Abstract Global warming has more than doubled the likelihood of extreme weather events, e.g. the 2003 European heat wave, the growing intensity of rain and snow in the Northern Hemisphere, and the increasing risk of flooding in the United Kingdom. It has also induced an increasing number of deadly tropical cyclones with a continuing trend. Many individual meteorological dynamic simulations and statistical models are available for forecasting hurricanes but they neither forecast well hurricane intensity nor produce clear-cut consensus. We develop a novel hurricane forecasting model by straddling two seemingly unrelated disciplines — physical science and finance — based on the well known price discovery function of trading in financial markets. Traders of hurricane derivative contracts employ all available forecasting models, public or proprietary, to forecast hurricanes in order to make their pricing and trading decisions. By using transactional price changes of these contracts that continuously clear the market supply and demand as the predictor, and with calibration to extract the embedded hurricane information by developing hurricane futures and futures option pricing models, one can gain a forward-looking market-consensus forecast out of all of the individual forecasting models employed. Our model can forecast when a hurricane will make landfall, how destructive it will be, and how this destructive power will evolve from inception to landing. While the NHC (National Hurricane Center) blends 50 plus individual forecasting results for its consensus model forecasts using a subjective approach, our aggregate is market-based. Believing their proprietary forecasts are sufficiently different from our market-based forecasts, traders could also examine the discrepancy for a potential trading opportunity using hurricane derivatives. We also provide a real case analysis of Hurricane Irene in 2011 using our methodology.


We have studied the characteristic changes of optical device using imprint lithography. An imprinted structure is inherently involved in residual stress due to the temperature and the pressure cycle during fabrication process. A structure with residual stress undergoes stress relaxation, which leads to dimensional change. Therefore, annealing processes was performed to reduce the residual stress of imprinted polymer channel. Reduction of residual stress was confirmed through dimensional change, birefringence, and the mechanical properties. We have fabricated an optical device, and it saw the optical intensity changes within 0.1 % for 1 month.


Nowadays, faults and failures are increasing especially in complex systems such as Network-on-Chip (NoC) based Systems-on-a-Chip (SoC) due to the increasing susceptibility and decreasing feature sizes. On the other hand, fault-tolerant routing algorithms have an evident effect on tolerating permanent faults and improving the reliability of a NoC based system. This paper presents reliability and performance evaluation of two main kinds of fault-aware routing algorithms, deterministic and adaptive, used in NoC architectures. The investigated methods have a multi-level structure for faulttolerance and therefore, each level can be separately evaluated. To demonstrate the effectiveness of these methods, we propose an analytical approach for reliability assessment based on combinatorial reliability models to show the effect of fault-aware routing algorithms on overall NoC reliability. However, for performance evaluation, we conduct extensive simulations on different applications.


We propose a novel blind source separation method tailored for retrieving baseband signals having different bandwidths. Such a configuration is characterized by the existence of inactive bands in the frequency domain. By exploiting the eigenstructure of the mixtures covariance matrix calculated in these inactive bands, we develop a simple yet efficient extraction procedure that works in an ordered fashion, in which the sources are extracted according to their degree of smoothness. Numerical results attest the viability of the proposal.


In 2006 over three million experiments were performed on nonhuman animals. In making an argument against such experiments I contend that approval of nonhuman animal experimentation is rooted in acceptance of humans as having essential primacy over nonhuman animals and lies in the power relations associated with human primacy identity claims.To challenge essentialist notions of human identity and human primacy I utilize a performative conceptualization of identity. Discourses used by Pro-Test, a lobby group that promotes nonhuman animal experimentation, allows an exploration of justifications made for such experiments. In promoting these experiments Pro-Test is, I argue, engaging in a form of human primacy identity politics based in continued inequality and the sustained oppression of nonhuman animals. I conclude that discourses extolling scientific advancements for human benefits, made on the basis of experiments on nonhuman animals, reiterate an immoral human primacy identity that dissolutely exploits power relations to privilege the human.


Spurred by reflections on the present international crisis, this article aims at offering a survey of the contributions coming from the scientific debate concerning both governance and the social responsibility of enterprises. As regards the former, in the wake of the economic crisis both scholars and institutional representatives have been confronted with a clear example of  a 'market failure' which has interrupted the process of convergence in models of governance pursued by the major countries, and has raised a strong demand for new regulations, mainly, but not solely, in finance. As regards the latter, the whole 'system of social responsibility' - developed through the codification and assessment of 'best practices' that could be a model for enterprises which aspired to define themselves 'responsible' - has produced unsatisfactory results, unable to guarantee a consistent relationship between statements of principles and real behaviours. The conclusion is that, as neither regulations nor practices concerning responsibility can be an effective guarantee against risks of system degeneration, only an action taken by the management coalition authentically inspired by principles of ethics and responsibility can represent the premise of a sustainable, and therefore stable, development of the economic system. In this perspective, regulation has the function of decreasing the costs of responsible behaviours and they, in turn, can show their usefulness guaranteeing the stability of enterprises in the medium and long run.


BackgroundTetralogy of Fallot (ToF) is one of the most prevalent and fatal birth defects. Its pathogenesis remains unknown and it's not easily diagnosed at early stage. Therefore, it's necessary to explore the critical regulators and molecular mechanism in ToF to find out novel molecular markers for early diagnosis.MethodsThree ToF datasets (GSE35490, GSE40128, GSE36761) were downloaded from the GEO database. The differentially expressed microRNAs (DEMs) and mRNAs (DEGs) were identified between ToF infants and normal infants after data preprocessing, followed by GO and KEGG analysis of DEGs. Then, PPI network and modular analysis were performed to identify the hub genes. Ultimately, potential miRNA-mRNA pathways in ToF were constructed based on the integrated data.Results22 overlapping DEMs were found in the GES35490 and GSE40128. Simultaneous, 181 intersected genes were found and identified as the significant DEGs including 84 down-regulated DEGs and 97 up-regulated DEGs. Further, 20 hub genes ranked by top 10% with high connectivity, including STAT3, FBN1, RUNX2, were found by PPT network and modular analysis. Furthermore, GO and KEGG analysis showed these DEGs were linked to cell cycle, apoptotic process, transcription activity and FOX signaling pathway. Additionally, we establish three potential miRNA-mRNA pathway, including miR-22-STAT3, miR-336/miR486-FBN1, miR-222-RUNX2, which can participate in the formation of ToF by cell cycle and transcription activity.ConclusionsThree miRNA-mRNA pathways were established and indicated cell cycle and transcription activity may be involved in the pathogenesis of ToF. Our study provided a novel bio-marker for early diagnosis of ToF.


In their first full year of operation, the United Nations and the specialized agencies spent under $25 million; ten years later, in 1956, their total regular budgets were almost $85 million. In that same year the Suez crisis led to the creation of the Emergency Force and the clearing of the Canal, adding about $25 million to the 1957–1958 expenditures. During the past three years 22 governments joined the Organization, adding much to its operating costs but little to its coffers. With the Middle East still in turmoil, and social upheaval dominating world politics, there is increasing agitation for both a permanent UN Force and a drastically expanded economic assistance program. As the Organization seeks to grapple with an ever-mounting range of responsibilities, with the consequent shift from reliance on voluntary programs to regular budgetary outlays, it is quite likely that the estimated expenditures of over $98 million for the Organization and the agencies in 1958 will be doubled within the next five years.


In a prospective study, a population of 528 pregnant primiparas aged 13-17 years were surveyed who gave birth at the obstetrical clinic of the Medical University of Pleven, Bulgaria, during the period of 1988-90. The data were compared to data of a sample of 100 pregnant primiparas aged 20-24 years and the data of the literature. The rate of abortion among these adolescents was 2.4% compared to 1.78%, 7.44%, and 9.37%, respectively, reported from authors in Spain (1980), Tunisia (1991), and the US (1983). These 528 births to adolescents accounted for 5.48% of a total of 9635 births. This percentage exceeded the rate of 1.2% among 112 women reported by a French researcher (1984). Pregnant girls under 15 years of age face more medical complications. In this sample there were 72 (13.64%) cases of anemia, 52 (9.85%) cases of premature rupture of the amniotic sac, 13 (2.46%) cases of preeclampsia (3-18% reported in the literature), and 4 (0.76%) cases of eclampsia. In most cases delivery occurred spontaneously, and it lasted 8 hours and 35 minutes in the adolescents compared to 10 hours and 37 minutes in the controls. Among the girls under age 15, often analgesics, tranquilizers, and anesthesia had to be used because of the instrumental extraction of the fetus. The high rate of cesarean section (5.11%) indicated pelvic-fetal disproportion, which was even higher (15%) as reported by other researchers. The rate of vaginal instrumental delivery amounted to 6.72%. Fetal retardation occurred in 1.32% vs. 9.33% reported in Tunisia and 6.69% in France. The adoption rate made up a 8.29% vs. 20.11% reported in Tunisia and 18.20% reported in France. 56.82% of these girls were of Gypsy origin; 51.70% were single or cohabiting with the father of the child; 14.20% were illiterate. The rate of stillbirths amounted to 0.76% (4 children) vs. 11.11% (Tunisia) and 3.25% (France). However, prematurity reached 17.99% in the adolescent groups compared to 4.7% in the controls (p 0.05).


Mitochondrial genome rearrangements have been used for defining historical relationships, but there have been incidences of convergences at different taxonomic levels. Here, we sequenced complete mitogenome of Aleurodicus rugioperculatus (Aleyrodidae: Aleurodicinae) to examine gene rearrangements and phylogenetic relationships within the family Aleyrodidae. We identified five gene blocks (I-V) in the whitefly ancestor that are shared plesiomorphies retained in different whitefly lineages. Gene block I is conserved in all whiteflies except three species (Tetraleurodes acaciae and two Bemisia species). Conversely, we detected 83 derived gene boundaries within the family. Mapping these gene boundaries onto a phylogenetic tree revealed that 16 were symplesiomorphies for two subfamilies; 9 were synapomorphies at different taxonomic levels, and 28 autapomorphies for individual species. Bayesian Inference (BI) and Maximum Likelihood (ML) phylogenetic analyses yielded similar topologies supporting the monophyly of Aleyrodinae and Aleurodicinae. Exclusion of PCG third codon positions from phylogenetic analyses improved both node support and consistency with prior analyses. To understand the significance of gene order convergence on phylogeny of the whiteflies, more species-level data is required.


PURPOSE
To propose a new method to more accurately compute the conformity index (CI) for stereotactic radiosurgery patients with multiple lesions planned with the BrainLab iPlan treatment planning system.

METHODS
The dose files of the patients being studied were exported from the BrainLab iPlan system to VelocityAI, an imaging informatics software tool that provides an independent method of assessing the quality of treatment plans. An independent method of calculating CI is necessary as BrainLab incorrectly reports CI for multiple lesions. BrainLab recommends deleting the other treatment isocenters to account for this inaccuracy. In VelocityAI, a dose object of the isodose line in question was obtained. The CI was then calculated using the volume of the dose object, the PTV, and the percentage dose coverage. The method was tested for patients with single lesions and then applied to patients with multiple lesions. For multiple lesions, a Boolean operator was used to separate the isodose line in question from the isodose lines of the other lesions. The results of the new method were compared to those obtained following BrainLab's recommendations.

RESULTS
The absolute relative CI discrepancy between Brainlab and VelocityAI for single lesions averaged 1.63±0.9% for lesions >1cc. This discrepancy should be the same for multiple lesions. The results obtained using BrainLab's recommendations differed from our method by 8.27±8% for multiple lesions >1cc.

CONCLUSION
BrainLab's recommendation for obtaining CI for multiple lesions is not accurate. Exporting isodose lines from Brainlab into VelocityAI is one method of obtaining conformity indices for multiple targets. However, the accuracy of the result depends strongly on the size of the lesion. Although Brainlab does not directly report a correct CI for multiple lesions, it does rely on user feedback. The reader is encouraged to request CI calculation capabilities in Brainlab for multiple targets lesions.


Both healthy eyes of 10 six-year-old male and female mongrel dogs were studied. With a contact specular microscope the corneal endothelium was examined. Endothelial cells were analyzed in the central and peripheral cornea. Morphological analysis with regard to polymegathism and pleomorphism was performed. Three images of each region with at least 100 cells were obtained. The analysis showed that polygonal cells formed a mosaic-like pattern uniform in size and shape. The predominant number of cells was hexagonal. The polymegathism index was 0.22. The study demonstrates that the morphology of the normal corneal endothelial cells of dogs is similar to that found in the human cornea.


Light detection and ranging (LIDAR) is an important component of autonomous vehicles for environment modeling in real time. LIDAR generates a point cloud by analyzing the echo of light pulses scattered from the objects surrounding the train. Since the generated point clouds are too large to be used in practical applications, they need to be converted to a simpler and more compact form, while preserving all of the important features of the environment. Moreover, LIDAR signals are often affected by various noises or interferences, which rapidly decrease the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal with increasing distance. This study proposes a multi-scale analysis (MSA) strategy for interpolation and denoising of LIDAR signals efficiently. The developed method uses a coarse-to-fine hierarchical approximation that incrementally fits LIDAR signals up to a desired degree of accuracy. It is shown on three different signal types that the local analysis of the proposed method can eliminate noise more effectively than filtering and radial basis function based reconstruction of a signal provides computational efficiency compared to wavelet decomposition.


Rapid growth in population has added unmatched burdens to the urban municipal systems currently collecting and disposing of solid wastes. In Bangalore, India, the recent growth in the local economy has led to the rapid expansion of Bangalore District's development and population, which includes the surrounding municipalities. The increasing population and development has produced increasing volumes of waste to be managed by the current systems in place. Local solid waste management has not met the excess demand for proper waste disposal creating a backlog of wastes that accumulate within the urban environment. The deterioration of the urban environment reinforces incorrect disposal habits as people do not see their individual impact on such an environment. The Integrated Urban Environment Initiative for Sahakaranagar Layout (IUEISL) aims to create an improved community based solid waste management program through conducting community awareness and education programs, improving the existing solid waste management program with the construction of a composting/dry waste segregation facility and providing education and sanitary working conditions for employees of the solid waste management program. The aim of this paper is to identify current problems creating unsustainable solid waste management, evaluate the sustainable potential for the program, and where possible propose viable solutions to create a sustainable solid waste management system.


PURPOSE
Plastic scintillation detectors are promising candidates for the dosimetry of low- to medium-energy photons but quantitative knowledge of their energy response is a prerequisite for their correct use. The purpose of this study was to characterize the energy dependent response of small scintillation detectors (active volume <1 mm(3)) made from the commonly used plastic scintillator BC400.

METHODS
Different detectors made from BC400 were calibrated at a number of radiation qualities ranging from 10 to 280 kV and at a (60)Co beam. All calibrations were performed at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, the National Metrology Institute of Germany. The energy response in terms of air kerma, dose to water, and dose to the scintillator was determined. Conversion factors from air kerma to dose to water and to dose to the scintillator were derived from Monte Carlo simulations. In order to quantitatively describe the energy dependence, a semiempirical model known as unimolecular quenching or Birks' formula was fitted to the data and from this the response to secondary electrons generated within the scintillator material BC400 was derived.

RESULTS
The detector energy response in terms of air kerma differs for different scintillator sizes and different detector casings. It is therefore necessary to take attenuation within the scintillator and in the casing into account when deriving the response in terms of dose to water from a calibration in terms of air kerma. The measured energy response in terms of dose to water for BC400 cannot be reproduced by the ratio of mean mass energy-absorption coefficients for polyvinyl toluene to water but shows evidence of quenching. The quenching parameter kB in Birks' formula was determined to be kB = (12.3 ± 0.9) mg MeV(-1) cm(-2).

CONCLUSIONS
The energy response was quantified relative to the response to (60)Co which is the common radiation quality for the calibration of therapy dosemeters. The observed energy dependence could be well explained with the assumption of ionization quenching as described by Birks' formula. Plastic scintillation detectors should be calibrated at the same radiation quality that they will be used at and changes of the spectrum within the application need to be considered. The authors results can be used to evaluate the range of validity of a given calibration.


In the Roundtable on New Mediascapes and the Futures of Advertising, advertising executives and academics grapple with the following questions: How are advertising and media related? How has advertising adapted to changing mediascapes? Participants agreed that media are intricately linked to and propped up by advertising, but advertising's new tactics have often been adaptations that have come about because of new audience behaviors and the changing media themselves. Participants reflected on how recent media technologies can be used to reach various audiences in addition to the limits of such targeted messaging. The discussion links advertising's historic "digital" evolution to various future, unknown possibilities, including the blending of content and advertising and renewed avenues for advertising such as audio-based messages.


During the present study effect of Vitamin E and Tinospora cordifolia on BPA induced goat (Capra hircus) testicular tissue was evaluated. Testicular tissue was exposed to varied concentrations of BPA, Vitamin E and Tinospora cordifolia in three experimental groups along with their specific control for 4 and 8hrs. In group I, the cultured tissue was exposed to three doses of Bisphenol-A viz. 0.01, 1.0 and 100 nM/ml. In group II, Vitamin E (0.1µM/ml) was supplemented along with BPA (0.01, 1.0, 100 nM/ml) and in group III Tinospora cordifolia extract (250 µg/ml) was added with BPA (0.01, 1.0, 100 nM/ml) in the culture media. With the increase in dose level as well as the exposure duration, the frequency of apoptotic cells increased significantly (p< 0.05), as revealed by acridine orange and methylene blue staining. BPA exposure also induced a decline in the antioxidant enzyme activity such as catalase, glutathione peroxidase and reduced glutathione. Vitamin E and Tinospora cordifolia resulted in a decrease in the percentage of apoptotic cells and an increase in levels of catalase, glutathione peroxidase and reduced glutathione activity was observed. Hence, it is concluded that BPA induced more damage at its higher concentration and the antioxidant Vitamin E and Tinospora cordifolia ameliorate the oxidative stress-induced changes, thereby suggesting the  potential of Vitamin E and Tinospora cordifolia in counteracting the cellular damage induced by agents like BPA.


If That Ever Happens to Me: Making Life and Death Decisions after Terri Schiavo. By Lois Shepherd. The University of North Carolina Press, 2009. 192 pages. Hardcover. $28.00 Lois Shepherd's book If That Ever Happens to Me: Making Life and Death Decisions after Terri Schiavo demonstrates a great appreciation for the unresolved conflicts over end-of-life care revealed by the Schiavo case. Through detailed analysis, this book debunks the claim that the controversy defied an established consensus concerning the appropriateness of withdrawing medically administered nutrition and hydration. Arguments that settled legal standards provided a stalwart framework for that consensus failed to appreciate the variations and limitations of those norms. Shepherd challenges the notion that we professionals--doctors, lawyers, judges, and bioethicists--had authoritatively resolved the moral and social significance of withdrawal of nutrition and hydration. In fact, law is where we have kept our conflicts alive. The controversy over Terri Schiavo's care demonstrated the startling capacity of the legal system to be used to extend disputes beyond reasonable bounds. Observed more closely, the case shows how our laws have embedded unresolved tensions within the framework for surrogate decision-making relating to end-of-life care. Legal standards for surrogate decision-making in the United States require a highly individualized inquiry into a particular patient's desires in anticipated and unanticipated medical situations as she may or may not have communicated them to others. Much of the judicial crafting around life-sustaining treatment decisions has focused on establishing a particular evidentiary standard for determining the particular patient's choice. This approach reflects respect for individual liberty in intimate decisions, as well as deference to America's moral and religious pluralism. In focusing on variation among individuals and in failing to establish a substantive rather than process norm for withdrawing treatment, however, the current legal framework ensures continuing battles over the morality of specific decisions and clashes over significant facts in particular cases. Most states still have discrete threads rather than a full fabric of law that is applicable to end-of-life decision-making. States often have only one or two appellate cases addressing such issues, and the rulings in them are usually confined to the facts of the case before the court or to closely related situations that the court can imagine and address in dicta. And much of existing case law involves persons in a permanent vegetative state, relying on reasoning stemming from the condition's irreversibility and the patient's absence of awareness--so much so, in fact, that some states have what amounts to "PVS law," rather than case law on life-sustaining treatment generally. Furthermore, living will and durable power of attorney statutes in many states reflect the compromise of principles that occurs in the legislative process and refer to particular medical conditions, like terminal illness or irreversible coma, and to nutrition and hydration as distinct from other treatment. Legal academics meld general common law principles, constitutional theory, and various state laws into a "consensus" on legal standards. Practicing attorneys, however, must focus on particular decisions for particular patients in a particular state and in many circumstances can't tell their clients with certainty what the law is. This indeterminacy can be a problem in situations where interpersonal conflict persists and escalates, but it may not be particularly concerning in most cases. When treatment decisions proceed without conflict, law tends to stay in the background. For example, the high standard for clear and convincing evidence established by Cruzan v. Director, Missouri Department of Health does not make it impossible for surrogates to decide to withdraw nutrition and hydration in Missouri, even where evidence of the patient's choice fails to meet the standard. …


The existing studies usually find that technical change was very important in constraining the economic growth of the Soviet Union. While these studies have been successful in quantifying the extent of technical change, they have been less successful in quantifying its nature. This paper moves a step closer to probing the essence of Soviet efficiency by splitting the aggregate technical change into its subcomponents – namely, capital and labour efficiency. I find that the Soviet Union registered strong labour efficiency gains during most of the postwar period, converging towards the labour efficiency level of the global frontier – the US. Labour efficiency growth did decrease over time, but labour efficiency was not a primary cause of Soviet growth retardation. That retardation was instead caused by a decline in capital efficiency. At a disaggregated level, I find that the decrease in capital efficiency was driven by structures. I hypothesize that labour shortages and an inadequate investment policy resulted in a large stock of unfinished, and hence idle, structures, distorting Soviet economic growth.


Kushtha Vyadhi is increasing in population very rapidly specially in tropical countries like India, where other contributary factors are involved in the progression of this disease. Ayurvedic management is possible in such diseases by Shamana and Shodhana treatment for complete recovery and to eradicate the disease. In this study, a male patient aged 42 years consulted at OPD with complaints of reddish – white patches on back region with intense itching and burning sensation. Patient had history of Psoriasis since 5 to 6 years and symptoms are gets aggravated in winter season. Patient was treated with Shamana Chikitsa with Aarogyavardhini Vati, Gandhaka Rasayana, Panchatikta Ghrita, Kaishor Guggulu, Mamsapachaka Churna and Gandharva Haritaki Churna for two and half months and Shodhana Chikitsa (Raktamokshana by Siravedha) was carried out once during the treatment after Pachana Karma was done. Patient reported significant improvement in sign and symptoms.


Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a true pandemic. Consideration is given to potential exposure of air carriers to passenger liability in respect of alleged infection with the virus in the course of carriage by air having regard to the terms of the Montreal and Warsaw Conventions and case law relating to the same. It is concluded that such claims face various legal and practical hurdles and that liability is unlikely to engage in vast numbers.
COVID-19, Passenger Liability, Article 17, Bodily Injury, Accident, Causation


In this paper a unified visual features extraction structure was introduced for point and image moment features. Starting from the unified point and image moment features, a predictive controller for image-based visual servoing systems was developed and it includes unified image prediction and reference trajectory schemes together with an optimizer block. The control performance of the predictive architecture was evaluated through simulation results via a simulator created for visual servoing of robot manipulators.


The purpose of this study was to analyze the effect of investment and employment in the agricultural sector to GDP in South Kalimantan and to analyze the development of investment and employment in South Kalimantan. This research is a quantitative study by conducting data collection - secondary data related to the topic of study by the Central Bureau of Statistics South Kalimantan Province to obtain data in the form of labor and the economy GDP Data South Kalimantan, also get data from Bappeda South Kalimantan and BKPMD (Investment Coordinating Board) South Kalimantan related PMA and PMD Data investments as well as data from the Investment Credit Bank Indonesia Banjarmasin. The analysis tool used is multiple regression. The results of this study concluded that the discussion has been described in the previous chapter on the effects of investment to GDP and Employment South Kalimantan Agriculture is the state's economic growth in the province of South Kalimantan fluctuate widely during the year 2002-2011. Despite economic growth always is positive. The condition is mainly supported by a number of industries in South Kalimantan which are labor intensive and the number of people working in agriculture, trade, and mining so as to enhance economic growth in Kalimantan Selatan.Berdasarkan test result is known that this factor had no significant investment to GDP Agriculture Sector in South Kalimantan. These results are not in accordance with the theory and previous research that formed the basis for this study. This is because the investment value is still relatively low. Most investments are made only in the mining sector, industry, trade and services. The high cost to be paid by the investor to invest in the province of
South Kalimantan due to long procedures that must be followed investor, as well as bureaucratic costs are still high. While Labor is still positive but not significant effect on GDP Agriculture Sector in South Kalimantan. Taken together investment and employment significantly influence
GDP Agriculture Sector in South Kalimantan. From the F-test is known that the F-count (5624) of the value of F ¬ tables 4.73 and sig smaller than alpha value (0.035 <0.05). Both investment and labor signifkan partially due partly besides generally concentrated investment and employment in addition to the agricultural sector as a result of other things that happened over the investment functions of agriculture on other sectors are more lucrative and tersedotnya agricultural labor to other sectors. Of the test statistic with multiple linear regression, known coefficient of determination of 0.616. It shows 61.5% of the dependent variable explained by the independent variable and the remaining 38.5% is explained outside the regression model.
Although the quantity of the labor force contributes to the high GDP Agriculture Sector in South Kalimantan Province, should be accompanied by efforts to improve the quality of the labor force by the local government, for example by extending entrepreneurship education through nonformal
primarily related to agribusiness, agro-industry, agropolitan, and minapolitan to encourage the development of the agricultural sector. The government should prevent the occurrence of more productive land conversion and occupational mobility from agriculture to other sectors by improving infrastructure improvement and development of the agricultural sector so that the lives of the people associated with this sector more prosperous.
Keywords: Agriculture, Investment, Labor


Background: Breast cancer has the highest prevalence in women globally. The classification and diagnosis of breast cancer and its histopathological images have always been a hot spot of clinical concern. In Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD), traditional classification models mostly use a single network to extract features, which has significant limitations. On the other hand, many networks are trained and optimized on patient-level datasets, ignoring the application of lower-level data labels. Method: This paper proposes a deep ensemble model based on image-level labels for the binary classification of benign and malignant lesions of breast histopathological images. First, the BreaKHis dataset is randomly divided into a training, validation and test set. Then, data augmentation techniques are used to balance the number of benign and malignant samples. Thirdly, considering the performance of transfer learning and the complementarity between each network, VGG16, Xception, ResNet50, DenseNet201 are selected as the base classifiers. Result: In the ensemble network model with accuracy as the weight, the image-level binary classification achieves an accuracy of $98.90\%$. In order to verify the capabilities of our method, the latest Transformer and Multilayer Perception (MLP) models have been experimentally compared on the same dataset. Our model wins with a $5\%-20\%$ advantage, emphasizing the ensemble model's far-reaching significance in classification tasks. Conclusion: This research focuses on improving the model's classification performance with an ensemble algorithm. Transfer learning plays an essential role in small datasets, improving training speed and accuracy. Our model has outperformed many existing approaches in accuracy, providing a method for the field of auxiliary medical diagnosis.


Controlled synthesis of novel hierarchical cobalt (Co) microstructures with extraordinary magnetic performances is a promising strategy for the development of magnetic metals for industrial purposes. Unlike the majority of experiments necessitating organic solvents at high temperatures or pressures, here broccoli-like Co microstructures were successfully prepared in aqueous solution under ambient temperature with the assistance of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) for the first time. The synthetic process was associated with the chemical reduction of Co with pure water as solvent, hydrazine hydrate as reductant, and no complexant, nucleator, or external magnetic force was employed. The Co spheroids with broccoli shape were constructed by several beads with the length ranging from 0.67 μm to 1.22 μm, and they slightly self-assembled into a necklace with adjacent Co spheroids via spontaneous magnetic dipole–dipole attraction. The results indicated that the temperature, and the concentration of PVP and NaOH played an imperative role in the morphology and size of the ultrafine Co micro-aggregates in the present approach. More importantly, the broccoli-like Co entities exhibited a decreased saturation magnetization of 25.6 emu g−1 but an enhanced coercivity of 499.2 Oe mainly due to its anisotropic structure and smaller size, and could hold great potential for technological applications such as high-density data storage, and permanent magnetic materials.


One-dimensional (1D) linear, equivalent-linear, and nonlinear site-response models have been shown to be biased toward underprediction at high frequencies in the aggregate, particularly at small-to-medium strains. Because this bias persists among various constitutive models, we hypothesize that breakdowns in the 1D site-response assumptions and/or poorly characterized soil properties are responsible for the consistent underpredictions. We test four physical hypotheses for this persistent bias using 398 ground motions at 10 selected sites in Japan's Kiban–Kyoshin (KiK-net) database that are adequately modeled by 1D wave propagation. Specifically, we (1) apply a depth-dependent shear-wave velocity (VS) gradient within layers, (2) decrease the small-strain damping ratio by half, (3) increase the small-strain shear modulus by 10%, and (4) randomize the VS profile. We find that the application of a depth-dependent VS gradient and the reduction of the small-strain damping ratio most greatly reduce the high-frequency bias; that the randomized VS profiles sometimes improve predictions at the fundamental site frequency but often lead to greater underpredictions at high frequencies; and that the 10% adjustment of the small-strain shear modulus has a minimal effect. A significant finding of this study is that overly coarse VS profiles, which are inadequately sampled in depth, induce considerable underprediction bias in site-response models at high frequencies. With regard to 1D site-response model improvement, this study suggests that greater attention should be paid to the coarseness of VS profiles and excessive impedance contrasts, and that profile corrections using depth-dependent VS gradients may be warranted in some cases.


Most Neolithic pottery, except for some high quality fineware, is thought to be made of local material. However, in order to be able to conclude whether certain types of fineware were contemporaneously imported or not, considerable archaeometric analysis is required as well as the systemization of the acquired data. The development of CeraMIS, an interdisciplinary database management system for analytical results of raw materials for pottery (geological samples of clay and temper) and pottery artefacts (archaeological samples) is modelled on earlier ceramic provenance studies. It is an innovation established as part of a German-Hungarian bilateral project on "Long distance trade in Neolithic pottery". The database management system contains two main components: the SQL database and the software CeraMIS that organizes the storage of data. Applying a logical, already traditional methodological procedure of provenance analysis on archaeological pottery, in this paper results of petro-mineralogical and geochemical investigations of the samples are presented. The collection of results on surface treatment (painting, slip, and other techniques), investigations by non-destructive, high-resolution methods is also an important part of this procedure. Moreover, one of the important features of the database is that of clarifying the differences between analyses made on complete vessels, shards, the clay paste, temper and surface treatments. To present the results of these complex investigations and make the information available to specialists involved in this field of research, we have developed a software solution based on client/server architecture. The client software CeraMIS connects the server via Internet, so that the user does not need to install any additional software. The database can be queried using traditional search methods. The system is designed in a way that makes further amendments and extensions possible without loss of data. It is updated and tailored according to the experience acquired during its use. The system functionalities, data structure and data content are regularly revised according to the requirements of the users and data providers.


The trend of using scooters nowadays is a key to support consumer daily movement; the increasing number of sales of scooters shows a good sign for vehicle industry. The main objective of the research is to identify and analyze the factors that leads to brand preference of a scooter and which among them led to purchase of scooters. The findings of the study are based on the primary survey of 200 users of different brands, conducted within Kathmandu Valley. Correlation test is applied to test the relationship between the factors and the customer satisfaction. It is found that majority of the respondents considered comfort, mileage and design as the top three important factors that influence brand preference of scooters. The bottom three factors are colour variety, resale value and size of fuel tank. Factors such as price, mileage, comfort level, colour variety, design, size of fuel tank and spare parts supply have significant role in the brand preference of scooters, which means a favorable change in these factor can lead to brand preference of the customers. Whereas, resale value and durability are factors which have no significant relationship with brand preference of scooters among women consumers. From the result obtained, it is recommended that scooter brands should focus in developing more comfortable scooters because research shows that comfort level is the major factor that affects brand preference of scooter. In a city like Kathmandu valley, customers prefer scooter which has higher mileage potential. Although resale value and durability are the least influencing factors still the scooter brands should not neglect these factors because though not so significant but still few customers would prefer such factors while purchasing a scooter. The scooter brands should also focus of providing excellent reach of spare parts supply as majority of the customers agree that they will not purchase a brand of scooter if its spare parts are not easily available.Journal of Business and Social Sciences Research, Vol. 1, No. 2, pp. 185-200


This study is an attempt to contrast intentionality theory in English and Arabic. As such, it aims to show the differences and similarities in tackling this theory by both English and Arabic scholars (philosophers and linguists). It starts with a description of the theory in English. Then, it describes the theory in Arabic. It is hypothesized that there are both similarities and differences between English and Arabic concerning this theory. Moreover, Arabic supposedly precedes English in stating the importance of intention in deciding the meaning of the utterance. It is concluded that both English and Arabic have their own philosophical and linguistic roots of intentionality theory. However, their treatments have some similarities and other differences. For instance, Arabic philosophers and linguists are earlier in their study of intentionality than the English scholars. Moreover, both have focus on the relationship between mind or mental states and intentionality. In addition, both relate the interpretation of the intended meaning to the role of two types of context:


Abstract The HeRGÉ (Herschel Radio Galaxy Evolution) project consists of a sample of 70 radio galaxies in the range 1 < z < 5.2. They benefit from continuous coverage from 3 to 870μm with Spitzer, Herschel and sub-mm ground-based instruments (SCUBA, LABOCA). As a calorimeter, IR is an excellent proxy to estimate the contribution of both AGN and starburst, making of radio galaxies perfect candidates to provide new insights into the relationship between AGN and their host galaxies. The IR SED fitting with empirical templates reveals that radio galaxies are luminous and that their black holes and their host galaxies are not growing simultaneously. Extending the SED to optical/near-IR on a subsample of 12 radio galaxies spanning 1 < z < 4 reveal the necessity of three components to reproduce the observations. Making use of the evolutionary code PEGASE.3 and an AGN torus model, we are able to estimate parameters from the AGN torus, the evolved stellar population and the starburst (SB). They reveal that radio galaxies are massive, evolved, forming the bulk of their mass at very high redshift in a short timescale, but experience episodic, strong SB events, often associated with an AGN activity.


Chaotic road traffic situation in most Nigerian and African cities and roads is a nightmare, and a significant proportion of the cost of goods and services is attributed to this. A general feature is that these problems are due to tyranny of small decisions by motorists and some other citizens, hence, traffic problems in Nigeria are analysed in the context of a social dilemma. Game theoretic models based on the famous prisoner/commons dilemma game were used for the analysis. The analysis revealed the mechanism and scientific basis for most traffic problems encountered in Nigeria. Finally, it is suggested that the undesirable equilibrium outcome of the social dilemma could be avoided by using mechanism design and structural changes to the social game to achieve the desired efficient outcome and by so doing increased productivity, reduced accidents, injuries and deaths, and the resultant increased economic growth will be achieved.  Keywords : Game theory; Social Dilemma; Road Traffic; Equilibrium; Mechanism design


OBJECTIVE
To examine the expression of membrane-type-1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP) and reversion-inducing cysteine-rich protein with Kazal motifs (RECK) in gastric carcinoma, and investigate its clinical significance, at the same time analyze the correlation between MT1-MMP and RECK expression.

METHODS
MT1-MMP and RECK expression in surgically resected tissue samples of gastric carcinoma was examined by immunohistochemical method (two-step method) , and its correlation with clinicopathological factors was analyzed.

RESULTS
Among the 44 gastric carcinoma samples, 37 (84.1%) were stained positive for MT1-MMP, and 31 (70.5%) for RECK. The expression of MT1-MMP was much higher in poorly differentiated gastric carcinoma samples than moderately and well-differentiated samples (P = 0.015). The expression level of MT1-MMP was associated with invasive depth of tumor cells (P = 0.007), but no difference between sex and lymph node metastasis. On the contrary, the well-differentiated samples showed higher expression of RECK than poorly and moderately differentiated gastric carcinoma samples (P = 0.006). The expression level of RECK did not correlate with sex, lymph node metastasis and invasive depth of tumor cells. RECK expression showed no relation to MT1-MMP expression in the gastric carcinoma.

CONCLUSION
Overexpression of MT1-MMP in gastric carcinoma may play an important role during tumor differentiation and metastasis, the RECK protein may have positive effects on the tumor differentiation.


The parametric estimation of stochastic error signals is a common task in many engineering applications, such as inertial sensor calibration. In the latter case, the error signals are often of complex nature, and very few approaches are available to estimate the parameters of these processes. A frequently used approach for this purpose is the maximum likelihood (ML), which is usually implemented through a Kalman filter and found via the expectation-maximization algorithm. Although the ML is a statistically sound and efficient estimator, its numerical instability has brought to the use of alternative methods, the main one being the generalized method of wavelet moments (GMWM). The latter is a straightforward, consistent, and computationally efficient approach, which nevertheless loses statistical efficiency compared with the ML method. To narrow this gap, in this paper, we show that the performance of the GMWM estimator can be enhanced by making use of model moments in addition to those provided by the vector of wavelet variances. The theoretical findings are supported by simulations that highlight how the new estimator not only improves the finite sample performance of the GMWM but also allows it to approach the statistical efficiency of the ML. Finally, a case study with an inertial sensor demonstrates how useful this development is for the purposes of sensor calibration.


Knowledge graphs are a versatile framework to encode richly structured data relationships, but it can be challenging to combine these graphs with unstructured data. Methods for retrofitting pre-trained entity representations to the structure of a knowledge graph typically assume that entities are embedded in a connected space and that relations imply similarity. However, useful knowledge graphs often contain diverse entities and relations (with potentially disjoint underlying corpora) which do not accord with these assumptions. To overcome these limitations, we present Functional Retrofitting, a framework that generalizes current retrofitting methods by explicitly modeling pairwise relations. Our framework can directly incorporate a variety of pairwise penalty functions previously developed for knowledge graph completion. Further, it allows users to encode, learn, and extract information about relation semantics. We present both linear and neural instantiations of the framework. Functional Retrofitting significantly outperforms existing retrofitting methods on complex knowledge graphs and loses no accuracy on simpler graphs (in which relations do imply similarity). Finally, we demonstrate the utility of the framework by predicting new drug–disease treatment pairs in a large, complex health knowledge graph.


NDF (No Defect Found) is a phenomenon in which defects have been found in the manufacturing, operation and use of a product or facility, but phenomenon of defects is not reproduced in the subsequent investigation system or the cause of the defects cannot be identified. Recently, with the development of the fourth industrial revolution, convergence of hardware and software technologies in various fields is spreading to products such as aircraft, home appliances, and mobile devices, and the number of parts is increasing due to functional convergence. The application of such convergence technologies and the increase in the number of parts are major factors that lead to an increase in NDF phenomena. NDF phenomena have a significant negative impact on cost, reliability, and reliability for both manufacturers, service providers and operators. On the other hand, due to the nature of NDF phenomena such as difficult and intermittent cause identification and ambiguity in judgment, it is common to underestimate the cost of NDF or fail to take appropriate countermeasures in corporate management. Therefore, in this paper, we propose a methodology for estimating NDF costs by the PAF model which is a quality cost analysis model and ABC (Activity Based Costing) technique. The methodology of this study suggests a detailed procedure and the concept to accurately estimate the NDF costs, using ABC analysis, accounting system information, and IT system data. In addition case studies have validated the methodology. We think this could be a valid methodology to refer to when estimating the cost of other parts. And, it is meaningful to provide important judgment information in the decision-making process based on quality management and ultimately reduce NDF costs by visualizing them separately by major variable factors.


This article aims at reinstating Pellegrino Rossi's contribution to the theory of supply and demand. It shows how Rossi developed a theory of original value with sources taken from both traditional English and French thought. This article shows how innovative the mechanisms used by Rossi to explain the theory of supply and demand as compared with the classic theory of free competition. We demonstrate that Rossi can be considered as a precursor of the concept of reservation price which Jules Dupuit developed. The author also seems to be the precursor of many marginalist economists. His analyses brought him to the development of an original look at supply and demand at the beginning of the nineteenth century.


This paper presents a detailed analysis of a micromachined thermopile detector featuring high responsivity and a versatile mosaic structure, based on 128 60 µm × 60 µm pixels connected in series and/or in parallel. The mosaic structure is based on the one employed for the thermal sensor known as TMOS, which consists of a CMOS-SOI transistor embedded in a suspended and thermally isolated absorbing membrane, released through microelectro mechanical system (MEMS) post-processing. Two versions of the thermopile detector, featuring different series/parallel connections, are presented and were experimentally characterized. The most performant of the two achieved 2.7 × 104 V/W responsivity. The thermopile sensors' performances are compared to that of the TMOS sensor, adopting different configurations, and their application as proximity detectors was verified through measurements.


The study concerns itself with Old Helsinki Slang (OHS), a peculiar speech variety (spoken approximately between 1890 and 1950), mixing Finnish morpho-syntax and Swedish vocabulary. It is claimed that it resembles intertwined mixed languages. The study focuses on the lexical, phonological, morphological and syntactical features which are most likely contact-based. Besides the vocabulary, the impact of Swedish is clearly seen in phonology, while in morpho-syntax differences from Finnish are minor. In the conclusion, OHS is compared with Media Lengua and Ma'a. Although OHS was never an independent or an established system, it has a particular value as an example of language mixing in an exceptionally well-documented urban environment, even though the process was interrupted, and OHS gradually merged with Finnish.


Abstract Trans-vacant and cis-vacant polymorphs of smectites and illites were distinguished by studying different cation substitutions in octahedral and tetrahedral sheets and in the interlayer. The standard Kohn-Sham self-consistent density functional method was used in the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) with numerical atomic orbitals as the basis set. The calculations reproduce the differences in the lattice parameters between the cis-vacant and trans-vacant configurations as observed from experimental studies of phyllosilicates. This theoretical approach is a useful tool for predicting crystallographic properties that must be calculated for smectites and illites because they cannot be determined experimentally in these clay minerals, especially the cis-vacant and trans-vacant configurations. The effect of cation substitutions in the octahedral and tetrahedral sheets on various structural features is also presented. The calculated effects are consistent with experimental results. The energy differences between the cis-vacant and trans-vacant polymorphs for a given composition are lower than the energy changes produced by the relative cation distributions in the octahedral sheet. Nevertheless, in the most illitic samples the trans-vacant arrangement is more stable than the cis-vacant form, in accord with experimental studies.


Conflicts of interest between the sexes over control of mating can be reflected in various aspects of morphology and behaviour, including structure of genitalia and copulation duration. In Arrenurus water mites (Hydrachnidia: Arrenuridae) there are two main patterns of sperm transfer that differ in degree of potential male control of sperm uptake by females. In some species, males are equipped with an intromittent organ (the 'petiole') that is used to forcefully insert sperm into the female reproductive tract. In others, males lack an intromittent organ and females appear to push sperm into their reproductive opening themselves. Theory suggests that the amount of time spent in courtship after sperm transfer should differ between males with and without an intromittent structure. We predicted that male Arrenurus able to push sperm into the female's reproductive tract (petiolate males) should spend less time courting females after transferring sperm than apetiolate males, which may have to 'convince' females to take up their sperm. Here, we examined durations of mating for 11 species of Arrenurus with males that differ in genital morphology: seven species with males equipped with a well-developed petiole (= 'petiolate' species) and four species with males that either completely lack a petiole or have a minute peg-like petiole that does not appear to function as an intromittent organ (= 'apetiolate' species). We tested whether males of petiolate species spend less time in the stage of courtship that takes place after sperm transfer (= 'post-transfer courtship') than apetiolate males. In contrast to our prediction, we found that species with well developed petioles spent significantly more time in post-transfer behaviours than species lacking petioles. The possible function of protracted post-transfer courtship in the genus Arrenurus is discussed.


Direct determination of the sensitivity and specificity of a screening test requires use of a reference procedure (such as biopsy with histopathologic analysis) that provides an estimate of true disease status. The authors present a method for comparing the accuracy of a new screening test to an old one in situations when it is not feasible to apply the reference procedure to all screenees. This method requires that only those persons who test positive on old or new screening tests be further evaluated with the reference procedure. Ratios of sensitivities and specificities are derived for rapid comparison of the two screening tests. It is shown that McNemar's test can be used for significance testing of the differences in sensitivities and specificities between two screening tests. The required sample size for a study that compares the two tests is determined.


Describes the damage caused to libraries in the Mexico City earthquake of 19 September 1985, and national and international efforts at reconstruction. Although not many libraries were damaged, some of the busiest libraries had to be closed due to earthquake damage. One library employee was killed in the earthquake. A National Committee for the Reconstruction of Libraries was set up and received international support through IFLA and other organizations.


In this brief, we propose a new mixed H/sub 2//H/sub /spl infin// control design via a linear matrix inequality (LMI) based approach. By an equivalent transformation of Lyapunov matrix inequality, additional slack variables are introduced to characterize both the H/sub 2/ and H/sub /spl infin// performances. Based on the characterization, a new mixed H/sub 2//H/sub /spl infin// control design is proposed where the introduced slack variables add in additional degree of freedom in optimizing the mixed H/sub 2//H/sub /spl infin// performance, resulting in equal or better performance than existing LMI based methods. The proposed control algorithm is applied in the control design for hard disk drives (HDDs) where the problem of minimizing track misregistration (TMR) in the presence of unmodeled dynamics of voice-coil motor (VCM) is formulated as a mixed H/sub 2//H/sub /spl infin// control problem. The simulation and implementation results of the new control design for the VCM actuator demonstrate the significant performance improvement of TMR over the existing method of while ensuring robust stability under unmodeled dynamics of VCM.


India's telecommunication sector has undergone a spectacular transformation during the last decade emerging from a highly regulated, stat-owned monopoly to a moderately competitive fairly deregulated sector. Today, India possesses the world's fifth largest public sector telecommunications network and Asia's third larges, behind only China and South Korea. India's telecommunications sector continues to grow at a rapid pace and government officials, regardless of party, acknowledge that India needs a modern telecommunications network to sustain high levels of economic growth and create the proper environment for its IT sector to grow and prosper. Given its size and population, India possesses one of the most under penetrated and least developed telecommunications services markets in the world. India's fixed-line service sector has suffered from decades of under investment, the absence of competition, government protection, and monopoly. Much of the country's telecommunications infrastructure is archaic by international standards and the introduction of new technologies has rendered it obsolete. By the late 1980s, recurring fiscal deficits and negative balances of payments encourage the Indian government to initiate an economic reforms ended the government's monopoly over telecommunications services and in the manufacture of telecommunications equipment and opened the sector to private sector participation and foreign investment. Many of the world's leading multinational telecommunications firms have been drawn to India because of its enormous market potential. The opening of the telecommunications sector created one of the fastest growing and hottest markets for equipment and services in the world. Today vendors from the United States and other countries dominate India's $12.3 billion annual equipment market. To meet the ambitious goals set by the government in the National Telecom Policy of 1994 and 1999, India will need to install approximately 250 million telephones by 2010 at a cost of $106 billion. Most of the funds needed for the expansion are expected to come from the United States and other foreign investors.


We developed an online Japanese character entry system with handwriting input device for visually disabled persons (particularly, acquired blind persons). This system is composed of an electric tablet for writing a character, a hand controller for controlling the system condition, a recognition algorithm of handwritten characters, and a voice synthesizer which indicates a recognized character. We investigated the characteristics of Japanese character distortion written by visually disabled persons. As the result, we found that a relative position of stroke representative points (a stroke means a continuous line segment from pen-down to pen-up) in the partial pattern is stable, even if the written characters were extremely distorted. Therefore we already proposed a character recognition method based on the relative direction between two strokes (the RDS method) for characters written by visually disabled person. However, as the number of feature parameters of the RDS method are decreasing for the characters having less than 5 strokes, recognition errors are increasing. This paper describes the fusion (improvement) method by which a method based on the line segment directions in a stroke is added to the RDS method. From the experimental results, total recognition rate of a 92.5% (cumulative rates for the three best candidate of a 99.1%) are obtained from 1192 Japanese characters test for 11 persons.


As employers, higher education institutions in the UK are now under a statutory obligation to institute and implement equal opportunities policies. Integral to the process of instituting and implementing equal opportunities policies is effective communication of the policies. In this paper I conduct a critical discourse analysis of the staff equal opportunities policies of six UK higher education institutions as they were presented on their websites in October 2004. The aim of the analysis is to map out the policy documents' genres and styles, the types of audiences addressed and anticipated, the representation of social identities, and the inter-textual meanings that are incorporated and presupposed. It is argued that the policy statements draw upon and intersect several genres which do not sit quite comfortably with each other and which create some ambiguities as to their communicative purpose, and that they are organized around performative enunciations of promises and commitments largely oriented towards the future. I will also explore the ways in which the policy statements relay and re-inflect the statutory obligations emanating from governmental legislation, and the tensions and contradictions following from the policy statements' attempts to reconcile the principle of equal opportunities with the ideological construct of meritocracy. And finally, considering the aggregate configuration of the six higher education institutions' policies, I highlight the differential topicalization of equal opportunities 'areas' in the policy documents.


Background. Small asymptomatic solid renal masses are being found more often through the frequent use of abdominal ultrasonography and computed tomography. Nephron-sparing renal surgery is being done more often to treat these small lesions. A retrospective review was done to determine the effectiveness of this treatment. Methods. Patients who had nephron-sparing renal surgery (group 1—35 patients) were compared with those who had radical nephrectomy (group 2—71 patients) for renal cell carcinoma smaller than 5 cm. Results. The two groups had only small differences in fall in hematocrit, transfusion rates, operative time, and hospital stay. Major surgical complications were more frequent in group 1. After a median follow-up of 3.1 years, there has been no recurrence of tumor and there were no surgery-related or cancer-related deaths in either group. Conclusion. Nephron-sparing renal surgery appears to be a safe and effective alternative to radical nephrectomy for localized small renal tumors.


This article is devoted to theistic contents of the Indian teaching of Personal God/Īcvara in Hindus Philosophical systems. In spite of various opinions main features of the category "theism" in contrary to the concept of Impersonal Absolute are to be the concept of a Personal God the Initiator and benevolent Guardian over the world. Īcvara-vāda plays significant role in the History of Indian Philosophy, i. e. the title of philosophical school yoga is secvara-sāņkhya. The strict polemic opposition of īcvaraand nirīcvara-vadas enriched the Indian philosophical culture as a whole. Comparing to monotheistic religiosity, particularly the proofs for the existence of God in medieval scholastics, īcvara-vāda differs from Western theism by its non-creational character.


Two different lanthanum salts, lanthanum carbonate (LaCO(3)) and Lancer(®), a lanthanide citrate mixture, were tested for their effects on bone metabolism in a small animal model for post-menopausal osteoporosis. Forty female outbred Wistar Han rats, sham-operated (SHAM, positive control, n = 10) or ovariectomized (OVX, n = 30) at 4 months of age, were allotted into following groups (n = 10/group): (i) SHAM, (ii) OVX control (negative control), (iii) OVX + LaCO(3) (1.74 g/kg feed) and (iv) OVX + Lancer(®) (8 g/kg feed). Effects on bone were investigated by bone markers [osteocalcin (Oc) in serum and excretion of pyridinoline (PYD) in urine] and by physical parameters of bone structure and bone composition (bone mass, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium content in bone crude ash). Bone micro-architecture and bone mineral density were evaluated by peripheral quantitative computed tomography and micro-computed tomography (μCT). The animal model could be validated by differences between OVX control and SHAM. Body mass and feed intake were the same among the four groups. Oc was clearly increased in the two experimental groups (p < 0.001) vs. SHAM and OVX control. Bone mass and calcium content in bone ash were significantly higher than in OVX control. The Ca/P ratio in bone ash of the two lanthanide groups did not differ from SHAM. Bone-protecting effects of lanthanides were clearly demonstrated by an increased trabecular density which is the region of interest for osteoporotic bone loss. A 3D imaging of bone micro-architecture by μCT visualized descriptively the positive effects of lanthanides on bone formation. The results of this study demonstrate an improvement of bone formation and bone-protecting effects of lanthanides in the OVX rat. Thus, lanthanum salts suggest a prevention of post-menopausal bone loss and may be of benefit in experimental osteopenia following ovariectomy.


Léo Ferré exemplifies what is now widely regarded in France as the golden era of la chanson française during the 1950s and 1960s. This article examines how one singer-songwriter attempted to deal in his own, highly idiosyncratic way with the contraints of working within the record industry, and focuses on the development of his ambivalent relationship with the record label owner and producer, Eddie Barclay. Although sympathetic to Ferré's cause, Barclay also adopted a pragmatic approach, particularly where questions of censorship were concerned, as he attempted to balance commercial necessity, legal requirements as well as the creative demands of the artist. The discussion also explores how Ferré has contributed to contemporary intellectual debates relating to the significance of popular music within a French context. Ferré showed marked resistance to North American influence and middle-of-the-road pop music, particularly la chanson yéyé, but he was by no means not-influenced by the arrival of rock in France.


This thesis focuses on a comparative energy balance study based on a four cylinder gasoline engine data operated on different engine speed of wide open throttle. The key objective of conducting the energy balance study is to determine the most influence factor that contribute to the heat losses. The transfer of energy was measured for losses to the engine coolant and exhaust, usable power output, as well as friction losses. In a conventional internal combustion engine, approximately one-third of total fuel input energy is converted to useful work. A major part of the energy is lost with the exhaust gases. In addition, another major part of energy input is rejected in the form of heat via the cooling system. The importance of this study is to identify the key factor that contribute to the heat losses which further can be use to minimize the heat losses and at the same time improves the power output and mechanical efficiency. In present study, heat balance has been investigated theoretically for different engines speeds and load. To analyze energy balance, a zero-dimensional multi-zone thermodynamics model has been developed and used. The results showed that input energy at low engine speed was distributed 6.95%, 21.66%, 20.30%, and 0.88% to the major areas of coolant, exhaust, and power output, and friction, respectively. Differently the input energy at high engine speed was distributed 22.09%, 26.6%, 30.09%, and 5.68% to the major areas of coolant, exhaust, power output, and friction respectively. Energy loss increases with increasing engines speed and load and thus the mechanical efficiency decreases. Future improvements to obtain distinguishable results are outlined.


We examined the effects of dietary vitamin D deficiency on markers of mitochondrial biogenesis and dynamics in rat soleus muscle. Male Wistar rats were fed a chow with no vitamin D (No-D; 0 IU/kg) or a moderate dose (Mod-D; 2,000 IU/kg) of vitamin D chow for 8 wk. Compared to the Mod-D group, at 8 wk the No-D group showed significantly lower serum 25(OH)D levels. Although vitamin D deficiency had no effect on body composition, the No-D rats showed significantly decreased levels of PGC-1α, a marker of skeletal muscle mitochondrial biogenesis, and DRP1, a marker of skeletal muscle mitochondrial fission. The change in the PGC-1α protein expression and the serum 25(OH)D concentrations were significantly correlated. The change in DRP1 protein expression and the serum 25(OH)D concentrations tended to be correlated. There was no significant between-group difference in markers of mitochondrial fusion (MFN2 and OPA1) and mitophagy (PARKIN) in soleus muscle, and no relationship with serum 25(OH)D concentrations. Collectively our findings suggest that dietary vitamin D deficiency decreased PGC-1α and DRP1 protein expression in rat soleus muscle.


This investigation adopted a multiple case study approach to determine the personality functioning in people living with HIV/ AIDS (PLWHA). Participants comprised a convenience sample of four PLWHA (male = 3, female = 1). The majority of the participants were white (n = 3) and one was black African. Only one participant was married at the time of participation. Data on aspects such as their suicidal ideation, affect, problem solving styles, ego functioning, self-perception, and interpersonal functioning were collected using the Rorschach inkblot test and clinical interview. The data were actuarially analysed and organised under themes, namely; dominant personality style, capacity for control and stress, situational related stress, affect, interpersonal relations and self-perception. Findings revealed that participants had high levels of potential mood disorders and interpersonal difficulties for which targeted psychological services may be needed.


The cholecystokinin A receptor (CCK-AR) modulates CCK-stimulated dopamine release in the posterior nucleus accumbens, and its gene is mapped to 4p15.2-15.1 with the dopamine receptor 5 (DR5) gene. We speculated that alterations in the CCK-AR lead to an increase in dopamine release, which may in turn constitute a predisposition in schizophrenia. We investigated genetic variations in the promoter region and the coding region of the CCK-AR gene. An association analysis was conducted between 83 unrelated schizophrenic patients and 80 healthy controls. Novel polymorphisms (201A-->G, 246G-->A in the promoter region, 1260T-->A, 1266T-->C in intron 1 within the 3' mRNA splice acceptor site consensus sequence, and Leu306Leu in exon 5) were found in addition to the variants (608G-->A in intron 1, 3849C-->T [Ile296Ile] in exon 5) reported previously. Significant differences were found in the allele frequencies of the 201A-->G nucleotide substitution in the promoter region between patients and controls (P = 0.0181, odds ratio: 1.972, after Bonferroni correction: P = 0.0543). These differences were also found between the patients with paranoid type and controls (P = 0.0274, odds ratio = 3.667, after Bonferroni correction: P = 0.0822). Our analyses suggest that the 201A allele frequency was higher in the schizophrenic group, especially in the paranoid type, than in the control group at a rate that was not quite significant after Bonferroni correction. Am J. Med Genet. (Neuropsychiatr. Genet.) 96:141-145, 2000.


We have cloned Tk0522, a carbohydrate esterase homologue from Thermococcus kodakarensis, with the deletion of a signal sequence of nineteen amino acids at the N-terminal and produced the recombinant Tk0522 in Escherichia coli. Recombinant Tk0522 was produced in soluble and enzymatically active form. Analysis of the cytosolic, periplasmic and extracellular fractions demonstrated the presence of Tk0522 in cytosolic and periplasmic fractions. The esterase activity in the periplasmic fraction, similar to the cytosolic fraction, increased with the passage of time after induction. No significant amount of esterase activity could be detected in the extracellular fraction. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on translocation of a mature archaeal esterase from cytosolic to periplasmic space in E. coli.


OBJECTIVE
Preterm infants are at greater risk of symptomatic cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection than term infants. Breast milk is the main source of perinatal CMV infections. This study evaluated the kinetics of CMV load in breast milk and the rate of postnatal CMV transmission via breast milk from mothers to their preterm infants.

METHODS
This was a prospective study of 30 mothers and their 43 preterm infants. The infants either had a gestational age of <34 weeks or weighed <2000 g at birth. Breast milk, serum, and urine samples were collected every 2 weeks until discharge, and screened for CMV infection using a real-time PCR assay. Most of the breast milk had been preserved at -20 degrees C before feeding to the preterm infants.

RESULTS
Twenty-four mothers (24 of 30, 80%), who had 34 preterm infants, were CMV immunoglobulin G positive. Twenty-one (87.5%) of the 24 seropositive mothers, who had 30 preterm infants, had detectable CMV deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) in breast milk during the study period. Most breast milk became positive for CMV DNA 2 weeks after delivery. Viral DNA copy numbers increased until they peaked at 4 to 6 weeks. Afterward, the CMV DNA copy numbers decreased. Of the 30 infants who were fed CMV DNA-positive breast milk, CMV infection was confirmed in 3 infants. However, they had no clinical symptoms of CMV infection.

CONCLUSIONS
Despite the high rate of CMV DNA in breast milk, symptomatic infections in the preterm infants did not occur. These results might be associated with the method of breast milk preservation and the population we studied. CMV infections transmitted via breast milk feeding did not have much impact on preterm infants in our institutes.


A pot culture experiment was carried out during 2019-20 to evaluate the interactive effects of saline water irrigation and potassium on growth and nutrients accumulation of maize crop. The experiment was conducted in CRD with three replications. The treatments consist of 5 levels of saline water-0, 8, 12, 16 and 20 dSm -1 and three levels of amendments-FYM, K and FYM + K. The results indicated that cumulative application of saline water @ 8, 12, 16 and 20 dSm -1 decreased the shoot length (10-30%), root length (5-35%), shoot dry mass (50-65%), root weight (60-89%) and k uptake (52-69%) as compared to control. The Na content was increased by 25-107% at same level of salinity. Application of FYM + K reduced the adverse effect of Na at all levels of salinity. The K + /Na + ratio in maize plant and ECe of soil significantly correlated with several plant parameters. The K + /Na + ratio in soil failed to correlate well with biomass yield and nutrient accumulation. It is concluded that the K + /Na + ratio in plant can be considered as a best indicator in evaluating crop performance in saline soils.


We introduce quality differentiation and an extensive margin of products into a standard quantitative, general equilibrium model of international trade. Both the quality and the quantity of a product play a role in its contribution both to consumption and to production. The framework allows bilateral trade to vary at the extensive and intensive margins and the intensive margin of trade to vary at the quantity and unit-value margins. We estimate the parameters of the model using bilateral data on trade flows and on unit values in trade. The model captures (i) the well-documented increasing relation between unit values and both importer and exporter per capita income and (ii) how the extensive margin rises with importer and exporter size. But, unlike other contributions to the literature confronting these margins in international trade, our framework delivers a standard gravity formulation for trade flows and standard measures of the gains from trade apply.


PL06-02 Over the last 5 - 10 years the non invasive imaging of molecular interactions in man has become possible. In the emerging post genomic era molecular imaging provides an important tool for translating basic research into knowledge of the phenotype in vivo function and physiology. Molecular imaging can now move towards measuring gene expression in vivo, as well as DNA, RNA and protein interactions, mechanisms of action of drugs and tumour and normal tissue physiology. Positron emission tomography (PET) is the most sensitive and specific technology for in vivo molecular imaging in man.
 Tumour vascular physiology is a dynamic process and can be effectively studied in real time in man using PET. In this way we are now able to address essential mechanistic questions about in vivo tumour vasculature and response to anticancer therapy in man. Tumour vasculature is now an important target for therapy with several novel agents. Addressing the many mechanistic questions that have arisen with vasculature-targeted therapy would enable us to rationally exploit and improve cancer therapy. Changes in tumour vascular physiology are difficult to study in the patient. Molecular imaging with PET is ideally suited to tackle this, providing in vivo physiological measurements simultaneously in tumour and normal tissue. Oxygen 15 labelled water can be used to measure blood flow (with absolute quantitation in ml/mg/min) and volume of distribution (percentage of a tumour that is perfused). Angiogenesis itself can be explored using probes to the VEGF and other systems.
 PET studies have shown that vascular parameters are important in anticancer drug delivery. Higher tumour blood flow is associated with improved tumour exposure for both lipophilic and non-lipophilic drugs. The relationship between changes in tumour volume and tumour physiology in response to antiproliferative therapy has been shown to be complex. PET has been used to confirm the mechanism of action of vascular disruptive as well as antiangiogenic drugs in early clinical trials. Clinical trials indicate that certain antiangiogenic drugs increase chemosensitization. PET would allow the investigation of the mechanism of such sensitization in vivo in man, by assessing normalization of the tumour vasculature or augmenting the antivascular effects of chemotherapy via inhibition of the possible revascularisative stimulatory effect of circulating endothelial progenitor cells.
 This presentation will examine the relative merits of this technology, examples of its use and discuss the possibilities and potential for the future.


The first step has been taken towards a resolution of the North Korean nuclear crisis. But the 23-25 April trilateral negotiations held in Beijing, involving the United States, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and China may have raised as many questions as provided answers. This Research Note summarises the major issues.


Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) disease is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in neonates and immunocompromised populations, such as transplant recipients and HIV-infected patients. The development of a vaccine to prevent HCMV infection or disease has been assigned the highest priority by the US Institute of Medicine. Although, after 30 years of intensive study, a clinically licensed vaccine is still not available, significant progress has been made in the field of HCMV vaccine development, along with greater understanding of HCMV immunology, molecular biology and pathology. In recent years, new vaccine strategies have been developed that have shown promising results in preclinical studies and are able to induce HCMV-specific immune responses in clinical studies, although efficacy data are not yet available. Here we review the history of HCMV vaccine development and the current strategies in the development of new HCMV vaccines. We propose that research should focus on the development of a vaccine to prevent or control HCMV-related disease rather than to prevent infection, and that discerning strategies should be used for targeting HCMV disease in different clinical settings.


A practical numerical method for the effective solution of the Thomson Problem is proposed. The developed iterative algorithm allows to conduct theoretical researches such as study of the number of asymptotic solutions depending on the particle count. Metastable states of charged point systems on a unit sphere were considered and the probability of falling into the basin of each state was obtained. Founded upon the algorithm and dual lattice representation approach, the framework for rapid construction of capped carbon nanotubes was created.


We have successfully developed a novel Package-on-Package (PoP) technology for achieving small package thickness and low package warpage. The novel package structure is based on an ultra-thin coreless substrate, called a Multi-Layer Thin Substrate (MLTS) . The MLTS is fabricated by completely removing the Cu base plate after forming a high-density buildup structure on the base plate. In this paper, however, the Cu posts are formed by selective wet etching of the Cu base plate. Since the novel package has built-in Cu posts as external terminals, the overall substrate can be molded for the peripheral area as well as the chip mounting area. This paper also describes how two types of novel wet etching processes have been developed for obtaining narrower pitch and higher aspect ratio. Through the novel wet etching process, we achieve Cu posts of 0.5 mm pitch and high aspect ratio of 6.0, which cannot be realized by wet etching. A prototype package has 361 pads arranged in 5 rows with 0.5 mm pitch, and the thickness is only 0.23 mm.


Abstract At 33% of under‐5s, stunting rates in Rwanda remain stubbornly high, as do figures for maternal (25% of pregnant women) and childhood anaemia (37%). Intensive communication and education campaigns have provided caregivers with high levels of knowledge about best practices in Maternal, Infant and Young Child Nutrition (MIYCN), but this is not translating into the improved diets which could contribute to reducing rates of stunting. Deploying an anthropological approach via multi‐module Focused Ethnographic Studies carried out within household case studies, the research team sought to understand drivers of suboptimal feeding practices in a sample of 30 households across all of Rwanda's districts. The sample included households with pregnant women as well as children in the 6–60 month age range. Analysed against a framework of proximal and underlying causes of under‐nutrition, our results reveal gaps in the knowledge‐capability‐practice chain resulting from decisions and prioritisations taken by caregivers and heads‐of‐household. Pregnant women and mothers of young children possess high levels of knowledge about feeding themselves and their young children, but this is not reflected in decision‐making and prioritisation around the acquisition and feeding of animal source foods, whose consumption is low among both groups. This was found to be true even in households which own and raise livestock. Turning to policy and programmes, we argue for a move towards incentivized human capital programming focusing on the 'last mile' behaviour change which is needed to translate knowledge and capability into better dietary choices.


Author(s): Gil-Marin, H; Guy, J; Zarrouk, P; Burtin, E; Chuang, CH; Percival, WJ; Ross, AJ; Ruggeri, R; Tojerio, R; Zhao, GB; Wang, Y; Bautista, J; Hou, J; Sanchez, AG; Pâris, I; Baumgarten, F; Brownstein, JR; Dawson, KS; Eftekharzadeh, S; Gonzalez-Perez, V; Habib, S; Heitmann, K; Myers, AD; Rossi, G; Schneider, DP; Seo, HJ; Tinker, JL; Zhao, C | Abstract: © 2017 The Authors. We analyse the clustering of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV extended Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey Data Release 14 quasar sample (DR14Q).We measure the redshift space distortions using the power-spectrum monopole, quadrupole, and hexadecapole inferred from 148 659 quasars between redshifts 0.8 and 2.2, covering a total sky footprint of 2112.9 deg2. We constrain the logarithmic growth of structure times the amplitude of dark matter density fluctuations, fσ8, and the Alcock-Paczynski dilation scales that allow constraints to be placed on the angular diameter distance DA(z) and the Hubble H(z) parameter. At the effective redshift of zeff = 1.52, fσ8(zeff) = 0.420 ± 0.076, H(zeff) = [162 ± 12] (r sfid/rs) kms-1 Mpc-1, and DA(zeff) = [1.85 ± 0.11] × 103 (rs/r sfid) Mpc, where rs is the comoving sound horizon at the baryon drag epoch and the superscript 'fid' stands for its fiducial value. The errors take into account the full error budget, including systematics and statistical contributions. These results are in full agreement with the current Λ-Cold Dark Matter cosmological model inferred from Planck measurements. Finally, we compare our measurements with other eBOSS companion papers and find excellent agreement, demonstrating the consistency and complementarity of the different methods used for analysing the data.


In esophageal cancer, metastatic spread to the lungs is detected in 4-9.7% of cases. During staging investigations, 22% of patients have pulmonary nodules detected on cross-sectional imaging. The purpose of this study is to elucidate the clinical importance of these incidentally found pulmonary nodules, in patients with clinically localized esophageal cancer. A retrospective cohort study was conducted from January 2008 to December 2012 in a tertiary esophagogastric referral center. One-hundred and forty-nine patients were included in the study. All patients underwent dedicated staging followed by neoadjuvant chemotherapy and surgery as indicated. Thirty-three (22.1%) patients had pulmonary nodules found in their preoperative staging. Only three (9%) patients proved to develop metastatic pulmonary disease on follow-up. Interestingly, in all three patients, the nodules were negative on initial 18-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography. Incidentally found pulmonary nodules in newly diagnosed patients with esophageal cancer during staging investigations are rarely metastases. Such nodules, in isolation, should not preclude patients from radical treatment.


The teaching profession is highly stressful. Stress is a negative phenomenon that develops under conditions of uncontrollable, prolonged and increased pressure. In this study, our goal is (a) to investigate teachers' perception of the sources of stress in school in light of the neoliberal reforms and (b) to compare these sources of stress in primary school, middle school and high school teachers. We hypothesize that the demands and the workload to improve scores in standardized tests, increase the need of teachers to take work home. Therefore, home demands may conflict with school demands. Furthermore, the greatest pressure is on elementary and middle school teachers: Early efforts to improve student achievements in the lower grades would result in better-prepared students in high schools. Data about the sources of stress is based on a previous study of Buskila, Buskila, Giris and Ablin (2019) that investigated the connection between the effects of stress on teachers on somatic syndromes. Three hundred and twenty-one public school teachers working in the Ministry of Education (MOE) in Israel participated in the study. Findings of the mean of the entire samples revealed that the highest level of stress was caused by intense teaching schedule with insufficient breaks. The second cause was related to the composition of the students in the class, and the third was home demands conflicting with school demands. In the middle schools, the highest levels of stress are caused by school principals (M=5.98, SD=3.09) and second is in high school (M=5.00, SD=3.33). The highest level of stress caused by the superintendent is on primary school teachers (M=3.97, SD=3.33) and the second are the middle school teachers (M=3.79, SD = 2.95). The lowest stress level was in high school (M=2.68, SD=2.83). Three significance differences of stress were found among primary, middle, and high schools: The school principal is the highest source of pressure in the middle schools (P=.034), and the superintendent causes the highest level of stress in primary schools (P=.006). The third cause was in high school, related to physical school conditions (p=.002). These results are relevant to teachers, educators, and policy makers involved in planning and managing educational strategies and teachers' schedules. Identifying and preventing the sources of stress can facilitate better teaching conditions, and a more effective and efficient atmosphere in school. Keywords: Stress at school, teachers' stress, causes of stress in school


Online caching is among the most fundamental and well-studied problems in the area of online algorithms. Innovative algorithmic ideas and analysis -- including potential functions and primal-dual techniques -- give insight into this still-growing area. Here, we introduce a new analysis technique that first uses a potential function to upper bound the cost of an online algorithm and then pairs that with a new dual-fitting strategy to lower bound the cost of an offline optimal algorithm. We apply these techniques to the Caching with Reserves problem recently introduced by Ibrahimpur et al. [10] and give an O(log k)-competitive fractional online algorithm via a marking strategy, where k denotes the size of the cache. We also design a new online rounding algorithm that runs in polynomial time to obtain an O(log k)-competitive randomized integral algorithm. Additionally, we provide a new, simple proof for randomized marking for the classical unweighted paging problem.


This paper describes a technique which applies a heat balance around the crude fractionator to predict changes in the feedstock volatility. Volatility changes are then fed forward to the sidestream yield controllers, significantly improving sidestream quality control during the several hours following feedstock switches. The application was tested at one of Exxon affiliated refineries with good results.


This study investigates how gender affects sustainable livelihoods in terms of the impact on food and nutrition security in farm worker households. Gender variables play a crucial role in the well-being of households, especially for women and children. A case study of South African farms shows that female-headed households, although having less access to earned income, take better care of the well-being of household members. While men remain the dominant earners, women have better access to social grants, remittances from relatives and informal incomes. Households led by women are found to have greater food security, defined as having physical, economic and social access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet dietary needs. The paper highlights the crucial role of women's access to resources and power relations within households for sustainable livelihoods and the need to include household and gender variables in demographic and health surveys.


References 1 Faculty of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care Clinical Effectiveness Unit. FFPRHC Guidance (April 2005). Drug interactions with hormonal contraception. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2005; 31: 139–150. 2 Faculty of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care Clinical Effectiveness Unit. FFPRHC Guidance (April 2003). Emergency contraception. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2003; 29(2): 9–16.


The incidence of human brucellosis in Kyrgyzstan has been increasing in the last years and was identified as a priority disease needing most urgent control measures in the livestock population. The latest species identification of Brucella isolates in Kyrgyzstan was carried out in the 1960s and investigated the circulation of Brucella abortus, B. melitensis, B. ovis, and B. suis. However, supporting data and documentation of that experience are lacking. Therefore, typing of Brucella spp. and identification of the most important host species are necessary for the understanding of the main transmission routes and to adopt an effective brucellosis control policy in Kyrgyzstan. Overall, 17 B. melitensis strains from aborted fetuses of sheep and cattle isolated in the province of Naryn were studied. All strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole, gentamicin, rifampin, ofloxacin, streptomycin, doxycycline, and ciprofloxacin. Multilocus variable number tandem repeat analysis showed low genetic diversity. Kyrgyz strains seem to be genetically associated with the Eastern Mediterranean group of the Brucella global phylogeny. We identified and confirmed transmission of B. melitensis to cattle and a close genetic relationship between B. melitensis strains isolated from sheep sharing the same pasture.