Purpose:  To compare the accommodation convergence per accommodation ratio (AC/A) in true and simulated divergence excess exotropia.
Study Design:  Comparative cross sectional study.
Place and Duration of Study:  Department of ophthalmology, Punjab Rangers teaching hospital, Lahore, from July 2019 to December 2019.
Methods:  The study included 20 patients each of intermittent exotropia (XT) true and simulated divergence excess exotropia (XT).All the subjects underwent complete orthoptic assessmentthat included AC/A ratio calculation through heterophoria method after monocular occlusion.
Results:  The Results showed that patients with true divergence excess exotropia have a high AC/A ratio as compared to patients with simulated divergence excess exotropia who have a normal AC/A ratio. 57% patients showed true divergence excess exotropia with high AC/A ratio while 43% had divergence excess with normal AC/A ratio.
Conclusion:  The response of AC/A was found to be higher in patients with true divergence excess exotropia after monocular occlusion.
Key Words:  Intermittent exotropia, True simulated divergence excess exotropia, simulated divergence excess exotropia.


Trade shows are a popular venue for firms to demonstrate their portfolio of market-ready new products as well as product concepts under different stages of development. Utilizing auto shows as a context, the authors investigate the effects of concept and product demonstrations on the demonstrating firm's value. Event study results show that abnormal returns follow an inverted U-shaped effect of product development stages: that is, previously demonstrated concepts approaching potential launch have the strongest positive effect, followed by early-stage concepts demonstrated for the first time to the world (i.e., debuts), and then market-ready new products. Trade show locations mediate these effects. The effects of early-stage debut demonstrations appear only when concepts are presented in trade shows located in the home country of the demonstrating firm. However, the effects of displaying previously demonstrated concepts, which have survived product development hurdles, are present in venues within as well as outside the firm's home country.


Smooth muscle hamartoma is an uncommon, usually congenital, cutaneous hyperplasia of the arrectores pilorum muscles. When it is acquired, it may be confused with Becker's nevus. We report a case of this rare tumor in a 19-year-old man. The disease started several years ago as multiple small skin-colored papules that subsequently coalesced to form a large soft plaque on the back of the left shoulder. The diagnosis of acquired smooth muscle hamartoma was confirmed on histopathology. The patient was reassured about the benign nature of the lesion and was not advised any treatment.


The development of requisite skills in the right numbers to match the sector demands in construction within Zambia forms an essential aspect of the ability of construction companies to deliver projects efficiently. In Zambia the availability of these skills is influenced by a number of factors including the training provision which governs the supply of the skills, sector and sub-sector volume capacity which drives the demand for the skills, and other socio-cultural as well as public sector policy on skills development. The nature of the interaction between the two principal factors of demand and supply for a developing country such as Zambia is particularly relevant as these two factors are self-reinforcing and also impact on the other socio-politico cultural factors. The paper explores the interaction the two factors by examining the supply pattern of selected construction skills and how they reflect current skills needs (demand) of construction companies in Zambia. The scope of the analysis is craft-based and technician grade skills. The benefits of the analysis derives not only from the potential to identify possible skills shortfalls to inform public policy, but also highlight any change in the composition of the skills base that the supply organisations (construction sector training providers) may have to address.


Abstract. Using observational data,
satellite altimeters, and reanalysis model products, we have investigated eddy-induced seawater anomalies and heat and salt transport in the northeastern tropical Pacific Ocean. An eddy detection algorithm (EDA) was used to identify eddy formation at the Mexican Tehuantepec Gulf (TT) in July 2018 during an unusually strong summer wind event. The eddy separated from the coast with a mean translation velocity of 11 cm s−1 and a mean radius of 115 km and traveled 2050–2400 km westwards off the Central American coast, where it was followed at approx 114∘ W and 11∘ N for oceanographic observation between April and May 2019. The in situ observations show that the major eddy impacts are restricted to the upper 300 m of the water column and are traceable down to 1500 m water depth. In the eddy core at 92 m water depth an extreme positive temperature anomaly of 8.2 ∘C, a negative salinity anomaly of −0.78 psu, a positive fluorescence anomaly of +0.8 mg m−3, and a positive dissolved oxygen concentration anomaly of 137 µmol kg−1 are observed.
Compared with annual climatological averages in 2018, the water trapped within the eddy is estimated to transport an average positive westward zonal heat anomaly of 85×1012 W and an average westward negative salt anomaly of -2.1×106 kg s−1. The heat transport is the equivalent of 1 % of the total annual zonal eddy-induced heat transport at this latitude in the Pacific Ocean. Understanding the dynamics of long-lived mesoscale eddies that may reach the seafloor in this region of the Pacific Ocean is especially important in light of potential deep-sea mining activities that are being targeted on this area.


SOA governance has a critical role in achieving success and realizing the benefits of SOA. Without effective SOA governance, organizations will experience some significant challenges including difficulties in designing effective decision structures and managing services. To address SOA challenges, organizations require a comprehensive SOA governance framework to implement management and control mechanisms. Study of existing frameworks reveals that these frameworks are not expressive enough to cover all elements of SOA governance and also, they do not completely document underpinning structures such as processes, procedures, responsibilities and measurement metrics. In this paper, we propose a new SOA governance framework that is more comprehensive and expressive than its counterparts. In the process of developing the framework, a set of important elements for a desired SOA governance framework is proposed. Based on these elements, a new SOA governance framework is developed. The proposed framework is obtained by extending characteristics of COBIT and applying ITIL service lifecycle activities to support the SOA governance principles and requirements. It is a perceptible framework that clarifies all processes, activities, metrics and other related elements in a logical structure. Also, to simplify the application of the framework, an implementation process is proposed.


Conditions of common health disorders afflict upon functional, prophylactic and aesthetic aspects of oral dental complex. Proper professional health cares and support for patients, especially in child's age, exceed the scales of routine dental medicine practice and are related to implementation of specific skills and abilities, multi aspect specialized knowledge and high adaptation capacity. Not to neglect the role and significance of concrete, strictly personalized preventive and therapeutic approaches in the context of individually oriented behavioural patterns based on the interrelations patient, respectively child, physician, dental medicine doctor. The aim of the study is to investigate and analyze different aspects of management of the carious process in children with nephrotic syndrome. The subject of the study is represented by 24 patients and a control group of 41 healthy children. A combination of clinical, epidemiological, statistical and sociological methods was applied. A considerable ratio of 92, 68% of the healthy participants utilize products for exogenous fluoride prophylaxis. In comparison, the share of children with nephrotic syndrome applying this method of prophylaxis is equals to 62, 50%. A portion of 75, 00% of the patients are characterized with incessant intake of sugars in comparison to 53, 66% of the healthy controls who consume sugars only as a dessert. A significant ratio of 12, 50% of the children with nephrotic syndrome have never brushed their teeth till the moment. The average value of the indicator number of cavitated carious lesions is greater among the patients (8, 21) and considerably lower among the healthy representatives (4, 85). The maximal value of PLI among the children with nephrotic syndrome is amounts to 2, 68. In parallel, PLI=2, 14 was established in the healthy participants. The disturbed common health status of children suffering from nephrotic syndrome is related to the necessity of frequent, complex and prolonged therapeutic cares which concentrates parents' and children's attention thoroughly upon the systemic disease.


We examined the role of different facial features (shape of eyebrows, eyes, mouth, nose, and the direction of gaze) in conveying the emotional impact of a threatening face. In two experiments, a total of 100 high school students rated their impression of two sets of schematic faces in terms of semantic differential scales (Activity, Negative Evaluation, and Potency). It was found that the different facial features could be ordered hierarchically, with eyebrows as the most important feature, followed by mouth and eyes. Eyebrows thus fundamentally categorised faces as threatening or nonthreatening. The different shapes of mouth and eyes provided subsequent categorisations of faces within these primary categories.


From 1 January 2005 through 31 December 2014, a total of 8,819 incident diagnoses of non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC) (incidence rate 64.6 cases per 100,000 person-years [p-yrs]) were documented in the health records of 6,670 active component service members. During the surveillance period, there was a very slight decrease in the annual crude incidence rates of NMSC; rates of NMSC peaked in 2007 (68.3 cases per 100,000 p-yrs) and were at their lowest in 2013 (60.4 cases per 100,000 p-yrs). Increasing age was associated with increased risk of NMSC. White, non-Hispanic service members had a much higher rate of NMSC compared to those of other race/ethnicity groups. Female service members had a slightly lower rate of NMSC compared to male service members. Rates were elevated for officers and higher ranks compared to enlisted and lower ranks and were highest for Air Force members and lowest for Marine Corps members. Rates were highest for service members associated with air travel (fixed-wing pilots, helicopter pilots, and air crew) and lowest for those in armor/motor transport. Because exposure to ultraviolet radiation is the major risk factor for NMSC, personal protective measures such as wearing proper clothing, decreasing time in direct sunlight, and using sunscreen are prudent.


A random-order, double-blind crossover study was done to compare the effects of placebo and two different doses of aspirin on the endothelial cell count of venous blood before and after smoking. Each of 17 male habitual smokers with coronary artery disease smoked two cigarettes during each of three 20-min periods separated by 2 weeks. Each patient was asked to take a tablet containing 150 mg of aspirin, 300 mg of aspirin or a placebo 12 h before each experimental smoking period and to abstain from smoking in the interim. Endothelial cell counts were determined by means of differential centrifugation and phase-contrast microscopy and nicotine by gas chromatography. After ingestion of placebo, the mean endothelial cell counts (+/- SD) were 2.7 +/- 0.8 and 4.5 +/- 0.9 per counting chamber before and after smoking respectively (p less than 0.001). Endothelial cell counts and plasma nicotine concentrations were not significantly correlated. Neither the mean presmoking values nor smoking-induced changes in either variable were affected either dose of aspirin. The data suggest that smoking caused acute endothelial cell desquamation which was not prevented by aspirin.


Central hallmark of Alzheimer's disease are senile plaques mainly composed of β-amyloid, which is a cleavage product of the amyloid precursor protein (APP). The physiological function of APP and its family members APLP1 and APLP2 is poorly understood. In order to fill this gap, we established a cell-culture based model with simultaneous knockdown of all members of the family. A comprehensive proteome study of the APP/APLP1/APLP2 knockdown cell lysates versus controls revealed significant protein abundance changes of more than 30 proteins. Targeted validation of selected candidates by immunoblotting supported the significant down-regulation of the methionine adenosyltransferase II, alpha (MAT2A) as well as of peroxiredoxin 4 in the knockdown cells. Moreover, MAT2A was significantly down-regulated at the mRNA level as well. MAT2A catalyzes the production of S-adenosylmethionine from methionine and ATP, which plays a pivotal role in the methylation of neurotransmitters, DNA, proteins, and lipids. MAT2A-dependent significant up-regulation of S-adenosylmethionine was also detectable in the knockdown cells compared with controls. Our results point to a role of the APP family proteins in cellular methylation mechanisms and fit to findings of disturbed S-adenosylmethionine levels in tissue and CSF of Alzheimer disease patients versus controls. Importantly, methylation plays a central role for neurotransmitter generation like acetylcholine pointing to a crucial relevance of our findings for Alzheimer's disease. In addition, we identified differential gene expression of BACE1 and PSEN1 in the knockdown cells, which is possibly a consequence of MAT2A deregulation and may indicate a self regulatory mechanism.


In the present work, vibration problems of rectangular plates are considered for the determination of upper bounds to the unknown microstretch material properties. The frequencies are obtained by extending the Ritz method to this case. The analysis shows that some additional frequencies characterizing the microstretch effects appear among the classical frequencies. Furthermore, by the increasing values of the microstretch constants, the additional frequencies disappear and only the classical frequencies remain in the spectrum. Considering this phenomenon, an optimization problem is established for the identification of the upper bounds of microstretch elastic constants. In the second part of the work, thermal effects are considered and several theories are discussed. Finally, propagation of the plane waves is investigated.


This Article explores how "habit evidence" will become a catalyst for a new form of digital proof based on the explosive growth of smart homes, smart cars, smart devices, and the Internet of Things. Habit evidence is the rule that certain sorts of semiautomatic, regularized responses to particular stimuli are trustworthy and thus admissible under the Federal Rules of Evidence ("FRE") 406 "Habit; Routine Practice" and state equivalents. While well established since the common law, "habit" has made only an inconsistent appearance in reported cases and has been underutilized in trial practice. But intriguingly, once applied to the world of digital trails and the Internet of Things, this long dormant rule could transform our "quantified lives" into a significant new evidentiary power. In fact, habit evidence as quantified fact may become weaponized to reimagine trial practice in the digital age.


In the data collection of the QTL experiments using recombinant inbred (RI) populations, when individuals are genotyped for markers in a population, the trait values (phenotypes) can be obtained from the genotyped individuals (from the same population) or from some progeny of the genotyped individuals (from the different populations). Let Fu be the genotyped population and Fv (v ≥ u) be the phenotyped population. The experimental designs that both marker genotypes and phenotypes are recorded on the same populations can be denoted as (Fu/Fv, u = v) designs and that genotypes and phenotypes are obtained from the different populations can be denoted as (Fu/Fv, v > u) designs. Although most of the QTL mapping experiments have been conducted on the backcross and F2(F2/F2) designs, the other (Fu/Fv, v ≥ u) designs are also very popular. The great benefits of using the other (Fu/Fv, v ≥ u) designs in QTL mapping include reducing cost and environmental variance by phenotyping several progeny for the genotyped individuals and taking advantages of the changes in population structures of other RI populations. Current QTL mapping methods including those for the (Fu/Fv, u = v) designs, mostly for the backcross or F2/F2 design, and for the F2/F3 design based on a one-QTL model are inadequate for the investigation of the mapping properties in the (Fu/Fv, u ≤ v) designs, and they can be problematic due to ignoring their differences in population structures. In this article, a statistical method considering the differences in population structures between different RI populations is proposed on the basis of a multiple-QTL model to map for QTL in different (Fu/Fv, v ≥ u) designs. In addition, the QTL mapping properties of the proposed and approximate methods in different designs are discussed. Simulations were performed to evaluate the performance of the proposed and approximate methods. The proposed method is proven to be able to correct the problems of the approximate and current methods for improving the resolution of genetic architecture of quantitative traits and can serve as an effective tool to explore the QTL mapping study in the system of RI populations.


This focuses on the M3R Active Electronically Steered Antenna (AESA) System and will describe how this AESA is a step toward a fully digitized antenna with a receiver and an A/D-converter behind every antenna element and a full digital beam forming without using analogue sub arrays. First, it will be explained why Extended Air Defence (that is Air and Missile Defence) requires a multi-function, multi-beam radar technology: then M3R radar will be described and the M3R innovative antenna concept implemented in the M3R programme to the Thales Building Block Product Policy. The final part shows how M3R antenna architecture is a step towards fully digital radar and multi-static operating mode.


As part of an evaluation of the Alternative Chemistry syllabus, introduced into Scottish Secondary Schools in 1962, an investigation is made of learning difficulties experienced in one area of Organic Chemistry, "Condensation, Hydrolysis and Esterification reactions". An experiment performed in 1973 confirms earlier reports of poor pupil performance in tasks related to this topic. Two hypotheses are proposed, on the basis of observation of classwork and discussion with teachers and pupils. These suggest that pupils' learning difficulties may (a) have arisen because the pattern characteristics of extended structural formulae cause perceptual confusion, or may (b) be conceptual in origin. In particular, it is suggested that pupils' conceptual understanding of functional groups is inadequate. Two series of experiments, forming a critical test of the hypotheses, are described. The first involves the use of a series of immediate recall tasks. The pretesting of these materials and the validation of the associated scoring systems, carried out in 1973, is reported. The results obtained when these tests were administered to a representative sample of 1292 Scottish Secondary pupils are presented. 210 'H' Grade pupils participated in the second set of experiments. Measurements of pupils' ability to identify members of organic families are given. The results of a small scale interview are reported, and a comparison is made of pupils' performance on the identification tasks before and after using learning materials designed to lessen the effect of inadequate conceptual understanding. The combined experimental results indicate that pupils are not confused by the pattern characteristics of formulae, but that less than 10% of pupils (even at Sixth Year Studies level) have achieved an adequate level of conceptual understanding of functional groups. A third hypothesis is proposed, relating information content of tasks, their adjudged difficulty and pupils' conceptual understanding. Evidence consistent with this hypothesis is found in an analysis of the results of three independent studies. Recommendations are made concerning the teaching of Organic Chemistry, and the further testing of this hypothesis.


A reversible structural unlocking reaction, in which the close-packed van der Waals interactions break cooperatively, has been found for the villin headpiece subdomain (HP35) using triplet-triplet-energy transfer to monitor conformational fluctuations from equilibrium. Unlocking is associated with an unfavorable enthalpy change (ΔH0 = 35 ± 4 kJ/mol) which is nearly compensated in free energy by the entropy change (ΔS0 = 112 ± 20 J·mol-1·K-1). The unlocking reaction has a time constant of about 1 μs at 5 °C and is enthalpy-limited with an activation energy of 32 ± 1 kJ/mol and a large Arrhenius preexponential factor of A = 7.5 × 1011 s-1. In the unlocked state a fast local conformational fluctuation with a time constant of 170 ns and a low activation barrier of 17 ± 1 kJ/mol leads to unfolding of the C-terminal helix and to its undocking from the core. On a much slower time scale, global unfolding occurs from the unlocked state. These results suggest that native protein structures are locked into conformations with low amplitude motions. Large scale motions and global unfolding require an initial structural unlocking step leading to a state with properties of a dry molten globule. The experiments additionally yielded information on the dynamics of loop formation between different positions in unfolded HP35. Comparison of the results with dynamics in unstructured model peptides indicates slightly decelerated kinetics of local loop formation in the C-terminal region which points at residual, nonrandom structure. Dynamics of long-range loop formation, in contrast, are not influenced by residual structure, which argues against unfolded state properties as molecular origin for ultrafast folding of HP35.


Background: Corona virus disease pandemic caused psychological, economic, and social problems among the mankind in worldwide. Because of this outbreak health, business, routine life, economy, education system, social and cultural practices are affected. Methods: Cross sectional study was conducted in the Gadag district headquarter and peri-urban area from 19th February 2020 to 13th March 2020 using semi-structured interview schedule. Convenient sampling technique method was adopted to obtain the data and data was analysed using SPSS v20, expressed in frequency and percentage. Results: Out of 124 participants majority (86.35%) of them are following vegetarian diet due to disease outbreak. 86.3% of them are washing their hands before food preparation. Most of them are started washing fruits and vegetables in hot water after corona virus disease outbreak. Nearly half (46%) of them are washing their utensils using dish wash bar along with water after this pandemic. Usage of turmeric powder (37.9%) and green leafy vegetable (84.7%) level is also increased. Conclusion: Study concludes that due to corona virus disease pandemic, people changed their food preparation and consumption practices to break the spread of infection through hand hygiene and cleaning practices.


BACKGROUND
Previous studies have demonstrated variable effects on systemic inflammatory and immune responses following improved periodontal health. This study examined changes in serum levels of the inflammatory mediators IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α and sICAM-1, and antibodies to Porphyromonas gingivalis, human heat shock protein (hHSP) 60 and P. gingivalis GroEL following improvement in periodontal health in high cardiovascular (CV) risk and low CV-risk patients.

METHODS
Patients retrospectively selected from a longitudinal study, had undergone yearly periodontal examinations and peripheral blood collections. They had demonstrated a quantifiable improvement in periodontal health (>60% reduction in number of sites with probing depth ≥ 4 mm from the baseline visit) and could be classified as either high CV-risk (≥ 6 classical risk factors, n = 13) or low CV-risk (≤ 1 classical risk factor, n = 14). Serum levels of the cytokines and antibodies were measured using ELISA.

RESULTS
For sICAM-1 and anti-P. gingivalis GroEL and anti-hHSP60 antibodies, most patients recorded decreased levels. Reductions in serum sICAM-1 levels were more notable in low CV-risk patients (p = 0.006); and reductions in levels of anti-P. gingivalis GroEL and anti-hHSP60 antibodies (p = 0.001 and 0.009 respectively) were more notable in high CV-risk patients.

CONCLUSIONS
This study found that subsequent to improved periodontal health, the anti-HSP (HSP60 and GroEL) antibody response was reduced, particularly for high CV-risk patients. sICAM-1 levels were also lowered, more so for low CV-risk patients.


There are limited studies on commodity futures markets volatility regarding Brexit so this dissertation aims to analyze the commodity futures markets volatility before and after Brexit in the UK. Besides, this dissertation adds to the limited studies on Brexit, other than stock and foreign exchange markets. London Metal Exchange and Intercontinental Exchange are used to analyze in three sub-sectors, which are base metals (aluminum, copper, zinc, nickel, lead and tin), energy (Brent crude, gasoil and natural gas) and softs (coffee, sugar, cotton, cocoa and orange juice). BEKK Multivariate GARCH is employed to obtain hedge ratios, then the hedge ratios are applied into hedged equation. Next, values from the hedged equation are computed into variance and standard deviation to measure the volatility. Findings show that copper, gasoil and cotton are the most volatile commodity, whereas nickel, Brent crude and sugar are the least volatile commodity within the three sub-sectors respectively. However, gasoil has the highest volatility change and nickel has the lowest volatility change among all the commodities after Brexit. Besides, the energy sector is the most volatile market and the base metals sector is the least volatile market in the event of Brexit. OLS is used to reaffirm the findings using BEKK Multivariate GARCH and the findings hold.


Scholars have argued that the media can affect voter opinions and turnout, but it is unclear whether elected officials are also affected in policy consequential ways. In part, this uncertainty is because it is difficult to disentangle the influence of media coverage on Congress from Congress's influence on media coverage. We use a unique opportunity to determine whether position taking behavior in Congress and the likelihood of incumbents being challenged is affected by the national news media. Using the fact that the Fox News Channel was launched in October 1996 and it gradually spread across congressional districts in the United States in a manner unrelated to the ideology of the district and the incumbent representative, we show that there is a modest effect on elected officials' positions -- representatives from districts where Fox News begins broadcasting become slightly more conservative relative to similar representatives in otherwise similar districts where Fox News is not present. Moreover, the effect of Fox News is largest among Democrats. However, we find no evidence that Fox News affected which representatives were re-elected. Overall, our results suggest that the national media may have a slight effect on the prospects for policy change by affecting representatives' expectations and causing them to slightly adjust the positions that they take.


The Arctic freshwater cycle is changing rapidly, which will require adequate monitoring of river flows to detect, observe, and understand changes and provide adaptation information. There has, however, been little detail about where the greatest flow changes are projected, and where monitoring therefore may need to be strengthened. In this study, we used a set of recent climate model runs and an advanced macro‐scale hydrological model to analyze how flows across the continental pan‐Arctic are projected to change and where the climate models agree on significant changes. We also developed a method to identify where monitoring stations should be placed to observe these significant changes, and compared this set of suggested locations with the existing network of monitoring stations. Overall, our results reinforce earlier indications of large increases in flow over much of the Arctic, but we also identify some areas where projections agree on significant changes but disagree on the sign of change. For monitoring, central and eastern Siberia, Alaska, and central Canada are hot spots for the highest changes. To take advantage of existing networks, a number of stations across central Canada and western and central Siberia could form a prioritized set. Further development of model representation of high‐latitude hydrology would improve confidence in the areas we identify here. Nevertheless, ongoing observation programs may consider these suggested locations in efforts to improve monitoring of the rapidly changing Arctic freshwater cycle.


The optimal settings of the dependent and independent variables for the Mucuna flagellipsis nuts processing as condiments were determined using response surface experimental methodology (RSM). The independent variables are time and temperature while the dependent variables were based on the responses investigated in the study. The design settings of the process are boiling time (30 mins to 105mins) and temperature (80oC to 105oC). Central composite circumscribed RSM coded experimental plan was used. The result of the study showed that Mucuna flagellipes must be boiled for 58.03 minutes to obtain the best proximate and anti-nutrients responses. Also, the optimal values of the responses obtained are 0,4664, 0.2528, 0.1648, 1.7072, 854.135, 61.7713, 11.4038, 5.78661, 2.6652, 3.6692, 85.1573, 14.8445 for Alkaloid, Tannin, Saponin, L-Dopa, Hemagglutinins content, Carbohydrate, Crude protein, Ether Extract, Crude Fibre, Ash content, Dry matter content, and Moisture content respectively.


We cannot definitely determine precise boundaries of application of vague terms like "tall". Since it is only a height of a person that determines whether that person is tall or not, we can count "tall" as an example of a linear vague term. That means that all objects in a range of significance of "tall" can be linearly ordered. Linear vague terms can be used to formulate three basic versions of the sorites paradox – the conditional sorites, the mathematical induction sorites, and the line-drawing sorites. In this paper I would like to explore a possibility of formulating sorites paradoxes with so called multi-dimensional and combinatory vague terms – terms for which it is impossible to create a linear ordering of all objects in their range of significance. Therefore, I will show which adjustments must be made and which simplifications we must accede to in order to formulate any version of the sorites paradox with multi-dimensional or combinatory vague terms. I will also show that only the conditional version of the sorites paradox can be construed with all three kinds of vague terms.


It has long been an established feature of being a professional that one has autonomy and accepts liability for one's own actions.


Organic-inorganic hybrids appear as a creative alternative for obtaining new materials with unusual features. This is related to their diphasic structures, leading to multifunctional materials. The low-temperature processes which are used to synthesize such structures provide a wide versatility in the design of the compounds. The potentiality of the chemistry is to play on the structure of these mixtures and dissociate the various contributions in tailoring both phases and controlling the interfaces. In this paper, a review of some chemistry pathways to hybrid materials is presented. The nature of the bonds between organic and inorganic phases is used to divide them in two major families: class I corresponds to materials with weak interphase bonding, while class II corresponds to materials where both phases are chemically grafted. Applications of these materials in the fields of optics, iono-electronics, mechanics, biology and others are expected. Some applications are reviewed, with respect to the versatility of the synthetic procedure. Most of the properties of these new high-technology materials are dependent on their structural and chemical composition as well as on the dynamical properties inside the blends.


This article is part of a symposium, guest edited by Mark Tushnet, reviewing key decisions from the Supreme Court's October 2005 term. The landmark decision in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld has been emphasized as one of statutory interpretation, leaving it up to the President to seek from Congress the authority he deems necessary to fight the global war on terrorism. Yet, Hamdan is not merely a decision of statutory interpretation. It furthers a trend begun in the 2004 trio of terrorism cases: Rasul v. Bush, Rumsfeld v. Padilla, and Hamdi v. Rumsfeld. Those cases were also (primarily) statutory interpretation cases, but with a subtle distinction: the two cases brought by citizens resulted in interpretations of statutes favorable to the government; the one case brought by aliens, like Hamdan, resulted in interpretations of statutes favorable to the individuals. In other words, these cases cannot be explained as instances where the Court has consistently construed ambiguous statutes against the Executive Branch. In this article, I consider why the Court has opted to favor aliens but not citizens. A tempting explanation is that the Court is acting in a "representation-reinforcing role," ensuring that politically powerless aliens detained outside the country are not oppressed by the political branches. However, under that analysis, the Court would be expected to make decisions of constitutional law, not statutory interpretation. Instead, I conclude that the Court's decisions can be understood as taking advantage of congressional inertia. Congress remains free to undo the Supreme Court's statutory interpretations, but it must overcome that inertia to act. In effect, this is a "clear statement of intent to discriminate against aliens" requirement.


Master-slave parallelization of Evolutionary Algorithms (EAs) is straightforward, by distributing all fitness computations to slaves. The benefits of asynchronous steady-state approaches are well-known when facing a possible heterogeneity among the evaluation costs in term of runtime, be they due to heterogeneous hardware or non-linear numerical simulations. However, when this heterogeneity depends on some characteristics of the individuals being evaluated, the search might be biased, and some regions of the search space poorly explored. Motivated by a real-world case study of multi-objective optimization problem — the optimization of the combustion in a Diesel Engine — the consequences of different components of heterogeneity in the evaluation costs on the convergence of two Evolutionary Multi-objective Optimization Algorithms are investigated on artificially-heterogeneous benchmark problems. In some cases, better spread of the population on the Pareto front seem to result from the interplay between the heterogeneity at hand and the evolutionary search.


The current understanding of the superconductor–insulator transition is discussed level by level in a cyclic spiral-like manner. At the first level, physical phenomena and processes are discussed which, while of no formal relevance to the topic of transitions, are important for their implementation and observation; these include superconductivity in low electron density materials, transport and magnetoresistance in superconducting island films and in highly resistive granular materials with superconducting grains, and the Berezinskii–Kosterlitz–Thouless transition. The second level discusses and summarizes results from various microscopic approaches to the problem, whether based on the Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer theory (the disorder-induced reduction in the superconducting transition temperature; the key role of Coulomb blockade in high-resistance granular superconductors; superconducting fluctuations in a strong magnetic field) or on the theory of the Bose–Einstein condensation. A special discussion is given to phenomenological scaling theories. Experimental investigations, primarily transport measurements, make the contents of the third level and are for convenience classified by the type of material used (ultrathin films, variable composition materials, high-temperature superconductors, superconductor–poor metal transitions). As a separate topic, data on nonlinear phenomena near the superconductor–insulator transition are presented. At the final, summarizing, level the basic aspects of the problem are enumerated again to identify where further research is needed and how this research can be carried out. Some relatively new results, potentially of key importance in resolving the remaining problems, are also discussed.


Natural convection is a heat transfer process which occurs due to temperature
differences between a surface and surrounding fluids. Together with fluid flow, natural
convective heat transfer has been an important interest for energy-related applications
and production industries. The present study deals with natural convection in enclosures
with different geometries, which are rectangular, triangular, trapezoidal, oblique and
wavy enclosures. Different thermal boundary conditions are taken into account as well.
The enclosure is two-dimensional and hence the governing equations are derived using
two-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system. The enclosure is filled with fluid-saturated
porous medium. Darcy model is used to describe the fluid flow through the porous
medium. Different temperature profiles are applied on the sidewall of the enclosure,
and appropriate boundary conditions are formulated for all sidewalls. The governing
equations and boundary conditions are dimensional, and hence dimensionless method
is employed to reduce the equations to dimensionless form. Grid generation method
is used to map the non-rectangular domain to a rectangular computational domain.
Finite difference approximations are then used to discretize the dimensionless governing
equations and boundary conditions. A numerical algorithm is developed to implement
the numerical methods proposed. The discretized governing equations and boundary
conditions are solved iteratively until the convergence is reached. The solutions are
obtained graphically to show the fluid flow and temperature distribution inside the
enclosure at steady state. Also, heat transfer rate is calculated to determine the
significance of the model. It is observed that the geometry and thermal boundary
conditions affect the fluid flow and temperature distribution, as well as the heat transfer
rate inside the enclosure. The heat transfer rate increases with Darcy-Rayleigh number.
Also, the raise of internal heat generation reduces the heat transfer rate inside the porous
enclosure at high Darcy-Rayleigh number. The wavy porous enclosure has the highest
heat transfer rate among all enclosure shapes considered. Constant heating also gives
higher heat transfer rate compared to other temperature profiles (sinusoidal and linear
heating).


Background: Substance addiction is suggested to undergo three stages: a binge/intoxication stage, a withdrawal/negative effect stage, and a preoccupation/anticipation stage (Koob & Volkow, 2016). Substantial preclinical evidence implicates metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 5 (mGluR5) in the binge/intoxication phase (Mihov & Hasler, 2016). Furthermore, positron emission tomography (PET) studies in clinical samples show aberrant mGluR5 binding in substance addiction. In recent years, the phenotypical similarities between binge behavior in substance addiction and eating disorders have received increasing attention (Smith & Robbins, 2013), suggesting a partially shared underlying pathophysiology, which likely involves mGluR5. To investigate mGluR5 in bulimia nervosa (BN) in vivo we designed a PET study with the mGluR5-specific radiotracer 3-(6-methyl-pyridin-2-ylethynyl)-cyclohex-2-enone-O-11C-methyl-oxime ([11C]ABP688).

Methods: [11C]ABP688 PET was carried out in 15 female participants with BN and 14 healthy female controls. Due to the strong impact of smoking on mGluR5 shown in our previous work (Akkus et al., 2013) groups were matched for smoking status. This resulted in two groups, BN and controls, each comprising three subgroups (non-smokers, ex-smokers, and current smokers). Psychopathology in cases and controls was assessed by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I (SCID-I), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Participants with BN filled out the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI-2).

We applied a bolus/infusion protocol, previously evaluated for PET with [11C]ABP688, which normalizes PET images to the cerebellar radioactivity concentration, allows reliable measurement of the relative distribution volume (DVR), and reduces potential bias due to arterial blood sampling needed for absolute quantification. With this protocol equilibrium between the tracer in tissue and blood is achieved 40 min after the start of radioligand infusion. A total of 600–800 MBq of [11C]ABP688 in a 50- mL volume was administered using an infusion pump. Analyses were conducted with the PNEURO-Tool in PMOD and with SPSS. Groups were compared with Welch's t-tests; correlations were tested with Spearman's rho. All reported p-values refer to two-tailed tests, uncorrected for multiple comparisons. Descriptive statistics are reported as mean± standard error of the mean.

Results: Each group comprised five current smokers, two ex-smokers, and seven (control sample) or eight (BN) non-smokers. Both groups and their smoking subgroups were age-matched (p≥ 0.7). Persons with BN reported higher BAI scores (13.3± 2.5 versus 4.9± 1.1, p= 0.006) and higher BDI scores (18.9± 3 versus 2.3± 0.5, p< 0.001) than controls.

Analysis of PET data revealed significantly increased mGluR5 binding in BN (p= 0.038) in the anterior cingulate gyrus (ACC) and non-signifcant trends (0.05< p< 0.1) for increased mGluR5 in BN in several other regions: the straight gyrus, medial orbital gyrus, pre-subgenual anterior cingulate, amygdala, lateral part of the anterior temporal lobe, posterior part of the superior temporal gyrus, middle and inferior temporal gyrus, fusiform gyrus, and nucleus accumbens.

Our previous work has shown a marked global reduction in mGluR5 binding in smokers (Akkus et al., 2013). Therefore, we carried out additional analyses within smoking and within non-smoking participants. The mGluR5 binding increase in the ACC in BN was significant in current smokers (p= 0.037, n= 5 per group) but not in non-smokers (p= 0.15, n= 7 or 8 per group). To test if this discrepancy reflects a systematic interaction between group and smoking an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was calculated with the fixed effects "sample "and "smoking ". Current and ex-smokers were clustered into one factor level (smoking, n= 7 per group), whereas non-smokers constituted the other factor level. This resulted in a 2 x 2 ANOVA design, yielding a significant effect of sample (F= 4.95; p= 0.035), a significant effect of smoking (F= 4.85; p= 0.037), and a non-significant smoking-by-sample interaction (F= 0.113; p= 0.74). Overall, these results confirm our previous findings of smoking-related decrease in mGluR5 binding and show increased mGluR5 binding in the ACC in smoking and non-smoking persons with BN.

We did not find significant correlations between ACC mGluR5 and any of the EDE-Q subscales within the entire BN sample or its smoking subgroups (p≥ 0.11). On the EDI-2, in non-smokers (n= 8), higher ACC mGluR5 binding was related to lower "drive for thinness "(rho= -0.86; p= 0.007). No significant correlations between BDI or BAI scores and mGluR5 binding in the ACC were found within the BN sample and its smoking subsamples (p ≥.13).

Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first in vivo study of mGluR5 in BN. Our preliminary findings suggest abnormal mGluR5 in BN. Together with consistent preclinical evidence that drugs targeting the mGluR5 reduce binging behavior in addiction, these results indicate that mGluR5 could be considered as a new pharmacological target in the treatment of BN.

Keywords: mGluR5 Receptors, Bulimia Nervosa, PET Study.

Disclosure: Nothing to disclose.


Mitochondria are powerful intracellular organelles involved in many vital cellular functions especially cellular respiration and energy production. Mitochondrial dysfunction is associated with many human diseases including cancer and neurodegenerative disease. Warburg showed in the 1920s that defective mitochondrial respiration altered tumor cell metabolism with a shift to glycolysis, an initiating step in tumorigenesis. We have recently supported Warburg's mitochondrial dysfunction theory of cancer by transplanting normal isolated mitochondria into cancer cells. This organelle transfer decreased proliferation, lactate production and increased drug sensitivity of the cancer cells. Confirmation of organelle transfer was done by confocal and fluorescent microscopy. In conclusion, this early evidence supported transplantation of normal exogenous mitochondria as possible therapy for cancer and neurodegenerative diseases. The mitochondrion could be a biologic intracellular organelle for cell based therapy.


The study of the heavy quark–antiquark system is an old topic (see [1] for earlier references). Here we will concentrate on recent developments based on effective field theories. For large enough masses, these systems can be considered to be non-relativistic (NR) and are then characterized by, at least, three widely separated scales: hard (the mass m, of the heavy quarks), soft (the relative momentum of the heavy-quark–antiquark |p| ∼ mv, v ≪ 1), and ultrasoft (US, the typical kinetic energy E ∼ mv of the heavy quark in the bound state system). In 1986, NRQED [2], an effective field theory for non-relativistic leptons, was presented, providing the first and decisive link in a chain of developments that is still growing. NRQED is obtained from QED by integrating out the hard scale m (see [3] for some applications). It is characterized by an ultraviolet cut-off much smaller than the mass m and much larger than any other scale. NRQCD [4] was born soon afterwards. NRQCD has proved to be extremely successful in studying Q-Q̄ systems near threshold. The Lagrangian of NRQCD can be organized in powers of 1/m, thus making explicit the non-relativistic nature of the physical systems. In order for effective field theories to be useful, a power counting is needed. The first power counting (organized in powers of v and αs) used to assess the relative importance of the NRQCD matrix elements followed from arguments valid in the perturbative regime [5]. In particular, it was assumed that ΛQCD ∼ mv . This implies that dynamics is mainly perturbative, with v ∼ αs, dictated by the solution of the Schrödinger


Trypsin digestion of Hansenula wingei 21-cells releases a protein (21-factor-T) that inhibits the agglutination of 21-cells by purified 5-agglutinin obtained from 5-cells by subtilisin digestion [Crandall, M. A. & Brock, T. D. (1968) Bacteriol. Rev. 32, 139-163]. We have purified this inhibitor 415-fold by ion-exchange chromatography, affinity adsorption to 5-cells, and gel permeation chromatography. The material shows a diffuse band, on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate, with an apparent M(r) of 27,000. It has a pI of 3.8, is rich in acidic amino acids, contains 5% mannose and a trace of glucosamine, and is stable to reducing agents but is inactivated by heat. Zymolyase (beta1-->3-glucanase) digestion of 21-cells releases a similar inhibitor that, after purification, has a larger size than 21-factor-T. This 21-factor-Z appears to contain an additional portion that may serve to anchor 21-factor in the cell wall. Haploid cells of the yeasts Pichia amethionina and Saccharomyces kluyveri also show a constitutive sexual agglutination, and little or no crossreactivity is observed in heterologous mixtures. The agglutination factors in all three genera, however, have parallel properties; one cell type of each pair is heat stable and is inactivated by reducing agents (H. wingei 5-cells, P. amethionina alpha-cells, and S. kluyveri 16-cells), and the other is heat labile and is unaffected by reducing agents H. wingei 21-cells, P. amethionina a-cells, and S. kluyveri 17-cells). Because S. kluyveri 16-cells respond to Saccharomyces cerevisiae alpha-factor with the typical morphogenetic change of a mating half-reaction, the heat-stable agglutinin appears related to the S. cerevisiae a mating type and the heat-labile factor to the S. cerevisiae alpha mating type.


This project aimed to enable students to appreciate the technical and epistemological nuances of different phenomenological approaches. We involved a small group of self-selecting honours level undergraduate students in the plural analysis of focus group data. Students reported that this supportive teaching technique, facilitating peer working, resulted in deeper learning. This case study describes the piloting of a collaborative teaching method, engaging students as researchers. The project lasted six months, with monthly meetings from tutors to guide procedure and to support academic discussion. The group had a shared interest and joint cause but as each student also had an individual task of conducting a certain analysis, we did not observe any group member failing to offer full effort and participation. Reflections of how this type of teaching could be conducted with larger cohorts are considered and critiqued.


Serious, deep, and long-standing problems now confront use of the autopsy and threaten its very existence at many medical institutions. Despite many changes in the way medicine is practiced, autopsies remain of great importance for purposes of education, justice, and quality of care. Pathologists should create change toward a greatly increased rate of cost-effective autopsies by changing the behavior of other physicians, institutions, and bureaucracies . The goal is the public trust.


The operation of an WID (Radio Frequency Identification) system in fast identification applications is researched and analysed in this paper. The identification velocities are measured with two applicable measurement systems. In addition, a method to achieve faster identification Velocities is presented and analysed. Measurements are based on MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Auto-ID Lab's Class I passive RFID system specification. The results indicate that single object identification is achievable up to velocities of 401onm. Multiple object identification accuracy depends on the number of objects. The method presented in this paper enables the velocity of moving objects to be increased together with improvement of the effectiveness of the application identification process. The goal of the research is to find the achievable identification velocities of a passive RFID system and in addition, a method to achieve faster moving object velocities and further assist several high-speed identification application areas.


If formal methods of hardware verification are to have any impact on the practices of working designers, connections must be made between the languages used in practice to design circuits and those used for research into hardware verification. SILAGE is a simple data-flow language used for specifying digital signal processing circuits. Higher-order logic (HOL) is extensively used for research into hardware verification. A novel combination of operational and predictive semantics is used to define formally a substantial subset of SILAGE by mapping SILAGE definitions into HOL predicates. The authors sketch the method used, discuss what is gained by a formal definition, and explain an immediate practical application: secure transformational design of SILAGE circuits as theorem proving in HOL.<<ETX>>


Radiotherapy (XRT) is a curative treatment option for prostate cancer (PCa). Recent XRT technologies allow higher dose therapy that lead to increased local control with less adjacent tissue damage. Additionally, receiving neo-adjuvant or adjuvant hormonotherapy (HT) during radiation therapy increases the curative effect. The aim of this paper is to review the current literature and guidelines on external beam radiation therapy for PCa. However, brachytherapy and radiosurgery, a recently evolving relatively new technology for the radiotherapeutic management of localized PCa, are beyond the scope of this paper.


The notion of a ``point'' is essential to describe the topology of spacetime. Despite this, a point probably does not play a particularly distinguished role in any intrinsic formulation of string theory. We discuss one way to try to determine the notion of a point from a worldsheet point of view. The derived category description of D-branes is the key tool. The case of a flop is analyzed and Π-stability in this context is tied in to some ideas of Bridgeland. Monodromy associated to the flop is also computed via Π-stability and shown to be consistent with previous conjectures.


This doctoral thesis aimed to explore socio-emotional intelligence within the context of Higher Education, in order to inform the creation of a learning development tool. It specifically explored how Early Years students studying a Foundation Degree (Fda) in Early Years, developed their socio-emotional intelligence whilst completing this Higher Education programme. In order to achieve this, fourteen qualitative interviews with ten Early Years students and four Early Years lecturers who were or had been involved with the programme, were undertaken. Findings from these interviews created by carrying out a thematic analysis, suggested that although these students had an understanding of socio-emotional intelligence, there was a need for further development as there were some misunderstanding and in some cases difficulty in relating socio-emotional intelligence to their own experience. To clarify some of these issues, within this thesis there is a developed definition of socio-emotional intelligence which takes into account relevant theory as well as findings from this doctoral programme. Within the interviews it was also identified that there was a need to provide a space without time constrictions for these students to reflect on their own socio-emotional intelligence and that the environment in which learning takes place can affect how these students develop some areas of their socio-emotional intelligence. Additionally, the most significant finding from this doctoral programme, was that an Early Years lecturer knowledgeable in socio-emotional intelligence and able to model it and apply it in their practice, was significant to the socio-emotional development of these students. Based on these findings and also taking into account the preferred type of development support that was needed, a blog called the socio-emotional scholar was developed. This blog aims to create a learning community of students and lecturers (academics) where areas of socio-emotional intelligence are explored and resources are shared, developed and created with the purpose of continuing developing socio-emotional intelligence for both of these types of scholars and others that may be interested in the subject and the blog.


Dhatusaratvaparikshan is one of the basic principles comprehend in DashvidhaAaturpariksha (tenfold examination).  It is one of the way by which we can assess stoutness of Dhatu of an individual. As far as Ayurvedic literature is concerned we can see ready references regarding description of Dhatusarta. Charaka has described peculiarities of sara in detail whereas Susruta has described it a pattern of one line for each sara. Vagbhata has described Sara in scattered way in which no particular sara has been mentioned we have to assume it in elsewhere description such as signs of Dirghaushywaan Purusha (signs of long life). Kashypa Samhita  gives us little but important clue regarding clinical importance of sara; unfortunately after having description regarding Rasasara and Raktasara  there is a discontinuation and further description is unavailable. For rejuvenation of own science it is our duty to have a review in different streams in order to find out new references and information. Brihatsamhita is an informative compendium composed by Aacharya Varahamihir which is mainly based on description of Astrology and Vastushastra (Architecture). In 68th chapter of this compendium Dhatusarta has been described. Though the topic is in a concise form; it gives certain ideas regarding sarata and some additional peculiarities are also available which will help to person from ancient science stream. This article has been enlightened on typical and unique features described by Varahamihira about Dhatusarata.


The work reported here integrates three paradigms for collaboration and dissemination of information: multiagent systems, Web services, and distributed event-based systems (in the form of JMS). The information in the current context is military command and control information represented in XML documents. The integration uses gateways provided as add-ons to the agent framework that was used and has proved to be surprisingly natural and easy to enhance, with the agents dominating the overall control flow.


We exploit the natural experiment of German re-unification to address the question whether distress from social (income) comparisons results in negative attitudes towards foreigners. Our empirical approach rests upon East German individuals who have West German peers. We use the exogenous variation of wealth of West German peers shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall as an instrument to identify the effect of distress from social comparisons on East Germans' attitudes. We find robust evidence that East Germans expose strong negative attitudes towards foreigners, particularly from low-wage countries, if they worry about their economic status compared to better-off peers.


This document is an extended version of the results presented in S. Dobberschütz: Effective Behaviour of a Free Fluid in Contact with a Flow in a Curved Porous Medium, SIAM Journal on Applied Mathematics, 2015. The appropriate boundary condition between an unconfined incompressible viscous fluid and a porous medium is given by the law of Beavers and Joseph. The latter has been justified both experimentally and mathematically, using the method of periodic homogenisation. However, all results so far deal only with the case of a planar boundary. In this work, we consider the case of a curved, macroscopically periodic boundary. By using a coordinate transformation, we obtain a description of the flow in a domain with a planar boundary, for which we derive the effective behaviour: The effective velocity is continuous in normal direction. Tangential to the interface, a slip occurs. Additionally, a pressure jump occurs. The magnitude of the slip velocity as well as the jump in pressure can be determined with the help of a generalised boundary layer function. The results indicate the validity of a generalised law of Beavers and Joseph, where the geometry of the interface has an influence on the slip and jump constants.


Giant-clam farming is undertaken by coastal villagers in Solomon Islands as part of a research and development project of the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (ICLARM). The production technology is simple and does not require a large capital investment. The main inputs are clam seed, labour and time. Labour is used for activities such as seeding, cleaning, thinning and harvesting. In this paper, a bioeconomic model is used to explore optimal farm management. The theoretical basis for this analysis is found in the economic theory of optimal forestry exploitation. The management variables considered are husbandry applied to cleaning and the frequency with which thinning is undertaken. The optimal cycle-length is determined for both a single clam harvest and multiple harvests. The labour requirements of various management scenarios are identified for the multiple-cycle case.


Concentrations of seventeen unsubstituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) have been determined in brown coal samples from several deposits in Poland. Content of the total determined PAHs ranges from 0.247 to 4.894 ppm, with an average value of 1.542 ppm. Unsubstituted PAHs concentrations in brown coals from tectonic depression deposits are several times higher than in brown coals from lensoid deposits. Among the investigated PAHs, perylene is the most abundant, exceeding other determined PAHs more than tenfold. Samples taken from coal lensoid deposits contain more chrysene and benzo(a)anthracene than samples from tectonic depressions, which have more acenaphthylene, fluoranthene and pyrene.


Among all geophysical exploration methods, seismic exploration is undoubtedly the most important due to its ability to allow depth exploration at high resolutions. Traditionally speaking, the method needs an active seismic source, like dynamite, to generate energy and perform reflection and refractions. An active source usually means high cost, and it can also be quite difficult to implement when surface conditions are particularly complex. The use of passive seismic for reflection exploration does not require an active seismic source. It has the potential of providing a low-cost alternative technique in some exploration areas. The main issues related to passive-source body-wave exploration include suppressing the surface waves retrieved from sources located at or near the surface, as well as enhancing the body waves from random sources at depth. We address these problems by developing a preprocessing workflow to suppress the surface waves and other unwanted coherent noise events in the original data without seriously affecting the remaining body waves. We also propose a method for separating surface and body waves based on the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) of the frequency domain signals. After that, we use crosscorrelation to generate virtual shot gathers, just like the active ones, and use conventional seismic data processing steps to generate the final seismic imaging. By analyzing the passive data set collected from Inner Mongolia, we verified the applicability of the proposed method, and the retrieved final stack section shows good consistency with an active seismic stack section along the same line. Accordingly, we assert that the application of this data processing method will contribute to the body-wave imaging and inversion analysis of passive seismic records.


Background: To improve the patient experience and delivery of patient care, a Stroke Center Patient Advisory Board was created in April 2011. A theme that emerged was the need for psychological and emotional support as an inpatient and after discharge. Common symptoms associated with acute stroke include cognitive impairment, depression, anxiety, and reduced independence in daily activities.

Per Advisory Board feedback, the subtle emotional and cognitive changes associated with stroke were not being identified and discussed during acute hospitalization. Literature suggests that 2/3 of patients have cognitive impairment after stroke, and similar rates of post-stroke depression are seen in first 3 months. Both cognitive impairment and mood disorders are associated with impaired function, increased mortality, and increased length of acute and rehabilitation stay after stroke.

Purpose: Establish new best practice to better identify cognitive impairment and depression to more fully address patients' needs prior to discharge.

Methods: A Neuropsychological Continuum of Care was created. A routine neuropsychological (cognitive & emotional) screen was done for all patients admitted with an ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke, including those with TIA. After screening, psychoeducation is given to patients and/or families on cognitive strengths and weaknesses, emotional needs and expected recovery. Recommendations are made regarding discharge and compensatory strategies. The findings inform the need for outpatient services and referrals are made to Psychiatry for medication consultation if needed.

Results: Over first 12 months, 849 patients with stroke/TIA were referred for inpatient neuropsychological consultation, as compared to 0 inpatient stroke referrals the prior 12 month period. Neuropsychologists provide psychoeducation and neuropsychological intervention during inpatient stay.

Discussion: The development and implementation of this new standard of care has resulted in greater ability to educate and support patients and families in the critical acute stroke period. Early post-stroke cognitive and emotional concerns are identified to inform treatment and discharge planning.


To reduce the active power filter (APF) system switching loss, the usual method is to apply different soft-switching techniques. However, this would increase the system initial cost. In this study, a switching loss and switching noise reduction control strategy for APF under reactive power and current harmonics compensation is proposed, which can be applied to the existing APF systems in worldwide, thus causing economic benefits. The minimum dc-link operating voltage of APF is computed through both fundamental and harmonic frequencies analysis. Then an adaptive dc-link voltage controller for the APF is proposed, such that the compensating range of the APF is adaptively varied according to the variation of the loading. Thus, the switching loss and switching noise of the APF can be lowered. Moreover, the design criteria of the proportional and integral gains of the adaptive dc voltage controller are presented and discussed. Finally, simulation and experimental results of a 110 V, 5 kVA APF experimental prototype are given to prove the validity of the proposed control strategy for the APF in current quality compensation, and at the same time reducing switching loss and switching noise during operation.


The study objective is to determine the connection between meiosis abnormalities and changes in the basement membrane (BM) ultrastructure of the seminiferous tubules in patients with spermatogenesis disorders: azoospermia or severe oligospermia. Materials and methods. Electron microscopy of BMstructure of the seminiferous tubules of 31 patients with azoospermia or severe oligospermia and normal male karyotype (46, XY) without microdeletions of the Y chromosome or structural changes in chromosomes was performed. The group 1 included 18 patients with preserved spermatogenesis including germinal cell differentiation into mature spermatids; the group 2 consisted of13 patients with either Sertoli cells and spermatogonia or only Sertoli cells. Results. Six main types of ultrastructural changes in BM were observed. The most prominent were BM invaginations in the form of basket weaves that were observed in 8 of 13patients in the group 2. In the group 1, individual basket weaves were observed in 2 of 18patients. Im-munocytochemical examination of I order spermatocyte spread nuclei in 14 patients was performed. In patients of the group 2, spermatocytes weren't discovered. In 10 patients of the group 1, meiosis arrest at the zygotene and pachytene stages was observed in 18—50 % of spermatocytes. In 6patients, 30 to 50 % of spermatocytes with impaired formation of the structure of the sex body were revealed. Conclusion . The morphological changes of the BM of the seminiferous tubules ("basket weaves" and duplications of the BM) are associated with marked disorders of meiosis and spermatogenesis. It is suggested about the possibility of mutations of the genes encoding the proteins of BM.


An improved formulation for lift estimation for integral boundary layer (IBL) methods (i.e. RFOIL, XFOIL) for thick airfoils is presented. Lift over-prediction (5 − 10% around (l/d)max) in RFOIL (similarly in XFOIL) is observed for thick airfoils for a wide range of angles of attack. The lift slope is over-predicted resulting in the increasing error in lift with increasing angle of attack. The wake geometry in RFOIL and XFOIL is determined from the inviscid calculations which seems to give rise to the above problem. A scheme has been developed for IBL methods and implemented in RFOIL, to include the effects of viscous flow on the wake geometry which lead to improved lift prediction for thick airfoils. New insights were obtained regarding the discrepancy in predicting the maximum lift. It is observed that lift over-prediction persists in case of thick trailing edge (TTE) airfoils even with the improved method. The cause for this behavior is identified and discussed in order to evaluate the possibilities of improvement. High Reynolds number and increased free-stream turbulence intensity have been observed to inhibit the onset of flow separation and delay stall. These effects are not yet captured accurately in RFOIL indicating a need for further investigation.


A general scheme for increasing the difference in magnetic flux density between a high and a low magnetic field region by removing unnecessary magnet material is presented. This is important in, e.g., magnetic refrigeration where magnet arrays have to deliver high field regions in close proximity to low field regions. Also, a general way to replace magnet material with a high permeability soft magnetic material where appropriate is discussed. As an example, these schemes are applied to a two dimensional concentric Halbach cylinder design resulting in a reduction of the amount of magnet material used by 42% while increasing the difference in flux density between a high and a low field region by 45%.


This paper addresses the problem of category-level image classification. The underlying image model is a graph whose nodes correspond to a dense set of regions, and edges reflect the underlying grid structure of the image and act as springs to guarantee the geometric consistency of nearby regions during matching. A fast approximate algorithm for matching the graphs associated with two images is presented. This algorithm is used to construct a kernel appropriate for SVM-based image classification, and experiments with the Caltech 101, Caltech 256, and Scenes datasets demonstrate performance that matches or exceeds the state of the art for methods using a single type of features.


With many countries considering the adoption of a system of earned income tax credits, it is useful to analyze how different types of credits affect labor supply and earnings. This paper focuses on a 1999 reform to the UK tax credit system, which increased the value of the credit and reduced the phaseout rate. Using panel data, with individual fixed effects, I compare eligibles and inéligibles within five groups: all individuals; those whose demographic characteristics predict that they will have low earnings; single women; women in couples; and men in couples. Over a 15-month period, boosting the credit appears to have raised the labor participation rates, hours, and earnings of those who were eligible to receive it.


This research aimed to measure dosage of sambiloto (Andrographis paniculata Ness) extract to decreaseblood glucose level of diabetic rats (Rattus norvegicus). Completely randomized design was applied forexperiment in triplicate sampling and 7 treatments: D0, D1, D2 of normal, diabetic, and 0.9 mg glibenclamidecontrol, respectively; D3, D4, D5 of 100, 200, 400 mg sambiloto extract respectively; and D6 of 200mg sambiloto + 0.9 mg glibenclamide; all dosage in 200 g body weight basis of 2 months old male whiteWistar rats weigh ± 200 g for 21 days. Anova and Kruskal‐Wallis were used as statistic analysis; results thenfurtherly analyzed using Moods Median Test at α 5%. Results showed that sambiloto extract at dosage of100 mg, 200 mg, 400 mg/200 g body weight as well as combination of 200 mg sambiloto + 0.9 glibenclamideable to reduce rat blood glucose level. Interestingly, 400 mg sambiloto/200 g body weight was comparableto the result obtain using 0.9 mg glibenclamide/200 g body weight of 56%. While rats treated withcombination of 200 mg sambiloto + 0.9 mg glibenclamide/200 g body weight had 58% lower blood glucosecompare to initial blood glucose level, however hypoglycemic risk need to be considered.


relationships, Clark traces the evolution of federal policies, evaluates the competing interest groups involved in policy formulation, and identifies the &dquo;winners and losers&dquo; in the process. He argues that the federal fossil-fuel policies were unsystematic, vague, minimalist, and essentially purposeless. He contends the federal government took significant action only during major crises wars, strikes, economic collapse, and fuel shortages but failed


Monitoring hydraulic fracture stimulations from the surface is a technique that, in the past, met with mixed success. One reason for this experience is that the measurement has often been treated as if it were only a minor variant of the reflection surveys our industry is most familiar with. While reflection seismic sources are designed to generate primarily P-waves, fracturing rocks emit both P- and S-waves with the much larger proportion of energy as S-waves. To capture the information content in the microseismic wavefield, surveys must be designed to record, and processing strategies designed to use, the full vector wavefield energy emitted by the fracture process. To record the full vector wavefield requires the use of appropriate sensors capable of recording low frequencies and three components.


"Slim's Burma Boys" relates the personal experiences of men who fought the "Forgotten War" of the Burma campaign. Hill wanted his readers to know what it was like to be there and with this in mind he selected a variety of operations and events from B Company of the 2nd Battalion, the Royal Berkshire Regiment, which he commanded. He was one of the only men to survive the border crossing into Burma. The Company earned two Military Crosses, a Distinguished Conduct Medal, four Military Medals, and a mention in Despatches. Hill conveys the intensity of involvement in the action, experiencing the adrenaline rush as well as the fear and courage of those who took part in swollen river crossings, patrols, ambushes, skirmishes and major actions against a ruthless and determined enemy who would never surrender. His memoir is of general interest as well as a fitting memoir to his men and should be prescribed reading for all would-be officers and soldiers.


—Voice over Internet Protocol based systems replace phone lines in many scenarios and are in wide use today. Automated security tests of such systems are required to detect implementation and configuration mistakes early and in an efficient way. In this paper we present a plugin for our fuzzer framework fuzzolution to automatically detect security vulnerabilities in Session Initiation Protocol based Voice over Internet Protocol softphones, which are examples for endpoints in such telephone systems. The presented approach automates the interaction with the Graphical User Interface of the softphones during test execution and also observes the behavior of the softphones using multiple metrics. Results of testing two open source softphones by using our fuzzer showed that various unknown vulnerabilities could be identified with the implemented plugin for our fuzzing framework.


During the last several thousand years the semi‐arid, cold climate of the Russian steppe formed highly fertile soils rich in organic carbon and calcium (classified as Chernozems in the Russian system). Analysis of archived soil samples collected in Kemannaya Steppe Preserve in 1920, 1947, 1970, and fresh samples collected in 1998 indicated that the native steppe Chernozems, however, lost 17–28 kg m−2 of calcium in the form of carbonates in 1970–1998. Here we demonstrate that the loss of calcium was caused by fundamental shift in the steppe hydrologic balance. Previously unleached soils where precipitation was less than potential evapotranspiration are now being leached due to increased precipitation and, possibly, due to decreased actual evapotranspiration. Because this region receives low levels of acidic deposition, the dissolution of carbonates involves the consumption of atmospheric CO2. Our estimates indicate that this climatically driven terrestrial sink of atmospheric CO2 is ∼2.1–7.4 g C m−2 a−1. In addition to the net sink of atmospheric carbon, leaching of pedogenic carbonates significantly amplified seasonal amplitude of CO2 exchange between atmosphere and steppe soil.


The effectiveness of Variable Messages Signs (VMS) on route guidance is assessed by a discrete probit choice model that estimates the proportion of vehicles that diverts to an alternative routes given the characteristics of different messages. A before-and-after study is also conducted to quantitatively evaluate the network wide reduction of travel time and total delay of VMS systems. We find that VMS has no obvious effect on reduction of travel time, but can reduce the total delay.


The horned passalus (Odontotaenius disjunctus) is one of the most extensively studied saproxylic beetles in the eastern United States. For several decades this species has been the subject of investigations into the behaviors associated with subsociality as well as physiological responses to stress, and, most recently, the composition of its gut microbiome has been closely examined. However, no published study to date has characterized this beetle's broad-scale population genetic structure. Here, we conducted intensive geographic sampling throughout the southern Appalachian Mountains and surrounding areas and then assessed mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence variation among individuals. Unexpectedly, we discovered two divergent, yet broadly sympatric, mtDNA clades. Indeed, the magnitude of divergence between- vs. within-clades ranged from 5.9 to 7.5×, depending on the dataset under consideration, and members of the two lineages were often syntopic (i.e., found in the same rotting log). Given the potential implications for past and future studies on behavior, physiology, and the gut microbiome, we developed a simple cost-efficient molecular assay (i.e., polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism; PCR-RFLP) to rapidly determine mtDNA clade membership of O. disjunctus individuals. We suggest that the evolutionary processes that gave rise to the emergence and persistence of divergent sympatric lineages reported here warrant investigation, as this type of spatial-genetic pattern appears to be rare among southern Appalachian forest invertebrates.


Abstract. Warm conveyor belts (WCBs) are important airstreams in extratropical cyclones, often leading to the formation of intense precipitation and the amplification of upper-level ridges. This study presents a case study that involves aircraft, lidar and radar observations in a WCB ascending from western Europe towards the Baltic Sea during the Hydrological Cycle in the Mediterranean Experiment (HyMeX) and T-NAWDEX-Falcon in October 2012, a preparatory campaign for the THORPEX North Atlantic Waveguide and Downstream Impact Experiment (T-NAWDEX). Trajectories were used to link different observations along the WCB, that is, to establish so-called Lagrangian matches between observations. To this aim, an ensemble of wind fields from the global analyses produced by the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Ensemble of Data Assimilations (EDA) system were used, which allowed for a probabilistic quantification of the WCB occurrence and the Lagrangian matches. Despite severe air traffic limitations for performing research flights over Europe, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) Falcon successfully sampled WCB air masses during different phases of the WCB ascent. The WCB trajectories revealed measurements in two distinct WCB branches: one branch ascended from the eastern North Atlantic over southwestern France, while the other had its inflow in the western Mediterranean. Both branches passed across the Alps, and for both branches Lagrangian matches coincidentally occurred between lidar water vapour measurements in the inflow of the WCB south of the Alps, radar measurements during the ascent at the Alps and in situ aircraft measurements by Falcon in the WCB outflow north of the Alps. An airborne release experiment with an inert tracer could confirm the long pathway of the WCB from the inflow in the Mediterranean boundary layer to the outflow in the upper troposphere near the Baltic Sea several hours later. The comparison of observations and ensemble analyses reveals a moist bias in the analyses in parts of the WCB inflow but a good agreement of cloud water species in the WCB during ascent. In between these two observations, a precipitation radar measured strongly precipitating WCB air located directly above the melting layer while ascending at the southern slopes of the Alps. The trajectories illustrate the complexity of a continental and orographically influenced WCB, which leads to (i) WCB moisture sources from both the Atlantic and Mediterranean, (ii) different pathways of WCB ascent affected by orography, and (iii) locally steep WCB ascent with high radar reflectivity values that might result in enhanced precipitation where the WCB flows over the Alps. The linkage of observational data by ensemble-based WCB trajectory calculations, the confirmation of the WCB transport by an inert tracer and the model evaluation using the multi-platform observations are the central elements of this study and reveal important aspects of orographically modified WCBs.


Plant fructan active enzymes (FAZYs), including the enzymes involved in inulin metabolism, namely sucrose:sucrose 1-fructosyltransferase (1-SST; EC 18.104.22.168), fructan:fructan 1-fructosyltransferase (1-FFT; EC 188.8.131.52) and fructan 1-exohydrolase (1-FEH; EC 220.127.116.11), are evolutionarily related to acid invertases (AIs), that is, plant cell wall invertase (CWI) and vacuolar invertase (VI). Acid invertases are post-translationally controlled by proteinaceous inhibitors. Whether FAZYs are subject to similar controls is not known. To probe their possible interactions with invertase inhibitors, we transiently expressed chicory (Cichorium intybus) FAZYs, as well as several previously characterized invertase inhibitors from nonfructan species, and the C. intybus cell wall/vacuolar inhibitor of fructosidase (CiC/VIF), a putative invertase inhibitor of a fructan-accumulating plant, in leaves of Nicotiana benthamiana. Leaf extracts containing recombinant, enzymatically active FAZYs were used to explore the interaction with invertase inhibitors. Neither heterologous inhibitors nor CiC/VIF affected FAZY activities. CiC/VIF was confirmed as an AI inhibitor with a stronger effect on CWI than on VI. Its expression in planta was developmentally regulated (high in taproots, and undetectable in leaves and flowers). In agreement with its target specificities, CiC/VIF was associated with the cell wall. It is concluded that subtle structural differences between AIs and FAZYs result in pronounced selectivity of inhibitor action.


During early development, the chorion envelope of the zebrafish embryo undergoes a thinning process called "chorion softening," which has so far only been characterized chemically. In this study, a micromechanical force sensing system was used to characterize and quantitate mechanical modifications of the zebrafish embryo chorion during early development. Quantitative relationships between applied forces and chorion structural deformations were established at various embryonic stages. The measured penetration force into the chorion at the blastula stage was 1.3-fold greater than those at the prehatching stage. Furthermore, chorion elastic modulus values were determined by using a biomembrane elastic model. The elastic modulus of the chorion at the blastula stage was 1.66-fold greater than that at the prehatching stage, thus indicating that the chorion envelope become mechanically "softened" at the prehatching stage. The experimental results quantitatively describe "chorion softening," which is most likely due to proteolytic activities at the prehatching stage. Gradual chorion softening during embryonic development was also artificially achieved by treating blastula chorion with pronase, a proteolytic enzyme. The forces required to penetrate the pronase-treated chorion were similar to those at the prehatching stage. This similarity suggests that "chorion softening" may be induced by the release of protease from the embryos, and the chemical nature of the process involves proteolytic fragmentation of the ZP2 protein.


This study has been mainly motivated to numerically model the supercritical mixing and combustion processes encountered in the liquid propellant rocket engines. In the present approach, turbulence is represented by the extended k-e turbulence model. To account for the real fluid effects, the propellant mixture properties are calculated by using SRK (Souve-Redlich-Kwong) equation of state. In order to realistically represent the turbulence?chemistry interaction in the turbulent nonpremixed flames, the flamelet approach based on the real fluid flamelet library has been adopted. Based on numerical results, the detailed discussions are made for the real fluid effects and the precise structure of gaseous methane/liquid oxygen coaxial jet flame.


Fifty-five patients with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) were studied to determine the extent to which the peripheral auditory mechanisms share in the connective tissue lesion. Ninety-two unaffected relatives and 43 control subjects were also studied. Subjects were divided into age groups younger than and older than 30 years. Hearing loss, most frequently sensorineural, occurred in 49% (younger than 30 years) and 94% (older than 30 years) of patients with OI. A sensorineural pattern of hearing loss, here considered characteristic of OI, was observed in 47% of OI subjects irrespective of age, in 42% of relatives, and 5% of controls. Middle ear analysis by tympanometry and acoustic reflex analysis indicates that, although some patients with OI have a still middle ear system similar to that seen in otosclerosis, the majority display absent acoustic reflexes and increased compliance of the middle ear with notched tympanograms suggestive of anomalous ossicular articulation. Similar findings in otherwise uninvolved relatives suggest a genetic basis for these defects.


In the article the issue of a contradictory perception of Balkan Slavs by Russians in the second half of 19th century is considered. On the one hand, the idea of Slavic unity has become stable in Russia which was actively supported by many Russian social and political public figures. On the other hand, when directly contacted Russians and southern Slavs appeared to be alienated and far from mental solidarity.


Hierarchical cellular networks with mobile routers were proposed in our previous work to migrate the hierarchical feature from stationary cellular networks into totally mobile wireless networks (see Cui, W. and Bassiouni, M.A., Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. on Third Generation Wireless Communications, 2000). We briefly cover the basic idea of the proposed architecture and its channel planning issues. Then we introduce a fault recovery protocol using backup routers. Simulation results are presented for evaluation purposes. In addition, the steady-state performance of the recovery protocol is analyzed with stochastic models.


Despite literature has widely investigated the logics of ideation, at early stages of innovation and product development processes (Bjork and Magnusson, 2009; Boeddrich, 2004; Girotra et al., 2010), very few contributions deal with the very starting point of the ideation process, i.e. the initial theme given to workshops participants. Nevertheless, scholars' works on the nature of stimuli and examples (Smith et al.,1993; Ward et al., 2004) underlined they could generate heterogeneous effects on the efficiency of the ideation stage. Moreover, whereas efficiency criteria for creativity sessions are well known (fluency, flexibility, originality, elaboration), creativity techniques focus on the improvement and monitoring of ideation management: the problem of designing the initial theme is seldom included in the design parameters of creativity sessions, as if it was not considered as an issue in research on creativity management. Yet, one consequence of the above mentioned literature results is that it should be a key efficiency factor: the formulation could play a key role in conditioning cognitive involvement of individuals and managerial goals achievement. This paper focuses on this specific problem of formulating an efficient theme for a creativity session and its implications on cognitive involvement of facilitators and participants, and the achievement of managerial goals of the session. Based on a single case study led through collaborative action research with the French postal service operator, our research analyses the impacts of the formulation in three innovative-oriented creativity workshops the authors have organized and steered from May to October 2013. The three workshops themes were built to experiment the impact of the theme formulation on: 1/ creativity techniques efficiency according traditional criteria and facilitators' cognitive involvement; and 2/ participants' satisfaction assessed through their ability to link the theme, thus the generated ideas, to the company's innovation strategy. The exploratory study confirms that the formulation of the theme has important consequences, both cognitive and managerial. A first set of results suggests two main dimensions to describe the nature and structure of a theme naming: the accuracy level of the formulation and the degree of conceptual tension. A second set of results is about concrete reasoning when designing the theme and implementing in the formulation links to the firm's strategy. A third set of results is about consequences of theme formulation on the way the creativity session is designed and steered. Key dimensions include: 1/ The degree of cognitive implication of facilitators; 2/ The nature of stimuli and idea generation techniques used during the session (generic versus custom-made); 3/ The degree of commitment of the actors (designers of the theme, facilitators and participants) to the organization's strategy, i.e. to what gives value to the output of the creativity session.


An overview is given of the MAU, an IEEE-compatible floating-point accelerator that operates as a coprocessor for the WE 32100 CPU. The chip provides virtually all the features that the IEEE-754 floating-point standard requires, with added software that provides a fully conforming system. A description is then given of the approach used for its design verification, which resulted in a unit that has exhibited no bugs, even two years after its first silicon implementation. Designers used two sets of tools during verification. With the first set, they reduced the time needed to create and execute tests and simplified the development of system tests. With the second set, they created a random test system, which plugged the holes left by system tests. Work underway to apply the techniques to other chips is described.


Abstract Ultrafunctions are a particular class of generalized functions defined on a hyperreal field ℝ * ⊃ ℝ {\mathbb{R}^{*}\supset\mathbb{R}} that allow to solve variational problems with no classical solutions. We recall the construction of ultrafunctions and we study the relationships between these generalized solutions and classical minimizing sequences. Finally, we study some examples to highlight the potential of this approach.


Background Clot burden score (CBS) was developed as a tool to evaluate the extent of intracranial thrombus burden in patients with anterior circulation acute ischemic stroke. Its value in predicting radiographic and clinical outcomes in patients treated with endovascular stroke therapy remains unknown. Objective To evaluate the relationship between CBS and outcomes after stent retriever thrombectomy in the interventional arm of the SWIFT PRIME trial. Methods CBS was calculated for the endovascular arm (intravenous tPA plus Solitaire stent retriever) of SWIFT PRIME using baseline CTA. The cohort of 69 patients was divided into 3 groups according to their CBS values: CBS 0–5 (n = 14), CBS 6–7 (n = 23) and CBS 8–9 (n = 32). Association between CBS and outcomes following treatment with the Solitaire device was studied. Results The mean age of the 69 patients who formed the study cohort was 63.2 ± 13.1, mean NIHSS score was 16.8 ± 4.5, and 55% were males. There was no difference in clinical characteristics among the 3 groups, except for the baseline ASPECTS (P = 0.049). The site of proximal occlusion varied significantly among the 3 groups (P < 0.001). Rates of successful recanalization (TICI 2 b/3), complete recanalization (TICI 3 only), and of good clinical outcome at 3 months were similar among the 3 groups. (P = 0.24, P = 0.35, and P = 0.52, respectively). Conclusions The combination of IV thrombolysis and stent retriever thrombectomy with the Solitaire device is highly effective in achieving successful recanalization and a good clinical outcome throughout the entire range of CBS values. Disclosures M. Mokin: None. E. Levy: 4; C; Intratech Medical Ltd., Blockade Medical LLC, Medina Medical. 6; C; Covidien (Medtronic), Abbott, Intratech Medical and Blockade Medical. A. Siddqui: 2; C; Codman & Shurtleff, Inc., Concentric Medical, ev3/Covidien Vascular Therapies, GuidePoint Global Consulting, Penumbra, Stryker, Pulsar Vascular, MicroVention, Lazarus Effect, Blockade Medical. 3; C; Codman & Shurtleff, Inc. 4; C; Hotspur, Intratech Medical, StimSox, Valor Medical, Blockade Medical, and Lazarus Effect. M. Goyal: 1; C; Covidien. 6; C; Covidien. R. Nogueira: 2; C; Stryker. 6; C; Covidien. D. Yavagal: 6; C; Covidien. V. Pereira: 2; C; Medtronic Neurovascular, Stryker. J. Saver: 1; C; Covidien. 6; C; Medtronic, Covidien, Stryker, Neuravi, BrainsGate, Pfi zer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim.