on the day of hospitalization, pulmonary hypertension and heart failure progressed, and she did not respond to catecholamines or PDE5 (phosphodiesterase type 5) inhibitors. On the 4(th) hospital day, she experienced cardiopulmonary arrest and died 1 week later. Cases with PAH due to oral administration of dasatinib have been reported previously. However, cases showing the rapid progression documented in our patient are rare and we advocate that PAH be considered a potential adverse event associated with dasatinib therapy.


This paper studies the effect of ground type (namely ground types A, B, C, D and E as defined in Eurocode 8 (EC8)) on the seismic response of lightweight acceleration-sensitive nonstructural components (NSCs) integrated on irregular multi-storey reinforced concrete (RC) structures. Dynamic nonlinear finite element (FE) analyses of the primary-secondary (P-S) systems were conducted to provide insight into the seismic response of the NSCs and to evaluate the accuracy of EC8 predictions when the NSCs are attached to the flexible sides of the primary structures (P-structures). Representative constitutive models were adopted to represent the behaviour of the RC P-structures. The NSCs were modelled as vertical cantilevers fixed at their bases with masses on the free ends and varying lengths so as to match the frequencies of the P-structures. Full dynamic interaction is considered between the NSCs and P-structures. Different sets of natural and artificial earthquake records consisting of 63 accelerograms were utilised. The results of this paper confirm the outcome of previous studies suggesting that the current EC8 provisions underestimate the dynamic response of NSCs influenced by the torsional modes of RC P-structures designed on different ground types.


We report the results and analysis of dose-response and desensitization studies of rabbit basophils by a variety of antigens. Unlike the response of human basophils, the histamine release curves rarely rise and fall in a symmetric fashion, but more often either rise to a plateau, peak, and then fall to a non-zero plateau, or exhibit bimodality. In those cases in which the curves peak, preincubation with antigen in the absence of Ca++ has a smaller effect at the high and low concentration portions of the curve than it does toward the center, where the inhibitory effect is maximum.
 We show that the results can be explained by a simple model in which: 1) The signals for release and desensitization both increase as the concentration of receptor cross-links increases and 2) the signals reach a plateau (i.e., they have a maximum value) when the number of receptor cross-links becomes sufficiently large. By changing the parameters of the model, the balance between desensitization and release changes, and all the observed patterns can be reproduced. In particular, if both signals saturate (reach their maximum value) at a ligand concentration below that of maximum cross-linking, the histamine release curve will plateau. If the release signal saturates but the inhibitory signal continues to increase as ligand concentration increases toward its optimum value, the histamine release curve will be bimodal.
 Many of the parameters can be identified with those that affect receptor clustering. These include the affinity of IgE for the antigen, the number of IgE molecules per basophil, IgE hinge flexibility, membrane fluidity, and antigen concentration and valence. This identification permits a variety of additional predictions. One such prediction is that the difference between a dose-response curve that plateaus and one that is biphasic and unimodal reflects easier desensitization of cells responsible for the latter curve and/or that have a smaller number of cross-links. Both predictions are readily testable experimentally.


There is a presumption in the health-care literature that doctors in the United States are geographically maldistributed. Yet there has been little discussion of the appropriate way to evaluate patterns of location. This paper discusses four different criteria for determining the optimal geographic distribution of doctors, all of which are implicit in the literature: economic efficiency, maximization of health, equalization of doctor/patient ratios, and equalization of health. A simple example is used to illustrate the different distributions of physicians that each goal may imply. Proper governmental policy fundamentally depends on the exact criterion chosen. I argue that health maximization is the most justifiable objective.


A case of complex partial status epilepticus (CPSE) with high dose treatment of tiagabine (TGB) is reported. Seizure aggravation and CPSE developed after stepwise increase of TGB to a dose of 60 mg per day as add-on treatment to carbamazepine (CBZ) 1200 mg/day and vigabatrine (VGB) 1000 mg/day. The EEG during CPSE showed bilateral rhythmic slow activity. Clinical symptoms of CPSE and the EEG normalized after i.v. treatment with clonazepam. The literature and the possible mechanism of this paradoxical phenomenon are discussed.


Abstract. Rip currents are the greatest
hazard to swimmers on surf beaches, but due to a lack of consistent incident
reporting in many countries, it is often difficult to quantify the number of
rip-current-related rescues and
drowning deaths occurring along surf beaches. This study examines this
problem using rescue data reported to the United States Lifesaving
Association (USLA) by surf beach rescuers from 1997 through 2016. These data
were checked, corrected, and culled so that only data from surf beach rescue
agencies that reported the primary cause of rescue were included. Results
show that rip currents are the primary cause of 81.9 % of rescues on surf
beaches, with regional variation from 75.3 % (East Coast) to 84.7 %
(West Coast). These values are significantly higher than those previously
reported in the scientific literature (e.g., 36.5 %, 53.7 %). Using
this value as a proxy when examining overall surf beach drowning fatalities,
it is suggested that more than 100 fatal drownings per year occur due to rip
currents in the United States. However, it is clear that the United States
data would benefit by an increase in the number of lifeguard agencies which
report surf-related rescues by primary cause.


Corruption was, is and probably will be in future one of the forms of economic behaviour that bring about serious economic consequences. It is a characteristic feature of corruption that it occurs in all countries regardless their political and societal arrangements. Being aware of adverse consequences of corruptive behaviour every state attempts in the course of time to reduce corruption to the lowest level possible. The objective of the presented article is analysis of the past and current status of corruption in the Visegrad countries, including an estimate of a future trend of corruption in these countries. The corruptive environment will be analysed retrospectively looking back at the change of the social order in these countries and in the context of the theory of new institutional economics.


Clarity about the utility of continuing bonds (CB) continues to be evasive in the research. In 2 different correlational studies, the authors explored the relationship between CB and 2 other variables: 1 representing mental health (forgiveness of the deceased) and the other representing psychological distress (prolonged grief). Although researchers have addressed the latter relationship in the literature, assessing the relationship between CB and forgiveness has not been undertaken. Results suggest that forgiveness in general, and affective aspects of forgiveness in particular, predict psychological forms of CB. Results related to grief depended on how CB was assessed. These findings provide evidence of the relative health of certain types of relationship with deceased persons and also suggest that forgiveness interventions may be a way of promoting such healthy bonds.


In the emerging markets, cross border management has become a big challenge among the organizations. Researchers have suggested that a high IQ and emotional intelligence may not be sufficient to successfully handle the global situations, interaction and complexity tasks for an organization due to diversity in cultures. As organizations rely on the emerging markets for revenue growth and expansion, they need to familiarize with different cultures and need to communicate well with other cultures. If these cultural differences are not well managed, misunderstanding and conflict may rise in the business across the world and organizations could be at risk if management fails to deal with the cultural difference. Fortunately, researchers have recognized that cultural intelligence is a critical factor to overcome the challenges of cultural differences. The realities of contemporary organizations demonstrated that cultural intelligence has vital implications for individuals and organizations in the globalization as cultural diversities require organizations to interact with people from a variety of backgrounds. When the cultural diversity is handled properly by incorporating cultural intelligence in the organizations, it will be a competitive advantage for the organizations. Organizations operating in the cross- border business now need to incorporate cultural intelligence to overcome the challenges of cultural differences in the emerging markets.


Background: Obesity is associated with various changes in cardiac geometry and this process involves both hemodynamic and non-hemodynamic factors, among which adipocitokines and growth factors may play an important role. The aim of this study was to identify the extent and pattern of cardiac remodeling in a group of severely obese patients and analyze the relationship between adiponectin, IGF-I and cardiac parameters reflecting obesity-associated structural changes. Subjects and methods: Our study included 344 patients (104 men) with severe obesity [mean body mass index (BMI)= 45.7±8.5 kg/m2], extensively evaluated clinically and biologically (complete metabolic tests, serum adiponectin, and IGF-I measurements). Left ventricular (LV) mass index (LVMI), left atrium (LA) size, and LV geometry were determined by means of cardiac ultrasound. Results: The most prevalent pattern of LV geometry was eccentric hypertrophy (28.7% of patients). In a gender-, age-, BMI-, diabetes- and hypertension-adjusted general linear model, patients with concentric or eccentric hypertrophy had significantly lower values of adiponectin than those with normal geometry (6.75±0.41, 6.96±0.53, vs 9.04±0.42 mg/l, p<0.05). In multivariate analysis, independent determinants for LVMI were BMI (β=0.364, p<0.001), systolic blood pressure (BP) (β=0.187, p=0.004), age (β=0.246, p<0.001), adiponectin (β=−0.151, p=0.012), and IGF-I z-score (β=0.134, p=0.025) while factors independently related to LA size were systolic BP (β=0.218, p<0.001), BMI (β=0.194, p<0.001), age (β=0.273, p<0.001), gender (β=−0.195, p<0.001), and adiponectin (β=−0.180, p=0.005). Conclusions: In patients with severe obesity, IGF-I z score and adiponectin correlate with parameters of cardiac remodeling independently of anthropometric, hemodynamic or metabolic factors.


The long-term dynamics of the three-body problem is studied. The goal is to study the motion of a planet (m1) around a star (m0) that is perturbed by a third-body (m2) (a planet or a brown dwarf star). The gravitational potential is developed in closed form up to the fourth order. Taking into account the triple system, it is shown here the evolution of some orbital parameters of the planet (m1). A comparison considering models with different orders for the disturbing potential is presented. We show that the behavior of the orbit of the inner planet can flip from prograde to retrograde trajectories. This is due to the third-order term, which strongly affects the eccentricity and inclination. We show that the effect of the fourth order term is to change the times when the phenomenon occurs.


Summary Data presented on the comparative toxicity of Thiomerin, Mercuhydrin and Mercurophylline indicate that the compound containing the thiol group definitely is more toxic in rats. Other reports, both clinical and laboratory, have indicated such a possibility. Sodium Thioglycollate potentiates the chronic toxicity of Mercurophylline when combined with it and given by either the subcutaneous or intravenous route. There is, however, elimination of the acute cardiac effect with intravenous administration. Studies of the distribution of mercury in the rat and its excreta following subcutaneous administration of two of the drugs failed to indicate the mechanism of potentiation of toxicity.


Objectives Treatment of HIV-infected patients is associated with early onset of aging-related comorbidities. Some of the adverse effects of antiretroviral therapy have been attributed to the mitochondrial toxicity of nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTI), and it is of note that mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are involved in the aging processes. In this regard, we examined whether NRTIs could accelerate the senescence of cultured cells. Methods Human fibroblasts were exposed to NRTIs from culture passage 1 to 14. Cytochrome c-oxidase (COX) subunits 2 and 4, mitochondrial potential and mass, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were quantified at each passage. Proliferation, cell-cycle arrest, senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity, and morphology were assessed in parallel. Mitochondrial and senescence markers were assessed in cultured murine preadipocytes and in fat samples from lipodystrophic HIV-infected patients. Results Stavudine and zidovudine induced mitochondrial dysfunction and increased ROS levels in fibroblasts at early culture passages, while cell division gradually slowed. At passages 8–12, fibroblasts exposed to stavudine or zidovudine but not abacavir, didanosine, lamivudine and tenofovir were senescent, on the basis of p16INK4 and p21WAF-1 protein expression, cell morphology and senescence-associated-β-galactosidase activity. Senescence markers and COX2 underexpression were also found in 3T3-F442A preadipocytes exposed for 7 weeks to stavudine or zidovudine, but not lamivudine, and in adipose tissue samples from lipodystrophic HIV-infected patients on antiretroviral regimens containing stavudine or zidovudine. Conclusions Mitochondrial changes and oxidative damage could partly explain the premature senescence of fibroblasts and adipose cells induced by stavudine and zidovudine. This suggests that thymidine analogues might be involved in the early aging-related diseases observed in some HIV-infected patients taking antiretroviral drugs.


We study diffusion of cooperation in a two-population game in continuous time. At each instant, the game involves two random individuals, one from each population. The game has the structure of a Prisoner's dilemma where each player can choose either to cooperate (c) or to defect (d), and is reframed within the field of approachability in two-player repeated game with vector payoffs. We turn the game into a dynamical system, which is positive, and propose a saturated strategy that ensures local asymptotic stability of the equilibrium (c, c) for any possible choice of the payoff matrix. We show that there exists a rectangle, in the space of payoffs, which is positively invariant for the system. We also prove that there exists a region in the space of payoffs for which the equilibrium solution (d, d) is an attractor, while all of the trajectories originating outside that region, but still in the positive quadrant, are ultimately bounded in the rectangle and, under suitable assumptions, converge to the solution (c, c).


Muscle excitation-contraction coupling (ECC) is a fundamental physiological process by which electrically-evoked sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ release triggers cardiomyocyte contraction. Human ryanodine receptor 2 (RyR2) is an ion channel present in the SR membrane of cardiac myocytes, responsible for mediating calcium efflux. Cardiac myosin binding protein-C (cMyBP-C) is a modular protein anchored to the thick filament through its C-terminal region, whereas the N-terminal region of cMyBP-C is thought to regulate myocardial contractility by modifying actin-myosin association. Here, we present several lines of evidence indicating potential RyR2:cMyBP-C interaction, which could provide a novel retrograde regulation of SR Ca2+ release by the sarcomere.
Firstly, co-immunoprecipitation (co-IP) experiments indicated that the detected putative association between RyR2 and cMyBP-C can be applicable to large mammalian species as well as to recombinant human proteins heterologously expressed in a mammalian cell line, with RyR2 N-terminus and cMyBP-C C-terminus being responsible for the binding. A 3D co-localisation immunocytochemistry study supported the possibility for the proteins to be readily available for protein-protein interaction, with recombinant human RyR2 and cMyBP-C shown to co-localise in HEK293 cells.
Secondly, with the aid of two complementary techniques, namely co-IP and yeast 2-hybrid (Y2H), we showed that RyR2 residues 1-906 comprise the main cMyBP-C site, with residues 1-346 (corresponding to subdomain A and B of RyR2 NTD) and 654-906 (domain SPRY1 and P1) being important determinants for the binding with cMyBP-C C-terminus. Further mapping studies implied that cMyBP-C residues 820-972 and 1061-1274 are involved in the interaction with RyR2 N-terminus, with cMyBP-C Fn domain/s proposed to be directly responsible for the binding. Additionally, parallel experiments with the skeletal muscle RyR1 demonstrated that the corresponding N-terminus region (RyR2 1-906 amino acids) of mammalian isoform RyR1 can also interact with MyBP-C, which could indicate that the detected association can also be relevant in the regulation of ECC in skeletal muscle.
Thirdly, we pursued the possible functional significance of RyR2:cMyBP-C interaction. The results from single cell Ca2+ imaging indicated that cMyBP-C interaction with RyR2 may have an inhibitory effect on Ca2+ release channel function, with cMyBP-C binding diminishing RyR2 channel activity. In particular, HEK293 cells co-expressing RyR2 and cMyBP-C had a reduced frequency of spontaneous intracellular calcium oscillations compared to cells expressing only RyR2.
Lastly, further co-IP data demonstrated that cMyBP-C:RyR2 binding is not affected by four different RyR2 single point mutation variants (S166C, R176Q, R420Q and L433P) associated with different pathological phenotypes. Thus, while a physical and functional association between RyR2 and cMyBP-C was shown to possibly regulate normal cardiac physiology, it is unlikely to be involved in RyR2-related cardiac disease. In order to unravel the pathological significance of the detected cMyBP-C:RyR2 association, more studies are needed to understand what role cMyBP-C plays in RyR2 channel dysfunction that could potentially affect muscle contraction/relaxation.


The process of erosion and desertification affects social communities, agricultural lands and natural resources in coastal areas. The rapid coastline changes would cause social and economic issues in the coastal areas. In this study, Miankaleh coasts and the eastern coastlines of Amirabad port have been surveyed due to existing benchmarks since June 2013 until December 2015 in order to analyze the coastline changes in Amirabad port. Then the surveyed lines were compared with sea levels at the time of surveying. The sea level data has been used (to calculate the beach slope) in order to monitor the sedimentation and erosion processes in the coastlines movements. The results of this comparison show that coastline changes are irregular and they may not follow the seal level changes. Therefore the coastline changes in these areas are influenced by erosion and sedimentation units.


AIMS
To examine the effectiveness of therapeutic play, using virtual reality computer games, in minimising anxiety and reducing depressive symptoms in Hong Kong Chinese children hospitalised with cancer.

BACKGROUND
There has been an increase in the use of therapeutic play intervention to help children cope with the stress of hospitalisation. However, it is not clear whether therapeutic play is an appropriate psychological intervention for Chinese children hospitalised with cancer.

DESIGN
A non-equivalent control group pretest-post-test, between-subject design was employed.

METHOD
Hong Kong Chinese Children (8-16 years of age), admitted to a paediatric oncology ward for the treatment of cancer during a 14-month period, were invited to participate in the study. Of the 122 children, 70 formed the control group receiving routine nursing care and 52 in the experimental group receiving therapeutic play interventions.

RESULTS
The results showed that children in the experimental group reported statistically significant fewer depressive symptoms than children in the control group on day 7. The results, however, find no differences in children's anxiety scores between the two groups on day 7.

CONCLUSION
The study provides empirical evidence to support the effectiveness of therapeutic play, using virtual reality computer games, in the psychological preparation of children hospitalised with cancer, thus charting a path towards promoting holistic and quality care.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE
The findings heighten the awareness in healthcare professionals that play is a very important part of children's life and that they need play even when they are ill.


The increasing complexity of interconnection designs has enhanced the importance of research into global routing when seeking high-routability (low overflow) results or rapid search paths that report wire-length estimations to a placer. This work presents two routing techniques, namely adaptive pseudorandom net-ordering routing and evolution-based rip-up and reroute using a two-stage cost function in a high-performance congestion-driven 2-D global router. We also propose two efficient via-minimization methods, namely congestion relaxation by layer shifting and rip-up and re-assignment, for a dynamic programming-based layer assignment. Experimental results demonstrate that our router achieves performance similar to the first two winning routers in ISPD 2008 Routing Contest in terms of both routability and wire length at a 1.42X and 25.84X faster routing speed. Besides, our layer assignment yields 3.5% to 5.6% fewer vias, 2.2% to 3.3% shorter wirelength and 13% to 27% less runtime than COLA.