This paper addresses the optimal management of hydropower resources on medium term. The objective is to maximize the expected revenue of a producer, and the decision variables are generation and forward contracts in each period for each scenario. Stochastic linear and nonlinear programming has been used as a framework for modeling and solution. Results are exposited for a Norwegian power producer participating in Nord Pool, the Nordic power exchange.


Abstract Purpose To explore parental experiences on the role of wheelchairs in the lives of their children with mobility impairments in Dubai. Methods Seven participants were recruited through purposive sampling and their experiences were explored by conducting semi-structured interviews. The audio recordings were transcribed and thematically analysed. Results The findings showed that wheelchairs were an essential part of the children`s lives, which enabled their participation in the home, the school and the community. Procurement processes were difficult owing to a lack of assessment and prescription processes as well as insurance companies providing little assistance with payment. The participants described Dubai as a wheelchair friendly city and two overarching themes emerged; firstly, The wheelchair: "It is her life", and, secondly, Participation: Isolation versus inclusion. Conclusion The study is the first of its kind in Dubai and indicated that the wheelchair played an important role in the children's lives and allowed participation in life roles that brought joy and fulfilment. Without wheelchairs, children would be isolated and frustrated. However, some of the participants were not satisfied with their child's current wheelchair and felt the chair was not appropriate. Recommendations to specific stakeholders included: the development of policies to guide wheelchair service provision by government. In addition, insurance providers could collaborate with the government to adhere to the policy to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. IMPLICATIONS FOR REHABILITATION The wheelchair provided children the mobility to participate in life roles instead of being isolated. Not all children had appropriate wheelchairs. Service providers and medical insurance did not give sufficient support during wheelchair selection and procurement.


In second-order uncertain Bayesian networks, the conditional probabilities are only known within distributions, i.e., probabilities over probabilities. The delta-method has been applied to extend exact first-order inference methods to propagate both means and variances through sum-product networks derived from Bayesian networks, thereby characterizing epistemic uncertainty, or the uncertainty in the model itself. Alternatively, second-order belief propagation has been demonstrated for polytrees but not for general directed acyclic graph structures. In this work, we extend Loopy Belief Propagation to the setting of second-order Bayesian networks, giving rise to Second-Order Loopy Belief Propagation (SOLBP). For second-order Bayesian networks, SOLBP generates inferences consistent with those generated by sum-product networks, while being more computationally efficient and scalable.


Donor corneas from newborns aged 1-28 days were used in 30 cases of aphakic penetrating keratoplasty with good refractive results. After an average postoperative follow-up of 14.8 months, the mean visual acuity was 0.3 s.c. and 0.6 c.c; the mean keratometric corneal refraction was +53.04 DS (about 10.00 DS higher than that of the contralateral eye), and the mean corneal astigmatism was 2.84 DC. The postoperative specular corneal endothelial count averaged 3,324 cells/mm2 in 14 eyes.


There has been an increasing awareness across many jurisdictions of potential legal issues that might arise in schools. These issues range from bullying to sexual misconduct, from injury to negligence. In a recent study in Singapore, despite the increased attention to such issues, school principals displayed a range of attitudes toward legal risk and a diverse range of strategies to minimise it. The findings were compared to those from a small scale study of senior educators in Australia in order to ascertain commonalities and differences of view. This paper summarises those views and suggests some basic principles to help those in positions of leadership to avert unwanted legal attention.


Abstract Anatomic anomalies of the aortic arch have implications for clinical practice if their significance is understood. Our case study involves a cadaveric finding of the left vertebral artery originating directly from the aortic arch. Although this anatomical variation has been documented, the prevalence of this anomaly may be generally underestimated. After noting this anomaly, we analyzed 27 cases and found that four female cadavers had the left vertebral artery originating from the aortic arch rather than the left subclavian artery. With a prevalence rate of 14.8%, it would seem that this anomaly is more significant than previously thought, which could have implications for surgical practice.


We investigated the roles of financial/functional and cognitive abilities in predicting clinical progression in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). In a longitudinal sample of 51 patients with consensus conference diagnosed MCI likely due to Alzheimer disease (AD), two-year change scores were calculated for a performance measure of functional ability, cognitive variables, and 3 outcome measures used to track progression in neurological disorders. We examined patterns of financial and cognitive decline across the 2-year study period, and used these data and the 3 outcome variables to construct discrete predictor models of clinical progression in MCI. We found that both financial skills and cognitive abilities declined over the 2-year study period, were significantly associated with clinical progression, and contributed unique variance to all 3 predictor models. The resulting models accounted for 40% to 75% of variance in clinical progression across outcome variables. Taken together, our results indicate that changes in both cognitive abilities and higher order functional skills appear integral to understanding clinical progression in MCI likely due to AD. Specifically, declines in financial skills contribute unique variance to measures commonly used to track progression in neurological disorders associated with aging, and thus represent an important functional marker of clinical progression in prodromal AD.


Phorbol esters activate protein kinase C and induce expression of the c-fos and c-myc protooncogenes in density-arrested BALB/c 3T3 (A31) cells; in contrast, epidermal growth factor (EGF) does not activate protein kinase C and is a poor inducer of c-fos and c-myc in these confluent cells. We show that, when A31 cells were subconfluent and made quiescent by serum deprivation, the phorbol ester phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate induced c-fos and c-myc mRNA poorly, whereas EGF was a better inducer. Another platelet-derived growth factor-inducible gene, JE, did not show this differential regulation by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate and EGF. The ability of EGF to induce protooncogene mRNA was associated with elevated levels of intracellular cAMP. First, serum-deprived cells maintained cAMP at about 2-fold higher level than density-arrested cells. Second, induction was greatly enhanced by cholera toxin and 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, which increased intracellular cAMP 3- to 10-fold. The calcium ionophore A23187 mimicked EGF in that it elevated c-fos and c-myc mRNA when administered with cholera toxin and isobutylmethylxanthine. Neither cholera toxin and isobutyl-methylxanthine nor A23187 appreciably induced these mRNAs when used alone. Our results suggest that c-fos and c-myc expression can be regulated by an EGF-directed pathway that utilizes calcium and cAMP as cooperating cytoplasmic messengers.


Treatment options for children with Rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) remain limited, and para-aminosalicylic acid (PAS) is still a relevant component of treatment regimens. Prevention of resistance to companion drugs by PAS is dose related, and at higher concentrations, PAS may exhibit significant bactericidal activity in addition to its bacteriostatic properties. ABSTRACT Treatment options for children with Rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis (RR-TB) remain limited, and para-aminosalicylic acid (PAS) is still a relevant component of treatment regimens. Prevention of resistance to companion drugs by PAS is dose related, and at higher concentrations, PAS may exhibit significant bactericidal activity in addition to its bacteriostatic properties. The optimal dosing of PAS in children is uncertain, specifically for delayed-release granule preparations, which are the most used. A population pharmacokinetic model was developed describing PAS pharmacokinetics in children receiving routine RR-TB treatment. Model-based simulations evaluated current World Health Organization (WHO) weight-band doses against the adult pharmacokinetic target of 50 to 100 mg/liter for peak concentrations. Of 27 children included, the median (range) age and weight were 3.87 (0.58 to 13.7) years and 13.3 (7.15 to 30.5) kg, respectively; 4 (14.8%) were HIV positive. PAS followed one-compartment kinetics with first-order elimination and transit compartment absorption. The typical clearance in a 13-kg child was 9.79 liters/h. Increased PAS clearance was observed in both pharmacokinetic profiles from the only patient receiving efavirenz. No effect of renal function, sex, ethnicity, nutritional status, HIV status, antiretrovirals (lamivudine, abacavir, and lopinavir-ritonavir), or RR-TB drugs was detected. In simulations, target concentrations were achieved only using the higher WHO dose range of 300 mg/kg once daily. A transit compartment adequately describes absorption for the slow-release PAS formulation. Children should be dosed at the higher range of current WHO-recommended PAS doses and in a once-daily dose to optimize treatment.


The fastest-growing methodology for disease management outcomes measurement is valid, transparent, easy to apply, and freely available in the public domain and this article. It measures the actual goal of disease management, which is to reduce the rate of adverse events associated with the disease(s) being managed. Changes in this rate can be translated into a return on investment using some explicit assumptions about comorbidities and episode costs. Outcomes measured in this way show that in the health plan community as a whole, disease management in the broadest sense is working, as measured by the relative stability in the rate of adverse medical events closely associated with common chronic disease during this decade of increasing prevalence of most of the common chronic conditions.


The purpose of this project was to assess if the presence of a mediastinal mass adversely influences peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) positioning. A retrospective review of all PICC placements over an 18-month period in a pediatric oncology hospital was conducted in which patients were categorized by the presence or absence of a mediastinal mass. A much higher proportion of patients with a mediastinal mass (8 of 13) had a malpositioned catheter than those without a mass (3 of 38; P = .0002). A significant proportion of the malpositioned catheters in patients with a mediastinal mass terminated in the right heart chambers. These findings show that clinicians must be vigilant about checking for PICC malpositioning in this patient population.


HVDC converter station technology has developed rapidly to satisfy increasing requirements since the early 1980s, but there has not been any dramatic changes since thyristor valves were introduced in the mid 1970s. This paper describes some more recent and expected future development that will substantially change and simplify future converter stations. These developments include HVDC thyristor valves, active DC filters, AC filters, current measurement, control and protection equipment, HVDC simulators, and layout and compacting. >


With machine learning rising to prominence over the last decades, a lot of companies are doing research on how it can be applied in their products or production. Some of these companies have used machine learning with a good deal of success. This thesis proposes a solution for integrating speaker recognition in a video-editing system. The proposed solution is a proof-of-concept pipeline that is hooked into a web-based video-editing system made by a company called Vizrt[1]. This pipeline takes a video and performs speaker diarization and classification on the audio from the video. To achieve this, two types of models are applied; Gaussian Mixture Models to create a Universal Background Model, and models applying the i-vector approach for use in the clustering. From the results of the machine learning algorithms, the pipeline will produce timecodes that are sent to the video-editing system. These timecodes show where different speakers are talking. This information will be presented to the user in the system UI, where the user will have the option of correcting the results from the diarization and classification. The pipeline also adopts the results from the algorithms to provide further functionality. By using the generated timecodes, the pipeline is able to extract training data that is partitioned according to the speakers. This training data will be saved and can later be used to generate new models for the different speakers. These new models can be used in later runs through the pipeline to recognize known speakers and be improved by gathering more training data for the known speakers. The thesis shows how machine learning can be applied in a pipeline to partition an audio track without any prior trained model. Using this information could be time-saving in a video-editing process, or in the process of creating training data. The pipeline also has the potential to be expanded with further functionality. This would require the pipeline to be further integrated into the video-editing system.


The use of home dialysis treatment modalities, including peritoneal dialysis, is increasing. To have a successful peritoneal dialysis program, organizations must recognize the special abilities required of the nurse practicing in the peritoneal dialysis specialty. This article identifies strategies that can be used to educate, develop, and retain these nurses.


Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical reproducibility in determining the working length of Tri Auto ZX2 electronic foraminal locator (EFL) with instruments activated in OGP function by comparing the results obtained by this new device with those obtained by Root ZX II EFL.
Methodology: One hundred twenty-five teeth (72 vital and 60 non-vital pulps) were measured by Root ZX II EFL and Tri Auto ZX2 with instruments activated in OGP function to determine their respective working length, which was defined as a zero reading on the EFL. The instrument length was fixed with a rubber stop and measured with a caliper to an accuracy of 0.1 mm. The values obtained by Root ZX II and Tri Auto ZX2 were statistically compared by student t test with 5% of significance. The agreement between the different devices were determined in percentage. The statistical correlation was also used to determine the agreement between the two EFLs.
Results: There were no significant differences between tested EFLs measurements at "0.0" in vital, non-vital and in the overall analysis (P>0.05). Considering the agreement between devices, the results revealed 98.66% and 100% of concordant values in vital and non-vital pulps, respectively. The R2 coefficient obtained was close to 1 in cases of vital pulp, non-vital pulp and in overall analysis, denoting a strong agreement between the EFLs.
Conclusions: The clinical reproducibility of Tri Auto ZX2 was confirmed when compared to Root ZX II, indicating that the new device is effective for clinical use.


The systematic position of the antlion Pseudimares Kimmins has been disputed since description of the genus. Pseudimares is one of the most enigmatic and unusual members of Myrmeleontidae and probably of all Neuroptera. The taxon has been usually tied to the antlion subfamily Palparinae, although its phylogenetic affinities have never been thoroughly investigated and the monophyly of the subfamily as a whole has never been corroborated. We reconstruct for the first time the phylogenetic affinities of Pseudimares based on both morphological and molecular genetic data. The widely accepted subfamily level subdivision of antlions (Stilbopteryginae, Palparinae, Myrmeleontinae) is refuted in all our analyses, since Stilbopteryginae in the traditional sense are recovered as deeply nested within Myrmeleontidae forming a monophylum with Palparinae, while Myrmeleontinae are poorly supported by the parsimony analysis. In our morphology-based parsimony analysis, Pseudimares is the sister taxon of Stilbopteryx and Aeropteryx, which makes the traditional Palparinae paraphyletic. This result is further supported by our phylogenetic reconstruction based on molecular data, which found a clade including Pseudimares and Stilbopteryx, which is nested within the traditional Palparinae. The high genetic distances measured among the analysed taxa suggest that these groups quickly diverged in ancient times, although they remained morphologically homogeneous. In conformity with the results of the phylogenetic analyses, we propose a new classification scheme for antlions, one that merges Stilbopteryx and Aeropteryx into an expanded concept of the subfamily Palparinae.


Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be isolated from numerous tissues and have the potential for self-renewal and multidirectional differentiation. Evidence is accumulating which suggests that MSCs are also present in the gingival tissue. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of collecting, purifying, and amplifying gingival-derived MSCs (GMSCs) from canine gingiva and to obtain GMSC-derived exosomes (GMSC-exo). GMSCs were isolated and cultured; furthermore, cellular immunofluorescence demonstrated that GMSCs possess characteristic MSC markers, and in vitro differentiation was induced, indicating that GMSCs can differentiate into multiple lineages. GMSC-exo was successfully extracted from GMSCs supernatant and found that they exhibit the typical characteristics of exosomes as analyzed by transmission electron microscopy, nanoflow analysis, and western blotting. GMSC-exo promoted the proliferation and migration of Madin-Darby canine kidney cells. It was concluded that canine gingiva is a good source of MSCs. Additionally, GMSC-exo is a potentially promising cell-free therapeutic tool for the treatment of canine gingival diseases.


Early adulthood is a time when students tend to want to know something new, including sexual behavior, the lack of information about the sexual behavior makes students engage in risky sexual behavior. The factors for risky sexual behavior are self-regulation and YouTube users. The purpose of the study is to describe the contribution of self-regulation to risky sexual behavior, the contribution of self-regulation to risky sexual behavior, and the contribution of both variables to risky sexual behavior. The population in this study was 330 students in the eastern freshwater villages of Padang city and a sample of 60 people using purposive sampling techniques. The instruments used were self-composed instruments, namely self-regulation instruments, YouTube users and risky sexual behavior using a Likert scale model. Data Scale model analyzed with quantitative descriptive methods, simple regression, and multiple regression. Analysis of the data showed that there was a self-regulation contribution to risky sexual behavior by 70%, YouTube users' contribution to risky sexual behavior by 74%,  contribution self-regulation and YouTube users'  to risky sexual behavior by 77.4%. Based on the results of this study can later develop a program or technique in guidance and counseling that can assist students in avoiding risky sexual behavior.


In this paper a Two Step approach for efficient uncertainty quantification in computational fluid-structure interactions is followed. In Step I, a Sensitivity Analysis is used to efficiently narrow the problem down from multiple uncertain parameters to one parameter which has the largest influence on the solution. In Step II, for this most important parameter a more advanced uncertainty quantification method is employed to obtain the stochastic response of the solution. In order to find an efficient method for this, Monte Carlo simulation, the Askey Polynomial Chaos method, the Stochastic Collocation method, and the Piecewise Interpolated Sampling method are compared for the linear piston problem. In addition, the Piecewise Interpolated Sampling method, which uses piecewise cubic polynomials to interpolate between samples directly taken from the parameter space, is presented. This leads to better coverage of the parameter domain, compared to the Stochastic Collocation method, when the distribution has tails like the exponential and normal distribution. Finally, the efficiency of the Two Step approach is demonstrated for the linear piston problem with an unsteady boundary condition. A speed-up factor of O(10) is obtained compared to a full uncertainty analysis for all parameters.


At the Hanford Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant (WTP), various vessels are designed to be agitated with internal pulse jet mixers (PJMs) in order to provide a means of mixing with no moving parts local to the vessel. PJMs are operated by use of an applied vacuum to draw liquid in followed by motive air to force liquid out (while not completely discharging all the liquid). This continual operation results in mixing of the vessel contents. In off-normal conditions, PJMs may completely discharge resulting in air rapidly injected into the vessel (PJM overblow).
 An evaluation is complete to determine the statically applied transient acoustic event loads resulting from Pulse Jet Mixer (PJM) overblow on a vessel's internal submerged structures. The high-frequency acoustic load on internal structures is determined via analysis of overblow hydrophone test data, vessel modal and harmonic analysis, determination of an overblow forcing function through a Fourier analysis of test data compared to modal analysis of the vessel, application of the overblow forcing function in a finite element analysis model with acoustic fluid elements, use of a displacement-response spectra, and Hooke's Law. Compared to previous analyses, this improved method can account for changes to PJM cavity pressure, PJM nozzle diameter, and more accurately represents the loads because it considers geometric constraints.


The mechanical properties of a styrene–butadiene–styrene
block copolymer (Shell Cariflex K101) have been found to be
dependent upon the morphology of the polymer, which could be altered
by thermal or solvent treatments. Films cast from toluene, methylene
chloride and methyl cyclohexane and moulded samples are compared. Small-angle X-ray scattering, electron microscopic and swelling
techniques have been used to determine the morphology of the
samples. Macro-lattice models based on the microphase separation
of the two chemical species into domains and matrix have been
proposed for the toluene and methylene chloride cast samples.
Properties which have been found to differ are the dynamic
mechanical spectra, stress-strain behaviour, stress relaxation and
creep. The dynamic mechanical apparatus as described by Bowman has been improved and modified and has been used to measure
the Young's temperature
moduli and loss tangent of the
(-150°C to +120°C) and frequency
samples over a wide
range (0.01Hz to 1000Hz).
The network characteristic of this system has been attributed
to the entanglements of the polybutadiene chains, the physical
adsorption of the polybutadiene chains onto the domain surface and
the polybutadiene–polystyrene junctions. The ultimate properties
have been shown to be those of the rubbery matrix but are highly enhanced by the polystyrene domains acting as reinforcing fillers.
Preliminary work has been carried out in the synthesis of the XYX type of block copolymer where X is a crystalline segment (poly 3,3-bis(chloromethyl) oxetane) and Y is an elastomeric segment (tetrahydrofuran/3,3-bis(chloromethyl) oxetane copolymer).


This paper examines Chaho's Grammaire euskarienne (1836). After explaining how the
work was published, its structure is presented and the content of its three parts is explained.
Even though Chao's ideas about languages and Basque are contemporary (above all their
natural aspect), there is no doubt that this is an original work. The theory of the single verb,
which became highly successful over the decades to come, is clearly presented in Chaho's
analysis. The linguistic data offered, in particular the verb paradigms and their classification,
are his and are based on the dialect of Zuberoa (Soule).


AACR Annual Meeting-- Apr 14-18, 2007; Los Angeles, CA

3235

Near-infrared Raman microspectroscopy and Fluorescence-Activated cell sorting (FACS) were used to investigate the effect of etoposide on C6 glioma cells. Cells were incubated at different drug concentrations (0, 0.2, 2, and 20 µM) over 1, 2, and 3 days. After drug treatment, cells were harvested, and two cell pellets prepared: one pellet was analysed by FACS to investigate the effect of etoposide on cell cycle. The other was analysed by Raman microspectroscopy to identify spectroscopic markers linked to changes during the cell cycle. To correlate these changes with the cell cycle, Raman spectra were measured at GG1, G2-M, and S phases obtained after fetal bovine serum starvation, nocodazol incubation, and thymidine exposure, respectively. These treatments lead to a maximum of 94% cells in GG1 phase, 97% in G2-M and 78% in S phase. Multivariate statistics were used to analyze changes in cellular spectra as a function of cell cycle phase. Our results demonstrate that all data measured on cells can be classified in one out of two groups: i) one group contains spectra recorded on untreated cells, cells blocked in GG1 phase and cells treated with 0.2 µM of etoposide during 24, 48 and 72 hours, ii) the second group includes spectra recorded on cells blocked in S and G2-M cell division cycle, and cells treated with 2 µM and 20 µM of etoposide. We are not able to discriminate between cells treated with 2 and 20 µM of etoposide, G2-M and S phase. In fact, cells accumulated in S and G2-M in response to those etoposide concentrations. FACS analysis revealed that treatment with 0.2, 2, and 20 µM of etoposide caused cells to accumulate mostly in GG1, G2-M and S phases, respectively. These results are in agreement with the spectroscopic analysis where cells accumulated in GG1 phase and cells treated with 0.2 µM of etoposide were pooled in the same class. Qualitative changes in cellular components associated with the different phases of cell cycle and with drug effect were also investigated. Our results show that Raman spectra are very sensitive to cell cycle phase due to drug treatment and are associated to molecular changes in protein, DNA and/or RNA content. These results may prove to be useful in the future to evaluate the effect and efficacy of chemotherapeutic treatment.


Recent rapid advances in technology have provided us with a golden opportunity to effect change in health-related outcomes for chronic disease by employing digital technologies to encourage and support behavior change to promote and maintain health. Behavior change theories are the bedrock to developing evidence-based mHealth interventions. Digital technologies enable researchers to empirically test behavioral theories in "real-world" contexts using behavior change techniques (Hekler, Michie, et al., 2016). According to the European Commission (2014) among the world's population of 7 billion, there are over 5 billion mobile devices and over 90% of the users have their mobile device near them 24 hr a day. This provides a huge opportunity for behavior change and one that health psychologists have already begun to address. However, while a novel and exciting area of research, many early studies have been criticized for lacking a strong evidence base in both design and implementation. The European Commission conducted a public consultation in 2016 on the issues surrounding the use of mHealth tools (e.g., apps) and found a lack of global standards was a significant barrier. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) mHealth Technical Evidence Review Group developed the mHealth evidence reporting and assessment (mERA) checklist for specifying the content of mHealth interventions. Health psychologists play a key role in developing mHealth interventions, particularly in the management of chronic disease. This article discusses current challenges facing widespread integration of mobile technology into self-management of chronic disease including issues around security and regulation, as well as investigating mechanisms to overcoming these barriers.


Besides the ongoing rapid development of processing power of computers new standardised interfaces are emerging. Thus, future measuring software will be able to process information of the quality of a measuring operation. This exceeds the current state-of-the-art. The originality of this research lies with the proposal of a novel method for computing a quality factor for each measuring point. The method is applicable for optical imaging sensors. However, similar regimes may be applied for other types of sensors. This paper presents a general methodology for computing a quality factor for focusing. Thereby different criteria such as unimodality, accuracy, reproducibility, definition range, general applicability and robustness are covered. The application of the proposed quality factor enables a more profound evaluation of a focusing process than the pure specification of the uncertainty of the focus position does. Within a closed quality loop it enables a higher level of control of the measuring process resulting in a significantly decreased measuring uncertainty and an increased robustness. Thereby the closed quality loop comprises the CAD process, inspection planning, measuring operations and the comparison between CAD data and measured geometry. The paper closes with some experimental results showing the soundness of the proposed method.


Novel imaging of the fine structures of the ribs of a pig and a specimen of human osteosarcoma utilizing the spatial coherence of X-rays was successfully performed with an incident X-ray energy of 30 keV at SPring-8, Japan. The image contrast appearing at the periphery of trabecular bone, small calcifications and small fractures is caused by the phase shift of the X-rays at the boundary of these objects that have different X-ray refractive indices. The image is recorded on mammography film without an intensifying screen. Comparison of the image contrast using different sample-to-film distances, Z, such as Z = 5 m and Z approximately 0 m, showed that the former images were always more informative, i.e. better in resolution and/or image contrast when imaging trabecular bone, bone marrow and small fractures in compact bone, and for imaging cartilage. Radiography using synchrotron X-rays for phase objects should be a powerful tool for diagnosis in orthopedics, especially for bone disease.


Castillo, J. D., K. S. Lawrence, J. W. Kloepper, and E. van Santen. 2010. Evaluation of Drechslerella dactyloides, Drechslerella brochopaga, and Paecilomyces lilacinus for the biocontrol of Rotylenchulus reniformis. Nematropica 40:71-85. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the biological control potential of Drechslerella dactyloides, Drechslerella brochopaga, and Paecilomyces lilacinus against the reniform nematode, Rotylenchulus reniformis under in vitro, and in greenhouse conditions. Pathogenicity tests in vitro with Drechslerella dactyloides and D. brochopaga revealed conidial germination at 14 hours and at 72 hours trapping-rings had formed and ensnared reniform nematodes. Paecilomyces lilacinus conidia germinated in 12 hours and parasitized nematode eggs within 24 hours after the initial exposure. Pathogenicity of the fungi was examined in the greenhouse in autoclaved and non-autoclaved soil. In autoclaved soil, all three fungi reduced (P ≤ 0.05) the number of vermiform R. reniformis nematodes in soil 60 days after planting. Paecilomyces lilacinus also reduced (P ≤ 0.05) numbers of eggs extracted from the cotton roots. In non-autoclaved soil, D. dactyloides reduced R. reniformis vermiform life stages, but none of the fungal isolates affected the number of R. reniformis eggs extracted from the roots. Drechslerella dactyloides, D. brochopaga, and P. lilacinus parasitize R. reniformis in vitro and in the greenhouse using autoclaved soil. However, the fungi did not reduce numbers of R. reniformis in non-autoclaved soil. These results illustrate these fungi are parasites of R. reniformis; however they need to have an advantage to compete with native soil microorganisms.


Exploration of alternative energy sources for chemical transformations has gained significant interest from chemists, and mechanochemistry is one of those sources. Herein, we report the use of N-bromosuccinimides (NBS) and N-chlorosuccinimides (NCS) as bifunctional reagents for a cascaded C-N bond formation and subsequent halogenation reactions. Under the solvent-free mechanochemical (ball-milling) conditions, the synthesis of a wide range of phenanthridinone derivatives from N-methoxy-[1,1'-biphenyl]-2-carboxamides is accomplished. During the reactions, NBS and NCS first assisted the oxidative C-N coupling reaction and subsequently promoted a halogenation reaction. Thus, the role of NBS and NCS was established to be bifunctional. Overall, a mild, solvent-free, convenient, one-pot, and direct synthesis of various bromo- and chloro-substituted phenanthridinone derivatives was achieved.


Riparian meadows in central Nevada are highly productive and have been extensively utilized for livestock grazing. Consequently, many have been severely degraded resulting in changes in species composition and decreases in productivity. During a 3 year study, we examined the responses of mesic meadow systems to yearly nitrogen addition (100 kg ha(-1)) and clipping (8-10 cm stubble height) to increase our understanding of grazing effects. We also examined the effects of a one-time, fall aeration (10 cm deep by 2 cm wide holes spaced 20 cm apart) and revegetation (removal of existing vegetation and reseeding) to evaluate the restoration potential of these sites. Changes in total biomass, species aerial cover and frequency, and surface basal cover were used to evaluate treatment responses. Clipping had no effect on total biomass, possibly because it was conducted late in the growing season. In contrast, nitrogen addition plus clipping increased biomass in all 3 years when treatments were compared across sites and for 1 out of 3 years when treatments were compared across a single site. Aeration had no effect on above ground biomass, but has been shown to increase rooting activity in these same meadows. Due to a dry, hot spring, early seral and weedy species had higher establishment than the seeded natives in the revegetation plots, and biomass was low the first year after treatment. Individual species varied in their treatment responses. The cover of low-growing forb species (western aster (Aster occidentalis [Nutt.] Torrey and A. Gray), long-stalk starwort (Stellania Longipes Goldie), and common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale Wigg.) declined through time for all treatments, presumably due to increased grass cover and shading following release from grazing and above average precipitation and water table levels in 1998. Examination of the key graminoids showed that Kentucky bluegrass (Poa pratensis ssp. pratensis L.), an increaser species, did not increase in response to release from grazing, but increased in response to clipping and nitrogen addition. Nebraska sedge (Carex nebrascensis Dewey), a desirable native, increased in response to both release from grazing and nitrogen addition. The results were influenced by high spatial and temporal variability in water table elevations within these systems. DOI:10.2458/azu_jrm_v54i3_martin


This paper presents a fault injection platform that is currently developed and used to perform soft-error dependability analysis and hardening of complex SoCs1. Primarily, it is oriented toward safety analysis, safety requirement conformance testing and hardening of complex SoCs. This platform makes use of clusters of hardware emulation resources available for SoC verification to achieve massive faults injection capabilities. It is able to distribute fault injection campaigns across multiple heterogeneous emulation platforms to achieve high fault coverage. It is able to virtually handle almost any circuit size and is designed to support all kind of designs. We present the first results obtained on a small design, the Leon2 IP, on which exhaustive fault injection have been performed.


The aims of this study were to assess dental students' knowledge and attitude with regard to forensic odontology and to determine students' opinions in the current dental curriculum.

 This cross-sectional study was conducted among dental students at one of the main dental colleges in the United Arab Emirates; only dental students on their final year and internship were invited to participate. An online self-administrated questionnaire was used, which consisted of a set of 15 questions. All the data were entered into Microsoft Excel and then transferred into SPSS.

 A total of 276 dental students contributed to this study. The highest percentage of correct responses stated by the students was related to the estimation of individuals' age and estimation of dental age based on radiograph and eruption status. However, there were clear deficiencies in students' knowledge in relation to other aspects such as gender identification and lip-print, palatal rugae as an indicator in forensic identification. A high percentage (84.8%) had no formal education in the field of forensic odontology. Moreover, 93.1% of the students agreed that their present knowledge about forensic odontology is inadequate. Most of the participants (95.0%) agreed upon the necessity of adding a module on forensic odontology to the current curriculum.

 Our study revealed inadequate knowledge among dental students in relation to forensic odontology. This lack of knowledge among them attributed to the lack of formal training, and lack of forensic odontology as a part of dental curriculum. Forensic odontology must be added to the undergraduate curriculum as a separate subject to enrich students' knowledge and awareness toward medico-legal cases in their future careers.


Net metabolic cost of walking normalized by body mass (C(W.BM(-1)); in J.kg(-1).m(-1)) is greater in obese than in normal-weight individuals, and biomechanical differences could be responsible for this greater net metabolic cost. We hypothesized that, in obese individuals, greater mediolateral body center of mass (COM) displacement and lower recovery of mechanical energy could induce an increase in the external mechanical work required to lift and accelerate the COM and thus in net C(W.BM(-1)). Body composition and standing metabolic rate were measured in 23 obese and 10 normal-weight adolescents. Metabolic and mechanical energy costs were assessed while walking along an outdoor track at four speeds (0.75-1.50 m/s). Three-dimensional COM accelerations were measured by means of a tri-axial accelerometer and gyroscope and integrated twice to obtain COM velocities, displacements, and fluctuations in potential and kinetic energies. Last, external mechanical work (J.kg(-1).m(-1)), mediolateral COM displacement, and the mechanical energy recovery of the inverted pendulum were calculated. Net C(W.BM(-1)) was 25% higher in obese than in normal-weight subjects on average across speeds, and net C(W.BM(-67)) (J.kg(-0.67).m(-1)) was significantly related to percent body fat (r(2) = 0.46). However, recovery of mechanical energy and the external work performed (J.kg(-1).m(-1)) were similar in the two groups. The mediolateral displacement was greater in obese subjects and significantly related to percent body fat (r(2) = 0.64). The mediolateral COM displacement, likely due to greater step width, was significantly related to net C(W.BM(-67)) (r(2) = 0.49). In conclusion, we speculate that the greater net C(W.BM(-67)) in obese subjects may be partially explained by the greater step-to-step transition costs associated with wide gait during walking.


We identify a new natural coalescent structure, which we call the seed-bank coalescent, that describes the gene genealogy of populations under the influence of a strong seed-bank effect, where "dormant forms" of individuals (such as seeds or spores) may jump a significant number of generations before joining the "active" population. Mathematically, our seed-bank coalescent appears as scaling limit in a Wright–Fisher model with geometric seed-bank age structure if the average time of seed dormancy scales with the order of the total population size N . This extends earlier results of Kaj, Krone and Lascoux [J. Appl. Probab. 38 (2011) 285–300] who show that the genealogy of a Wright–Fisher model in the presence of a "weak" seed-bank effect is given by a suitably time-changed Kingman coalescent. The qualitatively new feature of the seed-bank coalescent is that ancestral lineages are independently blocked at a certain rate from taking part in coalescence events, thus strongly altering the predictions of classical coalescent models. In particular, the seed-bank coalescent "does not come down from infinity," and the time to the most recent common ancestor of a sample of size n grows like log logn. This is in line with the empirical observation that seed-banks drastically increase genetic variability in a population and indicates how they may serve as a buffer against other evolutionary forces such as genetic drift and selection.


Purpose: To investigate the impact of fenestrated endovascular aneurysm repair (fEVAR) on renal function perioperatively and at midterm. Methods: A case-controlled study was performed involving 58 patients (mean age 75±7 years; 51 men) who underwent elective fEVAR for a juxtarenal or short-necked abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) matched on age, sex, smoking, diabetes, and baseline estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) with a contemporaneous group undergoing open aneurysm repair (OAR) for the same indications. Perioperative incidence of acute kidney injury (AKI) and levels of eGFR at 30 days and 1 year were compared. A systematic literature review was performed to identify studies that had used eGFR as renal outcome after fEVAR; the pooled data were meta-analyzed using an eGFR drop >30% at 1 month and the latest follow-up as endpoints. Results are reported as the pooled proportion and 95% confidence interval (CI). Results: The incidence of AKI after fEVAR was 28% compared to 10% after OAR (p=0.03). Following fEVAR, the mean eGFR dropped from 78±8 to 74±9 mL/min/1.73 m2 at 30 days compared to a change from 79±8 to 80±16 mL/min/1.73 m2 after OAR (p<0.01). However, the absolute drop in eGFR between fEVAR and OAR at 1 year was similar (7 mL/min/1.73 m2; p=0.53); 7% of the fEVAR patients had an eGFR drop >30% at that point compared with none for OAR (p=0.12). The systematic literature review identified eGFR outcomes for 193 fEVAR patients. Combining these patients with the 58 from our cohort study, the pooled proportions of eGFR drop >30% were 20% (95% CI 9% to 39%) at 30 days and 8% (95% CI 0.5% to 13%) at the end of follow-up. Conclusion: fEVAR has a significant perioperative impact on renal function, but 1-year results are similar to OAR. fEVAR patients may benefit from targeted AKI prevention strategies that need to be assessed in relevant studies.


Currently real-time control and online quality estimation of the resistance spot welding (RSW) has benefited a lot from monitoring the electrode displacement of nugget thermal expansion. Based on these emerging monitoring techniques a new approach is proposed to determine the optimal control parameters and help to assess the weld quality. A causal model is built with the offline trained Bayesian Belief Networks (BBN) as a pattern determination net which deals with the optimal pattern of the electrode displacement, i.e. the ideal parameter combination between the maximum electrode displacement and its expansion velocity, to provide more reliable welding process and qualified welds. The experimental results show that the proposed approach is valid and feasible to determine the controlled parameters for welding robots.


Based on the left-right equivalent relation of smooth map-germs in slgularity theory, the neessary and sufficient condition for unfolding of equivariant bifurcation problem with two types of state variables under a subgroup A1 (Γ) of left-right equivalent group to be versal unfolding are studied.


Supination contracture of the forearm, not uncommonly seen in Erb's palsy and occasionally seen in infantile paralysis, follows the selective palsy of the muscles arising from the medial epicondyle of the humerus. The supination deformity of the forearm is the primary link in a chain of deformities which consists in a triple deformity of the shoulder in flexion, abduction, and medial rotation, a flexion contracture of the elbow, and hyperextension of the wrist. The first step in correction is to return the shoulder to the neutral position. This must be done before correcting the supination deformity or the dorsiflexion of the wrist.

Operations used to relieve supination contracture of the forearm, especially osteotomy of the radius, are described. After section of the radius, there is dorsal and ulnar angulation of the radius by non-axial torsion of the distal fragment. The value of axial torsional osteotomy of the ulna to relieve supination contracture is noted.


Hierarchical modulation (HM) is able to provide different levels of protection for data streams and achieve a rate region that cannot be realized by traditional orthogonal schemes, such as time division (TD). Nevertheless, criterions and algorithms for general HM design are not available in existing literatures. In this paper, we jointly optimize the constellation positions and binary labels for HM to be used in additive white gaussian noise (AWGN) channel. Based on bit-interleaved coded modulation (BICM) with successive interference cancellation (SIC) capacity, our main purpose is to maximize the rate of one data stream, with power constrains and the constrain that the rate of other data streams should be larger than given thresholds. Multi-start interior-point algorithm is used to carry out the constellation optimization problems and methods to reduce optimization complexity are also proposed in this paper. Numerical results verify the performance gains of optimized HM compared with optimized quadrature amplidude modulation (QAM) based HM and other orthogonal transmission methods.


The cosine (cos) beam is the two-dimensional counterpart of the three-dimensional nondiffracting beam, the Bessel beam. The propagation behavior of the truncated cos beam is similar to that of the truncated Bessel beam. The propagation of the apertured cos beams is studied. The pseudonondiffracting beam proposed recently by Rosen [Opt. Lett.20, 423 (1995)] can be obtained by the proper truncation of the cos beam. The temporal nondispersive pulse can be treated in a similar way, owing to the space–time analogy.


Single-mode lasing action is obtained from a modified octagonal quasi-periodic photonic crystal (OQPC) single-defect micro-cavity which supports a well-confined whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) with ultra-low threshold and high SMSR.


PMSP (Polymer Metal Solvent Paste) material must be deposited on a five inch wafer with 100% bump survival. The target geometry is 0.010{double_prime} diameter, and 0.004{double_prime} high with a flat surface. Accomplishments: The photobumping process has been refined to yield bumps that are 0.010{double_prime} in diameter and greater than 0.0035{double_prime} high. The surface is flat and bonding results in a strong bond with no air entrapment between the chip bump and card pad. Initial work with photobumping yielded a bump surface that was concave. In photobumping, 0.004{double_prime} thick photoresist is imaged to create apertures. These apertures are filled with PMSP in two passes with a solvent drying process that occurs between the first and the second pass After the first pass filling, solvent from the PM SP interacted with the photoresist and caused the top surface, at the circumference of the aperture, to shrink. On the second pass filling, this slightly depressed surface fills up with PM SP. We call this blooming because the diameter of the bump is extended at the surface. When the photoresist is stripped, the thin surface extension of the bump diameter is folded over on top of the bump. This fold created a ridge at the circumference of the bump that would make initial contact with the card surface during bonding. The result was a high probability of air entrapment at the joint interface. The blooming problem was corrected by changing from an aqueous to a semiaqueous photorcsist that was more solvent resistant. Flat surface bumps are made with 100% yield on five inch wafers. Double layers of 0.002{double_prime} photoresist are used to define the nearly 0.004{double_prime} high bumps. Work is in progress to use single layers of 0.003{double_prime} and 0.004{double_prime} photoresist. A single layer should eliminate perturbations from a straight side wall profile that exist near the interface of a double photoresist layup.


For adults and children, genetic and environmental factors are known to affect brain structure and neural activity necessary for conducting various cognitive tasks. However, little is known regarding genetic and environmental contributions to individual differences in neural activity during the first two years of life. Concentrations of oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin were measured bilaterally over temporal areas of 7 monozygotic and 17 dizygotic twin pairs using near-infrared spectroscopy. Results showed that environmental influences on the concentration of hemoglobin were larger than for genetic influences. Significant genetic and environmental influences were detected in different temporal areas. We discuss the genetic and environmental influences on the hemodynamic response to speech stimuli during the first two years of life.


Photosynthetic proteins are emerging as a new class of photovoltaic materials as their nature-designed architecture and internal circuitry are so sophisticated that they carry out the initial light-driven steps of photosynthesis with ≈100% quantum efficiency. Research on bioinspired solar cells has increased in recent years as they promise better efficiency than the conventional p–n junction solar cells that have limited conversion efficiency (34%). Since it is a mammoth task to perfectly mimic the intricate proteins evolved in nature, the idea of interfacing the natural proteins with engineered materials seems to be propitious for developing biohybrid solar cells. Herein, we summarize various approaches in immobilizing the photosynthetic biomolecules in photovoltaic devices and the progress in the photocurrent generation achieved. This review highlights the multidisciplinary nature of photosynthetic biohybrid devices and their future prospects in light of some of the research challenges and discrepancies witnessed by this field. The fascinating aspect of this research area is that it guides the biologists to explore the possibilities of improving protein stability and robustness suitable for solar cells and inspires the solar cell researchers to explore the physics behind the working mechanisms of biohybrid solar cells which can generate novel architectures in future solar energy conversion devices.


Summary Field trials conducted previously in Niger have shown that in years when the onset of the rains is 15–20 days earlier than average, the long growing season can be exploited by growing a relay crop of millet (Pennisetum glaucum) and cowpea (Vigna unguiculata). In the trials reported here, the advantages of relay cropping were compared with intercropping with improved management and intercropping under traditional management during the 1989, 1990 and 1991 rainy seasons at the ICRISAT Sahelian Center, Sadore, Niger. The length of the growing season varied from 139 to 150 days over the three seasons. The relay crop produced more dry matter and leaf area and yielded more than the intercrops in all three years, confirming that in years when the onset of the rains is early, relay cropping with millet and cowpea is a better option than growing the same two species as an intercrop. Relay cropping avoids the competitive effects inherent in intercropping systems, while offering the additional advantages of rotating cereals with legumes. Mijo y caupí en sistemas de relevo y de cultivo simultáneo


It is found on KT-5C tokamak that an edge fluctuation mode can be excited by using a pair of floating Langmuir probes. This mode is propagating along the magnetic field with its amplitude decreasing drastically when it is off the magnetic field line. Preliminary feedback experiments show that the broadband edge turbulence can be reduced or enhanced depending upon the phase shift of the feedback network.


Finite element (FE) method is presented for the analysis of thin rectangular laminated composite plates under the biaxial action of in – plane compressive loading. The analysis uses the classical laminated plate theory (CLPT) which does not account for shear deformations. In this theory it is assumed that the laminate is in a state of plane stress, the individual lamina is linearly elastic, and there is perfect bonding between layers. The classical laminated plate theory (CLPT), which is an extension of the classical plate theory (CPT) assumes that normal to the mid – surface before deformation remains straight and normal to the mid – surface after deformation. Therefore, this theory is only adequate for buckling analysis of thin laminates. A Fortran program has been compiled. New numerical results are generated for in – plane compressive biaxial buckling which serve to quantify the effects of lamination scheme, aspect ratio, material anisotropy, fiber orientation of layers, reversed lamination scheme and boundary conditions. It was found that symmetric laminates are stiffer than the anti – symmetric one due to coupling between bending and stretching which decreases the buckling loads of symmetric laminates. The buckling load increases with increasing aspect ratio, and decreases with increase in modulus ratio. The buckling load will remain the same even when the lamination order is reversed. The buckling load increases with the mode number but at different rates depending on the type of end support. It is also observed that as the mode number increases, the plate needs additional support. Keywords— Finite element method, classical plate theory, buckling, thin plates, laminated composites, new numerical results.


A barrier membrane (BM) is essential for guided bone regeneration (GBR) procedures. Absorbable BMs based on collagen have been widely applied clinically due to their excellent biocompatibility. The extracellular matrix (ECM) provides certain advantages that can compensate for the rapid degradation and insufficient mechanical strength of pure collagen membrane due to the porous scaffold structure. Recently, small intestinal submucosa (SIS), one of the most widely used ECM materials, has drawn much attention in bone tissue engineering. In this study, we adopted multilaminate SIS (mSIS) as a BM and evaluated its in vivo and in vitro properties. mSIS exhibited a multilaminate structure with a smooth upper surface and a significantly coarser bottom layer according to microscopic observation. Tensile strength was 13.10 ± 2.56 MPa. In in vivo experiments, we selected a rabbit mandibular defect model and subcutaneous implantation to compare osteogenesis and biodegradation properties with one of the most commonly used commercial collagen membranes. mSIS was retained for up to 3 months and demonstrated longer biodegradation time than commercial collagen membrane. Quantification of bone regeneration revealed significant differences in each group. Micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) revealed that the quantity and maturity of bones in the mSIS group were significantly higher than those in the blank control group (P < 0.05) and were similar to those in a commercial collagen membrane group (P > 0.05) at 4 and 12 weeks after surgery. Hematoxylin and eosin staining revealed large amounts of mature lamellar bone at 12 weeks in mSIS and commercial collagen membrane groups. Therefore, we conclude that mSIS has potential as a future biocompatible BM in GBR procedures.


The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of workload on nurses' work stress during the Covid-19 pandemic at Sondosia Hospital in Bima. This type of research is quantitative research. The population in this study were all nurses at the Sondosia District General Hospital. Bima as many as 87 people (data for October-November 2020), and the sampling technique used the total sampling technique. The instrument used is a questionnaire. Data analysis used simple linear regression analysis. Results of simple linear regression analysis showed that there was a positive influence terhadapstres variable workload of work, and the results of analysis of regression coefficient (R) shows the contribution of the effect of52.5%. While the results of the hypothesis test of the workload variable obtained a value of tcount> ttable (9.689 > 1.671) with a significant value of 0.000 (p value<0.05), so it was concluded that the workload variable had a significant effect on the work stress of nurses during the Covid-19 pandemic. At Sondosia Hospital, Kab. Bima. Nurses are expected to carry out stress management such as being able to manage time, do relaxation, build good therapeutic communication with fellow nurses or leaders.


Turf managers traditionally avoid seeding cool-season turfgrass in spring due to summer annual weed interference and poor growing conditions for cool-season grasses. Siduron is the most accepted herbicide for weed control in spring-seeded tall fescue, but it has low residual activity and does not control many weeds other than crabgrass. Isoxaflutole, mesotrione, and quinclorac were evaluated as alternatives to siduron. Single applications of these herbicides controlled crabgrass equivalent to or better than siduron. Sequential applications of isoxaflutole, mesotrione, or quinclorac effectively controlled smooth crabgrass without injuring tall fescue. Isoxaflutole and mesotrione controlled broadleaf plantain, henbit, and yellow woodsorrel; quinclorac marginally controlled henbit; and siduron did not control broadleaf weeds. Turfgrass cover 9 wk after seeding was dependent on environment and equivalent between treatments except at a location with predominately broadleaf weeds where siduron treatments resulted in less cover due to weed infestation. Sequential applications of isoxaflutole, mesotrione, and quinclorac provide an effective, safe option for chemical weed control during establishment of cool-season turfgrass. Nomenclature: Isoxaflutole, mesotrione, quinclorac, siduron, broadleaf plantain, Plantago major L. #3 PLAMA, henbit, Lamium amplexicaule L. # LAMAM, smooth crabgrass, Digitaria ischaemum Schreb.ex Muhl. # DIGIS, yellow woodsorrel, Oxalis stricta L. # OXAST 'Midnight', tall fescue, Festuca arundinacea Schreb. 'Crossfire II'. Additional index words: Cool-season turfgrass, turfgrass establishment, turfgrass injury. Abbreviations: EPOST, early postemergence; fb, followed by; GRF, Glade Road Research Facility, Blacksburg, VA; LPOST, late postemergence; TRC, Turfgrass Research Center, Blacksburg, VA; WAIT, weeks after initial treatment; WAP, weeks after planting.


Electronic mail has been a competent and widely accepted communication mechanism as the Internet community increases. This has inspired attention for urgent need to manage and maintain e-mail. Email messages are expected to be sent and gathered in a warehouse for recurring use as it ranges from inert institutional information to discussions and creates complications for users in making precedence for saved and new email content. This research classified accumulated electronic messages into three class dataset of trivial, important and non-trivial. Electronic mail contents are extracted and Term Frequency Inverse Document Frequency (TF-IDF) technique was used to determine keywords in email messages to determine constructive words to be used. Nuclass 7.1 artificial neural network software was used for email classification into user defined word identity classes in an associative learning approach as the network was trained with input and matching output patterns. The performance evaluation showed that neural networks are more successfully used for automated email classification. Keywords : Electronic mail, Term Frequency Inverse Document Frequency, artificial neural network, email classification, email message.


This work describes a water repellent ultra-low density fiberboard (ULDF) prepared by chlorinated paraffin nanoemulsion (CPNE). Compared with the untreated ULDF, the contact angle of ULDF treated with 150 mL of CPNE increased from 40° to 134°, while its apparent surface free energy decreased from 24.19 mN/m to 10.06 mN/m. Moreover, the water absorbance of ULDF treated with CPNE decreased from 88.2% to 24% in the first hour. The improved hydrophobicity and hygroscopicity of ULDF was supported by the presence of a film on the surface of fibers, as observed by environmental scanning electron microscopy. The occurrence of chlorine and the chemical structure changes in ULDF before and after CPNE treatment were also confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy respectively. This ULDF with enhanced water repellency is a promising insulation material.


Each chapter concludes with "Summary," "Exercises" and "References." Preface I. INTRODUCTION TO EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH: DEFINITIONS, RESEARCH PROBLEMS, PROPOSALS, AND REPORT WRITING. 1. The Meaning of Research. Why Should I Study Research? The Search for Knowledge Science The Role of Theory Operational Definitions of Variables The Hypothesis The Research Hypothesis The Null Hypothesis (Ho) Populations Sampling Randomness The Simple Random Sample Random Numbers The Systematic Sample The Stratified Random Sample The Area or Cluster Sample Nonprobability Samples Sample Size Purposes of Research Fundamental or Basic Research Applied Research Action Research Assessment, Evaluation, and Descriptive Research Types of Educational Research 2. Selecting a Problem and Preparing a Research Proposal. The Academic Research Problem Levels of Research Projects Sources of Problems Evaluating the Problem Using the Library Finding Related Literature References and Bibliography Fair Use of Copyrighted Materials The Research Proposal The First Research Project Submitting a Research Proposal to a Funding Agency Thesis Proposal Ethics in Human Experimentation History of Research Ethics Regulations From Regulations to Practice. 3. The Research Report. Style Manuals Format of the Research Report Main Body of the Report References and Appendices The Thesis or Dissertation Style of Writing Reference Form Pagination Tables Figures The Line Graph The Bar Graph or Chart The Circle, Pie, or Sector Chart Maps Organization Charts Evaluating a Research Report II. RESEARCH METHODS. 4. Historical Research. Purpose of Histroical Reseach on American Education History and Science Historical Generalization The Historical Hypothesis Hypotheses in Educational Historical Research Difficulties Encountered in Historical Research Sources of Data Primary Sources of Data Primary Sources of Educational Data Secondary Sources of Data Historical Criticism External Criticism Internal Criticism Examples of Topics for Educational Historical Study Writing the Historical Report 5. Descriptive Studies: Assessment, Evaluation, and Research. Assessment Studies The Survey Social Surveys Public Opinion Surveys National Center for Education Statistics International Assessment Activity Analysis Trend Studies Evaluation Studies School Surveys Program Evaluation Assessment and Evaluation in Problem Solving Descriptive Research Causal Comparative Research Correlational Research Follow-up Research Other Descriptive Research Replication and Secondary Analysis The Post Hoc Fallacy 6. Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Research. Early Experimentation Experimental and Control Groups Variables Independent and Dependent Variables Confounding Variables Controlling Extraneous Variables Experimental Validity Threats to Internal Experimental Validity Threats to External Experimental Validity Experimental Design Pre-experimental Designs True Experimental Designs Quasi-Experimental Designs Factorial Designs 7. Single-Subject Experimental Research. General Procedures Repeated Measurement Baselines Manipulating Variables Length of Phases Transfer of Training and Response Maintenance Assessment Target Behavior Data Collection Strategies Basic Designs A-B-A-B Designs Multiple Baseline Designs Other Designs Evaluating Data 8. Qualitative Research. A Qualitative Research Model. Themes of Qualitative Research Research Questions Theoretical Traditions Research Strategies Document or Content Analysis The Case Study Ethnographic Studies Data Collection Techniques Observations Interviews Review of Documents Other Qualitative Data Collection Techniques Data Analysis and Interpretation Combining Qualitative and Quantitative Research 9. Methods and Tools of Research. Reliability and Validity of Research Tools Quantitative Studies Qualitative Studies Psychological and Educational Tests and Inventories Qualities of a Good Test and Inventory Validity Reliability Economy Interest Types of Tests and Inventories Achievement Tests Aptitude Tests Interest Inventories Personality Inventories Projective Devices Observation Validity and Reliability of Observation Recording Observations Systematizing Data Collection Characteristics of Good Observation Inquiry Forms: The Questionnaire Closed Form The Open Form Improving Questionnaire Items Characteristics of a Good Questionnaire Preparing and Administering the Questionnaire A Sample Questionnaire Validity and Reliability of Questionnaires Inquiry Forms: The Opinionnaire Thurstone Technique Likert Method Semantic Differential The Interview Validity and Reliability of the Interview Q Methodology Social Scaling Sociometry Scoring Sociometric Choices The Sociogram "Guess-who" Technique Social-distance Scale Organization of Data Collection Outside Criteria for Comparison Limitations and Sources of Error III. DATA ANALYSIS. 10. Descriptive Data Analysis. What Is Statistics? Parametric and Nonparametric Data Descriptive and Inferential Analysis The Organization of Data Grouped Data Distributions Statistical Measures Measures of Central Tendency Measures of Spread or Dispersion Normal Distribution Nonnormal Distributions Interpreting the Normal Probability Distribution Practical Applications of the Normal Curve Measures of Relative Position: Standard Scores The Z Score (Z) The T Score (T) The College Board Score (ZCb). Stanines Percentile Rank. Measures of Relationship Pearson's Product-Moment Coefficient of Correlation (r) Rank Order Correlation (r) Phi Correlation Coefficient (f) Interpretation of a Correlation Coefficient Outliers Misinterpretation of the Coefficient of Correlation Prediction Standard Error of Estimate A Note of Caution 11. Inferential Data Analysis. Statistical Inference The Central Limit Theorem Parametric Tests Testing Statistical Significance The Significance of the Difference between the Means of Two Independent Groups The Null Hypothesis (Ho) The Level of Significance Decision Making Two-Tailed and One-Tailed Tests of Significance Degrees of Freedom A One-Sample Z Test Student's Distribution (t) Significance of the Difference between Two Small Sample Independent Means Homogeneity of Variances Significance of the Difference between the Means of Two Matched or correlated Groups (Nonindependent Samples) Statistical Significance of a Coefficient of correlation Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) and Partial Correlation Multiple Regression and Correlation Nonparametric Tests The Chi Square Test (c2) The Mann-Whitney Test Outliers and Missing Data 12. Computer Data Analysis. The Computer Data Organization Computer Analysis of Data Descriptive Statistics Graphs Multiple Regression ANOVA Results from Analyses of Appendix B Data Statistics on the World Wide Web Qualitative Analyses Using Computer Software Appendix A: Statistical Formulas and Symbols. Appendix B: Sample Data. Appendix C: Percentage of Area Lying Between the Mean and Successive Standard Deviation Units Under the Normal Curve. Appendix D: Critical Values for Pearson's Product-Moment Correlation (r). Appendix E: Critical Values of Student's Distribution (t). Appendix F: Abridged Table of Critical Values for Chi Square. Appendix G: Critical Values of the F Distribution. Appendix H: Research Report Evaluation. Appendix I: Answers to Statistics Exercises.


Previous studies have shown that endodontic infections might increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. However, there is no conclusive evidence that endodontic infections are associated with cardiovascular diseases among individuals with cardiac conditions. This systematic review aimed to collect and evaluate the current evidence on the relationship between chronic endodontic infections and cardiovascular diseases. The PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science databases were searched, and Google Scholar was used to retrieve relevant clinical studies within the past 10 years (2011-2021). Observational studies (prospective cohort, retrospective cohort, cross-sectional, and case-control studies), which investigated the impact of endodontic infections and apical periodontitis in individuals with cardiac conditions at risk of cardiovascular disease, in English were considered. Review papers, duplicates, animal studies, and other irrelevant studies were excluded. Four investigators independently carried out the study selection and data collection processes. Quality assessment was performed in this review. Fourteen studies with 960,652 human subjects were included in this review. No association between endodontic infections and cardiovascular diseases among individuals with cardiac conditions was noted. Most of the studies showed a moderate overall risk of bias by 57.14% (n=8). There is weak evidence regarding the association between cardiovascular diseases and chronic endodontic infections. Further longitudinal clinical studies are required to determine the association between cardiovascular diseases and endodontic infections.


This paper investigates the impact of bank regulation on default risk for a sample of six major European countries over 2003-2008. In the first stage of the analysis, we used a descriptive study for the determination of factors that contributed to the bank vulnerability. We measure banking fragility by using two ex-ante variables Zscore and rating to indicate future risk, and we use public intervention as an ex-post variable for bank failure. In the second stage, we used Logit regression models to assess several types of regulation on bank failure. Our results show that strengthening capital restrictions and supervision can improve bank solvency. While, market discipline and restricting bank activities can result in higher bank insolvency.


Merotelic kinetochore orientation is an error that occurs when a single kinetochore becomes attached to microtubules from two spindle poles rather than just to one pole. We obtained the first evidence that merotelic kinetochore orientation occurs very frequently during early mitosis in mammalian tissue cells and that two different correction mechanisms are critical for accurate chromosome segregation in cells possessing bipolar spindles and unperturbed chromosomes. Our data show that about 30% of prometaphase PtK1 cells possess one or more merotelically oriented kinetochores. This frequency is increased to over 90% in cells recovering from a nocodazole-induced mitotic block. A delay in establishing spindle bipolarity is responsible for the high frequency of merotelic orientations seen in cells recovering from nocodazole, but not in untreated cells. The frequency of anaphase cells with merotelically oriented lagging chromosomes is 1% in untreated cells and 18% in cells recovering from nocodazole. Prolonging metaphase by 2 hours reduced the frequency of anaphase cells with lagging chromosomes both for untreated and for nocodazole-treated cells. Surprisingly, anaphase lagging chromosomes represented a very small fraction of merotelic kinetochore orientations present in late metaphase. Our data indicate that two correction mechanisms operate to prevent chromosome missegregation due to merotelic kinetochore orientation. The first, a pre-anaphase correction mechanism increases the ratio of kinetochore microtubules attached to the correct versus incorrect pole and might eventually result in kinetochore reorientation before anaphase onset. The increase in microtubule ratio to opposite poles is the groundwork for a second mechanism, active in anaphase, that promotes the segregation of merotelically oriented chromosomes to the correct pole.


The striatum constitutes the most voluminous basal ganglia in man. It is issued from ganglionic eminences which are very early bound by limbic kernels. If the cortical and reticulo-spinal projections have been first described the existence of anatomical connexions with the limbic system offers a large number of functional possibilities. The knowledge of the distribution of the different chemical substances which are present within this structure as well as the enzymes necessary for their synthesis and destruction permits to establish a chemical mapping, the dopaminergic one being the best known. The dopaminergic synaptic function in the striatum helps to understand the respective roles of the pre and post-synaptic receptors as well as the mechanisms by which the other neuromediators can modulate the dopaminergic activity, the cyclic nucleotides being often necessary for this action. These fundamental data subtend the mechanism of action of most of the drugs which are involved in extrapyramidal phenomenons (neuroleptics, dopaminergic agonists) and allows to put forth physiopathological hypothesis on Parkinson disease, Huntington chorea, as well as certain induced or spontaneous dyskinetic states. The functions of the striatum are then evoked: if the role of this structure in motor control is critical, its involvement in complex behaviours is strongly suggested.


To determine whether (1) insight in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) improves when OCD symptoms improve, and whether (2) degree of insight in OCD predicts response to sertraline, data were obtained from five sites participating in a larger multisite study of relapse in OCD. During the first 16 weeks of the study, 71 patients received open-label treatment with sertraline and were assessed using the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Rating Scale (Y-BOCS) and a rating scale to evaluate insight, the Brown Assessment of Beliefs Scale (BABS), at study baseline and termination. Baseline total BABS score was not significantly correlated with change in Y-BOCS score. Change in BABS total score and change in Y-BOCS total score were significantly correlated. There was no significant difference in mean endpoint Y-BOCS scores for patients with poor insight (n = 14) compared to patients with good insight at baseline (n = 57). Thus, insight improved with decrease in OCD symptom severity. Degree of insight at baseline did not predict response to sertraline, i.e., patients with poor insight were just as likely to respond to sertraline as patients with good insight.


This paper presents a new illumination invariant operator, combining the nonlinear characteristics of biological center-surround cells with the classic difference of Gaussians operator. It specifically targets the underexposed image regions, exhibiting increased sensitivity to low contrast, while not affecting performance in the correctly exposed ones. The proposed operator can be used to create a scale-space, which in turn can be a part of a SIFT-based detector module. The main advantage of this illumination invariant scale-space is that, using just one global threshold, keypoints can be detected in both dark and bright image regions. In order to evaluate the degree of illumination invariance that the proposed, as well as other, existing, operators exhibit, a new benchmark dataset is introduced. It features a greater variety of imaging conditions, compared to existing databases, containing real scenes under various degrees and combinations of uniform and non-uniform illumination. Experimental results show that the proposed detector extracts a greater number of features, with a high level of repeatability, compared to other approaches, for both uniform and non-uniform illumination. This, along with its simple implementation, renders the proposed feature detector particularly appropriate for outdoor vision systems, working in environments under uncontrolled illumination conditions.


This paper reviewed the perceptions of principals' responsibilities in-loco-parentis in Nigerian secondary schools, using the theoretical method, applied precedent cases and administrative examples. This work also suggested that possible modifications may be needed especially where past laws of operations have been revised. This approach could allow for more harmony among parents, students, teachers and principals, in assuming a peaceful teaching and learning atmosphere, thereby discouraging unnecessary litigations based on unreasonable rules and regulations.


Globally, first-in-family learners represent a significant proportion of the university student population, yet these high rates of participation are not necessarily matched by equally high success rates. Instead, internationally the research on this group indicates that these learners are at greater risk of departure from university when compared to their second and third generation peers, often as a result of limited exposure to academic culture and expectations. This article provides an overview of current research on first-in-family learners and also, offers some recommendations for supporting and engaging with this cohort within university settings


We present in this contribution results of two-step annealing, when the CdTe:Cl doped samples are at first annealed under Cd overpressure to remove inclusions and the re-annealed under Te overpressure to restore the high resistivity state. Investigation of samples after Cd rich annealing by infrared microscope has proven, that all inclusions are removed. Also Te nano precipitates were strongly influenced by the annealing process. The resistivity of the samples after Te-rich annealing was restored to values ( ∼ 108-109Ωcm). We observed, however, decrease of mobility-lifetime product of electrons from 10−3cm2/Vs to 10−4cm2/Vs. In order to understand the reason of this decrease we performed a study of point defects before and after annealing by thermoelectric effect spectroscopy. It shows a decrease of concentrations of most deep levels after two-step annealing. This behavior is completely different compared to past annealing studies, where concentration of deep levels strongly increased after annealing. The only level with an increased concentration in the current study is the midgap level (E ∼ 0.8 eV). At the same time we observed increase of micro-twins in the samples investigated by transmission electron microscopy. The decrease of charge collection efficiency after two-step annealing may be therefore connected with re-arrangement of near midgap levels due to increase of concentrations of structure defects (micro twins, dislocations) that accumulate in their surroundings point defects with energy ∼ 0.75 eV.


This thesis explores how policy for initial post-16 education and training has changed repeatedly since the 1970s, leading to numerous different arrangements and to new forms of transition for young people. It evaluates critically how GNVQs fit into this picture, and relates their role to wider debates around the purpose of initial post-16 education and training.

Using a case study, which focuses on the experience of lecturers and full-time students in one college of further education in the Midlands in the 1990s, the study finds that the social conditions of learning were very significant for students' and lecturers' perceptions of GNVQ. Despite the emphasis on qualifications-led reform, and the highly-specified nature of GNVQ, which attempted to impose new approaches to learning, students and teachers made sense of their experience and constructed their own meanings for GNVQ by reconciling the specifications with students' orientations to learning and imagined futures. They engaged in 'making the best of it', by collaborating or colluding to make GNVQ work for them.

However, the actions of students and lecturers in making the best of the constraints of GNVQs needs to be set within the context of wider structures and patterns of opportunity, where GNVQs form part of a system which continues to be dominated by A-levels and the academic route. This results in unequal opportunities within diverse qualifications pathways. The study concludes that any proposals for change to initial post-16 education and training need to combine understandings of the structural context in which young people's transitions are taking place, with more detailed insight into the experience of teachers and students, who make and shape the meaning of different routes and qualifications in practice.


How does negative mood affect risk taking? A brief questionnaire was used to measure state anxiety, depression, and fatigue, and a daily mood diary allowed state and trait (average level) mood to be separated. Studies 1 and 2 used natural moods and Study 3 a mood induction procedure. Risk was assessed using hypothetical everyday choice scenarios. Study 1 showed that riskiness was affected by state fatigue, but not by anxiety and depression. Study 2 showed that increased riskiness over a two - week period was predicted by fatigue changes, after controlling for riskiness and trait and state mood at time 1. Fatigue effects were stronger for more important scenarios, and when state anxiety was also high. In Study 3, covariance analyses showed that the observed increased in riskiness was related to induced fatigue, rather than to anxiety or depression. The effects are discussed in relation to the literature on fatigue effects, and models of mood and cognition.


Variations in ECG parameters can be extremely fatal, if not detected at an early stage. LabVIEW based virtual system presented in this work helps in detection of heart rate, ECG abnormalities and consequent estimation of related disease using various modules. Modules required for ECG signal acquisition, processing, display of heart rate and possibilities of related disease have been designed using LabVIEW virtual instruments. The designed system is advantageous in automatic removal of noise and filtrations of acquired signal on virtual cardiographs and detection of P wave, QRS complex, T wave and their onset and offset with iso level and ST level elevation. This designed have been tested on ECG database obtained from physionet.


The theory of collective action formulated by Mancur Olson in 1965 was based on an instrumental-strategic concept of rationality that has been generally used by standard rational choice theory. Different social theorists (such as Habermas or Elster) have tried to challenge this view by defending an alternative concept of rationality based on deliberation or rational argumentation. In this article I discuss to what extent these challenges have been successful in offering a real theoretical alternative to strategic rationality as a mechanism for the production and coordination of collective actions. For that purpose, three questions will be addressed: 1) Is communicative or deliberative rationality conceptually different from strategic rationality? 2) Is it empirically plausible as an explanatory principle for collective actions (and specially for those of social movements)? 3) Is it more defensible from a normative point of view?


Enterprises have become increasingly dependent on information technology capabilities (e.g. secure remote access for mobile users) to support their business objectives. Consequently, determining which users are affected by component failures remains a very important and challenging problem. Analyzing operational impact requires an understanding of how the system components are inter-dependent, and when the components are actually employed by the system users. Our approach collects monitoring data from the end systems. Data mining and analysis are used to infer system dependency topologies and usage patterns. We compare centralized, partially distributed, and fully distributed implementation approaches using computers connected to a campus-wide system. The results show that distributed approaches can be used to minimize the amount of data transmitted between systems, without significantly reducing the overall quality of the impact analysis. These distributed approaches will support efficient and scalable impact assessment in modern enterprise systems.


The coexistence of multiple cardiovascular risk factors has been reported in school-aged children from the age of nine years, but most evidence stems from high-income countries. This cross-sectional study aimed at describing the cardiovascular health risk, physical activity (PA) behavior and cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) levels of South African primary schoolchildren, and at examining the associations between PA/CRF and a composite measure of cardiovascular risk. Cross-sectional data from 832 primary schoolchildren (grade 1–4) were analyzed. Total cholesterol/HDL ratio, triglycerides, systolic/diastolic blood pressure, body fat, and glycated hemoglobin were assessed as cardiovascular risk markers. Data were analyzed via mixed linear regressions and analyses of covariance. Overall, 24.2% of the participants did not meet current PA standards. Higher CRF/PA were associated with lower body fat and lower clustered cardiovascular risk (p < 0.05). When categorizing children into CRF/PA quartiles, a lower clustered cardiovascular risk gradient was found in children with higher CRF (p < 0.05) or PA (p < 0.05). Our data shows that higher CRF/PA is associated with lower clustered cardiovascular risk already from a young age. Given that clustered cardiovascular risk present during childhood can track into adulthood, we advocate for PA participation and a healthy weight from a young age onwards.


Arterial rigidity (AR) is an independent cardiovascular risk factor. The strategy for primary and secondary prevention of cerebrovascular diseases
involves correction of risk factors, modification of lifestyle, and the use of antihypertensive and antithrombotic agents and statins. AR
whose correction is associated with a better cardiovascular prognosis is considered to be a particular therapeutic target. Positive changes in
blood supply to tissues in increased AR may be also achieved with the use of drugs improving blood rheological properties.


Bionics, based on analogies between living beings and technical systems, neglect fundamental differences, e.g., on the one hand, technology uses high temperatures, a mean closed to all living beings and, on the other hand, the cells of all organisms keep high autonomy. The first fact makes it possible, e.g., to construct airplanes three or four powers of ten heavier than the heaviest birds, whereas the second fact enables each cell to reproduce itself, to restore lost limbs or even the whole organism, far beyond the reach of technology. The symbiosis of organisms and technical installations (biotechnology) or, on a higher level, of mankind and environment, may be a guiding star for future development.


Background Palliative care patients are a particularly vulnerable population and one of the critical phases in patients' trajectories is discharge from specialized in-patient palliative care into outpatient care, where availability of a palliative care infrastructure is highly variable. A relevant number of potentially avoidable readmissions and emergency visits of palliative patients is observed due to rapid exacerbation of symptoms indicating the need for a closer patient monitoring. In the last years, different mHealth technology applications have been evaluated in many different patient groups. Objective The aim of our study is to test feasibility of a remote physical and social tracking system in palliative care patients. Methods A feasibility study with explorative, descriptive study design, comprised of 3 work packages. From the wards of the Clinic of Radiation-Oncology at the University Hospital Zurich, including the specialized palliative care ward, 30 patients will be recruited and will receive a mobile phone and a tracking bracelet before discharge. The aim of work package A is to evaluate if severely ill patients accept to be equipped with a tracking bracelet and a mobile phone (by semiquantitative questionnaires and guideline interviews). Work package B evaluates the technical feasibility and quality of the acquired electronic health data. Work package C will demonstrate whether physical activity parameters, such as step count, sleep duration, social activity patterns like making calls, and vital signs (eg, heart rate) do correlate with subjective health data and can serve as indicator to early detect and predict changes in patients' health status. Activity parameters will be extracted from the mobile phone's and wristband's sensor data using signal processing methods. Subjective health data is captured via electronic version of visual analog scale and Distress Thermometer as well as the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer – Quality of Life Questionnaire C30 in paper version. Results Enrollment began in February 2017. First study results will be reported in the middle of 2018. Conclusions Our project will deliver relevant data on patients' acceptance of activity and social tracking and test the correlation between subjective symptom assessment and objective activity in the vulnerable population of palliative care patients. The proposed study is meant to be preparatory work for an intervention study to test the effect of wireless monitoring of palliative care patients on symptom control and quality of life.


In orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems, channel variations within an OFDM block destroy orthogonality between subcarriers, resulting in intercarrier interference (ICl), which increases an error floor in proportional to normalized Doppler frequency. To mitigate the effects of channel variations, many schemes have been proposed, but they are computationally complex or at the price of sacrificing spectral efficiency. In this paper, we first provide an ICI analysis in both time- and frequency-domain while existing literatures analyze the ICI effects mainly in the frequency domain. Based on this analysis, we then propose a novel ICI suppression technique, which uses iterative ICI cancellation in time domain and has a computational complexity that is linear in the OFDM symbol length. Channel estimation in rapidly time-varying scenarios is critical for ICl suppression and coherent demodulation. We also propose a scheme for estimating the channel parameters varying within an OFDM block. Along with the channel estimation scheme, we investigate the issue of optimum pilot tone placement. Theoretical analysis and simulation results show that the proposed ICl suppression method and channel estimation scheme have low computational complexity and good performance for most Doppler frequency of practical importance.


The problems and approaches to the designing of a system of a continuous ecological education are discussed. A model of an environmental education at different levels: preschool, school, higher education and professional retraining is proposed. The aims, tasks, approaches to the organization of higher environmental education are shown on the example of MGRI-RSGPU. The principles of an environmental education with sustainable development of future generations and the whole biosphere are proposed.


The modem market economy, maintains Lamin Sanneh in his Forum Paper, has shifted the emphasis in economy from the idea of the sustainable "household" (economy in its etymological meaning) to the accumulation and exchange of goods and services for profit. Market efficiency has taken primacy over human solidarity and personal dignity, and is thus in conflict with the fundamental Christian world view. Theology needs to level a critique at such economic strategies, particularly because the proponents of such strategies often appeal to biblical and gospel principles for justification. But, as scripture makes clear, there can be no "Gospel of Wealth" at the expense of the poor and marginalized of this earth.


priggish; a spirit of opposition is awakened and it becomes introspective, emotional, hypochondriacal, troublesome and disobedient. The tricks of the solitary child are well known; every practitioners suffers acutely from the tantrums of the , "little devil" who kicks, screams and bites when an attempt is made to examine him. At times the solitarv child carries an inherited defect and the mentai picture becomes more complicated and less promising. In its pure form solitary childism is eminentlv curable. but if neglected or misunderstood. it' tends to merge into a psychopathic condition which may simulate very closely a real men!al defect. Tn the problem of the mentally defective child, therefore, it is necessary to study and treat the parent, or rather the methods adopted by parents in the upbringing of the infant. •


Economic history has fared no better than development economics in ultimately becoming a subject-matter for a "rise and fall" literature. Originally, economic history emerged from the confrontations between classical political economy of the Ricardian kind and the Historical School. Before Ricardo, say in Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations, economic history coexisted with pure theory without being aware of its own distinctness. The parting of ways was initiated with the synthesis from history of classical political economy which paved the way for the ultimate emergence of an intermediary field of inquiry. Traditions of economic history differed from one country to another, "but in all the traditional pull of 'institutional' history was strong".


The diffusion of Br- ions in KCl-KBr mixed crystals of different compositions is studied at temperatures from 519 to 599°C by the capacitance method. In addition to the composition dependence of the activation energy associated with the diffusion process, the dependence of the chemical diffusion coefficient on composition is determined at different temperatures. The experimental results are in good agreement with those derived from the diffusion theory of non-uniform thermodynamics.


Relations between Brazil and Russia decelerated significantly during the tenure of Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ernesto Araujo, from January 2019 until March 2021. This article maintains that the former chancellor's ideas had a direct impact in the relative stagnation of Russian-Brazilian ties. Araujo's interpretation of the international reality is heavily influenced by the ideas of Brazilian right-wing ideologue Olavo de Carvalho, which frames Russia as a Chinese ally in the pursue of a global communist hegemony. According to Keohane and Goldstein, ideas are an important determinant of foreign policy-making and provide ethical and moral motivation for pursuing a given policy course. The article determines how Araujo's ideas reflected in his foreign policy in general, and in Brazilian-Russian relations in particular.  The research concludes that Araujo led a values-based and ideological foreign policy, which deviates significantly from the pragmatic tradition of Brazilian diplomacy, with critical consequences for the development of bilateral relations with the Russian Federation during his tenure.


The dynamic behavior of sandwich columns with aluminum face-sheets and hexagonal honeycomb core under axial low-velocity impact is investigated experimentally and theoretically. In the impact tests, two typical competing cases of deformation, i.e., core shear-curling (CS-Cu) and local denting-plastic hinge (LD-PH), were observed following the first-order or higher-order global buckling. The deformation process, permanent deformation, cushioning property, energy dissipation efficiency, and factors affecting the competition of CS-Cu and LD-PH were compared and discussed in detail. It is found that, if CS-Cu occurs instead of LD-PH, an axially impacted sandwich column may perform better in both cushioning and efficiently dissipating residual energy. The theoretical analysis is carried out by extending the existing quasi-static global buckling theory of sandwich columns. A good agreement between the oscillatory plateau on the measured force–time curve and the predicted critical plastic global buckling load is found for the strain rate-insensitive face-sheet material.