Karl Popper's critique of theoretical history remains formidable but contains serious flaws. Popper held erroneous views about the practice of the natural sciences and created overly severe strictures for theoretical statements in the social sciences. General theory and general theoretical statements play a legitimate role in the social sciences. Merton has promoted middle-range theories and models and Lakatos multiple ontologies. One can answer Popper's criticisms of either the impossibility or triviality of long-term historical laws by searching for stable constellations of local or middle-range laws rather than a universal law. Moreover, the successful use in the social sciences of various types of scales of measurement rather than an absolute scale shows that quantitative analysis is possible in history. Investigators need to find the boundaries, the frameworks of feasibility, in which historical trends and laws operate. Popper's maximalism plays into the irrationalist trends that he himself deplored. If historical investigators and theoreticians set appropriate goals for theoretical history, they can practice their discipline responsibly and find meanings, if not a single meaning, in history.


Recombinant lambda gt11 phages were selected by screening a genomic library of Brucella abortus DNA with monoclonal antibodies specific for a 16.5-kDa Brucella outer membrane protein (Omp16). The corresponding gene, named pal, was subcloned on a 0.7-kb AluI fragment. Immunoblotting confirmed the expression of a recombinant Omp16 in the transformants. DNA sequence analysis revealed an open reading frame of 168 codons. The deduced amino acid sequence agrees with an internal peptide sequence of native Omp16 and contains a potential lipoprotein signal peptide cleavage site, giving rise to a predicted mature protein of 144 amino acids. The predicted sequence of Omp16 also shows a remarkable degree of similarity to the sequences of three peptidoglycan-associated bacterial lipoproteins. In immunoblotting with a monoclonal antibody specific for Omp16, we demonstrated that Omp16 was expressed in the 34 Brucella strains tested, representing all six species and known biovars.


Experience with pig-tail designed silicone rubber catheter for upper urinary tract is reported. There are several sizes of catheter: the small size (5, 6 F) is adequate for cystoscopic ureteral stenting, and the large size (8-14F) is suitable for the purpose of urinary diversion e.g. nephrostomy, cutaneostomy. In cases of long-term indwelling catheter like nephrostomy and cutaneostomy, there were some advantages; remarkably decreased frequency of catheter exchange, and prevention and/or treatment of dermatitis around the urostoma with Varicare system II. As a splint catheter after urinary tract surgery e.g. pyeloplasty, ureteroplasty, pyelolithotomy, the catheter was excellent.


The design stress of sulphur hexafluoride (SF 6 ) Gas-Insulated Switchgear (GIS) systems are limited by the harmful effects resulting from the electrode surface roughness and the almost inevitable presence of particulate contamination in GIS equipment. So, this paper studies the breakdown voltages (BDV) of SF 6 - N 2 gas mixture with particles contaminating a parallel plane gap under DC voltage. The effect of particle dimensions on the breakdown voltage is analytically studied in this work. The breakdown voltage - pressure characteristics are deduced. Also, a comparison between the breakdown voltages for SF 6 gas and the SF 6 - N 2 gas mixture for the study case are presented. The effect of the fractional concentration of SF 6 in the mixture on the breakdown voltage for this problem is also given.


This paper examines the answers given by a random sample of 341 15- to 19-year old Argentinian adolescents, both male and female, in the 10th and 12th grades of high school in Paraná, to questions focusing on their relationship with their parents and formed part of a comprehensive survey on various aspects of their socio-emotional development. Despite the fact that the individuals belong to a different geographical and cultural environment, the findings coincide with those from countries such as the U.S.A., Great Britain, Spain and Australia. Parents are the most important persons in the teenagers' emotional life; they are still identification models for them and neither their friends, partners nor other adults displace them from their central position. The bond is perceived as positive and the satisfaction rests on the support they give. There are disagreement areas hinging on issues such as school performance, time-table for outings, and overcontrol, but there is agreement on moral, religious and political values. Several statistically significant differences in the answers provided by both genders and in the perception of the maternal and paternal roles were found.


This book is intended to provide a treatment of the theory and applications of Stochastic Neural Networks,that is networks able to learn random processes from experience, on the basis of recent developments on this subject. The mathematical frameworks on which the theory is founded embrace the approximation of non-random functions as well as the theory of stochastic processes. The networks so defined constitute an original and very promising model of human brain neural activity consistent with the need of learning from a stochastic environment. Moreover, the problem of speech modeling, both for synthesis and recognition, is faced as concrete and significant application in the field of artificial intelligence of the theory is presented.


Abstract Objective To elucidate whether antenatal administration of corticosteroids in pregnancies with threatened preterm labor affects growth velocity. Methods A cohort of 262 pregnancies exposed to antenatal corticosteroids longitudinally studied and delivered from 36 weeks (cases) were compared to an unexposed group of 270 women (controls). Methods Fetal growth was assessed analyzing the growth velocity of head circumference (HC), abdominal circumference (AC), femur length (FL) and estimated fetal weight (EFW). Growth velocity (GV) was calculated as the difference in the Z-score between the biometric measurements recorded at the time of steroids administration and at 36 week of gestation, divided by the time interval (expressed in days) between the two scans and multiplied by 100. Similarly, changes in the Pulsatility Index (PI) of uterine, umbilical (UA), middle cerebral (MCA) arteries and cerebroplacental ratio (CPR) during the same time interval were also computed. Results Median gestational age at steroid administration (30.2 weeks vs 30.4) and follow-up ultrasound (36.4 weeks vs 36.4) were similar between cases and controls. In pregnancies exposed to antenatal corticosteroids, growth velocity in the HC (−0.61 vs. 0.12; p ≤ 0.001), AC (−0.55 vs. −0.04; p ≤ 0.001) and EFW (−0.89 vs. 0.06; p ≤ 0.001) were lower when compared to pregnancies not exposed to steroid therapy, while there was no difference in the growth velocity of FL (−0.05 vs 0.19; p = .06) or in any of the Doppler parameters explored. Conclusion In pregnancies exposed to antenatal steroid therapy, there is a significant reduction in fetal growth velocity not otherwise associated with changes in cerebroplacental Dopplers.


Psoriasis is an immune-mediated skin disease, the aetiology of which remains poorly understood. In recent years, genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have helped to illuminate the molecular basis of this condition, by demonstrating the pathogenic involvement of multiple genes from the IL-23 and NF-κB pathways. A GWAS carried out by our group also identified RNF114, a gene encoding a novel ubiquitin binding protein, as a determinant for psoriasis susceptibility. Although the function of RNF114 is unknown, its paralogue RNF125 has been shown to regulate the RIG-I/MDA5 innate antiviral response. This signalling cascade, which is activated by the presence of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) within the cytoplasm, induces the production of type I interferon (IFN) through the activation of the IRF3 and NF-κB transcription factors. Here, we explore the hypothesis that RNF114 may also modulate RIG-I/MDA5 signalling. We show that RNF114 associates with ubiquitinated proteins and that it is a soluble cytosolic protein that can be induced by interferons and synthetic dsRNA. Moreover, we demonstrate that RNF114 over-expression enhances NF-κb and IRF3 reporter activity and increases type I and type III IFN mRNA levels. These results indicate that RNF114 regulates a positive feedback loop that enhances dsRNA induced production of type I IFN. Thus, our data point to a novel pathogenic pathway, where dysregulation of RIG-I/MDA5 signalling leads to the over-production of type I IFN, a key early mediator of epithelial inflammation.


Students of the humanities confront two fundamental questions: How valid and rigorous is the type of knowledge attained in these disciplines? And what good is it? In The Humanities in the Age of Technology, Ciriaco Moron Arroyo offers a systematic inquiry into these questions and outlines the ongoing crisis of the humanities. He speaks to the low value society places on such disciplines as linguistics, literature, history, philosophy, and theology. His study is both historical and philosophical. The author begins with a definition of the humanities, and, since the social and the natural sciences have humanistic aspects, he pays attention to the border regions, especially to the humanistic import of the arts, cinema, and creative literature. The plural term "disciplines" points to the unifying nucleus of the interdisciplinary; the interdisciplinary is rooted in the human being as the focus from which all questions in the humanities and sciences emerge. Subsequent chapters are devoted to the phenomena of reading, understanding texts, and knowledge of reality. The final chapters are concerned with the usefulness of these disciplines in our society. The author argues that the humanities are the most useful disciplines, as they are the "sciences" that deal with human concerns such as personal identity, collective identity, communication, creativity, and the ultimate sense of life.


The use of antibodies (Abs) and enzymes in diagnostic assays is widely accepted and, to date, represents the gold standard in terms of sensitivity and affinity. Abs are routinely used in many diagnostic assays but they suffer from short shelf-life, high costs of manufacturing and relatively poor stability, especially at extremes of temperature and pH. The use of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) nanoparticles can overcome these problems. Compared with Abs, the synthesis of MIPs is simpler and more cost-effective and, moreover, does not require involvement of animals. In addition, MIPs show high stability and excellent mechanical properties, and can be prepared virtually for any target. NanoMIPs, sometimes called ″plastic antibodies″, are nanostructured polymer particles capable of selectively recognising the said target. Thanks to their size, they represent a viable alternative to Abs, as demonstrated by their recent application in several diagnostic fields. Herein, we review the most common synthetic approaches in the manufacture of nanoMIPs, together with some recent examples of the use of nanoMIPs in diagnostics, in particular within sensors, assays and for imaging purposes.


Abstract The lack of information from the organizations involved in a crisis situation and the high level of uncertainty may result in setting an emotional tone on social media and even in bringing radical political and social changes. Such an example is the Colectiv crisis in Romania. The fire, caused by a fireworks display, broke out at the Colectiv nightclub where almost 300 people were attending the "Goodbye to Gravity" band concert. 27 people died that night and the death toll reached 63 in December. This tragedy led to an online and offline civic uprising, Romanian citizens protesting against a corrupted political system. The scope of this study is to examine the emotion-filled dialogue on Twitter and to determine the evolution of coping strategies and collective action frames throughout this crisis which resulted in a social and political reform in Romania.


PURPOSE
To determine the identity of the XAP-1 antigen. The XAP-1 antibody has been used by many investigators and is recognized as an index of photoreceptor outer segment maturity, yet its antigen remains unknown.

METHODS
Previous studies documented that the XAP-1 antigen is a photoreceptor membrane-associated protein. To enrich for this protein, the authors prepared outer segment preparations from mouse retinas. Crude membrane and cytoplasmic fractions from this preparation were then generated using ultracentrifugation. Proteins were solubilized using n-dodecyl beta-D-maltoside and separated using SDS-PAGE. Aliquots of the crude membrane fraction were run on multiple lanes of a single gel, one lane of which was transferred to PVDF membrane and probed with the XAP-1 antibody. The remaining lanes were silver-stained. Very careful alignment of the Western blot with the silver-stained lanes indicated the presence of a single lightly stained band at the same position as the immunopositive band. nanoLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis was performed on the pooled protein bands. On determining the protein identity, confirmatory Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry studies were performed.

RESULTS
Western blot analysis performed using the XAP-1 antibody indicated a single immunoreactive band at approximately 74 kDa in lysates from both total outer segment and crude membrane preparations. No immunoreactive band was present in the cytoplasmic lysate. MS analysis of pooled silver stained bands determined that the XAP-1 antigen is Grp78. Western blot analysis and immunohistochemistry both support this identification.

CONCLUSIONS
Present evidence indicates that the XAP-1 antigen is Grp78, a protein that has been previously documented in the interphotoreceptor matrix surrounding cones.


Metabolic-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is affecting more people globally. Indeed, MAFLD is associated with a spectrum of metabolic dysfunctions that can progress to hepatocellular carcinoma (MAFLD-HCC). This development can occur in a non-cirrhotic liver and thus, often lack clinical surveillance. Using comprehensive ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography mass-spectrometry, we investigated 1,295 metabolites in serum from 249 Caucasian liver patients. Here we show that MAFLD-HCC is characterized by a complete rearrangement of the serum lipidome which distinguishes MAFLD-HCC from other HCC patients. We used machine learning to build a diagnostic model for MAFLD to MAFLD-HCC. We quantified predictive metabolites and adjusted the model into the MAFLD-HCC Diagnostic Score, presenting superior diagnostic potential compared to current alpha-fetoprotein (AFP). The metabolic landscape shows a progressive depletion in unsaturated fatty acids and acylcarnitines during transformation. Therefore, serum metabolomics may provide valuable insight to monitor patients at risk, including morbidly obese, diabetics, and MAFLD patients.


We present results establishing a new high pressure scale at high temperature based on the thermal equation of state and elastic properties of cubic boron nitride (cBN). This scale is derived from simultaneous measurements of density and sound velocities at high pressure and temperature independent of any previous pressure scale. The present results obtained at room temperature to 27 GPa suggest the validity of the current ruby scale (within±4% at 100 GPa). At high temperature, data obtained at 16 GPa to 723 K are in fair agreement with the thermal equation of state of cBN reported in our previous work. We have also shown that cBN can serve as a convenient pressure gauge in X-ray and optical studies using the laser heated diamond anvil cell.


This paper presents a technique for finding the optimal initial weight for adaptive filter by using difference equation. The obtained analytical response of the system identifies the appropriate weights for the system and shows that the MSE depends on the initial weight. The proposed technique is applied to eliminate the known frequency power line interference (PLI) signal in the electrocardiogram (ECG) signal. The PLI signal is considered as a combination of cosine and sine signals. The adaptive filter, therefore, attempts to adjust the amplitude of cosine and sine signals to synthesize a reference signal very similar to the contaminated PLI signal. To compare the potential of the proposed technique to other techniques, the system is simulated by using the Matlab program and the TMS320C6713 digital board. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed technique enables the system to eliminate the PLI signal with the fastest time and gains the superior results of the recovered ECG signal.


The nonlinear Enskog equation with a discretized spatial variable is studied in a Banach space of absolutely integrable functions of the velocity variables. The Enskog equation is a kinetic equation of Boltzmann typc which, unlike the Boltzmann equation, is applicable to gases in the moderately dense regime. In this lattice model the generator of free streaming is replaced by a finite difference operator. Conservation laws and positivity are utilized to extend local solutions of a cutoff model to global solutions. Then compactness arguments lead to the existence of weak global solutions of the Enskog lattice equation. Molecular interactions are introduced via a next-nearest neighbor potential, thereby modeling a square well potential.


The damping capacity of Fe-13Cr-2.5Mo alloy at varying ambient temperatures and alternate-current magnetic field were measured with improved reversal torsion machine. The microstructure was observed with scanning electronic microscope. The results showed that the damping value resulted from both ferromagnetic and un-ferromagnetic parts. The former contributed to about 80%~90% and the latter 10%~20% at 23℃. As the ambient temperature increased from 23℃ to 550℃, the damping capacity decreased slowly to 60%~70% of that at 23℃ finally. Compared with the specimen water-cooled at 900℃, the damping-maximum torsion strain of the furnace-cooled at 1100℃ was much lower, which meaned that its damping reaction to the environmental noise was more intensive. The grain size, carbide precipitation and microscopic residual stress were the main reason that the damping-maximum torsion strain amplitude was higher when the alloy was heated at 900℃ for 2h and water-cooled.


AIM
To study the effects of tetraethylammonium (TEA) and 4-aminopyridine (4-AP) on 5-HT3 receptor-mediated contractions of the isolated guinea pig ileum longitudinal muscle-myenteric plexus strip preparations (GPI).

METHODS
GPI contractions were recorded with a chart recorder through isometric transducers. The effect of TEA and 4-AP on binding properties of 5-HT3 receptors was assessed using [3H]GR65630 binding assay in membrane preparation of rat entorhinal cortex.

RESULTS
(1) Both TEA 0.5 mmol.L-1 and 4-AP 5 mumol.L-1 increased the spontaneous activity, and elicited contractions of GPI; atropine 10 mumol.L-1 or the selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist MDL72222 100 mumol.L-1 prevented these effects. (2) Both TEA 0.05-0.5 mmol.L-1 and 4-AP 1-10 mumol.L-1 enhanced GPI contractions induced by the selective 5-HT3 receptor agonists 2-methyl-5-HT in concentration-dependent manners. (3) Both TEA 0.5 mmol.L-1 and 4-AP 5 mumol.L-1 attenuated the inhibitory effects of the selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonists tropisetron 0.1 mumol.L-1 and benesetron 1 mumol.L-1 on 5-HT3 receptor-mediated GPI contractions. (4) Neither TEA 0.1-0.5 mmol.L-1 nor 4-AP 5-10 mumol.L-1 affected GPI contractions evoked by the selective M-ACh receptor agonist carbachol 1 mumol.L-1. (5) TEA 0.5 mmol.L-1 and 4-AP 10 mumol.L-1 had no effect on the properties of binding of the selective 5-HT3 receptor radioligand [3H]GR65630 to 5-HT3 receptors.

CONCLUSION
The enhancement by TEA and 4-AP of 5-HT3 receptor-mediated GPI contractile responses was due to blocking K+ channels in prejunctional myenteric neurons.


Task scheduling plays a key role in cloud computing systems. Scheduling of tasks cannot be done on the basis of single criteria but under a lot of rules and regulations that we can term as an agreement between users and providers of cloud. This agreement is nothing but the quality of service that the user wants from the providers. Providing good quality of services to the users according to the agreement is a decisive task for the providers as at the same time there are a large number of tasks running at the provider's side. In this paper we are performing comparative study of the different algorithms for their suitability, feasibility, adaptability in the context of cloud scenario.


Video surveillance technology plays an important role in the security field, with its intuitive, convenient and abundant information and is widely used in city traffic, civil security and other various fields especially in the important safety departments or major events. In this paper, according to the video surveillance system features and functional requirements, we use embedded system ,OMAP4460 and Android operating system on the basis of the panoramic technology to realize vertical 180 degrees horizontal 360-degree panoramic video surveillance. In the paper we profoundly analyze and discuss the embedded panoramic video surveillance system mainly from the hardware platform structures, the design of the peripheral circuit and the panorama function implement. DOI:  http://dx.doi.org/10.11591/telkomnika.v11i1.1874


We define a mapping from transition-based parsing algorithms that read sentences from left to right to sequence labeling encodings of syntactic trees. This not only establishes a theoretical relation between transition-based parsing and sequence-labeling parsing, but also provides a method to obtain new encodings for fast and simple sequence labeling parsing from the many existing transition-based parsers for different formalisms. Applying it to dependency parsing, we implement sequence labeling versions of four algorithms, showing that they are learnable and obtain comparable performance to existing encodings.


We have demonstrated that the operating temperature range of MBM2011A commercial (0-70°C) one megabit bubble memory devices may be significantly extended by application of temperature compensation to the chip biasing field and function currents. Compensation of biasing field is achieved using the internal z-bias coil of the device. Full functionality and non-volatility of devices over a -55°C to +85°C case temperature range have been achieved using predominantly linear tracking rules. This greatly increased operating temperature range significantly extends the application range of bubble technology.


In Destor and Duparquet townships, Precambrian quartz-feldspar porphyry intrusives have been injected into Keewatin-type lavas and pyroclastics, Timiskaming-type conglomerate and arkose and post-Keewatin type, pre-Timiskaming type basic intrusives.Surrounding the quartz-feldspar porphyry intrusives are halos containing numerous well developed quartz crystals. These are present in all types of rock with which the quartz-feldspar porphyry is in contact.The presence of quartz crystals in conglomerate boulders adjacent to the porphyry and the presence of quartz-feldspar porphyry fragments and conglomerate boulders along brecciated contacts between conglomerate and quartz-feldspar porphyry had led previous workers to the erroneous conclusion that the Timiskaming-type sediments are younger than the quartz-feldspar porphyry.A study of the above features as well as the halos of quartz crystals developed in other rock types adjacent to the quartz-feldspar porphyry indicates that these phenomena are due to porphyritization.Porphyritization is the development of a porphyritic and porphyro-blastic texture in a previously formed rock by partial magmatic replacement and by metastomatism.The process accompanying porphyritization has been divided into five stages:(1) The injection of quartz-feldspar porphyry.(2) Permeation of the more porous rock types at the contact by a tenuous phase of the quartz-feldspar porphyry liquid fraction.(3) Brecciation and fracturing.(4) Injection of a highly siliceous fraction of quartz-feldspar porphyry into zones of fracturing and brecciation.(5) Injection of the final liquid residue of the cooled quartz-feldspar porphyry into zones of fracturing and brecciation.Gold deposition took place in these zones, at this stage, and is genetically related to the quartz-feldspar porphyry.


Following the general theory developed in our earlier papers I [Chin. Phys. Lett. 26 (2009) 120506] and II [Chin. Phys. Lett. 27 (2010) 020506] for Bosons, we extend the investigation to trapped spin ½ Fermions.


The principle of compositionality has deep roots in linguistics: the meaning of an expression is determined by its structure and the meanings of its constituents. However, modern neural network models such as long short-term memory network process expressions in a linear fashion and do not seem to incorporate more complex compositional patterns. In this work, we show that we can explicitly induce grammar by tracing the computational process of a long short-term memory network. We show: (i) the multiplicative nature of long short-term memory network allows complex interaction beyond sequential linear combination; (ii) we can generate compositional trees from the network without external linguistic knowledge; (iii) we evaluate the syntactic difference between the generated trees, randomly generated trees and gold reference trees produced by constituency parsers; (iv) we evaluate whether the generated trees contain the rich semantic information.


Parental rights to choose a school are widely acknowledged. School choices for parents of children with disability have been discussed in the academic literature; however, the decision-making process itself is largely hidden. It is vital to understand parental decision-making around school choice more deeply, given the high regard with which this is viewed. Six focus groups were held in Queensland, Australia in 2013 to explore parental decision-making. Data were collected from 30 parents with children of different ages, some of whom were eligible for special school enrolment. Most parents felt constrained in choosing a school yet eager to make decisions themselves. Most described the process as rational. Findings suggest that when special school was an option, decision-making felt more restricted and complex. Factors such as difficulty accessing reliable information and pressure from professionals added to the complexity. It was concluded that final school selection did not reliably reflect parental preferences.


Magnesium alloys appear as one of the most promising materials for many applications such as degradable implants. However, their mechanical, corrosion and integration behaviors need to be optimized to comply with this application. The present paper focuses on laser-assisted maskless microdeposition (LAMM) of silver nanoparticles, a surface treatment aiming to modify the surface characteristics for better integration of the magnesium implant. The LAMM process parameters for obtaining desirable depositions are reported. The impacts of the LAMM process on the deposit and the substrate microstructure have been investigated using various characterization techniques. The results show that laser processing, which can lead to particle sintering in the deposit, can be fine-tuned to achieve necking between nano particles, while the nano-scale characteristics of the deposited layer is retained. Microstructural characterization reveals significant grain refinement in the immediate vicinity of the surface, providing evidence for the thermal impact of the laser process on the substrate. The thermal profiles of the deposit and the substrate during processing are further investigated by developing a 3D finite element modelling method. The implementation of the model allows us to better understand the origin of the fine-grained sublayer as well as the overall thermal impact of the current laser processing method on the substrate.


Even though stock returns are not highly autocorrelated, there is a spurious regression bias in predictive regressions for stock returns related to the classic studies of Yule (1926) and Granger and Newbold (1974). Data mining for predictor variables interacts with spurious regression bias. The two effects reinforce each other, because more highly persistent series are more likely to be found significant in the search for predictor variables. Our simulations suggest that many of the regressions in the literature, based on individual predictor variables, may be spurious.


ABSTRACT
 Amblyomma americanum was confirmed as a competent vector in the transmission of Cytauxzoon felis to domestic cats. Infection with C. felis was produced and replicated in four domestic felines by the bite of A. americanum adults that were acquisition fed as nymphs on a domestic cat that survived cytauxzoonosis. Numerous attempts to transmit C. felis with Dermacentor variabilis at the same time were not successful. All cats upon which infected A. americanum were transmission fed exhibited disease typical of cytauxzoonosis, and the eitiologic agent's presence was confirmed. Clinical signs including fever, inappetence, depression, and lethargy were observed beginning 13 d postinfestation. Pale mucus membranes, splenomegaly, icterus, and dyspnea were also observed during the course of the disease. Rectal temperatures of the C. felis-infected principal cats fluctuated from high to subnormal before returning to the normal range. Clinical signs of cytauxzoonsis improved by 24 d postinfestation in all but one cat, with survivors remaining parasitemic and subclinically infected with C. felis. Unengorged A. americanum and D. variabilis were collected from wild habitats to determine the minimum infection rate of C. felis in ticks from an enzootic area. Infection of C. felis was found only in wild-collected A. americanum. The minimum infection rate of C. felis in A. americanum was 0.5% (one of 178) in males, 0.8% (three of 393) in nymphs, and 1.5% (three of 197) in females. We found no wild-collected D. variabilis infected with C. felis. Our results confirm that A. americanum is a primary vector of C. felis.


Unmanned construction which includes teleoperation of construction machinery has been introduced after disasters in terms of operators' safety. One of the most crucial problems in unmanned construction is that work efficiency is less than half compared with usual boarding operation owing mainly to lack of visual information. Environmental views from cameras installed at disaster sites are necessary for precise manipulation even if operators can watch a wide and three-dimensional cab view. Thus, we have investigated optimum and suitable pan and tilt angle of environmental views for precise manipulation including grasping and releasing by using a 1/20 scale model. Experimental analysis using an actual construction machinery is indispensable to apply results acquired by using a scale model for unmanned construction. Therefore, in the present work, we investigate optimum and suitable range of environmental views for precise operation by using an actual construction machinery. We focus on digging and releasing because construction machineries are usually used for digging gravel or sand, and release it to designated area including bed sections of dump trucks. The task of experiments using ZAXIS 35U was determined based on the model task of unmanned construction, including digging modeled to hook a target object and releasing it in the designated area. The results indicate that the optimum pan angle for digging is 60 ° , and suitable range of pan angle for digging is from 45 ° to 90 ° . Furthermore, the results suggest that the optimum tilt angle is 60 ° , and tilt angle between 45 ° and 90 ° affects a little on work efficiency.


Review: Identity and the Natural Environment: The Psychological Significance of Nature By Susan Clayton and Susan Opotow (Eds.) Reviewed by Pramod K. Nayar University of Hyderabad, India Susan Clayton and Susan Opotow (Eds.). Identity and the Natural Environment: The Psychological Significance of Nature. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The MIT Press, 2003. 353 pp. ISBN 0-262-53206-9 (pbk) US $ 29.00 The Clayton-Opotow volume is a useful primer on identity and the environment. Since both "identity" and "nature" are slippery terms, the introduction sets out their parameters. Personal identity emerges in a social context that includes interpersonal and group memberships. Thus identity has a cultural and social aspect. The experience of nature is rooted in a social and cultural experience. Environmental identity can be conceptualized as occurring along a continuum. Identity and the Natural Environment is divided into sections based on the degree of social influence on environmental identity, ranging from the minimal to the strong. Steven J. Holmes in the opening essay surveys the available literature/theories on identity and the natural environment. The first section of the book deals with a minimal degree of social influence, and is therefore titled "Experiencing Nature as Individuals." Susan Clayton's essay defines environmental identity as a meaningful source of self-definition. Her research findings demonstrate conclusively that environmental identity relates to values, attitudes and behaviors. Gene Myers and Ann Russell examine the human-natural interactions that produce an environmental identity. Ulrich Gebhard et al analyze how children use human identity to construct an anthropomorphic identity for natural objects. They demonstrate how such a construction of identity - interpreting human identity in terms of nature or natural objects, what they term "physiomorphism" (as opposed to "anthropomorphism") - enables children to develop a form of empathy with nature. Peter Kahn, Jr. comes to a similar conclusion in his research on children and the environment, arguing that children use either anthropocentric or biocentric ways to think about the non-human environment. He suggests that environmental identity must be talked about in terms of both multiplicity and unity. Elisabeth Kals and Heidi Ittner also focus on children, specifically their motives for nature-protective behavior. They conclude that nature-protective behavior in children stems from a combination of emotional attachment to nature and moral concern about threats to nature. In Section II of the book, the essays deal with moderate social influence on environmental identity. Focusing on social and community contexts, the essays in this section research the concerns about environmental justice constructed at local levels. Linda Kalof looks at the ways in which humans think about animals, locating such attitudes within the matrix of race and ethnicity. …


The opportunity of continuing education for people with intellectual disabilities, graduated from secondary schools is extremely limited more than those with other disabilities. In this article, the author reviewed the history and current situations of continuing education for people with intellectual disabilities in Japan, and higher lifelong educational situations in overseas countries. In USA, recently, the opportunity of enrollment to higher education institutions has increased remarkably. While, in Japan, the nondegree graduate courses at secondary schools have gradually increased but it is still not enough. It is necessary to be pervasive them throughout the country and establish cooperation with higher education institutions and to make more appropriate educational programs. In addition, the author introduced issues about support system for students with developmental disabilities.


The interaction between loureirin B (Lour B) and human serum albumin (HSA) was investigated by fluorescence and UV–vis absorption spectroscopy. Experimental results indicated that loureirin B had a strong ability to quench the intrinsic fluorescence of HSA through a dynamic quenching procedure. The fluorescence quenching data revealed that the quenching constants (KSV) 2.68×104, 3.30×104 and 4.10×104 l/mol at 300, 310 and 320 K, respectively. Based on the thermodynamic parameters obtained, the positive values of enthalpy change ΔH and entropy change ΔS suggested that hydrophobic forces played a major role in the interaction of Lour B with HSA. According to Forster theory of energy transfer, the distance r between HSA and Lour B was calculated to be 2.85 nm. Furthermore, the effect of Lour B on the conformation of HSA was analyzed by synchronous fluorescence and three-dimensional fluorescence spectra.


Address for Correspondence: Dr. Rameswarapu Suman Babu, Associate Professor, Department of Anatomy, Narayana Medical College, Nellore -524 003, Andhra Pradesh, India. Mobile no.: +919866567467 E-Mail: email@example.com Background: The identity of the dead and mutilated is an essential part of medico-legal and various social reasons. Stature can be estimated by either anatomical method or mathematical way. Skeletal height is estimated by use of bone length and regression formula. To this purpose, we estimated femur length by measuring intertrochanteric crest to create regression equation in south Indian population. Materials and Methods: The present study comprises of a total 100 ossified dried adult human femurs of both sexes were taken for morphometric measurements, from the collection of the bone bank of Medi Citi Institute of Medical Sciences Anatomy department for 12 months period between June 2008 to June 2009. Femur measurements were taken using Osteometric board and digital Vernier callipers. Inter-trochanteric crest at the upper level of the femur was measured by using sliding digital callipers. The measurements obtained were analysed using SPSS Statistical software for Windows version 13. Metric data were reported as the mean, median and standard deviation. P value of <0.05 was taken as significant. Results: Total 100 dried human femurs were used in the study. The mean value of femoral length and the intertrochanteric crests were 41.66 cm and 5.98 cm respectively. The Pearson's correlation coefficient was 0.64. The value of R-squared was 0.426. From the equation, the values were obtained for 100 randomly selected bones. These were compared with the observed length of those (n=100) and test of significance was done. The difference between the mean of estimated and observed values of the total length was by chance (p-value >0.05) indicating the validity of the regression equation. Conclusion: This study showed the development of specific osteometric standards for stature determination from the femur of recent South Indian population with satisfactory accuracy. Hence this study concludes femur inter trochanteric crest length can be used as better alternative variable for estimating body stature length using regression formulae.


Pegasus, a heterogeneous multidatabase management system that responds to the need for effective access and management of shared data across in a wide range of applications, is described. Pegasus provides facilities for multidatabase applications to access and manipulate multipole autonomous heterogeneous distributed object-oriented relational, and other information systems through a uniform interface. It is a complete data management system that integrates various native and local databases. Pegasus takes advantage of object-oriented data modeling and programming capabilities. It uses both type and function abstractions to deal with mapping and integration problems. Function implementation can be defined in an underlying database language or a programming language. Data abstraction and encapsulation facilities in the Pegasus object model provide an extensible framework for dealing with various kinds of heterogeneities in the traditional database systems and nontraditional data sources.<<ETX>>


Sports biomechanics is an applied discipline with relatively strong theoretical knowledge. At present, it is used as an analysis means in exercise training in various countries and plays a huge promotion role for the development of competitive sports and sports science. However, phenomena, such as single-teaching methods, fixed-teaching thinking, backward-teaching environment, and hardware, still exist in the current education for sports biomechanics. For such phenomena, we perform individualized IRDC (Internet + retrieval literature + big data + cloud) teaching by using the Internet big data analysis and considering different characteristics of every student and apply it in online teaching of sports biomechanics course. We base our proposed individualized IRDC teaching mode on postmodern curriculum theory. According to four features, namely, rich, recursive, relational, and rigorous, we propose an individualized IRDC online teaching mode in this study. Moreover, we apply a new wireless telemetry surface EMG tester as a learning tool of practical teaching in the teaching mode, which we use to acquire Internet information data of online course and induce a real time communication between teachers and students. Finally, we adopt the principal component analysis to develop evaluation indices, including expert evaluation in and out of school and peer teacher evaluation, for the teaching mode. We find through teaching practice that the proposed individualized IRDC teaching mode can make the best of advantages of big data teaching, help teachers implement targeted individualized teaching, and contribute to the improvement of students' academic performance and comprehensive qualities.


This paper discusses the impact of HVDC on Power System Stability and proposes a new type of control mechanism based on Fuzzy set theory to augment dynamic performance of a multi-machine power system. To have good damping characteristics over a wide range of operating conditions, speed deviation (¿ω = error1) and acceleration (¿¿ = error3 ), of the machines are chosen as the input signals to the fuzzy controller. These input signals are first characterized by a set of linguistic variables using fuzzy set notations. The fuzzy relation matrix allows a set of fuzzy logic operations that are performed on controller inputs to obtain the desired output. The effectiveness of the proposed controller is demonstrated by a multi-machine system example. The superior performance of this fuzzy controller in comparison to the conventional fixed gain controller proves the efficiency of this new fuzzy PID controller.


Over the history of the Earth, changes in ocean depth and coastal configuration have led to considerable variations in the pattern and amplitude of ocean tides. Here we perform global simulations of ocean tides for the Last Glacial Maximum, using new data sets for both ocean depth and density stratification. We show how the configuration of the Arctic Ocean, which was almost entirely enclosed by continents at that time, leads to the near‐resonant excitation of large semi‐diurnal tides. Under certain conditions, this previously unidentified Arctic tide is massively amplified in the Canadian Archipelago. Such tides may have played a role in destabilizing the coastal margins of North American ice sheets, with implications for rapid changes in the Earth's climate and ocean circulation.


Scripts - standardized event sequences describing typical everyday activities - have been shown to help understand narratives by providing expectations, resolving ambiguity, and filling in unstated information. However, to date they have proved hard to author or extract from text. In this work, we demonstrate for the first time that pre-trained neural language models (LMs) can be be finetuned to generate high-quality scripts, at varying levels of granularity, for a wide range of everyday scenarios (e.g., bake a cake). To do this, we collected a large (6.4k), crowdsourced partially ordered scripts (named proScript), which is substantially larger than prior datasets, and developed models that generate scripts with combining language generation and structure prediction. We define two complementary tasks: (i) edge prediction: given a scenario and unordered events, organize the events into a valid (possibly partial-order) script, and (ii) script generation: given only a scenario, generate events and organize them into a (possibly partial-order) script. Our experiments show that our models perform well (e.g., F1=75.7 in task (i)), illustrating a new approach to overcoming previous barriers to script collection. We also show that there is still significant room for improvement toward human level performance. Together, our tasks, dataset, and models offer a new research direction for learning script knowledge.


The problem of finding your way through a relatively unknown collection of digital documents can be daunting. Such collections sometimes have few categories and little hierarchy, or they have so much hierarchy that valuable relations between documents can easily become obscured. We describe here how our work in the area of term-recognition and sentence-based summarization can be used to filter the document lists that we return from searches. We can thus remove or downgrade the ranking of some documents that have limited utility even though they may match many of the search terms fairly accurately. We also describe how we can use this same system to find documents that are closely related to a document of interest, thus continuing our work to provide tools for query-free searching.


The development of architectural element and depositional process concepts and their application to outcrop studies is relatively advanced and has demonstrated value for well correlation, sequence stratigraphy, and the interpretation of depositional environments. In addition, the interpretation of data acquired using dipmeter and borehole image log technologies is also advanced. However, the value of image logs for well correlation, sequence stratigraphy and the analysis of depositional environment remain underutilised despite these data often being included in the log acquisition program. The description and geometry of depositional elements are crucial for interpreting fluvial regimes and changes in depositional style through time. An important part of analysis is the recognition of the bounding surfaces which must be identified and ranked. The Echo-Yodel field, located on the NW Shelf of Australia, is used to illustrate how the principles of architectural element analysis, usually applied to 2 and 3D outcrops, can be successfully applied to borehole image and dip meter data. The Echo-Yodel study illustrates the efficacy of dipmeter and borehole image logs in providing data from which reservoir architecture can be constructed in areas of poor seismic control or resolution. Seismic


In a basic research to determine the morpho-molecular interactions of plant tissues with EcoRI DNA restriction enzyme, it was demonstrated that this protein is capable of entering the sunflower and maize leaf cells using a plant tissue-abrading material and cleaving the genomic DNA at specific sites. This was inferred from the analysis of morphological patterns of EcoRI-treated leaf areas as well as using some molecular tests, including the cleavage pattern analysis of genomic DNA isolated from treated locations followed by ligation of cleaved fragments into EcoRI site of a DNA cloning vector system. The overall results indicated that the specific restriction of genomic DNA may happen following the entrance of EcoRI protein most likely into the nucleus of plant cells.


Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) have been integrated into vertebrate genomes and have momentously affected host organisms. Horses (Equus caballus) have been domesticated and selected for elite racing ability over centuries. ERVs played an important role in the evolutionary diversification of the horse genome. In the present study, we identified six equine ERV families (EqERVs-E1, I1, M2, P1, S1, and Y4), their full-length viral open reading frames (ORFs), and elucidated their phylogenetic relationships. The divergence time of EqERV families assuming an evolutionary rate of 0.2%/Myr indicated that EqERV-S3 (75.4 million years ago; mya) on chromosome 10 is an old EqERV family and EqERV-P5 (1.2 Mya) on chromosome 12 is a young member. During the evolutionary diversification of horses, the EqERV-I family diverged 1.7 Mya to 38.7 Mya. Reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) amplification of EqERV pol genes showed greater expression in the cerebellum of the Jeju horse than the Thoroughbred horse. These results could contribute further dynamic studies for horse genome in relation to EqERV gene function.


This thesis presents research into the principles of spectrum sharing analysis
methods developed for investigating implications of interference from
Nongeostationary Fixed Satellite Service (NGSO FSS) systems into Geostationary
Fixed Satellite Service (GSO FSS) systems and Fixed Service (FS) terrestrial radio
systems operating or planned for operation in the 12 to 30 GHz frequency range.
Spectrum sharing is an effective way of allowing new services to operate without
cancelling the existing allocations in the same part of the spectrum. The use of
spectrum sharing results in re-use of the available spectrum among different services
and, therefore, increases the efficient use of the radio frequencies. However, it is
necessary to carry out extensive feasibility studies into technical or operational
compatibility between the services involved. Often, sharing constraints are placed
on systems, such as the power of emissions and the transmitter and receiver antenna
pointings to reduce the interference into negligible levels.
Traditionally, radio spectrum allocated to GSO FSS has been shared with FS. In
recent years, there has been a growing interest in the use of low Earth orbits and a
number of NGSO FSS constellations has been designed to provide broadband data
services. This has led to the allocation of certain bands used by the FS and GSO
FSS systems to NGSO FSS.
In line with the new allocations, NGSO FSS, GSO FSS and FS systems are required
to co-exist in parts of the 12 to 30 GHz frequency range. The primary objectives of
this research were to identify principal factors affecting the feasibility of spectrum
sharing and to develop spectrum sharing analysis methodologies to examine the
implications of these factors with a view to identifying sharing constraints that
would give rise to an acceptable sharing environment.


Tissue expansion has emerged recently as an alternative reconstructive procedure and has been used for the treatment of a variety of defects. This paper presents our experience with the use of tissue expansion exclusively for the treatment of secondary burn defects. The technique was used in 22 consecutive patients. The technical aspects of the procedure are described. The advantages of tissue expansion, including the superior quality of reconstruction, cost effectiveness, and absence of donor site scar are presented. The disadvantages, including the need for two stages, multiple office visits, its application for relatively small defects, and the objectionable temporary appearance, are discussed. Finally, patient selection, and refinements of the technique and tailoring of the expanded flaps to achieve the best possible reconstructive and esthetic results and limit the possibility of complications are discussed.


The purpose of this study was to examine relationships between physicians' self‐perceptions of their "typical" communicative style during medical interactions and the patients' perception of the physicians' communicative styles. Three dimensions of communicative style were studied: interpersonal involvement, communicative dominance, and expressiveness. The research participants were 25 physicians and 354 patients of a large, multifaceted medical clinic. There were three major findings of this study: (1) physicians' self‐perceptions and patients' perceptions of physicians' communicative style differed significantly, (2) these perceptual differences were systematically related to the patients' ages and education levels, and (3) physicians' self‐perceptions of communication were unrelated to the patients' satisfaction with medical care. Implications and limitations of this study were discussed.


Adverse health effects, caused by environmental or industrial pollution, are increasing. Situated in one of high risk areas, Rayong provincial public health office has, thus, developed an environmental-related health surveillance system in pollution control zone  to monitor this trend. The surveillance system comprises of three components: 1) I dentification critical environmental pollutants. 2) Identification of environmental health indicators. 3) Development of passive environment-related health surveillance system at district level. The development of environmental related health surveillance system revealed that major pollution problems in Rayong province were air contamination of  VOCs and PM10 which could lead to respiratory diseases, central nervous system diseases and allergies. Consequently, the researcher team develops health surveillance system. The three health indicators selected were respiratory systems diseases, allergic rhinitis and asthma. Data were collected from patients attending Rayong, Maptaphud, Banchang and Bankhai hospitals. Data were analyzed at district level and disseminated to all health promoting hospitals in each district. In the future, these health data will be monitored weekly to observe and control adverse health effects. Meanwhile, historical data showed specific relationship between health status of residents living in the pollution control zone and  pollution. Furthermore, this surveillance system is expected to be useful for other pollution affected areas and to be linked to database of healthcare systems at all levels.


The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between a developmentally disabled child's ability to perform (a) a simple rhythmic task, and (b) a series of gross and fine motor tasks. The subjects of this study were 77 boys aged 65 months (5.416 years) to 174 months (14.5 years). All were classified as educable mentally retarded, emotionally disturbed, and/or developmentally disabled. In addition, some of these children were believed to have minimal brain dysfunction or damage. The motor tests used in the comparison were (a) developmental test of visual-motor integration; (b) hopping right foot; (c) hopping left foot; (d) hop two right foot, two left, plus hop two left foot, two right; (e) body perception; (f) locomotor agility; and (g) standing broad jump. The rhythmic test required the subject to tap with a rhythmic signal from a metronome with a visible oscillating pendulum. The highest coefficients were between the rhythmic tests and the developmental test of visual-motor integration, while the lowest were between rhythmic ability scores and (a) body perception, and (b) standing broad jump scores. Results of comparisons suggest that temporal perception and rhythmic expression are related to certain motor abilities in exceptional children. (PB)


Idiopathic calcinosis of the tongue is very rare. We report a case of idiopathic calcinosis of the tongue in a 19-year-old female.


The study is aimed at identifying the impact of tacit knowledge sources within the Saudi Air Navigation Services (SANS) Company and its influence in the development of the company's human resources. Based on the results of this study, a proposed model – defining the relationship between the implicit knowledge of employees and the human resources development at SANS – can be designed. Furthermore, methods of maximizing the utilization of SANS employees' implicit knowledge may be constructed, in order to develop the company in line with its vision and objectives. The importance of the study lies in the fundamental point that investing in human resources through their development is a concern for organizations in our time, as they represent a knowledge force that helps the organization to manage and operate them. This study also gained its scientific importance from being the first applied scientific study about implicit knowledge and its role in the development of human resources in the field of air navigation services, which in turn is a very vital field. The study sought to identify the awareness of the company's employees about the existence of implicit knowledge and the importance of benefiting from it to provide best practices in the company. The main study question is: What is the impact of tacit knowledge on human resources development in Saudi Air Navigation Services ? There is no relationship between the views of the study sample on the sources of knowledge implicit in the company and the ability to identify them. The variables of the study are: scientific qualification, years of experience, career-level. In order to achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher used the descriptive method through the case study at SANS Company as the appropriate method of study. The survey population was selected through a comprehensive inventory.


This work presents experimental responses of single ultrasound contrast agents to short, large amplitude pulses, characterized using double passive cavitation detection. In this technique, two matched, focused receive transducers were aligned orthogonally to capture the acoustic response of a microbubble from within the overlapping confocal region. The microbubbles were categorized according to a classification scheme based on the presence or absence of postexcitation signals, which are secondary broadband spikes following the principle oscillatory response of the ultrasound contrast agent and are indicative of the transient collapse of the microbubble. Experiments were conducted varying insonifying frequencies (0.9, 2.8, 4.6, and 7.1 MHz) and peak rarefactional pressures (200 kPa to 6.2 MPa) for two types of contrast agents (Definity and Optison). Results were fit using logistic regression analysis to define pressure thresholds where at least 5% and 50% of the microbubble populations collapsed for each frequency. These thresholds were found to occur at lower pressures for Definity than for Optison over the range of frequencies studied; additionally, the thresholds occurred at lower pressures with lower frequencies for both microbubble types in most cases, though this trend did not follow a mechanical index scaling.


This essay introduces a special issue on the management of enslaved people working on plantations in the British Caribbean and the American South. It focuses on the relationships between commodification, control, persuasion and enslaved autonomy.


This article introduces the figure of the Vietnamese boss, (ong chủ), in this case, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of a Ho Chi Minh City securities trading company. The boss's body techniques, lifestyle choices, and movement through different spaces in the city offer a view into the "everyday presentation of wealth" among business leaders who drive much of the economic transformation in contemporary Vietnam. In order to illuminate how the figure speaks to a particular moment in Vietnam's great urban transformation, the essay describes practices of "conspicuous invisibility" through which the boss manages what can and cannot be seen about his wealth. As a figure, the boss stands out against the background of economic privatization, the emergence of a stock market, rapid urbanization, and the changing moral valuation of those who accumulate wealth. The article also suggests that conspicuous invisibility both produces and is produced by new kinds of urban spaces. [Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City, Saigon, New Urban Zones, elites].


Natural killer cells constitute a part of the innate immune system that mediates an effective immune response towards virus-infected and malignant cells. In recent years, research has focused on exploring and advancing NK cells as an active immunotherapy platform. Despite major advances, there are several key challenges that need to be addressed for the effective translation of NK cell research to clinical applications. This review highlights some of these challenges and the innovative strategies being developed to overcome them, including in vitro expansion, in vivo persistence, infiltration to the tumor site, and prevention of exhaustion.


There is no doubt that Aḥādīths (sayings) of The Prophet (PBUH) have the great importance in the Islamic Jurisprudence because it is the second source of Islamic law after the Holy Quran. Due to the immense importance of Aḥādīth, the religious and research Scholars have paid a close attention to emerge and highlight the all aspects of Aḥādīth regarding Islamic Jurisprudence, Arabic Literatures and Rhetorical peculiarities etc. Imam Muslim's book Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim contains texts which are examples of Rhetorical. Every chapter in Imam Muslim's book is an example of rhetoric. But the main question of this research is what is the rhetoric in Kitāb al ul Waṣiyyah Bil Thuluth? The answer to this question is required in this research.  Therefore  the scholars have tried their best in this article to discuss the Rhetorical peculiarities of the  Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim  from Kitāb al ul Waṣiyyah Bil Thuluth as well as, I have analyses the definition of Rhetoric in line with different ancient modern scholars.


This paper investigates a design framework for a class of distributed interconnected systems, where a fault diagnosis scheme and a cooperative fault-tolerant control scheme are included. First of all, fault detection observers are designed for the interconnected subsystems, and the detection results will be spread to all subsystems in the form of a broadcast. Then, to locate the faulty subsystem accurately, fault isolation observers are further designed for the alarming subsystems in turn with the aid of an adaptive fault estimation technique. Based on this, the fault estimation information is used to compensate for the residuals, and then isolation decision logic is conducted. Moreover, the cooperative fault-tolerant control unit, where state feedback and cooperative compensation are both utilized, is introduced to ensure the stability of the whole system. Finally, the simulation of intelligent unmanned vehicle platooning is adopted to demonstrate the applicability and effectiveness of the proposed design framework.


Particle attrition plays an important role throughout the cycles of a circulating fluidised bed (CFB) and a fluidised bed (FB) process, gradually depriving the bed inventory of valuable mass and changing the bed particle size distribution. The mass loss has to be compensated by a make-up stream. For economic and design purposes, attrition cannot be neglected. Although the particles may be efficient catalysts (or reactants), if the compensation for the lost material amounts to very high expenses, the whole process may become uneconomical. It is then clear that the choice of the solids material should take into account its attrition propensity. The main sources of attrition in fluidised bed systems are the jet region, the bubbling bed and the cyclone. It is common practice to predict particle attrition in industrial scale fluidised bed systems by the population balance method, but is it possible to link that prediction with the breakage propensity of a single particle?
This work aims at developing a predictive tool for particle attrition in fluidised and circulating fluidised beds, by attempting to build a path line from the single particle breakage propensity to the attrition occurring in the process. Here, the reference industrial process is the Chemical Looping Combustion (CLC). The CLC is a circulating fluidised bed process under development and as such, the choice of a solids material is critical. A powder of crushed manganese oxide is a candidate material for the CLC process and is used here as test material, as well as its equilibrium equivalent. For simplicity, the two materials are referred to as F-CLC (fresh CLC particles) and E-CLC (equilibrium CLC particles), respectively.
The single particle breakability of F-CLC and E-CLC is assessed by impact tests. The experimental results are then used to correlate the extent of breakage upon impact with the particle size and impact velocity, according to the theoretical model of chipping of Zhang and Ghadiri (2002). Further tests are carried out to unveil the effect of impact angle and number of impacts. The results suggest that E-CLC is highly more inclined to attrition than F-CLC. Moreover, the single particle breakage is found to correlate with the magnitude of the impact velocity and the sin of the angle of impact for both materials.
Recalling the modelling approach of Ghadiri and co-workers, the single particle breakage model, as derived, and the model of surface wear of Archard and Charj (1953) are coupled with CFD-DEM (Computational Fluid Dynamic-Discrete Element Method) simulations to compute the attrition of F-CLC particles in a Stairmand cyclone. Moreover, the same cyclone is used to characterise attrition of F-CLC particles experimentally as a function of particle size, gas inlet velocity and solids loading. Remarkably, the outcomes of the two approaches are found to agree well. A correlation is eventually derived which expresses the extent of attrition in a cyclone as a function of the variables mentioned above. The analysis revealed that the main source of attrition in the cyclone is given by the particle-wall collisions at the opposite section of cyclone inlet, at any operating conditions. Particle-particle collisions and particle sliding against the wall become significant contributors of attrition at high and low solids loading, respectively.
Attrition in the jet region is evaluated at room temperature as the steady state loss rate, using a semi-pilot scale fluidised bed equipped with a porous distributor and a central orifice of variable size. The results of the tests show that jet attrition of F-CLC and E-CLC can be described by two different correlations. The steady state attrition propensity of E-CLC is found to be higher than F-CLC, confirming the outcomes of the impact tests. The analysis on the fines collected on the filter reveals that they are mainly composed by very small particles of about 1 μm.
The correlations of cyclone and jet attrition are implemented in a non-dimensional population balance model (PBM) that simulates attrition in a fluidised bed and a circulating fluidised bed. The latter is composed of a fluidised bed where the recycle of solids is provided by a cyclone. The PBM is validated for the fluidised bed configuration against the experimental PSD (Particle Size Distribution) of F-CLC particles after jet attrition in the fluidised bed. The PBM is eventually used to simulate hypothetical cases of a FB and CFB with low and high single particle breakability as well as low and high superficial velocities to assess the dynamic response of the system in terms of material loss, solids circulation rate, requirements for a make-up and PSD in different regions of the system. The simulations allowed to identify the presence of two subsequent regimes where the loss is firstly dictated by the pre-existing fines of the bed inventory and then by attrition. During the two regimes the mean particle size of the bed inventory increases and decreases, respectively. The PBM reveals that the circulation rate is strongly affected by attrition because of the accumulation of entrained particles which are large enough to be captured by the cyclone and recycled. The loss of material and the need for the make-up stream are found to increase using either larger superficial velocities and/or weaker particles.


In this contribution, a novel imaging approach for Thermochromic Liquid Crystal (TLC) based Particle Image Thermometry (PIT) is demonstrated. In contrast to state of the art approaches, a multi-spectral camera was used to record the color response of the Thermochromic Liquid Crystals seeding particles. An experiment with a transparent, water-filled, cylindrical cell as the central element was set up to investigate the novel approach. The temperature in the cell can be controlled by adjusting the temperature of the bottom and top plate. Calibration images at eleven different temperatures ranging from 18 ◦C to 21.6 ◦C, as well as images of a stable thermal stratification, were recorded. 90 percent of the calibration data was used to train a neural network (NN) to predict the temperature. The remaining 10 percent of the calibration data and the data of the stable thermal stratification were used to test the NN. The tests show that the deviation between predicted and ground truth temperature is mostly below 0.1 K and that the linear profile of the stable thermal stratification can be predicted with a maximum deviation of ≈ 0.15 K. This shows that multi-spectral imaging with neural networks for data processing is feasible and a promising concept.


In this paper the principles of position and orientation measurement are explained and its implementation on an Initial Measurement Unit (IMU) are show. The first part is about motivation for position measurement, dealing with industrial applications. Then we proceed to mathematical basics of attitude representation and figure out the advantages and weaknesses of the specific types of representation. Next is to give a brief of modern sensor technology. At last we show how to enhance the performance of a strapdown Inertial Measurement Unit using Kalman filtering.


Elections are a critical componenet of democracy, yet civic engagement has reached a post-war low in Manitoba. Barely half of all eligible voters showed up to vote in the last three provincial elections. Surveys show that many of these non-voters feel alienated from the political process, or have other priorities on Election Day. Of particular interest is the rate of turnout among youth, Aboriginals, and immigrants. This important Canadian case study addresses the democratic deficit from a wide range of perspectives, providing scholars, observers, and citizens with an accessible account of politics and elections in Manitoba, while illuminating an issue that resonates across the country.


The discussion of philosophy is divided into three object approaches, namely: ontology, epistemology and axiology approaches. The focus of this article is in the field of ontology. Ontology itself is divided into three concentrations of discussion, namely: theology, cosmology and psychology. Three subject matter of science have integration to give understanding to humans how to analyze the nature of existing (metaphysical) through empirical and rational ways. The ontology discussion in this article concentrates on the nature of "that which exists" whose application leads to three main discussions, namely: the nature of science, the law of causality and the potentials in every human being which all have a correlation with the metaphysical nature. Based on the steps of Total Quality Management (TQM), in implementing Total Quality Management (TQM) it is inseparable from the 8 education standards as outlined in Government Regulation (PP) Number 19 of 2005 concerning National Education Standards (SNP).


This work proposes a stabilizing gradient-based economic MPC with enlargement of the domain of attraction, based on the novel combination of three ingredients: terminal equality constraints solely on open-loop non-stable states, an admissible artificial steady-state, and a terminal cost. A further enlargement of the domain of attraction is achieved by including slack variables to soften the bound constraints of states, without affecting the stabilizing properties or capacity to drive the closed-loop system toward the economic target. Finally, a case study based on an unstable reactor is used to demonstrate the properties of the proposed strategy.


From 1990 through 1994, we collected information on all cases of mycotic aneurysms due to non-typhi Salmonella that occurred at the Veterans General Hospital in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. All cases of salmonella bacteremia were reviewed to find any additional cases. A total of 16 cases of salmonella mycotic aneurysms occurred. The mortality rate was 100% among the three patients treated with medical therapy alone. Nine (70%) of the 13 patients who received surgical and medical therapy survived. Ten of the 16 cases were due to Salmonella choleraesuis. Diagnosis was established by computed tomography or aortography. Gallium scans were of no diagnostic utility. A culture of blood from a patient with underlying atherosclerosis that is positive for invasive Salmonella should prompt a search for a mycotic aneurysm. Treatment with a third-generation cephalosporin and resection of the infected vessel is usually successful.


Pauline Yu's intriguing article on the "East-West Correspondences in Lyric Poetry" {PMLA, 94 [1979], 261-74) points to hitherto unfamiliar aspects of Trakl's poetry, unfamiliar at least to the Germanist. Therein lies its strength but also its weakness. Strangely, Yu does not once mention the term "expressionism." Rather, she refers to Georg Trakl somewhat blandly as a "post-Symbolist." It would seem that, however we define expressionism, Trakl's formal and thematic identification with that style is evident; he shares with the other poets of expressionism the many features singled out by Yu (e.g., parataxis, "ciphers," end-stopped lines, the juxtaposition of nouns). While Trakl's poetry lacks the pathos characteristic of the later expressionists who struggled against the forces that threatened to enslave mankind and who issued a call for the rebirth of man, he was certainly one of the early poets of the group. Moreover, the expressionists are linked to the romanticists through the visionary aspects of both movements. Trakl's poetry, therefore, cannot simply be considered in isolation, as if the poet just happened to be a kindred spirit of the poets of the T'ang Dynasty of a thousand years ago. The "discontinuity" of language present in Yu's Chinese examples and the corresponding quality in Trakl's poems have different origins. The distrust of traditional language, the need to express a vision of the essence of man, and the view of reality as chaos were born of a historical development with which the expressionist poets were confronted at the beginning of the twentieth century. Their perception of the human condition led them to employ new or uncommon poetic means, such as abstraction, the omission of any reference to a speaker or the use of the collective "we" in place of the personal "I," typecasting, and mythologizing. Their ultimate aim was the poetic realization of the rebirth of man. Yu points to the similarities in syntax and imagery between Chinese poetry and Trakl's and states that the classical Chinese language tends very much toward syntactic discontinuity (pp. 262-63). Since German, however, does not have that tendency (or a tradition of writing poetry in a paratactic style, as Yu says ancient Chinese poetry does [p. 262]), the discontinuity of Trakl's language must be contrived. The correspondences in the two sets of poems, therefore, appear to be accidental rather than historical; as Yu remarks, Trakl sought the effect of Chinese poetry because it suited his purposes. He and the other expressionists share the technique of using parataxis, for example, or of attaching absolute value to objects. In this respect, then, Pauline Yu's parallels, including the parallel of impersonality, are instructive but misleading. The world view of Trakl specifically and that of the expressionists as a group encouraged "generality," that is, a highly subjective view of man against the backdrop or foil of a seemingly objective style. Finally, a word about Pauline Yu's translations from the German. They are on the whole felicitous and betray a good feel for the language. Still, there are errors that matter, because in poetry, especially, every word is important: p. 261 et passim; Weiher = "fish pond" (not "weir"); p. 267: Gewaltig = "mightily" (not "peacefully"); verhrennen = "to be consumed by fire," "to burn up" (not just "burned"); Hiigel = "hill" (not "hillock"); Kahn = "boat," one of no particular description (unlike "skiff"); p. 268: Grauer = misprint for Trauer?; p. 270: ein Sterbliches = "something mortal" (not "a mortal") and hence the next line should be "something else suffers also" (not "and another suffers in sympathy"); p. 271 : Des Menschen goldnes Bildnis — "man's golden image" (not "That man's golden image"). Again, Yu's article, though an unusual and instructive piece, lacks the historical dimension that would have given it a much stronger base than merely the Rilke reminiscence about Trakl and LiTai-Pe (p. 273, n. 1).


One of main problems with the Wavelet-Galerkin is the treatment of boundary conditions. It is sloved by our method which is referred to as Fictitious Boundary Approach. In this approach, a ctitious boundary is assumed to tackle the di culty of treating boundary conditions. And an additional condition is also made in order to ensure the real solution. This method is adapted to all the three kinds of boundary conditions in the theory of di erential equation. To support our method, a SH wave mode problem in a plate is solved, and its numeral result is compared with the exact solution. Although the Wavelet-Galerkin has very good features for solving di erential equations, we nd that it is still di cult to represent the in nite resonance solution after investigating the error convergence near the resonance point. And we emphasize the importance of selecting a proper sacle j especially to represent the solution near the resonance.


In this paper, we present Mambanet: a hybrid neural network for predicting the outcomes of Basketball games. Con-trary to other studies, which focus primarily on season games, this study investigates playoff games. MambaNet is a hybrid neural network architecture that processes a time series of teams' and players' game statistics and generates the prob-ability of a team winning or losing an NBA playoff match. In our approach, we utilize Feature Imitating Networks to provide latent signal-processing feature representations of game statistics to further process with convolutional, recurrent, and dense neural layers. Three experiments using six different datasets are conducted to evaluate the performance and generalizability of our architecture against a wide range of previous studies. Our final method successfully predicted the AUC from 0.72 to 0.82, beating the best-performing baseline models by a considerable margin.


Using yeast forward and reverse two-hybrid analyses, we have discovered that the replication terminator protein Tus of Escherichia coli physically interacts with DnaB helicase in vivo. We have confirmed this protein–protein interaction in vitro. We show further that replication termination involves protein–protein interaction between Tus and DnaB at a critical region of Tus protein, called the L1 loop. Several mutations located in the L1 loop region not only reduced the protein–protein interaction but also eliminated or reduced the ability of the mutant forms of Tus to arrest DnaB at a Ter site. At least one mutation, E49K, significantly reduced Tus–DnaB interaction and almost completely eliminated the contrahelicase activity of Tus protein in vitro without significantly reducing the affinity of the mutant form of Tus for Ter DNA, in comparison with the wild-type protein. The results, considered along with the crystal structure of Tus–Ter complex, not only elucidate further the mechanism of helicase arrest but also explain the molecular basis of polarity of replication fork arrest at Ter sites.


The enantiomeric separation of 15 racemic 4-aryl-3,4-dihydropyrimidin-2(1H)-one (DHP) alkoxycarbonyl esters, some of which proved to be highly active as A2B adenosine receptor antagonists, was carried out by HPLC on ChirobioticTM TAG, a chiral stationary phase (CSP) bearing teicoplanin aglycone (TAG) as the chiral selector. The racemic compounds were separated under polar organic (PO) conditions. Preliminarily, the same selectands were investigated on three different Pirkle-type CSPs in normal-phase (NP) conditions. A baseline separation was successfully obtained on TAG-based CSPs for the majority of compounds, some of which achieved high enantioselectivity ratios (α > 2) in contrast with the smaller α values (1–1.5) and the lack of baseline resolution observed with the Pirkle-type CSPs. In particular, the racemic tetrazole-fused DHP ester derivatives, namely compounds 8 and 9, were separated on TAG-based HPLC columns with noteworthy α values (8.8 and 6.0, respectively), demonstrating the potential of the method for preparative purposes. A competition experiment, carried out with a racemic analyte (6) by adding N-acetyl-d-alanine (NADA) to the mobile phase, suggested that H-bonding interactions involved in the recognition of the natural dipeptide ligand d-Ala-d-Ala into the TAG cleft should be critical for enantioselective recognition of 4-aryl DHPs by TAG. The X-ray crystal structure of TAG was elucidated at a 0.77 Å resolution, whereas the calculation of molecular descriptors of size, polar, and H-bond interactions, were complemented with molecular docking and molecular dynamics calculations, shedding light on repulsive (steric effects) and attractive (H-bond—polar and apolar) interactions between 4-aryl DHP selectands and TAG chiral selectors.


ABSTRACT Bunicontro, M.P. and Marcomini, S.C., 2021. Geomorphological evolution of the Patagonian coast surrounding the Golfo Nuevo (Chubut, Argentina) during Late Quaternary: Overview and new proposal. Journal of Coastal Research, 37(3), 528–543. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The main contribution of this paper is a new interpretation of the geomorphological evolution of the North Patagonian coast surrounding the Golfo Nuevo from Mid-to-Late Pleistocene until present. The proposed model shows how continental and marine landforms evolved during the Late Quaternary. According to this, the Golfo Nuevo depression formed during the Middle Pleistocene (>130 ka) above previous fluvial terraces, which are attributed to different stages of the Chubut river. Several pediment types and levels were also identified: (1) flanking pediment (level 1) associated with an ancient fluvial valley; (2) convergent pediment related to a previous depression of Golfo Nuevo (level 2), both assigned to Middle Pleistocene; and (3) a littoral pediment (level 3) linked to a Holocene highstand level. The height and position of accretion marine terraces are discussed, in addition to their previous dating. It can be assumed that Golfo San Matías was flooded twice as a consequence of marine transgressions (marine isotopic stage [MIS] 5 and MIS 1). Likewise, Golfo Nuevo and Golfo San José were affected only once, during the maximum Holocene transgression (MIS 1). This paper highlights the importance of reconstructing the geomorphological evolution of a coastal area of the Patagonia as a result of a combination of changes linked to sea-level variations (mainly associated with glacio-eustasy) and climate, paleo-shorelines records, and continental landforms through Late Quaternary. The proposed geomorphological model can be considered a novelty because of the complex integration of continental and marine landforms and the study of their relative relation.


The purpose of this study is to develop a valid and reliable scale to determine the life and career skills of university students. 396 university students in Turkey who look for work have participated in Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and also data were collected from 439 students for Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). According to the result of the analysis, 4-factor scale consisting of 20 items was obtained. The Cronbach Alpha Coefficient was calculated to reveal the internal consistency of the scale and it was found to be 0.84. According to the result of CFA, fit indexes were calculated as X2 / df = 3.56, NFI = 0.94, NNFI = 0.95, RFI = 0.93, CFI = 0.96, GFI = 0.88, AGFI = 0.85, SRMR = 0.073, IFI = 0.96. The life and career skills of students studying at universities were measured by "Life and Career Skills Scale" developed by the researchers.


Effective Pre-School and Primary Education 3-11 (EPPE 3-11) (2003-2008) builds on the work of the earlier Effective Provision of Pre-School Education (EPPE) project (1996-2003) which investigated the impact of preschool provision on a national sample of young children in England between the ages of 3 and 7 years. EPPE 3-11 is following the same sample of around 2,500 children to age 11, the end of Key Stage 2. This Research Brief focuses on the relationships between various child, family, home, pre-school and primary school characteristics and measures of children's cognitive attainment in Year 5 of primary school (age 10). It compares these findings to the impact of the same factors when the children were in Year 1 (age 6). The brief also reports findings about the combined influence of pre-school and primary school experience on children's cognitive attainment in Year 5.


Based on the X-ray scattering intensity theory and using the approximate expression for the atomic scattering factor, the correction factors for three crystalline peaks and an amorphous peak of Nylon 1212 were calculated and the formula of degree of crystallinity of Nylon 1212 was derived by a graphic multipeak resolution method. The degree of crystallinity calculated from the WAXD method is compatible with those obtained by density and calorimetry methods.


A method is presented to calculate two-dimensional temperature profiles in fuel pins with eccentrically placed fuel pellets. This is implemented in a finite difference program. By requiring continuity of the radial and angular components of the heat flux vector across the gas gap, an angular-dependent thermal conductivity is derived to account for the eccentric condition. The method is compared with another approach in which the fuel pellet surface is approximated by a ''ratchet'' boundary. Similar results for temperatures were obtained from both calculations, but the ''modeled conductivity'' method presented here showed significant gains in computing time and storage requirements.


A newly developed factor analysis, origin-shifted factor analysis, was compared with a normal factor analysis to analyze the spectral changes of English speech. Our first aim was to investigate whether these analyses would cause differences in the factor loadings and the extracted spectral-factor scores. The methods mainly differed in whether to use cepstral liftering and an origin shift. The results showed that three spectral factors were obtained in four main frequency bands, but neither the cepstral liftering nor the origin shift distorted the essential characteristics of the factors. This confirms that the origin-shifted factor analysis is more recommendable for future speech analyses, since it would reduce the generation of noise in resynthesized speech. Our second aim was to further identify acoustic correlates of English phonemes. Our data show for the first time that the distribution of obstruents in English speech constitutes an L-shape related to two spectral factors on the three-dimensional configuration. One factor had center loadings around 4100 Hz, while the other was bimodal with peaks around 300 Hz and 2300 Hz. This new finding validates the use of multivariate analyses to connect English phonology and speech acoustics.


Background and Purpose— Stroke is a potentially fatal complication of total hip replacements (THR). However, timing of stroke in THR patients compared with matched controls and influence of drug use remain unknown. The objective of this study was to determine timing of stroke in patients with THR compared with matched control subjects. Methods— A nationwide cohort study was conducted within the Danish registers (1998–2007). Included patients were those with a primary THR in the study period (n=66 583) and were matched by age, sex, and region to three referent subjects without THR or total knee replacements. Time-dependent Cox models were used to derive hazard ratios and were adjusted for disease history and drug use. Results— A 4.7-fold increased risk of ischemic stroke (adjusted hazard ratio, 4.69; 95% CI, 3.12–7.06), and a 4.4-fold increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke (adjusted hazard ratio, 4.40; 95% CI, 2.01–9.62) were found within 2 weeks following THR, compared with matched controls. The risk remained elevated during the first 6 postoperative weeks for ischemic stroke, and the first 12 weeks for hemorrhagic stroke. Outpatient antiplatelet drug use lowered the 6-week hazard ratios for ischemic stroke by 70%, although not affecting risk of hemorrhagic stroke. Conclusions— This study shows, that THR patients have a 4.7-fold increased risk of ischemic stroke, and a 4.4-fold increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke during the first 2 weeks postsurgery. Risk assessment of stroke in individual patients undergoing THR (ie, evaluate other risk factors for stroke) should be considered during the first 6 to 12 weeks.


Novel therapeutic strategies for breast cancer are urgently needed due to the sustained development of drug resistance and tumor recurrence. Trivalent arsenic derivative (arsenite, AsIII) has been reported to induce cytotoxicity in breast cancer cells. We recently demonstrated that AsIII plus tetrandrine (Tetra), a Chinese plant-derived alkaloid, exerted potent antitumor activity against human breast cancer cells, however, the underlying mechanisms for their action have not been well defined. In order to provide fundamental insights for understanding the action of AsIII plus Tetra, the effects of the combined regimen on two breast cancer cell lines T47D and MDA-MB-231 were evaluated. Compared to T47D cells, MDA-MB-231 cells were much more susceptible to the synergistic cytotoxic effects of AsIII and Tetra. Besides the induction of apoptotic/necrotic cell death, S-phase arrest and autophagic cell death were also observed in MDA-MB-231 cells. Exposure of MDA-MB-231 cells to AsIII and Tetra caused the activation of MAPKs. Cytotoxicity of the combined regimen in MDA-MB-231 cell was significantly abrogated by SP600125, a potent c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) inhibitor. However, similar abrogation was not caused by p38 and ERK inhibitors. The addition of either autophagy inhibitors (3-methyladenine or wortmannin) or SP600125 corrected the combined regimen-triggered S-phase arrest, whereas had little effect on the apoptosis/necrosis induction in the cells. Surprisingly, SP600125NC, a negative control for SP600125, significantly strengthened S-phase arrest and the cytotoxicity induced by the combined regimen. The addition of SP600125 did not alter autophagy induction. In conclusion, the cytotoxicity of AsIII combined with Tetra was attributed to the induction of S-phase arrest, apoptotic/necrotic and autophagic cell death. The enhanced cytotoxicity of the two drugs by SP600125NC might be explained by its capability to strengthen S-phase arrest. Our results suggested that JNK and autophagy independently contributed to the cytotoxicity via modulating cell cycle progression. The study further provides fundamental insights for the development of AsIII in combination with Tetra for patients with different types of breast cancer.


Hydrogen production through the reduction of water appears to be a convenient solution for the long-run storage of renewable energies. However, economically viable hydrogen production requests platinum-free catalysts, because this expensive and scarce (only 37 ppb in the Earth's crust) metal is not a sustainable resource [Gordon RB, Bertram M, Graedel TE (2006) Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 103:1209–1214]. Here, we report on a new family of cobalt and nickel diimine-dioxime complexes as efficient and stable electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution from acidic nonaqueous solutions with slightly lower overvoltages and much larger stabilities towards hydrolysis as compared to previously reported cobaloxime catalysts. A mechanistic study allowed us to determine that hydrogen evolution likely proceeds through a bimetallic homolytic pathway. The presence of a proton-exchanging site in the ligand, furthermore, provides an exquisite mechanism for tuning the electrocatalytic potential for hydrogen evolution of these compounds in response to variations of the acidity of the solution, a feature only reported for native hydrogenase enzymes so far.


Abstract One thousand people die every day in India as a result of TB, a preventable and treatable disease, even though the Constitution of India, government schemes, and international law guarantee available, accessible, acceptable, quality health care. Failure to address the spread of TB and to provide quality treatment to all affected populations constitutes a public health and human rights emergency that demands action and accountability. As part of a broader strategy, health activists in India employ Public Interest Litigation (PIL) to hold the state accountable for rights violations and to demand new legislation, standards for patient care, accountability for under-spending, improvements in services at individual facilities, and access to government entitlements in marginalized communities. Taking inspiration from right to health PIL cases (PILs), lawyers in a New Delhi-based rights organization used desk research, fact-findings, and the Right To Information Act to build a TB PIL for the Delhi High Court, Sanjai Sharma v. NCT of Delhi and Others (2015). The case argues that inadequate implementation of government TB schemes violates the Constitutional rights to life, health, food, and equality. Although PILs face substantial challenges, this paper concludes that litigation can be a crucial advocacy and accountability tool for people living with TB and their allies.


We present an extension of the JHUGen and MELA framework, which includes an event generator and library for the matrix element analysis. It enables simulation, optimal discrimination, reweighting techniques, and analysis of a bosonic resonance and the triple and quartic gauge boson interactions with the most general anomalous couplings. The new features, which become especially relevant at the current stage of LHC data taking, are the simulation of gluon fusion and vector boson fusion in the off-shell region, associated $ZH$ production at NLO QCD including the $gg$ initial state, and the simulation of a second spin-zero resonance. We also quote translations of the anomalous coupling measurements into constraints on dimension-six operators of an effective field theory. Some of the new features are illustrated with projections for experimental measurements with the full LHC and HL-LHC datasets.


In the southern margin of the Ebro Basin eigth Tectosedimentary Units (TSU) have been defined by means of the application of tectosedimentary analysis. These units are limited by sedimentary breaks which can be recognized in the whole studied area. The sedimentary breaks are genetically related to diastrophic evolution, and they are shown as angular or syntectonic unconformities at the basin margins. Each TSU has aparticular sequential evolution, generally complex, but with a similar trend in the entire area. For each unit the litologic composition, evolution, boundaries and chronostratigraphy are established. The three first units are placed in the Palaeogene, the fourth one includes the Palaeogene-Neogene boundary and the four last ones are Neogene in age. The chronostratigraphic interval of each one is, respectively: Thanetian-Bartonian, Bartonian-Priabonian, Priabonian-Lower Oligocene, Upper Oligocene-Agenian, Agenim-Middle Aragonian, Middle Aragonim-Upper Aragonian, Upper Aragonian-Upper Vallesian, and Turolian. Finally the equivalences between the Tectosedimentary Units and the cartographic units defiiied by other authors have been establised.


ABSTRACT: Mechanisms for the control of episodic fetal breathing movements or the onset of continuous breathing at birth remain unknown. Lung distension with 100% O2 at a continuous positive airway pressure of 30 cm H2O may induce arousal and continuous breathing. To investigate 1) the threshold range of arterial oxygen tension (PaO2) for the onset of arousal and breathing and 2) the graded response of breathing to various levels of PaO2, we studied 10 fetal sheep between 135 and 142 d of gestation (term = 147 ± 2 d). Each fetus was instrumented to record sleep states, diaphragmatic electromyogram, arterial pH, and blood gas tensions. PaO2 threshold was determined through an indwelling O2 sensor catheter. Fetal lungs were distended at a continuous positive airway pressure of 40 cm H2O with 100%. N2 or with O2 ranging from 40 to 100% via an in situ endotracheal tube. At the onset of arousal (n = 10), PaO2, arterial carbon dioxide tension, and Hb O2 saturation increased from control values of 21.7 ± 0.75 torr (2.9 ± 0.09 kPa), 41.8 ± 1.1 torr (5.47 ± 0.15 kPa), and 52.9 ± 2.6% to 65.6 ± 9.6 torr (8.74 ± 1.28 kPa), 46.9 ±1.3 torr (6.25 ± 0.17 kPa), and 92.9 ± 2.06%, respectively, whereas the pH decreased from 7.31 ± 0.006 to 7.27 ± 0.009 (mean ± SEM; p = 0.001, 0.04, 0.002, and 0.001, respectively). Seven of 10 fetuses breathed continuously. In these fetuses, PaO2 and arterial carbon dioxide tension further increased and pH decreased; however, no further significant increase in Hb O2 saturation was observed. Breathing stopped at a PaO2 of 38.5 ± 9.5 torr (5.1 ±1.3 kPa) but could be restarted by increasing the PaO2. In response to an increase in fetal PaO2 (30–60 torr; 4–8 kPa), amplitude of breathing and total respiratory output significantly increased from the control values. Further increases in PaO2 or Hb O2 saturation did not significantly affect the respiratory output. Hb O2 saturation and arterial pH had the most confounding effects on frequency and amplitude of breathing, respectively. Among the various sleep states, arousal had the most profound effects on respiratory output. We conclude that 1) very high levels of PaO2 are not necessary to initiate arousal and continuous breathing and 2) further increments in Hb O2 saturation above the threshold level have no significant effect on breathing responses.