Due to low degree of renovation of brick buildings constructed 1870-1930 and higher
demands regarding the energy performance of buildings based on environmental
goals, it is of interest to evaluate how to renovate this building type to the aim of this
study. Some renovations have been conducted, but there has been insufficient followup
of the status of these renovations. It is therefore also of importance to evaluate
what type of further improvement that should be performed. In this study, literature
research and study visits to buildings representative for the selected type of houses
have been followed through to evaluate renovation strategies performed on the
inspected buildings. The aspects used to evaluate the renovation are energy
consumption, U-value, moisture risks and the aesthetics of the building, before and
after the renovation. Simulations of energy and moisture performance and calculations
of energy savings was done as evaluation.
The study visits confirmed what could be identified in the literature, through the fact
that observed building techniques correlated to the ones in the literature. Differences
in some details were noted when comparing the buildings, but the details could be
identified in descriptions of the specific building type supplied in the literature.
Typical for the investigated brick buildings is that they have homogenous load
bearing outer walls made of brick and floor slabs made of timber. Both red and yellow
bricks are used. The foundation walls are commonly constructed with a combination
of bricks and dry stone walls or only bricks. The roof trusses and roof construction
offers space which could possibly be converted from storage and unused attic space to
apartments.
Efficient renovations conducted to prevent moisture risks, are to cover the outer walls
to protect them from rain or to replace the timber in the details of the outer walls with
non-organic material. Results show that it is also possible to improve the conditions
for details where brick meets timber by filling the air cavities with polyurethane foam,
but this requires further investigations. According to energy consumption and Uvalue,
a conversion of the attic into apartments and insulation of at least one of the
external wall could in combination provide an efficient result. Considering the
aesthetics, efficient strategies can preserve the design and architectural ideas of the
building.


Fama and French (1992) suggest that the positive value premium results from risk of financial distress. However, recent empirical research has found that financially distressed firms have lower stock returns, using empirical estimates of default probabilities. This paper reconciles the positive value premium and the negative distress premium in a model that decouples actual and risk-neutral default probabilities. Moreover, in agreement with the data, firms with higher bond yields have higher stock returns in the model. The model also captures the fact that book-to-market value dominates financial leverage in explaining stock returns. Finally, the model predicts that firms with higher risk-neutral default probabilities should have higher stock returns, a hypothesis that can be tested using credit default swap premiums.


Purpose: Although several surgical approaches are suggested for hypospadias reconstruction but there is not a consensus on the best surgical method of hypospadias repair. This is a survey about technique of choice in treatment of various types of hypospadias.
Method and materials: We asked about preferred method of treatment for three different hypospadias scenarios. 170 surgeons completed the questionnaire and enrolled in this study.
Results: 51 general urologists, 61 pediatric surgeon, 16 plastic surgeons and 42 pediatric urologists joined the survey. Preferred method of surgery for a distal hypospadias was TIP in 53.5%. TIP was offered by 39.4% , Two stage Urethroplasty in 24.7% and Island On lay Flap in 21.2% to repair a proximal hypospadias without cordee. Two-stage Bracka or Durham Smith were common surgical options in proximal hypospadias surgery with cordee.
Conclusion: A growing trend was detected on TIP repair of distal and proximal hypospadias without cordee.


To date, over 65 mutations in the gene encoding Cx43 (connexin43) have been linked to the autosomal-dominant disease ODDD (oculodentodigital dysplasia). A subset of these patients experience bladder incontinence which could be due to underlying neurogenic deterioration or aberrant myogenic regulation. BSMCs (bladder smooth muscle cells) from wild-type and two Cx43 mutant lines (Cx43(G60S) and Cx43(I130T)) that mimic ODDD exhibit a significant reduction in total Cx43. Dye transfer studies revealed that the G60S mutant was a potent dominant-negative inhibitor of co-expressed Cx43, a property not equally shared by the I130T mutant. BSMCs from both mutant mouse strains were defective in their ability to contract, which is indicative of phenotype changes due to harbouring the Cx43 mutants. Upon stretching, Cx43 levels were significantly elevated in controls and mutants containing BSMCs, but the non-muscle myosin heavy chain A levels were only reduced in cells from control mice. Although the Cx43(G60S) mutant mice showed no difference in voided urine volume or frequency, the Cx43(I130T) mice voided less frequently. Thus, similar to the diversity of morbidities seen in ODDD patients, genetically modified mice also display mutation-specific changes in bladder function. Furthermore, although mutant mice have compromised smooth muscle contraction and response to stretch, overriding bladder defects in Cx43(I130T) mice are likely to be complemented by neurogenic changes.


The hydrothermal system at Vulcano, Aeolian Islands (Italy), is home to a wide variety of thermophilic, chemolithoautotrophic archaea and bacteria. As observed in laboratory growth studies, these organisms may use an array of terminal electron acceptors (TEAs), including O2, , Fe(III), , elemental sulphur and CO2; electron donors include H2, , Fe2+, H2S and CH4. Concentrations of inorganic aqueous species and gases were measured in 10 hydrothermal fluids from seeps, wells and vents on Vulcano. These data were combined with standard Gibbs free energies () to calculate overall Gibbs free energies (ΔGr) of 90 redox reactions that involve 16 inorganic N‐, S‐, C‐, Fe‐, H‐ and O‐bearing compounds. It is shown that oxidation reactions with O2 as the TEA release significantly more energy (normalized per electron transferred) than most anaerobic oxidation reactions, but the energy yield is comparable or even higher for several reactions in which , or Fe(III) serves as the TEA. For example, the oxidation of CH4 to CO2 coupled to the reduction of Fe(III) in magnetite to Fe2+ releases between 94 and 123 kJ/mol e−, depending on the site. By comparison, the aerobic oxidation of H2 or reduced inorganic N‐, S‐, C‐ and Fe‐bearing compounds generally yields between 70 and 100 kJ/mol e−. It is further shown that the energy yield from the reduction of elemental sulphur to H2S is relatively low (8–19 kJ/mol e−) despite being a very common metabolism among thermophiles. In addition, for many of the 90 reactions evaluated at each of the 10 sites, values of ΔGr tend to cluster with differences < 20 kJ/mol e−. However, large differences in ΔGr (up to ∼ 60 kJ/mol e−) are observed in Fe redox reactions, due largely to considerable variations in Fe2+, H+ and H2 concentrations. In fact, at the sites investigated, most variations in ΔGr arise from differences in composition and not in temperature.


Background: Intention behaviour relationships are often studied in between-subject designs looking at an individual behaviour. It has been suggested that failure to implement intentions reflect poor self-regulatory capacity and has psychological costs. Methods: N=126 participants completed measures of 51 different intentions, demographics, behaviour, crystallized intelligence, executive function and quality of life. Participants were followed up one week later with a 49 self-reported and two objective behaviour measures. Results: The number of intentions participants reported was not related to the percentage of intentions implemented. Crystallized intelligence and executive function measures showed higher associations with the number of intentions formed and implemented than with those failed. Participants with more intentions reported higher well being. Failed intentions were not related to lower well being. Discussion: People may form more intentions than they can translate because they are more prone to be happy about their achievement than disappointed about intentions which are not translated.


In the past period, research has been conducted into the impact of environmental legislation on the development of competences and leadership style among employees within municipalities. The reason for this study is that municipalities must match the current processes to the space that is provided by the environmental legislation. With the introduction of the environmental legislation, the current environmental legislation of 26 laws with 4700 articles, 117 orders in council and 120 ministerial laws are put into one environmental legislation with 349 articles, 4 orders in council and 10 ministerial regulations (VNG, 2015).

Interviews have been conducted with best practice municipalities and the municipality Ooststellingwerf. The questions of the interviews are based on the EFQM model combined with the A3 methodology (Doeleman, 2013).

From the results of this study it can be concluded that a change assignment of behavior and the development of competences and a different style of leadership is unavoidable. Testing of standards is no longer possible. The pursuit of more flexibility with environmental legislation gets a different form by creating opportunities to deviate from generally applicable rules. The municipality must be able to cope with tensions between custom and flexibility. The ability to deviate from set standards by means of, for example, flexibility instruments allows for negotiation between municipalities and citizens and will change the decision-making process within municipalities. This calls for another form of decision making in which intuition will play an important role.

The change task for municipal actors is a major challenge for municipalities at both the administrative and the civil level. Working with the environmental legislation asks for different behavior and change in the way of thinking of mayors, aldermans and civil servants, they have to leave their comfort-zone. Next to that, specialists take place and there is a high need for generalist that are able to switch between the different domains of the municipality. To work integral and collaborate between the different departments the organizational structure must change.

To realize this change, municipalities want to invest in the frontside of the process where the municipalities and the citizens meet and where there is room for negotiation and decision making about initiatives. The different employees of the municipality are going to work in project teams.

Civil servants must learn to handle customized solutions and handle space. In the process of negotiation, they must learn to listen to the vision and ideas of citizens. Civil servants must come up with a solution for the realization of initiatives in consultation with citizens. This calls to adopt service oriented behavior and to enter into dialogue with the citizen. They have to develop competences to execute the process of negotiation.

The change task of jurists is large because a large part of their work disappears. In the context of participation and integral work, municipalities must facilitate the collaboration between citizens, partners and civil servants. In this transition there is an increasing need for example behavior within the organization of the municipality. The results of this study shows that there is need for transformational, servant leadership and the use of theory U.


What are the output responses to fiscal policy? Although important contributions have been made in the literature, quantifying the size of the fiscal multiplier remains a challenge. Indeed, the challenge of estimating a unique fiscal multiplier is probably an ill-posed one. The magnitude of the multiplier may well depend on country- and time-specific characteristics of the fiscal stance under scrutiny. In this paper, we estimate state-specific multipliers for Spain depending on the state of the economy along several dimensions. The government spending multiplier is estimated to be larger during recessions and banking stress periods, but much smaller (or even negative) during periods of weak public finances. Combining these three dimensions into a single global turmoil indicator via principal component analysis, the estimated multipliers are 1.4 for crisis (or turbulent) times and 0.6 for tranquil times.


The differences in the heat transfer coefficient (HTC) and critical heat flux (CHF) behaviors between nanostructured and smooth surfaces are attributed to modifications on the surface wettability and capillarity effects through the porous matrix generated by the nanostructure layer. Both act in order of improving rewetting effects, explaining the CHF augmentation. The fact that the contact angle decreases is commonly considered to justify the HTC reduction for nanostructured surfaces.In this context, this study presents a critical review of the literature concerning the boiling phenomena on nanostructures surfaces. Care is exercised in order of characterizing the nanostructuring methods and compare heat transfer results obtained under almost similar conditions by different authors. Heat transfer mechanisms pointed in the literature as responsible for the heat transfer behaviors are also contrasted.Copyright © 2015 by ASME


Summary form only given. In low-pressure capacitive discharges the concept of Nonlinear Electron Resonance Heating (NERH) becomes important to enhance Ohmic dissipation. Particularly in geometrically asymmetric capacitive discharges (generation of a DC self-bias), the nonlinearities of the boundary plasma sheaths lead to a strongly non-sinusoidal radio frequency current. The Fourier spectra of such a current can indicate harmonics which are in resonance with the Plasma Series Resonance (PSR). The scenario of PSR was investigated by different models (e.g. zero-dimensional, spatially resolved), which assume that the bulk current is carried by the electron current and the sheath current by the displacement current. Although these models are able to resolve the nonlinear behavior between bulk and sheath a detailed kinetic picture is missing. In this work, we discuss the particle dynamics in the regime of NERH on a nanosecond timescale by means of a self-consistent kinetic simulation. We use a 1d3v spherical Particle-In-Cell code in order to simulate an asymmetric discharge. It is shown that the excitation of harmonics is connected to the generation of multiple electron beams accelerated by the expanding plasma sheath. Furthermore, the interaction of these beams with bulk electrons leads to significant plasma oscillations and thus, to a moderate displacement current in the center of the discharge. These kinetic effects should be taken into account for future models in order to understand the comprehensive electron heating in capacitive discharges.


This work investigated the effect of transition metal additions on the double oxide film defects in Al alloys.
A bubble trapping experiment was initially conducted, which deliberately trapped an air bubble inside the aluminium melt for a period of time in three different Al alloys (Commercial purity aluminium, 2L99(Al-7Si-0.35Mg) and Al-5Mg alloy), as an analogy of the consumption of the entrapped atmosphere in double oxide film defects in castings. Several elements, namely, Mo, Ti, Zr, Hf, Sc were selected and added into the aluminium melt. The result suggested that the three different alloys behaved differently with regard to the consumption of the entrapped bubble and the different oxide/nitride layers formed. Only the addition of Sc and Mo altered the structure of the oxide surface and promoted the consumption of the air in the trapped bubble in the 2L99 aluminium alloy melt.
Sand casting was subsequently conducted for 2L99 alloy with different element additions. Mo and W were found to improve the Weibull moduli of the UTS. Statistical analysis confirmed that such improvement was significant. For the castings with Mo addition, a nitride was found in some double oxide film defects, on the fracture surface of the tensile testbars. This was unusual, as bi-film defects in aluminium castings usually have a short solidification time and do not have enough time to consume the majority of their entrapped oxygen. The formation of the nitride on the surface of bi-film defects in +Mo castings, suggested that the majority of the oxygen was depleted and a reaction was going on between nitrogen and liquid aluminium. The formation of the permeable nitride surface layer on the bifilm defect might promote the consumption of the entrapped gas. This should lead to reductions in the bi-film size and an improvement in mechanical properties. For +W casting, W containing intermetallic compound might be nucleated on the sides of the bifilm and drag the bi-film to the bottom of the casting, resulting in a clean melt and improving mechanical properties.
The effect of Si modifier addition on the bi-film defect (Na, Sr and Ba) in 2L99 sand castings was also investigated, which suggested the addition of modifiers resulted in a reduction in the mechanical properties of the 2L99 castings while the bi-film defect content in the casting was high but significantly improved the Weibull moduli of the UTS of 2L99 castings while the bi-film defect content was reduced. The results suggested that the modifier addition tended to aggravate the effect of bi-film defects on mechanical properties by increasing the defect size.
Ti and Mn additions into 2L99 alloy were found to not significantly affect the mechanical properties of the casting. A porous oxide structure was found on only one of the fracture surfaces (out of ten) of Ti containing testbar examined, which hardly affect the mechanical properties of the casting. For the +Mn casting, the composition and structure of the oxide was not affected by the addition. The reduction of the mean value of the UTS for both element additions could be due to bi-film defects being introduced during master alloy preparation, master alloy addition and during degassing before casting.


Fine Art does not have an agreement on a single definition of good interactivity, rather, it entertains a number of significance disagreements and discorts concerning the type, amount, conceptual models and ethics of interactivity. This can be related to different emphasis on the contextualization of interactive art, which does not exist as one specific genre. What the viewer interacts with here is neither beauty nor information but ideas the work acting as a catalyst for recreation of experiences and generation of ideas. Conceptual art is likely seen as an aspect of modern art in which ideas are paramount and the form that realizes this ideas is secondary. Also, it is art in which the concept(s) or ideas involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic materials concerns. This paper aimed at creating awareness on the perception and appearances of conceptual art.


1. In animals, behavioural responses may play an important role in determining 11 population persistence in the face of environmental changes. Body size is a key trait 12 central to many life history traits and behaviours. While behaviours are typically 13 assumed to be highly plastic, size correlations may impose constraints on their 14 adaptive value when size itself is subject to environmental changes. 15 2. Urbanization is an important human-induced environmental change that imposes 16 multiple selection pressures on both body size and (size-constrained) behaviour. How 17 these combine to shape behavioural responses of urban-dwelling species is unclear. 18 3. Using web-building behaviour, an easily quantifiable behaviour linked to body size, 19 and the garden spider Araneus diadematus as a model, we disentangle direct 20 behavioural responses to urbanization and body size constraints across a network of 63 21 selected populations differing in urbanization intensity at two spatial scales. 22 4. Spiders were smaller in highly urbanized sites (local scale only), in line with reduced 23 prey availability and the urban heat island effect. The use of piecewise structural 24 equation modelling reveals that despite existing size constraints on web-building 25 behaviour, these size shifts overall have a minor effect on web-building response to 26 urbanization. Spiders altered their web-building behaviours in response to 27 urbanization in ways that are expected to compensate, at least in part, for reduced prey 28 availability. Different components of web-building reacted to urbanization at different 29 scales, which may indicate different balances between the effects of genetic adaptation 30 and plasticity. Although fecundity decreased with local-scale urbanization, Araneus 31 diadematus abundance stayed remarkably stable across urbanization gradients, 32 independently of scale and intensity, meaning this strategy appears overall successful 33 at the population level. 5. Our results demonstrate that typically responses in size-dependent behaviours may be 35 decoupled from size-correlations, thereby allowing fitness maximisation in novel 36 environments.


We study the estimation of controlled Markov processes if the states are only occasionally observed by the econometrician. We propose an extension to the recursive likelihood integration method of Reich (2018), to which we incorporate such occasional state observations in a numerically efficient and accurate way. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, we assess the computational feasibility as well as the statistical efficiency by applying it to a counter-factual scenario of the widely known bus engine replacement model of Rust (1987): We assume that the mileage state is observed only at replacement, but unobserved in between. We demonstrate that - despite reducing the amount of mileage observations to about only 2% of the original data set - the distribution of the cost parameter estimator under the occasional observation regime is almost indistinguishable from its distribution using all mileage observations; hence there is no (additional) bias and comparable variance.


Introduction Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) adversely affect patients' hospitalization. Aim We compared semiquantitative roll plate (SQRP) and differential time to positivity (DTP) culture methods in diagnosing CLABSIs. Methodology A retrospective study was conducted in an intensive care unit (ICU) from January 2013 to August 2014. All ICU patients with suspected CLABSIs were included. Blood cultures were taken, while central venous catheter (CVC) tips were cultured using the roll-tip method. DTP was considered positive if CVC lumen blood cultures became positive at least 2 h prior to concurrently drawn peripheral blood cultures with an identical micro-organism. SQRP method was considered positive when ≥15 c.f.u. of a micro-organism identical to that of blood cultures grew. Measures of diagnostic accuracy were calculated. Results SQRP displayed high sensitivity (94.7 %), while DTP showed high specificity (82.5 %). SQRP combined with DTP displayed 100  % sensitivity and negative predictive value. Conclusion SQRP and DTP methods should be evaluated in combination.


This thesis presents an investigation into formulaic sequences; namely multi-word
prefabricated phrases of either literal (e.g. good morning) or non-literal (e.g. kick the
bucket) reading. A property of such sequences is variation. Formulaic sequences can be
subject to varying degrees of lexical substitutions, grammatical variations, and insertions.
This thesis investigates the boundaries of variation: the limits of lexical substitution and
insertions for formulaic sequences, i.e. how much variation can occur before the sequence
stops being fixed and becomes context-dependent. The boundaries between one formulaic
sequence and another and the boundaries between a literal and non-literal reading are also
explored.
The formulaic sequences for investigation were chosen from The Longman Idioms
Dictionary (1998) and were explored using the British National Corpus (BNC). To
investigate the limits of variation, I developed and used a technique that I term the chaining
process. This is a systematic method of searching for sequences to find the maximum
lexical substitutes and insertions. The frequencies of variant forms found during the study
were recorded and analysed to highlight both so that both common and rare lexical
substitutions and insertions could be examined, and their limits explored.
A result of using the chaining process was that sequences could be seen to "link" together.
Formulaic sequences with the same underlying meaning and similar lexical set were found
to form groups. Use of the chaining process showed how different formulaic sequences
with similar meanings could link together in networks via common lexical substitutes, e.g.
flip your lid and blow your top link viaflip your wig - lose your wig -w lose your temper
and blow your temper. The use of the chaining process shows that formulaic sequences are
more similar than different in terms of semantics as well as construction. Sequences are not
autonomous; networks show that the boundaries of sequences are not as fixed as idiom
dictionaries may lead us to believe. These phrasal networks formed via the chaining process
provide a regular method of grouping formulaic sequences. This technique and analysis
contribute to lexicography and inform cognitive models of storing and organizing language.


Hybrid-electric aircraft are a potential way to reduce the environmental footprint of aviation. Research aimed at this subject has been pursued over the last decade; nevertheless, at this stage, a full overall aircraft design procedure is still an open issue. This work proposes to enrich the procedure for the conceptual design of hybrid aircraft found in literature through the definition of a multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) framework aimed at handling design problems for such kinds of aircraft. The MDO technique has been chosen because the hybrid aircraft design problem shows more interaction between disciplines than a conventional configuration, and the classical approach based on multidisciplinary design analysis may neglect relevant features. The procedure has been tested on the case study of a single-aisle aircraft featuring hybrid propulsion with distributed electric ducted fans. The analysis considers three configurations (with 16, 32, and 48 electric motors) compared with a conventional baseline at the same 2035 technological horizon. To demonstrate the framework's capability, these configurations are optimized with respect to fuel and energy consumption. It is shown that the hybrid-electric concept consumes less fuel/energy when it flies on short range due to the partial mission electrification. When one increases the design range, penalties in weight introduced by hybrid propulsion overcome the advantages of electrified mission segment: the range for which hybrid aircraft have the same performance of the reference conventional aircraft is named the "breakdown range." Starting from this range, the concept is no longer advantageous compared to conventional aircraft. Furthermore, a tradeoff between aerodynamic and propulsive efficiency is detected, and the optimal configuration is the one that balances these two effects. Finally, multiobjective optimization is performed to establish a tradeoff between airframe weight and energy consumption.


This essay will employ theoretical tools from the Austrian school of economics in order to study law as a social system and develop a more accurate comprehension of its functions and of the evolutionary processes to which it is subject. By building up from Hayek's theories of institutions and complex phenomena, both of which emphasize the "spontaneous" nature of social phenomena vis-a-vis proposals of conscious "steering" by means of central planning, we'll try to show how neoclassical approaches to legal theory are based on unrealistic assumptions about human cognition and, as such, turn out to be a subclass of the so-called "constructivist" thought, severely criticized by Hayek in his works. At the end of the article, we'll discuss in passing some internal difficulties with the Hayekian approach itself.


The opioid peptides localized in striatal projection neurons are of great relevance to Parkinson's disease, not only as a consequence of their distribution, but also due to the pronounced changes in expression seen in Parkinson's disease. It has long been suspected that increased expression of enkephalin may represent one of the many mechanisms that compensate for dopamine (DA) depletion in Parkinson's disease. Here we demonstrate that a systemically delivered, selective delta opioid agonist (SNC80) has potent antiparkinsonian actions in both rat and primate models of Parkinson's disease. In rats treated with either the D2-preferring DA antagonist haloperidol (1 mg/kg) or the selective D1 antagonist SCH23390 (1 mg/kg), but not a combination of D1 and D2 antagonists, SNC80 (10 mg/kg) completely reversed the catalepsy induced by DA antagonists. In rats rendered immobile by treatment with reserpine, SNC80 dose-dependently reversed akinesia (EC(50) 7.49 mg/kg). These effects were dose-dependently inhibited (IC(50) 1.05 mg/kg) by a selective delta opioid antagonist (naltrindole) and by SCH23390 (1 mg/kg), but not by haloperidol (1 mg/kg). SNC80 also reversed parkinsonian symptoms in the MPTP-treated marmoset. At 10 mg/kg (ip), scores measuring bradykinesia and posture were significantly reduced and motor activity increased to levels comparable with pre-MPTP-treatment scores. Any treatment that serves to increase delta opioid receptor activation may be a useful therapeutic strategy for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, either in the early stages or as an adjunct to dopamine replacement therapy. Furthermore, enhanced enkephalin expression observed in Parkinson's disease may serve to potentiate dopamine acting preferentially at D1 receptors.


Using a modal approach, a model is derived that makes the interdigital electrode microdielectrometer developed by S. D. Senturia et al. (J. Adhesion, vol.15, p.69-90, 1982) applicable to measuring continuum parameters in a wide range of heterogeneous media. In this so-called imposed omega -k technique, the medium is excited at the temporal (angular) frequency omega by means of an interdigital electrode structure having a spatial periodicity length lambda =2 pi /k and hence a dominant wavenumber k. Given the surface capacitance density C( omega , k) of any linear system having property gradients perpendicular to the plane of the electrodes, the model predicts the complex gain, taking into account the properties, geometry, and terminal configuration of the interdigital electrode structure. This capability can then be used with an appropriate parameter estimation strategy to determine the continuum properties and/or geometry of the medium. Examples illustrating the application of the technique are presented. >


Infrared spectroscopy is applied to the characterization of 3,4,9,10-perylene tetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) films grown with organic molecular beam deposition (OMBD) on hydrogen-passivated Si(111). Comparing these films with powder spectra, the films show a preferential orientation of the PTCDA molecules close to coplanar with the substrate surface. For deposition of PTCDA films using laser ablation at 1064 nm, the average orientation of the molecules is more random than in the OMBD-grown films, but we still find some degree of preferential order of the molecules with respect to the substrate surface. The experimental findings are compared to density functional calculations of the single molecule and the two crystalline phases.


Work has been carried out recently, which demonstrates misorientation measurements recorded by using electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) enables one to undertake local post mortem plastic strain quantification once the degree of misorientation is calibrated against plastic strain. The present paper builds on this work and investigates the possibility of determining strain in individual grains. Due to the anisotropy of crystalline grains, polycrystalline material deform inhomogeneously on a microstructural level. In this study, the local strain induced in a pure copper specimen during tensile loading measured using EBSD was compared to in-situ strain measurements using optical microscopy imaging in conjunction with image correlation technique. By applying an averaging procedure for improving the accuracy of the measured EBSD data, the distribution of the misorientation within grains was quantified, and, as one would expect, it tended to be highest near the grain boundaries.


Introduction Colorectal cancer (CRC) remains a leading cause of mortality worldwide. The incidence has increased by 6% in the last decade and it is the third most common malignancy in the UK, accounting for approximately 15,000 deaths annually. The UK Bowel Cancer Screening Programme has demonstrated that detection of CRC at an earlier stage and identification of advanced pre-malignant adenomas can reduce cancer-associated mortality. We analysed the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from stool to assess their utility as a biomarker for colonic neoplasia. Methods Stool was collected from symptomatic patients referred for colonoscopy and those within the BCSP. SPME headspace extraction followed by GC-MS was performed, in order to identify VOCs. The outcome of colonoscopy was classified as no-neoplasia, adenomatous polyp(s) and cancer. Data analysis was performed in R, Stata and Metaboanalyst, utilising Student's t test, Fisher's exact test, ANOVA, false discovery rate correction, PLS-DA, factor analysis and ROC analysis. Logistic regression modelling with 10 fold cross validation was used to test potential biomarkers. Results 137 patients were included, with a mean age of 64 yrs (range 22–85), 54% were males. 60 patients had no neoplasia, 56 adenomatous polyp/s and 21 had CRC. 162 VOCs were identified across all samples, mean number in no-neoplasia 58.1 and 55.2 in neoplastic group, p = 0.51. VOC analysis was able to differentiate those with higher risk neoplastic disease with the greatest confidence. When comparing those with cancer to no neoplasia PLS-DA demonstrated separation, compound A was significantly more abundant in the CRC samples (p =< 0.0001, q = 0.004), AUROC curve 0.76. When combined with compound B the AUROC curve was 0.82. Biomarker modelling, combining compounds A and B, used logistic regression and 10 fold cross validation: the AUROC for the initial cross validation set was 0.85, when applied to the hold-out set the AUROC was 0.82, sensitivity 87.9% (95% CI 0.87–0.99) and specificity 84.6% (95% CI 0.65–1.0). Further logisitic regression analysis of VOC presence identified a three VOC panel (compounds A, X and Y) AUROC =0.86: a person 6 times more likely to have cancer for each of the VOCs present in their stool (p =< 0.0001). Factor analysis supported these findings. *VOCs referred to as Compound A, B, X and Y due to potential future IP. Conclusion VOC analysis has a superior diagnostic ability for the identification of colorectal adenocarcinoma, when compared to other faecal based biomarker, including those currently employed in UK population based screening. Disclosure of Interest None Declared


A new technique for fault diagnosis and estimation of unknown inputs in a class of non-linear systems is presented in this study. The novelty of the approach is based on utilisation of a network of two interconnected sliding mode observers, the first is used for fault diagnosis and the second is used for estimation of unknown inputs. The two observers exchange information about their respective reconstructed signals online and in real time. Conditions and proofs of conversion are presented. A salient feature of the proposed approach is that the state trajectories do not leave the sliding manifold even in presence of unknown disturbances and faults. This allows for faults and unknown inputs to be reconstructed based on information retrieved from the equivalent output error injection signal.


The Cape Girdled Lizard, Cordylus cordylus, is recorded from Lesotho for the first time based on four specimens from two nearby Iocalities in Mafeteng district in the southwestern part of the country. These are the most north-easterly records for the species. The four specimens are similar in scalation characteristics to conspecifics collected nearby in the south-eastern Free State.


We present spectroscopy of three planetary nebulae (PNe) in the Northern Spur of the Andromeda galaxy (M31) obtained with the Double Spectrograph on the 5.1 m Hale Telescope at the Palomar Observatory. The samples were selected from the observations of Merrett et al. Our purpose is to investigate the formation of the substructures of M31 using PNe as a tracer of chemical abundances. The [O iii] λ4363 line is detected in the spectra of two objects, enabling temperature determinations. Ionic abundances are derived from the observed collisionally excited lines, and elemental abundances of nitrogen, oxygen, neon, sulfur, and argon are estimated. We study the correlations between oxygen and the α-element abundance ratios using our sample and the M31 disk and bulge PNe from the literature. In one of the three PNe, we observed a relatively higher oxygen abundance compared to the disk sample of M31 at similar galactocentric distances. The results of at least one of the three Northern Spur PNe might be in line with the proposed possible origin of the Northern Spur substructure of M31, i.e., the Northern Spur is connected to the Southern Stream and both substructures comprise the tidal debris of the satellite galaxies of M31.


Aim of this study is applying the ensemble classification methods over the stock market closing values, which can be assumed as time series and finding out the relation between the economy news. In order to keep the study back ground clear, the majority voting method has been applied over the three classification algorithms, which are the k-nearest neighborhood, support vector machine and the C4.5 tree. The results gathered from two different feature extraction methods are correlated with majority voting meta classifier (ensemble method) which is running over three classifiers. The results show the success rates are increased after the ensemble at least 2 to 3 percent success rate.


We describe an extension of the pseudo maximum likelihood (PML) estimation method developed by Skinner (1989) to multistage strati¯ed cluster sampling designs, including ¯nite population and unequal probability sampling. We conduct simulation studies to evaluate the performance of the proposed estimator. The estimator is also compared to the general estimating equation (GEE) method for linear regression implemented in SUDAAN. We investigate the distribution of the likelihood ratio test (LRT) statistic based on the pseudo log-likelihood value and describe an adjustment that gives correct chi-square distribution. The performance of the adjusted LRT is evaluated with a simulation study based on the Behrens-Fisher problem in a strati¯ed cluster sampling design.


Biologists have long studied the evolutionary consequences of the differences in reproductive and life history strategies of marsupial and eutherian mammals. Over the past few decades, the impact of these strategies on the development of the marsupial embryo and neonate has received attention. In this review, the differences in development in the craniofacial region in marsupial and eutherian mammals will be discussed. The review will highlight differences at the organogenic and cellular levels, and discuss hypotheses for shifts in the expression of important regulatory genes. The major difference in the organogenic period is a whole‐scale shift in the relative timing of central nervous system structures, in particular those of the forebrain, which are delayed in marsupials, relative to the structures of the oral–facial apparatus. Correlated with the delay in development of nervous system structures, the ossification of the bones of the neurocranium are delayed, while those of the face are accelerated. This study will also review work showing that the neural crest, which provides much of the cellular material to the facial skeleton and may also carry important patterning information, is notably accelerated in its development in marsupials. Potential consequences of these observations for hypotheses on constraint, evolutionary integration, and the existence of developmental modules is discussed. Finally, the implications of these results for hypotheses on the genetic modulation of craniofacial patterning are presented. Developmental Dynamics 235:1181–1193, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Using montmorillonite (MMT) and sodium carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) as raw materials, CMC/MMT nanocomposites were prepared by the solution intercalation technique. The microstructures of MMT before and after being intercalated were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The results of XRD showed that when the adding amount of CMC increased from naught to 70wt%, the structures of MMT have no change basically; when the adding amount of CMC increased to 80wt%, the decrease of MMT (001) was significant; when the adding amount of CMC reached to 90wt%, the diffraction peak of (001) disappeared, which indicated that the layers of MMT have been exfoliated along (001) and the CMC/MMT intercalated structure has been obtained. The observations by HRTEM showed that the shapes of MMT are layer aggregation or agglomerated particles. The MMT added with 90wt% CMC has changed into intercalated structure with alternating MMT and CMC order mainly, and the intercalated structure was characterized at the atomic scale.


The news media have long contributed to the oppression of indigenous peoples in Canada; when journalists did report on indigenous peoples, they were stereotyped as helpless victims and threats to national identity. The result has been a distorted version of history championing settlers' pioneering legacy. In 2007-2008, the federal government introduced reconciliation policies. After conducting case studies of the Globe and Mail, Maclean's, and CBC, this thesis finds that the watershed moment when coverage began reflecting the nuances of the indigenous story came in 2014-2015.
Analyzing the case studies through a theoretical framework that considers the principles that guide journalists, the culture of the news media, and agenda-setting offers insight into what changed. This thesis concludes more information, institutional legitimacy, indigenous activism, indigenous journalists, and a digital vista have all influenced the continuity and the evolution in the way the indigenous story is told by the news media in Canada.


Obesity is a modifiable risk factor of asthma (Beuther 2007). Regular exercise is associated to better asthma control but little is known about the exercise capacity and physical activity level (PAL) in obese asthmatics.

Aim Analyze exercise capacity, ventilation (VE) during exercise, physical activity and QoL in obese compared with normal weight asthmatics.

Methods 48 asthmatics (29F), age 57,4±11, regularly visited at Asthma Center of Ferrara University Hospital were submitted to spirometry, 7 days PAL monitoring (Armband®), QoL questionnaire (AQLQ) and walking test (6MWT) with VE analysis (Spiropalm, Cosmed).

Results

19 subjects were obese (OB), 17 overweight (OW), 12 normal weight (NW). FEV1% was < in subjects with BMI ≥ 25 (72.1±17 vs 81.5±17, ns). PAL (METs) in OB was < OW and NW(1,3±0,2 vs 1,5±0,3; 1,5±0,2, *) independently from the severity of obstruction. No difference in QoL was found.

OB and OW showed a reduced exercise capacity and SpO2% in comparison to NW.

View this table:

table 1

No difference in dyspnea Borg scale (0-10).

VE analysis during 6MWT: OB showed a higher maximal increase (%) in VE than NW, independently from the level of obstruction and mainly due to the increase in tidal volume (TV).

View this table:

table 2

Conclusions In asthmatics, obesity influences negatively the daily physical activity and exercise capacity through mechanisms which appear independent from the severity of bronchial obstruction.


A false expectation based on the notion that it is easy to raise water use efficiency, and that all increases in water use efficiency will also increase net social welfare, will lead to gross underestimation of the economic impact of reduced irrigation allocations in the Murray-Darling Basin. A conventional benefit:cost analysis of policy options founded on an understanding of biophysical processes, sound accounting principles, a knowledge of the appropriate response functions and the economics of best operating conditions will reduce the potential for government failure. Some myths, pitfalls and traps for the unwary analyst or policy maker are outlined.


Going beyond historical and rational choice institutionalism, this article elaborates the core of a new theory that can account for the discontinuous, disproportionate, and frequently wavelike nature of institutional change. Cognitive-psychological findings on shifts in actors' propensity for assuming risk help explain why periods of institutional stasis can be followed by dramatic breakthroughs as actors eventually respond to a growing problem load with efforts at bold transformation. And insights on boundedly rational learning explain why solutions to these problems often occur as emulation of other countries' innovations and experiences. The new approach, which elucidates both the demand and the supply side of institutional change, is illustrated through an analysis of the transformation of developmental states, welfare states, and political regimes.


We consider a way of generating voting rules based on a random relation, the winners being alternatives that have the highest probability of being supported. We consider different notions of support, such as whether an alternative dominates the other alternatives, or whether an alternative is undominated, and we consider structural assumptions on the form of the random relation, such as being acyclic, asymmetric, connex or transitive. We give sufficient conditions on the supporting function for the associated voting rule to satisfy various properties such as Pareto and monotonicity. The random generation scheme involves a parameter p between zero and one. Further voting rules are obtained by tending p to zero, and by tending p to one, and these limiting rules satisfy a homogeneity property, and, in certain cases, Condorcet consistency. We define a language of supporting functions based on eight natural properties, and categorise the different rules that can be generated for the limiting p cases.


Investigation of aldehyde-reductase activity and blood aldo-keto reductase spectrum has been performed in 13-15 and 16-18-years old adolescents with obesity to clear up the mechanisms of neuroendocrine obesity at the age of puberty. It has been established that basal aldehyde reductase activity and blood aldo-keto reductase spectrum of healthy adolescents in early puberty do not differ from those of healthy adolescents in late puberty. A decreased aldehyde reductase activity and some alterations in blood aldo-keto reductase spectrum have been observed in late puberty in adolescents with neuroendocrine obesity. In adolescents with obesity there have been registered some changes in blood aldo-keto reductase spectrum which are not accompanied by any alterations in its aldehyde reductase activity. The results obtained suggest that certain prerequisites are formed in late puberty to complicate the course of neuroendocrine obesity.


Premature closure of the foramen ovale is a rare cause of the hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Although a number of cases have been reported, early case reports often confused probe patency and premature closure. Several previous reports described edematous infants dying in cardiac failure and ascribed these findings to a normal septum secundum which had covered but not sealed the foramen ovale. 1,2 Infants with premature closure of the foramen ovale usually are cyanotic at or shortly after birth, develop signs of congestive failure, and die in the first few days of life. None of Wilson's 20 collected cases lived more than five weeks, and only five of the 20 lived more than one day. 3 Little attention has been paid in previous reports to an abnormality we have observed in the muscle of the left side of the heart associated with this lesion. The case to be reported affords


Computing pixel depth values is a crucial way ofprovides a basis for understanding the 3D geometrical structure of an image. As it has been presented in the recent researches in this context, using stereo images provides an accurate depth due to the advantage of having local correspondences but the processing time of these methods are still an open issue. To solve this problem, it has been suggested to use single images to compute the depth values but extracting depth from monocular images requires considerable extracting a large numberamount of cues from the global and local information in the image. This challenge has been studied for a decade and it is still an open challenge. Recently the idea of using neural networks to solve this problem has attracted a lot of attention. In this paper we tackle this challenge by employing Deep Neural Network (DNN) equipped with semantic pixel-wise segmentation and utilising our recent disparity post-processing method. Four models are trained in this study and they have been evaluated in 2 parts stages on the KITTI dataset. The ground truth images in the first part of the experiment come from the benchmark and for the second part the ground truth images are considered to be the disparity results from applying a state-of-art the stereo matching method. The evaluation results represent demonstrate that using the post-processing techniques to refine the target of the network increasesd the accuracy of the depth estimation on individual mono images. The other second evaluation shows that using the segmentation data as the input can just improve the depth estimation results to a point where performance is comparable with stereo depth matching marginally.


OBJECTIVE
Paclitaxel was used in a phase II trial in combination with cisplatin for esophageal cancer. The anti-tumor response, toxicity and survival of the treated patients were evaluated.

METHODS
Thirty patients with advanced, unresectable, or complicated with metastasis were allotted, twenty-seven patients had no prior chemotherapy while 3 patients had received adjuvant chemotherapy. Patients were given paclitaxel 175 mg/m(2) by 3-hour infusion on D1, and cisplatin 40 mg/m(2) daily on D2 and D3. Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) was not routinely administered unless the patient had neutropenia. Treatment was recycled every 21 days.

RESULTS
Thirty patients (male/female, 28/2; median age 58) completed a median of 3 cycles and 27 patients were evaluable for response. Major objective responses were observed in 16 patients (59.3%; 95% confidence interval, 38.9% to 75.5%), including 5 complete responses (18.5%) and 11 partial responses (40.7%). The median time to tumor progression was 5.0 months (range, 1 to 23 months). The median actuarial survival was 9.7 months (range, 1 to 23 months). Twenty-eight patients were assessable for toxicity. The most common nonhematologic toxicity was alopecia. Grade 3 to 4 neutropenia was observed in 17.9% of the patients. Toxicity was manageable with dose attenuation and G-CSF support.

CONCLUSION
The combination of paclitaxel and cisplatin can be considered as a main regimen in the treatment of advanced esophageal cancer.


Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) stability comparison theorems are presented for several different plasma models, each one corresponding to a different level of collisionality: a collisional fluid model (ideal MHD), a collisionless kinetic model (kinetic MHD), and two intermediate collisionality hybrid models (Vlasov-fluid and kinetic MHD-fluid). Of particular interest is a reexamination of the often quoted statement that ideal MHD makes the most conservative predictions with respect to stability boundaries. Some of the models have already been investigated in the literature and we clarify and generalize these results. Other models are essentially new and for them we derive new comparison theorems. Three main conclusions can be drawn: 1) It is crucial to distinguish between ergodic and closed field line systems; 2) In the case of ergodic systems, ideal MHD does indeed make conservative predictions compared to the other models; 3) In closed line systems undergoing perturbations that maintain the closed line symmetry this is no longer true. Specifically, when the ions are collisionless and their gyro radius is finite, as in the Vlasov-fluid model, there is no compressibility stabilization. The Vlasov-fluid model is more unstable than ideal MHD. The reason for this is related to the waveparticle resonance associated with the perpendicular precession drift motion of the particles (i.e. the E B drift and magnetic drifts), combined with the absence of any truly toroidally trapped particles. The overall conclusion is that to determine macroscopic stability boundaries for any magnetic geometry using a simple, conservative approach, one should analyze the ideal MHD energy principle for incompressible displacements.


Conventional ultrasonic imaging systems use piezoelectric transducers for the generation and reception of the acoustic signal. Since its invention in 1994, the Capacitive Micromachined Ultrasound Transducer (CMUT) has been subjected to research as an alternative technology. Major advantages of the CMUT over traditional piezoelectric ultrasound transducers include higher bandwidth, higher sensitivity, CMOS compatibility, and ease of manufacturing (by the use of standard lithography techniques.) Increasing the dynamic range, decreasing the parasitic capacitance and cross coupling are the major goals in CMUT designing specially for medical imaging applications. The work in this thesis aims the optimization of a high-frequency (20 MHz) CMUT array to be used for high-resolution medical imaging. The figure of merit has been chosen as the signal-to-noise ratio of the electrical return signal, which required the construction of a model for the entire pulse-echo operation. Such a model consists of: (1) a circuit model for the device itself, (2) a model for the radiation impedance, and (3) a model for the propagation medium. The CMUT model has been extensively studied in the literature. An already existing circuit model has been used in the simulations. The radiation impedance of the CMUT array was computed using Finite Element Analysis (FEA) software packages COMSOL Multiphysics® and ANSYS®, and converted to an equivalent circuit to represent the load in the circuit simulator. The pulse-echo model, which is entirely implemented in LTspice circuit simulator, was then used to optimize CMUT parameters that include radius, membrane thickness, and gap height to maximize signal-to-noise ratio.


A three-channel cross-reactive sensor array based on vapoluminescent platinum(II) double salt materials has been characterized. Two arrays were studied, one consisting of [Pt(CN-cyclododecyl)4][Pt(CN)4] (1), [(phen)Pt(CN-cyclohexyl)2][Pt(CN)4] (2), and [Pt(CN-n-tetradecyl)4][Pt-(CN)4] (3) materials, where phen = 1,10-phenanthroline, and a second array that has compound 3 replaced by the mixed double salt material [(phen)Pt(CN-cyclododecyl)Cl)]2[(phen)Pt(CN-cyclododecyl)2]2[Pt(CN)4]3 (4). Compounds 2, 3 and 4 are characterized here for the first time. Inclusion of solvent vapors into these materials often leads to dramatic shifts in their solid-state absorption and luminescence spectra. In these studies the arrays were exposed to a set of 10 test solvent vapors to determine the ability of each cross-reactive array to give reproducible vapoluminescent spectra characteristic of each solvent vapor. It was discovered that temperature programming between solvent vapor exposures greatly improved the reproducibility of the luminescence spectra obtained. A statistical analysis of three-dimensional resolution factors between pairs of solvent clusters in principal component space supported this assertion. The success of the temperature programming protocol was limited by the thermal stability and the sensitivity to low background water vapor levels of some platinum(II) double salt materials. The ability of the cross-reactive sensor array to differentiate between two different solvent vapors over a large concentration range was also investigated. Acetone and methanol were found to occupy two distinct regions of the three-dimensional principal component space. Detection limits for acetone and methanol were estimated from the principal component analysis as 75 and 6 g/m3, respectively.


Summary We facilitated an arts-based mindfulness group program with youths who were receiving short-term in-patient mental health supports within hospital. We aimed to explore the challenges and benefits these marginalized youths experienced through their exposure to the group intervention. Forty pregroup and 24 postgroup interviews were analyzed using a thematic analysis framework. Findings: The qualitative findings are presented using creative nonfiction in the form of a composite vignette. The composite vignette portrays the content within the themes, creatively telling a more compelling story that illustrates key points and themes within the data set. The vignette shows how mental health challenges created problems in the youths' lives. Although most of the youths were initially nervous about participating in the program, the strengths and arts-based nature of the program helped them to connect with others in the group and express themselves. All of the youths reported that the group program was enjoyable and beneficial. They learned to identify what they were feeling/thinking and to express these feelings/thoughts using creative means of expression. Making art helped them to develop their self-awareness and created enjoyment in the group and with the group methods. Also, learning about mindfulness helped them to think in different ways, and to focus and relax more. Application: The results of this pilot project warrant further investigation into the benefits of creative strengths-based mindfulness-based interventions for in-patient youths experiencing mental health challenges. The composite vignette centers the youths' voices and provides a comprehensive account of their experiences.


This paper assesses the adoption potential of conservation agriculture (CA) technologies in Malawi, where CA appears highly appropriate. Estimation of CA adoption rates and their determinants is complicated by the relatively recent introduction of these technologies and limited awareness of CA among the general population of smallholder farmers. We propose a lead farmer promoter-adopter approach and use it to assess the adoption potential of CA among smallholder farmers in Malawi. This approach relies on the promoters being potential adopters themselves, having had sufficient exposure and access to the technologies, and their incentives not having been distorted by excessive incentives. These conditions are reasonably satisfied in our application with a sample of 181 lead farmers from central and southern Malawi. We find adoption rates for the lead farmers of 56% for organic manure and crop rotation, 26% for minimum tillage, 30% for mulching, and 12% for herbicide application. Lead farmers recommend CA to their followers at rates of 66% for organic manure, about 50% for crop rotation and minimum tillage, 28% for mulching, and less than 10% for herbicide application. Assuming the validity of the promoter-adopter approach, these findings together suggest that, in central and southern Malawi, organic manure and crop rotation have the highest adoption potential, mulching and minimum tillage come next, and herbicide application has the lowest potential. With the farmer-to-farmer extension approach gaining popularity in many countries, we expect that our promoter-adopter approach to assessing adoption potential of new technologies will be of broad interest.


Many congested intersections have heavy traffic volume on movements for which there is insufficient capacity because of geometric limitations. Installing presignals at midblock locations and reorganizing traffic upstream of the approach of an intersection combine to be a promising and cost-effective method for addressing these capacity limitations. A coordinated optimization model was developed for an isolated intersection approach with presignals to increase the protected left-turn phase capacity. The presignal model was based on two principles: (a) explicitly capture the interaction between the presignal and the main signal by modeling the queuing process and capacity constraints of temporal and spatial limitations of the intersection and (b) optimize the signal timings of both the presignal and the main signal as well as the offset between them to produce the best operational strategy for the approach. The minimum green time required and the delay-minimization problems are considered. Extensive experimental analysis has shown that the presignal model outperforms the conventional control method (without presignal). Sensitivity analysis of the signal timing method that will assist traffic engineers with selecting the appropriate length of the sorting area, phase sequence, and early starting time of presignals was conducted. The results from the study offer a basis for traffic practitioners, researchers, and authorities on which to design and utilize presignals in locations where there is a need to increase intersection capacity for congested movements.


With over a billion people in China, the issue of cultivated land conversion is extremely important both in terms of food security and environmental sustainability. This paper investigates the relationship between cultivated land, environment, and food security in China; and seeks to identity the main challenges facing China in terms of arable land protection. It further discusses the concept and practical implications of land governance in relation to food and environmental security, and suggests that comprehensive, human-centred and sustainable land governance is required to enhance China's food security and environmental sustainability.


It is axiomatic that the young general surgeon should be trained in a manner that makes him competent to deal with a wide range of problems, under varying conditions. With the development of anesthesiology to the high plane which is found in most teaching centers, the responsibility of the surgeon for this essential part of the operation is correspondingly reduced. The young surgeon learns to operate in this atmosphere, where he has little volition in the choice of anesthetic agent, and little incentive for taking responsibility in that direction. All too frequently he becomes completely dependent upon talented professional anesthetists of a caliber he may not find available in the community which he ultimately chooses as his professional home. All too frequently he finds himself lost without the help to which he had become accustomed. He then learns, laboriously, what he should have been taught earlier: that much surgery can


Introduction Incident reports contain descriptions of errors and harms that occurred during clinical care delivery. Few observational studies have characterised incidents from general practice, and none of these have been from the England and Wales National Reporting and Learning System. This study aims to describe incidents reported from a general practice care setting. Methods and analysis A general practice patient safety incident classification will be developed to characterise patient safety incidents. A weighted-random sample of 12 500 incidents describing no harm, low harm and moderate harm of patients, and all incidents describing severe harm and death of patients will be classified. Insights from exploratory descriptive statistics and thematic analysis will be combined to identify priority areas for future interventions. Ethics and dissemination The need for ethical approval was waivered by the Aneurin Bevan University Health Board research risk review committee given the anonymised nature of data (ABHB R&D Ref number: SA/410/13). The authors will submit the results of the study to relevant journals and undertake national and international oral presentations to researchers, clinicians and policymakers.


This chapter examines the relation between the structure of words as linguistic objects and their conceptual content. It addresses two questions: what are the primitives of lexical semantic interpretation, and how they are expressed in the grammatical and morphological representation of a lexical item. The answer involves a characterization of roots as theoretical objects, followed by an argument to the effect that it is not roots, but larger structures of variable size which relate to lexical concepts. An in-depth discussion of nouns leads to the claim that the conceptual content of a lexical item does not reflect its grammatical structure, because a concept is not the meaning of a linguistically defined unit, but a language-external cognitive content, globally associated with the lexical word as a whole.


Accurate detection and quantification of human diabetic peripheral neuropathy are important to define at-risk patients, anticipate deterioration, and assess new therapies. Easily performed clinical techniques such as neurological examination, assessment of vibration perception or insensitivity to the 10 g monofilament only assess advanced neuropathy, i.e., the at-risk foot. Techniques that assess early neuropathy include neurophysiology (which assesses only large fibers) and quantitative sensory testing (which assesses small fibers), but they can be highly subjective while more objective techniques, such as skin biopsy for intra-epidermal nerve fiber density quantification, are invasive and not widely available. The emerging ophthalmic technique of corneal confocal microscopy allows quantification of corneal nerve morphology and enables clinicians to diagnose peripheral neuropathy in diabetes patients, quantify its severity, and potentially assess therapeutic benefit. The present review provides a detailed critique of the rationale, a practical approach to capture images, and a basis for analyzing and interpreting the images. We also critically evaluate the diagnostic ability of this new noninvasive ophthalmic test to diagnose diabetic and other peripheral neuropathies.


Under-sampling is a class-imbalance learning method which uses only a subset of major class examples and thus is very efficient. The main deficiency is that many major class examples are ignored. We propose two algorithms to overcome the deficiency. EasyEnsemble samples several subsets from the major class, trains a learner using each of them, and combines the outputs of those learners. BalanceCascade is similar to EasyEnsemble except that it removes correctly classified major class examples of trained learners from further consideration. Experiments show that both of the proposed algorithms have better AUC scores than many existing class-imbalance learning methods. Moreover, they have approximately the same training time as that of under-sampling, which trains significantly faster than other methods.


We have examined the effect of dietary polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) upon mitochondrial Ca2+ content and dehydrogenase activation in the rat heart. Diets were either a conventional low-fat chow (Ref) or were rich in n-3 PUFAs from fish oils (n-3) or n-6 PUFAs from animal fat (n-6). We found that the n-3 diet minimized the rise in mitochondrial Ca2+ seen in response to positive inotropic intervention with noradrenaline, and also minimized the activation of pyruvate dehydrogenase, which is Ca2+ dependent. As the work output of all three groups of hearts was the same, this observation may explain the previous finding of increased thermodynamic efficiency of the n-3 heart relative to the n-6 heart. When hearts were subjected to low-flow ischaemia (15 min), followed by 5 min of reperfusion, increases of mitochondrial Ca2+ were less in the n-3 group than in the n-6 group. In more prolonged ischaemia and reperfusion, n-3 feeding may confer protection against mitochondrial Ca2+ overload, opening of the permeability transition pore and cell death. Notably, the effects of n-3 feeding on mitochondrial functioning were most apparent in hearts from senescent rats (23 months). This is consistent with our finding that the decrease in mitochondrial membrane cardiolipin content, and increase in phosphatidylcholine, which occurred with aging in the Ref and n-6 groups, was totally prevented by n-3 feeding. Thus there are a number of reasons to regard an n-3-rich diet as being protective of the heart in aging mammals.


ABSTRACT Tourism studies have a tradition of seeking alternative pathways to economic development that minimise negative externalities for destinations. However, despite discourses that focus on sustainability and conservation tourism's contribution to global environmental change have continued to increase. Instead, the contribution of tourism to sustainable development should be understood in the context of degrowth processes that offer an alternative discourse to the economism paradigm that reifies economic growth in terms of GDP. A paradigm supported by institutions such as the UNWTO. A steady state understanding of sustainability is postulated that stresses both efficiency and sufficiency in terms of the natural capital and ecological resources on which economic throughput is based. Steady state tourism is therefore defined as a tourism system that encourages qualitative development but not aggregate quantitative growth that unsustainably reduces natural capital.


Reduced representation sequencing (RRS) is a widely used method to assay the diversity of 17 genetic loci across the genome of an organism. The dominant class of RRS approaches assay 18 loci associated with restriction sites within the genome (restriction site associated DNA 19 sequencing, or RADseq). RADseq is frequently applied to non-model organisms since it 20 enables population genetic studies without relying on well-characterized reference genomes. 21 However, RADseq requires the use of many bioinformatic filters to ensure the quality of 22 genotyping calls. These filters can have direct impacts on population genetic inference, and 23 therefore require careful consideration. One widely used filtering approach is the removal of 24 2 loci which do not conform to expectations of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). Despite 25 being widely used, we show that this filtering approach is rarely described in sufficient detail 26 to enable replication. Furthermore, through analyses of in silico and empirical datasets we 27 show that some of the most widely used HWE filtering approaches dramatically impact 28 inference of population structure. In particular, the removal of loci exhibiting departures from 29 HWE after pooling across samples significantly reduces the degree of inferred population 30 structure within a dataset (despite this approach being widely used). Based on these results, 31 we provide recommendations for best practice regarding the implementation of HWE filtering 32 for RADseq datasets. 33


This thesis introduces a method of texture segmentation, which is invariant with respect to orientation, scale and shift. The method is based on feature extraction by multi-channel Gabor filtering. The channels of the filter bank are organized in a polar-log scheme according to Fourier-Mellin approaches. The extracted features are classified with symmetric phase-only matched filtering. As these filters are optimal for the determination of peak location, orientation angle and scaling factor can be determined very precisely. Furthermore, the segmentation is insensitive with respect to noise.
The thesis provides design criteria for filter banks. The segmentation algorithm automatically generates filter banks according to these criteria. The segmentation scheme consists of highly parallel and regular structures and is numerically efficient. A further speed-up is possible by employing sliding-window Fourier transform for Gabor filtering. The proposed segmentation scheme is suitable for the error detection in wood, cotton, textile or paper producing industries. It is suitable for texture-based object recognition and for aerial image analysis. The thesis shows segmentation results on textile textures, honing textures, Brodatz textures and artificial textures.


A Dissertation Submitted to the University of Gezira In Partial Fulfillment for the, Award of the Degree of Master of Science
In Community Health Nursing, Department of Nursing, Faculty of Applied Medical Science, December2016


Oral and intraperitoneal treatment of rats with a single dose of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), 33 microgram/kg, causes a 41--67% increase in iron adsorption in vivo. The major effect is on the transfer of iron from the mucosa into the bloodstream rather than on the uptake of iron from the lumen of the gut. These results are confirmed in studies with everted gut sacs. The effect is maximal at 1--2 days with a dose of 22-42 microgram/kg. Calcium transport is inhibited by TCDD treatment, whereas galactose and proline transport are unaffected. Treatment of rats with 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane also stimulates iron transport. Concomitant with iron transport stimulation, aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase activity in the intestine and liver is increased by TCDD treatment. These studies suggest that polychlorinated aromatic hydrocarbons, which are environmental health hazards, may effect the intestinal absorption of essential mineral nutrients.


Thyroidectomy for benign and malignant disease is most commonly performed with the patient under general anesthesia, although the literature is sprinkled with reports of series of operations performed using local anesthetic techniques. A retrospective review of 43 sequential thyroidectomies compares 21 performed using local anesthesia with 22 performed using general anesthesia. No significant difference was demonstrated in the incidence of major complications. All patients who required a second operation to remove the remaining hemithyroid after the final pathology reports were reviewed elected local anesthesia for their second procedure, attesting to patient satisfaction. Some hemithyroidectomies performed using local anesthesia were outpatient procedures. The indications, guidelines for patient selection, and operative technique of this effective alternative approach to thyroid surgery are presented.


This research is to design a digital game, Emotion Labyrinth, to help users to learn to rationalize emotions in the gaming process. It is a 3D simulated game through which the users learn to turn negative emotions into positive emotions. At the end of the game, the system would generate a narrative story describing the users emotional changes happened in the process so that the users can revisit his/her experiences once more. Qualitative research approach is used to present a case study about the results of his rational emotive scale, gaming path analysis, as well as the observation and interview. The user expressed the process to be helpful that allows him to inspect his internal emotions from the story generated by the game.


The reactivities of alkaline NH(2)OH and neutral NaHSO(3) with carbonyl and olefinic groups conjugated with the tetrapyrrole nucleus of haems were studied. The reactions were carried out with 2-3nmol of haem a, spirographis haem, isospirographis haem, 2,4-diacetyldeuterohaem and protohaem. Vinyl side chains were found to be insensitive to the chemical action of both alkaline NH(2)OH and neutral NaHSO(3). The formyl-containing haems reacted rapidly with both reagents at room temperature, as evidenced by sizable hypsochromic shifts of the reduced pyridine haemochrome spectrum. In less alkaline solution, the reactions of these formyl-containing haems with NH(2)OH were much slower. 2,4-Diacetyldeuterohaem reacted with alkaline NH(2)OH, but not with neutral NaHSO(3). These rapid, simple and straightforward tests are readily usable in differentiating among formyl, acetyl and other electron-withdrawing side chains conjugated with the tetrapyrrole ring of haems. We applied these observations to an investigation of the two unique prosthetic groups of the bovine erythrocyte green haemoproteins. The prosthetic groups of these two proteins were isolated and spectrally characterized. Under the conditions used, the haems did not react with either NH(2)OH or NaHSO(3), but were altered by dithionite, suggesting that the previous interpretation that a formyl group was present [Hultquist, Dean & Reed (1976) J. Biol. Chem.251, 3927-3932] may have been premature. These studies also provide evidence that the alpha-hydroxyfarnesylethyl side chain of haem a affects the alpha-band maximum, but not the beta- or Soret bands of the reduced pyridine haemochrome spectrum of haem a.


Global production sharing — cross-border dispersion of production processes within vertically integrated global industries — has been an increasingly important structural feature of economic globalization in the recent decades. This paper examines patterns and determinants of global production sharing with an emphasis on how Australian manufacturing fits into global production networks (GPNs). Though Australia is a minor player in GPNs, there is evidence that Australian manufacturing has a distinct competitive edge in specialized, skill-intensive tasks in several industries such as aircrafts, medical devices, machine tools, measuring and scientific equipment, and photographic equipment. Specialization in high-value-to-weight components and final goods within GPNs, which are suitable for air transport, helps Australian manufacturing to overcome the 'tyranny of distance' in world trade. Being predominantly 'relationship-specific', Australian GPN exports are not significantly susceptible to real exchange rate appreciation.


1College of Public Health Sciences, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand; 2Department of Public Health, Ministry of Health and Sports, Naypyitaw, 15032, Myanmar; 3Ophthalmology Ward, General Hospital, Hinthada, 10061, Myanmar Introduction: Cataract-related blindness is routinely reported globally. This study aimed to measure the effect of door-to-door eye health education in improving knowledge and attitude toward cataracts and the use of eyecare services among the elderly residing in a rural area of Naypyitaw Union Territory, Myanmar. Methods: A quasi-experimental study design that used intervention and control groups was employed in Lewe Township from November 2018 to April 2019. Stratified sampling method was used to select lists of patients diagnosed with cataracts via a township-wide prevalence survey of eye diseases. A total of 56 elderly people with cataracts were involved in each group. The intervention group received door-to-door eye health education for 3 consecutive months. The data were collected using preand post-intervention surveys. Descriptive statistics for general characteristics as well as Chi-squared tests and multivariate analysis of variance for significant differences between knowledge and attitude scores of the two groups were analyzed. Results: Both groups represented similarities in socio-economic characteristics, pre-existing knowledge and attitude levels, and eyecare services use. During the baseline study, the mean knowledge score in the intervention group was 7.8 and after the intervention, it increased to 10.67. Attitude score increased from 4.51 to 7.55. Among the control group, the scores remained unchanged. For use of eyecare services in the intervention group, 35.7% of patients sought eyecare services before the intervention, but after, 85.7% accessed eyecare services. Among them, 78.6% were satisfied with the treatment outcome. Further, there was a significant difference in knowledge and attitude between the control group and the intervention group (p-value <0.05), representing a medium effect of the intervention on improving knowledge and attitude level. Conclusion: Door-to-door eyecare education significantly increased knowledge and attitude toward cataracts and the use of eyecare services among the elderly with cataracts. Intervention might be effective in improving the use of eyecare services and reduction of avoidable blindness due to cataracts.


Renal transplantation has been established as a life-saving procedure for patients with ESRD. Deceased donor kidneys convey variable life expectancies for recipients. However, limited information is available to guide patients and patient advocates concerning the appropriateness to list for expanded criteria donations (ECD). Half-lives for wait-listed transplant candidates were estimated from the time of ESRD onset on the basis of recipient age, primary diagnosis, and organ quality using survival models. In addition, we evaluated the likelihood of candidates' receiving a transplant on the basis of age and other characteristics by duration of waiting time. Older patients (65+) had longer life expectancy when they accepted an ECD within 2 yr of ESRD onset (5.6 yr) compared with waiting for a standard kidney (5.3 yr) or a living donation (5.5 yr) after 4 yr of dialysis. Conversely, younger recipients (18 to 39 yr) had longer life expectancy with a living donation (27.6 yr) or standard kidney (26.4 yr) after 4 yr on dialysis compared with an ECD after 2 yr of dialysis (17.6 yr). Increased candidate age was associated with the likelihood of not receiving a transplant during the period on the waiting list as a result of mortality and separately related to morbidity and delisting. Older and frailer transplant candidates benefit from accepting lower quality organs early after ESRD, whereas younger and healthier patients benefit from receiving higher quality organs even with longer dialysis exposure. These findings are important for transplant candidates and advocates decision-making and for potential further implementation in allocation policy.


The article deals with the results of analysis of official statistic data concerning the rendering of ambulatory surgical care to the population of the Russian Federation. The main volumes of surgical care rendered to the population (including children) in ambulatory polyclinic institutions, day-time in-patient establishment of ambulatory polyclinic institutions are demonstrated. The structure of ambulatory surgical operations according the localization and applied medical equipment is analyzed. The research data testify the necessity of further development of organization and rendering of ambulatory surgical care including enhancement of its significance, availability and effectiveness at the expense of reallocation of surgical care volumes to the ambulatory stage.


The nasal epithelium protects the underlying tissue from damage. Epithelial cell growth is controlled by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and is possibly affected by toxic proteins, e.g. eosinophil cationic protein (ECP). The aims of this study were to examine nasal fluid epithelial cell counts and their relations to EGF, eosinophils and ECP in 23 patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis and 20 healthy controls. Nasal fluid epithelial cell counts were lower in patients than in controls. EGF levels did not differ between patients and controls, and correlated with epithelial cell counts in controls but not in patients. Eosinophils and ECP were higher in patients than in controls, but did not correlate with epithelial cell counts. The role of growth factors, such as EGF, in regulating epithelial cells merits further study.


We present 1210 Johnson/Cousins B, V, R, and I photometric observations of 22 recent Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia): SNe 1993ac, 1993ae, 1994M, 1994S, 1994T, 1994Q, 1994ae, 1995D, 1995E, 1995al, 1995ac, 1995ak, 1995bd, 1996C, 1996X, 1996Z, 1996ab, 1996ai, 1996bk, 1996bl, 1996bo, and 1996bv. Most of the photometry was obtained at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in a cooperative observing plan aimed at improving the database for SNe Ia. The redshifts of the sample range from cz = 1200 to 37,000 km s-1 with a mean of cz = 7000 km s-1.


The single-source shortest path problem arises in many applications, such as roads, social applications, and computer networks. Finding the shortest path is challenging, especially for graphs that contain a large number of vertices and edges. In this work, we propose a novel hybrid method that first sparsifies a given graph by removing most edges that cannot form the shortest path tree and then applies a classical shortest path algorithm to the sparser graph. Removing all the edges that cannot form the shortest path tree would be expensive since it is equivalent to solving the original problem. Therefore, we propose an iterative bioinspired algorithm, namely the Physarum algorithm, as the first stage to sparsify the graph. We prove that the resulting sparser graph always contains the shortest path tree of the original graph. Next, a state-of-the-art algorithm such as Dijkstra's is applied to find the single-source shortest path on the resulting graph. The proposed method is therefore a two-stage hybrid algorithm and it computes the single-source shortest path exactly. We compare the accuracy and solution time of the proposed hybrid method against state-of-the-art implementation of Dijkstra's algorithm and the BFS algorithm on directed weighted and unweighted graphs, respectively, as a baseline. The results show that the proposed hybrid method achieves a significant speed improvement compared to the baseline.


Background Hyperimmunoglobuline E syndrome (HIES), also known as Job Syndrome, is a rare primary immuneodeficiency disorder characterised by recurrent eczema, skin abscesses, lung infections, eosinophilia and high serum level of IgE. Two forms of HIES have been described, type 1(Autosomal Dominant) and type 2 (Autosomal Recessive) which is more severe. These two forms share overlapping clinical and laboratory features. However, they also exhibit distinct clinical manifestations, courses and outcomes. This paper will present our experience with this rare disease in our new Immunology unit. Methods Six cases were diagnosed between end 2008 to early 2014, depending on clinical features, laboratory and radiological evaluation. Results Two cases of HIES presented before their second birthday and the other four before their fifth. Two cases were brothers. Male to female ratio was 2:1. Each case initially presented with different chronic infections. All have coarse features, eczema, high IgE (>2500 iu/ml), high eosinophil count and recurrent oral thrush. Five of the six cases have onychomycosis. Three cases had extensive varicella eruption. Infections were treated according to the international guidelines. Chest x–ray showed lung cysts in two cases, three cases had no lung changes and one patient refused x–ray and any follow up. Echocardiogram was normal in five cases. Serum Immunoglobulins, T and B lymphocyte subset were normal for four cases. The other two cases, one of them showed low T helper cell and low CD4 percentage with normal total count, and the other case showed low natural killer cell CD56 percentage and high count CD19, CD4, CD8, CD3 with normal percentage. All cases were put on oral prophylactic Trimethoprim and regular follow up except one who refused (Figure 1). Abstract G450(P) Figure 1 Conclusion The rising awareness among junior doctors and early referral of cases with symptoms to suggest primary immunodeficiency disorders help to diagnose and treat cases of HIES (Job Syndrome) which used to be missed and arrived to hospital in serious or terminal state. The incidence rate of Job syndrome internationally is rare. Further studies are needed to estimate the incidence rate and prevalence in different areas of our country.


Full-text publications in an electronic form become more prevalent than ever before. It is a difficult challenge to extract concepts from unstructured document collections data because different concepts and their relationships are buried in them and ample term variations make the challenge compound. Extracted concepts are useful instruments of managing and searching large document collections and play a pivotal role in indexing electronic documents and building digital libraries. In this paper we explore a biomedical concept extraction technique based on a ranking algorithm of concept graphs. The proposed technique comprises two major steps: the first step is to represent documents with graphs whose nodes and edges are created by Named Entity Recognition and UMLS Semantic Network. The second step is rank concepts with relative importance algorithms. We evaluate our technique with a set of biomedical full-texts and compare it to various different key-phrase extraction and graph ranking techniques. The experimental results show that our technique achieves the best performance over other compared algorithms. We further take a close look at the properties of the network to examine how concepts are related to each other and what concept plays a dominant role in the network. To this end, we build the network with 526 full-text articles published in PubMed Central and measure the significance of nodes by centrality.


OBJECTIVE
The researchers evaluated the effectiveness of paroxetine and Problem-Solving Treatment for Primary Care (PST-PC) for patients with minor depression or dysthymia.

STUDY DESIGN
This was an 11-week randomized placebo-controlled trial conducted in primary care practices in 2 communities (Lebanon, NH, and Seattle, Wash). Paroxetine (n=80) or placebo (n=81) therapy was started at 10 mg per day and increased to a maximum 40 mg per day, or PST-PC was provided (n=80). There were 6 scheduled visits for all treatment conditions.

POPULATION
A total of 241 primary care patients with minor depression (n=114) or dysthymia (n=127) were included. Of these, 191 patients (79.3%) completed all treatment visits.

OUTCOMES
Depressive symptoms were measured using the 20-item Hopkins Depression Scale (HSCL-D-20). Remission was scored on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) as less than or equal to 6 at 11 weeks. Functional status was measured with the physical health component (PHC) and mental health component (MHC) of the 36-item Medical Outcomes Study Short Form.

RESULTS
All treatment conditions showed a significant decline in depressive symptoms over the 11-week period. There were no significant differences between the interventions or by diagnosis. For dysthymia the remission rate for paroxetine (80%) and PST-PC (57%) was significantly higher than for placebo (44%, P=.008). The remission rate was high for minor depression (64%) and similar for each treatment group. For the MHC there were significant outcome differences related to baseline level for paroxetine compared with placebo. For the PHC there were no significant differences between the treatment groups.

CONCLUSIONS
For dysthymia, paroxetine and PST-PC improved remission compared with placebo plus nonspecific clinical management. Results varied for the other outcomes measured. For minor depression, the 3 interventions were equally effective; general clinical management (watchful waiting) is an appropriate treatment option.


The Power7 IH (P7IH) is one of IBM's latest generation of supercomputers. Like most modern parallel machines, it has a hierarchical organization consisting of simultaneous multithreading (SMT) within a core, multiple cores per processor, multiple processors per node (SMP), and multiple SMPs per cluster. A low latency/high bandwidth network with specialized accelerators is used to interconnect the SMP nodes. System software is tuned to exploit the hierarchical organization of the machine.
 In this paper we present a novel set of collective operations that take advantage of the P7IH hardware. We discuss non blocking collective operations implemented using point to point messages, shared memory and accelerator hardware. We show how collectives can be composed to exploit the hierarchical organization of the P7IH for providing low latency, high bandwidth operations. We demonstrate the scalability of the collectives we designed by including experimental results on a P7IH system with up to 4096 cores.


We introduce elements of Cumulative Prospect Theory into the portfolio selection problem and then compare stock portfolios selected under the behavioral approach with those selected according to classical approaches, such as Mean Variance and Mean Absolute Deviation ones. The mathematical programming problem associated to the behavioral portfolio selection is highly non-linear and non-differentiable; for these reasons it is solved using a Particle Swarm Optimization approach. An application to the STOXX Europe 600 equity market is performed.


This paper presents a D-Band Low Noise Amplifier (LNA) for imaging applications designed in an advanced 90 nm SiGe BiCMOS process. The LNA consists of 3 cascode stages and one common-emitter stage and achieves peak gain of 30 dB and 3 dB bandwidth at 122-150 GHz. The measured noise figure is maintained below 7.5 dB over the measurement band with minimum of 6.2 dB at 140 GHz. The amplifier consumes DC power of only 45 mW, and occupies area of 0.11 mm2 (without pads), which make it suitable for integration in large scale imaging arrays. To our knowledge, this work demonstrates the highest gain, highest bandwidth and lowest noise figure achieved so far at D-Band in any silicon-based technology.


Many water utilities, particularly in the developing countries, continue to operate inefficient water distribution systems (WDSs) with a significant amount of water and revenue losses. Various factors, manageable to different extents, contribute to water losses, such as poor infrastructure, high pressures, illegal water use, etc. Whilst the problem of water losses in WDSs is global in scale, solutions need to be tailored to local circumstances due to the various causes of water loss and the mechanisms available to manage them. This paper investigates the potentials of the available pressure management methodologies and their implementation in developing countries, using a case study of a district metering area (DMA) in Kotež-Serbia. The minimal night flow method was applied for assessment of real losses. A particular focus is on assessment of water savings due to reduction of pressures. A total of three methods for estimation of water savings are described and tested against data measured in the DMA under initial and reduced pressures: (i) the method based on Leakage Index (LI) calculations, (ii) the PRESMAC model and (iii) a newly-developed method which is based on the assumption that both leakage and consumption are pressure dependent. The results indicate that the third method leads to the most accurate prediction of the total amount of water savings under reduced pressures, with only 6% difference between measured and estimated volume of saved water. Keywords : water supply, water losses, minimum night flow, pressure, consumption, water savings


The main goal of this study was to investigate the way of affecting of water in production of cucumber. From aspect of econometrics, mutual relationships of production function and expenses have been analysed in which Translog cost function has been used. This function has been estimated using the conditional input demand functions, the shefard theorem, chemical fertilizer, animal fertilizer, labour force, seed, and pesticide in the framework of a system of equations by taking advantage of the irrelevant regression method. Applied inputs is for 151 cucumber Beneficiaries in Khash in farming year of 2011-12 that insider and crossing tendency of input demand for this product has been investigated through collecting questionnaires and using obtained coefficients. The results show that the translog cost model is a good fit compared to the data of research. According to the reviews, demand for water has a minor Insidersuccession tendency more than one which shows possible stretch of demand function rather than the price of the inputs. Hence, appropriate pricing policies can be used to take a positive step in preventing the extreme usage of this input and directing beneficiaries for optimum use of these inputs.


A novel loop-loaded printed dipole (LLPD) antenna array is introduced for a dual-band operation at 3.0/5.5 GHz bands. As the loop elements placed on the dipole aperture provide the dual-band operation, a new corporate balun/feed structure is employed to achieve balanced and matched excitation for the array. The simulation and measurement results for 1×1, 2×2 and 4×4 LLPD array designs are presented, demonstrating quite well agreement. In particular, the 4×4 design offers better than 17% impedance bandwidth and a realised gain of at least 15 dBi with tolerable side-lobe levels at the designated frequency bands.