Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala) has been used as traditional medicine, such as drugs to decrease the level of blood glucose, so it can be used as drug to indicate diabetes. The aim of this research is to study the histopathological change of mice's liver given leucaena leaf extract. This research used 24 male mice that were divided into 4 groups by completely randomized design. Group P0 (control) were given 0,9 % NaCl, and groups P1, P2, and P3 were given 0,5 g / kg bw, 1 g / kg bw, and 1,5 g / kg bw leucaena's leaf extract by oral administration respectively. The treatment were given daily for 30 days. All of the mice were necropsied at day 31, and the liver were taken to examine their histopathological change. Histopathological change examination were based on the present hydropic degeneration, fatty degeneration, and apoptosis surround central vein. Result of statistically analised by ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis method indicated no significance difference among the control and treatments. There was no significance toxicity effect of leucaena leaf extract of all treatment dosage on mice liver. Keywords: Leucaena leucocephala, liver histology, Mus musculus L.


Oscillations in seawater chemistry have characterized at least the last 600 million years of earth history. Three phases of aragonite seas have been separated by two of calcite seas, the former due to high molar ratios of Mg/Ca in seawater and the latter to low ratios. During aragonite seas, inorganic marine cements and ooids are aragonitic, whereas during calcite seas they are calcitic. Recent interest has focused on the effects of this cyclical change in seawater chemistry on biomineralization, as well as on taphonomy (including diagenesis) and hence fossil preservation. Although there is a need for rigorous testing of hypotheses, data on the geological distributions of aragonite and calcite skeletons among marine invertebrates lends variable support to links between seawater chemistry and: (1) de-novo evolution of calcite vs aragonite skeletons, (2) switchovers in mineralogy during subsequent clade evolution, (3) the relative success of clades using calcite or aragonite as biominerals, and (4) the development of hardgrounds with associated sclerobiont communities.


Kangaroo mother care (KMC) is effective in increasing mothers' initiation and maintenance of breastfeeding (BF) for extreme and very preterm (VLBW) infants. Although South Africa has implemented KMC for more than two decades, little is known about mothers' perspectives on KMC. The purpose of this study was to describe the BF intentions and practices of mothers of VLBW infants at home following discharge and assess the role long stay in KMC has on their decision to BF beyond discharge. This qualitative study was conducted at the KMC unit of a tertiary hospital in Pretoria, South Africa. Focus group interviews were conducted with 38 mothers of VLBW infants who had transitioned from neonatal intensive care (NICU) to KMC. We analysed transcripts following the five steps for qualitative thematic data analysis. Mothers were knowledgeable of the importance and value of BF preterm infants and conceded that breast milk has advantages over formula. Mothers had positive feelings toward BF their preterm infants. The stay in KMC increased the direct BF of their preterm infants, mothers' BF efficacy, and had a positive influence on mothers' intentions to continue BF following discharge and to exclusively breastfeed for six months. Their BF intentions, efficacy, and practices were influenced by the skilful BF counselling, training, and support they received from the nursing staff. High intention to BF among these mothers is suggestive of their knowledge and confidence in BF for their VLBW infants. It is important that nursing staff in NICU and KMC appreciate the significant role they play in mothers' readiness and confidence to breastfeed beyond discharge.


Highly crystalline multi wall carbon nanotubes have been synthesized by RF-CVD from acetylene at 850°C over a Fe:Co:MgO catalyst. The catalytic system was obtained by mixing for 100 h Fe, Co and MgO powders in a ball milling device under petroleum ether environment, followed by oxidation in air at 500°C for 24 h. Most of the nanotubes had external diameters in order of dozens of nm and lengths of microns, resulting in an aspect ration of over 1000. Their external to internal diameter ratio varied between 2.5 and 3.


Rhinosinusitis (RS) is a significant health problem both in children and adult. A growing interest in RS resulted in two documents of European Position Paper on Rhinosinusitis and Nasal Polyps group (EPOS). This consensus offers evidence-based recommendations on diagnosis and treatment of RS and is intended to be a state-of- the art review for the specialists as well as the general practitioners.The recommendations divide rhinosinusitis as follows: acute viral or acute bacterial, recurrent and chronic RS. The symptoms of acute RS may increase after 5 day or persist after 10 days with less than 12 weeks duration. In recurrent RS there are about 6 episodes of acute RS during one year. Chronic RS is likely when symptoms of RS persist for longer than 12 weeks. Treatment of common cold is only symptomatic, while antibiotics and/or nasal steroids are recommended in severe acute RS. Endoscopic sinus surgery is indicated in chronic RS only when medical treatment fails and optimal medical treatment should always be continued after surgery. The computer tomography is the gold standard for diagnostics in cases of complication of RS or planning functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS).


Christ is truly present - body, blood, soul, and divinity - in the Holy Eucharist. We must venerate His presence, honor Him for all He has done for us, and remain reverent at all times. Yet, too many do not take His presence seriously. Some even mock Him. Now is the time for each of us - both clergy and lay people - to stop this disgrace and return the respect to Our Lord that He deserves.


In this work additive dynamic neural models are used for the identification of nonlinear plants in online operation. In order to accomplish this task an invariant imbedding method and matrix calculus has been applied to the variational solution of the parameter identification problem to obtain its online version. The work also includes a complexity study of the developed solution.


Introduction Leprosy is a chronic mycobacterial disease of public health importance. It is one of the leading causes of permanent physical disability. The prevalence of leprosy in Ethiopia has remained stagnant over the last decades. The aim of the study was to identify new leprosy cases and trace household contacts at risk of developing leprosy by active case detection. The study area was Kokosa district, West Arsi zone, Oromia region, Ethiopia. Method A prospective longitudinal study was conducted from June 2016-September 2018 at Kokosa district. Ethical approvals were obtained from all relevant institutions. Health extension workers screened households by house-to-house visits. Blood samples were collected and the level of anti-PGL-I IgM measured at two-time points. Results More than 183,000 people living in Kokosa district were screened. Dermatologists and clinical nurses with special training on leprosy confirmed the new cases, and their household contacts were included in the study. Of the 91 new cases diagnosed and started treatment, 71 were recruited into our study. Sixty-two percent were males and 80.3% were multibacillary cases. A family history of leprosy was found in 29.6% of the patients with cohabitation ranging from 10 to 30 years. Eight new leprosy cases were diagnosed among the 308 household contacts and put on multi-drug therapy. The New Case Detection Rate increased from 28.3/100,000 to 48.3/100,000 between 2015/2016 and 2016/2017. Seventy one percent of leprosy patients and 81% of the household contacts' level of anti-PGL-I IgM decreased after treatment. In conclusion,the results of the study showed the importance of active case detection and household contact tracing. It enhances early case finding, and promotes early treatment, thereby interrupting transmission and preventing potential disability from leprosy.


The sharing economy business model has gained attention as a new, alternative pathway to promote sustainable consumption through sharing, renting and swapping used products. Nevertheless, there is still insufficient research available to understand the mechanisms of different types of sharing economy business models within the realm of fashion enterprise. This study aims to provide three, empirical business case studies that investigate how fashion companies utilise clothing sharing services in South Korea. These three case studies were conducted in order to identify each organisation's sharing economy business model by evaluating their value propositions, target market segments, revenue mechanisms and marketing mix strategies. Data was collected by observing each organisation via their website and social media, as well as by conducting interviews with each company. The findings will be discussed in relation to use-oriented product-service systems (PSSs), according to collaborative consumption theory. This study concludes that the sharing economy business model provides opportunities to optimise resource usage of used products, ranging from expensive, luxury products to lower-end goods. However, South Korea's current sharing economy business model is predominately applicable for small to medium-sized businesses, and the potential of increasing the scale of PSSs within the fashion industry needs to be further discussed.


Aerodynamic performance of solar wing system has been evaluated through wind tunnel test. The test model has 12 panels, each supported by 2 cables. The panels were installed horizontally flat, and gaps between panels were set constant. Sag ratios of 2% and 5%, and wind directions between 0째 and 90째 were considered. Mass of test model was determined considering the mass of full scale model, and Froude number and Elastic parameter were satisfied by adjusting the mean wind speed. From the wind tunnel test, it was found that the aerodynamic performance of the solar wing system is very dependent on the wind directions and sag ratios. When the sag was 2%, the fluctuating displacements between the wind directions of 0째 and 30째 increase proportionally to the square of the mean wind speed, implying buffeting-like vibration and a sudden increase in fluctuating displacement was found at large mean wind speed for the wind directions larger than 40째. When the wind direction was larger than 60째, a sudden increase was found both at low and large mean wind speed. When the sag ratio is 5%, distribution of mean displacements is different from that of sag ratio of 2%, and the fluctuating displacements show very different trend from that of sag ratio of 2%.


In Australia, someone who is concerned about the decision making capacity of an older person can seek orders from a Tribunal to grant them Powers of Attorney. This substitute decision making power denies the autonomy of the older person and may serve to allow family, caregivers or professionals to override the wishes of an older person. In extreme cases, this can lead to situations of financial, psychological and even physical abuse.A human rights approach to the assessment of legal capacity may offer improved legal protections for older people. Further a human rights approach to capacity aligns with philosophical understandings of autonomy and vulnerability recognised by the law. This approach moves away from status based or outcomes based capacity assessments and replaces substitute decision making powers with supported decision making processes wherever possible.In this Article the authors demonstrate how ad hoc capacity assessments in Australia have resulted from a legal system that has not kept pace with the complexity of an ageing population.


Nursing dying newborns is an inherent part of working in a neonatal intensive care (NICU). Holistic care involves recognizing the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of the dying infant and the family. The present article aims to explore how nurses can provide the best practices in neonatal palliative care. Palliative care is composed of three components: assistance with end-of-life decision making; pain and comfort management, and bereavement support with cultural competence. These issues have implications for improving nursing practice.


This paper summarizes data confirming the development of depression induced by so- cial conflicts (DISC) in male mice of C57BL/6J strain. Repeated defeat experiences in daily agonistic confrontations induced dramatic changes in behaviors as well as in the somatic state of submissive mice (losers) that were similar to symptoms of human de- pression with respect to etiology, susceptibility to treatment, and symptomatology. A remarkable behavioral deficit was found in losers, who demonstrated only a passive defense and immobile postures after 20 daily defeats (tests) instead of active defense and withdrawal, which had predominated in the first confrontations. Losers never demon- strated any aggression to other individuals and displayed a decrease in ambulation in the open-field test as well as an increase in immobility time in Porsolt's test. The devel- opment of anxiety and disturbance in communicative behavior were observed in losers. Loss of weight and enhancement of gastric mucosa damage, as well as a decrease in plasma testosterone level and immune resistance, were shown in losers. Chronic imi- pramine and tianeptine treatment prevented the increase of "depressiveness" as esti- mated by Porsolt's test. Chronic unavoidable social stress is considered a pathogenic factor, which leads to the development of depressive pathology and anxiety in mice. The study on brain monoaminergic activity in losers at different stages of the experimental depression allows the hypothesis that the development of depression is accompanied by dynamic changes in turnover and reception of at least brain serotonin, depending on the duration and depth of the pathological depressive processes. Behavioral and physiologi- cal markers of a depression-like state in losers are discussed in comparison with those of human depressive disorder. Aggr. Behav. 24:271-286, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.


Many countries worldwide reinforce their education and training systems' capacity to respond to the pressures of globalization and the challenges of the knowledge society. Closer cooperation between business and education is one of the tools for providing learners with new skills and competences for work. In the Southern region of the Mediterranean however, knowledge available on the current forms and modes of cooperation between the education and economic sectors, and the roles and responsibilities of the different stakeholders is limited and fragmented. Among the challenges they face, these countries suffer from the pressures of some of the fastest growing populations in the world, a large informal sector and economies run by very small and medium-sized enterprises. In the region social partners (employers and employees) play very diverse but limited roles in VET policy and decision-making according to local situation. The article will look at the different contexts in which cooperation and partnership in VET and Higher Education are activated in eight countries of the region (Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria and Tunisia).1 For the purpose of this article, the term education includes secondary vocational education and training (VET), postsecondary non-tertiary and tertiary education, including public and private institutions. The term business covers any entity with economic activity regardless of its legal status. This can include multi-nationals, public and private companies and small and medium sized enterprises (SME), micro-business and actors in the informal economy. Social partners (employers' and employee organizations) are considered as key stakeholders representing business environment. After shaping the situation, the paper will look at identifying and reflecting on policy or strategically driven approaches to cooperation. In this context, cooperation and partnership is considered in a very broad sense, meaning any kind of relevant policy provision and/or formalized or non-formalized interaction between an education/training provider and a business organization. Finally the paper will suggest policy recommendations for policy makers, social partners and civil society which may facilitate the development of partnerships leading to practical solutions benefiting to the new entrants in the labour market.


Formic acid vapor treated low temperature Cu-Cu direct bonding method was developed. The in situ dry process of reduction using formic acid vapor was applied to realize Cu-Cu direct bonding at low temperature and in low vacuum. In order to evaluate the effect of formic acid vapor on Cu film surface, the CMP-Cu film surface is investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and atomic force microscope (AFM) before treatment and after treatment. It shows that the Cu peak becomes strong and O, C peaks become weak after formic acid vapor treatment at 200 °C. Grain boundary was found on the surface after treatment due to surface etching by formic acid. Surface roughness only increases a little with formic acid vapor treatment. CMP-Cu/EB-Cu film direct bonding and CMP-Cu film/Cu bumpless electrodes direct bonding were conducted in N2 atmosphere with formic acid vapor treatment at 150°C–200°C, respectively. The bonding strength of CMP-Cu/EB-Cu film direct bonding is about 9.8MPa when samples are treated by formic acid vapor at 200°C for 20min. CMP-Cu film/Cu bumpless electrodes bonding also was done, and the bonding strength is about 24.1MPa. Finally, the bonding interface is observed by transmission electron microscope (TEM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM).


Aeration is one of the main technical methods to remediate polluted rivers, and mathematical models are the main ways to predict and assess the environmental pollution. WASP model was used to study the effect of aeration on improving the water quality of a small river over a time span. The preliminary results showed that the simulation values were consistent with practical monitoring data, which could be useful for the management and control of polluted water. Furthermore, simulations under different aeration conditions suggested that aeration technology could significantly lower the levels of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonia-nitrogen (NH4(+)-N) of river water, thus improving the water quality. With the improvement of dissolved oxygen (DO), the water quality could be further improved. However, the increase in the removal rate of pollutants would slow down. Also, there were remarkable differences among various months throughout the whole year, and aeration from May to September had better results. Considering economic costs and environmental benefits, river aeration with a 4 mg x L(1) DO standard in summer was determined as the best condition.


We discuss a generalization of the classic Keplerian disk test problem allowing for both pressure and rotational support, as a method of testing astrophysical codes incorporating both gravitation and hydrodynamics. We argue for the inclusion of pressure in rotating disk simulations on the grounds that realistic, astrophysical disks exhibit non-negligible pressure support. We then apply this test problem to examine the performance of various smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) methods incorporating a number of improvements proposed over the years to address problems noted in modeling the classical gravitation-only Keplerian disk. We also apply this test to a newly developed extension of SPH based on reproducing kernels called CRKSPH. Counterintuitively, we find that pressure support worsens the performance of traditional SPH on this problem, causing unphysical collapse away from the steady-state disk solution even more rapidly than the purely gravitational problem, whereas CRKSPH greatly reduces this error.


Adverse drug events have received a great deal of publicity during he past several years. The tracking and prevention of medication errors is an important part of ensuring quality care for patients. The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and the Institute For Safe Medication Practices are two groups who have published recommendations on the prevention of adverse drug events in hospitals. This study provides an informative analysis of the status of implementation of these recommendations by hospital pharmacists in Louisiana.


We examined microbial activity in the rumen to cleave benzyl ether bonds of lignin model compounds that fluoresced when the bonds were cleaved. 4-Methylumbelliferone veratryl ether dimer was degraded completely within 8 h even in the presence of fungicidal antibiotics, but no significant degradation occurred with bactericidal antibiotics. Degradation of a phenolic beta-O-4 trimer incorporating 4-methylumbelliferone by a benzyl ether linkage was stimulated by ruminal microbes, although its corresponding non-phenolic model compound, 1-(4-ethoxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-1-O-(4-methylumbelliferyl)-2-(2-methoxyp henoxy)-3-propanol, was not degraded. A coniferyl dehydrogenation polymer bearing fluorescent beta-O-4 benzyl ether that contains both phenolic and non-phenolic benzyl ether bonds was partially degraded (about 20%) in 48 h. These results suggest that ruminal microbes decompose benzyl ether linkages of lignin polymers under anaerobic conditions.


Background: The A-Line Autoregressive Index (AAI), which is derived from auditory evoked potentials, has been used for determining anesthetic depth. This study verified the correlation between AAI values and the corresponding end-tidal concentrations of sevoflurane during general anesthesia induction. Methods: Thirty young male adults undergoing elective minor orthopedic surgery were sequentially allocated to receive inspiratory 3%, 5%, or 6% sevoflurane for mask induction, followed by mechanical ventilation after tracheal intubation. The inspiratory, end-tidal and estimated jugular bulb concentrations of sevoflurane were recorded at three target AAI values: below 20, below 10, and at the start of burst suppression. Results: The mean time to loss of consciousness in the 6% sevoflurane group was shorter than that in the 5% and 3% groups; however, the groups had comparable AAI values (range: 16–45). The 6% group had a higher end-tidal concentration (4.5% ± 0.2% vs. 3.8% ± 0.2%, p < 0.05) than did the 5% group, despite having the same target anesthetic levels by AAI score ≤10, whereas the estimated jugular bulb concentrations were comparable (1.9% vs. 1.9%) in both groups. Conclusions: Following mechanical ventilation with inspiratory 3%, 5%, or 6% sevoflurane, the end-tidal concentrations were discrepant at the same end points of AAI levels, despite similar estimated jugular bulb concentrations of sevoflurane. Thus, conventional alveolar concentration may overestimate anesthesia depth during rapid wash-in of sevoflurane.


We have studied the spin Hall magnetoresistance (SMR) arising at the interface of Pt and antiferromagnetic insulator MnTiO3 thin films. Using c axis oriented single-crystalline ilmenite-type MnTiO3 films on Al2O3 (0001) substrates grown by pulsed-laser deposition, we fabricated L-shaped multi-terminal Pt/MnTiO3 devices in which the longitudinal resistances of two orthogonally arranged channels can be simultaneously measured by the four-probe method. Magnetic field angular dependence of the magnetoresistance was consistent with symmetry relations for the SMR between spin-current polarization in Pt and magnetic moment in MnTiO3, evidencing the predominant SMR contribution. By utilizing distinct SMR responses of the two channels when a magnetic field was applied in parallel to one of the channels, we determined the Neel temperature (TN) to be 63 K in a 20-nm-thick MnTiO3 film, comparable to TN of a 40-nm-thick MnTiO3 film separately measured with a superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer. The electrically determined TN persisted down to the film thickness of 2.9 nm, indicating the robust antiferromagnetic ordering even at the surface of MnTiO3 ultrathin films.


: Atlantic tarpon Megalops atlanticus are important mesopredators in the western Atlantic Ocean, and the focus of a popular recreational fishery that targets them throughout their annual migration in the Gulf of Mexico and southeastern USA. Using 4 years of acoustic telemetry data, we quantified the seasonal variation in phenology of arrival and departure, and occupancy for subadult and adult M. atlanticus in the Florida Keys, USA. While detection profiles of subadult M. atlanticus (n = 11) varied in residency and dispersal patterns, all adult M. atlanticus detection profiles (n = 47) exhibited seasonal residency. The median spring−summer residence period of adult M. atlanticus ranged from 40 to 60 d, with a mean of 51 d across years. At the individual level, repeatability in the timing of arrival and duration were high across years, suggesting that photoperiod may be an important migratory cue. Further, the repeatability in the timing of arrival to the Florida Keys for individuals was not associated with sea surface temperature (SST). At the population level, residency corresponded with the spawning season, with the majority of adult M. atlanticus arriving in April once SST reached 26°C, and then departing in June (27−29°C). Highest occupancy probabilities for adult M. atlanticus occurred in May (26−28°C) and lowest between August and October. Large aggregations of M. atlanticus that occur during the spawning season (April−June) are potentially vulnerable to the effects of habitat degradation and angling-related mortality and behavioral changes. These data on M. atlanticus phenology provide insights for implementing science-based strategic management plans.


The dynamic characteristics of delaminated smart composite laminates are studied using animproved layerwise laminate theory. The theory is capable of capturing interlaminar shear stresses that are critical to delamination. The presence of discrete delamination is modeled through the use of Heaviside unit step functions. Stress free boundary conditions are enforced at all free surfaces. Continuity in displacement field and transverse shear stresses are enforced at each ply level. In modeling piezoelectric composite plates, a coupled piezoelectric-mechanical formulation is used in the development of the constitutive equations. Numerical analysis is conducted to investigate the effect of nonlinearity in the transient vibration of bimodular behavior caused by the contact impact of delaminated interfaces. Composite plates with delamination, subject to external loads and voltage history from surface bonded sensors, are investigated and the results are compared with corresponding experimental results and plates without delamination.


Background:Endometriosis can cause various social burdens. Abnormal circular RNAs level lead to changes of related gene expression, thereby mediating the occurrence and development of a series of diseases. The research of circRNA in endometriosis is still in its infancy. This study will explore the role of hsa_circ_0063526 with microRNA-141-5p in the development of endometriosis.Methods:The expression of genes was detected by RT-qPCR. Transwell, wound-healing, EdU assay were performed on endometriosis patient's End1 / E6E7 cell. PCR and immunohistochemistry were used to detect the expression of candidate regulatory genes in ectopic lesions in endometriosis mice model.Results:The expression level of hsa_circ_0063526 in endometriosis patients' ectopic tissue is higher than control(P <0.05), The expression levels of hsa_circ_0063526 and miRNA-141-5P in ectopic tissue of endometriosis were negatively correlated (P < 0.05).Knockdown hsa_circ_0063526 inhibited the invasion, metastasis, and proliferation ability of End1 / E6E7 cell. The inhibition of microRNA-141-5p can rescue this inhibitory effect (P <0.05). In-vivo experiments showed miR-141-5p and si-hsa_circ_0063526 treatment reduced the lesion size and regulated endometriosis genes.Conclusion:Hsa_circ_0063526 is probably involved in regulating the occurrence and development of endometriosis by sponging miR-141-5p. hsa_circ_0063526 and miR-141-5p are possible to become biomarkers and therapeutic targets for endometriosis.


Introduction: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a global public health problem. HBV infected pregnant mothers act as a constant source of infection to the babies. This leads to increased chronic cases of HBV infection despite effective vaccine & antiviral therapy. Thus it becomes very essential to detect such unsuspected otherwise healthy HBV carriers & cases. Patients and Method: A retrospective study was aimed to study seroprevalence rate of HBV in all pregnant mothers attending the obstetric services from May 2015 to May 2016. All HBsAg positive cases & their babies' case records were reviewed to study the clinical, demographic data, HBV vaccination & HBV status of the baby. Results: Prevalence rate is 1.68% in 3800 screened cases. Most cases were from the age group 20-24 years. Primigravids & multigravids were equally infected. Out of 14 delivered cases in the hospital, 13 had live babies & only 1 had IUD. 11 delivered by normal labour whereas only 3 delivered by caesarean section. 3 babies had low birth weight (<2.5kg) whereas 10 babies had birth weight more than 2.5kg. All the babies were fully vaccinated. Only 2 babies' cases records were available for HBsAg testing & were found negative at 1year of age. Conclusion: Screening of HBV infection in pregnant females can help clinicians to prevent the infection transmission to the babies by taking appropriate measures. Prevalence rate is low in our study but still screening is highly recommended to reduce the addition of chronic cases annually.


BACKGROUND
Patient falls constitute a major threat to health services' ability to provide care. Previous studies confirm that nurses can identify patients at risk and that a preventative programme can reduce the rate of falls but few studies have been evaluated over time.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
A study was undertaken to test a Falls Prevention Programme in an acute medical area that was re-evaluated 5 years later to determine if the effects were sustainable.

DESIGN
The design included two groups of patients admitted before and after the programme. Variables such as staffing, equipment, environment and routines were controlled. However, because of ethical approval constraints, some variables such as age, mental status, mobility and gender were not.

METHODS
The programme included a risk assessment tool, a choice of interventions, a graphic that alerted others to 'at risk patients' and simple patient and staff education. Data were collected using incident forms and a formula was used to calculate a rate of falls. A non-paired t-test compared rates and anova examined the relationship of age, gender, mobility and mental status on the incidence of falls. Control graphs determined the stability of the process.

RESULTS
The falls rate was significantly reduced. Control graphs demonstrate that the process achieved greater control with less variation. In the next 5 years the falls rate increased to preprogramme levels and control graphs demonstrated that the process was no longer controlled. Compliance with the programme had deteriorated.

CONCLUSIONS
The practice review considered skill mix, patient activity and acuity but provided no definitive answers to explain non-compliance. The implications to nursing are discussed.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE
Clinicians are called to conduct more rigorous research into falls prevention but it may be more useful to direct research towards examining nursing work and increasing nurse autonomy in falls prevention.


The development of knockout mutants and expression variants are critical for understanding genotype-phenotype relationships. However, advances in these techniques in gram-positive actinobacteria have stagnated over the last decade. Actinobacteria in the Clavibacter genus are composed of diverse crop pathogens that cause a variety of wilt and cankering diseases. Here, we present a suite of tools for genetic manipulation in the tomato pathogen Clavibacter michiganensis including a markerless deletion system, an integrative plasmid, and an R package for identification of permissive sites for plasmid integration. The vector pSelAct-KO is a recombination-based, markerless knockout system that uses dual selection to engineer seamless deletions of a region of interest, providing opportunities for repeated higher-order genetic knockouts. The efficacy of pSelAct-KO was demonstrated in C. michiganensis and was confirmed using whole-genome sequencing. We developed permissR, an R package to identify permissive sites for chromosomal integration, which can be used in conjunction with pSelAct-Express, a nonreplicating integrative plasmid that enables recombination into a permissive genomic location. Expression of enhanced green fluorescent protein by pSelAct-Express was verified in two candidate permissive regions predicted by permissR in C. michiganensis. These molecular tools are essential advances for investigating gram-positive actinobacteria, particularly for important pathogens in the Clavibacter genus. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2021 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.


According to 2011 data, nearly one in four women and one in seven men in the United States experience severe physical violence by an intimate partner, creating a public health burden requiring population-level solutions. To prevent intimate partner violence (IPV) before it occurs, the CDC developed Domestic Violence Prevention Enhancements and Leadership Through Alliances, Focusing on Outcomes for Communities United with States to identify promising community- and societal-level prevention strategies to prevent IPV. The program funds 10 state domestic violence coalitions for 5 years to implement and evaluate programs and policies to prevent IPV by influencing the environments and conditions in which people live, work, and play. The program evaluation goals are to promote IPV prevention by identifying promising prevention strategies and describing those strategies using case studies, thereby creating a foundation for building practice-based evidence with a health equity approach.


The paper develops an integrated political economy model in which individuals are distinguished by earning ability and an ascriptive characteristic, race. The policy space is a transfer payment to low-income workers …nanced by a ‡at tax on wages and an a¢ rmative action constraint on …rms'hiring decisions. The distribution of income and the policy are endogenous, with the latter being the outcome of a legislative bargaining game between three legislative blocs. The model provides support for the common claim that racial divisions reduce support for welfare expenditures, even when voters have color-blind preferences. We show that relatively advantaged members of both the majority and minority group bene…t from the introduction of a second dimension of redistribution, while the less advantaged members of the majority are the principal losers.


Ocean noise has become a persistent global threat to marine mammal habitats. U.S. National Marine Sanctuaries have been regarded as possible ocean noise mitigation tools because of their special focus on conservation of marine resources and their location within key marine mammal habitats; yet previous evaluations of National Marine Sanctuaries have not focused specifically on their effectiveness in addressing ocean noise and its impacts on marine mammals. Using management plan and survey data of 11 U.S. National Marine Sanctuaries, this study investigates 1) the actions that Sanctuaries are taking to address ocean noise impacts from human activities on marine mammals and 2) the effectiveness of the U.S. National Marine Sanctuary Program at managing noise impacts on marine mammals. Findings indicate that the Program overall is moving toward effectiveness by conducting research, management, and education or outreach related to ocean noise and marine mammals. However, some individual Sanctuaries could take more action to mitigate ocean noise and the National Marine Sanctuary Program could increase its ocean noise education and outreach. Evaluation of Sanctuary ocean noise mitigation actions is crucial to ensure that Sanctuaries are fulfilling their purpose of protection and conservation by responding to emerging threats such as ocean noise pollution.


We have measured the diffusion thermopower of a quantum Hall system in a Corbino setup. A concentric electron-temperature gradient is introduced by irradiating microwaves, via a coplanar waveguide, near the outer rim of a circular mesa of a two-dimensional electron gas. The resulting radial thermovoltages exhibit sawtooth-like oscillations with the magnetic field, taking large positive (negative) values just below (above) integer fillings with sign reversal at the center of the quantum Hall plateaus. The behavior is in agreement with a recent theory [Y. Barlas and K. Yang: Phys. Rev. B 85 (2012) 195107], which treats disorder within the self-consistent Born approximation.


This paper introduces a new perspective on water resources emphasizing the role of water vaporflows for human well-being. The connections between freshwater and ecosystem services in terrestrial environments are addressed, particularly the role offreshwater for the biota that sustains the flow of ecosystem services and the role of the biota that modifies freshwater flows. First, the water dependence of terrestrial ecosystem services and food production are analyzed. Secondly, two examples of unintentional, large-scale, water-mediated cascading effects related to ecosystem services that result from local, uncoordinated decisions in Australia and South Africa are discussed. These two countries are taking the lead in the management offreshwater flows and terrestrial ecosystem services. Issues including potential conflicts of interest and trade-offs between food (or timber) production and ecosystem services at the catchment scale are taken into account. A world-wide, intentional ecohydrological landscape approach to handle these issues is suggested. One important step towards a more integrated approach to freshwater is the development of flexible institutional structures.


Hypoxia in tumors results in resistance to both chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatments but affords an environment in which hypoxia-activated prodrugs (HAP) are activated upon bioreduction to release targeted cytotoxins. The benzotriazine 1,4-di-N-oxide (BTO) HAP, tirapazamine (TPZ, 1), has undergone extensive clinical evaluation in combination with radiotherapy to assist in the killing of hypoxic tumor cells. Although compound 1 did not gain approval for clinical use, it has spurred on the development of other BTOs, such as the 3-alkyl analogue, SN30000, 2. There is general agreement that the cytotoxin(s) from BTOs arise from the one-electron reduced form of the compounds. Identifying the cytotoxic radicals, and whether they play a role in the selective killing of hypoxic tumor cells, is important for continued development of the BTO class of anticancer prodrugs. In this study, nitrone spin-traps, combined with electron spin resonance, give evidence for the formation of aryl radicals from compounds 1, 2 and 3-phenyl analogues, compounds 3 and 4, which form carbon C-centered radicals. In addition, high concentrations of DEPMPO (5-(diethoxyphosphoryl)-5-methyl-1-pyrroline N-oxide) spin-trap the •OH radical. The combination of spin-traps with high concentrations of DMSO and methanol also give evidence for the involvement of strongly oxidizing radicals. The failure to spin-trap methyl radicals with PBN (N-tert-butylphenylnitrone) on the bioreduction of compound 2, in the presence of DMSO, implies that free •OH radicals are not released from the protonated radical anions of compound 2. The spin-trapping of •OH radicals by high concentrations of DEPMPO, and the radical species arising from DMSO and methanol give both direct and indirect evidence for the scavenging of •OH radicals that are involved in an intramolecular process. Hypoxia-selective cytotoxicity is not related to the formation of aryl radicals from the BTO compounds as they are associated with high aerobic cytotoxicity.


Early diagnosis of total or partial GH (GHD) deficiency permits immediate treatment with biosynthetic GH and the achievement of a final stature close to the target one. However we frequently observe a progressive reduction in rate of growth ("vaning") during this therapy which delays attainment of adult stature compared to normal subjects. Subacute administration of GH on alternating days results in fair comparability of GH and Sm-C levels with physiological levels and it is therefore preferable to the i.m. route. Treatment should be interrupted when the growth rate is L2 cm/year or upon attainment of puberal stage P4 (female)-P5 (male). Rare side effects are the appearance of hypothyroidism, anti-GH antibodies (treatment with Met-Gh) and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (extractive GH).


The main objective of this ultrastructural study was to gain a better understanding of the involvement of brain vasculature in clearance of proteins from edematous fluid. For this purpose, both native and modified (cationized, glucosylated, and mannosylated) bovine serum albumin-gold complexes (BSA-G, catBSA-G, glucBSA-G and manBSA-G respectively) dissolved in phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) were infused (10 microliters) into mouse cerebral cortex. Samples of brain were taken at 30 min, 1 h, and 24 h post-infusion for electron microscopical examination. All BSA-G complexes were rapidly taken up and deposited inside the cytoplasm of pericytes and of various glial cells (microglia and eventually astrocytes) located in the area adjacent to the infusion site. Only glucBSA-G particles also appeared inside the nuclei of some cells. In the applied experimental conditions and at the examined time intervals, neither BSA-G nor catBSA-G and glucBSA-G complexes were transported back to the bloodstream, although they entered vascular basement membrane and were eventually internalized in the endosomes or multivesicular bodies of the endothelial cells. Only a few gold particles representing the manBSA-G complex were found inside the vascular lumen, suggesting their reverse transport to a rather small degree. The mechanism of this transport, however, remains unclear. Complexes of catBSA-G were apparently trapped by the negatively charged vascular basement membrane and remained in this structure without any further significant uptake by the endothelial cells. These observations suggest that large size and multimeric nature of albumin-gold complexes are limiting factors making it difficult to interpret the results and hampering their relevance to the clearance in vivo of native albumin from brain edematous fluid.


POD-DL-ROMs have been recently proposed as an extremely versatile strategy to build accurate and reliable reduced order models (ROMs) for nonlinear parametrized partial differential equations, combining (i) a preliminary dimensionality reduction obtained through proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) for the sake of efficiency, (ii) an autoencoder architecture that further reduces the dimensionality of the POD space to a handful of latent coordinates, and (iii) a dense neural network to learn the map that describes the dynamics of the latent coordinates as a function of the input parameters and the time variable. Within this work, we aim at justifying the outstanding approximation capabilities of POD-DL-ROMs by means of a thorough error analysis, showing how the sampling required to generate training data, the dimension of the POD space, and the complexity of the underlying neural networks, impact on the solution accuracy. This decomposition, combined with the constructive nature of the proofs, allows us to formulate practical criteria to control the relative error in the approximation of the solution field of interest, and derive general error estimates. Furthermore, we show that, from a theoretical point of view, POD-DL-ROMs outperform several deep learning-based techniques in terms of model complexity. Finally, we validate our findings by means of suitable numerical experiments, ranging from parameter-dependent operators analytically defined to several parametrized PDEs.


Communication networks makes it easier to connect internationally in today's world. Chat systems, such as WhatsApp, Twitter, Instagram and others, enable people to connect and chat over the internet. This chat system has evolved into one of the most important intermediate tools for people to exchange information and materials over the internet, thereby requiring secured socket system. In a social cultural environment, communication with a given network goal system necessitates a stress-free method of knowledge delivery. Surfing websites like "My Room" and "Facebook" has become a common occurrence among the younger generation. Nowadays, social networking websites are an important part of people's social, educational, and professional lives. The aim of Short Research Article Uchenna et al.; AJRCOS, 8(1): 77-87, 2021; Article no.AJRCOS.67890 78 this study is to create a group communication framework that uses a protected socket browser interface. This architecture was created with a server scripting language, a SQLite database model, and Python web application frameworks in mind.


This paper presents an enhanced nuisance attribute projection (NAP) method to improve the performance of speaker verification systems in mismatched train and test conditions. Unlike the conventional NAP training method that does not take any scheme to discriminate the source of nuisance, the proposed method quantitatively estimates the source of nuisance based on the statistics of given background speakers' eigenvalues. The estimated values are used for defining a discriminative weight for each of background speakers and selectively including the statistics of between-class scatter or of within-class scatter from them. Through the scheme, we intend to design a more robust projection matrix which involves less speaker-dependent or speaker-intrinsic variability while including more latent nuisance factors beyond the common within-class scatter of backgrounds. Experimental results on the recent NIST SRE evaluations demonstrate that the proposed algorithms produce consistent improvement over the previous NAP approaches.


E, pretreated with leukocyte cultures supernatant (ES), binds C1 through C1q; ES and EIgM that bind the same amount of C1 as measured in a hemolytic assay have the same uptake of 125I-C1q; ESC1q and EIgMC1q, carrying the same number of molecules of CUq per cell, have the same uptake of CUr and CUs; soluble immune compleses prevent the binding of C1 and C1q to ES. The activity of C1 bound to ES is impaired; ESC1 can react with C4 but not with C2. The C4 turnover and the C1 ING turnover by ESC1 are reduced so that ES-bound C1 is protected from destruction by C1 ING. These modifications are fully reversed when C1 is transferred from ES to EA:C1 recovers its ability to react with C2, and C1 INH. Thus the C1s activity can be modulated inside the C1 molecular complex upon binding of C1q to a lymphocyte product. In addition, the 125I-C1q uptake is proportional to the amount of IgM hemolysin used to sensitize E; it has, however, an exponential relationship to the amount of IgG or S used to sensitize E. The ratio of 125I-C1q uptake towhole C1 uptake measured in a hemolytic assay is lowerthan 2. This indicates that one molecule of IgM is sufficient to bind one molecule of C1q on E, that several molecules of IgG or S are required to bind one molecule of C1q, and that one molecule of C1q is sufficient to create a lytic site on E.


One isolate per patient was included in the study. The isolates were stored in glycerol stocks at 70°C, and re-cultured on Löwenstein-Jensen (LJ) media for 4–6 weeks at 37°C before further testing. Identification of the isolates was verified by the GenoType MTBC assay (Hain Lifescience, https://www.hain-lifescience.de/en/). DST for first(except pyrazinamide (PZA)) and second-line drugs was performed with the indirect proportion method on LJ slants using World Health Organization (WHO) recommended critical concentrations during 2008–2011, and as described previously (1). PZA was tested in MGIT960 according to the manufacturer instructions and at WHO recommended critical concentrations. From 2012 onward, all drugs, except cycloserine (CS) and para-aminosalicylic acid (PAS), were tested in MGIT960. Both CS and PAS were still tested on LJ slants at 30 mg/L, and 1 mg/L with the indirect proportion method as recommended that time.


ABSTRACT Effective strategies are needed to address the health behaviors of older patients with diabetes. One approach is health coaching, the practice of health education and health promotion through a structured partnership designed to enhance well-being and facilitate the achievement of individuals' health-related goals. The aim of this study was to describe the development of a pilot health coaching curriculum, investigate its effects on geriatric patient outcomes, and examine qualitative feedback by older patients and medical students to the curriculum. This mixed-methods study involved 29 first-year medical students randomly paired with 29 older adults with uncontrolled Type 2 diabetes. Health-related quality of life (HRQoL), stage of change movement, diabetes knowledge, locus of control, Body Mass Index (BMI), and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were assessed. Focus groups were used to evaluate patients' and medical students' experiences. Results showed significant increases in patients' HRQoL and stage of change for exercise improved significantly over time. There were no significant changes in stage of change for healthy diet and medication, diabetes knowledge, BMI, and HbA1c from baseline to end of study. Focus group data indicated positive responses by older patients and the medical students. A health coaching curriculum may improve patient outcomes and can provide medical students the skills needed to provide compassionate care for geriatric patients.


Respiratory symptoms after total laryngectomy are both frequent and troublesome. Previous studies have demonstrated the positive effect of a heat and moisture exchanger (MHE) on the respiratory system in patients after total laryngectomy. In the present study we analyze the opinion of 40 total laryngectomized patients regarding the use of the MHE-Provox Stomafilter kit. Focus has been directed to speech function parameters and pulmonary symptoms. Benefits in phonatory parameters--intelligibility, fluency, pressure and telephone intelligibility, have been over 70%. Reduction in pulmonary symptoms--coughing, sputum production, forced expectoration, stoma cleaning--have also been significant. Our results support the use of MHE Provox Stomafilter for minimizing and preventing respiratory problems and increasing the quality of the voice through the tracheoesophageal puncture system.


This thesis is about migration and culture change examined through the vehicle of collective memory, which engages with the ways Pacific Islanders think about their culture, identity and history. It examines the ways in which Rotuman identity is shaped and maintained in diaspora, what mechanisms are in place that allow them to live and operate in an apparently seamless way within the cultural milieu of an adopted country.

A detailed study of Rotuman migration to Australia has not been previously undertaken and this work is primarily directed at focusing on the total journey, using the metaphor of waypoints and endpoints, in order to make sense of the impetus to migration and the methods used by migrant Rotumans to settle and adjust to life in Australian society and to avoid cultural anomie. It focuses on the ways collective memory has been used by them to fashion their identity in diaspora. The forces for cultural change are enormous in migration but the forces of collective memory are as powerful. The interaction between these two powerful forces has provided and will continue to provide both cultural stability and economic opportunity for Rotumans overseas.


Objective: Tn antigen expression, indicative of aberrant O-glycosylation, is frequently observed in human colorectal cancer (CRC) and is proposed to play key roles in tumorigenesis and cancer progression. Tn antigen appears to produce global effects on O-glycosylation of proteins, particularly on mucins. However, the association between expression of Tn antigen and mucins in CRC remains unclear. Here, we investigated the expression profile of Tn antigen as well as MUC1, MUC2, and MUC4 in a series of human CRC tissues, with the aim of determining whether the Tn antigen has an influence on mucins in the development of CRC. Methods: Expression and localization of Tn antigen, MUC1, MUC2, and MUC4 were determined by multiplex immunohistochemical staining in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded colonic sections from Chinese patients with primary CRC. Results: The data show that 65 of 78 (83.3%) patients with CRC were found to express Tn antigen, which was most often stained in the apical cell membranes, mucin droplets, and cytoplasm of the cancer tissues. No Tn antigen was detected in normal colonic tissues. Correspondingly, there were altered patterns in the expression of mucins. Compared with normal colonic tissues that were absent of Tn staining, MUC1 and MUC4 showed an up-regulated and diffuse expression pattern in cancer tissues that expressed Tn antigen, whereas MUC2 expression was significantly decreased in Tn-positive cancer tissues. Conclusions: These results indicate that Tn antigen expression is closely associated with altered expression of mucins in human CRC. Tn antigen may promote development of CRC through affecting the associated mucins expression.


The surgery Department of the Regional Hospital was opened on 1st July, 1894 in Sarajevo, what meant the beginnings of European surgery school influence here. The School was in the second half of its activity, better known as "century of surgery". The building, fittings, equipment and staff continued their work here coping the Viennese school achievements. It was headed by the prominent European surgeon, primarius Dr Josef Preindisberger, first assistant to the great personality Dr. Billroth. In the way this institution became a referral centre for two other hospitals in Sarajevo: the Vakuf's and the Military Hospital, but for some 17 more in BH, which were built in the course of ten years. Because of the therapeutic success in the domain of the general surgery and diseases of the eye and according the annual reports, the first 50 beds became insufficient for all those who wanted the treatment. So, the Department was enlarged, in 1905 a new regional Hospital was planned, to act as clinics. The World War 1 stopped the plans. During the period of Kingdom of Yugoslavia, destroyed by war, the Surgery Department continued its work with the doctors educated to continue the work on the pre war level. As a broad pathology basis, but the need of space that time chief surgeon. Primarius Milivoje Kostić worked out in details the former plan of the new hospital building up with a base for clinics. It was accepted as a ten years project, which, to the regrets, did not come to existence to the World War 2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


In this paper we use preferred and quasi-preferred bases of generalized eigenspaces associated with the spectral radius of nonnegative matrices to analyze the existence and uniqueness of a variant of the Jordan canonical form which we call FrobeniusJordan form. It is a combination of the classical Jordan canonical form in the part associated with the eigenvalues that are different from the spectral radius, while it is like the Frobenius normal form in the part associated with the spectral radius. Based on the Frobenius-Jordan form, spectral and combinatorial properties of nonnegative matrices are discussed. In particular, we analyze the existence of nonnegative graph representations of the generalized eigenspace associated with the spectral radius.


Six articles appearing in this issue of the Bulletin of the Association of French Geographers, devoted to current demographic conditions, are introduced and placed in context. Although total world population growth is apparently beginning to slow, considerable differences remain between developed and developing countries. Different durations and intensities of mortality and fertility declines and different timing of the onset of transition have produced historically unprecedented diversity. The first article compares world population to national populations, while the second contrasts countries with high levels of growth and proportions of young people with countries having low fertility and aging populations. Population inertia and the determinants of population change are then examined. The third article analyzes the evolution of the economically active population in different countries, showing how they summarize the degree of modernization and development of a society as well as the place of women. The next article cites Quebec as an example of an individualist modern Western society with little likelihood of a sustained rise in fertility in the near future. The growing density of world population and the tendency for concentration in large urban areas are then discussed. The final article examines the effect of migration patterns in Western Europe, including influxes of refugees from all over the world and of Eastern Europeans before and after the breakup of the USSR.


The distribution of skeletal malignancies among our beagles injected with 239Pu as young adults roughly seems to follow the distribution of skeletal mass and skeletal 239Pu. These findings are similar to those we reported previously for a group of dogs given 26Ra. Although there were differences in tumor distribution between the animals given 226Ra and those given 239Pu, most of them were not statistically significant; however, the radium dogs seemed to show a greater sensitivity to bone tumor origin in the tibia, while there may have been a tendency among the plutonium dogs toward increased relative sensitivity in the scapula, lumbar vertebrae, sacrum, and ribs. In contrast, the most common site for the formation of naturally-occurring bone malignancy in the dog is the distal radius. Perhaps there were too few tumors and too few dogs to establish statistical significance. A correlation between tumor location and at least two anatomical-physiological factors in the skeleton indicated that these two factors (site-specific bone turnover rate and percent of red marrow at the site, which is correlated with vascularity) may influence the appearance of malignancies both individually and in combination. Except for the femur, there appeared to be no difference between the relative distribution of skeletal malignancies of low-level (30 Bq-2 Bq kg-1 injected) and high-level (3-122 kBq kg-1) dogs. Distribution of bone tumors between the axial and appendicular skeleton was 50% vs. 50% for 239Pu (42 and 42), but it was 39% axial vs. 61% appendicular (22 and 35, respectively) for dogs given 226Ra. This difference was not significant (p > 0.2).


A novel mist-assisted air film cooling scheme is proposed by Li and Wang (2006, "Simulation of Film Cooling Enhancement With Mist Injection," ASME J. Heat Transfer, 128, pp. 509–519) to increase the film cooling effectiveness of a gas turbine cooled vane/blade. This scheme is further investigated experimentally in this article to determine the effect of the blowing ratio. The coolant is made to pass through the film holes on a flat plate mounted in a test facility. Tiny water droplets, characterized by Rosin-Rammler mean diameter of about 36.7 μm measured with a phase Doppler particle analyzer (PDPA) system is introduced into the cooling air. The effectiveness values are evaluated by measuring the plate surface temperature with the infrared (IR) camera. The maximum percentage of the mist-assisted film cooling effectiveness is 26% more than air film cooling effectiveness when 2.1% of mist is added to the air. In addition, the coolant coverage on the plate is found to be much better with mist cooling in both the streamwise and the spanwise directions. The net enhancement due to the mist-assisted air film cooling effectiveness (Δη) decreases with the increasing values of the blowing ratio in the range of 0.55–2.58 at a density ratio of 2.2.


Between 1991 and 2000, ambient air pollution in East Germany changed to resemble West German pollution levels: The concentration of total suspended particles (TSPs) decreased on a broad scale while traffic increased. During that time, we analyzed total lung capacity (TLC) and airway resistance (R(aw)) of East and West German children. We tested children 5-7 years of age (n = 2,574) with cooperation-independent body plethysmography in repeated cross sections. We used random-effect models to determine the mutually adjusted association between lung function and short-term and chronic particle exposure and its interaction with living near a busy road. Annual averages of TSPs declined from 77 to 44 microg/m2; averages on the day of investigation declined from 133 to 30 microg/m2. Differences in lung function between East and West German children vanished during the investigation time. The association of TSPs with R(aw) and TLC was stronger in children living > 50 m away from busy roads. East German children from this group had an R(aw) 2.5% higher [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.0-5.1%] per 40-microg/m2 increase of daily TSP averages. TLC decreased by 6.2% (95% CI, 0.04-11.6%) per 40-microg/m2 increase in annual mean TSPs, and this effect was equally pronounced in East and West Germany. TSP exposure decreased on a broad scale between 1991 and 2000. Lower concentrations of TSPs were associated with better measures of lung function in 6-year-old children. For children living near busy roads, this effect was diminished.


Coal gangue is a typical waste produced during coal mining and washing. Synthesis of zeolites via coal gangue can contribute to resource recycling and environmental protection. In this study, high-silica SSZ-13 was synthesized by one-step hydrothermal synthesis from coal gangue without the traditional pretreatment methods of high-temperature roasting and alkali melting, making it more convenient and energy efficient. The synthesis time, gel silicon–aluminum ratio and silicon source were systematically studied to optimize the synthesis of SSZ-13. Experimental results indicated that the nucleation time of SSZ-13 could be shortened to 7 h, which was half the synthesis time by using chemicals. Tetrahedral aluminum was the main factor for rapid synthesis, which also accelerated the transformation of octahedral aluminum and further accelerated the synthesis of SSZ-13. The DeNOx activity of the synthesized Cu-SSZ-13 was over 90% across a broad range from 180 to 400 °C, and it remained over 85% in this temperature range even after hydrothermal treatment for 12 h. It also demonstrated good water resistance (over 95% DeNOx in the range of 200 to 400 °C) and sulfur resistance (over 95% DeNOx in the presence of 100 ppm SO2).


Simple Summary Spatially and temporally defined H2O2 signatures are essential parts of various signaling pathways. Therefore, monitoring H2O2 dynamics with high spatio–temporal resolution is significantly important to understand how this ubiquitous signaling molecule can control diverse cellular responses. In this study, we designed and characterized a Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET)-based genetically encoded H2O2 sensor that provides a powerful tool to monitor the spatio–temporal dynamics of H2O2 fluxes. We have used this sensor to monitor the flux of H2O2 in live cells under stress conditions. Using this sensor, real-time information of the H2O2 level can be obtained non-invasively and would help to understand the adverse effect of H2O2 on cell physiology and its role in redox signaling. Abstract Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) serves fundamental regulatory functions in metabolism beyond the role as damage signal. During stress conditions, the level of H2O2 increases in the cells and causes oxidative stress, which interferes with normal cell growth in plants and animals. The H2O2 also acts as a central signaling molecule and regulates numerous pathways in living cells. To better understand the generation of H2O2 in environmental responses and its role in cellular signaling, there is a need to study the flux of H2O2 at high spatio–temporal resolution in a real-time fashion. Herein, we developed a genetically encoded Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer (FRET)-based nanosensor (FLIP-H2O2) by sandwiching the regulatory domain (RD) of OxyR between two fluorescent moieties, namely ECFP and mVenus. This nanosensor was pH stable, highly selective to H2O2, and showed insensitivity to other oxidants like superoxide anions, nitric oxide, and peroxynitrite. The FLIP-H2O2 demonstrated a broad dynamic range and having a binding affinity (Kd) of 247 µM. Expression of sensor protein in living bacterial, yeast, and mammalian cells showed the localization of the sensor in the cytosol. The flux of H2O2 was measured in these live cells using the FLIP-H2O2 under stress conditions or by externally providing the ligand. Time-dependent FRET-ratio changes were recorded, which correspond to the presence of H2O2. Using this sensor, real-time information of the H2O2 level can be obtained non-invasively. Thus, this nanosensor would help to understand the adverse effect of H2O2 on cell physiology and its role in redox signaling.


Aims/hypothesis Circulating metabolites have been shown to reflect metabolic changes during the development of type 2 diabetes. In this study we examined the association of metabolite levels and pairwise metabolite ratios with insulin responses after glucose, glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and arginine stimulation. glucose, GLP-1 and arginine stimulation. We validated our results in cohorts with OGTT data ( n = 340) and epidemiological case – control studies of prevalent ( n = 4925) and incident ( n = 4277) diabetes. The data were analysed using regression models with adjustment for potential confounders. Results There were dynamic changes in metabolite levels in response to the different secretagogues. Furthermore, several fasting pairwise metabolite ratios were associated with one or multiple clamp-derived measures of insulin secretion (all p < 9.2 × 10 − 7 ). These associations were significantly stronger compared with the individual metabolite components. One of the ratios, valine to phosphatidylcholine acyl-alkyl C32:2 (PC ae C32:2), in addition showed a directionally consistent positive association with OGTT-derived measures of insulin secretion and resistance ( p ≤ 5.4 × 10 − 3 ) and prevalent type 2 diabetes (OR Val_PC ae C32:2 2.64 [ β 0.97 ± 0.09], p = 1.0 × 10 − 27 ). Furthermore, Val_PC ae C32:2 predicted incident diabetes independent of established risk factors in two epidemiological cohort studies (HR Val_PC ae C32:2 1.57 [ β 0.45 ± 0.06]; p = 1.3 × 10 − 15 ), leading to modest improve-ments in the receiver operating characteristics when added to a model containing a set of established risk factors in both cohorts (increases from 0.780 to 0.801 and from 0.862 to 0.865 respectively, when added to the model containing traditional risk factors + glucose). Conclusions/interpretation In this study we have shown that the Val_PC ae C32:2 metabolite ratio is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes and measures of insulin secretion and resistance. The observed effects were stronger than that of the individual metabolites and independent of known risk factors.


In this paper, we evaluate the readability of optically written watermarking from an image compressed by JPEG. We previously proposed an optical watermarking technique that can protect the portrait rights of real objects. It produces a watermarking pattern in the illumination light by modulating color differences. The illumination light that contains such watermarking is pro-jected onto an object. An image of the object taken by a camera contains the same watermarking, which can be extracted by image processing. Therefore, this technique can protect the portrait rights of real objects. We conducted simulations of capturing an object image illuminated by watermarked light, compressing it by JPEG, and reading embedded information from the decoded image. The simulation results showed that the accuracy in reading out embedded information decreases when captured images are compressed. However, for medium-level or low compression rates 100% accuracy can be expected by using the error correction technique.


The increasing amount of wind power generation in Thailand power systems requires stability analysis considering interaction between wind-farms and transmission systems. Dynamics introduced by dispersed wind generators at the distribution level can usually be neglected. However, large wind farms have a considerable influence to power system dynamics and must definitely be considered for analyzing power system dynamics. For this purpose, a detailed dynamic model of fully enclosed squirrel cage induction generator with gearbox (full-scale power electronics converters) of a 2.3 MW wind turbine with has been implemented using the modeling environment of the simulation software DIgSILENT PowerFactory. For investigating grid compatibility aspects of this wind generator concept, a model of a 96.6 MW wind farm, with typical layout, based on 42 wind turbines of the 2.3 MW-class has been analyzed. This paper is focusing on transient stability and fault ride through capability when the grid voltage has dropped to a very low value.


Three children presented with a complex syndrome of atypical psychotic and extremely immature behavior, obesity and overgrowth, borderline retardation, and seizures (prominent in two). Weight overgrowth exceeded height overgrowth and was stratospheric (up to 8 SD above mean). Obesity seemed related to lack of satiety. The cases fit no known condition: hypothalamic damage, Sotos' syndrome, and Prader-Willi syndrome were excluded. Empirical treatment with anticonvulsants (carbamazepine and acetazolamide) together with psychotropic agents (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and risperidone) controlled seizures, improved behavior, and stopped weight gain in each patient. We have not found this syndrome previously described. The etiology is unknown: perinatal encephalopathy could be a factor in the two patients with prominent seizures; in the third, familial major affective disorder is implicated. Medication responses suggest a low-serotonin state underlying the lack of satiety, an imbalance of serotonin and noradrenergic modulation in the hypothalamus, and epileptogenic disorders (or affective disorder responsive to anticonvulsants in one case) involving these same systems. (J Child Neurol 2000;15:518-528).


Objectives: Compare all-cause mortality following nonsurgical ICU admission for opioid users with nonusers. Design: Nationwide register-based cohort study. Setting: All 43 ICUs in Denmark (7,028,668 citizens cumulatively during the study period). The Danish National Health Service provides universal healthcare, guaranteeing equal access to healthcare along with partial reimbursement for prescribed drugs. Patients: All 118,388 nonsurgical patients admitted to an ICU from 2005 to 2014. Intervention: Patients were categorized according to timing of last redeemed opioid prescription before admission: current user (prior 0–30 d), recent user (prior 31–365 d), former user (prior 365+ d), or nonuser (no prescription since 1994). Measurements: All-cause mortality 0–30 days and 31–365 days following ICU admission was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier method. Crude and adjusted hazard ratios with 95% CIs were computed using Cox regression, comparing users with nonusers. Adjusted models included age, gender, socioeconomic factors, comedications, and comorbidity. Main Results: Fifteen percent of the patients were current opioid users, 15% recent users, 30% former users, and 40% nonusers. Zero- to 30-day mortality was 35% for current users, 29% for recent users, 24% for former users, and 21% for nonusers. After confounder adjustment, current users remained at elevated risk during the first 30 days following ICU admission (hazard ratio, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.15–1.24). No association remained for recent or former users. A similar pattern was evident for 31–365-day all-cause mortality: 24% for current users, 19% for recent users, 13% for former users, and 10% for nonusers. During 31–365 days of follow-up, both current users and recent users remained at elevated risk of mortality after adjustment (hazard ratio, 1.47; 95% CI, 1.39–1.55 and hazard ratio, 1.20; 95% CI, 1.13–1.27, respectively). Conclusions: Current opioid users experience increased mortality during the first year following ICU admission.


A reaction of an acid chloride with a diamine yielded a diamide. m-Toluic acid was chlorinated to m-toluoyl chloride and subsequently reacted with 4-methyl-o-phenylenediamine in pyridine to obtain 3-methyl-N-[2-(3-methylbenzamido)phenylbenzamide (I). 2-(3-Methylphenyl)-1H-benzimidazole (II) has been obtained upon reacting o-phenylenediamine with m-toluic acid in polyphosphoric acid and toluene. The compounds have been characterized by IR, NMR, microanalyses and GC-MS. The crystal structures of the compounds have been discussed. DFT calculations of the frontier orbitals of the precursor compounds have been carried out to ascertain the groups that contribute to the HOMO and LUMO, and to study their contribution to the reactivity in the formation of the diamides and benzimidazoles. The synthesis of the amide from a diamine was seen to be favoured in the presence of a good leaving group attached to the carbonyl as in the case of acid chloride. However, the synthesis of benzimidazoles was found to be favoured in the presence of an excess of a protonating agent and high temperature.


Abstract: This article argues that in development studies, power is one of the most important, but at the same time most badly theorized topics. In most of the literature a `property-notion? of power is used assuming that people or groups have more or less fixed interests and levels of power. In this article a force field approach towards power is proposed that conceives of power as `relational? and the result of the working of multiple, intertwined institutions. Examples from agrarian communities in Mexico and Peru are given to show how overlapping institutions and the resulting force fields determine local power relations. Special attention is paid to the methodological implications of such an approach for studies on natural resource management. Attention is paid to: following the flow of action, paying attention to ideas and reflective talk and the quantification of specific sets of data on natural resources.


Short memory models contaminated by level shifts have similar long-memory features as fractionally integrated processes. This makes hard to verify whether the true data generating process is a pure fractionally integrated process when employing standard estimation methods based on the autocorrelation function or the periodogram. In this paper, we propose a robust testing procedure, based on an encompassing parametric specification that allows to disentangle the level shifts from the fractionally integrated component. The estimation is carried out on the basis of a state-space methodology and it leads to a robust estimate of the fractional integration parameter also in presence of level shifts. Once the memory parameter is correctly estimated, we use the KPSS test for presence of level shift. The Monte Carlo simulations show how this approach produces unbiased estimates of the memory parameter when shifts in the mean, or other slowly varying trends, are present in the data. Therefore, the subsequent robust version of the KPSS test for the presence of level shifts has proper size and by far the highest power compared to other existing tests. Finally, we illustrate the usefulness of the proposed approach on financial data, such as daily bipower variation and turnover.


The main theme of this research is to determine the ramification of investment on the human that is health and education on economic activities in Pakistan. The nature of fig urative data is time series that is used for statistical measures which is spanning from 1971 to 2017. The econometric technique used to gauge the linkages between the above variable is the ARDL approach. Another technique called the Granger Causality has been employed to determine the regulation of effect in variables under consideration. While two diagnostic measures were used. The results depict that better health has implications on GDP while there exists convergence from short period to longer span. While empirical results show that economic growth gets more affected by education in a shorter period as compared to a longer period. RAMSEY RESET test revealed that this model was free of any misspecification and recursive measure also confirmed the same for this study.


Fanconi anemia (FA) is an inherited cancer-susceptibility disorder, characterized by genomic instability, hypersensitivity to DNA cross-linking agents, and a prolonged G2 phase of the cell cycle. We observed a marked dose-dependent accumulation of FA cells in the G2 compartment after treatment with 4,5',8-trimethylpsoralen (Me(3)Pso) in combination with 365 nm irradiation. Using bivariate DNA distribution methodology, we determined the proportion of replicating and arresting S-phase cells and observed that, whereas normal cells arrested DNA replication in the presence of Me(3)Pso cross-links and monoadducts, FA lymphoblasts failed to arrest DNA synthesis. Taken together, the above data suggest that, in response to damage induced by DNA cross-linking agents, the S-phase checkpoint is inefficient in FA cells. This would lead to accumulation of secondary lesions, such as single- and double-strand breaks and gaps. The prolonged time in G2 phase seen in FA cells therefore exists in order to allow the cells to remove lesions which accumulated during the preceding abnormal S phase.


Sera from children bearing embryonal tumors and from their parents were screened for the presence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) and its DNA by means of serology and molecular hybridization, respectively. Sera from tumor-bearing children and their parents both contain HBV or its DNA at average 5 times more frequently than the healthy donors or patients with non-oncological diseases. It is suggested that the presence of HBV or its DNA is caused not solely by infection during cure but also by vertical transmission from parents. The presence of HBV or its DNA might be treated as a risk factor increasing the development of embryonal tumors.


The essential resilience capabilities – monitoring, responding, learning and anticipating - have all in common the need for relevant signals and the ability to transform them into action. However, this transformation is often lacking as seen from accident analyses revealing disturbances that are either not noted or ignored in the process leading up to the undesired result. This paper proposes to focus on signals occurring because of movements from and to system boundaries and use them for team reflection. The reflection is expected to make implicit knowledge explicit, being a first step of the needed transformation to action. An observational study is designed at a rail control post where rail signal operators reflect at the end of their shift. They reflect on the punctuality boundary through an on-line application, called the Resiliencer-punctuality. The application presents delay-development of trains, during a shift, with respect to a previous chosen period. Furthermore it provides search instruments to find specific trains of interest stimulating the reflection. A verbal analysis method is used to analyze the reflection discussion and to show a relation to resilience through learning and anticipating intentions. In addition we seek for repetitive elements in different cases to prove the learning potential. The observation designed should support the hypothesis that team reflection, on movements towards boundaries, increases resilience of the rail socio-technical system


Rhabdomyosarcoma is a typical tumor of childhood, characterized by a high grade of malignancy, local invasiveness and a marked propensity to metastasize, but also a generally good response to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Multimodal therapy is essential to cure rhabdomyosarcoma patients, but different uses of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and their intensity, need to be selected and modulated to different patient risk groups. This article attempts to give an account of the current treatment options, the open and debated issues and the potential novel strategies for the near future.


This paper proposes a low power SRAM based on five transistor SRAM cell. Proposed SRAM uses novel word-line decoding such that, during read/write operation, only selected cell connected to bit-line whereas, in conventional SRAM (CV-SRAM), all cells in selected row connected to their bit-lines, which in turn develops differential voltages across all bit-lines, and this makes energy consumption on unselected bit-lines. In proposed SRAM memory array divided into two halves and this causes data-line capacitance to reduce. Also proposed SRAM uses one bit-line and thus has lower bit-line leakage compared to CV-SRAM. Furthermore, the proposed SRAM incurs no area overhead, and has comparable read/write performance versus the CV-SRAM. Simulation results in standard 0.25µm CMOS technology shows in worst case proposed SRAM has 80% smaller dynamic energy consumption in each cycle compared to CV-SRAM. Besides, energy consumption in each cycle of proposed SRAM and CV-SRAM investigated analytically, the results of which are in good agreement with the simulation results.


•  Fifteen poplar cDNA encoding fasciclin-like arabinogalactan proteins (PopFLAs) were finely characterized, whereas the presence of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs) was globally assessed during wood formation. •  PopFLAs transcript accumulation was analysed through EST distribution in cDNA libraries, semi-quantitative RT-PCR, microarray experiment and Northern blot analysis. Similarly, AGPs contents were globally quantified by rocket electrophoresis. AGPs accumulation was further examined by Western blotting and immunocytolocalization. •  Ten PopFLAs were specifically expressed in tension wood (TW) and not expressed in the cambial zone. Rocket electrophoresis revealed important AGPs accumulation in TW xylem. An anti-AGPs specific antibody recognized two proteins preferentially present in the cell wall-bound fraction from TW. Immunocytochemistry revealed a strong labelling close to the inner part of the G-layer of TW fibres. •  PopFLAs are expressed in xylem and many are up-regulated in TW. It is suggested that some PopFLAs accumulating at the inner side of the G-layer may have a specific function in the building of this layer. PopFLAs expression may therefore be linked to the specific mechanical properties of TW.


The main aim of the project dealt with the concept of speed control of a three-phase induction motor with energy saving. To do so, a VFD (Variable Frequency Drive) is used for controlling the speed of a three-phase induction motor with variable load attached to the motor. It certainly leads to the best performance and high efficiency of the induction motor. In recent years, a major issue that is threatening Tamil Nadu for the past two years is the shortage of electricity. In such case, the unwanted energy should be saved. As a result, the implementation of VFD helps in saving a large amount of energy by reducing the sudden jerks happening at the starting of the motor. An experimental setup is designed using VFD & without VFD and the outcomes are displayed to prove the concept of energy saving.


X-ray and neutron reflection studies, the latter in conjunction with contrast variation, have been combined to study the interaction of calf thymus DNA (ctDNA) with monolayers of distearoylphosphatidylcholine (DSPC) in the presence of 20 mM Ca2+ ions, at the air–liquid interface as a function of surface pressure (10, 20, 30 and 40 mN m−1). Analysis of the X-ray and neutron reflection data showed that, regardless of the surface pressure of the monolayer, a layer of ctDNA was present below the DSPC lipid head groups and that this ctDNA-containing layer (thickness ∼12.5 to 15 A) was separated from the DSPC head groups by a layer of water of ∼9 A thickness. The thickness of the ctDNA-containing layer was thinner than that reported for monolayers of cationic lipid at the air–water interface (18–25 A) although in these monolayers no water layer separating the lipid head groups from the layer containing ctDNA has been reported. At all surface pressures the amount of ctDNA present in the layer was in the range 30–40% by volume. As no significant re-arrangement of the DSPC film was required to accommodate the presence of the ctDNA, this suggests that the distribution of charges in the lipid film matches well the charge spacing of ctDNA. Brewster angle microscopy measurements of DSPC on water in the absence of Ca2+ showed the presence of a continuous film containing small, regular shaped domains at all four surface pressures examined. When Ca2+ ions were present in the sub-phase, although the film was still continuous, the domains comprising the film were more irregular in appearance while the presence of Ca2+ ions and ctDNA resulted in the domains becoming smaller and more regularly packed on the surface.


Abstract This work is about the effect of fine aggregate properties on the physicomechanical characteristics of hardened mortars. The results indicated that the increase in grain-size of fine aggregate increases the bulk density of hardened mortars. The strength of mortars including limestone fine aggregate is higher than that of the silica-sand. Regardless of the aggregate origin, the strength of the mortars with well-graded fine aggregate for all grain-size is greater than of with uniform fine aggregate. This indicates that grading of fine aggregate increases the strength, while uniformity decreases it. The strength of mortars with well-graded fine aggregate increases as the grain-size increases. Regardless of the aggregate origin, the strength of mortars with uniform fine aggregate increases with increasing grain-size until the grain-size range of 425-1000 µm, but after this range it decreases with increasing grain-size. The thermal conductivity increases with the increase in the grain-size. Notedly, the relationship between thermal conductivity and maximum grain-size of well-graded fine aggregate has a very strong positive correlation. Further, the thermal conductivity value for mortars formed with uniform fine limestone aggregate is minimum at the grain-size range of 425-1000 µm, while it has greatest values close together from this grain-size range


Granular association rules reveal patterns hidden in many-to-many relationships which are common in relational databases. In recommender systems, these rules are appropriate for cold-start recommendation, where a customer or a product has just entered the system. An example of such rules might be "40% men like at least 30% kinds of alcohol; 45% customers are men and 6% products are alcohol." Mining such rules is a challenging problem due to pattern explosion. In this paper, we build a new type of parametric rough sets on two universes and propose an efficient rule mining algorithm based on the new model. Specifically, the model is deliberately defined such that the parameter corresponds to one threshold of rules. The algorithm benefits from the lower approximation operator in the new model. Experiments on two real-world data sets show that the new algorithm is significantly faster than an existing algorithm, and the performance of recommender systems is stable.


This edition provides a full and representative selection of all early Greek lyric (omitting Pindar, who requires his own volume), elegiac and iambic poetry. First published in 1967 in the 'red Macmillan' series, it was reprinted by BCP in 1982 with addenda to the bibliography and an appendix reproducing a text of three substantial 'new' papyrus fragments by Archilochus, Stesichorus and Alcaeus. The extensive commentary gives assistance with matters of dialect and language, Homeric and Hesiodic comparisons, interpretation, content and metre. The book serves as an introduction to the poetics of the Greek archaic period - from the mid-seventh to the early fifth century BC - the 'bridge' between Homeric epic and Attic tragedy.


Abstract: This paper presents a dynamic workspace control method of underwater manipulator considering a floating ROV (Remotely Operated vehicle) motion caused by sea wave. This method is necessary for the underwater work required linear motion control of a manipulator's end-effector mounted on a floating ROV in undersea. In the proposed method, the motion of ROV is modeled as nonlinear first-order differential equation excluded dynamic elements. For online manipulator control achievement, we develop the position tracking method based on sensor data and EKF (Extended Kalman Filter) and the input velocity compensation method. The dynamic workspace control method is established by applying these methods to differential inverse kinematics solution. For verification of the proposed method, experimental data based test of ROV position tracking and simulation of the proposed control method are performed, which is based on the specification of the KORDI deep-sea ROV Hemire.


Accurate size measurements of pulmonary nodules on CT are a prerequisite for accurate nodule management, given that all current management guidelines are based on nodule size (1-4). Nodule size is most commonly measured manually using electronical calipers, with the long- and perpendicular short-axis being measured on two-dimensional images (5). As a management criterion alternative to size, three-dimensional nodule volume has been discussed in the literature (6) and has also received mention in recent management guidelines for incidental nodules (1,3).


Differential renal function studies were performed according to the Stamey technique on 271 patients in a five-year period. The complications were assigned one of three grades. Subjective complaints of less than 24 hours' duration, grade 1, occurred in 21%. Grade 2 complications, subjective complaints of over 24 hours' duration, occurred in 18%. Grade 3 complications which included urinary tract infection, vesical hemorrhage, oliguria, cardiac decompensation, and myocardial infarction occurred in 13 patients, or 5%. There was no significant difference in the rate of complications in relation to size of catheter, anesthesia, the concentration of urea, or the final diagnosis. Fewer complications were associated with the use of flexible polyethylene ureteral catheters than with the other types. Despite the complications, differential renal function studies provide informaton of critical importance in the diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of patients with renovascular hypertension.


Noninvasive imaging of cardiac electrophysiology is still a major goal despite all recent technical innovations. This review gives an overview about the historical background, recent developments and possible future applications of noninvasive imaging of cardiac electrophysiology.


'I'm your half-brother and I'm here to stay. This is my home.' With these words Wilmot Abraham sought refuge with his white relations. Wilmot was the best-known Aboriginal in the Warrnambool district of Victoria, a man who maintained the old way of life long after his people were dispossessed. Local farmers spoke of him as 'the last of his tribe'. Few were aware that his father had been a white lad working as a boundary rider on the Western District frontier; and only the Aboriginal community knew that Wilmot had barely escaped with his life from the violent seizure of his mother's people's country. In Untold Stories, Jan Critchett presents a series of moving Aboriginal biographies from the Western District of Victoria, drawing both on the oral tradition of local Koori Elders and on official records. Wilmot's is one of the many untold stories that appear here for the first time. Untold Stories opens our eyes to a number of remarkable individuals who managed to make a life for themselves in the interstices of the society that had dispossessed them. Their long-running battle to maintain their culture and their connection to country, in the face of a regime that seemed bent on denying their humanity, is both humbling and inspiring.


While mortgage rates reached historic lows during 2012, the spread between primary and secondary rates rose to very high levels. This trend reflected a number of factors that potentially affected mortgage originator costs and profits and restrained the pass-through from lower secondary rates to borrowers' funding costs. This article describes the mortgage origination and securitization process and the way in which originator profits are determined. The authors calculate a series of originator profits and unmeasured costs (OPUCs) for the period 1994 to 2012, and show that these OPUCs increased significantly between 2008 and 2012. They also evaluate the extent to which some commonly cited factors, such as changes in loan putback risk, mortgage servicing rights values, and pipeline hedging costs contributed to the rise in OPUCs. Although some costs of mortgage origination may have risen in recent years, a large component of the rise in OPUCs remains unexplained, pointing to increased profitability of originations. The authors conclude by discussing possible drivers of the rise in profitability, such as capacity constraints and originators' pricing power resulting from borrowers' switching costs.


It is pertinent for the general biologist to have a readily available bibliography covering the effects of ionizing radiation. This textbook embraces the rather expansive area of the effects produced by ionizing radiations (x-rays, γ-rays, beta particles, neutrons, etc) at some time following exposure. It reviews a major portion of the pertinent literature published during 1965 and 1966. The author limits his review to somatic effects (ie, exclusive of perturbations visited upon germ plasm). The text is divided into two major parts: part 1 reviews late effects in whole organisms, particularly mammals, and part 2 reviews late effects in tissues, cells, and macromolecules. A third part presents a brief comparison of changes in aging as compared with some effects of ionizing radiation. The strongest point of this book is its bibliography. Those who have not followed this field closely will find little difficulty in tracing the important events in


Use of fire has been recognized for a long time as a key innovation in the development of human groups, as a multisource technological improvement. Fuel wastes recovered from archeological sites are the direct evidence of the fire use in society economies of the past. In the process of production and use of fire, diverse parameters exist that intervene and influence in its development. In order to obtain data relative to vegetal composition from early to late Holocene and its exploitation by societies characterized by high residential mobility, we carried on an charcoal and wood analysis in archeological sites Cerro Casa de Piedra 7 (10,690 ± 120-3400 BP) and Cerro Casa de Piedra 5 (6780 ± 110-2805 ± 105 BP) (province of Santa Cruz, Argentina). The results obtained evidence a drastic reduction of taxa used as fuel among occupations corresponding to early Holocene and late Holocene. Throughout all the levels we verified the intense use of tree species for combustion, while bushes were also collected but in much lower overall percentages. Nothofagus pumilio is the species with the highest representation. These results allowed to identify acting modes that refer to acquisition strategies of woody material oriented toward on the collection of great caliber wood.


Results of viscosity and Raman scattering measurements on trehalose aqueous solutions are presented. They provide evidence that the trehalose-water system shows a very fragile character, i.e. a great structural sensitivity to temperature and concentration changes. In addition, to get some insight into the effects of trehalose on the hydrogen-bond network of water, we investigate the intramolecular O-H stretching mode, which is particularly sensitive to environmental modifications. For the O-H stretching region analysis, a decomposition of the isotropic spectra into an `open' and a `closed' contribution has been employed. The procedure suggests that trehalose promotes a destructuring effect on the tetrahedral H-bond network of pure water, imposing on adjacent water molecules positions and orientations incompatible with the crystallization process.