The transition from school to work is a story that meshes the life histories of youth and the economic and social development of societies. Drawing on reports from diverse regions of the world, this article describes the range of adolescent experiences as they encompass the completion of school and the commencement of adult work. As the 21st century begins, major threats to the preparation of youth for adult work include deficiencies in schools, hazards of the informal work sector, a lack of clear connections between school and work, and the misuse or underutilization of technology. Yet this transition is also a story of optimism, as the significance of youth for economic and social development is increasingly appreciated at the national and international levels. Accordingly, this article considers the broad policy implications of the survey and then details the lines of action that address challenges to the preparation of youth for adult work. Although many regions of the world share common challenges, the integration of youth into the 21st century world of work will depend on how each country formulates a unique response that is sensitive to its demographic profile, social institutions, cultural heritage, and economic conditions.


The obligately autotrophic acidophile Thiobacillus ferrooxidans was grown on elemental sulfur in anaerobic batch cultures, using ferric iron as an electron acceptor. During anaerobic growth, ferric iron present in the growth media was quantitatively reduced to ferrous iron. The doubling time in anaerobic cultures was approximately 24 h. Anaerobic growth did not occur in the absence of elemental sulfur or ferric iron. During growth, a linear relationship existed between the concentration of ferrous iron accumulated in the cultures and the cell density. The results suggest that ferric iron may be an important electron acceptor for the oxidation of sulfur compounds in acidic environments.


Background Traffic and transport infrastructure can signal an area's socially beneficial economic vitality. They can also cause harm by inhibiting pedestrian mobility of nearby residents. Living near busy roads is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality. The pathways of community severance (the negative impacts of traffic and transport on local people's health) are unclear owing to inadequate metrics. We investigated the association between residential proximity to busy roads and perceived ability to walk locally, using a novel cross-sectional survey developed to measure community severance. Methods Participants (N = 441; aged ≥18 y; 54% female) were randomly selected from addresses in three Southeast England neighbourhoods identified as likely to be affected by community severance, each bisected by a major road. A questionnaire was administered to measure participants' demographic, socioeconomic and health characteristics, travel behaviours, and perceptions of neighbourhood traffic and transport infrastructure. Distance along the road and path network from each participant's home address to their self-reported busiest local road was calculated using ArcGIS software. Associations between this distance and the extent to which traffic speed and volume affected participants' perceived ability to walk locally were estimated by logistic regression. Results Traffic speed was reported by 23% of participants, and traffic volume by 24%, as often/ always affecting their ability to walk locally, and both factors were significantly associated with worse self-rated health. Compared with participants who lived >400 m from their busiest road (the reference category), those who lived ≤100 m from it had three times higher odds of reporting that their ability to walk locally was often/ always affected by traffic speed (OR 3.5, 1.7–6.9). A similar result was found for traffic volume (3.4, 1.7–6.8). These associations were attenuated after adjustment for demographic and socioeconomic factors (2.7, 1.3–5.6; 2.9, 1.4–6.0 respectively). Using the same reference group, the odds of participants living >100 m to ≤200 m from their busiest road reporting impaired walking were around twice as high for traffic speed (2.3, 1.1–4.8) and for volume (2.5, 1.2–5.1) but adjustment rendered these associations non-significant (1.6, 0.8–3.5; 1.9, 0.9–4.0 respectively). Conclusion Closer residential proximity to a road considered the busiest locally is associated with greater likelihood that local traffic speed and volume will often or always affect residents' ability to walk in the area. Noise and air pollution likely explain much of the association between residential proximity to busy roads and poor health. A deterrent effect of busy roads on local walking, and therein health-promoting physical activity, warrants further investigation.


Embryonic chick duodena were incubated, in vitro, for two days in the presence of vitamin D analogues and metabolites and the ability of PTH to potentiate the vitamin-D-dependent synthesis of CaBP measured. PTH potentiated CaBP synthesis in the presence of vitamin D3, 25-OH-D3, 1 alpha-OH-D3, DHT, and 1,25(OH)2D3. The synthesis of CaBP was directly related to the log of the meddium PTH concentration over the range 1 x 10(-8) M to 5 x 10(-7) M.


Loess has a metastable structure and undergoes structural hydrocollapse
when loaded and wetted, leading to subsidence and damage of overlying
structures, which presents enormous engineering problems in many countries
in the world. This problem is a focus of much research on both the nature of
the phenomenon and the means. of overcoming its negative consequences.
However, there remains a need for fundamental experimental and theoretical
studies aimed at understanding the many uncertainties involved in the
hydrocollapse phenomenon.
An experimental programme has been conducted to study the fundamental
nature of the hydrocollapse phenomenon in loess, and the primary features of
the metastable structure controlling it. High quality disc-shaped specimens
were prepared from natural undisturbed, very soft and slightly cemented
loess soils using two simple devices which were designed and manufactured
in the laboratory. Artificial loess materials were prepared by mixing pure silt
particles of different geometrical characteristics (crushed sand, ballotini glass
balls) with various clay types (kaolinite, bentonite) to produce mixes with
different clay/silt ratios. Soil specimens of metastable structure were created
from natural and model loess materials using the air-fall technique, which
allowed full control over the critical variables. The index properties of the
materials were determined experimentally, together with their geometrical
characteristics from scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies. The
compressibility characteristics and hydrocollapse behaviour were measured
via one-dimensional (oedometer) compression tests. Two testing methods
were used: the single oedometer test and the double oedometer test.
The results indicated that the experimental approach used in this research can
be used successfully to investigate the hydrocollapse problem of loess
deposits. The small-clay loess model was constructed and examined. The
results proved that this model is valid. The collapse behaviour of
reconstituted and undisturbed loess specimens prepared from the same
material was qualitatively similar, although the reconstituted materials
exhibited greater collapsibility, particularly under low normal effective
stresses. Specimens prepared from pure silt revealed very little collapse in
spite of relatively high initial voids ratios (e ≤ 0.9). The existence of bonding
materials, such as clay minerals at the points of particle contact, is thus
apparently essential for hydrocollapse to occur. Specimens prepared from
pure silt-bentonite mixtures exhibited low hydrocollapse values in comparison
with those for pure silt-kaolinite mixtures. It was observed that there is an
optimum clay mineral content for maximum hydrocollapse and it depends on
the type of clay mineral and the level of applied stress. Higher values of
hydrocollapse were obtained with smooth, spherical glass balls as the silt
fraction, thus confirming that the geometrical properties of the silt particles
also have a significant effect on the hydrocollapse behaviour of loess
deposits. The position and distribution (mixing method) of clay particles
inside the soil structure were equally found to have a significant effect on the
hydrocollapse behaviour.
The index properties of Libyan loess were found to be very similar to those of
other loess deposits world-wide. The Tripoli loess can be classified as silty
loess with high susceptibility to structural hydrocollapse in the same manner
as other better known loess deposits in the world.


The depletion of many marine fisheries has created a new impetus to expand seafood production through fish farming, or aquaculture. Marine aquaculture, especially of salmon and shrimp, has grown considerably in the past two decades, and aquaculturists are also beginning to farm other marine species. Production data for salmon and shrimp indicate that farming supplements, rather than substitutes for fishing. Since most farmed marine fish are carnivores, farming them relies on the capture of finite supplies of wild fish for use in fish feeds. As aquaculture is not substituting for wild fisheries, heavy dependence on wild fish inputs is a concern as marine aquaculture grows. Other likely impacts include escapes of farmed fish and large-scale waste discharges from fish farms. A viable future for marine ecosystems will require incorporation of ecological perspectives into polices that integrate fishing, aquaculture, and conservation.


When Dr Philip Raven, an intellectual working for the League of Nations, dies in 1930 he leaves behind a powerful legacy - an unpublished 'dream book'. Inspired by visions he has experienced for many years, it appears to be a book written far into the future: a history of humanity from the date of his death up to 2105. The Shape of Things to Come provides this 'history of the future', an account that was in some ways remarkably prescient - predicting climatic disaster and sweeping cultural changes, including a Second World War, the rise of chemical warfare, and political instabilities in the Middle East.


Background Patients with Diabetic Mellitus are at higher risk of different complications. Many previous studies show that anemia among diabetic patients is poorly diagnosed. Objective This study aimed to assess the magnitude and associated factors of anemia among adult diabetes patients having regular follow up at the diabetic clinic of Ayder Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Tigray, 2018/19. Methods This study was conducted the Diabetic clinic of Ayder comprehensive specialized hospital, Tigray regional state, Northern Ethiopia from January to March 2019. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select study participants. About 5 ml of venous blood was collected by experienced laboratory technologists under a complete aseptic technique. Two ml of the venous blood was used for hemoglobin determination. And three ml of the venous blood was used without any anticoagulant for creatinine determination. The association of variables was assessed using bivariate and multivariable analysis in the logistic regression model with p-value, odds ratio, and 95% CI in the SPSS version 24 software. Results From a total of 262 diabetes patients, forty-seven (17.9%) were found to be anemic (6.7% males and 11.5% females). Among the related factors, residency (Adjusted Odds Ratio, 7.69, 95% CI, 2.060, 28.69, p = 0.002,), age of the patients (Adjusted Odds Ratio, 4.007, 95%CI, 1.53–10.51, p = 0.005,) and sex (Adjusted Odds Ratio, 3.434, 95% CI, 1.582, 7.458, p = 0.042,) were significantly associated with anemia. Conclusion According to this study, the magnitude of anemia is high among diabetic patients. Occupation of the participants, residency, HIV status, being female, and age was significantly associated with anemia.


In this paper, we present a novel cross-correlator chip suitable for "smart" ECG electrodes. Sophisticated QRS-detection is feasible exploring multicomponent-based cross-correlation and by exploiting the simplicity offered by bitstream processing. The chip is evaluated using real ECG signals as an example application. Power-efficient running cross correlation is obtained with novel asynchronous circuit solutions consuming approximately 730 μ W while processing ECG data sampled at a rate of 250 Hz. The implemented generic cross-correlator may be explored for other pattern-matching applications in wireless sensor networks or other low-power applications.


Supersonic steam injector (SI) is a passive jet pump with a venturi structure which operates by condensation of the supersonic steam flow in a subcooled water jet. There are advantages that a SI which operates without electric power has high heat-transfer performance and discharges water at high pressure. Therefore the SI is expected to be applied to the safety system which is able to condense steam efficiently and inject water into a core reactor when severe-accident occurs in a nuclear power plant.According to the previous studies about a SI, there are two conditions about the definition of a SI, one is formation a water jet in the mixing nozzle, the other is stopping drainage from the drain. The 1-dimension analysis model, which the steam condensed completely, at the mixing nozzle, is developed by Narabayashi et al. (1996). Abe et al. (2011) quantified the interfacial behavior of water jet with high resolution observation in the mixing nozzle and evaluated correlation between the interfacial behavior and heat and momentum transfer characteristics. However the operating limit of a SI which is taken account of flow structure at the diffuser is not cleared.The objective of the present study is to reveal the effects of two-phase flow behavior in the diffuser on the operating limits of the SI. In the present study, static pressure distributions along flow direction were measured in the SI with change about the back pressure. The discharge pressure was measured and compared with the value of discharge pressure predicted by 1-dimention analysis model. On the other hand, the discharged flow in the diffuser was observed with a high speed camera.According to the measurement of pressure, a significant pressure rise in the diffuser was measured as the back pressure increased. In addition, the value of the discharged pressure just before the SI becomes inoperative by the back pressure rise was defined as the maximum discharge pressure. It is suggested that this maximum discharge pressure is one of the indicators which predicts the operating limit of the SI. From visualization result of the diffuser, it was confirmed that there is propagation of white color. The void fraction in the discharge flow was estimated at about 2% from the velocity of the propagation.From the experimental results, effect of two-phase flow behavior of discharged water jet on the operating limits of a SI is discussed.Copyright © 2013 by ASME


% CI 0.41 e 0.72), and at least 3 comorbidities (OR 0.68, 95% CI 0.47 e 0.98), were less likely to achieve at least one quality criterion. Patients who achieved at least one quality score criterion had longer survival compared with patients who did not meet criteria (HR 0.52, 95% CI 0.46 e 0.59). Meeting at least one quality criterion was independently associated with increased costs ($94,677, 95% CI 87702 e 101652 vs. $63575, 95% CI 59598 e 67552) on multivariable regression analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Less than half of mUTUC patients met at least one quality criterion, and in particular palliative care services were signi fi cantly underutilized. Quality score achievement was associated with longer overall survival at a modest increase in total healthcare spending. These fi ndings not only provide guidance for future study of rare diseases using secondary data, but also highlight inadequacies in the current management of mUTUC.


Binge drinking or heavy episodic drinking is variously defined but according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) it is the consumption of at least 60 grams or more of pure alcohol, 5 or more standard alcoholic drinks, at least once in the last 30 days. Alcohol costs society between 1.3% to 2.7% of GDP, approximately £46 billion pounds whilst direct costs to the NHS are in the region of £3.5 billion pounds. Much research has been conducted on alcohol dependence (AD) and the impact on the individual and cognition. However, much less research has been conducted on binge drinking, and where it has, research has tended to focus on executive function whilst social cognitions have largely been neglected. Social cognition has been defined as any psychological process that facilitates an individual's ability to interact in a social group and is essential for human wellbeing and the ability to thrive in society. Being able to read and respond appropriately to facial expressions is a key factor underpinning social interaction. This thesis aimed to address some of the gap in knowledge with respect to binge drinking and emotion recognition. The research had the following aims: 1) to clarify previous findings of emotion recognition impairment and to identify whether binge drinking impacted the bottom-up ability to recognise facial expressions at a behavioural level in a similar way to top-down emotion recognition 2) to identify whether there were differences in how binge drinkers gathered information from faces for processing. To address these aims a quantitative method was used. Study 1-Part 1 (N=50, HBD = 25, 14 females, LBD = 25, 19 females) examined early/bottom-up emotion recognition for static faces, Study 1-Part 2 (N=39, HBD=20, 10 females, LBD = 19, 16 females) identified the visual scan path gathering information for processing from emotional faces and emotional images, whilst Study 2 (N=46, HBD= 23, 11 females, LBD=23, 19 females) examined early/bottom-up emotion recognition, late/top-down emotion recognition of both static and dynamic faces and the visual scan path over both static and dynamic faces. The participants were recruited from the student population, a group particularly prone to binge drinking. The research generated some interesting findings some of which supported other research and others which furthered the insight into the impact of binge drinking on social cognitions beyond the behavioural level. This research suggests there is no behavioural difference in bottom-up emotion recognition however there is a positive bias at lower levels of BD and a negative bias at higher levels of BD. There was an overall deficit in emotion recognition at higher levels of binge drinking and with an increased cognitive load. This study has also identified differences in how high and low binge drinkers scan static and dynamic images as well as viewing strategies used for emotion recognition. Taken together these findings suggest a less efficient viewing strategy by high binge drinkers which becomes more pronounced at higher levels of binge drinking and with increased task complexity resulting in impaired recognition. The mechanism implicated in this is the amygdala which is instrumental in directing gaze to the eyes and is also impacted by alcohol. Impaired recognition of facial emotion expressions can have serious consequences impacting the wellbeing of the individual and their social circle. Uncomfortable social interactions due to incorrect or negative interpretation of expressions can have a serious detrimental effect on the individual and lead to a defensive attitude, avoidance of similar situations or to drink more to cope in these social settings. In addition, the inability to recognise negative emotions such as Fear or Anger at lower levels could exacerbate situations where there is a risk of domestic violence or date rape. Suggestions for interventions and further research are discussed.


On one hand, roughly speaking, palliative care is a multidisciplinary approach aiming to improve the quality of life of people facing life-threatening illness, and of their families. As such, it is included -- more or less -- in the health system of each country. On the other hand, due to the increased usage of Internet, mobile phones and tablets, eLearning and mobile applications (in short apps) can effectively improve the quality of life. The purpose of this paper is to identify how palliative care could benefit from those IT tools.
The domains of issues associated with illness and bereavement are presented corroborated to appropriates eLearning tools and mobile apps. We survey of the nowadays eLearning tools and mobile apps for palliative care, and propose new ideas for their development in this direction. With this respect, we also mention possibilities of collaboration between IT developers and the specialists in palliation, specifying for each case the specialization needed by each part.
Other approaches to these IT tools are given: by their type, by their users, by their specific domains.
Much has been done in some parts of the world to improve the palliative care, including the direction of IT; we specify how to make the respective tools useful here and elsewhere.
Concluding, the paper can be seen as a collection of descriptions of existing tools, proposed tools, and ideas about making eLearning tools and apps for palliative care useful everywhere. Last but not least, we mention that the eLearning and mobile apps tools considered here are never supposed to substitute the specialist, but to give support to the patient, to the personal care of the patient and/or to the corresponding specialist.


The increasingly higher and stricter requirements from the environmental directives and the end-users have made it more and more important to design products with higher upgradability that availed the producers of the possibility to extend the product lifetime, improve recycling ratio and decrease manufacturing cost. However, the changes of the requirements are unpredictable, so two approaches are provided for the producers in this research. One is to design products with lowest upgrading cost for the most possibly adopted upgrading direction. Another is to design product with the lowest average upgrading cost for all possible upgrading directions. Here, cost is determined by the replacement ratio of components when the product is upgraded, which, in turn, is decided by the assembly method and the component assembly sequence. This paper proposes a design & assessment method by employing term-rewriting method to analyze assembly method and an agent-based method to analyze assembly sequence of components


In contrast to other subdivisions of its genus, which include many well known and abundant species, the strictly Neotropical Albomarginatus Group of Coccygomimus comprises insects for the most part elusive, which are found only occasionally even in those areas subject to regular collecting both by hand and by Malaise traps. For this reason, although the author recently published a monograph of the South American Coccygomimus (Porter, 197o), it was expected that new species of the Albomarginatus Group would appear as fieldwork became possible in previously unexplored regions. Indeed, shortly thereafter both sexes of an undescribed species were recovered from a Malaise trap situated in virgin subtropical wet forest near Aguas Blancas in northern Salta Province, practically on the Bolivian border. The present contribution describes this new species, demonstrating that it is related most ctosely to C. ramirezi from the yungas near La Paz, Bolivia.


In this letter, we propose a noisy nonlinear version of independent component analysis (ICA). Assuming that the probability density function (p.d.f.) of sources is known, a learning rule is derived based on maximum likelihood estimation (MLE). Our model involves some algorithms of noisy linear ICA (e.g., Bermond & Cardoso, 1999) or noise-free nonlinear ICA (e.g., Lee, Koehler, & Orglmeister, 1997) as special cases. Especially when the nonlinear function is linear, the learning rule derived as a generalized expectation-maximization algorithm has a similar form to the noisy ICA algorithm previously presented by Douglas, Cichocki, and Amari (1998). Moreover, our learning rule becomes identical to the standard noise-free linear ICA algorithm in the noiseless limit, while existing MLE-based noisy ICA algorithms do not rigorously include the noise-free ICA. We trained our noisy nonlinear ICA by using acoustic signals such as speech and music. The model after learning successfully simulates virtual pitch phenomena, and the existence region of virtual pitch is qualitatively similar to that observed in a psychoacoustic experiment. Although a linear transformation hypothesized in the central auditory system can account for the pitch sensation, our model suggests that the linear transformation can be acquired through learning from actual acoustic signals. Since our model includes a cepstrum analysis in a special case, it is expected to provide a useful feature extraction method that has often been given by the cepstrum analysis.


We report on the electron-mediated ferromagnetism in Fe-doped InP from both first-principles calculations and experiments. Theoretically, based on the spin-polarized density functional theory within the Heyd—Scuseria—Ernzerhof (HSE03) approach, we systematically investigate the magnetic properties of Fe-doped InP and predict the existence of electron-mediated ferromagnetism. Experimentally, by diffusing Fe into the n-type InP wafer with thermal annealing at 800 °C, we observe room-temperature ferromagnetism in InP:Fe, which is in agreement with the theoretical prediction.


The expression of phenotypes of cultured cancer cells might be associated with cancer cell differentiation. By using the electron microscope and monoclonal antibodies against cytokeratins, PKK1, PKK2 and PKK3, the expression of cytokeratins and tonofilaments of normal embryonic esophageal epithelial cells and esophageal cancer cells were studied. Both PKK1 and PKK2 cytokeratins were detected in embryonic esophageal and esophageal cancer cells, but PKK3 was not present. This indicated that these were squamous but not glandular epithelial cells. Also, a much greater degree of expression of PKK1 and PKK2, tonofilaments and desmosomes was observed in differentiated embryonic squamous esophageal epithelial cells and in DMSO or retinamide induced differentiated esophageal cancer cells than in undifferentiated esophageal cancer cells.


OBJECTIVES To evaluate patients' perceptions regarding implant treatment and maintenance. MATERIAL AND METHODS A semi-structured questionnaire was developed focusing on 4 main domains: (a) information regarding possible complications received before implant therapy; (b) information received after treatment regarding maintenance; (c) self-performed daily home care; and (d) implant maintenance received at the dental office. Adult patients, restored with implant-supported prosthesis by at least 6 months, were recruited between June 2016 and December 2017. RESULTS The study population consisted of 522 patients with a mean age of 61 years. The majority of the participants referred to have received information about the need of periodical check-ups (91.6%). However, only 58.9% declared to have been informed about complications and failures before treatment commencement. Even though 91.2% of the participants declared to have received instruction about cleaning measures around implants, less than half of the sample reported to have been asked to try the cleaning tools at the office (40.4%). Even though patients' awareness about implant treatment and maintenance resulted to be low in a consistent part of the sample, patients' satisfaction level about information received regarding implant care was high (Visual Analogue Scale 8.18). CONCLUSIONS Most patients appeared to be informed about the importance of specific oral hygiene measurements and recall programs. However, an unsatisfactory level of knowledge about implant-related complications was evidenced. Improvements in time and energy employed by dentists and hygienist in communication with patients are needed, in order to enhance health outcomes and compliance both to the treatment and to the maintenance.


This letter demonstrate the frequency agility that can be achieved when an broadband antenna is integrated with a reconfigurable RF tuner as na impedance matching circuit. The reconfigurable tuner uses a microstrip loaded line structure with four stubs that are each terminated by a varactor diode. The spectral response can be varied by changing the capacitance of the diodes. Input impedance data obtained from measurements on commercially available antennas were used in an agilent advanced design system (ADS) model of the four-stub tuner. The results show that adding the reconfigurable tuner can facilitate excellent frequency agility of the return loss of the broadband antenna over several narrow frequency subbands


''Shared Grasping'' describes a new approach to shared autonomy for grasping and manipulation tasks to be used in a telepresence system. It is realized with two assistance functionalities, which simplify the grasping, and a user interface, which merges haptic feedback and visual assistance. User studies confirm a reduction in operator workload and an increase in task performance while maintaining a high immersion of the operator into the remote environment when using the assistance functions.


: Presentation of one case of Urethral Duplicity of the Blind Epispadias variant, also known as Congenital Prepubic Sinus. This form of accessory urethra is a congenital malformation which consists in a pseudofistular passage which starts at the proximity of the bladder's anterior side-though uncommunicated with it-and spreads to the skin of the pubic area where it ends. No other malformative condition was found in the comprehensive study conducted, and only the existence of repeat episodes of mucopurulent drainage material advised its removal. This manoeuvre was followed by a complete cure and, after more than two years follow-up, the patient remains asymptomatic.


Summary: The mechanism of unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis in two estuarine strains of Flexibacter was investigated. Addition of cyclic AMP (cAMP) inhibited the incorporation of radiolabeled acetate into fatty acids of lateexponential phase cultures of strain Inp2. Cerulenin selectively inhibited the incorporation of radioactive acetate into the major fatty acid, 16:1. When Flexibacter strain Inp3 was grown in a medium of high osmotic strength, polyunsaturated fatty acids were present, but they were absent from cultures grown in media with an osmotic strength close to that of sea water. Addition of cAMP to cultures growing at high osmotic strength suppressed the formation of polyunsaturated fatty acids; the uncoupler 2,4-dinitrophenol had a similar effect. The findings are discussed in the context of the suggestion made by Intriago and Floodgate (Journal of General Microbiology 137, 1503–1509, 1991) that Flexibacter strains possess both the anaerobic and aerobic pathways for unsaturated fatty acid biosynthesis, the activity of the latter being modulated by the intracellular concentration of cAMP.


Objective: Malaria is a major health problem in Nikshahr. In 2010, about 11.9% of the total malaria cases in Iran occurred in Nikshahr. The main purpose of this study was to survey the epidemiological features of malaria in Nikshahr, Southeast Iran, during a 7-year period, 2004-2010. Materials and Methods: The present survey is a descriptive study that involves positive cases of Malaria reported from the center of communicable diseases in Nikshahr. The data were entranced to a computer according to demographic and epidemiological characteristics of patients as well as plasmodium species; then they were analyzed by SPSS 16 software. Results: A total of 12233 cases were reported during 2004-2010 and three types of species of malaria parasite were detected. The highest positive number (2937) was reported in 2006 and the lowest number (221) in 2010. Malaria-positive cases of Nikshahr were mainly (60.2%) found among male individuals. The annual parasite incidence (API), which is the index of malaria incidence in the community, has decreased from 9.5 in 2004 to 1.09 in 2010. The slide positive rate among indigenous residents was significantly higher than that of the migrant population. Most (96.5%) of the malaria-positive cases were found among the Iranian population. About 0.3% of cases were identified to be mixed ( falciparum and vivax ), 98% Plasmodium vivax, and 1.7% Plasmodium falciparum . The largest number of malaria-positive cases occurred in October when the average percentage of humidity was 29.4 and the mean ambient temperature was 30.8°C. Conclusions: Several measures should ideally be implemented in an integrated pattern to contain the dissemination of malaria parasites and mosquito vectors; these include improvement of policies, regulations, and practices regarding malariological screening.


WC/Co is the material of choice for most high wear applications such as hot forming operations, drilling, cutting, machining and wire drawing due to its superior wear properties. In the evaluation of its material properties to withstand wear, particularly that of its hardness, most of the available information is based on room temperature investigations. However, when WC/Co is used in the actual applications, it also experiences very high contact temperatures and this localized heating has a detrimental effect on the WC/Co material causing microstructural changes on the surface and sub-micron surface that affect its wear resistance properties. Creep also plays an important role in the damage mechanisms at elevated temperatures especially in prolonged contact to heat such as those used in hot metal forming operations. However, the current information on these high temperature properties is not complete and has contradictory results. Moreover, creep studies of WC/Co have been done at temperatures >800°C and information below this temperature is also lacking. Therefore, the primary goal of this thesis is to obtain a first time in-depth understanding of its high temperature property–composition–microstructure interaction that affects its wear properties from room temperature up to 800°C using comprehensive scratch tests, high temperature indentation hardness tests and indentation creep tests. These tests are supplemented with advanced 3D imaging, microstructural and composition analysis using SEM, EBSD, FIB, EDX, SIMS and laser confocal microscopy. Moreover, due to the lack of a commercially available high temperature microindentation test system, this thesis also aims to design, build and commission a high temperature and high vacuum microindentation test system to carry out these investigations. The results of the scratch tests showed new information on the damage mechanisms, particularly on the formation of a tribo-layer on the scratched surfaces and the evolution of surface damages incurred on the indenter tip which is found to affect the coefficient of friction. These provide baseline information on the damage mechanisms occurring at room temperature and were instrumental in the development of the methodology used in the high temperature indentation tests. The results of the high temperature indentation tests showed that the behaviour of the WC/Co hardmetals were categorised according to two temperature regimes. In the low temperature regime (20°C?500°C), the controlling factor is dominated by the WC grain size and that the damage mechanisms are characterised by plastic deformation of the WC grains via slip, intragranular fracture of the WC grains within the surface of the indent and intergranular fracture along the edges of the indent. In the high temperature regime (>500°C), the controlling factor was dominated by the Co binder and the damage mechanism showed first time observation of severe plastic flow accompanied by shape change on the WC grains. A tribo-layer was also found to exist on the room temperature indents but not on the high temperature indents. In addition, pitting of the indenter tip occurred at test temperatures >700°C and its contribution to the measured hardness were determined. These results provide significant information on the best combination of WC grain size and Co content that are suitable for applications requiring high hardness retention and creep resistance. In addition, the thorough investigation of the damage mechanisms ensuing at these temperatures is beneficial in the design of WC/Co with better wear properties at elevated temperatures.


This paper describes the design and control of an integrated direct-drive joint suitable for applications that require a high-precision motion control system. The joint integrates a direct-drive synchronous motor with axial air gap, a torque sensor, and a high-resolution position sensor. The key design aspects of the integrated joint, like the motor's armature, cooling system, motor housing, bearing arrangement, sensors, and power electronics are detailed. We also present a number of advanced implementations in motor torque control, optimal joint torque sensory feedback, and motion control using positive joint torque feedback. Experimental results illustrate an outstanding performance regarding thermal response, torque ripple, reference trajectory tracking, torque disturbance rejection, and joint stiffness.


The increasing use of digital technologies has significantly reshaped marketing and consumer behavior (CB) as online communities and cutting-edge innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) disrupt and advance consumer attitudes on specific products and services. As such, online communities that are supported by AI technologies creating new knowledge from consumer interactions through platforms like social media as consumers share experiences on specific products or services. Since AI is designed to "learn" and improve with data generated from digital technologies linked to consumer interactions, AI relies on consumer knowledge-sharing (KS) activities to replicate new knowledge for product and service improvement. However, given the knowledge gap in this area, this article applies the fsQCA technique to data generated from 291 participants to develop CB metaframework predicted on the concepts of AI, CB, and KS. Our results suggest that AI advances consumer attitudes and behaviors when knowledge is acquired while online communities promote curiosity and engage consumers to learn by sharing experiences about specific products or services. Furthermore, understanding the causality between AI, CB, and KS concepts offers critical decision-making insights to marketing experts across the industry.


The physical models of a successful unified theory about the Universe must operate in different phase of matter evolution and different fields of physics. The attempts to build such wide range theory as a bunch of theories developed for different fields of physics are not quite successful. The accumulated knowledge from experiments and observations leads to a conclusion that some of the adopted postulates in the modern physics are not absolutely fundamental, as considered so far. A new approach for building of unified model of the Universe suggests resurrection of the principles of causality and logical understanding for any kind of physical phenomena. It is successfully applied in a new theory titled Basic Structures of Matter, which provides fundamentals for a unified theory about the Universe. The new approach leads to different physical models for the elementary particles and the atoms and also to a different concept about the Universe. In the same time the suggested models exhibit the same interaction energies as obtained by the Quantum mechanics and experiments. The analysis of the physical phenomena from a new point of view allows deeper understanding of the relations between the basic physical attributes: mass, energy, space, time, gravitation and inertia.


The low ability of writing creative skill of elementary students become the background of this research. The purpose of this study is to review and describe the effectiveness of creative writing skills of elementary students with multiliteration learning model. Creative writing is a way or process of ideas, or messages that contain added value, uniqueness, and is the original work of the author. Learning multiliteracy is a learning that constantly uses language skills to learn and form a complex understanding of other knowledge, related knowledge in the process of inquiry and as a means of building knowledge, building meaning, channeling ideas, and expressing ideas to generate creative and critical ideas for knowledge Already owned to be communicated to others. The method used in this research is quasi experiment with non-equivalent control group pretest posttest design. Data collected to answer research question that is data of pretest and posttest result of writing ability of fourth grader of elementary school. Techniques to measure the ability to write creative essay techniques. The result of posttest average score of writing ability of experiment class student is 9,04, meanwhile posttest average score of writing student ability of class of control is 7,38. From the results of these studies show that students creative writing ability is effective with in learning multiliteracy model


Epidermolysis bullosa is a group of inherited rare skin disease, characterized by bullae formation in the skin or mucous membranes. The fundamental abnormality is collagen degeneration leads to splitting of various epidermal layers. Dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB) is one of the major forms of epidermolysis bullosa. These patients often admitted to the hospital for corrective surgeries, change of dressing, contracture release, and skin grafting. Anesthetic management of these cases is always a challenge. We are reporting a case of 5-year-old boy diagnosed as a case of DEB scheduled for upper lip contracture release, skin grafting and debridement of nonhealing scars under anesthesia. In this case, we have focused mainly on the anesthetic management, preparation of the monitoring, transportation, difficulties in establishing the venous accesses, and airway management.


Precision manipulation, in which an object held between the fingertips is translated and/or rotated with respect to the hand without sliding, is used frequently in everyday tasks such as writing, yet few studies have examined the experimental precision manipulation workspace of the human hand. This study evaluates the range of positions over which 19 participants manipulated a moderately sized (3.3-4.1cm diameter) object using either the thumb and index finger (2 finger condition) or the thumb, index and middle fingers (3 finger condition). The results show that the 2-fingered workspace is on average 40 % larger than the 3-fingered workspace (p <; 0.001, likely due to added kinematic constraints from an additional finger. Representative precision manipulation workspaces for a median 17.5cm length hand are shown from multiple views to clearly illustrate the overall workspace shape, while the general relationship between hand length and workspace volume is evaluated. This view of the human precision manipulation workspace has various applications, ranging from motivating the design of effective, comfortable haptic interfaces to benchmarking the performance of robotic and prosthetic hands.


The thicknesses of veins of a single generation from the Kodiak accretionary complex show a power-law distribution with an exponent of D = 1.33. This value ( D >1) indicates that a significant portion of the vein-related extension is accommodated by the thinnest veins. Thick vein segments are typically confined to southeast-dipping brittle-ductile shear zones. Textural observations of veins within these zones indicate a progressive evolution from crack-seal to euhedral growth of quartz with an increase over time in the duration that fractures remained open. Model simulations of vein-thickness distributions show that a constant growth model results in a negative-exponential distribution and that it is necessary to assume size-proportional growth to produce a power-law distribution. Textures and power-law thickness distributions for the Kodiak veins are thus consistent with an increasing time-averaged growth rate as vein thickness increased, comprising a positive feedback. The positive feedback resulted in the progressive evolution from fractures to brittle-ductile shear zones and ultimately to faults.


This article is focused on providing the results of a partially impressionistic and partially acoustic phonetic analysis of the CURE vowel (i.e. /ʊə/ as in cure , tour , sure ) in South African English (SAfE) and, in particular, in the main first-language (L1) sociolect of this Southern Hemisphere variety, General SAfE. While the results confirm a high degree of variability in terms of the realisation of CURE in General SAfE, a couple of trends are identifiable. Firstly, while other non-rhotic varieties of English have undergone (or are undergoing) the Second FORCE Merger, whereby CURE merges with /oː/ (e.g. cure is pronounced [kjoː]), it would appear that the Second FORCE Merger has been arrested in the General SAfE of the recorded subjects (contra certain pronouncements in the extant literature and limited to some of the subjects and certain lexical items such as sure ). Secondly, in word-internal position, CURE is inclined towards smoothing (and in some cases full monophthongisation) with the quality of the resultant vowel mostly dependent on the preceding consonant. After a palatal or palato-alveolar segment in word-internal position, there appears to be a partial merger with rounded, fronted SAfE NURSE (i.e. [oː]), e.g. insurance is pronounced [ɪnʃoːɹəns]. In the case of non-post-palatal, word-internal CURE, however, the smoothed realisations are further back in phonetic space. In word-final position, the trend is for CURE to be realised as canonical [ʊə]. Generally, however, the presence in some cases of NURSE-like values in word-final position, particularly after palatal or palato-alveolar contexts (e.g. [məʧoː] for mature ), as well as both the high degree of variability in the data overall and residual [oː]-realisations, point to processes of phonologisation and lexicalisation of both NURSE-like and other qualities, thus creating a large number of exceptions to the overall allophonic patterning in the data.


Costimulatory CD40 plays an essential role in autoimmune diseases, including experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a murine model of human multiple sclerosis (MS). However, how CD40 drives autoimmune disease pathogenesis is not well defined. Here, we used a conditional knockout approach to determine how CD40 orchestrates a CNS autoimmune disease induced by recombinant human myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (rhMOG). We found that deletion of CD40 in either dendritic cells (DCs) or B cells profoundly reduced EAE disease pathogenesis. Mechanistically, CD40 expression on DCs was required for priming pathogenic Th cells in peripheral draining lymph nodes and promoting their appearance in the CNS. By contrast, B cell CD40 was essential for class-switched MOG-specific Ab production, which played a crucial role in disease pathogenesis. In fact, passive transfer of MOG-immune serum or IgG into mice lacking CD40 on B cells but not DCs reconstituted autoimmune disease, which was associated with inundation of the spinal cord parenchyma by Ig and complement. These data demonstrate that CD40 supports distinct effector programs in B cells and DCs that converge to drive a CNS autoimmune disease and identify targets for intervention.


ABSTRACT The opal mining areas of inland Australia have exposures in which a systematic association between near-surface silcrete and one or more silicified horizons at depth is displayed. In the Stuart Creek opal field, the deepest horizons are opalite and glassy quartzites in which all primary sedimentary structures are conserved. Higher in the section, lenses and nodules of quartzite occur in bleached, unconsolidated sands. Near the top of the section, a nodular and columnar silcrete displays numerous illuviation features. At the base of the section, the earliest phase of silicification is the pseudomorphic replacement of sedimentary clay minerals by opal. Subsequently, void linings of micro-laminated opal were formed, and fibrous silica was precipitated in residual cavities. In the middle part of the section, sedimentary clay minerals were replaced by microcrystalline quartz, while silicification of clay-free sands was achieved by overgrowth of detrital quartz grains. In both cases, residual voids were filled with chalcedony and euhedral quartz. In the upper part of the section, silicification produced microcrystalline quartz in the matrix of the host sediment and in titania-rich illuviation laminae at the base of voids and channels. The near-surface silcrete displays many features relating to infiltration and downward percolation of water. Variable rates of water percolation, as well as alternating periods of leaching and deposition, are inferred from macro- and micro-scale structures and fabrics. The presence of microquartz indicates that solutions contained comparatively low silica concentrations, but enough impurity elements to restrict the growth of large crystals. In the deepest horizons, the preservation of sedimentary structures, the occurrence of micro-laminated void cutans of silica, and the horizontal disposition of silicified pans or lenses suggest a relationship with former groundwater tables. Secondary silica is mainly opal, indicating that the precipitating solutions had high silica concentrations. In the middle part of the section, structures are similar to those at depth except that opal is lacking in the matrix and appears to have recrystallized to microquartz. Silicification may have commenced at a groundwater level, but it later proceeded in response to dissolution and recrystallization in the unsaturated zone above the water table. The different silicification processes occurred in the same landscape in response to different mechanisms. Near the surface, in the pedogenic silcrete, solutions appear to have dissolved silica during infiltration and concentrated it through evaporation during dry periods. At depth, there appears to have been a general acidification of the environment leading to destruction of sedimentary clay minerals and the consequent production of silica phases that had a comparatively high solubility. Opal was precipitated in these groundwater environments. During landscape dissection, the water table was lowered and former silicified horizons were stranded in the unsaturated zone. Here, percolating waters with relatively low concentrations of silica dissolved opal and precipitated microquartz. M anwhile, groundwater silicification proceeded at a deeper level at the new water table.


Ototoxic models of animal represent an elemental tool in basic otological research. In the present study, using guinea pigs we compared cochlear lesions mediated via cisplatin applied in terms of two regimens: consecutive application alone and in combination with furosemide. The influences of furosemide alone were also assessed; it was observed to result in temporary hearing loss and reversible damage to the stria vascularis. Consecutive administration of cisplatin alone tended to be disadvantageous because it bred progressive body weight loss and higher mortality compared with the combined regimen, which utilized a smaller cisplatin dose. The combined regimen brought about remarkable hair cell loss without corresponding lesion of spiral ganglion neurons. This difference suggests that the co-administered regimen did not mimic the damage to cochlear neuronal innervation caused by clinical application of cisplatin. In the meantime, we spread this method to the ototoxic model build in mice. Coadministration of gentamicin and furosemide caused marked hair cell loss as well as less mortality compared with consecutive application of gentamicin in mice. Due to different pharmacokinetics between cisplatin in guinea pigs and gentamicin in mice, the injection regimens of co-administration of furosemide cisplatin in guinea pigs and gentamicin – furosemide in mice were varied. Overall, the methods of co-administration of cisplatin/gentacimin and furosemide in rodents facilitate ototoxic model build.


The competitive environment in the agri-food sector is evolving as the food manufacturing and retailing industries become more concentrated. Evolving industry structure and new firm investment portend changes in future firm competitiveness and performance. This research describes how large food-manufacturing and retail firm performance has shifted and how firm valuation signals expected future change in performance. While there have been expectations that return on investment of large food retailers would increase relative to large packaged-food manufacturers, we find that this has not yet happened and that market valuations imply that retailers are not likely to gain on manufacturers in the future.


The Na+,K+-ATPase is a plasma membrane ion transporter of high physiological importance for ion homeostasis and cellular excitability in electrically active tissues. Mutations in the genes coding for Na+,K+-ATPase α-subunit isoforms lead to severe human pathologies including Familial Hemiplegic Migraine type 2 (FHM2), Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (AHC), Rapid Dystonia Parkinsonism (RDP) or epilepsy. Many of the reported mutations lead to change- or loss-of-function effects, whereas others do not alter the functional properties, but lead to e.g. reduced protein stability, reduced protein expression or defective plasma membrane targeting. Na+,K+-ATPase frequently assembles with other membrane transporters or cellular matrix proteins in specialized plasma membrane microdomains, but the effects of these interactions on targeting or protein mobility are elusive so far. Mutational disruption of established interaction motifs of the Na+,K+-ATPase with ankyrin B and caveolin-1 are expected to result in changes in plasma membrane targeting, changes of the localization pattern, and of the diffusion behavior of the enzyme. We studied the consequences of mutations in these binding sites by monitoring diffusion of eGFP-labeled Na+,K+-ATPase constructs in the plasma membrane of living HEK293T cells by fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) as well as fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) or photoswitching (FRAS) and observed significant differences compared to the wild-type enzyme, with synergistic effects for combinations of interaction site mutations. These measurements expand the possibilities to study the consequences of Na+,K+-ATPase mutations and provide information about the interaction of Na+,K+-ATPase α2-isoform with cellular matrix proteins, the cytoskeleton or other membrane protein complexes.


AbstractCrushed bricks used in air lime mortars must show pozzolanic activity to obtain hydraulic products, and peak firing temperature is one of the main parameters for pozzolanicity of the fired clay bricks apart from clay type. In this study, solid clay mortars containing impurities as found in nature, which are used in the production of commercially sold bricks, were pulverized for a uniform firing process and then fired at nine different temperatures. The pozzolanic activity of the fired, pulverized clay was examined by commonly used direct and indirect test methods, and the results were discussed. Phase transformations of the clay and the reactions corresponding to temperature changes were also examined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermogravimetric (TG) analyses. The common result of the methods reveals that clay treated at 850°C can be regarded as the best pozzolan, and the pozzolanicity of clay bricks significantly changes the mechanical properties of crushed brick-lime mortars.


Background: alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease in which hair is lost from some or all areas of the body, usually from the scalp due to the body's failure to recognize its own body cells and subsequent destruction of its own tissue as if it were an aggressor. The Anti- tissue transglutaminase antibodies, antibodies against the enzyme tissue transglutaminase (tTG), are found in the blood of some patients with alopecia areata. Serological blood tests such as anti- tissue transglutaminase antibodies are the first-line non-invasive investigation required to make a diagnosis of celiac disease.
Aims: the aim of the study is to establish the prevalence of Anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies in patients with alopecia areata.
Methods: we evaluated 96 serum samples. The samples were collected from two groups; group I of sixty five patients with alopecia areata and group II of thirty one control patients who were referred to dermatology department in al-hussaien teaching hospital for different dermatological diseases other than alopecia areata. All participants were evaluated for anti-tissue transglutaminase IgA and anti-tissue transglutaminase IgG antibodies.
Results: out of the 65 patients with alopecia areata included in the study, tTGA was positive in 13 patients (20%) and tTGG was positive in 8 patient (12.4%). The prevalence of positivity in patients with alopecia areata was higher compared to the control group in which tTGA was positive in 3 patients (9.7%) and the tTGG was positive in 2 patients (6%).
Conclusion:  we conclude that patients with alopecia areata have higher prevalence of serum anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies compared with control which support the autoimmune basis for alopecia areata, however, we were unable to demonstrate an increased risk of celiac disease in those patients.


Background: Cervical cancer is the most common gynecological cancer among women in Nigeria. The incidence is on the increase and poses a public health problem. The etiological agent is the human papilloma virus that is sexual transmitted. The cervical cancer incidence is related to lifestyle, poverty and sexual practices. Fortunately, it is a preventable disease as it is preceded by a pre‑invasive phase that can be detected and treated. There is paucity of report in literature on cervical cancer screening in Sokoto North‑West Nigeria. Aim: To determine the uptake, indications and results of cervical cancer screening in Usmanu Dan‑fodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH), Sokoto. Materials and Methods: A 3‑year descriptive study of the results of cervical cytology among women who attended the gynaecological out‑patient clinic of UDUTH, Sokoto. Results: During the period of study, 126 cervical smears were taken and 96% (121/126) of them were considered adequate for cytological evaluation thus constituting the subjects of the study. The average annual uptake of cervical smear was 1.29%. The main indications for cytologic smears were abnormal uterine bleeding 33.9% (41/121) and suspected carcinoma of the cervix 28.1% (34/121). Cytologic study was positive for dysplastic cells in 7% (25/121) of cases. Ten percent (12/121) of them were high grade squamous intra‑epithelial lesions while invasive carcinoma was seen in 3.3% (4/121) of the smears. Conclusion: Presence of abnormal cervical smear in 20% of the study subjects underscores the need for routine screening for cervical cancer. While organized national screening policy is awaited, opportunistic screening should be maximized.


A clustering framework is introduced to analyze the microscopic structural organization of molecular pairs in liquids and solutions. A molecular pair is represented by a representative vector (RV). To obtain RV, intermolecular atom distances in the pair are extracted from simulation trajectory as components of the key feature vector (KFV). A specific scheme is then suggested to transform KFV to RV by removing the influence of permutational molecular symmetry on the KFV as the predicted clusters should be independent of possible permutations of identical atoms in the pair. After RVs of pairs are obtained, a clustering analysis technique is finally used to classify all the RVs of molecular pairs into the clusters. The framework is applied to analyze trajectory from molecular dynamics simulations of an ionic liquid (trihexyltetradecylphosphonium bis(oxalato)borate ([P6,6,6,14][BOB])). The molecular pairs are successfully categorized into physically meaningful clusters, and their effectiveness is evaluated by computing the product moment correlation coefficient (PMCC). (Willett, Winterman, and Bawden, J. Chem. Inf. Comput. Sci. 1986, 26, 109–118; Downs, Willett, and Fisanick, J. Chem. Inf. Comput. Sci. 1994, 34, 1094–1102) It is observed that representative configurations of two clusters are related to two energy local minimum structures optimized by density functional theory (DFT) calculation, respectively. Several widely used clustering analysis techniques of both nonhierarchical (k‐means) and hierarchical clustering algorithms are also evaluated and compared with each other. The proposed KFV technique efficiently reveals local molecular pair structures in the simulated complex liquid. It is a method, which is highly useful for liquids and solutions in particular with strong intermolecular interactions. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


That regional interconnections can benefit intercon- nected grids is accepted by the decision makers owing to optimal utilization of resources, diversity of load patterns, increased security and improved system performance. However, there are "oportunities and threats" depending on how commercial, operational and security issues are tackled. The threats stem from potential seaming problems in the integration and lack of adequate defense mechanisms. In India, five large sized regional grids operate and these are interconnected either synchronously or asynchronously. The operating strategies for interconnections have evolved through trial operations on exiting system which are covered in this paper. The paper overviews the salient features of all the regional interconnections in India. The commercial mechanism, Availability Based Tariff (ABT), adopted by India has facilitated seamless integration on commercial front to a good extent as described in this paper. ABT links part of tariff with a universally available signal of system frequency. From experience gained over last few years, the operational and security issues have been discussed. With Open Access in operation, the interconnecting corridors have to play a significant role in the operation of the interconnected system. The need for evolving standards for the integrated operation became evident from the experience. The guiding principles for such standardization are also reported in this paper.


We demonstrate the plasmon-selective and driven deposition of (bipyramidal) Au nanoparticles on transparent substrates (glass coverslips) utilizing total internal reflection (TIR) illumination. Near-IR laser light undergoing TIR at a glass-water interface causes colloidal Au bipyramids to irreversibly deposit onto the glass surface. We demonstrate that the deposition process has particle (i.e., shape) selectivity that is associated with resonant plasmon excitation. Specifically, the deposition is selective for the bipyramids over spheroidal particles that are also present in solution due to the former's surface plasmon resonance in the near-IR region. Our measurements, finite difference time domain simulations, and the results of an analytical model show that the optical (i.e., scattering and gradient) forces that act on the particles are large and cause the observed acceleration and directed motion of the bipyramids. These directional forces play a major role in the spatial pattern of particle deposition that is observed. In addition, the resonant photothermal heating of the Au bipyramids causes an irreversible loss in colloidal stability, thus allowing them to adhere to the surface. Structural (i.e., scanning electron microscopy) characterization of the deposited bipyramids reveals a slight reduction in aspect ratio relative to the ensemble, consistent with the proposed (heating) mechanism. To our knowledge this is the first demonstration of the plasmon-selective deposition of metal nanoparticles from a heterogeneous mixture.


The theory of issue evolution predicts that the dimensional space of party competition is simple. We contrast this prediction with the expectation that a complicated multi-party system, such as the one in France, produces a more complicated dimensional structure. To test this claim, we examine the longitudinal structure of the policy preferences that underlie public opinion in France. Using surveys of preferences as a basic data source, we are able to extract two latent dimensions that almost fully explain the reported preferences. Both dimensions are defined by the left–right structure of the French party system. Whereas one is the traditional socioeconomic domain, the other comprises a wide array of new cultural issues. The orthogonal solution, however, does not produce the expected socioeconomic and cultural dimensions. Thus we impose our prior belief in the socioeconomic and cultural content and rotate the two dimensions independently to maximize fit with the two prior dimensions. We show that the same two-dimensional structure is also present in cross-sectional data, and can be used to position parties in the two-dimensional space. Moreover, we find that the two dimensions are closely connected, despite their completely different content. The explanation, which arises from the theory of issue evolution, is that the meaning of left–right is dynamic as well as elastic and incorporates new issues as they arise.


The copolymerization of myrcene with ethylene and propylene using half-sandwich scandium complexes bearing various auxiliary ligands has been examined. In the copolymerization of myrcene with ethylene, the THF-free aminobenzyl scandium complex bearing a relatively small cyclopentadienyl ligand (C5H5)Sc(CH2C6H4NMe2-o)2 (1) afforded diblock myrcene–ethylene copolymers with a high myrcene content and predominant cis-1,4-structure, whereas the analogous scandium complex with a larger cyclopentadienyl ligand (C5Me4SiMe3)Sc(CH2C6H4NMe2-o)2 (2) afforded multiblock myrcene–ethylene copolymers with different myrcene contents and a predominant 3,4-structure. In contrast, the THF-containing trimethylsilylmethyl scandium complex (C5Me4SiMe3)Sc(CH2SiMe3)2(THF) (3) afforded alternating myrcene–ethylene copolymers on using a sufficient amount of myrcene. More remarkably, the terpolymerization of myrcene with ethylene and propylene has also been realized using a scandium complex 3, yielding a new family of myrcene-based ethylene–propylene–diene rubbers (EPDM) with versatile CC double bonds in the main and side chains. By efficiently transforming the CC double bonds of the resulting myrcene-based EPDM into other polar groups, versatile functionalized polyolefins such as thioacetic acid, sulfoacid, and epoxidized, hydroxylated–chlorinated and furan functionalized polyolefins were obtained.


Over the last few years, service-oriented grid that enable a new way of service provision based on utility computing models, which users consume based on their QoS (quality of service) requirements. In such services grids, resource management and scheduling based on user's QoS constraints are addressed seldom, especially in the aspect of users' multiple QoS attributes preferences considered synthetically. This paper proposes a novel scheduling algorithm based on integrated utility of multiple QoS attributes. It describes multiple QoS attributes as utility functions and drives the dynamic resource scheduling by taking these utility functions as objective functions of scheduling optimization. Considering tasks related features, this paper also brings forward a task partition execution strategy to improve scheduling efficiency. Experiments show that the scheduling algorithm can reflect user's utility and preference in general. It also provides services division and performance guarantees, which presents the on- demand service well and makes scheduling more flexible.


Ornithine decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1. 17) is the first and the rate-controlling enzyme in polyamine biosynthesis. It decarboxylates L-ornithine to form diamine putrescine. ODC activity in cells is strictly regulated and one of the central elements of ODC regulation is an inhibitory protein called antizyme. Antizyme binds to ODC, inhibits its activity and targets ODC for the proteasomal degradation. Essentiality of polyamines for the normal cell growth and proliferation is well known. Recently their roles in the regulation of several classes of cation channels have been discovered. Some of these channels are expressed abundantly in the brain, which has increased interest in the polyamine metabolism in the central nervous system. In this study guanosine 5'-triphosphate activatable ODC was detected in the rat brain lysates. This activation was more significant after antizyme was separated from ODC. GTP-activatable ODC was more resistant to heat and displayed higher Vmax than kidney ODC. Previously GTP-activatable ODC had been found in mammalian tissues only in some tumors. ODC and antizyme expression in brain was localized by in situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry. Both proteins displayed wide and largely overlapping expression patterns restricted to neurons. The proteins were localized predominantly to cytoplasm at the most brain regions, but antizyme had a main localization in nuclei in some regions of the brain. In addition, the role of one of the most highly conserved regions in eukaryotic ODCs was studied using site-directed mutagenesis. The aspartate-233 to valine mutation was made and detected to increase Km values for the cofactor PLP and the substrate L-ornithine as well as Ki value for the inhibitor DFMO. In another part of this study a transgenic mouse line expressing ODC under the control of viral promotor was generated. The most significant changes in ODC activity were detected in reproductive organs of male mice. The high number of infertile transgenic males supported earlier reports about the importance of balanced polyamine metabolism for spermatogenesis. Infertility of female mice was increased as well, but the involvement of polyamines remained unproven. Transgenic mice were prone to various pathological conditions such as inflammations and tumour formation, which may be due to deregulated polyamine metabolism.


Decollectivization of China's rural economy in the early 1980s was one of the most significant aspects of the country's transition to a capitalist economy. Deng Xiaoping praised it as an "innovation," and its significance to the overall capitalist-oriented "reform" process surely cannot be overstated. The Chinese government has repeatedly referred to the supposed economic benefits of decollectivization as having "greatly increased the incentives to millions of peasants." Nevertheless, the political-economic implications of decollectivization have always been highly ambiguous, and questionable at best. Individual or small groups of peasants were frequently portrayed in mainstream accounts as political stars for initiating the process, but this served to obscure the deep resistance to decollectivization in many locales. Moreover, the deeper causes and consequences of the agrarian reform are downplayed in most writings, leaving the impression that the rural reform was in the main politically neutral. This article can also be found at the Monthly Review website , where most recent articles are published in full. Click here to purchase a PDF version of this article at the Monthly Review website.


3340 FAP-1 has been considered as one of the protein inhibitors in Fas-mediated apoptosis. However, we obtained Fas-susceptible clones by transduction of FAP-1 cDNA to FAP-1-negarive SW480 colon cancer cell line, which expressed Fas on the surface but was strongly resistant to Fas-mediated apoptosis. In the clones, caspase 8 and caspase 3 were fully activated by agonistic anti-Fas antibody treatment. Bcl-2 family proteins did not seem to relate to the high susceptibility of these clones, because caspase 9 was not activated. Transfection of FAP-1 did not suppress the survival actions of IGF-1 which enhance survival signal through Akt phsphorylation. Therefore, it was suggested that unknown factors might contribute this phenomenon. Then, we analyzed cDNA microarrays to compare mRNA levels of various genes between one of the Fas-sensitive clone and LacZ-transfected or parental SW480. Expression of p21 upregulation was confirmed in the clones, but antisense treatment of p21 showed that it acted as an inhibitor against Fas-mediated apoptosis. Upregulation in 21 genes and downregulation in 29 genes were revealed by cDNA microarrays. These genes contained transcription factors and signal transduction molecules. FAP-1 might induce unbalance in the network of survival and inhibitory factors that suppressed Fas-mediated apoptosis and, as a result, enhance susceptibility against Fas-mediated apoptosis in SW480.


In the early 1900s when club life was introduced in India, sporting activities also found a serious place in female lives due to the facilities provided. Women pioneers had started blazing the trail. Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Health Minister in India first set an example for North Indian women by taking to competitive tennis. The efforts of such sporting personalities have yielded fruits. The female sensation in badminton today is world no 2 Saina Newhal. Similar legendary sportswomen are Karnam Malleshwari, Anju Bobby George, PT Usha and Sania Mirza. Even if they are a step ahead, a number of factors ensure that sportswomen stay two steps behind. Though the Indian culture looks up to a woman as a mother of a race, the Indian society is firm with the belief that women are naturally inferior to men because of the faith that a woman's duty is bound only to birthing and taking care of her family. The level of physical education and sports for females has been hampered because of the endless limitations. Their road to glory is a fight against prejudice, inferiority and discrimination. Customs and traditions seep their way into discouraging woman achievers. We need sportswomen of yesteryear to handle the reigns and encourage the upcoming generations. Our society has to work towards a massive cultural reform where we have a healthy work ethic. Until that is done Indian women will be only chasing a mirage, not medals, in international sporting events.


In the development and manufacture stages of floor and wall ceramic tiles, firing shrinkage is basically determined by the combination of raw materials and frequently used as quality control parameters. This configures the ideal scenario to apply the techniques of experiments design, often used in various other areas, to model those properties of such ceramics bodies. In this work, ten formulations of three different raw materials, namely a clay mixture, potash feldspar and quartz (triaxial compositions) were selected and processed under conditions similar to those used in the ceramics industry. With the experimental results, a regression model was calculated, relating linear shrinkage with composition. After statistical analysis and verification experiments, the significance and validity of the model was confirmed. The regression model can then be used to select the best combination of those three raw materials to produce a ceramic body with specified properties.


Canada is developing a progressive trade agenda (PTA) that is pitched as a response to the rise of anti-globalization populism. This note reviews the concept of the PTA, its motivation, the specific elements that comprise it, the likely efficacy of these measures in addressing the factors thought to be driving populism, and the extent to which it can shape Canada's trade agreements in general and the renegotiated NAFTA in particular. It concludes that the PTA closely parallels the concept of "inclusive trade", which has received much attention internationally including in the WTO, the G20, and the World Economic Forum, and the concept of "trade sustainability" that has been developed by the European Union; that it responds to a widely accepted view that the gains from globalization have not been fairly shared, that there have been losers as well as winners, and that this has been a factor fueling the populist reaction against globalization; and that, while the policy is coherently framed, the role that trade policy has played in generating the current backlash against globalization was arguably relatively small, and the traction the PTA would have addressing these issues would be commensurately small. Further, the PTA faces modality issues: the norm-setting aspect is most effectively pursued at the multilateral level; in bilateral negotiations, policy coherence issues arise with both new and existing FTA partners, depending on the progressive credentials of partner governments (and changing administrations); and limiting the substantive content of the PTA to carve-outs for Canada's own progressive initiatives in order to achieve some elements even with less progressive trade partners may result in Canada facing competitive disadvantage and also a difficult time mobilizing support for the agreement. Finally, since deep integration requires relatively strong commitments in the areas addressed by the PTA, a failure to get the PTA through in the NAFTA renegotiation would signal that the move to deeper integration on the North American continent is truly over, with profound implications for commitments on behind-the-border measures in general.


Due to low manufacturing costs, printed organic solar cells are on the short-list of renewable and environmentally- friendly energy production technologies of the future. However, electrode materials and each photoactive layer require different techniques and approaches. Printing technologies have attracted considerable attention for organic electronics due to their potentially high volume and low cost processing. A case in point is the interface between the substrate and solution (ink) drop, which is a particularly critical issue for printing quality. In addition, methods such as UV, oxygen and argon plasma treatments have proven suitable to increasing the hydrophilicity of treated surfaces. Among several methods of measuring the ink-substrate interface, the simplest and most reliable is the contact angle method. In terms of nanoscale device applications, zinc oxide (ZnO) has gained popularity, owing to its physical and chemical properties. In particular, there is a growing interest in exploiting the unique properties that the so-called nanorod structure exhibits for future 1-dimensional opto-electronic devices. Applications, such as photodiodes, thin-film transistors, sensors and photo anodes in photovoltaic cells have already been demonstrated. This paper presents the wettability properties of ZnO nanorods treated with UV illumination, oxygen and argon plasma for various periods of time. Since this work concentrates on solar cell applications, four of the most common solutions used in organic solar cell manufacture were tested: P3HT:PCBM DCB, P3HT:PCBM CHB, PEDOT:PSS and water. The achieved results prove that different treatments change the contact angle differently. Moreover, solvent behaviour varied uniquely with the applied treatment.


Liquid crystal over silicon (LCoS) spatial light modulator technology has become dominant in industries such as pico-projection, which require high-quality reflective microdisplays for intensity modulation of light. They are, however, restricted from being used in wider optical applications, such as computer-generated holography, adaptive optics, and optical correlation, due to their phase modulation ability. The main drawback of these devices is that their modulation is based on simple planar or twisted nematic liquid crystals, which are inherently slow mechanisms due to their viscoelastic properties. Their use is also limited due to fact that the phase modulation is dependent on the state of polarization of the illumination. In this paper, we demonstrate that a polymer-stabilized blue-phase liquid crystal can offer both phase modulation and high speed switching in a silicon backplane device which is independent of the input polarization state. The LCoS device shows continuous phase modulation of light with a submillisecond switching time and insensitivity to the input light polarization direction. This type of phase modulation opens up a whole new class of applications for LCoS technology.


IMPORTANCE
Significant controversy exists regarding routine intraoperative cholangiography in preventing common duct injury during cholecystectomy.

OBJECTIVE
To investigate the association between intraoperative cholangiography use during cholecystectomy and common duct injury.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS
Retrospective cohort study of all Texas Medicare claims data from 2000 through 2009. We identified Medicare beneficiaries 66 years or older who underwent inpatient or outpatient cholecystectomy for biliary colic or biliary dyskinesia, acute cholecystitis, or chronic cholecystitis. We compared results from multilevel logistic regression models to the instrumental variable analyses.

INTERVENTIONS
Intraoperative cholangiography use during cholecystectomy was determined at the level of the patients (yes/no), hospitals (percentage intraoperative cholangiography use for all cholecystectomies at the hospital), and surgeons (percentage use for all cholecystectomies performed by the surgeon). Percentage of use at the hospital and percentage of use by surgeon were the instrumental variables.

MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES
Patients with claims for common duct repair operations within 1 year of cholecystectomy were considered as having major common duct injury.

RESULTS
Of 92,932 patients undergoing cholecystectomy, 37,533 (40.4%) underwent concurrent intraoperative cholangiography and 280 (0.30%) had a common duct injury. The common duct injury rate was 0.21% among patients with intraoperative cholangiography and 0.36% among patients without it. In a logistic regression model controlling for patient, surgeon, and hospital characteristics, the odds of common duct injury for cholecystectomies performed without intraoperative cholangiography were increased compared with those performed with it (OR, 1.79 [95% CI, 1.35-2.36]; P < .001). When confounding was controlled with instrumental variable analysis, the association between cholecystectomy performed without intraoperative cholangiography and duct injury was no longer significant (OR, 1.26 [95% CI, 0.81-1.96]; P = .31).

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
When confounders were controlled with instrumental variable analysis, there was no statistically significant association between intraoperative cholangiography and common duct injury. Intraoperative cholangiography is not effective as a preventive strategy against common duct injury during cholecystectomy.


In this work, we consider a duty-cycled wireless sensor network with the assumption that the on/off schedules are uncoordinated. In such networks, as all nodes may not be awake during the transmission of time synchronization messages, nodes will require to re-transmit the synchronization messages. Ideally a node should re-transmit for the maximum sleep duration to ensure that all nodes are synchronized. However, such a proposition will immensely increase the energy consumption of the nodes. Such a situation demands that there is an upper bound of the number of retransmissions. We refer to the time a node spends in re-transmission of the control message as broadcast duration. We ask the question, what should be the broadcast duration to ensure that a certain percentage of the available nodes are synchronized. The problem to estimate the broadcast duration is formulated so as to capture the probability threshold of the nodes being synchronized. Results show the proposed analytical model can predict the broadcast duration with a given lower error margin under real world conditions, thus demonstrating the efficiency of our solution.


ABSTRACT Young women have taken the lead in a new wave of feminist and democratic protests that have erupted across a wide range of countries, North and South. These movements raise a range of political and analytic questions: To what extent is it useful to identify the recent wave of activism in terms of a new generation of activists? How different is the 'new' feminism to earlier forms, and what differences and continuities divide and unite the generations? These questions are explored through examining the characteristics common to contemporary feminisms, and through case studies of different campaigns in Brazil, India, and Malawi.


ABSTRACT Woo, J.; Kim, D., and Na, W.B., 2016. Anchor collision analysis of stone-filled bags for submarine power cable protection using a smoothed particle hydrodynamics method. In: Vila-Concejo, A.; Bruce, E.; Kennedy, D.M., and McCarroll, R.J. (eds.), Proceedings of the 14th International Coastal Symposium (Sydney, Australia). Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue, No. 75, pp. 720–724. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. We present a method for the safety analysis of stone-filled bags used to protect submarine power cables from anchor collision, using a smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) method capable of dealing with discrete rocks. For this purpose, stone bags were modelled using the SPH method. Using the terminal velocities of five anchors, we simulated the transient dynamic behavior that occurs when the anchors collide with the stone bags. The response was sensitive to the collision velocity, while the displacement responses were also sensitive to the shape of the anchor heads. Stockless anchors provided more sensitive responses, especially stresses, to the larger stone bag size. Our results indicated that the safety performance of the 3.0 m × 3.0 m × 3.0 m stone bag provided sufficient protection for all of the collision cases. It should be noted that the collision velocities corresponded to the maximum (terminal) velocity. For shallower water depths, resulting in anchor velocities less than the terminal velocity, the 1.5 m × 1.5 m × 1.5 m stone bag would also provide suitable protection against anchor collision.


Ternary fission is a rare occurrence in which three particles are produced from a single fission event. This analysis uses tracked fission event data recorded by NIFFTE's time projection chamber with a series of refined cuts to isolate all possible ternary events. The experiment used two targets, each consisting of two isotopes; one target was Pu-239 and U-235, and the other was U-238 and U-235. The data was used to measure the ternary/binary fission ratios for each isotope. The ratios for the Pu-239 and U-235 target that were found are shown to be too high due to alpha contamination. The U-238 and U-235 results were determined to be 0.60% and 0.59%, closer to expectations from previous measurements, but are still preliminary and subject to further investigation. An interactive 3-dimensional model was constructed in order to better visualize these events and improve the sorting of ternary fission candidates. The ternary fission candidates were analyzed for proper track lengths, energies, and vertexing. SECTION


As Decentralized Generation(DG) becomes more reliable and economically feasible, it is expected that a higher application of DG units would be interconnected to the existing grids. This new market penetration of DG technologies is linked to a large number of factors like technologies costs and performances, interconnection issues, safety, market regulations, environmental issues or grid connection constrains. This paper describes the procedures and results for the mechanical, electrical, and environmental tests of MGT on actual grid-connection under Korean regulations. As one of the achievements, the simulation model of MGT was developed, so that it will be able to analyze or propose new distributed generation system using MGT. The field test was conducted in order to respond to a wide variety of needs for noise reduction and utilization and its performance was evaluated in consideration of its operational problems. The MGT is successfully supplying electricity to Korean grids with satisfying various regulations. The suggested strategy and experience for the evaluation of the distributed generation will be used for the introduction of other distributed generation technologies into the grid in the future.


The Toxicology for the 21st Century (Tox21) program is an initiative between multiple U.S. federal agencies aiming to predict chemical toxicity based on the data from in vitro assays, which would greatly reduce the effort of traditional whole animal studies. The program has constructed a library of ∼10 000 environmental chemicals and drugs, representing a wide range of structural diversity, which is being tested in triplicate against a battery of cell-based assays in a quantitative high-throughput screening (qHTS) format. A standardised process has also been established to enable assay development, automated robotic screening, massive data acquisition, new data analysis approaches needed to integrate and characterise the data, and data sharing. To date, the Tox21 program has generated over 120 million data points that have been made publicly available, thus contributing to the big data in toxicology. In this chapter, examples are given to show how to build in vivo toxicity prediction models based on in vitro activity profiles of compounds and prioritise compounds for further in-depth toxicological studies. These data sets were also successfully used in a "crowd-source" challenge with its goal to encourage public participation to develop new methods and models for toxicity prediction.


I. INTRODUCTION 1507 II. BACKGROUND 1510 A. Sovereignty of the Holy See and Its Control Over Catholic Affairs 1510 B. The Holy See's Knowledge of Clerical Sexual Abuse 1515 C. The FSIA and the Recent Cases Attacking the Holy See's Immunity 1517 III. IS RESPONDEAT SUPERIOR ACTUALLY SUPERIOR? 1519 A. "Do Not Be Called Master' ": Priests And Bishops as Employees of the Holy See 1520 B. "Render Unto Caesar What Is Caesar's, and to God What Is God's": The Ecclesial Abstention Doctrine in American Courts 1527 C. "Do Not Consider Who a Person Is; Give Ear to the Lowly and to the Great Alike": Unfair and Unpredictable Application of the FSIA 1532 IV. COMMAND RESPONSIBILITY AND LIABILITY 1536 A. Command Responsibility in U.S. Courts 1536 B. Applying Command Responsibility to the Catholic Church 1537 V. CONCLUSION 1540 I. INTRODUCTION In the 1970s, no Boston priest was more electrifying than Paul Richard Shanley. Ordained in 1960, he sought and received from his bishop, Boston cardinal Humberto Medeiros, a mission to minister to "sexual minorities" in 1970 and became a well-known Boston "street priest."1 Wearing jeans and smoking Kool cigarettes, he gathered about him runaway gay teenagers and advocated fiercely for gay rights.2 Yet one of the boys drawn to him was the same one Shanley would be convicted of sexually abusing in 2005. 3 In a civil suit seeking damages from the Archdiocese of Boston for its role in hiding Shanley's abuse, the plaintiffs submitted at least twenty affidavits from Shanley's victims detailing abuse from 1961 to 1988, including accounts of child sexual abuse and oral and anal rape.4 One victim's affidavit states that during the abuse, "Father Shanley would explain to me that he was a 'worker of God' and that the acts of abuse were sanctioned by God."5 God is not amenable to suit in the United States for the acts of His agents, but many victims have sued American bishops and dioceses in the Catholic Church.6 These suits have resulted in over $2 billion in settlements.7 Yet some victims are seeking the even deeper pockets of the Holy See, the ecclesial administrative body of the Catholic Church governed by the pope.8 The Holy See, an internationally recognized sovereign that maintains formal relations with 176 sovereign states and has permanent observer status at the UN General Assembly,9 would normally receive immunity from suit through the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act ("FSIA").10 However, in two recent cases, O'Bryan v. Holy See11 and Doe v. Holy See,12 the Sixth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals have held that suits against the Holy See may proceed through the tortious act exception of the FSIA.13 The plaintiffs alleged that the Holy See was liable through respondeat superior, a common law theory of vicarious liability holding employers liable for their employees' tortious acts within the scope of their employment.14 Although respondeat superior is an attractive theory of liability to overcome the Holy See's sovereign immunity, it also presents a host of thorny theoretical and practical problems. First, the Holy See's unique status and the unique religious organization it administers present difficult issues when applying traditional agency law. Priests, who are citizens of the nations in which they work and maintain few material ties to the Holy See, seem a far cry from the usual sovereign agents who find themselves in court, such as diplomatic attaches and state-owned banks. …


The disastrous events of tsunamis or floods in the past revealed the effectiveness of coastal forest. In tsunami mitigation strategies, interest in a multiple defense system is increasing rather than a single defense structure. This shift to a multiple defense system because the tsunami inundation could sufficiently be delayed and the overflow volume could be reduced compared to that of a single defense system. The previous research studies pointed out the limitation of land use in the coastal area, which is a major problem to construct a thick forest for tsunami mitigation. Thus, the present study conducted flume experiments to clarify the flow structure and energy loss through a forest with a gap, i.e. discontinuous forest model (DFM), under varying steady subcritical flows and varying gaps between the forest models. An experiment with continuous forest model (CFM) was also performed under the same flow conditions for the comparison purpose. The discontinuous forest, i.e. combination of upstream model (UM) and downstream model (DM), resulted in slightly larger backwater rise, i.e. 1-6%, upstream of the models due to higher flow resistance, as compared to that of continuous forest. Hence, due to double reflection (back movement of water wave due to backwater rise) and large resistance offered by DFM, the maximum loss of flow energy became higher, i.e. 37%, compared to that of CFM, i.e. 32%. The results demonstrate that this type of discontinuous forest with the appropriate configuration could be as effective as a continuous forest belt in mitigating the tsunami hazards.


textabstractWe consider a fluid queue fed by a superposition of $n$ homogeneous on-off sources with generally distributed on- and off-periods. We scale buffer space $B$ and link rate $C$ by $n$, such that we get $nb$ and $nc$, respectively. Then we let $n$ grow large. In this regime, the overflow probability decays exponentially in the number of sources $n$; we specifically examine the situation in which also $b$ is large. We explicitly compute asymptotics for the case in which the on-periods have a subexponential distribution, e.g., Pareto, Lognormal, or Weibull. We provide a detailed interpretation of our results. Crucial is the shape of the function $v(t) := - log Pr( A^* > t )$ for large~$t$, $A^*$ being the residual on-period. If $v(.)$ is slowly varying (e.g., Pareto, Lognormal), then, during the trajectory to overflow, the input rate will only slightly exceed the link rate. Consequently, the buffer will fill `slowly', and the typical time to overflow will be `more than linear' in the buffer size. In contrast, if $v(.)$ is regularly varying of index strictly between 0 and 1 (e.g., Weibull), then the input rate will significantly exceed the link rate, and the time to overflow is essentially proportional to the buffer size. In both cases there is a substantial fraction of the sources that remain in the on-state during the entire path to overflow, while the other sources contribute at mean rate. These observations lead to straightforward approximations for the overflow probability. These approximations can be extended to the case of heterogeneous sources; the results provide further insight into the so-called reduced-load approximation.


Freely-fed, female, rats were trained in a two-lever, delay-discounting task: one lever delivered a single chocolate-flavoured pellet immediately and the other a three-pellet reward after increasing delay (0, 4, 8, 16, 32 s). Rats were divided into two groups (i.e. binge-eating rats given irregular, limited access to chocolate in addition to normal chow and controls maintained on normal chow). Both groups exhibited increased preference for the immediate reward as the delay interval was lengthened. The discounting rate was significantly greater in binge-eating rats than non-binge-eating controls, especially as the behaviour became more established indicating that increased impulsivity and intolerance of delayed reward are part of the psychopathology of binge-eating. Lisdexamfetamine (0.8 mg/kg, orally (d-amphetamine base)) reversed the reduced preference of binge-eating rats for larger rewards at delay intervals of 4 s, 8 s and 32 s and across all sessions. Lisdexamfetamine-treated binge-eating rats consumed the same number of pellets as vehicle-treated, binge-eating rats and non-binge-eating controls eliminating the possibility lisdexamfetamine's actions on appetite or satiety mediated its effects on operant responding for food pellets in delay-discounting. In summary, binge-eating rats showed increased impulsive choice compared with non-binge-eating controls that was reversed by lisdexamfetamine, complementing results showing lisdexamfetamine reduced impulsiveness scores in patients with binge-eating disorder.