Security in smart homes is becoming increasingly important as more and more devices are becoming available on the market and the information that they handle is of a sensitive nature. Historical attacks have shown that smart homes can contribute to attacks that could have severe consequences both for their users and for society. While much work is being done on finding security solutions for IoT and smart homes, there has yet to be a consensus on what solutions are optimal. In this thesis we present the state of research in the field and introduce a potential security solution for the smart home. The security solution, called the security supervisor, is a network-based solution located in a smart hub which detects malicious activity within a smart home network. Detection of two attacks are implemented as a proof-of-concept, namely botnet device detection and Evil-Twin attack detection. The results show that the security supervisor is able to detect the former but not the latter, but the authors argue that a similar platform would be able to contribute to increased security and mitigate many threats towards smart homes.


In an experimental study, 150 general practitioners studied 468 apparently healthy subjects whose blood pressure (BP) level was unknown or had not been measured for 1 year. The study lasted for 10 weeks. If BP was > 95 mm Hg on the first two visits, subjects were randomized into two experimental groups for 8 weeks, with cross-over from betaxolol to placebo and vice versa after 4 weeks. Quality of life was measured at visits 1, 3 (2 weeks), 5 (6 weeks), and 7 (10 weeks) in five ways: well-being, physical state, sexual functioning, sleep, and cognitive acuity. BP level appeared to be effectively controlled by betaxolol as compared with placebo. The results show that no effects on quality of life could be detected by labeling subjects as hypertensives. Equally, almost no effects of active treatment could be established. Learning effects on the two cognitive acuity measurements used were attenuated by betaxolol, however. Apparently, in a carefully controlled study, the effects of increased medical attention and care outweigh the potentially negative effects of labeling and treatment.


Previous studies in our laboratory have demonstrated that cell-free systems translating the Mahoney strain of poliovirus type I RNA utilize two unique initiation sites. In this study, defective-interfering particles of poliovirus, which contain deletions in the region encoding the capsid proteins, are shown to initiate translation of proteins in vitro at these same two sites. Both the standard virus and the defective-interfering virus RNA direct the synthesis of two polypeptides labeled with n-formyl-methionine (fmet) at their amino termini. The size of the smaller fmet polypeptide synthesized in vitro by the defective virus appears identical in size to that of the standard virus. However, the larger-molecular-weight fmet polypeptide is reduced in size from 115,000 to 69,000 daltons. This correlates exactly with the reduced size of the precursor to the capsid proteins synthesized by the defective virus in vivo and with the size of the deletion in the defective virus RNA (1,200 bases). This provides genetic evidence that the 115,000-dalton fmet polypeptide synthesized into vitro by the standard virus is NCVP1a, the precursor to the coat proteins. Although the identity of the small (5,000 to 10,000 daltons) fmet polypeptide is not clear, several lines of evidence enable us to exclude the possibility that it is VP4, the smallest viral capsid protein.


The tectonic framework of the northwest quadrant of the circum-Pacific orogenic belt is explained as the result of the process postulated in the theory of growing continental masses. The festoons of island arcs marked by the Nampo Shoto, Northern Japan, the Kuriles, Kamchatka, and the Aleutian Islands are the most recent additions to the northeastern part of the Asian Continent and have resulted from late Mesozoic and Tertiary orogenies. Japan and Kamchatka are polycyclic orogenic mountain arcs and were part of older festoons of island and mountain arcs extending from Kamchatka through Formosa and the Philippines. Early orogenic movements can be traced in Japan in the late Devonian, Carboniferous, and middle Permian. The present forms and positions of the Japanese Islands were probably defined during early Mesozoic orogenies. In narrow, coastal areas of northwest Honshu, western Hokkaido, and southwest Sakhalin, small production of oil and gas is obtained from Upper Tertiary formations on folded and faulted structures fringing the mobile side of the Japan Sea sedimentary basin. In northeastern Sakhalin, more substantial oil production is obtained from Tertiary beds where structural and stratigraphic conditions suggest that the accumulations occur on the present, more or less stable side of the Okhotsk Sea idiogeosynclinal basin. New, and perhaps important, oil discoveries can be expected from structural folds located off the northwest coasts of Honshu and Hokkaido, and perhaps off the southwest coast of Sakhalin. Some oil may be found in small intramontane type basins in central and northwest Hokkaido. Additional production should be found in structural or stratigraphic traps off the northeast coast of Sakhalin.


s 16th World Congress on Disaster and Emergency Medicine slO7 donated for clinical courses and disaster medicine professionals donated training time. A regional conference was held to discuss regional activities and trends. Minimal funding yielded great achievements including training courses for > 1,200 medical responders, the creation of drill evaluation tools and videos, the establishment of training centers, an injury surveillance system, and the development of clinical pocket references. Networks were expanded through multi-country collaboration, and regional lessons were learned. The sustainability of disaster preparedness and response must be accomplished in collaboration with the local stakeholders in planning, implementation, and evaluation. International non-governmental organizations can facilitate positive disaster preparedness and response outcomes in developing countries and maximize the expertise within the country. They can promote follow-up activities, evaluate drills and training, and be valuable in the process because of their networks and international associations. Through minimal funding, many results can be achieved. Drills and disaster training prove to be a valuable method of multi-stakeholder collaboration in disaster response.


OBJECTIVE To assess the degree of learning ability in Parkinson's disease. METHODS Three different learning tasks: eyeblink classical conditioning with delay and trace paradigms, the California verbal learning test (CVLT), and a serial reaction time task (SRTT) were studied in patients with Parkinson's disease and normal (control) subjects. RESULTS In the eyeblink conditioning tasks, both patients and normal subjects showed significant learning effects without between group differences. In the CVLT, patients remembered significantly fewer words than normal subjects in both short term and long term cued recall tasks. In the SRTT, normal subjects had significantly reduced response time and error rates across blocks of repeated sequence trials, whereas patients had significantly reduced error, but not response time rates. CONCLUSION Impairment of nigrostriatal pathways selectively affects performance in complex learning tasks that are competitive and require alertness such as the SRTT, but not in simple learning procedures such as eyeblink conditioning.


We describe the case of a 76-year-old immunocompetent man suspected to have lung cancer in the right upper lobe on the basis of radiographic and clinical findings. The tumour could not be confirmed histologically by transbronchial biopsy. In the fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) we found a significantly elevated standard uptake value (SUV) of 13.4. The patient underwent thoracotomy with excision of the tumour, the histological diagnosis was chronic pneumonia. Tissue culture revealed Nocardia spp. Using 16-rDNA-gene sequence analysis the species was identified as Nocardia abscessus. The patient was treated with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazol regarding the susceptibility profile and improved remarkably both clinically and radiographically.


Collagen-based materials can be designed for use as scaffolds for connective tissue reconstruction. The goal of the present study was to evaluate the behavior of collagen materials as well as cell and tissue reactions after the conjugation of activated polyethylene glycols (PEGs) with collagen. It is known that proteins conjugated with PEGs exhibit a decrease in their biodegradation rate and their immunogenicity. Different concentrations and molecular weights of activated PEGs (PEG-750 and PEG-5000) were conjugated to collagen materials (films or sponges) which were then investigated by collagenase assay, fibroblast cell culture, and subcutaneous implantation. PEG-conjugated collagen sponge degradation by collagenase was delayed in comparison to untreated sponges. In culture, fibroblasts with a normal morphology reached confluency on PEG-conjugated collagen films. In vivo, the porous structure of non-modified sponges collapsed by day 15 with a few observable fibroblasts between the collagen fibers. In PEG-modified collagen sponges, the porous structure remained stable for 30 days. Cell infiltration was particularly enhanced in PEG-750-conjugated collagen sponges. In conclusion, PEGs conjugated onto collagen sponges stabilize the porous structure without deactivating the biological properties of collagen. These porous composite materials could function as a scaffold to organize tissue ingrowth.


The accuracy of excited states calculated with Kohn-Sham density functional theory using the maximum overlap method has been assessed for the calculation of adiabatic excitation energies, excited state structures, and excited state harmonic and anharmonic vibrational frequencies for open-shell singlet excited states. The computed Kohn-Sham adiabatic excitation energies are improved significantly by post self-consistent field spin-purification, but remain too low compared with experiment with a larger error than time-dependent density functional theory. Excited state structures and vibrational frequencies are also improved by spin-purification. The structures show a comparable accuracy to time-dependent density functional theory, while the harmonic vibrational frequencies are found to be more accurate for the majority of vibrational modes. The computed harmonic vibrational frequencies are also further improved by perturbative anharmonic corrections, suggesting a good description of the potential energy surface. Overall, excited state Kohn-Sham density functional theory is shown to provide an efficient method for the calculation of excited state structures and vibrational frequencies in open-shell singlet systems and provides a promising technique that can be applied to study large systems.


This analysis examines supranational constitutionalism in the European Union. In particular, the study focuses on the role of the European Court of Justice in the creation of women's rights. I examine the interaction between the Court and member state governments in legal integration, and also the integral role that women's advocates – both individual activists and groups – have played in the development of EU social provisions. The findings suggest that this litigation dynamic can have the effect of fueling the integration process by creating new rights that may empower social actors and EU organizations, with the ultimate effect of diminishing member state government control over the scope and direction of EU law. This study focuses specifically on gender equality law, yet provides a general framework for examining the case law in subsequent legal domains, with the purpose of providing a more nuanced understanding of supranational governance and constitutionalism.


Senescence of cells is associated with shortened or damaged telomeres and is characterized by permanent exit from the cell cycle and altered function. Cellular senescence is caused by repeated cell division, and also conditions of stress including inflammation and reactive oxygen species can lead to the development of premature senescence. At the cellular level, proliferative and oxidative-stress induced cell senescence related to a pro-inflammatory state might strongly contribute to age-associated impaired tissue and organ functions. Vascular cells (endothelial cells, vascular smooth muscle cells) and bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells have been repeatedly shown to have pivotal role in the maintenance and regeneration of cardiovascular tissue. Therefore, the molecular mechanisms of vascular cell senescence have been extensively studied. However, therapeutic approaches to prevent cellular senescence in cardiovascular disease (CVD) are still limited. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and fibroblast growth factor (FGF) are all potent angiogenic growth factors in animal models of ischemia, but their therapeutic effects are not the same in animal experiments and clinical trials. A multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled phase III clinical trial in Japan and a US phase II clinical trial of HGF gene therapy for critical limb ischemia (CLI) demonstrated a significant improvement in primary end points and an increase in transcutaneous partial pressure of oxygen even after one year compared with placebo, whereas effectiveness of VEGF and FGF treatment for CLI has not yet been shown. Moreover, our recent publication and another researcher demonstrated that HGF acts as an anti-inflammatory cytokine, while VEGF and FGF act as pro-inflammatory cytokine. This review overviews the outcomes of clinical trials using angiogenic growth factors, which have shown a dramatic effect in several animal studies. Additionally, interventions with HGF aimed at improving the regenerative capacity of stem/progenitor cells and vascular cells by preventing cellular senescence are discussed.


The requirement for a small but powerful space tug, which will be capable of autonomous orbital rendezvous, docking and translating cargos between near-earth orbits by the end of this decade to support the growing national and international space infrastructure focused near the Space Station Freedom, is described. An aggregate of missions drives the need for a space tug including reboosting decaying satellites back to their operational altitudes, retrieving failed or exhausted satellites to Shuttle or SSF for on-orbit refueling or repair, and transporting a satellite servicer system with an FTS to ailing satellites for supervised in-place repair. It is shown that the development and operation of a space tug to perform such numerous missions is more cost effective than separate module and satellite systems to perform the same tasks.


Coronavirus disease COVID-19 has become a pandemic of the 21st century. According to the WHO data, more than 6.2 million people have died worldwide. Arterial hypertension (AH) is a risk factor for a severe course of COVID-19. AH doubles the risk of a lethal outcome twice. Therefore, the determination of the antihypertensive drug effect on the clinical course of coronavirus disease COVID-19 complicated by pneumonia is actual.
Aim. The research is aimed to determine the effect of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and angiotensin-II receptor blockers (ARBs) on the course of coronavirus disease COVID-19 complicated by pneumonia in unvaccinated patients with AH.
Materials and methods. 77 unvaccinated patients hospitalized for coronavirus disease COVID-19 complicated by pneumonia were enrolled in the research. The patients included in the research were divided into 3 groups: the first group included 41 patients treated with ACE inhibitors, the second group included 22 patients who received ARBs, and the control group included 14 patients who took neither ACEi nor ARBs. None of the patients received statins.
Results. The mean age in the three groups did not differ statistically (69.0 ± 2.6 years in the first group, 68.0 ± 2.9 years in the second group and 69.0 ± 6.4 years in the control group, p = 0.91). There was not statistical difference in body mass index in patients of all three groups (28.0 ± 1.6 kg/m2 in the first group, 29.3 ± 2.4 kg/m2 in the second and 28.1 ± 2.8 kg/m2 in the control group, p = 0.67). 5 (12.2%) patients in the first group, 4 (18.2%) patients in the second group and 2 (14.3%) patients in the third group died (p = 0.81). Oxygen therapy was used in 16 (39.0%) patients of the first group and in 14 (63.6%) patients of the second group (p = 0.07). During the hospital stay, a decline in the oxygen saturation <92% was observed in 17 (41.5%) patients of the first group, 12 (54.5%) in patients of the second group and 5 (35.7%) patients of the third group (p = 0.48). There was no significant difference in the number of patients treated with continuous positive airway pressure in all three groups (p=0.83), as well as invasive mechanical ventilation (p = 0.91). In the first and second groups, shortness of breath at the time of discharge was observed less frequently compared with the control group (p = 0.03). The number of points on the CAP-Sym questionnaire at the time of hospitalization was 25.8 ± 3.3 points in the first group, 29.5 ± 5.6 points in the second group and 26.5 ± 7.2 points in the control group (p = 0.51). At the time of discharge, the number of points on the CAP-Sym questionnaire in patients of the first group was 14.0 ± 2.5 points, in patients of the second group - 18.2 ± 3.7 points, in patients of the control group - 17.3 ± 4.4 points (p = 0.14).
Conclusions. There was no effect of ACEi and ARBs on the severity and mortality of pneumonia associated with coronavirus disease COVID-19, compared with other antihypertensive drugs. Patients receiving ACE inhibitors tended to require supplemental oxygen less frequently than patients receiving ARBs. Patients taking ACE inhibitors or ARBs were less likely to complain of shortness of breath at the time of discharge than patients with hypertension whose antihypertensive therapy included neither ACE inhibitors nor ARBs.


The Standard Model describes the smallest building blocks of our universe, so-called quarks and leptons, and the forces that act on them. The building blocks can bundle into larger and heavier particles. These composite particles are called hadrons. One of the best-known hadrons is the proton. The Higgs boson, which was first detected in 2012, explains how the smallest building blocks get their mass. However, the Higgs mechanism only explains 1% of the mass of the proton. The other 99% arises from internal strong forces that are not yet well-understood. To better understand the 99%, it is important to study the production of hadrons in different processes, and to obtain information from as many different decay reactions as possible. Hadrons of the charmonia group, such as J/psi and the ground state eta_c, are highly suitable particles for this, and result in a relatively easy-to-interpret spectrum of narrow peaks that do not overlap. In this thesis the radiative decay of J/psi into a proton (p) and antiproton (pbar) is studied. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of the full spectrum of the proton-antiproton invariant mass, and especially to gain more insight into the poorly-understood properties of the intermediate resonance eta_c. In this study, a special multidimensional analysis, a so-called partial-wave analysis, was applied for the first time to the radiative decay from J/psi to eta_c. This study is based on data taken by the Beijing Spectrometer (BES) III, which has collected world's largest dataset of J/psi reactions.


The production of enterotoxins A, B, and C by nine strains of Staphylococcus aureus has been studied under controlled conditions in a fermenter. The strain to strain differences between staphylococci producing a specific enterotoxin were very marked. Increasing aeration in shake flasks improved both growth and production of all extracellular proteins measured other than that of enterotoxin C, the yield of which was decreased in one strain at high aeration. Silicone antifoam decreased the production of extracellular proteins, although enterotoxin A production from three strains was much less affected than that of enterotoxins B and C. In a detailed study of three strains, production of enterotoxins A and C was considerably greater in a defined amino acid medium than in a casein hydrolysate medium and was optimal for all three enterotoxins between pH 6.5 and 7.3. Changes in the pH or medium used in the fermenter that led to increased enterotoxin production could generally be correlated with a change in growth pattern, showing an extended transition period from exponential to stationary phase. Three out of five enterotoxin-A producing strains produced significantly more enterotoxin at a controlled pH of 6.5 in the fermenter than in shake-flask cultures. The yields with strain 100 were about five times greater than hitherto reported. Since many foods are buffered at pH 6 to 6.5, some strains may, therefore, produce sufficient enterotoxin A to cause food poisoning, although little or none may be produced when grown under normal testing procedures.


Abstract This paper presents the development of a lattice physics–to–core simulator two-step procedure for the rapid analysis of the Advanced High Temperature Reactor (AHTR). Lattice physics, reflector, and control blade models were developed from which cross-section libraries could be generated for a nodal core simulator. Few-group structures for the core simulator were also generated to account for the neutronic characteristics of AHTR. After developing the AHTR two-step procedure, cross-section libraries were generated using the SERPENT continuous-energy Monte Carlo code. These libraries were then used in the core simulator NESTLE to perform full-core calculations, which were in turn benchmarked against reference SERPENT full-core models. Benchmarking results showed reasonable accuracy of the developed two-step procedure but revealed an inherent inadequacy in the one-dimensional radial reflector model and showed a likely need for a greater number of energy groups than were used in this study.


We use the multiconfiguration Dirac–Hartree–Fock (MCDHF) method combined with the relativistic configuration interaction approach (GRASP2K) to provide a consistent set of transition energies and radiative transition data for the lower n = 3 states in all Cl-like ions of astrophysical importance, from Cr viii to Zn xiv. We also provide excitation energies calculated for Fe x using the many-body perturbation theory (MBPT, implemented within FAC). The comparison of the present MCDHF results with MBPT and with the available experimental energies indicates that the theoretical excitation energies are highly accurate, with uncertainties of only a few hundred cm−1. Detailed comparisons for Fe x and Ni xii highlight discrepancies in the experimental energies found in the literature. Several new identifications are proposed.


Water is the major component of cells and tissues throughout all forms of life. Fluxes of water and solutes through cell membranes and epithelia are essential for osmoregulation and energy homeostasis. Aquaporins are membrane channels expressed in almost every organism and involved in the bidirectional transfer of water and small solutes across cell membranes. Aquaporins have important biological roles and have been implicated in several pathophysiological conditions suggesting a great translational potential in aquaporin-based diagnostics and therapeutics. Detecting aquaporin function is critical for assessing regulation and screening for new activity modulators that can prompt the development of efficient medicines. Appropriate methods for functional analysis comprising suitable cell models and techniques to accurately evaluate water and solute membrane permeability are essential to validate aquaporin function and assess short-term regulation. The present review describes established assays commonly used to assess aquaporin function in cells and tissues, as well as the experimental biophysical strategies required to reveal functional regulation and identify modulators, the first step for aquaporin drug discovery.


After opening the embassies of European states in the center of the Ottoman Empire, intensive diplomatic relations began between the both sides. Interpreters are played an important role as mediator agents of two different world. Republic of Venice attributed a special importance to interpretership. Also, an interpreter training school was opened. Venetian interpreters who undertook various tasks were in Istanbul a certain period or all of their lives. They obtained interpreting berat from Ottoman rule to have a number of exemptions. Corci Tomazo, one of this interpreters, was died in Istanbul in 1672. His estate was recorded by the court of Galata. In this study, historical information was given about embassies interpreters, firstly. Later, the estate of Corci has been viewed. A more general conclusions have been reached on the basis of the estate of this interpreter.


Regeneration of large acute and chronic wounds is a concern worldwide. The present study evaluates wound healing competence of a completely human-origin, extracellular matrix (ECM)-based skin substitute/graft. It comprises cell-less amniotic membrane (AM), clinical-grade fibrin (FIB), and hyaluronic acid (HA) termed as AMFIBHA. The use of large-area third-degree rabbit burn wounds evaluated the product efficiency. The AMFIBHA induces hemostasis and permits suture-less positioning on the wound bed. In wet wounds, the AMFIBHA degrades and release biologically active molecules and guide cell migration, proliferation, and regeneration. The study demonstrated the effectiveness of this wound care product in terms of epithelial-dermal regeneration with angiogenesis. The study assessed injury-associated inflammation and different wound healing markers after 28 days of experiment and compared with both positive and negative controls-treated wounds. The regeneration of mature epidermis and dermis with rete pegs and hair follicle-like structure was evident upon a single application. The active involvement of host cells resulted in supple tissue formation. The ECM organization of AMFIBHA-treated tissue resulted in re-gain of mechanical properties comparable to native skin after 56 days. These guided regenerative outcomes reveal a promising translational value of the novel AMFIBHA skin substitute as an off-the-shelf product for clinical use.


The Horodecki criterion provides a necessary and sufficient condition for a two-qubit state to be able to manifest Bell nonlocality via violation of the Clauser–Horne–Shimony–Holt (CHSH) inequality. It requires, however, the assumption that suitable projective measurements can be made on each qubit, and is not sufficient for scenarios in which noisy or weak measurements are either desirable or unavoidable. By characterising two-valued qubit observables in terms of strength, bias, and directional parameters, we address such scenarios by providing necessary and sufficient conditions for arbitrary qubit measurements having fixed strengths and relative angles for each observer. In particular, we find the achievable maximal values of the CHSH parameter for unbiased measurements on arbitrary states, and, alternatively, for arbitrary measurements on states with maximally-mixed marginals, and determine the optimal angles in some cases. We also show that for certain ranges of measurement strengths it is only possible to violate the CHSH inequality via biased measurements. Finally, we use the CHSH inequality to obtain a simple necessary condition for the compatibility of two qubit observables.


Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in the growth of the economy and have become a major concern for government and policy makers in developed, as well as in developing countries. Given the stated importance of SMEs in generating economic growth in Kuwait, it is essential that SMEs have access to sources of finance. However, access to finance is one of the major constraints to SME development, and is frequently mentioned in the entrepreneurship literature. This study aims to evaluate how Islamic financial institutions can support SMEs in Kuwait.
The study adopts a qualitative approach that was articulated through a case study design. The case here is the phenomenon of SME financing as enacted by two organisational forms. This research uses two comparative cases; the cases are formed around the nature of the financing organisations in Kuwait and the interaction of SME owners with these organisations. Twenty face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted with members of three different groups: SME owner-managers, managers of financial institutions, and Sharia board members to explore their opinions and perceptions with regard to the role of Islamic finance for SMEs.
The main findings indicate that, in Kuwait, access to finance remains a principal challenge for SMEs. Furthermore, collateral is one of the main problems they face when obtaining finance from Islamic banks. The findings suggested that without government support, the banks would not be able to finance SMEs, and therefore, specialised SME finance institutions were more compatible than other Islamic banks with small and medium enterprises. In addition, the study showed that Islamic finance instruments were more suitable than commercial instruments. It also showed that integrating zakat, charity, waqf, and qard hassan would be helpful to the SME sector in Kuwait.
The findings add to the understanding of the role of Islamic finance and contribute to knowledge about SME development, using Islamic finance methods, in Kuwait. This could encourage the government to adopt related policies in order to improve access to finance for SMEs.


This paper discusses how the long-term frequency of major transportation accidents can be estimated for a small country such as Norway, for which the observed frequency may not be a good estimate for long-term frequency. A major transportation accident is defined as an accident in which there are at least five fatalities. Estimates of the long-term expected frequency of major transportation accidents in Norway are developed by combining information from three sources. They consist of historical records: for Norway for the period 1970 to 2001 (32 years), for Great Britain for 1967 to 2001 (35 years), and for Europe for 1991 to 2003 (12.5 years). The use of formal techniques for decision analysis to help in setting policy priorities in prevention of major transportation accidents is discussed. Also, trade-offs between three safety-related policy objectives are discussed: preventing major accidents, reducing differences in accident risk, and seeking a maximum reduction of the total number of accidents. A trade-off between these policy objectives cannot be made by reliance on a single monetary valuation of safety, but it can in principle be made by treatment of the objectives as attributes of a multi-attributive goal structure that can be maximized by application of multi-attribute utility analysis. Utility values obtained in such an analysis in turn imply a set of monetary valuations reflecting the relative importance of the different policy objectives.


Many efforts are being made in translating the nanopore into an ultrasensitive single-molecule platform for various genetic and epigenetic detections. However, compared with current approaches including PCR, the low throughput limits the nanopore applications in biological research and clinical settings, which usually requires simultaneous detection of multiple biomarkers for accurate disease diagnostics. Herein we report a barcode probe approach for multiple nucleic acid detection in one nanopore. Instead of directly identifying different targets in a nanopore, we designed a series of barcode probes to encode different targets. When the probe is bound with the target, the barcode group polyethylene glycol attached on the probe through click chemistry can specifically modulate nanopore ion flow. The resulting signature serves as a marker for the encoded target. Therefore counting different signatures in a current recording allows simultaneous analysis of multiple targets in one nanopore. The principle of this approach was verified by using a panel of cancer-derived microRNAs as the target, a type of biomarker for cancer detection.


In the new Elettra full energy injector, bunch charge measurements will be performed by different types of current transformers (CT), depending on their position (single pass or multi pass sections). In the single pass sections (Linac and Transfer lines) a new type of current transformer (in-flange CT by Bergoz) will be used. Main advantage of this device is a compact and reliable design; they are also specially suited in space critical application. For the booster ring a standard DC current transformer will be used to measure the DC component of the circulating beam current. The housing has been developed in house, including the magnetic shield and the ceramic gap in the vacuum chamber. Furthermore, calculations of the trapped modes in the current monitor housing are described. Longitudinal coupling impedance and loss factors for these resonant modes are estimated and we showed that dissipated power is not critical with ELETTRA booster parameters.


The use of biodegradable polyurethane as medical appliance has rapidly become a fascinating new field of research in biomedical science. Tremendous progress has been made in this area during the last years. Applications of these materials in the field of organic repairing, tissue engineering and drug-controlled delivery system were reviewed. These new type materials possess excellent properties, such as good biocompatibility and mechanical strength, facile formation and inexpensive, so it can be expected to find wide application in the medical treatment in future.


A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence and identification of GIT parasites of sheep and goats in two selected districts of Afar from December 2014 to February 2016. Totally 590 faecal samples were collected from small ruminants (332 goat and 258 sheep) managed in pastoral and agro-pastoral production. Out of the total examined small ruminant 87.8% (518) were found to harbor one or more genera of helminth parasites. The result of the study revealed that 92.2% (306) of the goats and 82.2% (212) of the sheep were found positive for GIT parasites. Helminth parasites identified in small ruminant of the study area were Strongyles, Fasciola, Strongyloides, Paramphistomum, Trichuris, Ascaris and Monezia. The risk of infection with GIT helminth parasites in goats were 4.009 times higher than sheep (OR=4.009, p=0.011). Age and sex related difference was not observed in the prevalence of helminth parasites in sheep and goats. Significantly (OR=0.119, p=0.000) higher prevalence of overall helminth parasites in poor body condition sheep and goats than good body condition was observed. Likewise, significant variation in overall parasite prevalence was observed between the study districts (OR=0.169, p=0.000). In this study, species of the animals, origin, and body condition score are important risk factors associated with gastrointestinal parasites in the study area. In the study area nutrition is generally poor, low productivity in small ruminants is likely to be aggravated by a high prevalence of polyparasitism.


INTRODUCTION; The contoured orientation diagram is widely used as a method of displaying three-dimensional orientation data. However progress toward a quantitative understanding of the diagram has been slow. We attempt here to carry this understanding a step further by a theoretical and experimental investigation of the statistical properties of densities observed in the diagrams. The density of orientation data in a direction on the orientation diagram has been used in two way: first, to infer that the fabric studied departs significantly from a random fabric (Kamb, 1959); second, to characterize the degree of preferred orientation the fabric shows (Hopwood, 1968; Voll, 1960). While qualitative descriptions of a fabric as containing "strong" or "weak" preferred orientations are common, little use has been made of the more precise information the contoured orientation diagram contains. Practical applications of this information to rock mechanics (McMahon, 1967; Goodman, 1976) have prompted our study.


A 59-year-old obese female patient was diagnosed to be having severe pulmonary hypertension secondary to mixed connective tissue disease and pulmonary fibrosis. She presented for right hemi-colectomy for a large right-sided colonic polypoid mass and multiple polyps diagnosed by colonoscopy. Her surgery was postponed by 2 months by the anesthesiologist due to dyspnea at rest and high pulmonary artery pressure (70–80 mmHg) for further optimization of medical treatment. After 2 months, she was adequately fit enough to undergo surgery. High lumbar epidural anesthesia was adopted and weaned off. She was discharged after 5 days of surgery from the hospital without any sequel. This report presents the merits and recommendations for such patients.


ABSTRACT  The "End of Anthropology" has been predicted many times and for many different reasons—among them, its disappearing object of study, its political imbrication in colonialism, the loss of its distinctive concepts, and the effects of globalization in diffusing its received subject matter. And yet, both institutionally and discursively, the discipline is very much alive, producing new species of knowledge, new theoretical discourses, new empirical interests, new arguments. How, in light of this, do we read the history of its present? By what means is its "end" to be avoided, its future(s) assured? Where should it go from here, empirically, methodologically, theoretically? One answer lies in a new indiscipline, a discourse that, in dialectic tension with the contemporary world in which it is embedded, redefines the scale, the conceptual foundations, and the techniques of knowledge production of anthropology.


The deposition of wear resistant thin films represents an usual procedure to improve the tribological behavior of mechanical components and parts. Depending on the application, the fracture toughness of the film plays a key role and different methods were developed to evaluate this mechanical property. Recently, the film fracture toughness was related to the distance between circular cracks generated during the spherical indentation of coated systems with soft substrates. In this work, analyses were conducted to further understand the phenomenon of circular crack formation during indentation, including the effect of load and indenter diameter. Films of chromium nitride (CrN) were deposited onto AA 6061 aluminum substrates through a commercial physical vapor deposition (PVD) process. Coated specimens were later indented by spheres with diameters from 1.59 to 6.35 mm, which applied normal loads from approximately 196.1 to 490.3 N. Similar amounts of circular cracks were obtained when an increase in indenter diameter was associated with an increase in normal load.


Graphdiyne (GDY) is a fascinating graphene-like 2D carbon allotrope comprising sp and sp2 hybridized carbon atoms. However, GDY materials synthesized by solution-phase methods normally come as thick and porous films or amorphous powders with severely disordered stacking modes that obstruct macroscopic applications. Here, a facile and scalable synthesis of ultrathin holey graphdiyne (HGDY) nanosheets is reported via palladium/copper co-catalyzed homocoupling of 1,3,5-triethynylbenzene. The resulting freestanding 2D HGDY self-assembles into 3D foam-like networks which can in situ anchor clusters of palladium atoms on their surfaces. The Pd/HGDY hybrids exhibit high electrocatalytic activity and stability for the oxygen reduction reaction which outperforms that of Pt/C benchmark. Based on the ultrathin graphene-like sheets and their unique 3D interconnected macrostructures, Pd/HGDY holds great promise for practical electrochemical catalysis and energy-related applications.


Complete-active-space self-consistent field (CASSCF) wave functions are central to understanding strongly correlated molecules as they capture the entirety of electronic interactions within a subset of the orbital space. The most interesting case for CASSCF is the full valence limit, where all bonding and an equal number of virtual orbitals are included in the active space, and no approximation is made in selecting the important valence orbitals or electrons. While conventional algorithms require exponential computational time to evaluate full valence CASSCF, this article shows that the method of increments can do the same with polynomial effort, in a new method denoted iCASSCF. The method of increments can also provide density matrices and other necessary ingredients for the construction of the nuclear gradient. These goals are met through a many-body expansion that breaks the problem into smaller pieces that are subsequently reassembled to form close approximations of conventional CAS results. Practical demonstrations on a number of medium-sized molecules, with up to 116 valence electrons correlated in 116 orbitals, show the power of this methodology.


One of the engineering tasks of hydraulic fracturing design is the correct selection of the propping agent. Ceramic proppant, which is used in most fields in Western Siberia, makes a proppant pack that is several times more permeable than the formation (sometimes even 1000 times). However, the gelling agent used for treatment, depending on the size of the proppant, reduces the permeability of the proppant pack from 2 to 5 times. However, workover operations after hydraulic fracturing and during production period has a significant colmatage effect on the near-wellbore zone and can significantly reduce the productivity of the well.
 A common practice in the fields of Western Siberia is to prop a fracture at the near-wellbore zone with a proppant of mesh size 12/18. Despite a small difference in the calculated skin factor, the analysis of operations at the Salym group of oilfields shows a significant change in the production decline rate on wells with 16/20 and 12/18 mesh size propping agents.
 Engineering group of the Salym group of oilfields conducted trials on hydraulic fracturing treatments with a mesh size 10/14 and, after successful results, 6/10 proppant. The treatment results, lessons learned and the analysis of production of these wells is the scope of this work.


This paper examines the effect of party affiliation on an individual's political views. To do this, we exploit the party realignment that occurred in the U.S. due to abortion becoming a more prominent and highly partisan issue over time. We show that abortion was not a highly partisan issue in 1982, but a person's abortion views in 1982 led many to switch parties over time as the two main parties diverged in their stances on this issue. We find that voting for a given political party in 1996, due to the individual's initial views on abortion in 1982, has a substantial effect on a person's political, social, and economic attitudes in 1997. These findings are stronger for highly partisan political issues, and are robust to controlling for a host of personal views and characteristics in 1982 and 1997. As individuals realigned their party affiliation in accordance with their initial abortion views, their other political views followed suit.


We propose a novel polycrystalline silicon thin-film transistor (TFT) structure to reduce leakage current effectively by employing the offset region near the drain and extended gate electrodes. In the proposed devices, we have employed a novel gate insulator structure, which forms the offset region and the extended gate electrodes. According to the experimental results, the leakage current of the proposed TFT is reduced by more than two orders of magnitude, compared with that of conventional TFTs, while the ON current is reduced very little. This is verified by using a device simulator whereby the electron concentration in the offset region increases under the ON state and decreases under the OFF state, due to the extended gate electrodes and offset region.


Industrialised Building System (IBS) is well known in many developed countries due to the benefits that can be derived from its applications in construction projects. However, the low percentage of IBS usage may be due to lack of awareness and knowledge about IBS among many professionals, also there may be factors that contribute to lack of interest from the client towards IBS. The aim of this study is to improve the application of IBS, particularly in private construction projects in Malaysia by determining the current application of IBS in private construction projects, client perspective towards IBS application, and to propose the framework of success criteria for IBS adoption in private projects. In order to achieve these objectives, questionnaire survey and interview have been conducted. The developers were selected from Real Estate and Housing Developers Association (REHDA) website as the sample of respondents. The result indicates that, out of 35 responses, only 16 respondents (46 percent) stated their company has applied IBS in their construction projects, and only 12 respondents (34 percent) have been involved in IBS projects. Out of those 12 respondents, 9 respondents (75 percent) revealed they were satisfied with the performance of IBS projects based on their own experience. In general, respondents indicated high agreement on the identified IBS benefits, the factors of low application of IBS in private construction projects, and the success criteria to improve the IBS application. In the final part of the study, a framework of success criteria relationship for IBS adoption in private projects has been developed.


Bibliotherapy means helping to the soul with information sources. The purpose of this study is to explore the use of books with therapeutic aims; and to purpose suggestions by discussing the present situation of bibliotherapy in Turkey. However, how should information managers take a part in bibliotherapy and what should they do in introducing bibliotherapy in Turkey.


Radar backscattering from objects with micro-motions is subject to Doppler modulations that help determine dynamic properties of objects and provide useful information about the objects. Doppler modulations represented by joint time-frequency analysis provide useful time-varying Doppler characteristics and, thus, add additional time-dimension information to exploit motion characteristics. The author discusses how to simulate radar backscattering from objects with rigid body motions and objects with non-rigid body motions, and how to analyse, interpret and characterise Doppler signatures of objects that undergo these micro-motions. Precession heavy top and human locomotion are used as examples of rigid and non-rigid body motions, respectively. Radar micro-Doppler signatures derived from these motions illustrate the potential of the joint time-frequency analysis for exploiting kinetic and dynamic properties of objects.


BACKGROUND
Bullying is common in schools and has negative consequences. It can be assessed using a self-reported instrument.

AIM
To validate a Spanish self-reporting tool called "Survey of High School Bullying Abuse of Power" (MIAP).

MATERIAL AND METHODS
The instrument has 13 questions, of which 7 are multiple choice, rendering a total of 49 items. It was applied to 2.341 children of seventh and eighth grade attending private, subsidized and municipal schools in the city of Concepción, Chile. Expert judge analysis and estimated reliability using the Cronbach Alpha were used to validate the survey.

RESULTS
The instrument obtained a Cronbach Alpha coefficient of 0.8892, classified as good. This analysis generated four scales that explained 30.9% of the variance. They were called "Witness Bullying" with 18 items, accounting for 11.4% of the variance, "Bullying Victim" with 12 items, accounting for 7.5% of the variance, "Bullying Perpetrator and Severe bullying Victim", with 10 items explaining 6.4% of the variance and "Aggressor Bullying" with 6 items accounting for 5.7% of the variance.

CONCLUSIONS
The MIAP can recognize four basic factors that facilitate the analysis and understanding of bullying, with good levels of reliability and validity. The remaining questions also deliver valuable information.


Zhang, Yan MSECE, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, December 2015. Aircraft detection and tracking using UAV-mounted Vision System. For unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to operate safely in the national airspace where non-collaborating flying objects, such as general aviation (GA) aircraft without automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B), exist, the UAVs' capability of "seeing" these objects is especially important. This "seeing", or sensing, can be implemented via various means, such as Radar or Lidar. Here we consider using cameras mounted on UAVs only, which has the advantage of light weight and low power. For the visual system to work well, it is required that the camera-based sensing capability should be at the level equal to or exceeding that of human pilots. This thesis deals with two basic issues/challenges of the camera-based sensing of flying objects. The first one is the stabilization of the shaky videos taken on the UAVs due to vibrations at different locations where the cameras are mounted. In the thesis, we consider several algorithms, including Kalman filters and particle filters, for stabilization. We provide detailed theoretical discussions of these filters as well as their implementations. The second one is reliable detection and tracking of aircraft using image processing algorithms. We combine morphological processing and dynamic programming to accomplish good results under different situations. The performance evaluation of different image processing algorithms is accomplished using synthetic and recorded data.


To determine the effect of low culture temperature on erythropoietin (EPO) production in recombinant Chinese hamster ovary (rCHO) cells, rCHO cells producing EPO (LGE10-9-27) were cultivated at 30, 33, and 37 degrees C. At a culture temperature lower than 37 degrees C cell growth was suppressed, but cell viability remained high for a longer culture period. When the culture temperature was lowered from 37 degrees C to 33 degrees C, more than a 2.5-fold increase in the maximum EPO concentration was achieved. This enhanced EPO production at 33 degrees C was not just because of the extended culture longevity with the decreased release of proteolytic enzymes from dead cells, but mainly because of enhanced q(EPO). The q(EPO) at 33 degrees C was 0.35 +/- 0.08 microg/10(6) cells/h, which was approximately 4-fold higher than that at 37 degrees C. Although the highest q(EPO) of 0.49 +/- 0.14 micro/10(6) cells/h was obtained at 30 degrees C, the maximum EPO concentration was lowest because the detrimental effect of lowering culture temperature on cell growth outweighed its beneficial effect on q(EPO). Like q(EPO), the relative EPO mRNA content increased by lowering culture temperature, indicating that the increased transcription level of EPO was responsible in part for the enhanced q(EPO) at low culture temperature. The quality of EPO produced at 33 degrees C in regard to isoform pattern, sialic acid content, and in vivo biological activity was comparable to or even better than that produced at 37 degrees C. Taken together, the results obtained demonstrate the potential of the application of low culture temperature to the commercial EPO production in rCHO cells.


A 8-bit 5GS/s streak simple to-advanced converter (ADC) is composed and reproduced in a 0.18μm CMOS innovation. Low-swing operation both in the simple and the computerized hardware brings about fast low power operation. The ADC disperses 30mW force from a 3.2V supply while working at 5GHz. Balanced averaging is utilized to minimize the impact of comparator balances. The estimation of greatest differential and indispensable nonlinearities (DNL and INL) of the Flash ADC are 0.2 LSB and 0.5 LSB separately. Simple to-advanced converter (ADC) has ended up fundamental structure for the vast majority of the hardware and correspondence frameworks. Comparator constitutes the fundamental part in simple to computerized transformation (ADC). It is essentially the first stage in ADC, which changes over the sign from simple to computerized space.


This article addresses the problem of intentionality in Analytic philosophy. It begins with an assessment of post-Sellarsian scholarship, with primary attention to the work of Richard Rorty, Donald Davidson, Robert Brandom, and John McDowell. I argue that contemporary Analytic discourse on intentionality not only needs, but internally warrants, a pragmatist metaphysics in order to adequately and accurately communicate its public relevance—particularly in ethics. I suggest the metaphysics of Alfred North Whitehead as consonant with the sort of metaphysics needed in order to correct tacit presuppositions currently limiting Analytic treatments of intentionality and, in turn, the possibility of ethical critique without ethnocentrism. The resultant proposal is for a "modest" metaphysics, not unlike that for which Jeffrey Stout has called.


Human bleomycin hydrolase (hBH) is a neutral cysteine protease that may regulate the secretion of soluble amyloid precursor protein (APP) and amyloid beta (A(beta)), which is a major constituent of the Alzheimer's disease-associated amyloid plaques. We have now determined that APP interacts with hBH by using yeast two hybrid methods and in vitro binding studies revealed that APP interacted with a 68 amino acid region that includes the catalytic domain of hBH. Ectopic expression of hBH increased the secretion of A(beta) but not of a second secreted protein, apolipoprotein A-I. Expression of hBH in which the catalytic cysteine 73 was mutated to serine failed to increase A(beta) secretion. These results indicate a critical role for cysteine 73 of hBH in mediating APP processing.


Recent in vitro experiments have demonstrated the ability of the pathogen Clostridium difficile and commensal gut bacteria to form biofilms on surfaces, and biofilm development in vivo is likely. Various studies have reported that 3%–15% of healthy adults are asymptomatically colonized with C. difficile, with commensal species providing resistance against C. difficile pathogenic colonization. C. difficile infection (CDI) is observed at a higher rate in immunocompromised patients previously treated with broad spectrum antibiotics that disrupt the commensal microbiota and reduce competition for available nutrients, resulting in imbalance among commensal species and dysbiosis conducive to C. difficile propagation. To investigate the metabolic interactions of C. difficile with commensal species from the three dominant phyla in the human gut, we developed a multispecies biofilm model by combining genome-scale metabolic reconstructions of C. difficile, Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron from the phylum Bacteroidetes, Faecalibacterium prausnitzii from the phylum Firmicutes, and Escherichia coli from the phylum Proteobacteria. The biofilm model was used to identify gut nutrient conditions that resulted in C. difficile-associated dysbiosis characterized by large increases in C. difficile and E. coli abundances and large decreases in F. prausnitzii abundance. We tuned the model to produce species abundances and short-chain fatty acid levels consistent with available data for healthy individuals. The model predicted that experimentally-observed host-microbiota perturbations resulting in decreased carbohydrate/increased amino acid levels and/or increased primary bile acid levels would induce large increases in C. difficile abundance and decreases in F. prausnitzii abundance. By adding the experimentally-observed perturbation of increased host nitrate secretion, the model also was able to predict increased E. coli abundance associated with C. difficile dysbiosis. In addition to rationalizing known connections between nutrient levels and disease progression, the model generated hypotheses for future testing and has the capability to support the development of new treatment strategies for C. difficile gut infections.


Simple and accurate channel models are required to evaluate the performance of multi-antenna systems with polarized antenna arrays. This paper presents a graph based model for polarized multi-antenna wireless channels by incorporating polarization diversity into the classical propagation graph based model. In addition to classical propagation effects such as attenuation, delay and phase shifts in non-polarized channel models, the proposed model incorporated antenna and scatterer based depolarization effects including polarization coupling and polarimetric responses. An illustration of the procedure for generating the transfer function and impulse response from the model is given for dual polarized channels. Simulation results show that the power delay profile exhibit exponential decay with almost equal decay rate across the coand cross-polar channels. Our results also show that antenna orientation, relative antenna height and depolarization affect the power-delay properties of the channel.


Inspired by the social vulnerability paradigm employed in hazard and disaster research and recent work connecting personal and housing vulnerabilities, this study uses the first wave of Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey data to: (a) examine immigrants' legal status as an independent social vulnerability that increases the risk of two or more of the following situations deemed to be precarious: renting, crowding, and unaffordable housing; (b) identify the individual-, household-, and neighborhood-level vulnerabilities associated with overlapping housing problems; and (c) identify the distribution of housing disadvantages across social groups. The sample comprises those born in the United States who are Black, White, and Latino, and three distinct Latino immigrant groups categorized by citizenship and legal status. The descriptive and multivariate regression results have implications for expanding hazard, disaster, and housing research and practice.


. The interaction between storm surge and concurrent precipitation can cause greater flooding impacts than either in isolation. This paper investigates the potential compound effects from these two flooding drivers along the coast of China. Statistically significant dependence between them exists at the majority of locations that are analysed, but the strength of the correlation varies spatially and depending on how extreme events are defined. In general, we find higher dependence at the south-eastern tide gauges 15 (TGs) (latitude < 30°N) compared to the northern TGs. Seasonal variations in the dependence are also evident. Overall there are more sites with significant dependence in the typhoon season, especially in the summer. Accounting for past sea level rise further increases the dependence between flooding drivers and future sea level rise will hence likely lead to an increase in the frequency of compound events. We also find notable differences in the meteorological patterns driving compound and non-compound events. 20 Compound events at south-eastern TG sites are caused by low-pressure systems with similar characteristics across locations, including high precipitable water content (PWC) and strong winds that generate high storm surge. Based on historical disaster damages records of Hong Kong, compound flood events account for the vast majority of damages and casualties, compared to univariate flooding events, where only one flooding driver occurred. Given the large coastal population and low capacity of drainage 25 systems in many Chinese urban areas, these findings highlight the necessity to incorporate compound flooding and its potential changes in a warming climate into risk assessments, urban planning, and the design of coastal infrastructure and flood


For over five years, Social Enterprise and Entrepreneurship (SEE), a community partnership in Northern Ontario, has been developing a supportive ecosystem for social enterprise, entrepreneurship, and innovation. This article sheds light on how the SEE partnership has established a broad spectrum of supports and a healthy ecosystem for alternative economies in a northern, rural, and Indigenous region, from an initial focus on youth, with asset mapping and pop-up events, to its current emphasis on regional networking and train-the-trainer programs for economic development officers. This article argues that the partnership's strong emphasis on community engagement and empowerment, and the cyclical nature of the community-based research methodology has enhanced the sustainability of the ecosystem and leads to systemic social innovation and transformation.


Social Networks became a major actor in information propagation. Using the Twitter popular platform, mobile users post or relay messages from different locations. The tweet content, meaning and location, show how an event-such as the bursty one "JeSuisCharlie", happened in France in January 2015, is comprehended in different countries. This research aims at clustering the tweets according to the co-occurrence of their terms, including the country, and forecasting the probable country of a non-located tweet, knowing its content. First, we present the process of collecting a large quantity of data from the Twitter website. We finally have a set of 2,189 located tweets about "Charlie", from the 7th to the 14th of January. We describe an original method adapted from the Author-Topic (AT) model based on the Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA) method. We define an homogeneous space containing both lexical content (words) and spatial information (country). During a training process on a part of the sample, we provide a set of clusters (topics) based on statistical relations between lexical and spatial terms. During a clustering task, we evaluate the method effectiveness on the rest of the sample that reaches up to 95% of good assignment. It shows that our model is pertinent to foresee tweet location after a learning process.


Venous ulcers of the lower limbs complicated by infection or chronicity represent a serious public health problem. The elevated number of those afflicted burdens the health services, interferes in quality of life and causes absenteeism. Although there are 2,500 items on the market, ranging from the simplest dressing up to the most complex types of dressing, treatment remains a challenge. Among the substances used, fibrin sealant is the one that promotes diminution of bacterial colonization and of edema, controls hemorrhaging, alters the pain threshold by protecting the nerve endings, hydrates the wound bed and forms granulation tissue that favors healing. Its disadvantages include higher cost and utilization of human fibrinogen that can transmit infectious diseases. The Center for the Study of Venoms and Venomous Animals (CEVAP) at Sao Paulo State University (UNESP) developed a new sealant made up of fibrinogen extracted from large animals and from an enzyme obtained from snake venom. The present study, developed in the Health Education Clinic (CEPS) of Sacred Heart University (USC) aimed to evaluate the effect of the new sealant on the healing process of venous ulcers in 24 adult patients, seven of whom were male and 17 female. Two study groups were formed as follows: Group 1 (G1) - control group of 11 patients treated with essential fatty acid (EFA) and Unna's boot, and Group 2 (G2) - 13 patients treated with essential fatty acid (EFA), fibrin sealant and Unna's boot. The follow-up lasted eight weeks and the sealant was applied at only the first and fourth weeks. The results showed that Group 2 presented worse lesion conditions as to healing, but, when comparing the two groups, it was noteworthy that the the sealant was effective in healing venous ulcers. There is evidence that the new sealant is recommended for leg ulcers with the following advantages: ease of application, preparation of the wound bed, diminution of pain and a higher number of discharges in the eighth week. More important, other positive characteristics are non-transmission of infectious diseases, absence of adverse reactions, and economic advantage of being produced by Brazilian technology. Finally, it is suggested that the weekly application of sealant, for at least eight weeks, could improve the healing process and consequently life quality.


Media coverage plays an important role in delivering information to the public in a rapid and easy-to-understand manner in terms of the subjects of nuclear energy. The mass media has so far covered nuclear accidents that occurred in nuclear facilities. The media coverage usually gains the attention of the public through the news media, such as TV and newspapers. In this study, three main cases of nuclear accidents were quantitatively examined by using the database of a newspaper. In addition, various comments of journalists whom the author interviewed were added for the evaluation of the three cases. As a result, it was revealed that the amount of media reporting commonly reached a maximum just after the nuclear accidents occurred. It became also clear that the smoothness of the information flow from the nuclear industry to the mass media affected the trend of the media coverage from the viewpoints of the duration and number of news reports. Most of the journalists considered that it was significant for the nuclear industry to strengthen the initial reaction on the occasion of nuclear accidents. The nuclear industry should understand the characteristics that are typical of the media coverage on nuclear accidents in the future.


PURPOSE
Active surveillance (AS) is one of the management options for patients with low-risk and select intermediate-risk prostate cancer (PC). However, factors predicting disease reclassification and conversion to active treatment from a large population of pure Asian cohorts regarding AS are less evaluated. This study investigated the intermediate-term outcomes of patients with localized PC undergoing AS.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
This cohort study enrolled consecutive men with localized non-high-risk PC diagnosed in Taiwan between June 2012 and Jan 2023. The study endpoints were disease reclassification (either pathological or radiographic progression) and conversion to active treatment. The factors predicting endpoints were evaluated using the Cox proportional hazards model.

RESULTS
A total of 405 patients (median age: 67.2 years) were consecutively enrolled and followed up with a median of 64.6 months. Based on the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) risk grouping, 70 (17.3%), 164 (40.5%), 140 (34.6%), and 31 (7.7%) patients were classified as very low-risk, low-risk, favorable-intermediate risk, and unfavorable intermediate-risk PC, respectively. The 5-year reclassification rates were 24.8%, 27.0%, 18.6%, and 25.3%, respectively. The 5-year conversion rates were 20.4%, 28.8%, 43.6%, and 37.8%, respectively. A prostate-specific antigen density (PSAD) of ≥0.15 ng/mL² predicted reclassification (hazard ratio [HR] 1.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.17-2.88) and conversion (HR 1.56, 95% CI 1.05-2.31). A maximal percentage of cancer in positive cores (MPCPC) of ≥15% predicted conversion (15% to <50%: HR 1.41, 95% CI 0.91-2.18; ≥50%: HR 1.97, 95% CI 1.1453-3.40) compared with that of <15%. A Gleason grade group (GGG) of 3 tumor also predicted conversion (HR 2.69, 95% CI 1.06-6.79; GGG 3 vs 1). One patient developed metastasis, but none died of PC during the study period (2,141 person-years).

CONCLUSIONS
AS is a viable option for Taiwanese men with non-high-risk PC, in terms of reclassification and conversion. High PSAD predicted reclassification, whereas high PSAD, MPCPC, and GGG predicted conversion.


The main objective of this project is the identification and interpretation of metaphors through unsupervised methods. We present the metaphor processing problem in Natural Language Processing, the project background and first results.


Interethnic friendships between students are important for harmonious intercultural relations at school. Drawing on research on intergroup contact and cultural distance between immigrant and non-immigrant groups, we examined how structural and normative conditions in the classroom context are associated with friendships between early adolescents with and without an immigrant background in ethnically heterogeneous schools. The sample comprised 842 students (Mage = 11.50 years, SDage = .71; 53% male) attending multiethnic schools in Southwest Germany. Results revealed that perceived positive contact norms in class and perceived cultural distance predicted friendships between immigrant and non-immigrant students in both groups, even when the ethnic composition of the classroom was taken into account. The associations were largely the same for immigrants and non-immigrants. We conclude that interventions to foster interethnic friendships should aim to reduce perceptions of cultural distance and monitor and improve contact norms in intergroup settings. © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd.


Enzymatic assays based on Fructosyl Amino Acid Oxidases (FAOX) represent a potential, rapid and economical strategy to measure glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), which is in turn a reliable method to monitor the insurgence and the development of diabetes mellitus. However, the engineering of naturally occurring FAOX to specifically recognize fructosyl-valine (the glycated N-terminal residue of HbA1c) has been hindered by the paucity of information on the tridimensional structures and catalytic residues of the different FAOX that exist in nature, and in general on the molecular mechanisms that regulate specificity in this class of enzymes. In this study, we use molecular dynamics simulations and advanced modeling techniques to investigate five different relevant wild-type FAOX (Amadoriase I, Amadoriase II, PnFPOX, FPOX-E and N1-1-FAOD) in order to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that drive their specificity towards polar and nonpolar substrates. Specifically, we compare these five different FAOX in terms of overall folding, ligand entry tunnels, ligand binding residues and ligand binding energies. Our work will contribute to future enzyme structure modifications aimed at the rational design of novel biosensors for the monitoring of blood glucose levels.


Copper(I)-bleomycin [Cu(I) X BLM] was characterized in detail by 13C and 1H NMR. Unequivocal chemical shift assignments for Cu(I) X BLM and Cu(I) X BLM X CO were made by two-dimensional 1H-13C correlated spectroscopy and by utilizing the observation that Cu(I) X BLM was in rapid equilibrium with Cu(I) and metal-free bleomycin, such that individual resonances in the spectra of BLM and Cu(I) X BLM could be correlated. The binding of Cu(I) by bleomycin involves the beta-aminoalaninamide and pyrimidinyl moieties, and possibly the imidazole, but not N alpha of beta-hydroxyhistidine. Although no DNA strand scission by Cu(II) X BLM could be demonstrated in the absence of dithiothreitol, in the presence of this reducing agent substantial degradation of [3H]DNA was observed, as was strand scission of cccDNA. DNA degradation by Cu(I) X BLM was shown not to depend on contaminating Fe(II) and not to result in the formation of thymine propenal; the probable reason(s) for the lack of observed DNA degradation in earlier studies employing Cu(II) X BLM and dithiothreitol was (were) also identified. DNA strand scission was also noted under anaerobic conditions when Cu(II) X BLM and iodosobenzene were employed. If it is assumed that the mechanism of DNA degradation in this case is the same as that under aerobic conditions (i.e., with Cu(I) X BLM + O2 in the presence of dithiothreitol), then Cu X BLM must be capable of functioning as a monooxygenase in its degradation of DNA.


A novel miniaturized cavity-backed composite slot loop antenna (CBCSLA) with low profile and omnidirectional radiation similar to a short dipole is presented. The antenna displays vertical polarization while having less than lambda/100 dimension in height. The geometry of the antenna is inspired from a small magnetic loop which is realized using a slot configuration on metallic ground. Since a small slot loop antenna cannot be impedance matched, a composite geometry is devised that acts like as a small slot loop and can easily be impedance matched using this configuration. The diameter of the CBCSLA can be made as small as lambda/10 or smaller. The feeding mechanism is designed in a manner to create a circumferentially-constant current distribution around the composite loop while effectively matching to a 50 Omega coaxial feed from the antenna center. Additional methods are discussed to further enhance the bandwidth and achieve a dual-band response. The antennas are designed, fabricated, and measured. It is shown that despite their small lateral dimension and extremely small height, the miniaturized cavity-backed slot loop features extremely well input impedance match, uniform radiation pattern, low cross-polarization levels and expected gain.


According to national and Union terminology, a concept is understood to mean " a concept or formulation of an idea expressing how something can be done or accomplished to bring about an acceptable way of action " . On this basis, concepts can be considered as a set of three mutually agreed or balanced bindings - objectives, ways and means. Military concepts usually describe how to use certain military capabilities to achieve a goal or the way to solve a particular problem, and this can lead to changes in doctrines, organization, procedures, training, armament requirements, combat equipment, equipment, equipment and others. Goals determine the desired end state. They can vary in a wide range - from national targets to a single task. In the military field, goals are set in strategies, planning national or operational documents, and orders to individual formations. The mode of action is a description of the ways to achieve the ultimate goals or the ultimate state by using the appropriate forms, methods, methods and tactics. These are the actions with the available or planned means to achieve the goals. The essence of the concept is the description of these ways, including sequence or In the military field the means are an expression of the military power of the armed forces at a certain point in their development. Depending on the usability of the armed forces and the level of command as a means, the Armed Forces as a whole, the Joint Operational Forces, the type of armed forces and tactical formations can be considered to achieve the lowest level of ability - separate elements (the Armament System). The development of ideas in approaches and applicable modes of action requires the fitting of appropriate means (military capabilities) that are likely to achieve the goals set. Goals set the meaning of the follow-up, and the resources determine what resources to be set. Defining how to act is the essence of the concept. Their role is to link goals to resources. From this follows the conclusion that military concepts basically describe how an idea can be realized.


The environment is now threatened by the creation and accumulation of waste materials in all branches of industrial production and in the meat industry. The importance of harmless removal of animal waste increases with the intensification of animal breeding and with the development of meat processing plants.. Problem solution of harmless removal of animal origin waste products has the big importance. It is irreplaceable, namely preventive veterinary and sanitary measure used in control of livestock diseases and zoonosis. Nowadays, it has a big role in environment protection. In the world, the best way of harmless removal of animal waste from meat industry as well as died animals is exactly their collecting and utilization (for feed production, chemical industry and fuel), depending on raw material structure and its characterization, their processing in special plants with modern equipment and technology. It was emphasized that objects for animal waste processing should be treated from the two aspects: as processing plants serving for the environment protection and as possible environment polluters.


OBJECTIVE
Evaluation of surgical techniques leading to fertility preservation in patients with early cervical cancer.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
Carcinological and obstetrical follow-up of 95 patients treated with radical trachelectomy between 1987 and 2002 for a cervical cancer stage less than Ib2.

RESULTS
Four recurrences were observed; all of these were in case of tumor more than 2 cm in diameter (P = 0.002), and three of the four recurrences were in case of lymph-vascular space involvement (P = 0.07). Among the 42 patients willing and able to procreate, 33 were pregnant. Fifty-six pregnancies were registered. The rate of late miscarriage was 19% and 34 living newborns were obtained.

CONCLUSION
In case of early cervical cancer, radical trachelectomy preserves fertility, leading to a good rate of living newborns without impairing the chances of survival.


Silicon nanowires are considered promising future biomedical sensors. However, their limited stability under physiological conditions poses a challenge in sensor development and necessitates a significantly improved knowledge of underlying effects as well as new solutions to enhance silicon nanowire durability. In the present study, we deduced the dissolution rates of silicon nanowires under simulated physiological conditions from atomic force microscopy measurements. We correlated the relevant change in nanowire diameter to changes in the electronic properties by examining the I-V characteristics of kinked silicon nanowire p–n junctions. Contact potential difference measurements and ambient pressure photoemission spectroscopy additionally gave insights into the electronic surface band structure. During the first week of immersion, the Fermi level of n-type silicon nanowires shifted considerably to higher energies, partly even above the conduction band edge, which manifested in an increased conductivity. After about a week, the Fermi level stabilized and the conductivity decreased consistently with the decreasing diameter caused by continuous nanowire dissolution. Our results show that a physiological environment can substantially affect the surface band structure of silicon nanowire devices, and with it, their electronic properties. Therefore, it is necessary to study these effects and find strategies to gain reliable biomedical sensors.


There is an emerging body of research on the co-design of public services, including co-design with vulnerable adults. However, what has been less explored has been the impact of digital technology and virtual environments upon the co-design process in this context. This paper analyses the contingencies of virtual co-design through a case study of a project to develop supportive local communities for vulnerable elderly people. This project was initially planned to use traditional co-design methods within a face-to-face environment, in the context of the local public service ecosystem. The CoVid-19 pandemic made this impossible. Consequently, an innovative approach to co-design was developed that shifted the process from a face-to-face to a virtual environment. This exploratory paper reports and evaluates this approach and its implications for the future of the theory and practice of the co-design of public services for vulnerable adults. Theoretically the paper evolves a model of co-design in a virtual space that is embedded within a public service eco-system framework of value creation. At a practice level, the paper provides insight into the strategic and operational management of co-creation in a virtual space. It evolves the 'Relay' model of asynchronous co-creation across time and considers it key contingencies


The talon cusp or dens evaginatus of anterior teeth is a relatively rare dental developmental anomaly characterized by the presence of an accessory cusp like structure projecting from the cingulum area or cementoenamel junction. It commonly occurs in either maxilla or mandibular anterior teeth in both the primary and permanent dentition. This article reports three cases of talon cusp and its management.


ABSTRACT Viruses maintain compact genomes that must be packaged within capsids typically less than 200 nanometers in diameter. Therefore, instead of coding for a full set of genes needed for replication, viruses have evolved remarkable strategies for co-opting the host cellular machinery. Additionally, viruses often increase the coding capacity of their own genomes by employing overlapping open reading frames (ORFs). Some overlapping viral ORFs involve recoding events that are programmed by the viral RNA. During these programmed recoding events, the ribosome is directed to translate in an alternative reading frame. Here we describe how the Dicistroviridae family of viruses utilize an internal ribosome entry site (IRES) in order to recruit ribosomes to initiate translation at a non-AUG codon. The IRES accomplishes this in part by mimicking the structure of a tRNA. Recently, we showed that the Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus (IAPV) member of the Dicistroviridae family utilizes its IRES to initiate translation in 2 different reading frames. Thus, IAPV has evolved an apparently novel recoding mechanism that reveals important insights into translation. Finally, we compare the IAPV structure to other systems that utilize tRNA mimicry in translation.


its lukewarm Protestantism. Both, however, used the legal system as fairly as they did in other capital cases. Even in the famous North Berwick witches episode of 1589-90, where Maxwell-Stuart believes that the Earl of Bothwell was guilty of treason by planning the magical murder o f the king to bring about political chaos, Maxwell-Stuart finds a strain of Catholicism. I3othwel1, he argues, used the Catholic lords for his own purposes, to create chaos, out of which Bothwell hoped to emerge as ruler in place of James. King James wrote his Daemonologie ( 1597). according to Maxwell-Stuart, as much to support the Kirk's notion of witchcraft and superstition being connected with some Catholic beliefs and practices as to combat skeptics such as Reginald Scot. He also argues that the king's work did little to introduce continental beliefs concerning diabolical witchcraft into Scotland and that its publication did not result in an increase in witchcraft trials. Keaders familiar with the history of Scotland in the sixteenth century and with the standard interpretations of witchcraft will find Satan's Conspirucy most useful, even if they may disagree with the Maxwell-Stuart's conclusions concerning the close links between witchcraft accusations and anti-Catholicism.


The lattice Boltzmann method was applied to simulate the free rise of monodisperse non-coalescing spherical bubbles in slightly inclined channels bound by solid walls. The Reynolds number based on the relative velocity between the bubbles and the fluid ranged from 4 to 16, the volume fraction from 5% to 10% and the inclination angle from 2° to 6°. The simulations revealed that the weak buoyancy component normal to the walls led to a layer of bubbles near the upper wall and a depleted layer near the bottom wall. These thin layers drove a nearly viscometric shear flow within the bulk of the channel that allowed an unambiguous determination of the lift force in a sheared homogeneous and freely evolving bubble suspension. The lift force coefficients calculated from our simulations were always higher than those for isolated spherical bubbles, suggesting that the lift force is enhanced by hydrodynamic interactions among the bubbles. Experimental measurements of the velocity gradient in 10% volume fraction bubble suspensions in glycerine–water–electrolyte mixtures in slightly inclined channels yielded lift coefficients in excess of those predicted for isolated bubbles and confirmed the qualitative predictions of the simulations.


This paper propose an original approach of achieving a Cymatics based visual perception of image-extracted text. In this context, an effective approach for automated text detection and recognition for the natural scene images is proposed. The incoming image is firstly enhanced by employing CLAHE and DWT. Afterwards, the text regions of the enhanced image are detected by employing the MSER feature detector. The non-text MSERs are removed by employing the geometrical and contour based filters. The remaining MSERs are grouped into words or phrases by finding out similarities between them. The text recognition is performed by employing an OCR function. The extracted text is sequentially analysed on character by character basis. Each character is converted into a methodical acoustic excitation. Finally, these excitations are converted into the systematic visual perceptions by using the phenomenon of Cymatics. The system functionality is tested with an experimental setup. For the case of studied natural scenes, the suggested approach achieves 80% precision in text localization and 53% precision in end-to-end text recognition. The devised system principle is novel and can be employed in various applications like visual art, encryption, education, integration of impaired people, etc.


There is considerable evidence for the presence of immunoglobulins on the ~urface of lymphocytes in different species. This evidence is given b y the transformation of rabbit lymphocytes into immunoblasts after contact with anti-immunoglobulin or anti-allotypic antisera (1), formation of rosettes with the same antisera in the presence of sensitized erythrocytes (2), and inhibition of rosette formation (3). Raft et al. have recently reported the presence of im-munoglobulins on mouse lymphocytes as detected b y immunofluorescence and autoradiography (4). The work described here shows that about one half of peripheral blood and spleen lymphocytes in the rabbit carry on their surface a number of discrete immunoglobulin spots, and that the immunoglobulins present on a single cell are uniform with regard to the allotype. I t appears that the immunoglobulins found on the lymphocyte surface are the product of the same cell that carries them, and that they are firmly attached to the cell membrane. These findings have been obtained by immunofluorescent staining of living cells in suspension. Materials and Methods Animals.-Normal (nonimmunized) adult rabbits were used in all the experiments for the detection of immunoglobulin determinants. Young rabbits were used for the study of thymus lymphocytes. For the study of antigen-reactive cells, rabbits received 4 mg horse ferritin (Mann Research Labs., New York) (recrystallized) in complete Freund's adjuvant, and a second injection in incomplete adjuvant 1 month later. Several weeks after the second injection peripheral blood lymphocytes were prepared and processed as indicated below. The animals were then re-stimulated with 3 mg of soluble horse ferritin in the hind footpads; popliteal lymph nodes were taken on the 5th and 6th day after the booster injection. Antisera Anti-AUotypic Antisera.-Antisera to a and b locus aUotypic determinants as well as an antiserum to the IgM-specific allotype Ms3 (5), prepared as described by Kelus and Gell (6)


In order to achieve high packing density Hi-CMOS SRAM's with poly load memory ceils11, small cell area and low power dissipation are required-When minimising memory cell area, it is important to scale down poly load resistors. Especially for mega bit level SRAM's with battery back up functions, ultra low stand-by power dissipation should be determined by highly resistive poly loads in memory cells. Moreover, alpha particle induced soft errors are also one of major problems for developing high density SRAM's. To solve these problems, a newly developed folded resistor and capacitor (FRC) memory cell has been proposed. The features of the newly propos ed memory cells are (1) highly resistive poly loads with folded poly structures to achieve ultra low stand-by power and (2)stacked capacitors added to the storage nodes to suppress soft errors. This paper describes the FRC memory cell structures, characteristics of folded poly loads and stacked capacitors fabricated by submicron CMOS process.


Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry became the prototype for a new kind of movie cop--an antihero in pursuit of his own vision of justice. The Dirty Harry series helped cement Eastwood and his character, Harry Callahan, as central figures in 1970s and 1980s Hollywood cinema.

In Dirty Harry's America, Joe Street argues that the series sheds critical light on the culture and politics of the post-1960s era and locates San Francisco as the symbolic cultural battleground of the time. Across the entire series, conservative anger and moral outrage confront elitist liberalism and moral relativism. Street maintains that through referencing real events and political struggles, the films themselves became active participants in the culture wars, paying particular attention to the films' representation of crime, family and community, sexuality, and race.

Unapologetic carrier of right and might, Harry Callahan becomes America's Ur-conservative: "unbending, moral, incorruptible, and most important, always right." Long after the series, Callahan's legacy remains strong in American political discourse, cinema, and pop culture, and he continues to shape Eastwood's later political and cinematic career.


For anyone whos taken photos, you know the frustration of trying to find and manage your snapshots on your iPhone, camera, or Mac. With Photos for OS X, Apple has made it possible to have at your fingertips all your photos. Photos for OS X replaces Apples iPhoto and Aperture applications and offers users the ability to organize, view, edit, and share photos from any OS X or iOS device. In the Photos for OS X and iOS book, best-selling author Jeff Carlson shows you how to tame your photo collection with Apple Photos for OS X app. He shows how to convert your existing iPhoto and Aperture libraries to Photos and how to import new photos from your iPhone and other sources. Youll learn how to work with photos in the Apple iCloud service as well as edit images on your phone, Mac, and in the cloud. And to show off your snapshots, Jeff shows you how to share your photos through prints and photo books. Readers will learn how to: Import photos from your iPhone and other sources Organize your photos through albums, keywords, tags, collections, dates, and geotags Convert existing iPhoto and Aperture libraries to Photos for OS X Work with your photos in the iCloud Photo library Edit photos in the Photos application Make prints and photo books


Signal transduction by the IL-36 receptor (IL-36R) is linked to several human diseases. However, the structure and function of the IL-36R is not well understood. A molecular model of the IL-36R complex was generated and a cell-based reporter assay was established to assess the signal transduction of recombinant subunits of the IL-36R. Mutational analyses and functional assays have identified residues of the receptor subunit IL-1Rrp2 needed for cytokine recognition, stable protein expression, disulfide bond formation and glycosylation that are critical for signal transduction. We also observed that, overexpression of ectodomain (ECD) of Il-1Rrp2 or IL-1RAcP exhibited dominant-negative effect on IL-36R signaling. The presence of IL-36 cytokine significantly increased the interaction of IL-1Rrp2 ECD with the co-receptor IL-1RAcP. Finally, we found that single nucleotide polymorphism A471T in the Toll-interleukin 1 receptor domain (TIR) of the IL-1Rrp2 that is present in ∼2% of the human population, down-regulated IL-36R signaling by a decrease of interaction with IL-1RAcP.


Many studies have shown that firm size is the strongest and most consistent predictor of the adoption of technological innovations, but the causes for this relationship are debated. I investigate the relationships between various size measures and the adoption of computer-aided design (CAD) and computer numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools. Plant size is the dominant factor in predicting CAD and CNC adoption. Other measures such as firm size or multiplant operations have independent effects that are not present after controlling for plant size. I test four potential explanations for the results: noncapital cost spreading, equipment replacement, risk aversion, and learning. There is support only for the first explanation.


It was suggested to use contact ultrasonic lithotripsy in lumen of common bile duct during laparoscopic surgery in order to preserve the sphincter apparatus of major duodenal papilla. Waveguide with original structure was used for lithotripsy performing. Waveguide's total length is 400 mm. It has a radially curved 40 degrees broken part with diameter of 6 mm cone rolling in working portion with diameter of 4 mm and length of 60 mm for introduction in common bile duct. There is concave lens on waveguide working portion end with diameter of 1 mm. A lens permits concentrating the waves beam in longitudinal direction avoiding its scattering and minimizing the impact on surrounding tissues. Lithotripsy efficiency was proved in the in vitro (n=68) and in vivo (n=20) experiments. Such structure of waveguide permits to penetrate in lumen of common bile duct through dilated cystic duct or choledochendysis for calculi fragmentation.


Currently, treatment planning systems (TPSs) that can compute the intensities of intensity-modulated carbon-ion therapy (IMCT) using scanned carbon-ion beams are limited. In the present study, the computational efficacy of the newly designed IMCT algorithms was analyzed for the first time based on the mixed beam model with respect to the physical and biological doses; moreover, the validity and effectiveness of the robust radiobiological optimization were verified. A dose calculation engine was independently generated to validate a clinical dose determined in the TPS. A biological assay was performed using the HSGc-C5 cell line to validate the calculated surviving fraction (SF). Both spot control (SC) and voxel-wise worst-case scenario (WC) algorithms were employed for robust radiobiological optimization followed by their application in a Radiation Therapy Oncology Group benchmark phantom under homogeneous and heterogeneous conditions and a clinical case for range and position errors. Importantly, for the first time, both SC and WC algorithms were implemented in the integrated TPS platform that can compute the intensities of IMCT using scanned carbon-ion beams for robust radiobiological optimization. For assessing the robustness, the difference between the maximum and minimum values of a dose–volume histogram index in the examined error scenarios was considered as a robustness index. The relative biological effectiveness (RBE) determined by the independent dose calculation engine exhibited a −0.6% difference compared with the RBE defined by the TPS at the isocenter, whereas the measured and the calculated SF were similar. Regardless of the objects, compared with the conventional IMCT, the robust radiobiological optimization enhanced the sensitivity of the examined error scenarios by up to 19% for the robustness index. The computational efficacy of the novel IMCT algorithms was verified according to the mixed beam model with respect to the physical and biological doses. The robust radiobiological optimizations lowered the impact of range and position uncertainties considerably in the examined scenarios. The robustness of the WC algorithm was more enhanced compared with that of the SC algorithm. Nevertheless, the SC algorithm can be used as an alternative to the WC IMCT algorithm with respect to the computational cost.


A left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion was produced in the sedated state in baboons previously instrumented with a left ventricular micromanometer and ultrasonic crystals measuring segmental myocardial lengths of control, marginal and ischemic regions. 3-8 days after the onset of the ischemia, nitroglycerin (0.4 mg IV) was injected. Following the injection (NG), heart rate increased significantly compared to the control ischemic state (CIS); end diastolic pressure and systolic pressure decreased significantly. In control segments, VCF increased from 0.99 +/- 0.11 circ/s to 1.26 +- 0.11 circ/s (p less than 0.01); in marginal segments VCF increased (CIS: 0.32 +/- 0.07 circ/s; NG: 0.42 +/- 0.09/s; p less than 0.01); in ischemic segments, the bulge observed before the injection persisted after nitroglycerin. Increased performances of control and marginal regions were attributed mainly to afterload reduction although preload reduction tended to decrease this response. The contribution of improved marginal function was small indicating that improvement of active hemodynamic function was largely due to changes in control segments function.


Video traffic is widely expected to account for a large portion of the traffic in future wired and wireless networks. We propose an efficient and accurate approximation method for calculating a given percentile of the end-to-end delay of a video stream depicted by a trace. The queueing delay encountered in the network by the IP packets carrying the video is modeled by a tandem queueing network of infinite capacity queues. The video trace is approximated by a two-stage Markovian Arrival Process (MAP2), which is the arrival process to the tandem network. The proposed method uses only the first queue of the tandem queueing network to construct an upper and lower bound of a given percentile of the end-to-end delay. The percentile value is then approximated by interpolating between the two bounds. We used this method to estimate the 95th percentile of the end-to-end delay of two different types of video traces, Cisco's point-to-point presence and WebEx over a 10-node path. The results obtained were compared against simulation, and have an average relative error of 4.24%. Using this method, we then obtained the minimum amount of bandwidth required to be allocated on each link along the path of the video stream, so that a given 95th percentile of the end-to-end delay is satisfied.