The next big thing in smartphone development will be under-display cameras. Conventional color cameras, implemented under-display, starting to appear for consumer products. For secure face-authentication, additional information in the form of the third dimension is required. The time-of-flight (ToF) measurement principle is based on measuring the phase and consequently the delay of emitted and reflected light pulses. Unwanted reflections of the display hinder the implementation of under-display ToF cameras. These reflections introduce errors and circumvent the processing of the depth information. In this paper, we present novel measurement principles enabling under-display Time-of-Flight imaging. In contrast to traditional continuous wave ToF imaging, our measurement principles remove the the display introduced stray-light reflection from the captured images. We present two independent approaches. One is based on the combination of continuous wave measurement with coded modulation. The second method is based on measurements with two modulation frequencies. These methods require a non-traditional approach for depth and amplitude calculation. Furthermore, design considerations are presented, such as calibration and temperature dependency. Our extensive evaluation considers the reflection suppression performance and the fidelity of the captured depth data. The results reveal the suppression of the stray-light by more than 80%. We evaluate our methods with a detailed description of the advantages and disadvantages of the different methods. This work is a starting point for the implementation of under-display ToF imaging.


In previous articles, 1 I have described gram-positive diplococci, isolated in anaerobic cultures from the blood of measles and rubella patients. The measles diplococcus is small and round; the rubella diplococcus is larger, elongated, with pointed ends and a capsule. Diplococci similar to those isolated from the blood were also cultivated from the throat, nose, eye and ear of measles patients, and from the throat of rubella patients. Examination of smears made early in these diseases from the tonsils and anterior pillars of the fauces has been found to show large numbers of diplococci corresponding morphologically to those found in the cultures. These diplococci begin to disappear with the abatement of the throat infection. The tonsils or anterior pillars of the fauces, the part most inflamed, is swabbed with a sterile swab, the material smeared rather thickly on a clean glass slide, fixed with heat, stained a few seconds with


Namibia has been implementing the national Standardized Achievement Tests (SATs) since 2009. These tests (SATs) as a national assessment are aimed at overcoming constraints in the assessment system, especially at the primary school level as well as to improve the quality of education through learner assessment. The Namibian SATs are low-stakes in nature; hence they are not used for promotional purposes but rather to provide diagnostic feedback to schools, decision makers and other education stakeholders. Six years down the line, the SATs results have been showing improvement in learner performance at primary school level. A perception survey conducted amongst primary school teachers in Namibia (N =130) revealed a largely positive perception about SATs with majority of respondents agreeing with the relevance of this assessment and its continuation in the education system. The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of Namibian SATs as well as to highlight teachers' perceptions about this national assessment.


Objective To investigate the imaging and clinical risk factors related to the postoperative recurrence of sacrococcygeal chordoma. Methods 63 patients of sacrococcygeal chordoma proved by operation and pathology in our hospital from January 2009 to December 2019 were retrospectively analyzed in the related factors of imaging manifestations, pathological type, and extent of surgical resection. The recurrence of sacrococcygeal chordoma was followed up. Univariate Kaplan-Meier survival analysis and multivariate Cox regression analysis were used to analyze the related factors of recurrence. Results On plain radiographs and CT scans, chordoma primarily manifested as osteolytic bone loss and uneven soft tissue mass, with typical calcification or ossification (56.1 percent). Numerous chunk nodules with clearly high signal levels and short signal intervals were seen as the "pebble" in MRI characteristics on T2WI. The follow-up period ranged from 20 to 130 months, with a median time of 47.5 months. There were 14 recurrences (22. 2%) during the follow-up period. 13 patients with recurrence underwent surgery again, and 5 of them recurred after surgery (recurrence time range 3 to 97 months, median 38. 5 months). 6 (42.8%), 8 (57. 1%), and 13 (92. 9%) of the 14 patients with recurrence recurred within 2, 3, and 5 years after surgery, respectively. Univariate Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that occurred with local infiltration, Low differentiated chordoma, partial resection had a high postoperative recurrence rate, and all differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). Multi-factor Cox regression analysis showed whether local infiltration occurred and the degree of tumor resection were independent risk factors for tumor recurrence. Conclusion Sacrococcygeal chordoma has a high tendency of recurrence, and the likelihood of recurrence is higher in tumor occurred with local infiltration, non-complete tumor resection and low differentiated chordoma, which can be considered to shorten the review cycle and complete tumor resection as much as possible during surgery.


Abstract In this study, we determined the ability of recombinant human liver prolidase to hydrolyze nerve agents in vitro and its ability to afford protection in vivo in mice. Using adenovirus containing the human liver prolidase gene, the enzyme was over expressed by 200- to 300-fold in mouse liver and purified to homogeneity by affinity and gel filtration chromatography. The purified enzyme hydrolyzed sarin, cyclosarin and soman with varying rates of hydrolysis. The most efficient hydrolysis was with sarin, followed by soman and by cyclosarin {apparent kcat/Km [(1.9 ± 0.3), (1.7 ± 0.2), and (0.45 ± 0.04)] × 105 M−1 min−1, respectively}; VX and tabun were not hydrolyzed by the recombinant enzyme. The enzyme hydrolyzed P (+) isomers faster than the P (−) isomers. The ability of recombinant human liver prolidase to afford 24 hour survival against a cumulative dose of 2 × LD50 of each nerve agent was investigated in mice. Compared to mice injected with a control virus, mice injected with the prolidase expressing virus contained (29 ± 7)-fold higher levels of the enzyme in their blood on day 5. Challenging these mice with two consecutive 1 × LD50 doses of sarin, cyclosarin, and soman resulted in the death of all animals within 5 to 8 min from nerve agent toxicity. In contrast, mice injected with the adenovirus expressing mouse butyrylcholinesterase, an enzyme which is known to afford protection in vivo, survived multiple 1 × LD50 challenges of these nerve agents and displayed no signs of toxicity. These results suggest that, while prolidase can hydrolyze certain G-type nerve agents in vitro, the enzyme does not offer 24 hour protection against a cumulative dose of 2 × LD50 of G-agents in mice in vivo.


We reported in this letter a dynamic switch of broad-band microwave in microstrip line based on controllable hollow cathode discharge plasma. The measured transmission efficiency of the plasma switch was 10-30% for 1-9 GHz microwave comparing with the full stripline. The transmittance signal responded to the discharge current simultaneously. It was demonstrated that the hollow cathode discharge plasma can perform the function of dynamic switch in the microstrip line.


Abstract. Naturally and anthropogenically emitted aerosols, which are determined by their physical and chemical properties, have an impact on both air quality and the radiative properties of the earth. An important source of atmospheric particulate matter (PM) in South Africa is household combustion for space heating and cooking, which predominantly occurs in low-income urban settlements. The aim of this study was to conduct a detailed size-resolved assessment of chemical characteristics of aerosols associated with household combustion through the collection of particulates in low-income urban settlements in South Africa in order to quantify the extent of the impacts of atmospheric pollution within these settlements. Outdoor (ambient) and indoor aerosols in different size fractions were collected during summer and winter in four low-income urban settlements located in the north-eastern interior on the South African Highveld. The mass concentration and chemical composition was determined for three size fractions, namely, PM1, PM2.5 and PM2.5-10. The highest concentrations of particulates were measured indoors with the highest mass concentration determined in the indoor PM2.5-10 (coarse) size fraction. However, the highest mass concentrations were determined in PM1 in all outdoor aerosol samples collected during winter and summer, as well as in indoor samples collected during summer. Significantly higher concentrations were determined for SO4−2 in outdoor and indoor particulates compared to other ionic species, with NH4+ and NO3− being the second most abundant. SO4−2 and NH4+ almost exclusively occurred in the PM1 size fraction, while NO3− was the major constituent in the larger size fractions. The highest SO4−2 levels were recorded for the winter and summer outdoor campaigns conducted at Zamdela, while NO3− and NH4+ concentrations were higher during the winter outdoor campaign. The combined concentrations of trace elements were higher for indoor particulates compared to outdoor aerosols, while the total trace element concentrations in PM1 were substantially higher than levels thereof in the two larger size fractions of particulates collected during all sampling campaigns. No distinct seasonal trend was observed for the concentrations of trace elements. Na, Ca and Cr had the highest concentrations in particulates collected during outdoor and indoor sampling campaigns. Ni concentrations in outdoor and indoor aerosols exceeded the annual average European standard PM1 collected during all sampling campaigns in low-income urban settlements had the highest organic- and elemental carbon (OC and EC) concentrations. The highest OC and EC levels were determined in PM1 collected during the winter indoor campaign. OC and EC concentrations were highest during winter, which can be attributed to changes in meteorological patterns and increased household combustion during winter. Low OC / EC ratios determined for particulates collected in low-income urban settlements are indicative of OC and EC being mainly associated with local sources of these species. OC concentrations determined in this study were an order of magnitude lower than OC concentrations determined for ambient aerosols collected in the north-eastern interior of South Africa, while similar EC levels were measured. According to estimated dust concentrations, it was indicated that dust is the major constituent in all size ranges of particulates collected in this study, while trace elements were the second most abundant. However, trace elements made the highest contribution to indoor PM1 and PM1-2.5 mass. Mass concentrations and chemical concentrations determined for aerosols collected in low-income settlements reflects the regional impacts of anthropogenic sources in the north-eastern interior of South Africa, as well as the influence of local sources.


This article assesses the costs, benefits, and acceptance of alternative control practices of Gastro-Intestinal Nematodes (GIN) for a typical organic dairy goat farm in France. A participatory Structured-DecisionMaking (SDM) framework was used to guide focus group discussions, with an economic farm model and the Rogers and planned behavior theories used within the SDM framework. The study showed that the implementation of alternative GIN control practices can be economically profitable. An increased gross margin of €41 per dairy goat was calculated, which was mainly due to a decrease in the milk withdrawal 1 Quiédeville et al.: Effects of Alternative Nematode Control Practices Published by eGrove, 2020 cost. The simplicity to use or implement the alternative practices and the experience level of the farmers seem to play a positive role in adoption of the alternative practices consisting of more targeted and strategic treatments. The novel information presented in this article contributes towards facilitating the adoption of suitable alternative approaches for parasite control.


Thirty-six extremely low birth weight (less than 1000 g birth weight) children received neurodevelopmental testing in infancy (mean age = 19.1 months), and again in early childhood (mean age = 46.5 months). Children were categorized into a high-risk group (n = 20) if bronchopulmonary dysplasia and/or Grades III or IV intracranial hemorrhage were present or a low-risk group (n = 16) if neither were present. Using standardized testing and neuromotor examination, 24 (67%) of 36 children showed normal infant development. Only 11 (31%) of 36 children (P less than .005) had normal development upon reassessment in early childhood. A decline in developmental status occurred in both groups. This indicates that for the extremely low birth weight population, normal infant development is poorly predictive of continued normal development. With or without major complications, extremely low birth weight places children at substantial risk for ongoing and emerging developmental problems with age.


This paper describes a novel approach for visual speech recognition. The shape of the mouth is modelled by an active shape model which is derived from the statistics of a training set and used to locate, track and parameterise the speaker's lip movements. The extracted parameters representing the lip shape are modelled as continuous probability distributions and their temporal dependencies are modelled by hidden Markov models. We present recognition tests performed on a database of a broad variety of speakers and illumination conditions. The system achieved an accuracy of 85.42% for a speaker independent recognition task of the first four digits using lip shape information only.


Three different types of polyols—poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), poly(propylene glycol) (PPG), and poly(tetramethylene glycol)—with different molecular weights (Mn) were incorporated into the prepolymer structure, and the effects were examined with regard to the morphology and performance of holographic polymer dispersed liquid crystal. Among them, PEG showing the lowest glass transition temperature (Tg) exhibited the lowest threshold voltage (Vth), lowest operating voltage (Vop), and lowest diffraction efficiency with slow grating formation owing to its high viscosity of prepolymer mixture. The Tg decreased with increasing Mn because of the decreased crosslink density and hydrogen bonding, which reduced the anchoring strength, Vth and Vop. PPG400 gave Vth and Vop of approximately 7 and 24 V, respectively, with a contrast ratio of approximately 12. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2012


This study aims to analyze the transformation of the millennium development goals (MDGs) into social development goals (SDGs) in manufacturing companies in Banten Province. The specific objectives of this study are to analyze the relationship: 1) Environmental transformation with sustainable practices (E-MDGs); 2) Social transformation with sustainable practices (S-MDGs); 3) Transformation of governance with sustainable practices (G-MDGs); 4) Overall ESG transformation with existing manufacturing company sustainability practices in Banten Province and provides a framework for understanding sustainable transformation processes (MDGs-SDGs). The data analysis technique used in this research is descriptive and inferential non-parametric statistics using SPSS v 25 and SEM-AMOS v25 analysis tools. The SDGs analysis was carried out using 14 criteria, and the MDGs 8 criteria. Primary data was obtained by interviewing and distributing questionnaires to 103 respondents via a Google form. The results of this study show that manufacturing companies in Banten Province have already implemented sustainability programs, most of which are still in line with the MDGs.
Keywords: transformation, environment, social, governance, sustainability


Body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) is characterised by a distressing preoccupation with perceived defects or flaws in one's appearance. BDD most typically emerges in adolescence (Gunstad & Phillips, 2003; Phillips, Menard & Fay, 2006) and is estimated to affect 2.2% of the UK adolescent population (Veale, Gledhill, Christodoulou, & Hodsoll 2016). There is a dearth of research into children's and young people's (CYP's) lived experiences of BDD, particularly in relation to educational contexts (Mataix-Cols et al., 2015).

Using Constructivist Grounded Theory methodology (Charmaz, 2014), interview data from 10 young people (YP) between the ages of 16 and 25 were analysed.

The emergent theory that, 'Appearance-based identity becomes the focus of adolescent identity formation in young people's experiences of BDD, informed by relational experiences of shame and low self-worth' encompassed four key themes, namely: (1) Appearance-based identity is informed by and informs relationships in young people's experiences of BDD; (2) Characteristics of BDD are expressions of shame and low self-worth; (3) Shame-based educational experiences trigger and perpetuate BDD; and (4) Lack of understanding of BDD deepens shame and leads to stagnation of identity formation. These findings informed the development of a psychological model of BDD in young people: The Shame-Identity Model of BDD in Young People.

Psychoanalytic conceptualisations, both of shame and of BDD, in addition to the literature on adolescent identity development, are drawn upon in the Discussion. Implications for Educational Psychology (EP) practice and the practice of other educational professionals are discussed.


In this paper, we propose a methodology for partitioning and mapping computational intensive applications in reconfigurable hardware blocks of different granularity. A generic hybrid reconfigurable architecture is considered so as the methodology can be applicable to a large number of heterogeneous reconfigurable platforms. The methodology mainly consists of two stages, the analysis and the mapping of the application onto fine and coarse-grain hardware resources. A prototype framework consisting of analysis, partitioning and mapping tools has been also developed. For the coarse-grain reconfigurable hardware, we use our previously developed high-performance coarse-grain datapath. In this work, the methodology is validated using two real-world applications, an OFDM transmitter and a JPEG encoder. In the case of the OFDM transmitter, a maximum clock cycle decrease of 82 % relative to the ones in an all fine-grain mapping solution is achieved. The corresponding performance improvement for the JPEG is 43 %.


Phosphate solubilising bacteria possess the ability to solubilise insoluble phosphate to soluble forms enhancing the nutrient status of the soil. This process not only compensates increasing cost of phosphatic fertilisers but also minimises the negative environmental impacts associated with the application of inorganic fertilisers. Phosphate solubilising bacteria (PSB) were screened based on the size of a halo/ clear zone around the colony (NBRIP agar plate assay) and by measuring solubilise phosphorous content (colorimetric method). The aim of this work was to assess the comparative reliability of quantitative and qualitative methods of isolation of phosphate solubilising bacteria. Bacterial strains which showed very poor performance in qualitative method were proven to be good phosphates solubilisers in quantitative method and vice versa. Therefore no positive relationship among the values obtained from qualitative and quantitative methods could be observed. Furthermore qualitative method did not reflect the real ability of the phosphate solubilising bacteria to solubilise insoluble phosphates. From the results of the present study, it can be concluded that isolation of efficient phosphate solubilising bacteria through quantitative method could give better results than that of qualitative method.Keywords: clear zone, insoluble phosphates, phosphate solubilising bacteria


PT. X is a service company that focus on logistic and transportation. Fleet department is the department that responsible to handle, arrange, and monitor the delivery service in PT. X. It means that Fleet department is also responsible if there is any customer complaint. Increasing number in customer complaint means that the customer is not satisfy with the delivery service provided by the company. This research is conducted in order to determine what are the factors that influence customer satisfaction. By using Service Quality method, Gap Analysis, and Importance-Performance Analysis, the result will be in a form of conclusion and recommendation. The result for improvements are driver and truck safety appearance, easiness of contacting the company when there is a complaint, and information regarding with the delivery service. After determining the factors that most influencing customer satisfaction, Service Blueprint and Check List is made in order to improve and control the factors occurred.


Meier and Robinson (2004) had subjects identify pleasant and unpleasant words presented individually either at the top or bottom of a computer screen. Subjects identified pleasant words faster when they appeared at the top of the screen and unpleasant words faster whey they appeared at the bottom of the screen. The authors discussed this finding in terms of metaphors noting that in language good things are often allocated upwards (e.g. "things are looking up for me") and bad things downwards e.g. ("I'm down in the dumps"). The aim of the present study was to investigate whether this relationship between affective stimuli and visual space occurs automatically (implicitly) or whether explicit processing of affective stimuli is required. A second aim was to investigate if memory for affective words is influenced by spatial location. In Experiments 1 and 2 subjects were shown pleasant and unpleasant words presented either at the top or bottom of a computer screen. Half the words were coloured green and half coloured purple. Subjects had to identify the colour as quickly as possible. No significant interaction between stimulus valence and spatial position was found, nor did recall interact with spatial position. In Experiment 3 subjects had to explicitly identify the valence of the words shown either at the top or bottom of the screen. It was predicted that positive stimuli would be explicitly evaluated faster and recalled more accurately when shown at the top of the screen, with the opposite holding true for negative stimuli. Participants were quicker to identify positive words at the top of the screen. Recall did not interact with spatial position. Overall the results of this study were broadly supportive of the hypothesis for explicit evaluation but not so for implicit evaluation or recall.


In this paper we train a Convolutional Neural Network to classify longitudinally and transversely polarized hadronic W± using the images of boosted W± jets as input. The images capture angular and energy information from the jet constituents that is faithful to properties of the original quark/anti-quark W± decay products without the need for invasive substructure cuts. We find that the difference between the polarizations is too subtle for the network to be used as an event-by-event tagger. However, given an ensemble ofW± events with unknown polarization, the average network output from that ensemble can be used to extract the longitudinal fraction fL. We test the network on Standard Model pp → W±Z events and on pp → W±Z in the presence of dimension-6 operators that perturb the polarization composition. ar X iv :2 10 2. 05 12 4v 1 [ he pph ] 9 F eb 2 02 1


The past over the years, single or multi-dimensional signal processing applications, communication systems, biomedical signal processing, word coding, sub-band coding in applications such as efficient use filter banks; single filter instead of multiple custom filters come together with being designed. In this study, two-channel filter banks a special case known as the QMF (Quadrature Mirror Filter - Quarter-mirror filter) bank for the design of Kaiser, Chebyshev and Hanning windowing methods with the filter's cutoff frequency on the optimization of a design based were made. QMF bank design, failure to peak reconstruction error (Peak Reconstruction Error-PRA) is based. As a result of the ongoing applications designed filter banks belonging to the numerical results and comparisons are given.


For the equation −∆u = ˛ ˛ |x| − 2 ˛ ˛ α u p , 1 < |x| < 3, we prove the existence of two solutions for α large, and of two additional solutions when p is close to the critical Sobolev exponent 2 * = 2N/(N − 2). In particular, a symmetry–breaking phenomenon appears when α → +∞, showing that the least–energy solution cannot be a radial function.


Some exact solutions in the Brans-Dicke (BD) theory are shown for a Bianchi V metric having the properties of inflationary expansion, graceful exit and asymptotic evolution to a Friedmann-Robertson-Walker open model. It is remarkable that inflationary behaviour can occur, even without a cosmological potential or constant. However, the horizon and flatness problems cannot be solved within the standard BD theory because the inflationary period is severely restricted by the value of the BD parameter .


Teaches by example the application of finite element templates in constructing high performance elements. The example discusses the improvement of the mass and geometric stiffness matrices of a Bernoulli‐Euler plane beam. This process interweaves classical techniques (Fourier analysis and weighted orthogonal polynomials) with newer tools (finite element templates and computer algebra systems). Templates are parameterized algebraic forms that uniquely characterize an element population by a "genetic signature" defined by the set of free parameters. Specific elements are obtained by assigning numeric values to the parameters. This freedom of choice can be used to design "custom" elements. For this example weighted orthogonal polynomials are used to construct templates for the beam material stiffness, geometric stiffness and mass matrices. Fourier analysis carried out through symbolic computation searches for template signatures of mass and geometric stiffness that deliver matrices with desirable properties when used in conjunction with the well‐known Hermitian beam material stiffness. For mass‐stiffness combinations, three objectives are noted: high accuracy for vibration analysis, wide separation of acoustic and optical branches, and low sensitivity to mesh distortion and boundary conditions. Only the first objective is examined in detail.


Neural architecture search (NAS) is a recent methodology for automating the design of neural network architectures. Differentiable neural architecture search (DARTS) is a promising NAS approach that dramatically increases search efficiency. However, it has been shown to suffer from performance collapse, where the search often leads to detrimental architectures. Many recent works try to address this issue of DARTS by identifying indicators for early stopping, regularising the search objective to reduce the dominance of some operations, or changing the parameterisation of the search problem. In this work, we hypothesise that performance collapses can arise from poor local optima around typical initial architectures and weights. We address this issue by developing a more global optimisation scheme that is able to better explore the space without changing the DARTS problem formulation. Our experiments show that our changes in the search algorithm allow the discovery of architectures with both better test performance and fewer parameters.


Background: Shortening of the hamstring muscles results in pain, limited range of motion, postural instability, and abnormal gait, which effect on daily activities. Muscle energy technique provides a solution to shortening the hamstring muscles by improving muscle flexibility. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of muscle energy technique in increasing hamstring muscle flexibility in adolescents. Subjects and Method: This was a quasi-experiment pretest-posttest without a control group conducted at No. 1 High School Jogonalan, Klaten, Central Java in April 2018. A total of 30 students was selected with purposive sampling method in which one student dropped out. The dependent variable was flexibility of hamstring muscle. The independent variable was muscle energy technique training. The flexibility of hamstring muscle was measured by back saver sit and reach test. Data were analyzed by Wilcoxon test. Results: Flexibility of hamstring muscle was higher after muscle energy technique (Mean= 39.92; SD= 4.24) than before (Mean= 30.14; SD= 3.59), and it was statistically significant (p <0.001). Conclusion: Muscle energy technique increases flexibility of hamstring muscle. Muscle exercise technique can be used to improve hamstring muscle flexibility. Keywords: muscle energy technique, flexibility, hamstring muscle, adolescents Correspondence: Afif Ghufroni. Physiotherapy Study Program, School of Health Polytechnics, Surakarta, Indonesia. Email: email@example.com. Mobile: +6285725000769. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26911/the7thicph.02.29


Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate the genotype frequencies of CYP3A4*1B and CYP3A5*3 in lung cancer patients which may be useful in determining the patients' predisposition to platinum based therapies, and may be helpful for individualized drug dosing and improved therapeutics and disease management. Results: We evaluated these two common polymorphisms in south Indian population, based on case-control study of 126 lung cancer cases and 111 controls using a PCR-RFLP-based assay. The investigation of the CYP3A4*1B gene polymorphism revealed, no significant difference in distribution between the lung cancer patients and the controls (p=0.65) . The distribution of CYP3A5*3 homozygous genotypes and heterozygous plus homozygous genotypes were significantly associated (p=0.0004 & p=0.0001) with lung cancer patients, and the *3/*3 genotype had a 4.38 fold increased risk for lung cancer. In our study *1A/*1B heterozygous genotype patients were found to constitute a major percentage of patients receiving Gemcitabine plus carboplatin therapy. Conclusions: In conclusion, the results of our study indicated a relationship between CYP 3A4*1B and CYP3A5*3 polymorphisms and genetic predispositions to lung cancer. Thus detection of CYP3A4*1B/CYP3A4 and CYP3A5*3/CYP3A5 genotype frequencies in Indian population may be important in view of interindividualized drug dosing, improved therapeutics and disease management.


The inhomogeneity and anisotropy of articular cartilage has been experimentally verified, but little has been done to quantify the effects of such material variation on mechanical behavior. We present a method to calculate volume-averaged quantities over tissue regions, used in conjunction with a 3D biphasic finite element analysis. Such average quantities can be used in parametric studies of different material property models, readily permitting statistical comparisons that are difficult with point-wise quantities.


Our previous study showed that sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) regulates peritoneal B cell trafficking for the subsequent intestinal IgA production. In this study, we demonstrate that stromal NFkappaB-inducing kinase (NIK) is specifically involved in this pathway. Although peritoneal B cells from NIK-mutated alymphoplasia (aly) mice expressed substantial levels of S1P receptor and showed normal migration toward S1P, aly peritoneal B cells showed decreased sensitivity to FTY720, an S1P modulator. NIK-mutated stromal cells showed aberrant expression of VCAM-1, ICAM-1, and CXCL13, leading to the impaired ability to support S1P-mediated peritoneal B cell emigration. Therefore, aly peritoneal B cells exhibited normal S1P-mediated peritoneal B cell trafficking from peritoneum to intestine for IgA production when they were adoptively transferred into SCID mice. Further, transfer of wild-type stromal cells into the peritoneum restored S1P-mediated trafficking of aly peritoneal B cells. These findings suggest that NIK in stromal cells has a specific role in the regulation of S1P-mediated peritoneal B cell-derived intestinal IgA production.
 This work was supported by grants from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports, and Culture of Japan and the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan.


A computerized experimental set-up for second derivative Langmuir probe measurements is presented. As a signal generator for the differentiating signal a computer stereo sound card is used. The probe signal is detected using a selective amplifier - the lock-in amplifier combination, whose output is measured by an ADC card inside a computer. Special drivers working under Microsoft Windows98 Second Edition were created in Visual C++ 6.0 to control the operation of the probe system.


The use of Support Vector Machines (SVMs) to represent the performance space of analog circuits is explored. In abstract terms, an analog circuit maps a set of input design parameters to a set of performance figures. This function is usually evaluated through simulations and its range defines the feasible performance space of the circuit. In this paper, we directly model performance spaces as mathematical relations. We study approximation approaches based on two-class and one-class SVMs, the latter providing a better tradeoff between accuracy and complexity avoiding "curse of dimensionality" issues with 2-class SVMs. We propose two improvements of the basic one-class SVM performances: conformal mapping and active learning. Finally, we develop an efficient algorithm to compute projections, so that top-down methodologies can be easily supported.


The features used in many current medical image retrieval systems are usually low-level hand-crafted features. This limitation may adversely affect the retrieval performance. To address this problem, this paper proposes a simple yet discriminative feature, called histogram of compressed scattering coefficients (HCSC), for medical image retrieval. In the proposed work, the scattering transform, a particular variation of deep convolutional networks, is first performed to yield more abstract representations of a medical image. A projection operation is then conducted to compress the obtained scattering coefficients for efficient processing. Finally, a bag-of-words (BoW) histogram is derived from the compressed scattering coefficients as the features of the medical image. The proposed HCSC takes the advantages of both scattering transform and BoW model. Experiments on three benchmark medical computer tomography image databases demonstrate that HCSC outperforms several state-of-the-art features.


In recent years, social media has served as an important, accessible digital outlet for people to easily express their thoughts and reactions about events, trends, and more to their friends, family, peers, and followers. Previous research findings and studies have focused on the growing role social media plays in promoting humanitarian, social justice, political, and feminist efforts and issues, as well as the effects of personality types on how people use social media platforms and the Internet. This research study specifically asks one central question: What effects, if any, do personality types (introversion-extraversion) have regarding how people utilize social media to promote feminism? Research methodology utilized for this study includes both primary and secondary research sources. These sources consist of a review of scholarly research and news articles that showcase similar studies and findings, as well as a survey. The survey, housed on Qualtrics, was conducted through a snowball sampling recruitment method under the approval of the Institutional Review Board (IRB) at Ithaca College. The survey questions were designed to prompt participants (mainly Ithaca College students and young alumni) to explore their own understanding of their respective personality types, social media and Internet habits, and feminist activism efforts. The results from this research study show a slight correlation between the traits of introversion and extraversion and the corresponding statements regarding how introverts and extraverts post content about feminism on social media. This correlation was statistically significant, showing that, although slight, it was not by chance.


There is wide spread interest in drugs derived from plants as green medicine is believed to be safe and dependable, compared with costly synthetic drugs that have adverse effects. Hence the study was carried out to investigate the thrombolytic potential of honey a natural product, using an in vitro assay method. Five concentrations of the honey and incubation periods were used for the study, with a standard (Streptokinase), and negative control (sterilized distilled water) to validate the method. In the study, thrombolytic effect of honey (MF and PFf) was studied in vitro systematically. The results showed that honey played a significant role in thrombolysis in vitro. And the thrombolytic effects correlated with honey in a dose-dependent manner. The honey MF, PFf showed better clot lysis, i.e. 27.77, 40.15, 45.15, 49.66, 54.65 and 74.93%, 76.78%, 77.24%, 81.07% and 82.65% at incubation period 1, 5, 12, 24 and 48h and 1200 mg/ml maximum concentration respectively. While the standard (streptokinase) showed 88.41% maximum in 90 minutes of time period. Therefore, the obtained results suggest that the honey possess better thrombolytic activity in invitro; however, in vivo thrombolytic potentiality and active component(s) of the honey for clot lysis are yet to be discovered.


Energy storage is a useful tool to increase energy efficiency and energy savings.
Solid-Liquid phase change materials (PCMs) are used in latent heat thermal energy
storage systems. Plastics are currently used as encapsulate materials with PCM, but
previously a compatibility test should be made to ensure long term stability. It is not
possible to find experimental studies of organic PCM migration in plastics in the
literature. The main objective of this work is an experimental study of the compatibility of
some PCMs typically used for thermal energy storage with a melting temperature around
22°C and some plastic materials currently used as encapsulate materials. The PCMs
tested are molecular alloy C16-C18, RT20, RT25, RT26, and TH24, and plastic materials
tested are PP, LDPE, HDPE, and PET. As a consequence of the results, the best plastic
to be used with each PCM and combinations that should be avoided are chosen.


Our work on this Special Issue began with a showcase symposium on the philosophical foundations of knowledge management (KM) at the AoM 2004 Meeting and was continued through KM tracks at the EURAM 2005 and EGOS 2005 Conferences. Our hope was to corral the variety of approaches in the KM literature and expose solid underpinnings against which the field's development might be gauged. We were unclear whether these would be axiomatic principles that defined the field or a set of professionally accepted KM practices. The call for papers went out in Fall 2004 and was published in the November 2004 issue ofOrganization. In our call we asked for advances to the discussion rather than mere reiteration of the already appreciated. Our authors and reviewers made great efforts and we learned much from their submissions, both those included and those turned away, and from the many reviews. However, we found deep disagreements, both among our reviewers about the submissions—and among everyone about the topic area generally. Clearly KM frustrates readers, authors, and reviewers alike; hence the temptation to dismiss it as yet another management fad, as many do. But there is an undeniable enthusiasm for KM among managers and academics, so our first thought was 'To what problem is KM the answer?'. Framing the question well often takes one towards the answer—so if we puzzle out KM's problematics we may find ourselves moving towards the underpinnings we are looking for.


Hibiscus asper is used traditionally as potent sedative, restorative tonic, anti-inflammatory, anti-depressive and anti-anaemic drug, as well as in the management of jaundice. This study evaluated the nutritional, phytochemical and antioxidant properties of the leaf and calyx of the plant with a view to providing more scientific information on its therapeutic potentials. The two plant parts were screened for proximate, mineral and vitamin compositions using standard protocols. The phytochemical analysis of dry samples was done using standard protocols. The antioxidant activity of samples was against 1,1 – diphenyl – 2 picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical. All data were subjected to statistical analysis. H. aspe r calyx had significantly higher nutrients than the leaf except carbohydrate content. The calyx was richer in mineral and vitamin contents than the leaf, especially ascorbic acid (22.17±0.21 mg/100g) and carotenoids (1660.00±15.00 mg/100g). Interestingly, the leaf had higher phytochemical contents compared to the calyx. It had alkaloids (1260.00±18.03 mg/100g), flavoniods (471.67±16.07 mg/100g), and cardiac glycosides (4.10±0.10 mg/100g), whereas the calyx (53.33±0.25 %) showed higher inhibition against DPPH radical than the leaf (36.33±0.45 %). Overall, the calyx was richer in proximate, mineral and vitamin contents. It also showed higher antioxidant activity than the leaf. However the leaf contained significantly higher phytochemicals than the calyx. H. asper is very rich in nutrients and phytochemicals with valuable antioxidant property. The calyx could be an important source of nutrients and the leaf had strong therapeutic potentials in the management of diseases. This study justifies the traditional uses of the plant as food and medicine. Keywords : Hibiscus asper, secondary metabolites, nutrients, vitamins, natural antioxidant


A simple approach to sensitive glucose detection has been developed based upon variation in the fluorescence of ZnO nanocrystals with glucose concentration. ZnO nanocrystals were successfully synthesized in wurtzite structure using a surfactant, mercaptoundecanoic acid (MUA) via the polyol method. MUA molecules not only served as a template for the synthesis of spherical-shape nanoparticles but also provided water solubility and biocompatibility due to its carboxyl group. Carboxyl-terminated ZnO nanocrystals were activated by esterification of n-hydroxysulfosuccinimide (Sulfo-NHS) catalyzed by water-soluble 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide (EDC). Glucose oxidase (GOx), an enzyme could be immobilized to ZnO nanocrystals by replacing NHS with amino-acid groups of GOx. ZnO-MUA-GOx bioconjugates showed a decrease in the photoluminescence (PL) intensity by appearance of glucose molecules due to the collisional quenching by hydrogen peroxide generated from enzymatic oxidation reaction of glucose. PL intensity showed a linear decrease with glucose concentration from 1.6 to 33.3 mM, which fully covers the physiological glucose level. ZnO-MUA-GOx bioconjugates showed a detection limit lower than 0.33 mM and a response time less than 5 s. They also revealed distinct specificity against cholesterol molecules.


Abstract This paper presents experimental results of running resistance tests. Running resistance is determined for conventional passenger trains, freight trains, and the X2 high-speed train. The influence of variables such as speed, number of axles, number of coaches, axle load, track type, and train length is studied. The running resistance is expressed in a general form by a second degree polynomial. The three terms in the polynomial are functions of these variables. The magnitude of the first termis speed independent and varies with number of axles, axle load, and type of track. The second term varies with speed and train length. No influence of axle load is distinguished. The third term is related to the air drag and varies with the speed squared and train configuration. It can be divided into two parts. One part is constant and depends upon the front and rear of the train, and another part increases approximately linearly with train length.


Introduction: There is a paucity of literature on intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring in children. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether ICP monitoring is useful in children with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Materials and Methods: Medical records of children between 1 and 12 years, admitted to neurocritical care unit with severe TBI in 2 years, were reviewed. The children were divided into two groups: study group (ICP monitored) and control group (ICP not monitored). Admission demographics, vital parameters, and computed tomographic scan findings were recorded. In the study group, date of ICP catheter insertion/removal with ICP values and treatment carried out for increased ICP were noted. Data on tracheostomy, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, and outcome at discharge were noted. Results: Demographic variables were comparable between the two groups. When adjusted for death, no significant difference was observed between the study and the control groups in median duration of mechanical ventilation: 35 days (95% confidence interval [CI]: 12–73) versus 55 days (95% CI: 29–55) (P = 0.96), hospital stay: 36 days (95% CI: 12–73) versus 58 days (95% CI: 29–58) (P = 0.96), and time to tracheostomy: 6 days (95% CI: 5–8) versus 5 days (95% CI: 4–7) (P = 0.49). Mortality rates, incidence of cranial surgeries, and outcome at discharge were also comparable. Conclusion: ICP monitoring did not reduce the incidence of death, cranial surgeries, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, or improve the outcome at discharge in children with severe TBI.


Surveying, laboratory and field trial were performed to elucidate the causes of non-spinning syndrome of silkworm, Bombyx mori, abnormal symptoms of silkworm instars observed in certain sericultural farming region. Mortality and growth of silkworm was still influenced by feeding the mulberry leaves sprayed with 10,000 fold diluted solution of standard spray of diflubenzuron WP (25%). Mortality and growth of silkworm fed with diflubenzuron-sprayed mulberry leaves with recommended spray solution were entirely affected even six weeks after spraying irrespective to the instars. Larval period of 5th instar and cocooning duration of silkworm was not affected in case 50m of buffer zone has maintained in near-by orchard field sprayed with diflubenzuron WP (25%). However, survival rate of pupae was not influenced in case 100 m of buffer zone has kept. Insect growth regulating insecticides were required to keep a certain distance of buffer zone when sprayed with water-diluted solution, 100 m from the application site at least in order to prevent contamination of the spraying drift by the chemicals.


Taking its title from Karl Marx's description of religion as the world's 'logic in a popular form', this book explores the hidden logic behind popular religions in nineteenth-century Bengal. Sumanta Banerjee examines cross-religious cults and the construction of Bengali myths and beliefs about godlings and spirits, approaching them as popular inventions that attempt to make sense of human existence in the face of an overwhelming and often hostile environment. These religious manifestations of popular logic - ranging from Kali to Radha-Krishna to Satyapir to Tantric practice - are fluid and constantly innovating. Banerjee argues that they represent an alternative stream running parallel to, and often challenging, the more strictly structured beliefs and practices of the Indian religious establishments, whether Hindu, Islamic, or Christian. "Logic in a Popular Form" brings to light many significant aspects of the multifaceted phenomenon of popular religion in Bengal, while tracing the impact of urbanization, colonialism, and nationalism. Banerjee reexamines the relevance of the beliefs and rituals that continue to survive in Bengali society today.


The Massachusetts Cancer Registry (MCR) reviewed the medical charts of 5,438 randomly selected breast and colorectal cancer cases diagnosed from 2005-2009 in part to assess the reliability of the race, Hispanic ethnicity, birth country, and tobacco history variables. The kappa statistic was used to assess the reliability between the originally reported variable and the reabstracted variable. There was strong agreement of kappa score for race among whites, blacks, and other (Asian, Native American), indicating a good quality of race data. The agreement for birth country was strongest among those not born in the United States with a statistically significantly higher kappa score compared to the other categories. Agreement for Hispanic ethnicity was strongest for non-Hispanics, Puerto Ricans, Central Americans, and Dominicans, groups that represent the majority of Hispanics in Massachusetts. The agreement for tobacco history was strongest among current tobacco users. This study provided useful information on the reliability of the race, Hispanic ethnicity, and birthplace variables, which are frequently used in MCR reports. It also provided heretofore unknown data on the reliability of the tobacco history variable. All categories of the race variable were very reliable as were the categories of Puerto Rican, Dominican, and Central American. Hispanic, NOS was not as reliable due to the large Portuguese population with Hispanic sounding surnames. Birth country was not as reliable due to the paucity of the data in many of the larger facilities in the state.


This paper presents a study on the effects of transient and steady-state vehicle operation on fuel economy and emissions trends of an in-use Euro 2 Asian utility vehicle in the Philippines, with a normally aspirated direct-injection engine, and fueled with different CME-diesel blends designated as B1, B2, B3, B5, B10, B20, B50, & B100 corresponding to increasing CME percentage blends. The vehicle was driven on a chassis dynamometer following the Japanese 10-15 Mode drive cycle and at steady speeds of 40, 60, & 80 kph for fuel consumption and CO, NOx, and THC measurements. PM measurements were not undertaken.
 Drive cycle results showed that adding CME up to 20% by volume (B20) has a small effect on the heating values, specific fuel consumption (SFC), fuel economy (FE), and maximum power. Relative to neat diesel, the increase in SFC, lower FE and power beyond B20 were attributed to lower heating values at higher blends. CO was practically constant while THC and NOx generally decreased with increasing CME blends. The CO and THC trends were ascribed to overall lean mixtures and increased amount of oxygenated fuel at higher CME blends. B20 yielded the most emissions reduction without performance loss.
 Steady speed results indicated for all blends, SFC increased with vehicle speed due to higher road load. Above B10, SFC went beyond 5% higher than that for neat diesel and is attributed to lowered heating values of higher blends. The SFC of blends up to B10 approached that of neat diesel as speed increased suggesting more diesel-like combustion characteristics. The blend fuel economy showed an inverse relationship to SFC as expected. Both CO and NOx exhibited slightly decreasing trends with higher blends at all speeds. For a given blend, CO decreased while NOx increased as speed went higher. THC followed bowl-shaped trendlines with blend ratio. THC was high for neat diesel going lowest at B5-B10 and upwards again beyond B10. For a given blend, THC emissions decreased with increasing vehicle speed.


ABSTRACT Body size is a key factor in predicting the outcome of organisms' interaction with their environment. A negative temperature–size relationship (TSR) is claimed to be one of the universal responses to climatic warming. Studies on extant biota also predicted that groups with narrow latitudinal range, tropical affinity, and higher body size would show higher sensitivity to climatic fluctuation. To confirm the generality of these relationships among marine ectotherms, we compiled the data on body size and global temperature over the Cenozoic using a global database of marine molluscs of Class Gastropoda and Bivalvia. Molluscan species do not show any signature of TSR for any taxonomic, regional, or ecological category during the Cenozoic. We did not find any evidence supporting heightened response in groups with limited latitudinal spread or with large body size. The body-size response of tropical species is not different from those of temperate species. Response of infauna and epifauna does not show any difference either and hence, refutes the predicted variation due to difference in their thermal-specialisation. Our results highlight the limited validity of 'universal rules' in explaining the climate-induced morphological response of marine communities in deep time and underscore the complexity in generalising the biotic outcome of climatic fluctuation.


General access control models enable flexible expression of access control policies, but they make the verification of whether a particular access control configuration is safe (i.e., prevents the leakage of a permission to an unauthorized subject) difficult. The current approach to expressing safety policy in such models is to use constraints. When the constraints are verified, then the configuration is verified to be safe. However, the addition of constraints to an access control configuration significantly increases its complexity, so it quickly becomes difficult to understand the access control policy expressed in the configuration such that future changes can be made correctly. We propose an approach whereby the complexity of each access control configuration is estimated, so the administrators can see the effect of a configuration change on the future ability to maintain the configuration. We identify metrics for making complexity estimates and evaluate these metrics on some constraint examples. Our goal is to enable the use of flexible access control models for safety-critical systems by permitting limited use of constraints that do not complicate the configuration beyond a maintainable complexity.


The present study develops an approach explicitly to cover the waste sector under the Emissions Trading Scheme of the European Union (EU ETS). The objective is to analyze various allocation possibilities and the resulting monetary burdens for the waste sector. Three different allocation variants for allocating emission allowances and their financial burden to the waste sector are developed. These variants support implementation within the EU ETS in the third trading period from 2013 to 2020. The respective distributions of emission allowances to the Austrian waste sector are estimated for each variant calculated. Allowances vary depending on specific industry, the relative share of free and purchased allowances, and the relative costs entailed in additional purchase. Although the present paper focuses explicitly on the Austrian waste sector, in principle, the calculation procedure is applicable to waste sectors in other developed countries as well.


Among the microfluidic separation methods, hydrodynamic spreading is a simple and high-throughput continuous separation technique based on the difference in size. However, it is difficult to adjust tiny pressure differences accurately in microfluidic devices. In this study, a combination of electroosmotic flow (EOF) and hydrodynamic flow spreading was employed to tune the size separation of particles. A stream with different kinds of particle suspensions was driven co-fluently with a particle-free carrier stream under both mechanical external and electroosmotic pressure in a microchannel. The EOF-tuned hydrodynamic spreading behaviour was investigated experimentally and modelled through an electric equivalent model and numerical simulation. When the magnitudes of the mechanically and electroosmotically induced pressures were similar, the EOF tuning on the pressure-driven flow became significant. Hence, the hydrodynamic spreading could be easily adjusted by a tuned power supply. The separation was studied in more detail with 1.9 and 9.9 µm fluorescent polystyrene particles. Moreover, separation of E. coli and yeast cells was accomplished. In conclusion, this technique has the advantages of good stability of mechanical-pressure-driven flow and precise tuning of the EOF, and provides a robust method for size-based separation of particles and cells.


Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, also known as stress cardiomyopathy, is known to have 4 variants: apical, midventricular, basal, and focal. Here, we report the 2nd case of reverse midvariant (midventricular) stress cardiomyopathy and the 1st case of reverse midvariant takotsubo cardiomyopathy with apical thrombus.


There are quite a number of lepers in San Francisco, many more than the eighteen or nineteen who are at present in the pest-house. The important question, however, before the city itself and before the United States is whether San Francisco and the Pacific Coast is merely a temporary abiding place for a few lepers who have come to it by accident, or whether this part of the United States is really becoming a leper focus where the disease may be contracted. The difference between these two conditions is very great. London, Paris and Berlin, for instance, have always a number of lepers who have come to them either as returned officials or merchants who have acquired their disease in a leper country, such as Tonquin or India, or as patients seeking medical advice, but it is not considered that any of these cities constitute leper centers where leprosy is


In recent years infrastructure has developed tremendously but accordingly the accident rate also increased tremendously. In the existing system only the human sees that the accident has occurred and they will call to the ambulance and the reach of ambulance to the spot is late due to that there is huge loss of human life and for that a solution is brought up by using vibration sensor which senses during the occurrence of accident and using GPS(global positioning system) the latitude and the longitude of the position can be found and using GSM(global system for mobile communication) modem the position of the message can be send to the operating center and the operating center will have the GIS(geographical information system) through which can find the location easily and they can call to the nearby ambulance and they will reach the spot fastly and this all will happens within two minutes by this human life can be saved. If this system is implemented we can save upto sixteen persons every hour because mostly the accident will be small but due to loss of more blood the person will die if the ambulance reach the spot within few minutes of the accident then the person life can be saved easily and the cost of system is also low because nowadays most of the vehicle is fitted with a GPS modem and only we have to get a GSM modem and a controller and so the system will be cost efficient


In this paper chemical ozone loss in the Arctic stratosphere was investigated for twelve years between 1991 and 2003. The accumulated local ozone loss and the column ozone loss were consistently derived mainly on the basis of HALOE observations. The ozone-tracer correlation (TRAC) method is used, where the relation between ozone and a long-lived tracer is considered over the lifetime of the polar vortex. A detailed quantification of uncertainties was performed. This study demonstrates the interaction between meteorology and ozone loss. The correlation between temperature conditions and chlorine activation becomes obvious in the HALOE HCl measurements, as well as the dependence between chlorine activation and ozone loss. Additionally, the degree of homogeneity of ozone loss is shown to depend on the meteorological conditions, as there is a possible influence of horizontal mixing of the air inside a weak polar vortex edge. Results estimated here are in agreement with the results obtained from other methods. However, there is no sign of very strong ozone losses as deduced from SAOZ for January considering HALOE measurements. In general, strong accumulated ozone loss is found to occur in conjunction with a strong cold vortex containing a large potential area of PSCs, whereas moderate ozone loss is found if the vortex is less strong and moderately warm. Hardly any ozone loss was calculated for very warm winters with small amounts of the area of possible PSC existence (A PSC ) during the entire winter. Nevertheless, the analysis of the relationship between A PSC (derived using the PSC threshold temperature) and the accumulated ozone loss indicates that this relationship is not a strictly linear relation. An influence of other factors could be identified. A significant increase of ozone loss (of ?40 DU) was found due to the different duration of illumination of the polar vortex in different years. Further, the increased burden of aerosols in the atmosphere after the Pinatubo volcanic eruption in 1991 and the location of the cold parts of the vortex in different years may impact the extent of chemical ozone loss.


Two dozen networks are analyzed using three parameters that attempt to capture important properties of social networks: leadership L, member bonding B, and diversity of expertise D. The first two of these parameters have antecedents, the third is new. A key part of the analysis is to examine networks at multiple scales by dissecting the entire network into its n subgraphs of a given radius of two edge steps about each of the n nodes. This scale-based analysis reveals constraints on what we have dubbed "cognitive" networks, as contrasted with biological or physical networks. Specifically, "cognitive" networks appear to maximize bonding and diversity over a range of leadership dominance. Asymptotic relations between the bonding and diversity measures are also found when small, nearly complete subgraphs are aggregated to form larger networks. This aggregation probably underlies changes in a regularity among the LBD parameters; this regularity is a U-shaped function of networks size, n, which is minimal for networks around 80 or so nodes. 1.0 Overview One of the ways science advances is to discover non-trivial relations among measurements of an entity, which then give insights into the nature of that entity. Classic examples include: (a) the PV/T relation between pressure, P, temperature, T, and the volume, V, of a gas, (b) the Strahler number, Ni/(Ni+1) which characterizes the branching structure of rivers or trees, or (c) supply-demand relations. In the study of social networks, these kinds of discoveries of parametric relations are rare (but see Barabasi & Albert 2002, Watts & Strogatz 1998, Newman, 2003). Using a multi-scale analysis, we report three new properties that are characteristic of one important class of social networks. Although our specific measurement parameters might be questioned, they were chosen to have relevance to the building of "cognitive" social networks, as contrasted with networks such as the spread of infectious diseases or telecommunications infrastructure. Two of the three parameters chosen are closely allied with previous measures. These choices, however, are not the key issue. Rather, can these parameters lead to the discovery of new properties characteristic of a class of social networks? Will these discoveries of new relationships lead to insights about the structure of social networks?


In Africa. many now seem to agree that developing infrastructure is critical for reducing poverty and promoting sustained economic growth, that the private sector has an essential contribution to make in this effort, and that while expanding the private sector's participation in infrastructure is challenging under any circumstances, it is more difficult in Africa than anywhere else. This new view has led to a surge in demand for assistance from the Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF), and PPIAF is responding through a strategy combining its traditional upstream work with a greater focus on innovative new approaches to private participation in infrastructure.


Fatty acid metabolism is important in relation to the development of insulin resistance and the metabolic syndrome. Elevated total non-esterified fatty acid concentrations predispose to an atherogenic lipoprotein profile, but the individual properties of specific fatty acids are also of importance for the development of the metabolic syndrome. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relationships between fatty acid composition and selected cardiovascular risk factors associated with the metabolic syndrome [small, dense low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles and oxidative stress], and to investigate estimates of adipose tissue D9-desaturase activity. A cohort of approximately 300 healthy Swedish men (aged 62-64 years), extensively characterized in relation to components of the metabolic syndrome, was investigated cross-sectionally. Increases in fatty acids typical of milk products were associated with reduced numbers of potentially atherogenic small, dense LDL particles, and n-3 fatty acids were independent (negative) predictors of oxidative stress. D9-Desaturase activity in human adipose tissue needs more detailed investigation in relation to the metabolic syndrome. In conclusion, the quality of dietary fat is of importance in relation to the development of cardiovascular risk factors associated with the metabolic syndrome. Keywords: insulin resistance; LDL particle size; oxidative stress; stearoyl CoA desaturase


Auditory displays have been implemented with some success in a variety of in-vehicle technologies. Most of these applications have used discrete alerts and warnings, which present complications with false alarms and annoyance. Some research has suggested that on-going, continuous information displays may mitigate some of the problems with discrete alerts and warnings. We argue that well-designed naturalistic soundscapes offer a potentially useful means of continuous auditory display for in-vehicle technologies. We present examples of use scenarios and demonstrations of candidate sound manipulations for conveying information with soundscapes. We argue that soundscapes could be used in a variety of in-vehicle technologies, including displays of vehicle and driver conditions, collision and hazard warnings, infotainment systems, and automated systems.


Policy iteration (PI) is a fundamental policy search algorithm in standard reinforcement learning (RL) setting, which can be shown to converge to an optimal policy by policy improvement theorems. However, the standard PI relies on Bellman's Principle of Optimality, which might be violated by some specifications of objectives (also known as time-inconsistent (TIC) objectives), such as non-exponentially discounted reward functions. The use of standard PI under TIC objectives has thus been marked with questions regarding the convergence of its policy improvement scheme and the optimality of its termination policy, often leading to its avoidance. In this paper, we consider an infinite-horizon TIC RL setting and formally present an alternative type of optimality drawn from game theory, i.e., subgame perfect equilibrium (SPE), that attempts to resolve the aforementioned questions. We first analyze standard PI under the SPE type of optimality, revealing its merits and insufficiencies. Drawing on these observations, we propose backward Q-learning (bwdQ), a new algorithm in the approximate PI family that targets SPE policy under non-exponentially discounted reward functions. Finally, with two TIC gridworld environments, we demonstrate the implications of our theoretical findings on the behavior of bwdQ and other approximate PI variants.


A series of small instruments to assist with insertion of intraocular lenses and placement of lens fixation sutures has been described. Added to the main function of each, is the capability for infusion of fluid or injection of air and medication.


Input queued switching architectures has become attractive for implementing high performance switches. Some maximal matching algorithms, e.g. PIM, iSLIP, are easily implemented in hardware, hence attract more attention in designing of the practical router. However, they usually need multiple iterations to achieve satisfying performance. In this paper, we propose a multiple-threshold based round robin matching algorithm (MTRRM) for high performance input queued crossbar switch scheduling. In MTRRM, when an input and an output are matched, the matching might be kept for more than one time slot. Simulation results show that our scheme can strongly reduce the average cell delay and increase the throughput under non-uniform traffic. MTRRM achieves quite good performance with single iteration and this promises us that it is more suitable for switch with high line rate or large number of ports.


The purpose of this study was to identify the ways in which student teachers understand digestion and the digestive system and, subsequently, their ways of thinking, as reflected in their problem solving approaches and the justification schemes that they used to validate their claims. For this purpose, clinical interviews were conducted with 10 biology student teachers. According to the data, the student teachers possessed different levels of understanding that can be summarized into three categories: (1) naive, in that their study method was unscientific and memorization-based, (2) fragmented, and (3) unsound. Their ways of thinking were congruent with their ways of understanding, and this was reflected in their explanations, which were constructed ad hoc and focused on simple linear relationships. In line with these ways of thinking, the justification schemes used by the student teachers were mainly external and empirical schemes, which are considered to be unsophisticated or lower-level. This study is the first study that attempts to reveal and classify student teachers' justification schemes in biology. Earlier studies on student learning processes have been conducted in mathematics. We discovered distinct patterns in the justification schemes used by student teachers, and these patterns were related to the nature of biology as a life science. At the end of the paper, we discuss our results and provide suggestions for teacher education and future research.


The Internet was conceptualized as a technology that would be capable of bringing about a better future, but recent literature in science and technology studies and adjacent fields provides numerous examples of how this pervasive sociotechnical system has been shaped and used to dystopic ends. This article examines different future imaginaries present in Future Internet Architecture (FIA) projects funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) from 2006 to 2016, whose goal was to incorporate social values while building new protocols to replace Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol to transfer and route information across the ever-expanding Internet. I examine the findings from two of the NSF's FIA projects—Mobility First (MF) and eXpressive Internet Architecture—to understand the projects' trajectories and values directives through their funding cycle and their projections into the future. I discuss how project documentation and participant articulations fall into the following three distinct themes about past experience and speculation: understanding the public, negotiating resources, and carrying project values into the future. I conclude that if the future Internet is to promote positive sociotechnical relationships, its architects must recognize that complex social and political decisions pervade each step of technical work and do more to honor this fact.


Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is often associated with endothelial dysfunction and cardiovascular complications. In this study, we determined whether HIV non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor efavirenz (EFV) could increase endothelial permeability. Human coronary artery endothelial cells (HCAECs) were treated with EFV (1, 5 and 10 g/ml) and endothelial permeability was determined by a transwell system with a fluorescence-labeled dextran tracer. HCAECs treated with EFV showed a significant increase of endothelial permeability in a concentration-dependent manner. With real time PCR analysis, EFV significantly reduced the mRNA levels of tight junction proteins claudin-1, occludin, zonula occluden-1 and junctional adhesion molecule-1 compared with controls (P < 0.05). Protein levels of these tight junction molecules were also reduced substantially in the EFV-treated cells by western blot and flow cytometry analyses. In addition, EFV also increased superoxide anion production with dihydroethidium and cellular glutathione assays, while it decreased mitochondrial membrane potential with inkgolide B nTBAP NK F B JC-staining. Antioxidants (ginkgolide B and MnTBAP) effectively blocked EFV-induced endothelial permeability and mitochondrial dysfunction. Furthermore, EFV increased the phosphorylation of MAPK JNK and I B , thereby increasing NF B translocation to the nucleus. Chemical JNK inhibitor and dominant negative mutant JNK and I B adenoviruses effectively blocked the effects of EFV on HCAECs. Thus, EFV increases endothelial permeability which may be due to the decrease of tight junction proteins and the increase of superoxide anion. JNK and NF B activation may be directly involved in the signal transduction HCAE pathway of EFV action in


Research suggests that gaming can play an important role in dealing with life difficulties, but few studies have examined this directly. Building on recent research, the current study set out to develop a measure of gaming in difficult life situations (GDLS) and explored the role of emotion regulation and coping self-efficacy as predictors of this behaviour. A total of 667 gamers completed the online survey. Initial analyses demonstrated validity and reliability of the GDLS scale (α = .92), with players turning to gaming as a distraction from life difficulties, to feel a sense of achievement, to connect with others, and for in-game connection and simulation. Multiple regression analysis showed that younger age, more time spent gaming in general, and lower coping self-efficacy predicted GDLS, but emotion regulation was non-significant. The study presents novel insights and a new measure for future research in this area.


The authors discuss about the questions connected with the time of the storage of the human cryopreserved preembryos. After approaching the different interest of the participants and giving the variable international statements the authors are preparing their suggestion for the limitation of the storage of the cryopreserved human preembryos.


Broader adoption of timber construction is a strategy for reducing negative greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions created by the construction industry. This paper proposes a novel solid timber building envelope that uses computational design and digital fabrication to improve buildings' energy performance. Timber beams are sawn with deep slits that improve thermal insulation and are milled with various joints for airtight, structural connections. To minimize embedded energy and to simplify disposal, the envelope is assembled without adhesives or metal fasteners. The building envelope is evaluated for thermal resistance and airtightness, and fabrication is evaluated for duration and power output during sawing. Finally, a Lifecycle Assessment (LCA) is carried out. The Global Warming Potential (GWP) is compared to that of other wood envelope systems with similar thermal conductance. Compared to other timber constructions with similar building physics properties, the proposed system showed lower GWP values (−15.63 kg CO2 eq./m² construction). The development and analysis demonstrate the potential to use digitally controlled subtractive manufacturing for improving the quality of solid timber to achieve higher environmental performance in building envelopes. However, further design and fabrication optimizations may be necessary to reduce required materials and production energy.


This thesis explores the ways in which Canadian poverty is represented in mainstream Canadian news media. The examination begins with the dominant poverty paradigms that characterize current poverty discourse. These paradigms, identified as Individual Responsibility, Structural Responsibility, and the Culture of Poverty, help to structure the ways that poverty has been and continues to be articulated. The paradigm of Individual Responsibility suggests that the individual is ultimately responsible for his or her own socio-economic conditions. The paradigm of Structural Responsibility suggests that various socio-economic structures are responsible for the creation of poverty and the subsequent management of the poor. The Culture of Poverty paradigm and its Right Wing variant the Underclass suggest that due to isolation from the non-poor mainstream society, certain poor communities have developed a variety of specific and sometimes deviant characteristics and values that promote the reproduction of poverty within that community. This discussion is followed by a theoretical overview of representation, discourse, and the codes and techniques associated with the production of "objective" news. Here, this thesis discusses the importance of the inverted pyramid, frames of reference, primary definers, and constructed dichotomies. Finally, this thesis offers a content analysis of poverty articles as they appear over a 2-month period in The Vancouver Sun , The Vancouver Province , and The Globe and Mail , three large-circulation Canadian newspapers. Based upon this analysis, this thesis suggests that news media tend to reinforce beliefs associated with the paradigm of Structural Responsibility. This is due to: news media's preference for official and institutional interpretations of events and issues; the prevalence of stories about particular institutions and structural decisions; the dominance of stories written by generalists trained to recognize and maximize general newsworthiness; and the prevalence of event-based coverage.


Abstract The purpose of this paper is to provide a unified account of the behavior of wh-in-situ questions in Spanish (i.e., non-neutral word order and the Sentence Final Requirement). The analysis presented argues that phonological properties govern the distribution of in-situ wh-phrases. More precisely, in-situ whphrases in Spanish need to appear last within their intonational phrase. Following insights from Stjepanović (1999, 2003) on the interaction between stress assignment (Zubizarreta 1998) and the Copy Theory of movement (Chomsky 1993), I argue that in-situ wh-phrases need to appear in final position to receive main stress via the Nuclear Stress Rule. I show that in-situ wh-phrases are spell-outs of lower copies. This analysis captures the behavior of all in-situ wh-phrases in Spanish.


Super-absorbent polyaspartic acid/carboxymethyl Salix psammophila powder (PASP/CMS) hydrogel was prepared by aqueous solution polymerization. PASP/CMS hydrogel was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results showed that PASP/CMS hydrogel is prepared by graft copolymerization of the -COOH of polyaspartic acid (PASP) and the -CH2OH of CMS. The surface of the hydrogel became dense from loose porosity, and Pb2+ and Cd2+ were adsorbed onto the surface of hydrogel. The crystallinity of CMS was destroyed by the addition of PASP. The initial concentration of Pb2+ and Cd2+, pH, adsorption time and adsorption temperature on the adsorption effect were studied through experiments. Results showed that hydrogel has a good removal effect on Pb(II) and Cd(II) ions. Pseudo-second-order kinetics and Langmuir isotherm models are represented in the process, which are spontaneous, exothermic and decreased in randomness, and it is a single layer chemical adsorption. At the same time, the effect of desorption experimental parameters (HNO3 initial concentration, desorption time, and desorption temperature) on the experiment was studied and optimized.


Background: To report the incidence and risk factors of suction loss during small incision lenticule extraction (SMILE).Methods: This retrospective comparative case control study included 8487 eyes of 4261 patients. Patients underwent SMILE surgery between January 2014 and September 2019 were included. Videos of suction loss were reviewed, and the direct causes of suction loss were noted. An independent samples t-test was used for comparisons between the suction loss group and the control group. A binary logistic regression model was used to determine the possible significant risk factors that might increase the likelihood of suction loss during SMILE surgery.Results: Suction loss occurred in 31 (0.37%) eyes of 30 patients; 23 (74%) cases occurred in the right eye (the first operative eye) and 8 (26%) cases occurred in the left eye. Among the 30 patients, 23 (76.7%) were male and 7 (23.3%) were female. The incidence in the six consecutive years were 0%, 2.13%, 0.34%, 0.24%, 0.22%, and 0.23%. Head and eye movements during surgery caused suction loss in 15 (48.4%) and 16 (51.6%) eyes, respectively. Comparison between the suction loss group and the control group showed that the first operative eye and male gender are at a significantly high risk for suction loss (p < 0.05).Conclusions: Surgical experience may influence the incidence of suction loss during SMILE surgery. The two events that easily led to suction loss were head and eye movements. The risk factors were first operative eye and male gender.Trial registration: Retrospectively registered. ChiCTR-ORC-17011040. Registered 1 April 2017. Name of registry: The observation of clinical results after corneal refractive surgery. Data of enrolment of the first participant to the trial: 1 January 2014.


The aim of this work is to compare shifts in the consumer behaviour of Russian households since the mid - nineties till nowadays. The research considers the consumer behaviour of the Russians over almost the maximum possible available data RLMS period, focusing on the crisis years. Special attention is paid to analysis of the effects of crises in 1998 and 2008. To reveal effects as shifts in consumer behaviour in the aftermath of two crises panel data analysis is used to estimate QAIDS model. Due to the complete sample attrition observed in RLMS dataset since 1994, pseudo-panel approach is used.


Objective: Bilateral endolymphatic sac tumors (ELSTs) are associated with von Hippel-Lindau disease and often underlie significant audiovestibular morbidity, including hearing loss. Patient: This 44-year-old female von Hippel-Lindau disease patient presented with tinnitus, vertigo, and binaural hearing loss. Magnetic resonance and computed tomography imaging demonstrated bilateral ELSTs, and audiometry confirmed bilateral hearing loss. Intervention: The patient underwent staged resection of the ELSTs (left then right). After resection of the left ELST and during the same operation, a cochlear implant was placed. Main Outcome Measures: Clinical, audiometric, and imaging data. Results: Postoperatively, the patient had resolution of tinnitus and vertigo with a significant implant-aided improvement in hearing. Conclusion: Because of their unique anatomic and biologic features, resection of bilateral tumors and cochlear implantation in deaf ELST patients is a potential option to improve hearing and quality of life.


Accounts of the development of a successful construction project often stress the importance of team relationship, project environment and senior management commitment. Numbers of studies carried out in the past decades indicate there needs to be a change of culture and attitude in the construction industry. In order for a turn around in the industry, relational contracting approaches have become more popular in recent years. However, not all relational contracting projects were successful. This paper details the fundamental principles of relational contracting. It further reports findings of a research currently taking place in Australia, how effective is relational contracting in practice.

The problem addressed in this research is the implementation of relational contracting:
• Throughout a range of projects
• With a focus on client body staff

The context within which the research was undertaken is:
• Empowerment, regional development and promotion of a sustainable industry
• The participating organisations have experience of partnering and alliancing
• Success has been proven on large projects but performance is variable
• Need has been identified to examine skill sets needed for successful partnering/alliancing

The practical rationale behind this research is that:
• Partnering and alliancing require a change of mind set – a culture change
• The Client side must change along with contracting side
• A fit is required between organisation structure and organisation culture

Research Rationale:
The rationale behind this project has been to conduct research within participating organisations, analyse, rationalise and generalise results and then move on to produce generic deliverables and "participating organisation specific" deliverables. This paper sets out the work so far, the links between the various elements and a plan for turning the research output into industry deliverables.


This article examines the ways in which newly arrived pupils are integrated into the school community and how pupils are supported in adopting the language of instruction. We see language learning as a socialization process: language is for interaction, and through language we situate ourselves in social reality. The article draws on two data sources: a survey of preparatory education teachers in Finland and research project publications drawing on ethnographic data collected in preparatory classes. The survey responses indicate that in some schools, the basis for the integration of newly arrived pupils has been built into the school culture; in others, structures such as group size and spatial arrangement challenge the creation of functional practices. The classroom studies suggest that in the early stages of language learning, learners benefit the most from the linguistic model of their peers, while later, when learning subject- specific content, teachers' support is crucial for them.


ABSTRACT Laboratory studies were conducted to evaluate the effects of treating military canvas tent fabric with bifenthrin and permethrin on the survival of the eggs and larvae of Aedes aegypti. Gravid female Ae aegypti were able to oviposit on tent canvas treated with either bifenthrin or permethrin. However, none of the eggs laid on treated canvas hatched, and no larvae added to water in treated trays survived. Low residual concentrations of bifenthrin and permethrin on treated canvas prevented the development of eggs and larvae of Ae. aegypti. Inhibition of bloodfeeding was shown when Ae. aegypti adults were exposed to lower concentrations (10–50% of operational concentrations) of bifenthrin- and permethrin-treated canvas tent fabric. These experiments have shown that military tent canvas treated with either bifenthrin or permethrin can reduce the development of Ae. aegypti eggs and larvae and reduce bloodfeeding success of adults.


Un-Mastering the Script: The Struggle to Include the Haitian Other in Dominican Identity, examines how negative, culturally entrenched attitudes toward Haiti held by Dominicans shape school-based representations of Dominican identity and history. This book argues that textbooks used in the Dominican Republic falsely represent Dominican and Haitian identity as diametric opposites by situating Haiti and Haitians as the "other" in order to construct the fundamental elements of Dominican identity. Through the lens of critical race theory, this book analyzes the construction of Dominican identity via the Haitian other master script through curricula mediums in Dominican elementary schools. As applied to curriculum and instruction in the Dominican Republic, critical race theory guides us to an understanding that textbooks serve as a medium to communicate the master script of the existence of a pigmentocracy and the supposed superiority of whiteness. Critical race theory informs this book's thesis, which is the pigmentocracy and white European superiority - black African inferiority narrative in Dominican curriculum is aimed at framing, communicating, and reinforcing the Haitian other master script in the Dominican Republic.


SUMMARY Studies of the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae have greatly advanced our understanding of the posttranscriptional steps of eukaryotic gene expression. Given the wide range of experimental tools applicable to S. cerevisiae and the recent determination of its complete genomic sequence, many of the key challenges of the posttranscriptional control field can be tackled particularly effectively by using this organism. This article reviews the current knowledge of the cellular components and mechanisms related to translation and mRNA decay, with the emphasis on the molecular basis for rate control and gene regulation. Recent progress in characterizing translation factors and their protein-protein and RNA-protein interactions has been rapid. Against the background of a growing body of structural information, the review discusses the thermodynamic and kinetic principles that govern the translation process. As in prokaryotic systems, translational initiation is a key point of control. Modulation of the activities of translational initiation factors imposes global regulation in the cell, while structural features of particular 5′ untranslated regions, such as upstream open reading frames and effector binding sites, allow for gene-specific regulation. Recent data have revealed many new details of the molecular mechanisms involved while providing insight into the functional overlaps and molecular networking that are apparently a key feature of evolving cellular systems. An overall picture of the mechanisms governing mRNA decay has only very recently begun to develop. The latest work has revealed new information about the mRNA decay pathways, the components of the mRNA degradation machinery, and the way in which these might relate to the translation apparatus. Overall, major challenges still to be addressed include the task of relating principles of posttranscriptional control to cellular compartmentalization and polysome structure and the role of molecular channelling in these highly complex expression systems.


Computational Phenotype Discovery research has taken various pragmatic approaches to disentangling phenotypes from the episodic observations in Electronic Health Records. In this work, we use transformation into continuous, longitudinal curves to abstract away the sparse irregularity of the data, and we introduce probabilistic independence as a guiding principle for disentangling phenotypes into patterns that may more closely match true pathophysiologic mechanisms. We use the identification of liver disease patterns that presage development of Hepatocellular Carcinoma as a proof-of-concept demonstration.


Economic development theories are the supporting structure of growth literature. In view of this, this paper attempts to review selected economic development theories with the aim of highlighting their relevance to the growing empirical debate on growth and development. From the front of classical theories of economic development came the modernisation theory which focuses on effecting transformation among institutional structures in less developed countries of the world through cultural changes while buttressing that political development is indispensable in ensuring progress and conducive environment for a nation's economic status. The theory, therefore, acknowledges the important role of politics in formulation and implementations of policies. As a response to criticisms of the dependency school and the theory of modernization, the world-systems and globalization theory emerged as direct outgrowth of the modernity and the dependency. The world-systems and globalization theories argue for a systemic level or unit of analyses order than a state-centric approach to social and economic progress while proposing a knowledge economy where cutting-edge technology plays major role in global industrialisation, capital accumulation. Furthermore, the theory of neoliberalism argue that free global trade can drive economic growth and large businesses can benefit more without government intervention.


Dynamic networks like Online Social Networks or Disruption Tolerant Networks (DTNs), when considering their spatial, temporal and size complexity, even if partly wired, are exposed to nodes and links churns and failures which can be modeled with dynamic graphs with time varying edges and vertices. Recently, it has been shown that dynamic networks exhibit some regularity in their temporal contact patterns. The impact of this regularity on network performances has not been well studied and analyzed. One of the most interesting problem in research on dynamic networks is the issue of efficient navigation techniques in such networks. For dynamic networks, because there is still no widely developed theoretical background to understand deeply the problems, research traditionally tends to propose heuristic solutions. In the context of DTNs, these solutions tend to answer to some specific questions about navigating in a dynamic network (e.g., how to reduce energy consumption of routing, how to maximize the delivery probability) while usually ignoring and not leveraging on the profound structural properties of the dynamic network. In this work, we aim to contribute to understanding the impact of this dynamic structure on information routing and show how to exploit this structure for efficient navigation in such networks.


Polyacrylamide-degrading fungus was selected from the soil in the chemical plant producting polyacrylamide, and it was named PAMF4. It is capable of utilizing polyacrylamide as sole nitrogen source. According to the morphological characteristics and 18S rRNA sequence analysis, the strain was preliminarily identified as Geotrichum candidum. As the indices with PAMF4 growth and polyacrylamide degradation rate, it was studied that effects of the main environmental factors (initial pH, temperature, polyacrylamide concentration and inoculation amount) on PAMF4 growth and degradation capacity. The results indicated that the most appropriate conditions of PAMF4 growth and polyacryl-amide degradation were as fallows: pH was 7.0, temperature was 30 °C, polyacrylamide concentration was 500 mg·L 1 and inoculation quantity (v/v) was 3%, while degradation rate of polyacrylamide in basic culture medium was 32.61 % in 8d.


Background: Emotional development in the teenage is important to know and care by the parent and health care provider. It because at this time there are many of emotional changes include feelings of shame, self-awareness, loneliness and depression that stronger than other age. Also in this age, adolescents have the feeling of independence and also need of intimate and support by the parents who can manifest in affective functions of the family.Therefore, during this period there are many conflict in parents and children because of that. So affective function of family are needed to protect and support especially for teenagers.
Objective: This study aims to determine the relationship between affective function of family and emotional intelligence in teenagers Ages 12-15 Years
Methods: The research method was cross sectional with incidental sampling technique sampling. 84 respondents aged 12-15 years (male 48 and female 36 people). This research was conducted in June 2011. The results were processed by Chi-Square test of computer software.
Results: This study showed that there was a significant relationship between affective functions of the family and the emotional intelligence in teenager aged 12-15 years in Ogan Ilir Palembang (p value 0.018, α ≤ 0.05) and OR = 3.214.
Conclusions : Parent and helath care provider should be given information and guidance about importance of good affective functioning in the family to support the emotional intelligence.


Although studying the history of violence invites a broad methodological and topical diversity, three issues have predominated: the relationship between quantitative and qualitative methods, the notion of a "civilizing process," and the topic of gender. As "violence" refers to physical acts as well as to cultural understandings of those acts, coming to terms with its history has meant fusing quantitative, social-history emphases on social structure and behavior with qualitative, cultural approaches to understanding narrative and discourse. There is now a consensus that, over the long term, rates of interpersonal violence declined between the late Middle Ages and the middle of the twentieth century; nonetheless, over the same period violence played an ever more prominent role among people's social fears. Building upon these findings, some historians of violence assert that a "civilizing process"– involving new patterns of social interaction and psychological restraint – has affected both the social reality and cultural construction of violence. In these and other approaches, gender has emerged as the most prominent of a variety of central concerns, although its specific role in shaping the cultures and patterns of violence remains unclear and debated.