Urban geochemistry is a fast growing scientific discipline mainly because of the profound impact of large cities on the environment as well as the increase in the world's urban population. The present study aims to produce the urban geochemical map of Athens, based on multi-element analysis of surface soils (0-10 cm) with emphasis in the spatial distribution of potentially harmful elements (PHEs). Soil sampling was based on a regular 1km x 1km grid, laid over the survey area covering more than 200 km2. Sampling locations within the grid cells were selected giving priority to playgrounds, schools and urban parks. The & lt; 100 μm fraction of a total of 320 soil samples were analysed by Flame Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy for Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd, Cr, Ni, Co and Mn after aqua regia dissolution. Average content of Pb (62 mg/kg), Cu (36 mg/kg), Zn (91 mg/kg) and Mn (465 mg/kg) in soil was lower than reported concentrations from other European cities while Cr (74 mg/kg), Ni (89 mg/kg) and Co (16 mg/kg) were relatively enriched. Geochemical maps were plotted within GIS enabling recognition of spatial trends in elemental concentrations and potential sources of the elements. The research outcome will contribute to the evaluation of quality characteristics of urban soils in Athens and drive attention to areas of any environmental or health risks.


Calculations have been performed for the inviscid hypervelocity flow of nitrogen past a 15° semi-angle sharp cone at an incidence of 30°, at an enthalpy sufficiently high to produce dissociation/recombination chemistry downstream of the bow shock wave. A spatially second-order-accurate scheme for the numerical solution of the inviscid Euler equations was used combined with the Lighthill–Freeman model of the non-equilibrium ideal dissociating gas. The computational method has been used as a 'numerical wind tunnel' in order to gain understanding of the interaction between the gas dynamics and the finite-rate gas chemistry. Inviscid flow has been considered to ensure that the only physical lengthscales in the flow are those associated with the chemical reactions. It was found that a chemical lengthscale Ls based on the local dissociation length behind the shock on the windward plane of symmetry is an important governing parameter of the flow. However, as the flow lengthscale becomes large and the flow approaches the limiting case of equilibrium chemistry, Ls is not the dominant chemical lengthscale. This is particularly true of the leeward flow, which contains a shock–vortex structure. A simple modelling technique has been used to determine a more appropriate lengthscale, Lr, t, for the leeward flow as the equilibrium limit is approached. This lengthscale is based on the expected equilibrium conditions behind the cross-flow shock.


The conus arteriosus or infundibulum was the site of the major cardiovascular evolutionary and developmental adaptation that made possible air-breathing and permanent land-living for vertebrates, including mammals such as ourselves. The subarterial conal free walls perform an embryonic aortic switch procedure by 35 to 44 days of age in utero, based on growth of the left-sided subpulmonary conal free wall and resorption of the right-sided subaortic conal free wall, i.e., complete right-left asymmetry in the development of the subarterial conal free walls. There is only one way of doing the developmental aortic aortic switch procedure right (one way in situs solitus, and its mirror-image in situs inversus), and there are many ways of doing it wrong, resulting in the conotruncal anomalies. The proximal or apical part of the conus arteriosus, the septal band, was the mother of the right ventricular sinus (the lung pump). The conus transformed the single (systemic) circulation of fish into our double (systemic and pulmonary) circulations. The right ventricle (RV) is only about 36% as old as the left ventricle (LV). Most congenital heart disease involves anomalies of the more recently developed RV, congenital heart disease being the most frequent anomaly in liveborn children — almost 1 percent (0.8%).


Microbial fuel cells (MFC) are devices that convert chemical energy in soluble organic matter into electrical energy. They can be used for wastewater treatment coupled with energy production as well as for sensing, hydrogen production, electrosynthesis and metal recovery. Implementing these technologies is hindered by low current production. Currently, little is known about anodic communities regarding growth, electrode coverage, bacterial composition, biofilm structure, metabolism and how are they affected by operational factors. Such knowledge is needed to engineer MFCs that can overcome current limitations. The subject of the present study is the mixed-community bioanode. The effects of light, anode-tocathode surface ratio (A/C), substrate composition and anode potential on bioanodes were investigated. Two types of substrates were used: the first was based on sodium acetate and the second was a synthetic wastewater which simulated the chemical composition of real wastewater. First bioanodes were studied in presence and absence of light. A different set of bioanodes were grown at 9 different A/C ratios in single-chamber MFCs. Another set of bioanodes were grown in half-cells at 3 different anode potentials (-400 mV, -200 mV and 0 mV vs Ag/AgCl). The development of anodic biofilms and their long-term dynamics were investigated using a multi-anode reactor which allowed for better replication of running conditions. Geobacter was identified in all bioanodes but its abundance was highly variable and dependent on running conditions. Over time the bacterial composition of bioanodes under constant conditions continuously changed during the first 33 days but stabilised by the 67th day. Bioanodes fed on acetate had higher cell counts, Geobacter percentage, and current output than bioanodes fed on synthetic wastewater. Light exposure decreased coulombic efficiency by almost 14 times and favored growth of Rhodopseudomonas species in the detriment of Geobacter. Abundance of Geobacter increased with anode potential when fed on acetate (from 609.98×10 cells/gram at -400 mV to 5212.38×10 cells/gram at 0 mV) but decreased when fed on synthetic wastewater (from 200.6×10 cells/gram at -400 mV to 49×10 cells/gram at 0 mV). Current density and Geobacter density decreased by an order of magnitude when A/C ratio was varied from 1:12 to 1:1 but remained relatively constant when A/C was increased further to 8:1. Uneven biomass coverage on bioanodes and a decrease of biofilm volume with depth inside bioanodes were observed suggesting that anodes were only partially used by electrigenic bacteria. Results reported here have important implications for future reactor designs, on the use of three-dimensional bioanodes and on long-term applications of Microbial Fuel Cells.


Imprint lithography is an effective technique for replication of nanoscale features. Jet and Flash™ Imprint Lithography (J-FIL™) uses field-by-field deposition and exposure of a low viscosity resist deposited by inkjet printing onto the substrate. The patterned mask is lowered into the fluid, where capillary action assists to flow the fluid into the relief patterns. Following the filling step, the resist is UV cured, the mask is removed, and a patterned resist is left on the substrate.J-FIL™ is a technique, where the imprint technology provides the nanoscale pattern resolution while the inkjet technology contributes the throughput that is required for industrial applications. The drop volume and drop placement accuracy of the inkjet-printed resist is critical, allowing the volume to be distributed appropriately across the substrate surface to achieve a uniform target thickness and preventing non-filling of the relief patterns. With J– FIL™, it is possible to resolve 28 nm structures with residual layer thickness of 13 and 20 nm on 300 mm and 450 mm Si-wafers.In this study, improvements during the filling step are explored for low droplet volumes at high ejection frequencies when using standard printheads with jetting performance of 12 kHz, <3 pL and modified printheads with jetting performance of 28 kHz, <2 pL.


Approaching the channel capacity limit has been the main goal of communication engineers since the pioneering work of Claude Shannon. This capacity depends primarily on the chosen schemes for channel coding and modulation, which need to be tailored to the specifics of the propagation environment. From an engineering perspective, it is important not only to maximize the channel capacity, but also to achieve this with the least complexity. In addition to noise, a major impairment in terrestrial transmissions is the multipath nature of the channel, which affects the receiver performance dramatically. Over the past decade, orthogonalfrequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) has emerged as the modulation of choice for such environments because of its inherent resilience to multipath effects and relative simplicity of the channel equalization, which allows for low-cost receivers. Nowadays, OFDM is a mature technology, being employed by various standards for both wireless networking and digital broadcasting. The present doctoral thesis deals specifically with baseband receiver architectures for OFDM digital broadcasting, focusing on digital OFDM demodulation and to a lesser extent on forward error correction. The research scope includes the architectural exploration and optimization of several blocks at algorithmic and structural level: channel equalizer, QAM demapper, and Viterbi decoder. Because of their critical role, the channel equalizer and the Viterbi decoder are each treated in a dedicated chapter. The proposed architectures are optimized for area and take advantage of the new features found in modern FPGA's, such as embedded memories, multipliers, and shift registers. Another important contribution of this thesis is the development of an efficient simulator for multipath channels with Doppler fading. Using an accurate channel simulator is essential for comparing simulation results between different teams. Especially critical is the modeling of the fading taps, since the fading process is much slower than the sampling rate. The proposed architecture is extremely scalable and suitable for both hardware and software implementation, the fading taps being generated by filtering white Gaussian noise. In this context, especially innovative are the solutions proposed for Gaussian noise generation and single-stage polyphase interpolation. A final chapter of the thesis is dedicated to the functional modeling of OFDM receivers in SystemC and to the hardware design optimized for FPGA. The FFT block, which is the core of an OFDM demodulator, has been selected as a case study.


Big Data is a phenomenon that affects today's world, with new data being generated every second. Today's enterprises face major challenges from the increasingly diverse data, as well as from indexing, searching, and analyzing such enormous amounts of data. In this context, several frameworks and libraries for processing and analyzing Big Data exist. Among those frameworks Hadoop MapReduce, Mahout, Spark, and MLlib appear to be the most popular, although it is unclear which of them best suits and performs in various data processing and analysis scenarios. This paper proposes EverAnalyzer, a self-adjustable Big Data management platform built to fill this gap by exploiting all of these frameworks. The platform is able to collect data both in a streaming and in a batch manner, utilizing the metadata obtained from its users' processing and analytical processes applied to the collected data. Based on this metadata, the platform recommends the optimum framework for the data processing/analytical activities that the users aim to execute. To verify the platform's efficiency, numerous experiments were carried out using 30 diverse datasets related to various diseases. The results revealed that EverAnalyzer correctly suggested the optimum framework in 80% of the cases, indicating that the platform made the best selections in the majority of the experiments.


Ageing involves not one but several transitions. People move from working to not working, from relying upon labour income to relying on transfers. They also tend to live in smaller households, not only because any children will have moved away but also because, at some stage, a spouse dies. People move homes and sometimes they move back to live with their now grown-up children. This paper examines the wellbeing of people as they pass through the later stages of their life and through different labour market statuses and domestic statuses. It examines and compares nine countries – Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States. It draws particularly from a special analysis of micro-data sets that report on incomes, but it complements this with an analysis of data on wealth, on consumption, on housing and on the use of in-kind services provided by the state. The paper is original in more than one way. First, its analysis is based upon the ... Le vieillissement de la population n'entraine pas une mais plusieurs transitions. Les personnes passent du monde du travail a un monde sans travail et ils doivent dorenavant compter sur les transferts de revenus plutot que sur la perception d'un salaire. Les tendances sont aussi a des foyers plus petits, le resultat non seulement genere par le depart des enfants mais aussi par le deces a un moment donne de l'epoux/epouse. Quelquefois, les personnes demenagent pour revenir vivre avec leurs enfants adultes. Ce document examine le bien etre des gens a travers les differents stades de la deuxieme partie de leur vie ainsi qu'a travers des statuts domestiques et professionnels differents. Neuf pays sont examines et compares : le Canada, la Finlande, l'Allemagne, l'Italie, les Pays-Bas, la Suede, le Royaume-Uni et les Etats-Unis. Le document s'appuie plus particulierement sur l'analyse des micro-donnees contenues dans le rapport sur les revenus, mais ces informations sont completees par ...


Intensive exploitation due to high market demand of long-barbel sheatsfish (Kryptopterus limpok), locally known as "selais fish", has continuously occurred throughout the year, so that it could threaten resources sustainability. Scientific assessment on population dynamic and spawning potential ratio are required as an input to support an apropriate fisheries management. The purpose of this study was to identify population dynamic and spawning potential ratio of the K. limpok with survey method. The study was conducted in Tasik Giam Siak Kecil, Bengkalis and surrounding waters based on data collected during period of survey, from April 2017 to November 2017. Result showed that the length at first capture (Lc) of K. limpok was 18.9 cm (total length) and the size of length at first maturity (Lm) was 19.9 cm. Sex ratio was slightly unbalance (1.0:1.1). The growth rate parameter (K) was 0.59/year with maximum length (L∞) of 43.05 cm. The estimate total mortality rate (Z) was 2.61 per year. While yearly ratio of fishing mortality (F) and natural mortality (M) were 1.41 and 1.2 respectively. Recruitment pattern occured throughout the year with one peak in June. The exploitation rate (E) was 0.54 per year and the spawning potential ratio (SPR) was 2.1%. Therefore the stock status was categorized as overfished. In order to ensure the sustainability of K. limpok, there is needed to apply the precautionary approach such as reducing existing catch by 8% of the current situation.


We report on a Mycobacterium leprae genome isolated from the remains of an individual with lepromatous leprosy that were excavated from a 7th century Hungarian cemetery. We determined that the genome was from a SNP type 3K0 M. leprae strain, a lineage that diverged early from other M. leprae lineages. This is one of the earliest 3K0 M. leprae genomes to be sequenced to date. A number of novel SNPs as well as SNPs characteristic of the 3K0 lineage were confirmed by conventional PCR and Sanger sequencing. Recovery of accompanying human DNA from the burial was poor, particularly when compared to that of the pathogen. Modern 3K0 M. leprae strains have only been isolated from East Asia and the Pacific and so these findings require new scenarios to describe the origins and routes of dissemination of leprosy during antiquity that have resulted in the modern phylogeographical distribution of M. leprae.


The intricate problem of energy conservation in wireless ad hoc networks is of great significance due to the limited battery capacity of the participating mobile devices. In this paper, we propose a novel framework, namely quasi-guaranteed system lifetime (Q-GSL), which allows the admission of flows without jeopardizing the limited energy of the wireless stations. A noteworthy feature of Q-GSL is that it provides a means for contention mitigation and load balancing. The upper bound on the packet rate is computed in the absence of the energy overheads associated with routing, contention resolution, channel sensing, etc. Hence, the upper bounds on the amount of data transmitted by a source node per unit time. Likewise, we study the main characteristics of the proposed techniques. Our experiments reveal that load balancing is achieved amongst the routes and the nodes in the wireless ad hoc network without violating any of the energy constraints, and while adhering to a pre-computed deterministic minimum system lifetime.


The thesis discusses community development in fast track resettlement areas of Zimbabwe. The land reform programme designated as the Third Revolution (Chimurenga) or fast track land reform was launched in 2000. This programme saw 12 million hectares of farming land being taken over by the state for resettlement. This research conducted in Mazowe district of Zimbabwe, provides an insight on the types and forms of community that have emerged as a result of the fast track land reform programme. Community is viewed both in terms of its geographical location and also interests among the actors that transcend the location. The district surveyed, Mazowe, is about fifty kilometres from the capital city of Harare. There have been historical contestations in the district with regards to land. The district received the highest number of applications for land settlement due to its proximity to Harare, the fertility of the soils and the resources found in the area. Moreover, the district is located in a natural region that promotes high value crops and livestock. There is a diversity of ethnical groupings now found in the district as a result of the land reform programme. The face of the resettled farmer is mostly male as less than 12 percent of women benefitted from the fast track land reform programme in the district. The former farm workers who were left behind on the farms also did not benefit much from the programme. The aim of the research is to understand community making in resettlement areas, by looking at two types of resettlement schemes covered by the fast track resettlement programme namely the A1 farming model featuring smallholder farmers under villagised settlement models and the A2 farming model which is aimed at creating a class of medium and large scale farmers. The research employs a mixed methodological approach to understand community formation. A survey of 110 A1 farmers and 40 A2 farmers was carried out in the district. In addition, the survey held focused groups discussions at farm level among A1 farmers. To understand the socio-dynamics of communities that surround the resettlement areas, the survey also interviewed 110 farmers from the neighbouring Chiweshe Communal area. Additionally, the researcher employed other methodologies to allow for triangulation such as personal life stories and participant observations. The research identifies how behaviour both at individual and institutional level has had an effect on community formation in Mazowe district. The thesis draws on and further develops Hirschman's (1970) typology of exit, loyalty and voice and a later version by Rusbult et al (1982) which adds aspects of neglect to the original typology – the ENLV model. Loyalty as seen in the context of the land resettlement programme, is expressed as individuals who remain on the land and attempt to succeed and/or create rules and institutions in a difficult environment. By contrast, there are some members of the resettlement areas that have been forced by powerful elements either to less productive farms or back to their original homes in variations of forced exit. In other respects exit is less physical when communities employ forms of resistance such as neglect. Communities are seen to adopt this form of behaviour when they neglect the environment, cultural practices and chose not to live by rules. Some members of the communities have employed forms of voice to inform government of corrupt tendencies at local level and to report what is not working in resettlement areas. But for voice to be effective it requires collective action which was lacking in Mazowe. At a general level, the thesis finds that the existing formulations of the typology are insufficient when addressing the types of behaviour and community formation that is occurring in situations of uncertainty and decline such as those found in the fast track resettlement area, where insecurity of tenure exerts a strong influence on the farmers. Moreover, individuals in Mazowe do not necessarily stay within the same behavioural type. In some cases they oscillate between different behaviours depending on circumstance. More specifically, the research identifies and analyses a further behavioural option, that of innovation. It states that despite decline and bleak circumstances, some people can chose to look beyond the negative and innovate so as to improve their situation. In some situations in Mazowe, innovation has led to new forms of social networks emerging. The thesis reformulates the ENLV model further through adding the aspect of innovation and in this way contributes to the theoretical understanding of community behaviour and formation. (Less)


This paper proposes a technique for analysis and testing BPEL-based Web service composition using high-level Petri nets. To illustrate how these compositions are verified, the relationships between BPEL-based Web service composition and high-level Petri nets is constructed. By analyzing the structure of Web service composition based on BPEL, the corresponding HPN is constructed. The dynamism and occurrence are presented in HPN with guard expression with coloured token. After translation, the equivalent HPN of the Web service composition based on BPEL can be verified on existing mature tool, and the related researches on HPN, e.g. testing coverage and reduction techniques that have been studied deeply, can be employed in testing of Web service composition based on BPEL, optimized test case can be generated based on the HPN translated. An example is provided to illustrate the translation ruled and the automatic verify progress


Dual-band impedance-matching technique for RF circuits and antennas operating concurrently in two bands in presented. The dual-band matching technique enables simultaneous matching of two arbitrary loads to two arbitrary sources at two different frequencies, utilizing the impedance-equivalence properties of LC networks that any LC network can be equivalent to an inductor, capacitor, open or short at different frequencies. The dual-band matching technique is employed to design a dual-band power amplifier operating concurrently at 25.5 and 37 GHz with good performance.


Sekolah Menengah Kejuruan (vocational school) has a purpose to generate graduate which is ready to be employed. Therefore, the students need to have additional competence. It will be additional value for students to compete in the workplace environment. SMK Muhammadiyah Sumoroto is one of vocational schools in Kecamatan Kauman, Kabupaten Ponorogo. This school has two majors; there are accounting and computer networking technique. To improve students' skill and creativity in graphic design needs to carry out training in Graphic Design, particularly animation design. This training is carried out in SMK Muhammadiyah 1 Sumoroto with participants as many as 20 students from first and second grade. The software used in this training was Alice3 because it is pretty easy to run for beginners in animation design. The training was conducted twice and additional meeting to review and to discuss the result. The biggest obstacle of this training is a lack of computers. The amount of computer was less adequate, so that one computer was used by more than one student. It lead the training become less maximum.  Overall the students could have used the software though the result have not been perfect yet.


Polymer-clay nanocomposites are well-known high-performance materials with a superior tensile modulus. However, in the case of composites with polyimide (PI), additional functions require study because PI is a high-performance material in itself. Significant enhancement of thermal conductivity, which is closely related to the state of clay dispersion, is expected for a polymer-clay nanocomposite. In this study, variations in the thermal diffusivity of PI-clay nanocomposite films prepared by different methods were investigated. The thermal diffusivity of PI-clay nanocomposite film increased at low clay content only when unmodified clay was used, where the clay morphology was a layered structure dispersed on a nanometer scale. Moreover, the thermal diffusivity could be enhanced by controlling the tensile stress induced by spontaneous shrinkage of the film during thermal imidization. These results demonstrated that the thermal diffusivity of PI-clay nanocomposite films is significantly affected by the dispersion and/or arrangement states of the clay. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010


The aim of this study was to identify in stillbirth a possible involvement of morphological and/or physiological alterations of structures of the central autonomic nervous system in the mechanism of death. The study, including the in- depth histological examination of brainstem and cerebellum, was performed on 42 stillbirths, aged from 22 to 40 gesta- tional weeks, 12 of which were explained and 30 were unexplained deaths. In the sudden unexplained stillbirths a variety of morphological and/or biological abnormalities of different structures and nuclei was found, above all the hypoplasia of the parafacial complex, frequently associated with hypoplasia of the arcuate and pre-Botzinger nuclei, and with thyrosine-hydroxylase immunonegativity in the locus coeruleus. A significant correla- tion was also observed between the neuropathologic findings and mother's smoking habit.


The Vlasov-Poisson-Boltzmann System governs the time evolution of the distribution function for dilute charged particles in the presence of a self-consistent electric potential force through the Poisson equation. In this paper, we are concerned with the rate of convergence of solutions to equilibrium for this system over ℝ 3 . It is shown that the electric field, which is indeed responsible for the lowest-order part in the energy space, reduces the speed of convergence, hence the dispersion of this system over the full space is slower than that of the Boltzmann equation without forces; the exact L 2 -rate for the former is (1 + t) -1/4 while it is (1 + t) -3/4 for the latter. For the proof, in the linearized case with a given non-homogeneous source, Fourier analysis is employed to obtain time-decay properties of the solution operator. In the nonlinear case, the combination of the linearized results and the nonlinear energy estimates with the help of the proper Lyapunov-type inequalities leads to the optimal time-decay rate of perturbed solutions under some conditions on initial data.


: The Agile methodology, who knew a significant increase in influence and use by the IT development industry in the past two decades, is based on various newer or older methods. This paper will identify and describe the most popular and used methods belonging to Agile methodology based on published surveys by VersionOne in the last three years. During methods presentation, the main elements that make these methods so successful will be highlighted. The approach proposed is to identify these distinctive elements of each popular method and not to compare these key elements but rather to point out their complementary capabilities. This is a pre-requisite for a future study to propose a new Agile method based on these key elements.


To compare the linear and angular measurements of the mandibular symphyseal region using lateral cephalometric (LC) and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images.One hundred patients justifying both LC and CBCT exposures were included. Both lateral cephalometric and CBCT images of the patients were used for angular and linear measurements. Angular measurements included vestibular concavity and lingual and tooth inclination angles. Vestibular and lingual cortical bone and total bone thickness measurements were obtained for the comparison of linear measurements. Three radiologists performed the measurements on 200 images. Comparison of the measurements and the imaging methods were done using paired‐ and Wilcoxon t‐tests. Inter‐observer reliability was evaluated with the intra‐class correlation coefficient (ICC).A significant difference was observed between measurements of two imaging methods for tooth inclination and vestibular concavity angles; however, no difference was found between LC and CBCT measurements for lingual inclination angle (p > 0.05). Vestibular cortical bone and total bone thickness measurements showed a significant difference (p < 0.05), whereas no difference was obtained in lingual bone thickness measurements of two imaging methods (p > 0.05).CBCT imaging is recommended in selected patients where recipient bone or bone augmentation site(s) reveal suspect in clinical examination and lateral cephalometric imaging may not reveal the true anatomic structure and relationships.


Abstract This paper evaluates how muscle tensing changes the structural response of the dynamically loaded thorax. Nine porcine thoraces with both ventral (supine) and dorsal (prone) loading were used to quantify the effect. Muscle tensing was assessed using repeated tests on a subject with and without forced muscle contraction. Dynamic (53.9 ± 2.9 cm/s) and quasistatic tests were performed with a potentiometer and load cells to calculate effective thoracic stiffness. The results show that the effect of muscle tensing decreases with increasing chest deflection, a fact which is supported by the limited human data available. The peak force increases with muscle tensing for chest deflection levels up to about 20 per cent, after which the peak force changes negligibly when the muscles are tensed. The shape of the force-deflection curve and therefore the work done by the deforming thorax do, however, depend upon muscle tensing regardless of the peak deflection level attained. A simplified finite element model is used to elucidate the mechanisms for the experimental findings. This model shows that the changes in force-deflection response of the thorax that occur with muscle tensing are due primarily to the increased modulus of the muscle tissue itself, rather than to any stiffening effect from pretensioning the muscle membrane around the bony structure. The findings are discussed relative to current thoracic biofidelity corridors, which include an adjustment to account for muscle tensing.


The exophthalmic syndrome is now generally conceded to be due to excessive secretion of the thyroid gland, and as a result of this view recent therapeutic measures have been directed toward removal of a portion of the secreting tissue. In connection with this I desire to express my suspicion that too much emphasis has been placed on a merely excessive secretion. The histopathology of the exophthalmic thyroid should make us suspect that the secretion is not only excessive, but also is changed in character, for the reason that whenever gland-cells depart from the usual as markedly as is indicated by tinctorial chemistry in these glands, there is likely to be some change in their product. I desire to question emphatically the entire correctness of the minor premise before beginning my argument. From time to time inquiries as to the relation of the thyroid to other organs have been conducted. It


This paper examines the reinforcement of sex work and drug use. Data from 92 survey and in-depth interviews were analysed to examine associations between vulnerabilities and 'trapping': mutually reinforcing sex work and problematic drug use. Three-quarters of participants had used drugs and half had sold sex before 18. Half had been in care and half had been homeless. One in 5 (21%) had run away or left home before 16 and 80% had been convicted for acquisitive offences. Nevertheless, these experiences did not explain trapping. There were strong associations between being trapped and convictions (81%); and being trapped and outdoor/drift sex work (92%). After adjustment for the other vulnerabilities in the logistic regression only outdoor/drift sex work remained significant: with sex workers involved in outdoor/drift sex-work having an adjusted odds ratio of over 7 (95% c.i. 1.7–28.3) of being trapped. Moreover, since the sample over-represents the extent of problematic drug use amongst indoor sex workers the study underestimates differences in trapping potential between sex markets. We conclude that outdoor/drift sex markets may reinforce vulnerability, sex work and problematic drug use. Interventions are recommended to disentangle sex and drugs markets, and reduce the sex industry's potential for exploitation and abuse.


Currently, the web-based learning support systems are one of interesting and hot topics in points of the utilization of Internet and the application of computers to education. In particular, the web-based collaboration is very applicable means to make unfamiliar students, who are unknown to each other, discuss together in the same virtual interaction space. However, there are some problems derived from the gap between the real world and virtual environment: coordination of discussions, cooperative reactions, comprehension of learning progress, etc. These problems may be dependent on the fact that the actions of students cannot be in uenced from the behaviors of others directly. In this paper, we address a coordination mechanism to promote cooperative actions/reactions for progressive discussions. Our idea is to apply an agent-oriented framework to this coordination mechanism and introduce two di erent types of agents. One is a coordinator and the other is a learner. The coordinator monitors the learning progress of groups and promotes the discussion, if necessary, so as to reach their common goal successfully. The learners are assigned to individual students, and act as interaction mediators among students in place of the corresponding students. Of course, the coordinator is a passive entity and learners are active entities in our collaborative learning space.


An analysis procedure for evaluating the refractive index and the thickness of 5-10-µm-thick transparent films has been developed based on variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry. As an example of application, results from an analysis of benzocyclobutene films are presented. The sensitivities in ψ and Δ with respect to the refractive index and the thickness of the films are also discussed.


OBJECTIVE
Information processing measures that serve as biological markers for schizophrenia can help to define the boundaries of schizophrenia. Prepulse inhibition and habituation of the blink reflex component of startle, which are thought to reflect an individual's ability to screen out or "gate" irrelevant sensory stimuli, are impaired in patients with schizophrenia. These deficits in sensorimotor gating and habituation in schizophrenic patients may lead to sensory overload and, secondarily, cognitive fragmentation, disorganization, and thought disorder. The goal of this study was to test two hypotheses: 1) patients with schizotypal personality disorder would show a loss of sensorimotor gating reflected by impaired prepulse inhibition of the human startle response and 2) patients with schizotypal personality disorder would show deficits in startle habituation consistent with the deficits seen in patients with schizophrenia.

METHOD
Prepulse inhibition and habituation were assessed in 12 men and four women who met DSM-III-R criteria for schizotypal personality disorder and in 22 normal comparison subjects.

RESULTS
Patients with schizotypal personality disorder had deficits in acoustic prepulse inhibition and habituation similar to the deficits observed in patients with schizophrenia. Although there were no differences between patients with schizotypal personality disorder and normal subjects in latency from acoustic startle stimuli to response, latency facilitation was produced by the prepulse in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS
This pattern of changes in amplitude and latency of the startle response suggests that subjects with schizotypal personality disorder perceive the prepulse stimuli but still demonstrate deficient sensorimotor gating of amplitude. These findings support the importance of startle prepulse inhibition and startle habituation as biological markers for schizophrenia spectrum disorders.


Earth orbiting satellites, such as Sentinel 1A‐B, build up an ever‐growing set of synthetic aperture radar images of the ground. This conceptually allows for real‐time monitoring of ground displacements using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR), notably in tectonically active regions such as fault zones or over volcanoes. We propose a Kalman filter for InSAR time series analysis (KFTS), an efficient method to rapidly update preexisting time series of displacement with data as they are made available, with limited computational cost. KFTS solves together for the evolution of phase change with time and for a parametrized model of ground deformation. Synthetic tests of the KFTS reveal exact agreement with the equivalent weighted least squares solution and a convergence of descriptive model parameter after the assimilation of about 1 year of data. We include the impact of sudden deformation events such as earthquakes or slow slip events on the time series of displacement. First tests of the KFTS on ENVISAT data over Mt. Etna (Sicily) and Sentinel 1 data around the Chaman fault (Afghanistan, Pakistan) show precise (±0.05 mm) retrieval of phase change when data are sufficient. Otherwise, the optimized parametrized model is used to forecast phase change. Good agreement is found with classic time series analysis solution and GPS‐derived time series. Accurate estimates are conditioned to the proper parametrization of errors so that models and observations can be combined with their respective uncertainties. This new tool is freely available to process ongoing InSAR time series.


Treatment with immunomodulators, such as intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG), may attenuate inflammatory responses observed in the severe stages of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) caused by coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19). We retrospectively evaluated the clinical courses of 12 COVID-19 patients who received IVIG at various stages of their illness, including within the first 72 h of clinical presentation, after initiation of mechanical ventilation, and after prolonged ventilation and ICU stay. The patients included 9 men and 3 women with a median age of 50 years (range 23–74), median Charlson Comorbidity Score of 2 (range 0–7), and median Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation Score of 13 (range 5–33) at the time of IVIG. The IVIG total dose ranged from 0.5 to 2.0 g/kg (median 1.25 g/kg) distributed over 1–4 daily doses. The most common regimen received was 0.5 g/kg daily for 3 days. The median time to IVIG administration was 9 days (range 0–48 days) after admission. The median time from first IVIG dose administration to hospital discharge was 14 days (range 3–48). The 5 patients who received IVIG ≤4 days of admission demonstrated a significantly shorter length of hospital stay after treatment (median 7 days, range 3–14 days) than the 7 patients who received it >7 days after admission (median 33 days, range 8–48 days, p = 0.03, Mann-Whitney U test). These cases demonstrate that IVIG may improve the clinical state of patients with moderate to severe COVID-19 infection. Despite very high illness severity scores, all patients survived hospital discharge. No thrombotic events occurred and IVIG was well tolerated, despite most cases demonstrating very elevated D-dimer suggestive of active intravascular fibrinolysis. We believe that IVIG warrants immediate clinical trial evaluation in COVID-19 to confirm its role as a mainstay treatment of moderate to severe COVID-19 infection as a means to reduce hospital stay and utilization of ICU resources, including mechanical ventilation, and potentially reduce mortality.


The clinical and pathological findings in an unusual case of sporadic juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) are presented and the four other autopsied cases of this disorder reviewed. In many respects the sporadic adult and juvenile disease are similar. However, in three of the juvenile cases including our own neuronal inclusions derived from Nissl substance formed as a result of the disease process. These inclusions are not seen in sporadic adult ALS and differ from those associated with other motor neuron diseases. Neurofibrillary degeneration was seen in our own case and in one other juvenile case. The distribution of the neurofibrillary changes differed from the pattern observed in cases of ALS where neurofibrillary degeneration is known to occur. Our observations suggest that sporadic juvenile ALS is a distinct entity and not simply an extension of the sporadic adult disease.


Individual decision making is commonly studied using discrete choice models. Models of this type are applied extensively to the study of travel behavior, residential location, and employment decisions, among other topics of interest. A notable characteristic of the underlying economic theory is the assumption that individuals seek to maximize utility on the basis of their personal attributes and the attributes of the alternatives available to them. This approach ignores the interrelated nature of decision making in social situations—in other words, the role that social structures play in shaping behavior. In this paper we describe a multinomial discrete choice approach to analyzing individual behavior in social situations where position in a social network may encourage or discourage different courses of action. By means of a simulation example, we explore some properties of the model, in particular the effect of network topology.


Third order perturbation theory is used to calculate the orthorhombic spin-Hamiltonian zero-field E-term for octahedrally surrounded d3 spin systems (S = 3/2) in strong axial fields in the presence of a weak orthorhombic component.


Ultrathin-body fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (UTB FD/SOI) devices have emerged as a possible candidate in sub-45-nm technologies and beyond. This paper analyzes leakage and stability of FD/SOI 6T SRAM cell and presents a device design and optimization strategy for low-power and stable SRAM applications. We show that large variability and asymmetry in threshold-voltage distribution due to random dopant fluctuation (RDF) significantly increase leakage spread and degrade stability of FD/SOI SRAM cell. We propose to optimize FD devices using thinner buried oxide (BOX) structure and lower body doping combined with negative back-bias or workfunction engineering in reducing the RDF effect. Our analysis shows that thinner BOX and cooptimization of body doping and back biasing are efficient in designing low-power and stable FD/SOI SRAM cell in sub-45-nm nodes.


This paper presents an event-driven algorithm and its symbolic implementation for the analysis of power and ground (P/G) bus networks. The algorithm uses frequency-domain techniques and moment matching approaches based on Pade approximants to estimate the transfer function at each node in the P/G network. Afterwards, the transient waveforms are extracted for each node. The process requires repetitive simulation of a linear and time-variant (from one time event to the next) circuit model for the P/G network which is the reason a symbolic implementation was produced. The P/G network is modeled by a hierarchical combination of mesh and tree structures that are composed of a collection of RC-/spl pi/-segments and pulldown (or pullup) switches. The switches are symbolically represented by Boolean variables and a compiled symbolic code is generated only once for each P/G network. The transient waveforms are then produced by repetitive evaluation of the symbolic output. The results show that the symbolic implementation is an order of magnitude faster, with reasonably good accuracy, than using a traditional analog circuit simulator like SPICE.


This article investigates the effects of horizontal acquisitions on the performance of target firms in the 1990s. Using French manufacturing firm-level data, we examine two main indicators of performance: the profit and the productive efficiency. We distinguish domestic from cross-border acquisitions. To evaluate the impact of take-overs, we implement appropriate difference-in-difference estimation techniques associated to a matching propensity score procedure. We find that Mergers  & Acquisitions (M&A) do not increase the profit of French target firms, even on the long run. However, they clearly raise the productivity of target firms. These results suggest that firms probably redistribute efficiency gains at the upstream and/or downstream production stage. There is no evidence of an increase in market power. In addition, the consequences of domestic and cross-border M&A significantly differ. Efficiency gains are stronger for cross-border M&A. This conclusion is however true only for extra-European Union operations. The achievement in the European economic integration certainly explains the absence of difference between European and domestic acquisitions. Finally, our results cast some doubt on the frequent discrimination attitude towards foreign takeovers and the fears of their impact on firms' performance and the host country's welfare.


We investigated the dielectric relaxation in blends of 4-n-pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl (5CB) and polystyrene (PS) in order to examine the size effect of low mass molecules on the cooperativity of local dynamics. To obtain the dielectric data in the isotropic state, the phase diagram was produced. The temperature (T) dependence of the dielectric loss factor ε" of PS/5CB blends containing 20 to 30 wt% of 5CB exhibited a bimodal peak near the calorimetric glass transition temperature Tg. The bimodal peak was resolved into two peaks termed α and β. The α process locates above Tg and can be assigned to cooperative motions of the PS segments and the 5CB molecules. The β process is responsible to independent reorientation of the 5CB molecules in the glassy PS matrix. The α and β loss peaks tend to merge with increasing T. This behavior contrasts to the dielectric behavior of the PS/toluene system which exhibits loss peaks due to segmental motions of PS and rotation of the toluene molecules in well separated temperature regions. The toluene molecule has a size of ca. 1/3 of the 5CB molecule and does not move cooperatively with PS but the 5CB molecule does. From the intensity of the α and β peaks, the fraction of the 5CB molecules moving cooperatively with PS has been estimated to be 0.25 and 0.63 for the blends containing 30 and 20 wt% of 5CB, respectively.


Since 1997 New Labour administrations have seen homelessness as a manifestation of social exclusion. Initially, ministerial attention focused on curbing street homelessness, exemplified most prominently by the Rough Sleepers Initiative. Subsequently, since 2003, the focus of the policy has widened to the promotion of a more pro-active, preventative approach in local authorities' homelessness work. This fits with the 'activist state' approach which underlies much of New Labour's social policy. Similarly, both phases of policy have been framed in terms of tightly defined statistical targets and timescales. While the definition and quantification of homelessness has been the subject of perennial interest, the commitment to homelessness prevention has introduced an important new angle to the debate. The significance of this issue is apparent from the fact that since the introduction of a new generation of prevention activity, official homelessness figures have fallen sharply. While the focus on prevention, rather than crisis response, is welcomed, this shift calls for robust mechanisms to monitor the effectiveness of the mechanisms concerned. Drawing on recently completed research this article demonstrates weaknesses in current methods for enumerating homelessness, both in understanding the true scale of the problem, and in monitoring the extent to which 'prevention activities' help to solve housing problems as opposed to impeding applicants' chances of securing a social rented tenancy. Whilst Central Government has now introduced a statistical measure aimed at quantifying effective homelessness prevention activity the slipperiness of the whole concept raises questions as to practicality of this exercise and the value of the data to be generated.


Objective: This study aims to describe experiences of university teachers who transitioned from in-campus to online teaching during COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: The study had a qualitative descriptive design. In-depth face to face interviews were conducted following informed consent. Sample comprised of eleven faculty members engaged in online teaching, recruited through purposive sampling in a Health Science University in Saudi Arabia. Content analysis of the data was done by employing Graneheimian inductive approach. Academic rigor was established using standard principles of trustworthiness. Results: Two main themes emerged as 'embracing the process' and 'identifying gaps'. Two subthemes were within each theme, populated by 12-36 statements. Conclusion: Faculty members described thoughts and behaviors that shaped their experiences. Student response to online teaching affected preconceived notions. The need to acquire skills and knowledge regarding online pedagogy and technology was indicated.


To the Editor.— Recent epidemiologic studies have cited house fires as the major cause of burn-related deaths. 1,2 Indeed, in large series, morbidity and mortality from flame burns often exceed those from other causes. 3 Cigarettes have been identified repeatedly as an ignition source in up to 30% of these fires. 1,4 Of particular concern is that nonsmokers have been the fatal victims in approximately 40% of these cases. 5 Recent attempts at legislation to promote fire-safe cigarettes have depended largely on these statistics. To evaluate statewide experience with cigarette-related burn deaths, we recently examined the cumulative records of the California State Burn Registry. This facility is charged with accumulating and disseminating burn-related information from the 17 participating burn facilities throughout the state. In the registry's period of operation from 1977 to 1981, the number of cases of second- and/or third-degree burns recorded was 3,332, and they form the basis


Background. Total arthroplasty is one of the most interesting and fast developing fields in orthopaedic surgery. Practicaly every joint in the human body is involved with total hip arthroplasties being the most frequent and with the longest history. The major complication of total arthroplasty is aseptic loosening of one or both prosthetic components. Revision procedures are very difficult due to changed anatomical situation and the results are worse than after primary operations. With the growing number of total arthroplasties there is also an increase in revision procedures. Conclusions. Information on long-term results and survival of different types of prosthesis is invaluable for both patients and surgeons. The purpose of the National Registry is to provide treatment outcome information concerning the choice of prosthesis and the optimal surgical technique in individual cases. Special emphasis is to be paid on identifying risk factors for poor outcomes related to a patient, the implant and the surgical technique. Sharing this information within the profession shall cause individuals to act according to the good example. Treatment results will be improved, patients satisfaction will be considerable and the economic impact on the whole society is considerable.


Abstract The objective of this experiment was to evaluate a transgenic source of corn grain containing the event DAS-O15O7-1 (TC1507) when included in diets fed to growing and finishing pigs. The commercial product trait name of TC1507 corn is Herculex I; this corn grain contains the cry1F gene from Bacillus thuringiensis var. aizawai and the phosphinothricin acetyltransferase (pat) gene from Streptomyces viridochromogenes These 2 genes confer in planta insecticidal activity toward several corn pests and tolerance to herbicides containing the active ingredient glufosinate-ammonium. Ninety-six pigs were allotted to 4 dietary treatments with 3 pigs/pen and 8 pen replicates/treatment. The 4 dietary treatments consisted of corn-soybean meal diets formulated with a commercial source of corn, a standard corn, a control corn, or TC1507. Pigs were fed the experimental diets from 23.5 to approximately 120 kg BW, and the ADG, ADFI, and G:F were calculated. Hot carcass weights, back fat thickness, loin eye area, and loin eye depth were measured at slaughter, and dressing percentage and average lean meat percentage were calculated. Results of the experiment showed that pig performance was not affected by dietary treatments (P = 0.27 to 0.97) and there were no effects of dietary treatment on any carcass measurement (P = 0.13 to 0.95). Based on the results of this experiment, it was concluded that performance and carcass quality of pigs fed diets containing corn produced from seeds containing TC1507 were not different from those of pigs fed other corn hybrids.


Automatic caption generation is a key research field in the machine learning community. However, most of the current research is performed on English caption generation ignoring other languages like Arabic and Persian. In this paper, we propose a novel technique leveraging the heavy influence of root words in Arabic to automatically generate captions in Arabic. Fragments of the images are associated with root words and deep belief network pre-trained using Restricted Boltzmann Machines are used to extract words associated with image. Finally, dependency tree relations are used to generate sentence-captions by using the dependency on root words. Our approach is robust and attains BLEU-1 score of 34.8.


Sahar Nakhaei School of Literature and Humanity Sciences Shiraz University Shiraz, Iran ABSTRACT Caribbean literature exposes a history of dispossession, exploitation and oppression which has been neglected and often deliberately misinterpreted. In this article the destructive effects of colonization and slavery in Jamaica Kincaid's 1996 novel The Autobiography of My Mother are scrutinized thoroughly. The main objective of this research is to examine Kincaid's novel within the framework of postcolonial studies, in the light of Albert Memmi (2013) and Frantz Fanon's (2008) theories on the psychology of colonialism. Frantz Fanon argues that colonialism had brought together two opposing social orders doomed to coexist in everlasting tension; the colonizer's and the colonized's; these tensions cause the moral and spiritual deformity of an ideological system based on racism, oppression, and exploitation. In contrast to Fanon, Kincaid regards resistance and liberation in a quite different perspective. Instead of attempting to build a "new woman", Xuela refuses to accept the colonizer's views of those like her that lead to self-destruction and self-hatred. Instead, in order to survive, she confidently chooses self-love, albeit an almost grotesque and obsessive one. Kincaid uses Xuela's relationships with various characters to categorize the social types that Fanon describes in his writings—from Philip and his wife Moira as examples of the deformation of behavior caused by colonial social hierarchies to using mask as a metaphor for her manipulative father's mimicry of the oppressors. This research finds out that colonization and slavery have negative impact on both the colonizer and the colonized.


This thesis aimed to deepen understanding of the potential health benefits of urban greenspace, by identifying associations between different greenspace characteristics and mental wellbeing. A systematic literature review revealed that, while local area greenspace is adequately associated with life satisfaction, evidence for other characterisations of greenspace (type, accessibility, etc) is less sufficient. Although findings are currently not specific enough to guide planning decisions, there is a need to examine multidimensional wellbeing measures and greenspace in detail.

A first study of local area greenspace and mental wellbeing in England, using data from 31,000 individuals in the UK Household Longitudinal Study survey and greenspace information (Generalised Land Use Database), found that Ordinary Least Squares associations between local prevalence of greenspace and multidimensional wellbeing could not be detected at census level, perhaps due to the imposition of arbitrary boundaries.

More detailed post code-level data was obtained for 25,000 London residents completing the Annual Population Survey 2012-2015, with greenspace shapefiles from the Greenspace Information for Greater London group. The amount of greenspace within a 300m buffer of individuals homes was positively and significantly associated with hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing. Geographically Weighted Regression models, addressing spatial clusters within the data, revealed slight variation in the strength of these associations across the study space.

The final study, which characterised greenspace by type and accessibility on foot, found natural greenspace to be positively associated with hedonic wellbeing, but not eudaimonic wellbeing; associations with other types of greenspace were not significant. Spatial Error models allowed second-order processes within the structure of the data to be captured. These contributions are the first to examine nature planning recommendations for potential associations with mental wellbeing, expanding the current knowledge of greenspace design. Informed design should consider both the characteristics of the greenspace and local residents, to benefit the mental wellbeing of individuals and society as a whole.


The key importance of after-school and out-of-school time in a democratic society is the experience of activities and programs providing a common ground that extends the play of childhood into leadership opportunities for youthful learning and exploration of the world. The authors hypothesize that by focusing civic attention on the developmental quality of these out-of-school settings and time frames, objectives will also be better understood and reliable.


A group of 26 patients aged 47–81 years (average 67) with spinal osteoporosis and back pain for more than 6 months were investigated with planar and SPECT bone scintigraphy and anterior and lateral x‐rays of the thoracolumbar spine. Abnormal activity on bone scintigraphy was found in all patients, of whom 22 had multiple lesions. A total of 17 (65%) patients had abnormal activity associated with collapsed vertebral bodies, 5 (19%) had degenerative disk disease, and 21 (81%) had facetal joint disease. Of 112 lesions identified by SPECT, 60 (54%) were localized to the apophyseal joints. Facetal lesions were commoner in those patients with more collapsed vertebrae, and 32 facetal lesions (54%) were associated with collapse of the vertebra immediately above or below. Bone scintigraphy findings suggest that in some individuals with osteoporosis and chronic back pain, collapse of the vertebral body or degenerative disk disease are causes of pain. However, the high frequency of increased apophyseal joint activity suggests that the facet joints may also be an important site of origin of pain in these individuals. Bone scintigraphy may identify a subgroup of osteoporotic patients with chronic back pain who would benefit from treatment to the facet joints.


SIR,-Because of the postal strike, your leading article on "New-style Cold Abscesses" (30 January, p. 247) was seven weeks old when I first read it. I do not want to comment on its surely incorrect opening statement, which others may be expected to criticize with authority, but may I please have the space to note some experiences of cases of "new-style cold abscesses" that indicate that not all lesions conforming clinically to this pattern are in fact tuberculous? I have histological material from 12 examples of such lesions in patients who were living in the British Isles at the time of the diagnosis. The tuberculous nature of the lesion was proved in two cases by culturing typical human strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and presumed in two further


Eighty-seven year old man, previously healthy, active and independent, was admitted to a hospital unconscious with hemorrhagic stroke. Treatment with arachidonic acid was initiated two weeks after his admission. After one year, despite his age, large hemorrhagic area and a history of ischemic heart disease, he had no physical disability or mental impairment and scored 95 points on the Barthel Scale.


The far left in Australia had significant effects on post-war politics, culture and society. The Communist Party of Australia (CPA) ended World War II with some 20,000 members, and despite the harsh and vitriolic Cold War climate of the 1950s, seeded or provided impetus for the re-emergence of other movements. Radicals subscribing to ideologies beyond the Soviet orbit – Maoists, Trotskyists, anarchists and others – also created parties and organisations and led movements. All of these different far left parties and movements changed and shifted during time, responding to one political crisis or another, but they remained steadfastly devoted to a better world.

This collection, bringing together 14 chapters from leading and emerging figures in the Australian and international historical profession, for the first time charts some of these significant moments and interventions, revealing the Australian far left's often forgotten contribution to the nation's history.


Zhang is an assistant professor of higher education at the University of Minnesota and a faculty associate at the Cornell Higher Education Research Institute (CHERI). He thanks Ronald Ehrenberg for his insightful comments on an early draft of the paper. Of course, full responsibility rests with the author. 1 Abstract This study uses panel data to examine the direct link between state funding and graduation rates at four-year public institutions. When other factors are held constant, a $1,000 increase in state appropriations per FTE student at four-year public institutions is associated with about a one percentage point increase in graduation rates. This positive link appears to hold for all research/doctoral, masters, and baccalaureate institutions. In addition, there is evidence that modest increases (or a decrease) in state funding are associated with rapid increases in tuition rates charged at four-year public institutions, which likely result in an additional negative impact on graduation rates. Simply put, there is no such a thing as free lunch when it comes to graduation rates at public higher education institutions.


Abstract The worldwide automotive industry has undergone major changes in recent years. In Brazil, the establishment of new automakers, the consolidation and denationalization of autoparts, and the introduction of low displacement en-gines and bi-fuelled engines have important strategic implications for these companies and for their supply chains. Based on these implications, this paper attempts to shed light on the interrelationship between Operations Strategy (OSs) and Supply Chain Management (SCM), analyzing case studies conducted at two engine manufacturers in Brazil and at two of their suppliers. The findings of these case studies indicate strong interrelationships between competi-tive priorities and decisions involving structural and infrastructural issues, and between the structural and relational aspects of the productive chains to which these companies belong. The automakers studied here have similar OSs, but their priorities and actions take place within the contexts of different supply chain structures and, hence, are governed by distinct forms of relationships. Given the mutual influence of OS and SCM factors and the dependence on previous strategic choices, the decisions made in these two areas are even more complex and strategically relevant.


We firstly propose and demonstrate a new economical approach that can correct the wavefront of the petwatt Ti:sapphire laser system with a beam size of 150mm. By using a deformable mirror with 50mm active aperture in the end of the laser, the focal spot size is reduced effectively. The experimental results show that the new approach is simple, less-expensive and valid from a technical and economical point. This technique could be applied to correct the wavefront of a large optical beam with a smaller aperture deformable mirror.


The article analyses the impact of homeownership on neighbourhood safety and neighbourhood satisfaction, using a unique panel dataset for the city of Rotterdam. The results show that there are significant, but economically small, effects of homeownership on safety and satisfaction. Moreover, the relation between ownership and satisfaction is significantly moderated by neighbourhood safety. The paper examines whether the marginal impact of increases in homeownership on external effects diminish once ownership levels are higher. According to the data, this seems to be the case. The results are robust to alternative specifications. The findings provide insights for the evaluation of housing market policies that subsidise or stimulate homeownership.


Pathogens able to cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) induce long-term neurological sequelae and death. Understanding how neurotropic pathogens bypass this strong physiological barrier is a prerequisite to devise therapeutic strategies. Here we propose an innovative model of infection in the developing Drosophila brain, combining whole brain explants with in vivo systemic infection. We identified several mammalian pathogens able to cross the Drosophila BBB, including Group B Streptococcus (GBS). Amongst GBS surface components, lipoproteins, and in particular the B leucin-rich Blr, were important for BBB crossing and virulence in Drosophila. Further, we identified (V)LDL receptor LpR2, expressed in the BBB, as a host receptor for Blr, allowing GBS translocation through endocytosis. Finally, we demonstrated that Blr is required for BBB crossing and pathogenicity in a murine model of infection. Our results support the relevance of Drosophila for studying host-pathogen interactions and identify a new mechanism by which pathogens exploit host barriers to generate brain infection.


Background: Testing of biomarkers in biopsies is a critical driver of determining therapy in patients diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. In the past, open surgical biopsy was considered to be the gold standard, but has been supplanted by the less invasive core needle biopsy. It is therefore imperative to know if such biopsies are representative of disease existing within the entirety of the tumor. This is especially the case now that neoadjuvant therapy is offered to patients with early stage tumor prior to surgical excision. In order to confirm that core biopsies are sufficient to serve as the launch point for treatment decision, we have conducted a retrospective review to compare the biomarker results of core biopsies with their corresponding excisional specimens. Previous studies have contained a smaller sample size, thus this is the largest single-site study of its kind. Methods: Data from patients with invasive breast cancer diagnosed between 2006 and 2013 have been retrospectively studied. Results for estrogen receptor (ER), progesterone receptor (PR) and Her2 status were analyzed. When the core biopsy and excisional specimens are either both "positive" or both "negative," the pair is considered to be "concordant." Otherwise, the pair is categorized as "discordant." As per the current ASCO/CAP guideline, hormone receptor status (estrogen and progesterone receptors) is considered positive if there were at least 1% tumor cells positive for either ER or PR. Both IHC and FISH concordance are evaluated for Her2 status. Patients who received neoadjuvant therapy of any kind were excluded from this study. Results: A total of 571 pairs of data totaling 1142 samples were analyzed in this study. Concordance for ER status is 97%, and for PR status is 92%. Concordance for hormone receptor status (when results of ER and PR are combined) between core biopsy and excision is 99%. Concordance for Her2 status, using FISH as the gold standard is 99%. Discussion: Typically, tumors that are ER+ are often also PR+. Nevertheless, they are often treated the same with hormonal therapy whether ER+PR+, ER+PR-, or, less commonly, ER-PR+. Almost all laboratories perform both ER and PR as a standard testing protocol for all breast carcinomas. Therefore, the lower concordance rate for only PR status without taking into consideration ER result is less meaningful. This study shows very high concordance rates for hormone receptor and Her2 status between core needle biopsy and excisional specimens, reiterating that treatment of invasive breast cancers based on the marker results obtained from core needle biopsies is appropriate. Citation Format: Music J, Sahoo S. Correlation of predictive markers in invasive breast carcinoma in core and excision specimens: A retrospective review. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Eighth Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2015 Dec 8-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P5-08-35.


Metallic structures with dimensions smaller than the wavelength of light demonstrate optical properties which depend strongly on the nanoparticle size, shape, and interparticle spacing. The optical properties are caused by the excitation of localized surface plasmon resonances that lead to strong enhancement and confinement of the optical field and can be exploited for many applications including surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, near-field scanning optical microscopy, and negative refractive index materials. In order to fully exploit the properties of these structures, both a highly reproducible and flexible fabrication technique and an in-depth understanding of the optical properties are needed. In this article, the authors demonstrate the fabrication of arrays of gold rings and split rings on glass using electron beam lithography. Electron beam lithography allows not only precise control of the size, shape, and spacing of the arrays but also the scope to design novel shapes at will. We characterize these arrays using polarization dependent spectroscopy. The structures can support multiple plasmon resonances, demonstrating that excellent uniformity across the array is achieved. These resonances are further characterized using a finite difference time domain method to model the electric field distribution around the ring structures.


Is it possible to create a scholarly encounter between Christianity and the juche idea of North Korean ideology? This study attempts to create an encounter between them. Even though it is very difficult to initiate dialogue because of the strong anti-Communism in South Korea, to understand the juche idea is the first step toward understanding North Korea, its society and its people. For an eventual effective mission in North Korea, South Koreans should make the effort to analyze the juche idea ideologically and theologically, and compare it with Christianity as found in minjung theology. What will be discovered is that Christianity and the juche idea have different worldviews and methodologies: while Christianity, particularly Reformed theology, has a theocentric view of history, the juche idea has an anthropocentric understanding of history. Reformed theology believes in God's revelation and providence, whereas the juche idea pursues revolutionary practice for liberation. The juche idea, however, has similarities to minjung theology; both the juche idea and minjung theology emphasize that ordinary people are the subjects of history, and so should seek liberation from oppression and exploitation.


One of the rewards of aviculture is that it provides an excellent opportunity toobserve closely the habits and behavior of species which are little known or studied in the wild because of their secretive lifestyles. This is why I keep buttonquails, for only in captivity can the intriguing, almost bizarre breeding behavior of these attractive birds be Perusal of the early avicultural literature reveals that in the past huttonquails were fairly common in aviaries in Britain and Europe, hut my inquiries suggest that at present there arc few birds in private collections outside Australia. That is disappointing for they are excellent aviary birds. Buttonquails or hernipodcs are small to medium-sized, ground-dwelling birds with a strong resemblance to the Co111mi.Y quails. the best known of which arc the Chinese Painted Quail C chtnettsis and the domesticated Japanese Quail C coturniv. Indeed, close inspection is needed to detect the two visual distinguishing features of huttonquails, namely the absence of a hind toe and their reversed sexual dimorphism, with females being larger and more brightly colored than males. Relationships of these quail-like birds remain uncertain, and recent biochemical analyses suggest that they are distant from all other birds, though it is not clear whether they are an ancient lineage or a more recent one that has evolved rapidly. All species have cryptically-colored uppcrparts featuring a mottling of grey or brown as in Co11m1i.1: quails, hut the head and underparts often are delicately marked with black and white or richly suffused with bright rufous tones. They are widely dispersed in the Old World, occurring in Africa, the Mediterranean region, and southern Asia to South-East Asia and Australia. All hut one aberrant African species belong to the genu .. Turnix. Seven of the 16 species occur in Australia, all hut two species being endemic, and although not held in large numbers, a few species are established in Australian collections. I hold two of the larger species in my aviaries and have been quite successful in breeding the Painted Buttonquail Turnix uaria. This species is about twice the size of the Chinese Painted Quail and is predominantly greyish in color with rich rufous on the hindneck to shoulders and sides of the breast. It is native to the forests and woodlands of coastal and subcoastal eastern and south-western Australia up to about 800 m (2,600 feet) above sea level. It is common on my property, and wild males regularly are attracted to my aviaries when the captive females are vocalising during courtship, four or five males often can he seen running hack and forth in front of the aviary avidly seeking an entrance opening. I have two breeding females, and they behave quite differently when nesting. One is atypical in that she participates equally in rearing of the chicks, and is permanently paired to the same male. When the chicks hatch, one or two go with each parent and are reared to independence by that parent. The second female behaves as a normal huttonquail, heing interested only in courtship, copulation and egg-laying. She will coax the brooding male to leave the nest by continuing to display to him, and immediately will kill newlyhatched chicks. She is paired alternatively with two males in adjoining aviaries, heing transferred to the second aviary as soon as the first male commences incubation, and then in turn to a holding aviary after the second male commences to incuhate. She is returned to the first aviary after the independent young have heen removed, and normally mates again with both males in turn, producing a total of four clutches in a season. To attract males to her territory, the female gives a loud, pigeon-like hooming call, and this signals the commencement of the hreeding season. She displays to the male by puffing out feathers of the chest, raising the tail and circling him while booming loudly and scratching the ground. If receptive, a male may he offered food by the female as a prelude to copulation. The female selects the nest-site, usually a slight depression in the ground beside a grass tussock, rock or log, and then huilds the slightly dome-shaped nest with fine grasses, leaves and twigs. At intervals of 24 to 48 hours, she lays the 3 to 5 eggs, which are huff to greyishwhite with speckles and spots of redbrown or dull violet to black. Incuhation hy the male lasts approx- -, imately 14 days, and commences after completion of the clutch. The cryptically-colored, downy chicks leave the nest almost immediately after hatching, and follow the male in much the same manner as do young Coturnix quails, hut there the similarity ends, for young buttonquails are fed hill to hill by the male for the first 8 to 10 days, and they take only live insects. Growth of the chicks is rapid, and at about 10 days, although only partly feathered, they can fly' Seeds are included in the diet after about 15 days, when they are independent, and at approximately 25 days they are the same size as adults. In the wild, Painted Buttonquails feed extensively on insects gleaned from leaf litter and loose soil on the forest floor, their peculiar circular scratching motions leaving telltale rounded depressions or platelets in the ground. Leaf litter covers the floors of my aviaries and is replenished frequently, thereby renewing the supply of insects, and the hirds spend much time digging and scratching in this litter. They are supplied also with an artificial insectivorous mix, to which termites or small meal worms are added when chicks are being reared. The basic seed mix comprises 2 parts white (French) millet, 1 part plain cana1y seed, 1 part red millet, and 1 part panicum, Being less timid than other species, and heing active throughout much of the day, Painted Buttonquails add inter- est and variety to a mixed collection. They should he housed in a well-plant- ed aviary, where shelter and suitable nest-sites are available under grass tussocks or shrubs, and they do not interfere with other birds, so can be held with finches, softbills, pigeons or doves, and small parrots. I presume that the Common Buttonquail Turnix sylvatica and the Barred Buttonquail T suscita- tor; which are the species most commonly kept outside Australia, are similarly suited to aviaries, and keeping them would be equally as interesting. ~


Abstract The vegetation of the Eemian interglacial and Early Vistulian glaciation was reconstructed on the basis of pollen analysis, biogenic and mineral-biogenic sediments from the Żabieniec Południowy locality. It was revealed that the present-day fossil reservoir was formerly a lake existing continuously from the decline of the Warta stadial (LG MPG) to the end of the Early Vistulian (EV4). The upper Plenivistulian age of top sediments, previously accepted on the basis of the radiocarbon date 24 200 ± 350 yrs BP (uncalibrated), was not confirmed by pollen analysis. In the pollen record from the nearby Żabieniec mire a break in biogenic accumulation corresponding to the Lower and Middle Plenivistulian was discovered. In view of the character of Plenivistulian morphogenesis in that area it appears that the deposits of both basins illustrate the development of one large melt-out depression during the whole postglacial period.


Proteins can provide insights into biological processes at the functional level, so they are very promising biomarker candidates. The quantification of proteins in biological samples has been routinely used for the diagnosis of diseases and monitoring the treatment. Although large-scale protein quantification in complex samples is still a challenging task, a great amount of effort has been made to advance the technologies that enable quantitative proteomics. Seven years ago, in 2009, we wrote an article about the current trends in quantitative proteomics. In writing this current paper, we realized that, today, we have an even wider selection of potential tools for quantitative proteomics. These tools include new derivatization reagents, novel sampling formats, new types of analyzers and scanning techniques, and recently developed software to assist in assay development and data analysis. In this review article, we will discuss these innovative methods, and their current and potential applications in proteomics. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


A drug-drug cocrystal of two anticonvulsants, lamotrigine and phenobarbital, is presented. In the crystal structure, molecules form heterodimers via N-H···O and N-H···N hydrogen bonding. The intrinsic dissolution rate (IDR) and solubility of the cocrystal were measured in phosphate buffer (pH 7.2) and simulated gastric fluid (without pepsin), and compared to pure APIs. Dissolution experiments found suppressed IDR of the cocrystal with rates in the order pure PB > pure LTG > cocrystal. The solubility measurements were consistent with the dissolution behavior. The presence of strong heterodimers in the cocrystal compared to weaker homodimers in the parent drugs is implicated for the reduced solubility and dissolution rate.


This book is a welcome addition to the growing body of work on public administration and politics in Canada. It explores public budgeting, which is surely the most technical and inherently political aspect of governing. While undeniably relevant to everyday life, aspects of public budgeting render it inaccessible and uninteresting to all but a small group of highly specialized practitioners and scholars. This collaborative effort by three leading scholars in the field of Canadian public administration is successful in making the topic both more accessible and more interesting. Indeed, public budgeting is displayed as critical to a grasp of Canadian social realities. The approach is interdisciplinary. The discussion begins by recognizing the centrality of budgets to the character of social life and by identifying their political, economic and managerial dimensions. In doing so, the topic is ordered in relation to both theory and practice. Canadian public budgeting is set in a comparative, institutional and taxation context. The account of these complex settings gives access to the central (primarily orthodox) ideas, debates and practices around the topic. In rendering this account, the book avoids specious simplification, itself an artful accomplishment. A consideration of budgeting perspectives offers an insightful and literate review of approaches to the study and concepts of budgeting from the disciplines of political science, economics, public administration and management. The concepts are carefully discussed, but their practical forms are given less attention. Policy discussions of social problems, economic and regional development, defence, external affairs and aid, government operations, and services to government—all raise topical issues and offer interesting case materials. The book concludes by proposing a topology of mezzo budgeting (the domain between macro and micro budget considerations) and an identification of continuing controversies in the field. The originality of the book lies more in its approach to the topic rather than in its ideas. The experiences and backgrounds of the authors are evident in the scope and depth of the material which is carefully chosen for current interest. The book is indeed a text in the best sense of the term. It is a primer in public budgeting, a topic which has previously only been accessible through a review of specialized literature in economics, political science, public administration and management. The authors have produced a significant achievement by relating successfully the practice and general social consequences of budgeting. Their book offers a place to begin, by making the topic visible and available for inclusion in course work and by setting an interdisciplinary agenda for future work.


As a cleaner energy source, the importance of shale gas as a fuel has increased in the past few decades with the main challenge faced being its quantification. While many accurate models exist for the estimation of the free gas inside the pore space of shales, only a limited number of empirical models with insufficient accuracy exist that can quantify the adsorbed gas. Also, adsorption experiments are complicated, time consuming, and prone to many sources of error including gas leakage during coring and preparation of samples. An attempt was made to develop a computational model to predict shale gas adsorption using statistical learning with a large data set consisting of 301 entries. The work done in this study attempted to develop artificial intelligence (AI) models that outperform the existing statistical learning model using the same data set. Three AI techniques were utilized in this study namely artificial neural networks (ANN), adaptive network-based fuzzy logic (ANFIS), and functional networks (FN). Using each AI technique, a submodel was developed for the prediction of both the Langmuir pressure and volume. The Langmuir pressure submodel used temperature (T), total organic carbon (TOC), and vitrinite reflectance (Ro) as input variables while only T and TOC were used as input for the volume submodel. Results showed that a model developed using ANFIS for the prediction of Langmuir pressure had an average absolute percentage error of only 15.26% compared to 27.67% of the statistical learning model. As for the volume submodel, ANN produced the best results with an AAPE of 21.34% compared to the original 23.76%. While FN showed better results in pressure prediction compared to statistical learning, the opposite was true for volume prediction. Also, in both prediction models (pressure and volume), FN was the least accurate our of the three AI methods.


Lean et a / . (Diabetic Med 1990; 7 : 228-233) have attempted to study the effect of weight loss on survival in Type 2 diabetic patients by a retrospective analysis of patients dying in 1985 and 1986. They claim that the power of survival analysis is greatest when all subjects are dead. This may be true of a prospective study of a cohort, but is not applicable to their own study. Their group of patients is not representative of any defined population and comprises patients who died in the 2 selected years and who were diagnosed from 2 to at least 17 years previously. Thus both deaths prior to 1985 and survivors beyond 1986 have been omitted. The study design implies that those diagnosed shortly before 1985 must have a shorter survival time. Thus, if there had been a secular change, with lesser reduction in weight over the period encompassed by the study, this would engender a spurious association between weight loss and survival time. This is as equally valid an interpretation of the data as that provided by the authors. However, all i s not lost. A case control study using the 1985/6 deaths as cases and matched controls with the same year of diagnosis, would help take account of our hypothesis and would be a much more respectable epidemiological method.


This paper aims to show that shape optimization can be efficiently applied to coastal engineering. This is a feasibility study for the design of defense structures for wave attenuation in deep water and against sandy beach erosion. Hence, we consider short wave propagation on a constant depth toward a vertical wall or sea cliff and long wave propagation in a domain with slow but arbitrary depth variations. The governing equations are either based on the Helmholtz wave propagation model or on a parabolic nonlinear refraction/diffraction model in shallow water. In each case, the shape of defense structures is modified in order to minimize a pre-defined cost function taking into account the strength (energy) of the water waves. Copyright © 2007 Praise Worthy Prize S.r.l. All rights reserved.


The wind energy industry is growing significantly, which increases the number of decommissioned wind turbines as well. The blades of wind turbines are mainly made of fiber reinforced thermoset polymer composite, which is difficult to recycle. Most blades currently end up in landfill or incineration which is a waste of this high value material. In this project, a valuable application for mechanically recycled composite material is designed, which will ensure the wind turbine blades of an end-of-life situation that fits within the circular economy. Material research is executed to get a grip on the characteristics of the shredded composite. These specific characteristics are eventually used to generate ideas on valuable applications for the material in which the recyclate is a wanted addition, instead of a disturbance. Based on the formulated vision, requirements and wishes, an electrical car charger is selected as the best suitable idea. This product demonstrates how the shreds can be reused in a thermoplastic material. It has a symbolic link with the wind energy industry and anticipates on the energy suppliers, who own the wind turbines, by recycling the material into a product they offer. The electrical charger is produced by pressing the shredded composite between two sheets of thermoplastic material and shaping this with vacuum forming. After its use, the product can be again recycled into new applications. However, the shredded composite will be part of a cascading model in which the fiber size will decrease with every recycling procedure. The design is only reusing a small amount of the total supply of composite waste and is therefore not an all-encompassing solution to the problem. Additionally, mechanical recycling does cause significant down-cycling of the high value material. Therefore, it is best to replace the thermoset polymer composites with a better recyclable material, until a recycling procedure turning the fibers and resin back into raw materials is fully developed.


Background:The referral system constitutes a key element of health system. Effective referral system between different levels of health care delivery represents a cornerstone in addressing patients' health needs.
Objectives:To assess the referral system Baghdad/ Al-Rusafa Health Directorate by evaluation the referral pattern and identify the quality of the referral letters and feedback reports.
Type of the study: This cross-sectional study .
Methodology : It was conducted in5PHCC in from 1st July 2015 - 31st December 2015 at Bagdad/Al-Rusafa health directorate. The study population (sampled population) included all referrals in six months. Data were entered and analyzed by using the statistical package for social science (SPSS) software version 17 for windows .
Results: The referral rate was 2.85% .The variables of the referral letter (such as age, gender of the referred patient)were present, while the indication for referral(3.3%), result of investigation done in PHCC (4.67%), initial diagnosis (5.86%), however, the name of physician and signature were not mentioned or specified in 70% of the referral letters. The rate of feedback reports received by PHCCs was 19% of total number of referrals to the hospitals. The referral rate was (2.8%) from total number of patients seen in PHCCs.However, the quality of referral letters and feedback reports was poor in 69.5% and 78.5% respectively.
Conclusion: In this study there was a low referral percentage and low feedback report in five PHCCs of Baghdad/ Al-Rusafa health directorate compared to international literature.The quality of referral letters and feedback reports is poor and contained inadequate information and lacking important and relevant items in majority of referral needs to be improved
Key words: Referral ,Feedback report , primary health care centers(PHCCs)

Background:The referral system constitutes a key element of health system. Effective referral system between different levels of health care delivery represents a cornerstone in addressing patients' health needs.
Objectives:To assess the referral system Baghdad/ Al-Rusafa Health Directorate by evaluation the referral pattern and identify the quality of the referral letters and feedback reports.
Type of the study: This cross-sectional study .
Methodology : It was conducted in5PHCC in from 1st July 2015 - 31st December 2015 at Bagdad/Al-Rusafa health directorate. The study population (sampled population) included all referrals in six months. Data were entered and analyzed by using the statistical package for social science (SPSS) software version 17 for windows .
Results: The referral rate was 2.85% .The variables of the referral letter (such as age, gender of the referred patient)were present, while the indication for referral(3.3%), result of investigation done in PHCC (4.67%), initial diagnosis (5.86%), however, the name of physician and signature were not mentioned or specified in 70% of the referral letters. The rate of feedback reports received by PHCCs was 19% of total number of referrals to the hospitals. The referral rate was (2.8%) from total number of patients seen in PHCCs.However, the quality of referral letters and feedback reports was poor in 69.5% and 78.5% respectively.
Conclusion: In this study there was a low referral percentage and low feedback report in five PHCCs of Baghdad/ Al-Rusafa health directorate compared to international literature.The quality of referral letters and feedback reports is poor and contained inadequate information and lacking important and relevant items in majority of referral needs to be improved


A new family of exponential-based time integration methods are proposed for the time-domain Maxwell's equations discretized by a high-order discontinuous Galerkin (DG) scheme formulated on locally refined unstructured meshes. These methods, which are developed from the Lawson method, remove the stiffness on the time explicit integration of the semidiscrete operator associated with the fine part of the mesh, and allow for the use of high-order time explicit scheme for the coarse part operator. They combine excellent stability properties with the ability to obtain very accurate solutions even for very large time step sizes. Here, the explicit time integration of the Lawson-transformed semidiscrete system relies on a low-storage Runge-Kutta (LSRK) scheme, leading to a combined Lawson-LSRK scheme. In addition, efficient techniques are presented to further improve the efficiency of this exponential-based time integration. For the efficient calculation of matrix exponential, we employ the Krylov subspace method. Numerical experiments are presented to assess the stability, verify the accuracy, and numerical convergence of the Lawson-LSRK scheme. They also demonstrate that the DG time-domain methods based on the proposed time integration scheme can be much faster than those based on classical fully explicit time stepping schemes, with the same accuracy and moderate memory usage increase on locally refined unstructured meshes, and are thus very promising for modeling 3-D multiscale electromagnetic problems.


We examine the relation between the presence of an independent director who is a blockholder (IDB) and corporate policies, risk-taking, and market valuation. After accounting for endogeneity, firms with an IDB have significantly (1) lower levels of cash holdings, payout and research and development (R&D) expenditures, (2) higher levels of capital expenditures, and (3) lower risk. The market appears to value IDB presence and the associated decrease in dividend yield. About 75% of the IDBs in our sample are individual investors, who drive most of our results. Our findings suggest that IDB presence plays a valuable role in shaping some corporate policies and allocating corporate resources.


The cause of scratched defects, occurred at edge area of austenitic stainless cold strip, is identified to be nickel segregation in the surface of continuous cast slabs. The mechanism of segregation occurrence is thought to be as follows. First, disordered oscillation marks in shallow gutters at edge area of slab wide face, induced by narrow face bulging, weakened strength of solidified shell, then cracks in weak solidified shell made segregations. Countermeasures to these problems are as follows. Steep taper of narrow side face in mold makes flat surface of slab wide face, and prevents disorder of oscillation mark. Strong cooling by use of high viscosity continuous casting powder in mold makes solidified shell strong, and depth of oscillation mark becomes shallow. Owing to these methods, segregations in slab surface become to be small, and slabs are transferred to hot rolling mill without surface conditioning by grind. The next subject is to make more shallow depth of oscillation mark by operation of high speed casting. UDC 669 . 14 . 018 . 8 147 : 620 . 191 * Nippon Steel Technoresearch Corporation * Technical Development Bureau


For the purpose of diagnostic application of microwaves, establishment of techniques to measure the signal transmission through the human torso is attempted. Leakage effects are the most troublesome measuring problem above 1 GHz because of high attenuation within the body. Swept-frequency measurement and close coupling between the flanged aperture antenna and the body assure that the results are free from leakage effects. Experimentally obtained attenuation constants of the abdomen and left thorax are almost the same as those of muscle tissues. In the thorax record, changes of attenuation caused by heartbeats or respirations are observed.