Object-oriented programming has worked quite well - so far. What are the objects, how do they relate to each other? Once we clarified these questions we typically feel confident to design and implement even the most complex systems. However, objects can deceive us. They can lure us into a false sense of understanding. The metaphor of objects can go too far by making us try to create objects that are too much inspired by the real world. This is a serious problem, as a resulting system may be significantly more complex than it would have to be, or worse, will not work at all. We postulate the notion of an antiobject as a kind of object that appears to essentially do the opposite of what we generally think the object should be doing. As a Gedankenexperiment antiobjects allow us to literally think outside the proverbial box or, in this case outside the object. This article discusses two examples, a Pacman game and a soccer simulation where antiobjects are employed as part of a game AI called Collaborative Diffusion. In Collaborative-Diffusion based soccer the player and grass tile agents are antiobjects. Counter to the intuition of most programmers the grass tile agents, on top of which all the players are moving, are doing the vast majority of the computation, while the soccer player agents are doing almost no computation. This article illustrates that this role reversal is not only a different way to look at objects but, for instance, in the case with Collaborative Diffusion, is simple to implement, incremental in nature and more robust than traditional approaches.


We discuss three complementary aspects of scalar curvature singularities: asymptotic causal properties, asymptotic Ricci and Weyl curvature, and asymptotic spatial properties. We divide scalar curvature singularities into two classes: so-called asymptotically silent singularities and singularities that break asymptotic silence. The emphasis in this paper is on the latter class which have not been previously discussed. We illustrate the above aspects and concepts by describing the singularities of a number of representative explicit perfect fluid solutions. PACS number(s): 04.20.-q, 98.80.Jk, 04.20.Dw, 04.20.Ha gr-qc/0511139


Cancer incidence rates are growing at an alarming pace pressing for the development of innovative personalized approaches to treating this disease. The absence of clinical symptoms in the early stages delays the onset of adequate treatment. Traditional therapies are not always as effective as they should be and do not guarantee long-lasting relapse-free survival. Metastatic cancers pose a particular challenge to healthcare professionals. This review touches upon the immunologic mechanisms underlying the development of malignancies, talks about conventional and innovative therapeutic modalities, such as targeted, gene or specific immunotherapies, and analyzes the literature on the use of different approaches that form a basis for precision oncology.


The distribution pattern of pellets due to shotguns is an important criterion for the determination of shooting distance. Many factors affect the distribution range, such as characteristics of the gun, the presence and type of intermediate targets, factors related to distance, and the physical variables of the environment. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the effects of different intermediate targets on the distribution range of pellets from a shotgun. Glass, mica auto glass, tempered auto glass, fibreboard, flat iron, aluminium, and grey cotton fabric were used as intermediate targets. The intermediate target was placed one metre away from the main target and shotgun. The spread of pellets was evaluated on the main target with seven shots by using either cartridge numbers 0 or 9. The spread of pellets was significantly larger in the presence of all intermediate targets tested with cartridge number 9 (p < 0.05) but not in the presence of grey cotton fabric (p = 0.33) with cartridge number 0. The distribution range of pellets increased in the presence of intermediate targets. This difference was more pronounced in higher density intermediates. In crime scene investigations, the presence and/or type of intermediate target should be taken into account to make information more accurate.


An open circuit (O-C) fault detection method for grid-connected neutral-point-clamped (NPC) inverter based on independent component analysis (ICA) and neural network (NN) is proposed in this paper. A NN classifier is applied to the fault diagnosis of NPC inverter. The ICA is utilized for the three phase current feature extraction. The ICA reduces the number of NN input neuron. A lower dimensional input space reduces the noise and the training time of NN, the ICA algorithm improves the mapping performance. The proposed algorithm is evaluated with simulation test set. The overall classification performance of the proposed network is more than 97%. The simulation results show that the proposed algorithm performs satisfactorily to fault location.


A practical synthetic protocol affording regioselectively various types of 1,2,3-triazole-containing peptidomimetics (9-23) in moderate to excellent yields (33-99%) is described. Such peptidomimetics were obtained by clicking alkyne-N-protected-L-serine derivatives (1-3) and azide-tagged compounds (4-8) under the copper-catalyzed azidealkyne [3+2] cycloaddition (CuAAC) regime. Various peptidomimetic substrates containing sugar moieties with potential biological and medical relevance are reported.


Most of today's structured data is stored in relational databases. Such a database consists of multiple relations which are linked together conceptually via entity-relationship links in the design of relational database schemas. Multirelational classification can be widely used in many disciplines, such as financial decision-making, medical research, and geographical applications. However, most classification approaches only work on single "flat" data relations. It is usually difficult to convert multiple relations into a single flat relation without either introducing huge, undesirable "universal relation" or losing essential information. Previous works using inductive logic programming approaches (recently also known as relational mining) have proven effective with high accuracy in multi-relational classification. Unfortunately, they suffer from poor scalability w.r.t. the number of relations and the number of attributes in databases. We propose CrossMine, an efficient and scalable approach for multirelational classification. Several novel methods are developed in CrossMine, including (1) tuple ID propagation, which performs semantics-preserving virtual join to achieve high efficiency on databases with complex schemas, and (2) a selective sampling method, which makes it highly scalable w.r.t. the number of tuples in the databases. Both theoretical backgrounds and implementation techniques of CrossMine are introduced. Our comprehensive experiments on both real and synthetic databases demonstrate the high scalability and accuracy of CrossMine.


The double drawbar dolly eliminates articulation of the conventional single drawbar converter dolly to improve the stability of multiple trailer truck combinations. It is usually provided with a self-steering axle to improve maneuverability. This report describes double drawbar dolly types, factors in their design, and findings from tests of a specific dolly and computer simulation results pertaining to a range of dolly concepts. Performance topics investigated include low and high speed offtracking, stability characteristics and loads at the dolly hitch. The results showed vehicle performance is highly dependent upon friction and stiffness in the dolly self-steering system. Both test and simulation showed that compared with the single drawbar dolly, a double drawbar dolly having properties equivalent to that tested would significantly improve vehicle stability. If steer stiffness is diminished to the free castering condition, stability becomes poorer than with the conventional single drawbar dolly. The double drawbar dolly can impose high longitudinal and vertical loads on the pintle hooks. Therefore, the latch mechanism must be capable of resisting these large upward loads.


We investigate a measure of distinguishability defined by the quantum Chernoff bound, which naturally induces the quantum Chernoff metric over a manifold of quantum states. Based on a quantum statistical model, we alternatively derive this metric by means of perturbation expansion. Moreover, we show that the quantum Chernoff metric coincides with the infinitesimal form of the quantum Hellinger distance, and reduces to the variant version of the quantum Fisher information for the single-parameter case. We also give the exact form of the quantum Chernoff metric for a qubit system containing a single parameter.


Intestinal ganglioneuromatosis is an extremely rare condition, particularly in pediatric patients, and the imaging features of the disease have been rarely reported before. Herein, we present a pediatric case of intestinal ganglioneuromatosis involving the transverse colon and splenic flexure with bowel perforation, which is a rare initial manifestation of the disease.


Property Law is a companion that guides through the intricacies of the conveyancing process. Drawing on practical experience of legal practice, with a residential and a commercial conveyancing focus, the volume offers explanations of often complex processes. The title contains practical guidance on how to approach each stage of a conveyancing transaction in practice. This edition has been fully updated with recent developments in the law, including discussion of 'Help to buy' shared ownership schemes, coverage of the Land Transaction Tax, and updated tax rates and chargeable amounts for enveloped dwellings.


Cerium hydrate fiber (CHF), which showed an aspect ratio greater than 100, was synthesized by a novel method, which used the mixing of cerium nitrate (Ce(NO3)3), sodium hydrate (NaOH) and citric acid (C6H8O7) synthesized at a relative low temperature and ambient pressure. The precipitates were characterized by XRD, SEM and TEM. The results showed that in addition to fibers, two morphologies could be obtained depending on the synthesizing conditions. Aging time and formulation were two key factors for the control of the aspect ratio of the precipitates. By a heating treatment at 600oC for 2 h, the homogenous and well-crystallized cerium dioxide (CeO2) fiber can be fabricated. The effects of synthesis parameters, such as the concentration of the starting solution, aging period, and pH value were reported and discussed.


We present a computer generated hologram (CGH) based setup for displaying 3D objects. An optically addressed spatial light modulator (OASLM) is used as a display device. By using the OASLM, the diffraction orders caused by the inter-pixel gap of an electrically addressed spatial light modulator (EASLM) can be eliminated. At the same time the viewing angle of reconstructed 3D objects can be enlarged by demagnifying the pixels of the EASLM from 36µm to 9µm through high resolution imaging optics. The holograms were computed based on a newly developed algorithm for the display.


The paper presents results of research on Polish event planners. The overall purpose of the study is to investigate main destination selection variables Polish event planners consider important in destination selection process. The current research focused on the destination selection variables that event planners used for events they held in 2013. The research was based on structured interviews carried on in February 2013. The research group consisted of members of four leading MICE associations. Questions created for the survey were based on an extensive literature review and previous studies which concerned main destination attribute requirements. The findings of the study suggest that overall cost is important or extremely important for 81,8%, accessibility by air and by roads is important or extremely important for 87.4% respondents whereas 98,3% event planners find support services for events very important. The results of the study will help the destination marketing organizations as well as marketing professionals in hotel meeting facilities and convention centres better position their services and better understand event planners' needs and requirements.


Optimal glycemic control is essential for the prevention of diabetes-related complications, and the intensive insulin regimens that best resemble physiological insulin secretion are most likely to attain it. However, there are many limitations that preclude the early use of insulin by patients with type 2 diabetes or wider implementation of the intensive regimens in type 1 diabetes. More acceptable alternative routes of insulin administration and effective, noninvasive, patient-friendly delivery systems that alleviate the burden of insulin injections have been researched over the years. To date, only pulmonary inhalation of insulin has become a feasible alternative; it has proved to be as effective and well tolerated as the subcutaneously injected regular insulin and it has a pharmacodynamic profile well suited for mealtime insulin therapy. Several pulmonary insulin delivery systems are in different stages of development, and one (Exubera, Nektar Therapeutics/Pfizer Inc.-Sanofi-Aventis Group) has already become clinically available in the United States and Europe for patients with diabetes. Other noninjectable methods of insulin administration are reviewed.


Abstract There is a growing body of evidence to support the belief that most myopia develops as a result of prolonged exposure to nearpoint activities. This paper summarizes the most important studies that have been done and postulates a mechanism by which prolonged accommodation can result in myopia. Possible means of arresting or preventing the development of myopia are discussed.


The idea underlying this study is that the prospective teachers develop their Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills throughout the learning process supported by the Problem Based Learning (PBL), a method that produces independent learners who can, then, continue to learn on their own in their chosen careers. The major goal of the study, conducted in two phases during two academic years, is to investigate the differential effects of PBL and conventional teacher-centred instruction on cognitive and a group of affective variables which have been coined "technophobia". Phase I of the study, entirely qualitative in character, covered a case study in which a total of 111 students from three departments of the Faculty of Education took part. Phase II of the study was quasi-experimental in nature with 79 students taking part. Most of the outcomes from Phase II were based on statistical measurements. At the end of the instruction process, the findings indicated that, while there was no significant difference in the anxiety levels of the two groups, the number of successful students had registered a considerable increase. Furthermore, the students, actively involved in the learning process, solving real problems, viewed the PBL as an effective learning tool rich in motivation. Within this framework, the motivating role of ICT as a method of learning is automatically recognised.


BACKGROUND
Hypertriglyceridemia is now accepted as a risk factor for coronary heart disease, although the mechanism behind the increased risk is not well understood. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effects of triglyceridemia on endothelial function, because impaired endothelial function is considered a marker of atherogenesis.

METHODS AND RESULTS
Flow- and nitroglycerin-induced dilatation of the brachial artery was investigated noninvasively by high-resolution ultrasound technique in seven young, healthy men without risk factors for coronary heart disease. Transient triglyceridemia was induced by infusion of a triglyceride emulsion, Intralipid, which raised free fatty acid concentrations twofold and triglyceride levels fourfold. Flow-induced vasodilatation decreased from 7.1+/-3.0% to 1.6+/-2.6% (P<.0002), whereas nitroglycerin-induced vasodilatation decreased from 20.5+/-5.8% to 11.5+/-3.2% (P<.002) before and after 1 hour of infusion of Intralipid, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS
Transient triglyceridemia decreases vascular reactivity, presumably by both endothelium-dependent and endothelium-independent mechanisms.


In the title compound, C20H21NO4, the two benzene rings are almost perpendicular to each other, making a dihedral angle of 86.1 (7)°. The hydroxyethanimine group is essentially coplanar with the benzene ring, the largest deviation from the mean plane of the hydroxyethanimine [C=N—OH] group being 0.011 (1) Å for the O atom. An intramolecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bond occurs. The molecules are linked into cyclic centrosymmetric R 2 2(6) dimers via O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds. Intermolecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the molecules, forming a C(8) chain along the a axis. The crystal packing is further stabilized by C—H⋯π interactions.


Injury and disruption of the canaliculi of the lacrimal excretory system commonly occur from laceration or shearing trauma. This type of injury will likely lead to dysfunction of tear flow from the palpebral sulcus and chronic epiphora. The goal of this article is to give a step-by-step review of canalicular repair.


Early Proterozoic rocks in northern New Mexico can be used to document 100-170 km of right-lateral slip along a network of north-striking Laramide (Late Cretaceous-early Tertiary) faults that formed the precursor of the Rio Grande rift. Piercing lines are defined by the intersection of a subborizontal 4 kbar isobaric surface with steeply dipping stratigraphic markers and regional structures. Restoration of slip provides new insight into the nature of Proterozoic orogenic and crustal province boundaries. The Yavapai crustal province (1.75-1.72 Ga juvenile volcanogenic rocks) is imbricated with overlying Hondo Group sedimentary cover in an originally east-trending ductile thrust belt that formed near the southern margin of the Yavapai province. A series of offset magnetic anomalies (Jemez lineament) is interpreted to mark the thrust-buried boundary between older (Yavapai province) and younger (Mazatzal province) crust. Our microplate tectonic model suggests that Laramide strike-slip movement (New Mexico) was kinematically linked with coeval extensional collapse (Arizona) and foreland shortening (Wyoming) during decoupling and northward movement of the rigid Colorado Plateau relative to the undeformed midcontinent. Crustal-scale strike-slip faults in New Mexico were reactivated during later Tertiary extension and continue to localize high heat flow in the Rio Grande rift and northward into Colorado.


Handedness is considered to be a relatively unique characteristic of humans. Typically, handedness is defined as the preferential use of one hand for most fine unimanual tasks, such as writing, hammering, and using a toothbrush. However, most everyday actions utilize both the preferred and non-preferred hands, with each hand assuming a particular role in the action. More specifically, consider the unimanual task of hammering: while the preferred hand clearly is the "action hand" the non-preferred hand plays a supporting role in stabilizing the nail. Unfortunately, most hand preference questionnaires solely focus on the preferred hand and do not consider the role of the non-preferred hand. As such, we created a Bimanual Hand Preference Questionnaire and compared participants' performance on this new questionnaire to the Waterloo Handedness Questionnaire, a traditional measure of handedness. Fifty undergraduate Wilfrid Laurier University students completed both questionnaires, which assessed both direction and degree of handedness for various actions. Overall, the two measures were found to be significantly correlated. Hand preference as determined by the Waterloo Handedness Questionnaire was strongly positively correlated with the hand used to perform an action and strongly negatively correlated with the hand used for supporting actions. The findings indicate that the Bimanual Hand Preference Questionnaire is a valid tool, measuring a related construct to the Waterloo Handedness Questionnaire. Future research will next examine hand performance measures and how they relate to the Bimanual Hand Preference Questionnaire.Acknowledgments: Supported by NSERC (PJB)


What is St. John's Wort? St. John's Wort is an herbal supplement most commonly used to help mild or moderate depression. The active ingredients and components of St. John's Wort can vary widely and are altered by the harvesting, drying, and storage processes of the plant. In the United States, St. John's Wort is characterized as a dietary supplement. Unlike a prescription medication, it is not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and does not have set standards for preparation, safety, or degree of effectiveness. For information on supplements in general, please see our fact sheet on Herbal Products at: https://mothertobaby.org/fact-sheets/herbal-products-pregnancy/pdf/ . St. John's Wort might lower the effectiveness of birth control. Also, the tannic acid present in St. John's Wort may prevent absorption of iron, an important mineral for pregnant women and their babies.


The study aims to conduct a systematic review to characterise the spread and use of the concept of 'disruptive innovation' within the healthcare sector. We aim to categorise references to the concept over time, across geographical regions and across prespecified healthcare domains. From this, we further aim to critique and challenge the sector-specific use of the concept. PubMed, Medline, Embase, Global Health, PsycINFO, Maternity and Infant Care, and Health Management Information Consortium were searched from inception to August 2019 for references pertaining to disruptive innovations within the healthcare industry. The heterogeneity of the articles precluded a meta-analysis, and neither quality scoring of articles nor risk of bias analyses were required. 245 articles that detailed perceived disruptive innovations within the health sector were identified. The disruptive innovations were categorised into seven domains: basic science (19.2%), device (12.2%), diagnostics (4.9%), digital health (21.6%), education (5.3%), processes (17.6%) and technique (19.2%). The term has been used with increasing frequency annually and is predominantly cited in North American (78.4%) and European (15.2%) articles. The five most cited disruptive innovations in healthcare are 'omics' technologies, mobile health applications, telemedicine, health informatics and retail clinics. The concept 'disruptive innovation' has diffused into the healthcare industry. However, its use remains inconsistent and the recognition of disruption is obscured by other types of innovation. The current definition does not accommodate for prospective scouting of disruptive innovations, a likely hindrance to policy makers. Redefining disruptive innovation within the healthcare sector is therefore crucial for prospectively identifying cost-effective innovations.


The purpose of this research is to know the influence of liquidity ratio variable, leverage ratio, profitability ratio, and activity ratio to financial distress in PT. Sri Tugu Muda (Lampung). The tool analysis that used in this assumption that consist of some tests of normality,multikolineriety,heteroskedasticity and autocorrelation. The statistic anaysts that used are multiple linier regression and hipotesyst test which consist of t and F test also determination coeficient (R2 ). The dependent variable in this research is financial distress. While the independent variables are liquidity ratio, leverage ratio, profitability ratio and activity ratio. The result of the research shows partially of liquidity ratio that significanly influenced to financial distress. While leverage and profitability ratio is not significanly influenced to financial distress. Simultaneously, liquidity, leverage, profitability and activity ratio together influential significanly forward financial distress. This is evidenced R Square value of 0.697 the point is 69,7% of financial distress is influenced by the ratio of liquidity, leverage ratio, profitability, and activity ratio. And for 30,3% is influenced by another variables not reviewed in this reseach.


The occurrence and fate of three groups of micropollutants – alkylphenols, pentachlorophenol and hormones – were studied in a pilot plant consisting of an anaerobic membrane bioreactor (AnMBR) coupled to an activated sludge reactor (University of Cape Town configuration – UCT). Under anaerobic conditions, the octylphenol and technical-nonylphenol soluble concentrations increased producing negative degradation ratios (i.e., −175 and −118%, respectively). However, high 4-n-nonylphenol and bisphenol-A degradation ratios (92 and 59% for 4-n-nonylphenol and bisphenol-A, respectively) as well as complete pentachlorophenol, estrone, 17β-estradiol and 17α-ethinylestradiol removal were observed. Under aerobic conditions (UCT), octylphenol, technical-nonylphenol, 4-n-nonylphenol and bisphenol-A degradation ratios were higher than 84%. The AnMBR thus removes a high proportion of 4-n-nonylphenol, pentachlorophenol, estrone, 17β-estradiol and 17α-ethinylestradiol, but requires a later post-treatment process (such as UCT) to improve bisphenol-A, octylphenol and technical-nonylphenol degradation ratios. The overall AnMBR–UCT degradation ratios were 48% and 70% for octylphenol and technical-nonylphenol, respectively, and higher than 97% for 4-n-nonylphenol and bisphenol-A. The AnMBR produced a higher micropollutant accumulation in the sludge than the UCT: removal by adsorption in the AnMBR process was between 0.5 and 10%, and less than 0.5% in the UCT process. The combination of AnMBR and UCT technologies produces an effluent stream with low concentrations of micropollutants.


BACKGROUND: Unrecognized and undertreated septic shock increases morbidity and mortality. Septic shock in children is defined as sepsis and cardiovascular organ dysfunction, not necessarily with hypotension. OBJECTIVE: Cases of unrecognized and undertreated septic shock in our emergency department (ED) were reviewed with a focus on (1) increased recognition at triage and (2) more aggressive treatment once recognized. We hypothesized that septic shock protocol and care guideline would expedite identification of septic shock, increase compliance with recommended therapy, and improve outcomes. METHODS: We developed an ED septic shock protocol and care guideline to improve recognition beginning at triage and evaluated all eligible ED patients from January 2005 to December 2009. RESULTS: We identified 345 pediatric ED patients (49% male, median age: 5.6 years), and 297 (86.1%) met septic shock criteria at triage. One hundred ninety-six (56.8%) had ≥1 chronic complex condition. Hypotension was present in 34% (n = 120); the most common findings were tachycardia (n = 251 [73%]) and skin-color changes (n = 269 [78%]). The median hospital length of stay declined over the study period (median: 181–140 hours; P < .05); there was no change in mortality rate, which averaged 6.3% (22 of 345). The greatest gains in care included more complete recording of triage vital signs, timely fluid resuscitation and antibiotic administration, and serum lactate determination. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of an ED septic shock protocol and care guideline improved compliance in delivery of rapid, aggressive fluid resuscitation and early antibiotic and oxygen administration and was associated with decreased length of stay.


The feasibility of development of transdermal delivery system of olanzapine utilizing natural oils as permeation enhancers was investigated. Penetration enhancing potential of corn (maize) oil, groundnut oil and jojoba oil on in vitro permeation of olanzapine across rat skin was studied. The magnitude of flux enhancement factor with corn oil, groundnut oil and jojoba oil was 7.06, 5.31 and 1.9 respectively at 5mg/ml concentration in solvent system. On the basis of in vitro permeation studies, eudragit based matrix type transdermal patches of olanzapine were fabricated using optimized concentrations of natural oils as permeation enhancers. All transdermal patches were found to be uniform with respect to physical characteristics. The interaction studies carried out by comparing the results of ultraviolet, HPLC and FTIR analyses for the pure drug, polymers and mixture of drug and polymers indicated no chemical interaction between the drug and excipients. Corn oil containing unsaturated fatty acids was found to be promising natural permeation enhancer for transdermal delivery of olanzapine with greatest cumulative amount of drug permeated (1010.68 μg/cm²/h) up to 24 h and caused no skin irritation. The fabricated transdermal patches were found to be stable. The pharmacokinetic characteristics of the final optimized matrix patch (T2) were determined after transdermal application to rabbits. The calculated relative bioavailability of TDDS was 113.6 % as compared to oral administration of olanzapine. The therapeutic effectiveness of optimized transdermal system was confirmed by tranquillizing activity in rotarod and grip mice model.


Receptionists who work in government health facilities in Kenya are part of large state funded ministry, the Ministry of Medical Services. Their counterparts who work in private hospitals fall under the hospital management, the human resource department. Private hospitals in Kenya are represented by the Kenya healthcare federation. Their (receptionists) duties include registering patients, arranging appointments for them and checking them for consultations as well as administration of the ordering and collection of repeat prescriptions. This paper therefore analsysed transactional patterns used by receptionists and patients in their enactment of their different roles and identities. The data analysis is based on Goffman's (2002) roles and identities and Kaspar's (2000) power models. The study uses both primary and secondary sources that involve audio data recorded at the one government health facility and one private health facility, and extensive library research. Purposive sampling is used to sample the two health facilities in Nyanza. Data from naturally occurring conversations among the receptionists and the patients is analysed using the qualitative research design. It is therefore proposed that the findings from this study be used in receptionist training programmes to raise awareness of patterns of discourse behaviour at the front desk discourse with a view to improving both the professional experience of receptionists and the quality of service which patients at government health facilities and private health facilities receive. Quality customer service is equivalent of vision 2030's social pillar, which rests on the premise that investment in human capital is paramount for economic development.


Morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular diseases are still high, even with the use of the best available therapies. There is mounting evidence that excessive renin-angiotensin system activation triggers much of the damaging and progressive nature of cardiovascular and kidney diseases through expression of angiotensin II. Moreover, angiotensin II play a major role in the development of end organ damage through a variety of inflammatory mechanisms. Today, angiotensins-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor antagonists have clearly demonstrated their efficacy in preventing target organ damage and in reducing cardio-vascular morbidity and mortality in ischemic heart disease (IHD). Moreover, the development of angiotensin II receptor antagonists has enabled a large gain in tolerability and safety. Several clinical trials have firmly established that these drugs act on the renin–angiotensin system, reducing the incidence of coronary events with monotherapy and combination therapy. In this review we summarize the role mono-and combined therapy of ACE inhibitors and angiotensin II receptor antagonists play in ischemic heart disease. In this respect the review will improve ideas for developing new formulations with combinations of these drugs in the future.


Variation in the number of species was studied in a subthermophilous grassland at a scale of 0.05 x 0.05 m during a 5-year period. The observed variance of species richness (VSR) was compared with a null model based on random distribution of species over a set of squares. It was found that distribution of species richness had more values than expected around the mean and less values at the "shoulders". Both tails fell within the predicted limits. Application of the procedures removing spatial dependence (random shifts, rotation/reflection method by PALMER & VAN DER MAAREL 1995) and environmental heterogeneity (patch model by WATKINS & WILSON 1992) did not change the observed pattern. Using simulations in which the number of clumps and clumping intensity were manipulated it was found that the effect of the clumped spatial pattern on VSR results in a wide range of variances. Both variance excess and variance deficit were found more frequently than expected under the null model. To test the effect of the limitation to the number of individuals per square a null model was developed which included the observed number of plant shoots per square, the observed distribution of the number of shoots belonging to individual species per square and the observed spatial distribution of the shoots. The observed VSR was still lower than that produced by the null model. Therefore, it is concluded that at a scale of 0.05 x 0.05 m plant species combine in a non-random way in the studied grassland. It is suggested that the shape of left and right "shoulders" of the species richness distribution may be caused by different factors, such as positive and negative covariance between species, respectively. Their simultaneous impact can generate the observed pattern in species richness.


This paper proposes a new concept in hierarchical representations that exploits features of different granularity and specificity coming from all layers of the hierarchy. The concept is realized within a cross-layered compositional representation learned from the visual data. We show how similarity connections among discrete labels within and across hierarchical layers can be established in order to produce a set of layer-independent shape-terminals, i.e. shapinals. We thus break the traditional notion of hierarchies and show how the category-specific layers can make use of all the necessary features stemming from all hierarchical layers. This, on the one hand, brings higher generalization into the representation, yet on the other hand, it also encodes the notion of scales directly into the hierarchy, thus enabling a multi-scale representation of object categories. By focusing on shape information only, the approach is tested on the Caltech 101 dataset demonstrating good performance in comparison with other state-of-the-art methods.


Lycopene is one of the important natural substances for industrial coloring of foods. In addition, this carotenoid has importance in human health because of its role in reducing the risk of chronic diseases such as cancer, especially prostate cancer, and cardiovascular diseases. However, because of its high degree of insaturation, it is prone to isomerization and oxidation. In this work, microencapsulation of lycopene was studied, utilizing cyclodextrins (CDs) as encapsulating substances. Extracted from guava and isolated in open column, lycopene in acetone was added to the a-, b-, and g-CD dissolved in water, acetone being subsequently eliminated with nitrogen. Initially, complexation was investigated with the three CDs at a molar ratio of 1:50. Lycopene formed complexes with b- and g-CD, but not with a-CD. After 180 days of storage at refrigeration temperature, lycopene levels remained constant in the lycopene-g-CD complex, but were reduced by 80% in the lycopene-b-CD complex. During evaluation of the best molar ratio of lycopene-CD, inclusion was maximum with g-CD at a molar ratio of 1:200. The complex was dispersible in water, maintaining the red color of lycopene. Stability under light exposure was excellent, retention being 100% during 40 days of monitoring at ambient temperature.


Despite frequent herpes simplex virus (HSV) reactivation, peripheral nerve destruction and sensory anesthesia are rare. We discovered that skin biopsies obtained during asymptomatic human HSV-2 reactivation exhibit a higher density of nerve fibers relative to biopsies during virological and clinical quiescence. We evaluated the effects of HSV infection on keratinocytes, the initial target of HSV replication, to better understand this observation. Keratinocytes produced IL-17c during HSV-2 reactivation, and IL-17RE, an IL-17c–specific receptor, was expressed on nerve fibers in human skin and sensory neurons in dorsal root ganglia. In ex vivo experiments, exogenous human IL-17c provided directional guidance and promoted neurite growth and branching in microfluidic devices. Exogenous murine IL-17c pretreatment reduced apoptosis in HSV-2–infected primary neurons. These results suggest that IL-17c is a neurotrophic cytokine that protects peripheral nerve systems during HSV reactivation. This mechanism could explain the lack of nerve damage from recurrent HSV infection and may provide insight to understanding and treating sensory peripheral neuropathies.


The analysis for probable reasons of CD4+ T-cell activation non-linear dependence on [Ca2+]o in HPB in vitro is the general aim of current work. At the beginning we pursued the analysis of receptor-dependent (the mixture of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to CD3 and CD28 molecules) and receptor-independent (phorbol-myristate-acetate and ionomycin mixture) means to activate T cells in vitro with different [Ca2+]o in HPB. The key role of intracellular T-cell signaling systems in activated T cells in their non-similar sensitivity to calcium ions in the blood was shown. The analysis of differentiation next stages of CD4+ T-cell activation in vitro relatively [Ca2+]o in PHB demonstrates the key role of the earliest induction stages in non-similar sensitivity to calcium ions in CD4+ T-cell activation in vitro. According to the pursued analysis; the non-similar sensitivity of CD4+ T-cell in vitro to activation is in no-way connected with pace differences on the primary stages of activation process. The comparison of CD4+ memory T cells with their naive T-cell precursors in the cell activation process in hypocalcemia conditions was made in the separate experimental series. The 1st maximum consists in average of 85% CD4+CD45R0high CD69+ memory T cells. Naive CD4+CD45RAlowCD69+ T cells constitute the remainder 15%. The 2nd maximum almost completely consists of CD4+CD45R0+CD69+ memory T cells. The ratio between CD4+CD69+ T cell maximums depends on donor ages and represents linear dependence with R = -0.981. The most probable candidate on the role of CD4+ T cell, being capable of activation in hypocalcemia conditions, are memory T lymphocytes, being resistant to ionomycin action (I R) subset. To check this assumption the mononuclear cells and their IR-fraction were prepared from donor PB. Then the mononuclear cells and their IR-fraction were activated by mAbs mixture at different [EGTA] values. For IR-fraction, enriched with CD4+CD45RA-CD45R0+ memory T cells, slightly seen 1st maximum and drastic 2nd maximum in the "pathology" [Ca2+] region was observed. Most likely, namely, at the 2nd maximum, there is IR CD4+CD45RA-CD45R0+ memory T cell majority, having changed intracellular calcium signaling system, to be activated. Hence, the existence for CD4+ T cell activation two maximums in hypocalcemia conditions is connected with the presence of two subsets of CD4+ memory T cells, differing in their calcium-dependent intracellular signaling system, in HPB.


Conflicts between wildlife, invasive species, and agricultural producers are increasing. Although direct management actions taken to mitigate these conflicts remain controversial, most stakeholders agree that better policies are needed to balance socio-economic considerations with invasive species management, wildlife conservation, and agriculture. However the interaction between societal and biological drivers that influence human-invasive species-wildlife conflict mitigation policy is poorly understood. We identify factors influencing policy leading to the establishment of a new federal program to control invasive wild pigs in the United States. We fit generalized linear models relating frequency of congressional policy activity, such as congressional hearings and reports, to frequency of print newspaper media and percent of the U.S. agricultural industry co-occurring with invasive wild pigs for 29 years preceding the establishment of the federal program in 2013. Our models explained 89% of the deviance in congressional policy activity indicating a strong linkage between congressional invasive wild pig policy activity and predictors representing the number of negative of newspaper articles, geographic distribution of print media, and percent of agricultural producers co-occurring with invasive wild pigs. These effects translated to 3.7% increase in the number of congressional policy actions for every additional five states with negative news media. Invasive wild pig congressional policy activity increased 6.7% for every additional 10 negative newspaper articles. Increases in co-occurrence of agriculture and invasive wild pigs had the largest effect, for every 1% increase in co-occurrence there was a 41% increase in congressional policy activity. Invasive wild pig congressional policy activity that explicitly addressed livestock increased at nearly twice the rate of policy activity addressing crop agriculture. These results suggest that agriculture and media coverage may act as determinants for invasive species policy. Our approach may provide early insight into emerging policy areas enabling proactive policy development by agencies or early engagement by scientists to find solutions before the policy area becomes grid locked. Our results can also support policy and program evaluation providing a means of determining if the implemented policies match the original policy determinants ensuring best alignment with public, environmental, and stakeholder interests.


Background: Studies have shown that one of the major causes of maternal death especially in developing countries is unskilled birth attendants at pregnancy and childbirth. The aim of this study is to determine the reasons for the utilization of traditional birth attendants' services among mothers in Akinyele Local Government, Ibadan, Nigeria. Methodology: The study design was cross sectional and interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to elicit information from the women who had ever given birth. Data was collected from the women who attend the postnatal and Immunization clinics in the selected health centres. A total of 130 questionnaires were retrieved and analyzed using statistical package of the social sciences (SPSS) and presented as tables and figures. Two hypotheses were tested using chi-square test p ≤ 0.05 level of significance. Results: The findings revealed that 55.4% have ever utilized the TBA. Significant reasons for patronizing of TBAs by the women were that the TBAs were more user friendly (p= 0.012), were readily accessible (p=0.000) and their belief in them (p=0.000). Poverty (p=0.988) and educational level (p =0.133) were not found to be statistically significant in this study. Conclusion Effort should be made by care providers and policy makers to ensure that our modern health care services for mothers are more accessible, user friendly with culturally sensitive care.


The following guide is select list of ejournals, ebooks, and web sites in the areas of nursing and nursing oncology


Patched1 heterozygous mice (Ptch1 1/2) are useful for basal cell carcinoma (BCC) studies, being remarkably susceptible to BCC induction by ultraviolet or ionizing radiation. Analogously, skin carcinogenesis-susceptible (CarS) mice are elective for studies of papilloma and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) induction. We previously reported a striking effect of gender on BCC induction in Ptch1 1/2 mice, with total resistance of females; likewise, CarS females show increased skin tumor resistance relative to males. Here, we investigated the protective role of endogenous estrogen in skin keratinocyte tumorigenesis. Control (CN) and ovariecto-mized Ptch1 1/2 or CarS females were irradiated for BCC induction or topically treated with chemical carcinogens for SCC induction. Susceptibility to BCC or SCC was dramatically increased in ovariectomized Ptch1 1/2 and CarS females and restored to levels observed in males. Remarkably, progression of initially benign papillomas to malignant SCC occurred only in ovariectomized CarS females. We explored the mechanisms underlying tumor progression and report overexpression of estrogen receptor (ER)-a, downregulation of ERb and upregulation of cyclin D1 in papillomas from ovariectomized CarS relative to papillomas from CN females. Thus, an imbalanced ERa/ERb expression may be associated with estrogen-mediated modulation of non-melanoma skin carcinogenesis, with a key role played by cyclin D1. Our findings underscore a highly protective role of endogenous estrogen against skin tumorigenesis by diverse agents in two independent mouse models of skin cancer.


There has been a recent revival of black aesthetics unprecedented since the 1960s. Some is happening inside academic philosophy, including in this journal (Volume 7, 2009). But there are more examples of black esthetics across other disciplines. A key, controversial concept in transdisciplinary black aesthetics is autonomy. Modern Western aesthetics was racist when it was established in the eighteenth century because blacks were not considered to be capable of autonomy, necessary to have taste. Now that this anti-black racism has been exposed, but until critics are convinced that aesthetics today is free of such racism, autonomy will be viewed as an ideological disguise for racism and even black aesthetics will be under suspicion. Simon Gikandi details the anti-black racism of early aesthetics yet argues at the same time that there was a black counter-aesthetic enacting its relative autonomy. I show that relative autonomy is enacted throughout modern and contemporary black art and aesthetics.


Dividing cells of leaves used as sources of explants from coffee plants (Coffea arabica cv. 'Catimor') and those of their derived calli were analyzed for mitotic aberrations. The studied tissues were prepared by squashing and stained with carbolfuchsin. A total of 1551 leaf and 4568 callus cells were surveyed. The majority (79 %) of leaf and calli (75 %) cells showed normal mitosis, however, cells with mitotic abnormalities were also found in both tissues. These included: polyploids, aneuploids, sticky chromosomes, double prophases and lagging chromosomes. Additionally, interphase cells with micronuclei or binucleated were also observed. The frequencies of these abnormalities were statistically different in calli and leaves. Calli showed a few other abnormalities such as cmitosis, chained chromosomes, multipolar metaphases and chromosome bridges. Therefore, we conclude that these pre-existing abnormalities originate by errors in the process of normal mitosis in both leaves and in calli, and are therefore not caused by tissue culture conditions.


Numerical simulation or forward modelling of wave propagation is a cheap and effective way to produce test data and to examine the mechanism of wave propagation. Because of the complexities of anisotropy, forward modelling is a practical means to aid the anisotropy analysis. Although a lot of work has been done on the forward modelling in anisotropic media, it rarely reaches the level of practical use. In this paper, the pseudospectral method is proposed to do the forward modelling in anisotropic media.


ABSTRACT Research has commonly explored siblings of people with disabilities' roles in care for their brothers or sisters with disabilities. Social policy has also commonly framed young adult siblings of people with disabilities as 'young carers'. However, there has been less consideration of the implications of care for the relationship shared between young adult siblings with and without disabilities and of what this may mean for social policy. What do different types of care mean for sibling relationships? What are the relational and social policy implications of care between siblings? Drawing on a qualitative study of 25 siblings with disabilities and 21 siblings without disabilities aged 15–29, this article explores how young adult siblings perceive, talk and act with regard to the different types of care enacted between them. The article identifies how, during young adulthood, some types of care can endanger siblings' capacity to feel like siblings and discusses ways that young adult siblings talk and act in order to – as best they can – keep their role within the bounds of a normative sibling relationship. The findings are discussed in light of implications for social policy, particularly with regard to seeing siblings of people with disabilities as 'young carers'.


Murine spleen cells produce mature osteoclasts when cocultured with osteoblastic cells. Colony-stimulating factor (CSF)-1 is the growth factor required for differentiating the monocyte-macrophage precursor cells into preosteoclasts. Bone morphogenic protein (BMP) signaling in osteoblasts regulates bone mass in mice, suggesting a role of BMP in osteoclastogenesis along with osteoblast activity. The intracellular signal transduction cross talk regulating the osteoblastic production of CSF-1 as a mechanism of BMP-induced osteoclastogenesis is described in this report. We have recently described the involvement of Smad 1/5 in BMP-2-induced CSF-1 expression and osteoclast formation. In this study, using the pharmacological inhibitors and the adenovirus (Ad) vectors expressing dominant-negative (DN) phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K), the PI3K-signaling inhibitor, phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted in chromosome 10 (PTEN) or DN Akt kinase in the in vitro coculture assay, we show an essential role of the lipid kinase cascade in BMP-2-mediated multinucleated osteoclast formation and CSF-1 mRNA expression, transcription, and secretion. Inhibition of PI3K/Akt signaling blocked the binding of Smads 1/5 to the CSF-1 BMP-responsive element present in the CSF-1 promoter, resulting in attenuation of Smad-dependent CSF-1 transcription. Furthermore, PI3K inhibition and DN Akt prevented association of the transcriptional coactivator, CREB (cAMP response element binding protein) binding protein (CBP), with Smads 1/5. Together, these data for the first time demonstrate that PI3K-dependent Akt activation regulates BMP-2-induced CSF-1 expression and provides a mechanism for osteoblastic cell-assisted osteoclast differentiation.


A genetic algorithm inspired by the inherent features of parallelism and time discreteness exhibited by quantum mechanical systems, is presented in this article. The predominant interference operator in the proposed quantum inspired genetic algorithm (QIGA) is influenced by time averages of different random chaotic map models derived from the randomness of quantum mechanical systems. Subsequently, QIGA uses quantum inspired crossover and mutation on the trial solutions, followed by a quantum measurement on the intermediate states, to derive sought results. Application of QIGA to determine optimum threshold intensities is demonstrated on two real life gray level images. The efficacy of QIGA is adjudged w.r.t. a convex combination of two fuzzy thresholding evaluation metrics in a multiple criterion scenario. Comparative study of its performance with the classical counterpart indicates encouraging avenues.


Introduction: Non-nutritive sucking (NNS) plays an important role in stabilizing the preterm, providing oral muscle training opportunity for nutritive sucking (NS). We aim to determine if the prototype tested allows a precise evaluation of suction pattern characteristics (rhythmic structure and pressure). We also aim to investigate the role of maturation in the variation of NNS an NS pattern in preterm infants. Methods: The patented prototype is non-invasive, low-cost and easily applicable to clinical ecological practice, measures the pressure exerted on a pacifier in newborn's mouth. Samples were acquired continuously during a 10-minute period in 12 preterm (mean gestational age [GA] 29.9 ± 1.6 weeks) and 4 term neonates (GA 39.5 ± 1.4 weeks). Bursts, suctions per burst, pauses, suction frequency and pressure were analyzed to describe temporal structure and dynamic characteristics of NNS. Results: The NNS pattern was characterized by bursts duration 4.3 ± 2.2 s, number of sucks per burst 7.4 ± 3.2, sucking frequency 2.1 ± 0.4 Hz and sucking pressure 10.3 ± 4.5 mmHg. There were significant differences between the preterm and term groups in NNS sucking frequency (2.1 Hz vs 1.6 Hz; p = 0.008). Conclusion: The device is non-invasive and can easily be used in clinical practice in low GA newborns, in an ecological environment. It allows the evaluation of NNS patterns maturation and, at the same time, the use of the device pacifier promotes NNS, which is important in the process of acquiring feeding autonomy in preterm infants.


1SUMMARY 1. We propose that the appearance and establishment of Nostocales (cyanobacteria) species of the genera Aphanizomenon and Cylindrospermopsis in the warm subtropical Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee, Israel) from 1994 was linked to changes in climate conditions and summer nitrogen (N) availability. 2. From 1994 to 2009, an increase in frequency of events of elevated water temperature (>29 � C) in summer, and to some extent a greater frequency of lower summer wind speed events, affected water turbulence and water column stratification, thus providing better physical conditions for the establishment of these populations. 3. In recent years, N-depleted conditions in Lake Kinneret in early summer have promoted the development and domination of Nostocales that could gain an ecological advantage owing to their N2-fixing capability. 4. Nitrogen fixation rates coincided both with heterocyst abundance and with Nostocales biomass. The N supplied to the lake via nitrogen fixation ranged from negligible quantities when Nostocales represented only a minor component of the phytoplankton community to 123 tonnes when Cylindrospermopsis bloomed in 2005. This high N2 fixation rate equals the average summer dissolved inorganic nitrogen load to the lake via the Jordan River.


Electronic Navigational Chart (ENC) data are essential for safe maritime navigation and have multiple other uses in a wide range of enterprises. Charts are relied upon to be as accurate and as up-to-date as possible by the vessels moving vast amounts of products to global ports each year. However, cartographic generalization processes for updating and creating ENCs are complex and time-consuming. Increasing the efficiency of the chart production workflow has been long sought by the nautical charting community. Toward this effort, approaches must consider intended scale, data quality, various chart features, and perform consistently in different scenarios. Additionally, supporting open-science initiatives through standardized open-source workflows will increase marine data accessibility for other disciplines. Therefore, this paper reviews, improves, and integrates available open-source software, and develops new custom generalization tools, for the semi-automated processing of land and hydrographic features per nautical charting specifications. The robustness of this approach is demonstrated in two areas of very different geographic configurations and the effectiveness for use in nautical charting was confirmed by winning the first prize in an international competition. The presented rapid data processing combined with the ENC portrayal of results as a web-service provides new opportunities for applications such as the development of base-maps for marine spatial data infrastructures.


Abstract: Selective decontamination of the digestive tract, using a combination of prophylactic topical and parenteral antibiotics, is a strategy that was developed to reduce the risk of ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill patients. Although many of the studies (approximately 40) and four meta-analyses carried out on the subject of selective decontamination of the digestive tract have shown a reduction in the incidence of pneumonia, no clear effects on mortality have been demonstrated, and concerns about overgrowth by, and infections with, micro-organisms resistant to the antibiotics used in this treatment remain, Interestingly, there has recently been an increase in the number of publications on other pharmacological and nonpharmacological methods of infection prevention in mechanically ventilated intensive care unit patients, such as the use of sucralfate for stress ulcer prophylaxis, the modulation of enteral feeding, the suctioning of subglottic secretions and avoidance of the aspiration-prone supine positioning of patients, The results of some of these studies have shown potential benefits. On the basis of a review of the recent literature, the routine use of selective decontamination of the digestive tract is still not justified in intensive care units. Although some of the alternative strategies have shown promising results, more randomized (and double-blind) studies are needed to demonstrate the clinical value of these measures.


Interview in two sessions in April 1999 with Hiroo Kanamori, John E. and Hazel S. Smits Professor of Geophysics and director of the Seismological Laboratory 1990-1998.
Begins by talking about what it was like to grow up in Japan during WW II; his early education and interest in engineering. University of Tokyo, BS in physics, 1959. As an undergraduate and graduate student, worked with Chuji Tsuboi on building a sea-borne gravity meter (MS 1961). Further graduate work with Hitoshi Takeuchi on geodynamics and seismological projects (PhD 1964). Charles Richter and Charles Hewitt Dix to University of Tokyo as visitors; works closely with Dix on gravity meter and geophysical problems.
At Dix's invitation, comes to Caltech in summer 1965, one-year research fellowship. Spends part of it at the Seismological Laboratory, then on N. San Rafael. Back to Earthquake Research Institute (ERI) in Tokyo in 1966; 1969, goes to MIT as visiting associate professor at invitation of Frank Press; studies very large earthquakes (Chile, 1960; Alaska, 1964). Comments on differences between Caltech and MIT. Back to Tokyo; student unrest disrupts ERI.
Comes to Caltech as full professor in 1972, appointed to Seismo Lab, headed by Don Anderson. Comments on life at the Seismo Lab and interaction with Richter. Recalls Lab's 1974 move to Caltech campus. Discusses work on quantifying very large earthquakes using long-period waves; work on tsunami (slow) earthquakes. Mount Saint Helens eruption in May 1980 spurs his interest in volcanology. Seismograms after eruption show it was not main event but triggered by a landslide caused by shear waves.
Discusses decision to accept directorship of Seismo Lab; interest in seismic hazard reduction in Southern California; means of reducing seismic risks; 1987 TERRAscope network, joint project with the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) to collect earthquake data. Discusses Caltech's establishment in 1950s of Earthquake Research Affiliates to fund earthquake study and its reactivation in late 1980s as CUBE [Caltech-USGS Broadcast of Earthquakes], a real-time seismic information system. Comments on interaction with USGS.
Improved earthquake network (TriNet) set up in 1997, with help from Everhart administration and FEMA funds; new participant is state of California, through UC Berkeley's seismic network and California Department of Mines and Geology. He becomes PI of TriNet. Succeeded in 1998 as Seismo Lab director by Donald Helmberger. Discusses outreach efforts to inform public about seismic risks. Collaboration with people in engineering division. Comments on 1995 Kobe earthquake. Discusses his reasons for not having become U. S. citizen. Concludes with his hopes for seismology's future, including ideas of Takuji Kobori, of the Kajima Technical Research Institute, on developing an active control system to protect large urban structures against earthquake damage.


The surface interferometric skin-friction (SISF) measurement system is an instrument for determining the distribution of surface shear stress (skin friction) on a wind-tunnel model. The SISF system utilizes the established oil-film interference method, along with advanced image-data-processing techniques and mathematical models that express the relationship between interferograms and skin friction, to determine the distribution of skin friction over an observed region of the surface of a model during a single wind-tunnel test. In the oil-film interference method, a wind-tunnel model is coated with a thin film of oil of known viscosity and is illuminated with quasi-monochromatic, collimated light, typically from a mercury lamp. The light reflected from the outer surface of the oil film interferes with the light reflected from the oil-covered surface of the model. In the present version of the oil-film interference method, a camera captures an image of the illuminated model and the image in the camera is modulated by the interference pattern. The interference pattern depends on the oil-thickness distribution on the observed surface, and this distribution can be extracted through analysis of the image acquired by the camera. The oil-film technique is augmented by a tracer technique for observing the streamline pattern. To make the streamlines visible, small dots of fluorescentchalk/oil mixture are placed on the model just before a test. During the test, the chalk particles are embedded in the oil flow and produce chalk streaks that mark the streamlines. The instantaneous rate of thinning of the oil film at a given position on the surface of the model can be expressed as a function of the instantaneous thickness, the skin-friction distribution on the surface, and the streamline pattern on the surface; the functional relationship is expressed by a mathematical model that is nonlinear in the oil-film thickness and is known simply as the thin-oil-film equation. From the image data acquired as described, the time-dependent oil-thickness distribution and streamline pattern are extracted and by inversion of the thin-oil-film equation it is then possible to determine the skin-friction distribution. In addition to a quasi-monochromatic light source, the SISF system includes a beam splitter and two video cameras equipped with filters for observing the same area on a model in different wavelength ranges, plus a frame grabber and a computer for digitizing the video images and processing the image data. One video camera acquires the interference pattern in a narrow wavelength range of the quasi-monochromatic source. The other video camera acquires the streamline image of fluorescence from the chalk in a nearby but wider wavelength range. The interference- pattern and fluorescence images are digitized, and the resulting data are processed by an algorithm that inverts the thin-oil-film equation to find the skin-friction distribution.


This volume summarizes the proceedings of the 1 lth Congress on the Society for Forensic Haemogenetics held in Copenhagen in August 1985. Papers are presented in the form of "extended abstracts," that is, short papers of 4 to 6 pages in length. Most of the papers are in english, the remaining few being in german. The papers have been organized into 6 sections: blood cell allotypes (8 papers), proteins and enzymes (32 papers), DNA and chromosomes (3 papers), population genetics (21 papers), stains (24 papers), and paternity, biostatistics, and quality assurance (20 papers). This organization, which differs somewhat from the order of presentation at the meeting (in fact, at least one paper not presented at the meeting appears in the volume), makes good sense from the standpoint of reading continuity. The papers vary considerably in content and style; some are mini-reviews, some describe new techniques, some focus on experimental detail, some are discursive. Unfortunately, the question and answer periods following each presentation and the discussion session are not recorded here; as a result, the "life" of the meeting is not fully conveyed. Thus, one does not sense the excitement that attended the introduction of DNA analysis in paternity and stain testing nor the vigor of the continuing debate on what paternity statistics really mean and how they should be presented. Overall, however, this volume reflects the various facets of forensic biology and is a useful resource in this regard.


Presence of kinked transverse colon is not a very common phenomenon. Its presence may not cause physiological disturbance. However, at times when it requires endoscopy, the abrupt looped course of the transverse colon might set a risk of entrapment of the device, which in turn might lead to severe complications and undue discomfort to the patient. An idiopathic kink in the transverse colon of an adult male cadaver was noted and its morphometric and histopathological analysis was performed. The exact location and gross morphometric measurements of the kinks in the transverse colon was recorded. Small pieces of the colon at the regions of kinks were removed, processed, and stained with Haemetoxylin and Eosin, Alcian Blue- Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS) stain and Masson Trichrome stain for histopathological examination. Transverse colon presented with an abrupt loop towards its splenic end by the presence of proximal and distal kinks. Histopathological features of the mucosa at the areas of kink showed foci of surface erosions composed of parallelly placed tubular glands lined by columnar cells, interspersed by goblet cells. Submucosa was oedematous with few congested vessels. Presence of such unusual kink and the loop together may be the cause for forceful forward push of the device introduced into it during colonoscopy and might result in the damage of its mucosa.


The deep drawability of flame-retardant Amca602 magnesium alloy sheets (aluminum, 6.5%; zinc, 0.08%, manganese, 0.32%; calcium, 2.1%) was investigated. Firstly, fundamental mechanical properties were obtained by performing uniaxial tension tests in the range of temperatures of 160–320°c. The tensile velocity was 0.5, 5 or 50 mm/min. Next, in deep-drawing tests, the temperature and punch velocity were changed, and a punch with a diameter of 10 mm was used. The experimental temperature was changed in the range from 240 to 340°c in increments of 20°c, and the punch velocity was 0.1, 0.5, 1.0 or 1.5 mm/s. Deep drawability improved as the temperature increased. The optimum deepdrawing temperature was found to be 320°c. A numerical simulation of deep drawing was conducted by finite element method for examining stress and strain distribution around breaking location. The experimental results and numerical simulation results were in relatively good agreement. A maximum deep-drawing depth was also obtained in the experiments and simulation.


We report here the development of stable aqueous suspensions of biocompatible superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs). These so-called ferrofluids are useful in a large spectrum of modern biomedical applications, including novel diagnostic tools and targeted therapeutics. In order to provide prolonged circulation times for the nanoparticles in vivo, the initial iron oxide nanoparticles were coated with a biocompatible polymer poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). To permit covalent bonding of PEG to the SPION surface, the latter was functionalized with a coupling agent, 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APS). This novel method of SPION PEGylation has been reproduced in numerous independent preparations. At each preparation step, particular attention was paid to determine the physico-chemical characteristics of the samples using a number of analytical techniques such as atomic absorption, Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), photon correlation spectroscopy (PCS, used for hydrodynamic diameter and zeta potential measurements) and magnetization measurements. The results confirm that aqueous suspensions of PEGylated SPIONs are stabilized by steric hindrance over a wide pH range between pH 4 and 10. Furthermore, the fact that the nanoparticle surface is nearly neutral is in agreement with immunological stealthiness expected for the future biomedical applications in vivo.


This paper analyzes the linkages among group incentive methods of compensation, labor practices, worker assessments of workplace culture, turnover, and firm performance in a non-representative sample of companies: firms that applied to the "100 Best Companies to Work For in America" competition from 2005 to 2007. Although employers with good labor practices self- select into the 100 Best Companies firms sample, which should bias the analysis against finding strong associations among modes of compensation, labor policies, and outcomes, we find that in the firms that make more extensive use of group incentive pay employees participate more in decisions, have greater information sharing, trust supervisors more, and report a more positive workplace culture than in other companies. The combination of group incentive pay with policies that empower employees and create a positive workplace culture reduces voluntary turnover and increases employee intent to stay and raises return on equity. Finding these effects in the non-representative "100 Best Companies" sample strengthens the likelihood that the policies have a causal impact on employee well-being and firm performance.


Bicyclists can be subjected to crashes, which can cause injuries over the whole body, especially the head. Head injuries can be prevented by wearing bicycle helmets; however, bicycle helmets are frequently not worn due to a variety of reasons. One of the most common complaints about wearing bicycle helmets relates to thermal discomfort. So far, insufficient attention has been given to the thermal performance of helmets. This paper aimed to introduce and develop an adaptive model for the online monitoring of head thermal comfort based on easily measured variables, which can be measured continuously using impeded sensors in the helmet. During the course of this work, 22 participants in total were subjected to different levels of environmental conditions (air temperature, air velocity, mechanical work and helmet thermal resistance) to develop a general model to predict head thermal comfort. A reduced-order general linear regression model with three input variables, namely, temperature difference between ambient temperature and average under-helmet temperature, cyclist's heart rate and the interaction between ambient temperature and helmet thermal resistance, was the most suitable to predict the cyclist's head thermal comfort and showed maximum mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) of 8.4%. Based on the selected model variables, a smart helmet prototype (SmartHelmet) was developed using impeded sensing technology, which was used to validate the developed general model. Finally, we introduced a framework of calculation for an adaptive personalised model to predict head thermal comfort based on streaming data from the SmartHelmet prototype.


In earlier papers (McKibbin and Nguyen (2001, (2002)) we introduced demographic features into the MSG3 model of the world economy, following the approach of Bryant and McKibbin (2001). In this paper we use the same theoretical technique to develop a series of models based on a consistent database from a simple two country symmetric theoretical model to the complete 4 country MSG3 model, which represents the empirical characteristics of Japan, United States, Rest of OECD and Rest of World. We explore a stylized decline in fertility similar to that experienced by Japan since the 1950 (exactly the same shock as the stylized shock used in Bryant (2004)). We first explore the properties of the theoretical model with both a global and a single country shock. This gives similar results to that found in the basic framework underlying the Bryant (2004) approach. We then move from the simplest fully optimizing framework to increasing add complexity to the model until we build a model of Japan. We explore the same shock across the models of increasing complexity in this paper and compare our results to the Bryant approach. We find that although the basic insights from the sequences of theoretical papers in the Brooking-ANU project continue to hold, the quantitative results change significantly as the model is adapted to have more characteristics of Japan. In a final section, we use the complete model to explore the likely impacts on Japan of the demographic change already experienced from 1970 and look to the likely changes to be experienced out to 2040.


Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) levels are increased in obesity and the metabolic syndrome and heighten the risk of atherothrombotic disease. Since obesity is characterized by adipose tissue macrophage infiltration (JCI 112:1796 and 1821, 2003), we proposed that adipose macrophages might be an important source of circulating PAI-1. We therefore biopsied subcutaneous abdominal (SAT) and omental (OAT) adipose tissue in six nondiabetic elective surgery patients (4 F/2 M, age 33 ± 3 years, BMI 31.9 ± 1.5 kg/m2). Following collagenase digestion and adipocyte filtration, macrophages were separated from other stromal cells by CD14-coated Dynabeads (Å80% recovery). Gene expression was quantified by real-time rt-PCR using plasmid standard curves. PAI-1 gene expression was Å2-fold higher in SAT vs OAT (whole fat) and 4-fold higher in macrophages and stromal cells than in adipocytes. We previously showed that increasing free fatty acids (FFA) up to levels seen in obesity stimulated PAI-1 gene expression in adipose tissue. Therefore, we hypothesized that FFA have stimulatory effects on PAI-1 expression in adipose tissue macrophages. Subcutaneous abdominal fat was biopsied in 17 obese nondiabetic subjects (5 F/12 M, age 45 ± 4 years, BMI 30 ± 1 kg/m2) after 5-hour euglycemic (5mM) insulin (40 mU/m2.min) clamp studies, with infusion of saline (Sal) or Liposyn 20% (Lip). Increasing FFA to Å800 mM for 5 hours induced 5-fold increases in whole adipose tissue PAI-1 gene expression (p < .01 vs Sal) but no change in macrophage (CD68 and CD14) gene expression. After only 2 hours of increased FFA, PAI-1 gene expression increased by 2.6-fold in whole fat and 1.8-fold in adipose tissue macrophages while there was no change in circulating blood monocytes. Conclusions: In human fat, macrophages express high levels of PAI-1. Elevated FFA rapidly increase PAI-1 expression in fat tissue and in resident macrophages. Since circulating monocytes did not respond to FFA, enhanced stimulation of PAI-1 expression in adipose tissue macrophages may be influenced by local adipocyte secretory products.


Water sanitation and hygiene-related disease and malnutrition are a high priority in developing countries, including Rwanda. Interventions that can trigger and sustain household-level behavioral change and practice are needed. A case-control study was conducted to assess the potential of the Community Health Club (CHC) intervention, which consisted of village-based health education on water sanitation, hygiene, nutrition, and monitoring of households' practices to reduce water sanitation and hygiene-related disease and malnutrition. The study targeted one village which had been exposed to the CHC. As a control, one village was picked from among villages that had not been exposed to CHC intervention. The two villages were in the catchment area of the Nyabitimbo Health Center and shared the same water sources for domestic use in the Rusizi district in Rwanda. The study examined the prevalence of intestinal worms, diarrhea, and malnutrition among children under 5 years old as recorded in the registries of Nyabitimbo Health Center for the period of the study, 2013–2015. The study results revealed that the CHC intervention was associated with a reduction of intestinal worms, diarrhea, and malnutrition, but the results were only statistically significant for intestinal worms and malnutrition. The present study, being exploratory, can serve for planning and practice purposes at the specific study area.


This article explores teenage girls' and boys' agency in how they handle risk and promote safety in public space. Based on material from qualitative interviews with Swedish teenagers (from age 16), a small-scale survey and written accounts, it is shown that teenagers actively negotiate risk and promote safety in public space. Drawing on Panelli, Kraack, and Little [2005. "Claiming Space and Community: Rural Women's Strategies for Living with, and Beyond, Fear." Geoforum 36 (4): 495–508] multidimensional model of situated agency, it is discussed how teenagers choose to draw on, or contest, different dimensions of agency in constructing and handling risk and safety.


Informal romanization is an idiosyncratic process used by humans in informal digital communication to encode non-Latin script languages into Latin character sets found on common keyboards. Character substitution choices differ between users but have been shown to be governed by the same main principles observed across a variety of languages—namely, character pairs are often associated through phonetic or visual similarity. We propose a noisy-channel WFST cascade model for deciphering the original non-Latin script from observed romanized text in an unsupervised fashion. We train our model directly on romanized data from two languages: Egyptian Arabic and Russian. We demonstrate that adding inductive bias through phonetic and visual priors on character mappings substantially improves the model's performance on both languages, yielding results much closer to the supervised skyline. Finally, we introduce a new dataset of romanized Russian, collected from a Russian social network website and partially annotated for our experiments.


In order to successfully accomplish their social and business mission, social entrepreneurial non-profit organisations (NPOs), which are also known as social enterprises, need to identify the appropriate elements of resources that affect their performance, since the management of resources is important to ensure organisational sustainability in the future. Thus, this study aims to examine the role of intellectual capital, in terms of human capital (HC), structural capital (SC) and relational capital (RC) on the sustainability of social enterprise in Malaysia. Content analysis was used as the research instrument in order to measure the sustainability index from information disclosed in the annual reports by 210 organisations registered under the Registry of Societies (ROS) in Malaysia for the year 2010. Various statistical analyses were carried out to examine the relationship between IC and the sustainability of social enterprise. Based on the multivariate analysis, the results have highlighted that SC had significant positive influence on sustainability of social enterprise while HC and RC did not have a significant positive relationship with the sustainability of social enterprise. Overall, this study hopes to contribute to a better understanding on the role' of IC on the sustainability of social enterprise. The findings offered several main implications for academicians, researchers, regulators as well as for the social enterprise itself by highlighted that SC was the most influential factor that was able to increase the sustainability of the social enterprise.


In early or preparatory design stages, an architect or designer sketches out rough ideas, not only about the object or structure being considered, but its relation to its spatial context. This is an iterative process, where the sketches are not only the primary means for testing and refining ideas, but also for communicating among a design team and to clients. Hence, sketching is the preferred media for artists and designers during the early stages of design, albeit with a major drawback: sketches are 2D and effects such as view perturbations or object movement are not supported, thereby inhibiting the design process. We present an interactive system that allows for the creation of a 3D abstraction of a designed space, built primarily by sketching in 2D within the context of an anchoring design or photograph. The system is progressive in the sense that the interpretations are refined as the user continues sketching. As a key technical enabler, we reformulate the sketch interpretation process as a selection optimization from a set of context‐generated canvas planes in order to retrieve a regular arrangement of planes. We demonstrate our system (available at http:/geometry.cs.ucl.ac.uk/projects/2016/smartcanvas/) with a wide range of sketches and design studies.


Over the last decades, the demand for lightweight constructions has been increased continuously for several industrial applications, like automotive and ship building, to reduce the weight of vessels in order to minimize the CO2-emissions as a result of a lower fuel consumption. Lightweight construction is almost applied for ship applications, especially for yachts, which are designed by using aluminum for the deck constructions and steel for the ship hull. For joining these parts, a high-power laser welding process shall be developed. However, the welding of these dissimilar materials is associated with great challenges, due to the different physical properties and the formation of hard and brittle intermetallic phases, which may influence negatively the properties of the weld seam. The quality of dissimilar joints depends strongly on the mixture ratio between the molten amount of steel and aluminum. However, the mixture ratio varies over the weld seam length due to a high dynamic of the keyhole resulted by welding of this material combination. Furthermore, different batches of materials and varied sheet thicknesses t may influence the mixture ratio.In this study, a high-power laser welding process is developed with in-process control of the penetration depth tP by analyzing the spectral process emissions for dissimilar lap joints of aluminum alloy EN AW-6082 (t = 8 mm) and steel S355 (t = 5-7 mm). In the context of these investigations, an increase of occurring cracks within the weld seam and ejections of molten material with increasing penetration depth tP can be observed. To achieve a relative high joint strength, the penetration depth tP must be kept constant at a value of 1.4 mm. In case of varied batch of material, thickness t of the used sheets, welding speed vS and leap of the steel sheet thickness t, the penetration depth tP requested cannot be achieved. Using the in-process control of the penetration depth tP, the weld seam quality remains almost constantly over the weld seam length, as shown in visual inspections, metallographic analyses, profiles of the penetration depth tP and tensile shear testing. Among other things, the appearance of ejections of molten material can be avoided by using the in-process control of the penetration depth tP.


The economic literature emphasizes the importance of patent citations, particularly forward citations, as an indicator of a cited patent's value. Studies have refined which forward citations are better indicators of value, focusing on examiner citations for example. We test a metric that arguably is closer tied to private value—the substantive use of a patent by an examiner in a patent office rejection of another pending patent application. This paper assesses how patents used in 102 and 103 rejections relate to common measures of private value—specifically patent renewal, the assertion of a patent in litigation, and the number of patent claims. We examine rejection data from U.S. patent applications pending from 2008 to 2017 and then link value data to rejection citations to patents issued from 1999 to 2007. Our findings show that rejection patents are independently, positively correlated with many of the value measurements above and beyond forward citations and examiner citations.


This article explores in conversation with some of the writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer the question of how the experience of the dislocation of time and the visitation of "the ghosts of the past" (also in contexts marked by historical injustices) is related to responsible ethical action. The question is also posed as to how the reconfiguration of the relationship of past, present and future functions on an implicit and explicit level in this regard. In the process, the article affirms the eschatological horizon of Bonhoeffer's ethics and points to the importance of what is referred to as "future-oriented memory" in the search for responsible and hopeful action. The article acknowledges the dilemmas in relating thought and action (with reference to the so-called "Hamlet doctrine") and points to the way in which "the future" marks and determines Bonhoeffer's understanding of ethical action amidst the haunting presence of the past and the experience of the present time as a "time out of joint."


The chilean strawberry displays high fruit quality and tolerance to abiotic and biotic factors. Additionally, this species has a rich cultural history going back for at least several thousand years in association with aboriginal people activities and continues at a reduced level today. After its introduction to Europe during the 18th century, it formed an interspecific hybrid to become the maternal species of the commercial strawberry, Fragaria ·ananassa Duch. The objectives of the current investigation were to determine the level and patterns of partitioning of intersimple sequence repeat (ISSR) diversity. ISSR markers were used to assess the genetic diversity in 216 accessions of F. chiloensis, which represented the two botanical forms present in Chile (F. chiloensis ssp. chiloensis f. chiloensis and F. chiloensis ssp. chiloensis f. patagonica (L.) Duch.). Our results showed high genetic diversity at the species level (polymorphic ISSR loci (P) = 89.6%, gene diversity (h) = 0.24 ± 0.17, Shannon's index (S) = 0.37 ± 0.24) and a lower genetic diversity in f. chiloensis than f. patagonica. The analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed a moderate genetic differentiation among accessions (fst = 14.9%). No geographic patterns for ISSR diversity were observed. AMOVA, structure, and discriminant analysis indicated that accessions tend to group by botanical form. The impact of domestication on the genetic structure of chilean strawberry and its application to breeding and conservation are discussed.


Background. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 prioritizes women's empowerment, alone and to advance other SDGs. Measures of women's empowerment have been resource focused; yet, agency (an aspect of empowerment) captures conscientization — the emergence of critical awareness and action for change. A comprehensive measure of women's agency would capture intrinsic power within to overcome dominated consciousness, instrumental power to pursue aspirations, and collective power with others to pursue shared goals. A valid measure of women's multidimensional agency is needed to monitor real progress toward SDG5 and women's well-being.

Methods. In this sequential, mixed-methods study, we developed and validated the Women's Agency Scale 61 (WAS-61) in 930 married women 15–49 years and living with their husband in Matlab, Bangladesh. Using theory, qualitative research, and questionnaire reviews, we developed an item pool to capture women's intrinsic (43 items), instrumental (23 items), and collective (17 items) agency. We performed exploratory then confirmatory factor analyses (EFA/CFA) in random split-half samples, and estimated pairwise and factor score correlations to confirm that the dimensions of agency were distinct but related in expected ways. In future work, we will perform multiple-group CFA to assess to what extent the WAS-61 is measurement invariant across salient sub-groups of women.

Results. A 29-item, three-factor CFA model measured women's intrinsic agency as endorsement of gender equity and rights (non-justification of wife beating, gender-equitable attitudes) and confidence in capabilities (comfort expressing opinion and going places outside home) (loading: 0.35-0.93, RMSEA=0.04, CFI=0.94, TLI=0.93). Significant pairwise factor correlations (0.10–0.55) confirmed that the intrinsic-agency dimensions were distinct but related. A 27-item, three-factor CFA model measured women's instrumental agency as use of financial services, voice with husband, and mobility/voice outside home (loading: 0.43-0.99, RMSEA=0.05, CFI=0.94, TLI=0.93). Significant pairwise factor correlations (0.36–0.58) confirmed that the instrumental-agency dimensions were distinct but related. To capture women's collective agency, an 8-item, one-factor CFA model measured leadership of others (loading: 0.52-0.84, RMSEA=0.10, CFI=0.97, TLI=0.96), and a 7-item, one-factor CFA model measured influence in their community (loading: 0.54-0.83, RMSEA=0.10, CFI=0.96, TLI=0.95). Significant, and generally higher, within-construct than cross-construct pairwise correlations suggested that the dimensions of women's agency were distinct but related (intrinsic: 0.13–0.60; instrumental: 0.40–0.72; collective: 0.58; cross-construct: 13 of 21 correlations < 0.30). Intrinsic agency in mobility/voice outside home was strongly correlated with measures of instrumental and collective agency (0.28–0.51). Instrumental agency in use of financial services and mobility/voice outside the home were strongly correlated with measures of collective agency (0.38–0.47).

Conclusions. The WAS-61 is a comprehensive measure of women's multidimensional agency validated in married women in rural Bangladesh. These novel scales capture well-defined dimensions of intrinsic, instrumental, and collective agency that are distinct but related. Women's intrinsic agency in voice/mobility outside the home is strongly related to their instrumental and collective agency, and women's instrumental agency in use of financial services and voice/mobility outside the home is strongly related to their collective agency. These findings suggest that all dimensions of women's conscientization are inter-related and necessary for women's empowerment and well-being. We will test measurement in-variance of the WAS-61 across salient sub-groups of women, and the WAS-61 should be validated in urban women and other samples to confirm its widespread utility for impact assessment of health and development programs and national monitoring. Evidence of time in-variance of the WAS-61 would confirm its utility to monitor national and program-level changes in women's agency and its influences on other SDGs.


Background: Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) are a worldwide problem today. They are among the leading causes of death and cause significant morbidity among patients who receive health care. Prevention of nosocomial infections is the responsibility of all individuals and services providing health care.

Objective: To assess the current knowledge regarding HAIs among nursing staff of Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni, Maharashtra, India.

Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from February to April 2012 among 100 nursing staff of Pravara Rural Hospital, Loni, Maharashtra. A predesigned questionnaire that assessed knowledge about HAIs was the tool of data collection. Results were analyzed in the form of percentage and proportions whenever appropriate.

Result: In this study, all 100 nurses had heard about HAIs. Majority (73%) of nurses knew that respiratory and urinary tract infections were the two most common HAIs. Nearly 38% nurses did not know about the barrier nursing plays a role in preventing HAIs or not.

Conclusion: In this study, the level of knowledge regarding HAIs among nursing staff was inadequate. Considering the important role of nurses in HAIs, there is an imperative need for health education to improve the knowledge of the nurses toward HAIs.


In this paper the electrical design for medical centres is discussed. I designed and made all programs that required calculating and making distribution for the Lighting, Ac System, Sockets, the main Transformer with the Power Factor Correction for the system and Emergency System used in the project. We made a MATLAB program by using Graphical User Interface (GUI) to get the exact value, and the AutoCAD program to distribute the lamps and the socket on each floor. Moreover, I designed the system in emergency case, which is called Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) that all system required in any cases to make the system keep working for specific time.


: Despite a better appreciation of the relationship between the eye and the thyroid gland in Graves' disease, the treatment of moderate to severe exophthalmos remains surgical. For many years, standard textbooks recommended a risky, transfrontal approach for exophthalmos that had to be performed by a neurosurgeon. A preferable transantral procedure, which can be performed by a plastic surgeon, was originally described by Oskar Hirsch, a Viennese otorhinolaryngologist, in 1930. Although his technique offers the advantage of causing less morbidity, it was several decades before its merits were widely recognized by practitioners.


In a recent article, Illinois Farm Business Farm Management (FBFM) staff evaluated the impacts of machinery costs on Illinois grain farms, noting two important items (farmdoc daily, June 16, 2017). First, there is a strong link between lower machinery costs and higher farm profitability. Second, capital purchases have been coming down since 2013. On many farms, the necessity of meeting lower cash flows likely will require further reductions in capital purchases. However, additional reductions in capital purchases requires changing machinery complements held relative to complements on farms ten to fifteen years ago.


In the 1980s, Japanese animation shifted its focus away from the social self and toward cosmic subjectivity, the framing of intensely personal emotions within the larger impersonal expanse of the universe. This essay examines an important moment in this shift: Night on the Galactic Railroad, anime studio Group TAC's 1985 feature based on the classic Japanese children's tale by Miyazawa Kenji. The film emphasizes the interpenetration of the microcosmic and macrocosmic through a range of experiments with "limited" animation, sound design, and character design that would in turn influence the imaginary worlds of later anime.


The AC133 epitope has been used as a marker for both normal and cancer stem cells from multiple tissue lineages. To identify transcription factors that regulate CD133 expression, we conducted parallel large-scale RNA interference screens in Caco-2 cancer cells that endogenously express CD133 and in engineered HEK293 cells that express CD133 from a heterologous promoter. The transcription factor AF4 was identified following a comparative analysis between the two screens. We then showed that AF4 is a promoter of CD133 transcription in multiple cancer cell lines. Knockdown of AF4 resulted in a dramatic reduction in CD133 transcript levels. Importantly, a subset of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemias (ALL) harbor a fusion oncogene results from a chromosomal translocation that juxtaposes the mixed-lineage leukemia (MLL) gene and the AF4 gene. An investigation of the functional role of CD133 in the MLL-AF4-dependent ALL cells revealed that CD133 was required for leukemia cell survival. Together, our findings show AF4-dependent regulation of CD133 expression, which is required for the growth of ALL cells. CD133 may therefore represent a therapeutic target in a subset of cancers.


Background The osteoinductive behaviors of nitinol (NiTi)-based metal implants for bone regeneration are largely dependent on their surface composition and topology. Continuous-mode laser sintering often results in complete melting of the materials and aggregation of particles, which lack control of heat transfer, as well as microstructural changes during sintering of the nanocomposite materials. Methods In the current study, in situ direct laser deposition was used to additively manufacture three-dimensional NiTi structures from Ni and Ti powders. The mechanical property of NiTi has been shown to be similar to bone. Nanosecond pulsed laser sintering process was then utilized to generate a nanoporous composite surface with NiTi alloy and hydroxyapatite (HA) by ultrafast laser heating and cooling of Ni, Ti, and HA nanoparticles mixtures precoated on the 3D NiTi substrates; HA was added in order to improve the biocompatibility of the alloy. We then studied the underlying mechanism in the formation of NiTi/HA nanocomposite, and the synergistic effect of the sintered HA component and the nanoporous topology of the composite coating. In addition, we examined the activity of bone-forming osteoblasts on the NiTi/HA surfaces. For this, osteoblast cell morphology and various biomarkers were examined to evaluate cellular activity and function. Results We found that the nanoscale porosity delivered by nanosecond pulsed laser sintering and the HA component positively contributed to osteoblast differentiation, as indicated by an increase in the expression of collagen and alkaline phosphatase, both of which are necessary for osteoblast mineralization. In addition, we observed topological complexities which appeared to boost the activity of osteoblasts, including an increase in actin cytoskeletal structures and adhesion structures. Conclusion These findings demonstrate that the pulsed laser sintering method is an effective tool to generate biocompatible coatings in complex alloy-composite material systems with desired composition and topology. Our findings also provide a better understanding of the osteoinductive behavior of the sintered nanocomposite coatings for use in orthopedic and bone regeneration applications.


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