PART 1: HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF MATERIALS AND INTERIOR DESIGN 1. The Industrial Age: Design movements and their materials 2. The evolution of materials 3. The historical influence of the environmental agenda and its impact on materials 4. The twenty-first century PART II: SELECTION 5. The brief and client Image or brand identity Cost, quality and programme Functional, technical, aesthetic and sensory requirements 6. The site Existing buildings Step by Step: Recording materials in an existing building Step by Step: Making a sensory reading of a site New buildings, proposed buildings, buildings under construction Temporary sites 7. The concept Step by Step: Surface to form Step by Step: Combining materials PART III: APPLICATION 8. Material properties Functional properties Sensory properties Relative properties Sight Step by Step: Understanding colour Step by Step: Colour and the interior Touch Smell and taste Hearing Environmental properties Be informed Be responsible Be creative Subjective properties Personal readings Socially or politically constructed readings Cultural readings The maker's reading 9. Material detail Step by Step: Repeat components Step by Step: Recording joints and junctions Step by Step: Visiting an exemplar building PART IV: COMMUNICATING FROM CONCEPT TO COMPLETION 10. Thinking and communicating through drawing 11. Concept stage Thinking 'through the material' Thinking 'through the sketch' The sketchbook Freehand sketches and 'drawings' Step by Step: Representing material atmospheres Step by Step: Representing existing materials Sketch models and conceptual models Materials vocabulary 'Spirit of place' samples objects Precedent images 12. Design development Drawings and models Computer aided design (CAD) drawings Sample boards and material products Step by Step: Presenting material samples 13. Detail and construction stage Detail and working drawings Documentation and description Prototypes Post-construction and occupation PART V: MATERIAL CLASSIFICATIONS AND SOURCES 14. Material classifications Polymers Metals Wood and other organic fibres Ceramics and glass Stone and slate Animal products Composites New and emerging materials and processes 15. Material sources and resources Practice libraries (private) University/institutional libraries (semi-private or public) Materials databases Trade fairs, exhibitions, manufacturers' showrooms PART VI: CASE STUDIES Case study 1. Atmosphere: Beijing Noodle Bar, Design Spirits Co. Ltd Case study 2. Brand identity: Projects for Levi Strauss, Jump Studios Case study 3. Narratives: Collaborative interiors, Tracey Neuls Case study 4. Pattern and surface: Gunilla Klingberg Case study 5. Creating space: softwall + softblock modular system, molo design, ltd Case study 6. A material response to site: Alex Hoare Case study 7: Sustainability: 'Atmosphere: Exploring Climate Science'. Casson Mann Case study 8: Material detail and construction I: Pink Bar, Jakob + MacFarlane Case study 9: Material detail and construction II: Republic of Fritz Hansen, BDP and TinTab


Background Skeletal muscle wasting is a devastating complication of several physiological and pathophysiological conditions. Inflammatory cytokines play an important role in the loss of skeletal muscle mass in various chronic diseases. We have recently reported that proinflammatory cytokine TWEAK is a major muscle-wasting cytokine. Emerging evidence suggests that gene expression is regulated not only at transcriptional level but also at post-transcriptional level through the expression of specific non-coding microRNAs (miRs) which can affect the stability and/or translation of target mRNA. However, the role of miRs in skeletal muscle wasting is unknown. Methodology/Principal Findings To understand the mechanism of action of TWEAK in skeletal muscle, we performed mRNA and miRs expression profile of control and TWEAK-treated myotubes. TWEAK increased the expression of a number of genes involved in inflammatory response and fibrosis and reduced the expression of few cytoskeletal gene (e.g. Myh4, Ankrd2, and TCap) and metabolic enzymes (e.g. Pgam2). Low density miR array demonstrated that TWEAK inhibits the expression of several miRs including muscle-specific miR-1-1, miR-1-2, miR-133a, miR-133b and miR-206. The expression of a few miRs including miR-146a and miR-455 was found to be significantly increased in response to TWEAK treatment. Ingenuity pathway analysis showed that several genes affected by TWEAK are known/putative targets of miRs. Our cDNA microarray data are consistent with miRs profiling. The levels of specific mRNAs and miRs were also found to be similarly regulated in atrophying skeletal muscle of transgenic mice (Tg) mice expressing TWEAK. Conclusions/Significance Our results suggest that TWEAK affects the expression of several genes and microRNAs involved in inflammatory response, fibrosis, extracellular matrix remodeling, and proteolytic degradation which might be responsible for TWEAK-induced skeletal muscle loss.


Crowd simulations have many benefits over real-life research such as in computer games, architecture and entertainment. One of the key elements in this study is to include elements of decision-making into the crowd. The aim of this simulator is to simulate the features of an intelligent agent to escape from crowded environments especially in one-way corridor, two-way corridor and four-way intersection. The addition of the graphical user interface enables intuitive and fast handling in all settings and features of the Intelligent Agent Simulator and allows convenient research in the field of intelligent behaviour in massive crowd. This paper describes the development of a simulator by using the Open Graphics Library (OpenGL), starting from the production of training data, the simulation process, until the simulation results. The Social Force Model (SFM) is used to generate the motion of agents and the Support Vector Machine (SVM) is used to predict the next step for intelligent agent.


Cochrane1 proposed that, because resources are always limited, they should be used to provide equitably those forms of health care that have been shown in properly designed evaluations to be effective. Consistently with this suggestion, Antoniou et al 2 in this issue of JMG (see page 425), examined the performance of several algorithms for predicting the BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation status of women attending UK cancer family clinics over the past decade or so. They concluded, not unreasonably, that the widespread use of these models would "improve equity of access and the cost-effectiveness of genetic testing". However, they did not describe policy changes that would achieve these gains.

Antoniou et al 2 showed that the various genotype-prediction models are reasonably well calibrated, in that out of 100 women with a prediction probability of x %, approximately x will be a mutation carrier, at least for women with a reasonably high chance of being a carrier (e.g. x >15 or 20; see tables 3 and 4 of that paper2). There was little difference between the algorithms in terms of ranking women in order of their probability of being a carrier (i.e. they have similar areas under the ROC curve; see table 6 of that paper …


The algorithms which enable the dynamic deformation of a virtual object are investigated. To realize natural deformation observed in the real world, it is necessary to incorporate various physical constraints into the algorithms. But it is difficult to realize such deformation in real-time. Thus virtual objects are deformed by not moving points but generating and/or vanishing points in an object, by inspiring the task of carving an image in wood. By using this method, it is possible to generate reasonable interactive force sensation. As a rudimentary state of this research, the proposed method is carried out by simple experiments and simulations.<<ETX>>


Background Antibiotics are among the most commonly prescribed drugs in paediatrics. Due to an overall rise in healthcare costs, lack of uniformity in drug prescribing despite standard treatment guidelines and the emergence of antibiotic resistance, monitoring and control of antibiotic use is of growing concern and strict antibiotic policies are warranted. Purpose To access the prescribing pattern of antibiotic use in the treatment of prevalent paediatric diseases at Federal Medical Centre Owerri, to compare this pattern to the standard treatment guidelines and to estimate the cost implications of this pattern on the hospital drug budget. Materials and methods A retrospective study covering January 2002 to December 2006 was done. Medical records of paediatric inpatients of age 0-12 years were reviewed. Total number of cases was 5968. Results The average number of medicines per patient ranged from 5.17 in 2002 to 7.9 in 2006 and percentage of antibiotics per prescription also ranged from 63.3 in 2002 to 86.6 in 2006 The most common disease in this hospital was malaria followed by bronchopneumonia. Out of the 5968 children clinically diagnosed with these diseases and treated with antibiotics, specimens were taken for culture in only 1648 cases (33%) to identify pathogenic organisms. Children 1-5 years received antibiotics more frequently than all the other groups. 80-86% of total antibiotics were administered parenterally and 80-85.5% of drugs were prescribed from the hospital formulary. Cephalosporins were the most frequently prescribed antibiotic followed by penicillin and then aminoglycosides. 21-26% of the hospital budget was spent on antibiotics. High-cost broad-spectrum antibiotics were commonly used. Conclusions This study revealed significant flaws in the prescribing pattern of antibiotics in the paediatric department of this hospital. It is pertinent to note that because children are at greater risk of receiving multiple courses of antibiotics and in view of the risk of antibiotic resistance, strategies to control antibiotic resistance should focus on this patient population.


This article deals with the question of differences in competition policy enforcement regimes in Japan, Europe and the United States. In answer to the question "Do differences matter?", the author concludes that they matter less than conventional wisdom suggests at least in terms of "fairness" and effectiveness. The article challenges the widely held views that Japan's competition rules are ineffectively enforced and that U.S. antitrust enforcement, especially treble damage actions, have had an unfair impact on foreign firms. The article concludes with recommendations for greater cooperation between trade regulation and antitrust enforcement authority in the United States and among competition policy enforcement authority internationally.


The American public has overwhelmingly supported the Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act since 2001. The support is widespread and cuts across race, ethnic, and party lines. Given the United States' anti-immigrant/immigration sentiment in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, support for the DREAM Act is perplexing. To that end, political scientists, sociologists, and education scholars, among others, have pointed to the exceptional framing of the DREAM Act as the primary predictor of support. However, a significant portion of non-Hispanic white Americans who support the DREAM Act also support restrictive and often punitive immigration policies. What influences most white Americans to support DREAM Act legislation? And what leads a subset of these same individuals to simultaneously support restrictive immigration policies that hurt DREAMers and their families? I argue that predispositions explain these two contradictory policy preferences. Data from the 2012 American National Election Studies (ANES) and the 2018 Cooperative Congressional Election Studies (CCES) demonstrates that white Americans use racial resentment and egalitarianism as justifications to support both policies. However, the effects are conditioned on partisanship.


Religious and Sexual Nationalisms in Central and Eastern Europe: Gods, Gays, and Governments. presents case studies from some ten countries that serve to explore the ways in which religion, nationalism, and (homo)sexuality intersect in public discourse. It shows how religious leaders, political and social movements, LGBT-organizations, governments, and media negotiate the powers of religion and state in taking position regarding sexual diversity. These negotiations are as much about sexual morality as they are about national identity, anti-EU sentiments, and the efforts of religious institutions to regain power in post-communist societies.


This work aims at understanding future spatial and temporal distributions of tree species in the Mediterranean region of France under various climates. We focused on two different species ( Pinus Halepensisand Quercus Ilex) and compared their growth under the IPCC-B2 climate scenario in order to quantify significant changes between present and future. The influence of environmental factors such as atmospheric CO2 increase and topography on the tree growth has also been quantified. We modeled species growth with the help of a processbased model (MAIDEN), previously calibrated over measured ecophysiological and dendrochronological series with a Bayesian scheme. The model was fed with the ARPEGE – MeteoFrance climate model, combined with an explicit increase in CO2 atmospheric concentration. The main output of the model gives the carbon allocation in boles and thus tree production. Our results show that the MAIDEN model is correctly able to simulate pine and oak production in space and time, after detailed calibration and validation stages. Yet, these simulations, mainly based on climate, are indicative and not predictive. The comparison of simulated growth at end of 20th and 21st centuries, show a shift of the pine production optimum from about 650 to 950 m due to 2.5 K temperature increase, while no optimum has been found for oak. With the direct effect of CO2 increase taken into account, both species show a significant increase in productivity (+26 and +43% for pine and oak respectively) at the end of the 21st century. While both species have different growth mechanisms, they have a good chance to extend their spatial distribution and their elevation in the Alps during the 21st century under Correspondence to: C. Gaucherel (email@example.com) the IPCC-B2 climate scenario. This extension is mainly due to the CO2 fertilization effect.


The effect of strychnine upon the electrical activity recorded from the axon and the soma of an isolated nerve cell (the nonadapting stretch receptor cell of the crayfish) was studied. Protracted exposure of the soma of the cell to strychnine prolongs the duration of the intracellulary recorded action potential, as has been described in other excitable tissues treated with quaternary ammonium ions. During the plateau in the falling phase of the soma spike, the axon is usually firing repetitively. The stimulation of the inhibitory fiber produces a premature termination of the prolonged spike.


AIMS
The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the agreement among different methods used to estimate angular deviation of the body to determine the risk for development of upper limb musculoskeletal disorders in dentistry undergraduates.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Students (n = 79) enrolled in the final year undergraduate course of the Araraquara School of Dentistry-Syo Paulo State University-UNESP were evaluated. Photographs were taken of students performing clinical procedures. The work postures adopted by each student were evaluated by means of rapid upper limb assessment (RULA). The basis used to obtain the individual's final risk score is the measurement of the angular deviations in the neutral positions of the regions evaluated. Two methods were used to estimate the angular deviation of the body: Visual exam and Image Tool software. A RULA final risk score was attributed to each procedure the student performed (n = 333). Study of the agreement between the methods about risk of musculoskeletal disorders was conducted by means of Kappa (κ) statistics. The level of significance adopted was 5%.

RESULTS
Fair agreement (κ = 0.32) between the evaluated methods was verified.

CONCLUSION
The risk for development of upper limb musculoskeletal disorders by dentistry undergraduates evaluated by using RULA was not in agreement with the results obtained by use of visual exam and Image Tool.


Existing secure interdomain routing protocols can verify validity properties about individual routes, such as whether they correspond to a real network path. It is often useful to verify more complex properties relating to the route decision procedure - for example, whether the chosen route was the best one available, or whether it was consistent with the network's peering agreements. However, this is difficult to do without knowing a network's routing policy and full routing state, which are not normally disclosed. In this paper, we show how a network can allow its peers to verify a number of nontrivial properties of its interdomain routing decisions without revealing any additional information. If all the properties hold, the peers learn nothing beyond what the interdomain routing protocol already reveals; if a property does not hold, at least one peer can detect this and prove the violation. We present SPIDeR, a practical system that applies this approach to the Border Gateway Protocol, and we report results from an experimental evaluation to demonstrate that SPIDeR has a reasonable overhead.


The effects of in situ exposure to low concentrations (micrograms per liter) of herbicides on aerobic degradation of herbicides in aquifers were studied by laboratory batch experiments. Aquifer material and groundwater were collected from a point source with known exposure histories to the herbicides mecoprop (MCPP), dichlorprop, BAM, bentazone, isoproturon, and DNOC. Degradation of the phenoxy acids, mecoprop and dichlorprop, was observed in five of six sampling points from within the plume. Mecoprop was mineralized, and up to 70% was recovered as 14CO2. DNOC was degraded in only two of six sampling points from within the plume, and neither BAM, bentazone, nor isoproturon was degraded in any sampling point. A linear correlation (R2 > or = 0.83) between pre-exposure and amount of herbicide degraded within 50 days was observed for the phenoxy acids, mecoprop and dichlorprop. An improved model fit was obtained from using Monod degradation kinetics compared to zero- and first-order degradation kinetics. An exponential correlation (R2 > or = 0.85) was also found between numbers of specific phenoxy acid degrading bacteria and pre-exposure. Combination of these results strongly indicates that the low concentration exposure to phenoxy acids in the aquifer resulted in the presence of acclimated microbial communities, illustrated bythe elevated numbers of specific degraders as well as the enhanced degradation capability. The findings support application of natural attenuation to remediate aerobic aquifers contaminated by phenoxy acids from point sources.


Objective: To determine the factors associated with the development of depression, anxiety and stress in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in police officers in Lima, Peru. Methods: Analytical cross-sectional study conducted in 210 police officers who were administered the Depression Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) in October 2020, as well as a form, via Google Forms, to obtain sociodemographic and clinical data. A bivariate and a multivariate analysis were performed using crude and adjusted prevalence ratios, with a confidence interval >95% and a significance level of p≤0.05. Results: Depression, anxiety and stress prevalence rates were 11.43%, 10% and 7.62%, respectively. In the bivariate analysis, anxiety was associated with the number of children (cPR:3.18; 95% CI [1.10-9.17]; p:0.032) and history of disease (cPR:2.50; 95%CI[1.08-5.75]; p:0.031). For depression and stress, no significantly associated factors were found. In the multivariate analysis, an association between depression and age (aPR:2.50; 95%CI[1.02-6.10]; p:0.044) was found, as well as an association between stress and emotional situation (aPR:3.10; 95%CI[1.08-8.95]; p:0.034), COVID-19 diagnosis (aPR:3.18; 95%CI[1.02-9.92]; p:0.045) and history of disease (aPR:4.19; 95%CI[1.22-14.36]; p:0.022). Conclusions: A low prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress was observed in the study population. In addition, according to the multivariate analysis, the risk factors for stress were being single, having been diagnosed with COVID-19 and having a history of disease, while being 40 years old or younger was a risk factor for depression.


The aim of the research was to evaluate heavy metal contamination, heavy metal sorption capacity and their mobility in the monoliths of the relatively natural and technogenically affected by vehicle emissions Retisol profile. Two objects of the Eutric Albic Stagnic Bathygleyic Glossic Retisol were investigated: 1st – relatively natural (350 m from motorway) and 2nd – technogenically affected 20 m from motorway). Total heavy metal amounts in each horizon of the soil profile were determined by flame atomic absorption spectrometry method in the digestate of the HF + HNO3 + HCl, and mobile heavy metal amounts – in the extract of 1 M CH3COONH4 (pH 4.8). In the relatively natural soil, elevated Pb amounts were observed at the topsoil to 10 cm, and Cu – at the depth to 60 cm while Zn contamination was not observed. While heavy metal contamination of the technogenically affected Retisol was observed throughout the soil profile to one meter. Percentage of the mobile Pb from total amount in the natural and technogenically affected soil was 11.1–19.6% and 16.7–19.3%, Cu – 13.0–16.7% and 16.1–19.5%, Zn – 18.3–22.5% and 16.4–21.0%, respectively. Special stands of the model columns (1 m height, 0.15 m diameter) were designed and filled up with undisturbed soil monoliths. Heavy metal sorption capacity and mobility both in the soil profile and each horizon were investigated when saturating them with mixture of Pb, Zn and Cu solutions. Heavy metal sorption capacity in the horizons of the Retisol profile varied in the range of 504.40–819.60 mg kg-1 for Pb, 498.27–905.63 mg kg-1 for Cu and 505.07–983.43 mg kg-1 for Zn as well as enrichment factor – 27.4–70.8, 36.0–59.5 and 17.5–53.2, respectively. Percentage of the mobile Pb, Cu and Zn in the saturated natural and technogenically affected soil was 40.6–48.2, 40.4–45.7 and 40.7–48.9 %, respectively. Consequently, despite the great heavy metal sorption capacity, their mobility and potential bioavailability increase markedly in the contaminated Retisol, therefore it is important in the legislations of the food safety and agricultural land protection to strengthen measures of the environmental protection at roadsides, such as sanitary zones of at least 20 m.


Author(s): Shih, Vivian H | Advisor(s): Sugar, Catherine A | Abstract: While awareness and detection of neuropsychiatric disorders have been on the rise since the mid-twentieth century, current diagnostic approaches lack laboratory-based support from genetic, neuroscientific, and behavioral research. The emerging field of phenomics increases the pace of discoveries in neuropsychiatry by examining physical and biochemical traits (i.e., phenotypes) of mental health disorders. Often the phenotypes measured in psychiatry include a multiplicity of data types such as clinical symptoms, behaviors, neurocognitive performance, or imaging data. However, the high-dimensionality problem often occurs in the test batteries and hinders simple interpretations of the characterizing patterns of phenotypic data. In this dissertation, I describe, develop, and implement a collection of statistical methods to evaluate relational structures in multi-dimensional phenotypic data for neuropsychiatric disorders. Complexities in high-dimensional data require sophisticated statistical tools to disentangle and extract the true underlying structures effectively. Adaptive shrinkage techniques and sparse covariance estimation reduce the effective dimensionality of the data, producing more stable or parsimonious final models. Graphical models provide visual representations of the sparse structures in the data using conditional relationships among the variables. Joint graphical models have the additional advantage of revealing common as well as distinct patterns within and across multiple groups (e.g., diagnoses, treatments, symptom severity, or time points). The analytical methods in this dissertation were motivated by the large p, small n problem often encountered in psychiatric data. The goal of phenomics is to establish sets of characterizing features that may be shared among multiple neuropsychiatric disorders. This is particularly important as comorbidity is now being recognized as the norm rather than the exception in the mental health field. However, the large number of interrelated measurements makes it difficult to interpret mutual and distinct characteristics across disorders. This dissertation evaluates high-dimensional relational structures of phenotypic data through two projects conducted in the UCLA Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior. The Time Reproduction in Neurodevelopmental Disorders (TRIND) project concentrates on a single construct called temporal processing. I applied a range of statistical methods to these data including repeated measures mixed effects models, joint graphical models, cluster analysis, and functional data analysis. Collectively, these approaches suggest that temporal processing abilities are multi-dimensional rather than a single latent construct. The Centers for Intervention Development and Applied Research: Translational Research to Enhance Cognitive Control (CIDAR-TRECC) is a much broader study assessing a multitude of neurocognitive constructs. Adaptive shrinkage techniques as well as joint graphical models help extract similarities and differences in the relational structures of neurocognition for children with neurodevelopmental disorders. I further extended the conventional joint graphical models algorithm to handle multiple groups over time. In many ways, the taxonomic versus dimensional controversy in psychiatry is analogous to categorical versus continuous variables in statistics. There is no universal solution. In some situations, a continuous variable may describe a relationship more accurately, whereas other situations require a categorical viewpoint. Similarly, factor analysis may be preferred over Gaussian graphical models under one setting (e.g., to create a summary score) but fail in another (e.g., as a discriminatory tool). Simulations at the end of this dissertation show that there is no single answer. The optimal method depends not only on the pattern of the data, but also the objective of the study. The future of characterizing and treating neuropsychiatric disorders ought to be one which supports a comprehensive, synergistic viewpoint across both taxonomic and dimensional analyses using the appropriate data- and objective-driven statistical methods which successively disentangles the multi-dimensional constructs in phenotypic data.


Ransomware acquire the leverage necessary for ransom extraction via encryption of irreplaceable data. Successful encryption requires secure key generation and therefore comprehension of key generation strategies deployed in ransomware is critical for developing effective response and recovery solutions. This paper presents a systematic study of key generation strategies observed in modern ransomware with the goal of facilitating swift identification of cryptographically insecure and operationally nonviable key routines in novel threats. Empirical evidence of the identified strategies is provided in the form of code snippets and disassembly of real-world ransomware. Additionally, the identified strategies are mapped to a timeline based on the actual ransomware samples where these strategies were observed. Finally, a list of 10 questions provides guidance in recognizing the critical intricacies of key generation and deployment in novel ransomware.


SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT AND URBAN PLANNING: Transport and Environmental Regulation -Common attitudes and social change, by A. Abidi.- Environmental impact assessment of urban mobility plan: a methodology including socioeconomic consequences, by P. Mestayer, A. Abidi, M.Andre et al..- Assessment model of territorial articulation in rural areas. Application to four Spanish "comarcas", by A. Tolon-Becerra, I. Otero-Pastor, X. Lastra-Bravo, P. Perez-Martinez.- Model of territorial distribution of CO2 emissions reduction target in the transport sector, by A. Tolon-Becerra, P. Perez-Martinez, X. Lastra-Bravo, I. Otero-Pastor.- Impact of land use and transport policies on carbon emissions in London and Wider South East Region of UK, by A. Namdeo, G. Mitchell, T. Hargreaves.- Carbon sequestration in shrinking cities - potential or a drop in the ocean?, by M.W. Strohbach, E. Arnold, S. Vollrodt, D. Haase.- Urban Sprawl, Food Security and Sustainability of Yogyakarta City, Indonesia, by Irham.- The Local Food System as a Strategy for the Rural-Urban Fringe Planning - a Pathway towards Sustainable City Regions, by D.W. Adrianto.- AIR QUALITY AND HUMAN HEALTH: A case study of chemical weather forecasting in the area of Vienna, Austria, by M. Hirtl, M. Piringer, B.C. Kruger.- Micrometeorological effects on urban sound propagation: A numerical and experimental study, by G. Guillaume, C. Ayrault, M. Berengier, I. Calmet et al..- Performance evaluation of air quality dispersion models in Delhi, India, by A. Namdeo, I. Sohel, J. Cairns et al..- Characterization of atmospheric deposition in a small suburban catchment, by K. Lamprea, S. Percot, V. Ruban et al..- Atmospheric elements deposition and evaluation of the anthropogenic part.- the AAEF concept, by M. Catinon, S. Ayrault, O. Boudouma et al..- Sulfur dioxide and sulfate in particulate matter scavenging processes modeling in different localities of Metropolitan Region of Sao Paulo with different cloud heights, by F.L. Teixeira Goncalves, L.C. Mantovani Junior, A. Fornaro et al..- Shop opening hours and population exposure to NO2 assessed with an activity-based transportation model, by E. Dons, C. Beckx, T. Arentze et al..- Lung deposited dose of UFP and PM for cyclists and car passengers in Belgium, by L. Int Panis, H. Willems, B. Degraeuwe et al..- Emissive behaviour of two-wheeler vehicle category. Methodologies and results, by P. Iodice, M.V. Prati, A. Senatore.- Mobility of trace metals in urban atmospheric particulate matter from Beijing, China, by N. Schleicher, S. Norra, F. Chai et al..- Health risk from air pollutants, an epidemic in western Java Indonesia, by M. Dirgawati, J. Soemirat, A.E. Kusumah et al..- URBAN WATERS: Emission control strategies for short-chain chloroparaffins in two semi-hypothetical case cities, by E. Eriksson, M. Revitt, H.-C. Holten-Lutzhoft et al..- Identification of water bodies sensitive to pollution from road runoff. A new methodology based on the practices of Slovenia and Portugal, by M. Brencic, A.E. Barbosa, T.E. Leitao et al..- Modeling nutrient and pollutant removal in three wet detention ponds, by T. Wium-Andersen, A. Haaning Nielsen, T. Hvitved-Jacobsen et al..- Analysis of flow characteristics in a compound channel: comparison between experimental data and 1D numerical simulations, by J.N. Fernandes, J.B. Leal, A.H. Cardoso.- Comparison of the pollutant potential of two Portuguese highways located in different climatic regions, by A.E. Barbosa, J.N. Fernandes.- Road runoff characteristics on costal zones - Exploratory Data Analysis based on a pilot case study, by P. Antunes, P.J. Ramisio.- Characterization of road runoff: A case study on the A3 Portuguese Highway, by P.J. Ramisio, J.M.P. Vieira.- The Impact of Highway Runoff on the Chemical Status of Small Urban Streams, by J. Nabelkova, D. Kominkova, J. Jirak.- Changes of toxic metals bioavailability in urban creeks as a potential environmental hazard, by D. Kominkova, J. Nabelkova, D. Starmanova.- Possible Sampling Simplification of Macroinvertebrates for Urban Drainage Purposes, by G. Stastna, D. Stransky, I. Kabelkova.- Bioaccumulation of heavy metals in fauna from wet detention ponds for stormwater runoff, by D.A. Stephansen, A. Haaning Nielsen, T. Hvitved-Jacobsen et al..- Behavior of dissolved trace metals by discharging wastewater effluents into receiving water, by F. Ruhle, L. Lanceleur, J. Schafer et al..- Speciation of trace metals in organic matter of contaminated urban sediments, by A. El Mufleh, B. Bechet, L. Grasset et al..- An urban watershed regeneration project: The Costa/Couros river case study, by P.J. Ramisio.- URBAN SOIL CONTAMINATION AND TREATMENT: The Astysphere, a geoscientific concept for the urban impact on nature, by S. Norra.- Traffic Related Metal Distribution Profiles and their Impact on Urban Soils, by J.A. Carrero, I. Arrizabalaga, N. Goienaga et al..- Assessment of total petrol and polycylic aromatic hydrocarbon mobility in soils using leaching tests, by O. Kruger, M. Kolepki, G. Christoph et al..- Soil-plant relations in an urban environment polluted with heavy metals, by R. Lacatusu, A. R. Lacatusu.- Risk assessment of contaminants leaching to grounwater in an infrastructure project, by Y. Kalmykova, A.M. Stromvall.- Sewage sludge treatment focused on useful compounds recovery, by J. Gluzinska, J. Kwiecien.- Environmental emission impact from transport during soil remediation, by J. Hector, M. Norin, K. Andersson et al.


Small-molecule drugs that inhibit survival signals in leukemia cells have demonstrated high efficacy in the treatment of patients (pts) with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Although not directly cytotoxic for leukemia cells, these drugs block key signaling pathways that govern leukemia-cell trafficking, proliferation, and survival. However, non-specific inhibition of enzymes involved in other signaling pathways in non-neoplastic cells may result in toxicity, which can limit the therapeutic index of such drugs, at least in some settings. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) also may be used as antagonists of signaling by interfering with receptor-ligand interactions or reducing the availability of cell-surface receptors. Unlike small-molecule inhibitors, mAbs may function as highly specific inhibitors of their target receptors and have superior pharmacokinetics (PK) due to a longer half-life. Based on this rationale, we developed cirmtuzumab, a humanized mAb specific for ROR1. ROR1 is an oncoembronic cell-surface receptor for Wnt5a, which induces non-canonical Wnt signaling, leading to Rho-GTPase activation and phosphorylation of hematopoietic lineage cell-specific protein 1 (HS1), and enhances leukemia-cell migration, survival, and proliferation. ROR1 is strongly expressed on CLL, but not on virtually all normal postpartum tissues. As such, ROR1 appears to be a selective target for anti-cancer therapy. We conducted a phase 1, dose-escalation trial in pts with relapsed/refractory CLL. Eligible pts had progressive disease with an indication for therapy, as per iwCLL guidelines. Pts received four biweekly infusions of cirmtuzumab at doses ranging from 0.015 to 20mg/kg. We performed PK studies on plasma samples using an ELISA assay to assess for cirmtuzumab binding to immobilized recombinant ROR1. Pharmacodynamic (PD) studies included analyses of leukemia-cell activation of Rho-GTPases and phosphorylation/activation of HS1. Twenty-five pts enrolled and received cirmtuzumab. Cirmtuzumab was safe and well-tolerated. There were no drug-related SAEs, DLTs, or infusion-related reactions. At higher doses, PK studies showed the half-life of cirmtuzumab at higher doses was 32.4 days (SD 1.9 days) and cirmtuzumab levels remained detectable in the plasma until approximately 3 months following the final infusion. No patient developed neutralizing autoantibodies, and no circulating ROR1 antigen was detected. Pharmacodynamic studies confirmed sustained target inhibition. At doses of 2 mg/kg or higher, we detected inhibition of leukemia-cell Rho-GTPase activation within 24 hours of the initial cirmtuzumab dose. Inhibition of leukemia-cell activation of Rho-GTPases was sustained for weeks after the final infusion until the plasma cirmtuzumab levels became negligible ( Clinical effects were in line with those of the PD and PK results. Despite limited treatment with just four doses of antibody, there were encouraging signs of clinical activity, including treatment-related reduction in circulating lymphocyte counts, lymph node size, and/or leukemia-cell infiltration of the marrow. Importantly, nearly all patients treated at dose levels ≥2 mg/kg had arrested disease progression, despite having progressive disease upon study entry. Moreover, 16 of 19 evaluable patients had stable disease at the time of response assessment (2 months following the final infusion per iwCLL guidelines). Patients did not require subsequent therapy for prolonged periods. The median time to requiring next treatment due to progressive disease was 259 days (95% CI 168-265 days). This also correlated with the time at which cirmtuzumab levels and PD effects became undetectable. Specific inhibition of ROR1 signaling by cirmtuzumab inhibits leukemia-cell RhoGTPase activation and HS-1 phosphorylation, and arrests disease progression without significant toxicity. This represents a novel approach to inhibiting growth/survival signaling in CLL, providing an advantageous PK and specific PD relative to that of small-molecule inhibitors, potentially ushering in a new era of immunopharmacology. Disclosures Choi: Gilead, Genentech, Abbvie, and PCYC: Speakers Bureau; AbbVie, Genentech, and PCYC: Consultancy; AbbVie: Other: Institutional research funding. Kipps: Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Gilead: Consultancy, Honoraria, Speakers Bureau; Oncternal: Research Funding; Pharmacyclics, LLC, an AbbVie Company: Consultancy, Honoraria; Roche: Consultancy, Honoraria; AbbVie: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding.


This study explores which sources are "making" local news and whether these sources are simply indicating the type of news that appears, or are shaping newspaper coverage. It provides an empirical record of the extent to which sources are able to dominate news coverage from which future trends in local journalism can be measured. The type and number of sources used in 2979 sampled news stories in four West Yorkshire papers, representing the three main proprietors of local newspapers in the United Kingdom, were recorded for one month and revealed the relatively narrow range of routine sources; 76 per cent of articles cited only a single source. The analysis indicates that journalists are relying less on their readers for news, and that stories of little consequence are being elevated to significant positions, or are filling news pages at the expense of more important stories. Additionally, the reliance on a single source means that alternative views and perspectives relevant to the readership are being overlooked. Journalists are becoming more passive, mere processors of one-sided information or bland copy dictated by sources. These trends indicate poor journalistic standards and may be exacerbating declining local newspaper sales.


The issue of sexual relations between spouses is a major cause of broken homes in Nigeria and Christian couples are not an exception. People believe that a large percentage of broken homes have the root of their problem traced to sex. The preponderance of broken homes (and homes under tension of crises) notwithstanding, most studies in this area have been from the socio-scientific and medical cum psychological point of view and many more have focused on teenagers and young people to the exclusion of married couples that need healing in this regard. This article is aimed at bringing out biblical instruction concerning the issue of sex that could help to restore peace to many homes at the verge of breaking down. The focal passage is 1 Corinthians 7:1–5, which was Paul's instructions to the Corinthian church when they faced a similar problem. This article is an exegetical analysis of the passage and is read rhetorically (rhetorical analysis examines how a text persuades readers of its point of view) with the Nigerian situation in mind. It concludes that sex must be enjoyed within the ambits of marriage and within this ambit, the only reason for abstinence is mutual agreement for the purpose of prayer.Contribution: The article upholds gender equality in initiating and enjoying sex and rejects looking down on women who request sex. It also calls for the eradication of female genital mutilation, a tradition based on making women not enjoy sex.


Since there exists the possibility for the parallel tasks in the structure of graph DAG to be executed sequentially due to the problem of Cache's False Sharing in muti-core CPU environment, this paper presents parallel task scheduling algorithm for DAG which could eliminate some of the occurrences of Cache's False Sharing. This algorithm which is an expansion of usual DAG task scheduling algorithm based on Wave Font Method is designed for decreasing the occurrences of Cache's false sharing. Also an experiment has been done to simulate the performance of this algorithm and the result shows that compared with WFM, the improved DAG task scheduling algorithm does decrease the occurrences number of tasks' sequential execution and reduce the total execution time of parallel tasks by 13%, and remain the muti-core CPU load-balanced.


ABSTRACT The CRISPR-Cas9 system has become the most promising and versatile tool for genetic manipulation applications. Albeit the technology has been broadly adopted by both academic and pharmaceutic societies, the activity (on-target) and specificity (off-target) of CRISPR-Cas9 are decisive factors for any application of the technology. Several in silico gRNA activity and specificity predicting models and web tools have been developed, making it much more convenient and precise for conducting CRISPR gene editing studies. In this review, we present an overview and comparative analysis of machine and deep learning (MDL)-based algorithms, which are believed to be the most effective and reliable methods for the prediction of CRISPR gRNA on- and off-target activities. As an increasing number of sequence features and characteristics are discovered and are incorporated into the MDL models, the prediction outcome is getting closer to experimental observations. We also introduced the basic principle of CRISPR activity and specificity and summarized the challenges they faced, aiming to facilitate the CRISPR communities to develop more accurate models for applying.


Behind the plasterboard walls of Reckless Sleepers' latest project, Negative Space, you will find many histories, many voices, many points of departure that are all colliding and competing for a place inside the work.  They all want to leave their mark, to be remembered, to be the foundation that is left when only the ruins remain. Part-archive, part-exhibition, part-documentation, this Curating Knowledge event attempts to look at where Negative Space has come from and what is left behind when the dust eventually settles. Each day Reckless Sleepers will expose elements of its process, providing a literal glimpse into the construction of the project by asking you to look through the negative space of the plasterboard walls. You will not get the full picture, but neither does Reckless Sleepers. After all, this is a creative process, and the company's perspective is skewed as much as yours. Yet the negative space the company exposes, and the subsequent knowledge that arises from this process of destruction, may allow us to appreciate the value of the ruin in front of us and to speculate on the histories that may or may not have existed in the development of the project.


A parallel-wire driven mechanism uses flexible wires instead of heavy rigid links. In this paper, we propose a robust point-to-point (PTP) position control method in the task-oriented coordinates for completely restrained parallel wire-driven robots, which are translational systems using the minimum number of wires under zero-gravity conditions. In the cases where parallel-wire driven robots are disassembled/assembled and used outdoors (also applied in space), actuator positions would be uncertain or contain some errors. The error of internal force among wires that results from such uncertainty of actuator positions deteriorates positioning performance. To overcome such a difficulty, adaptive compensation is employed for robust PD control against the error of internal force, in this paper. It is necessary for the adaptive compensation to separate the internal force term linearly into a regressor matrix and a parameter vector concerned with the errors of actuator positions. The internal force term, however, possesses the nonlinear characteristic concerned with the errors of actuator position. Noting the structure of the internal force term, this paper shows that measuring both the position of an end-effector and wire length in real time enables the linear separation. Not only does this robust PD control method ensure precise positioning using external sensors; it enhances the robustness for uncertainty of the Jacobian matrix, which results from the error of actuator installation. First, we explain the linearization of the internal force term. Next, the robust PD control for the parallel-wire driven system using the uncertain Jacobian matrix is proposed; then, we prove the motion convergence to desired points and discuss its robustness based on Lyapunov stability analysis. Finally, the usefulness of the proposed control method is demonstrated through experiments and simulations.


EVALUATION OF INTERNAL JUGULAR VEIN THROMBOSIS IN DIALYSIS PATIENTS WITH LARGE TUNNELED CATHETERS. J.D. Walton, A.A. Khan, B.M. Wall, Veterans Affairs Medical Center and University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN. Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence of internal jugular vein thrombosis in patients with large diameter (16 French) tunneled dialysis catheters to determine if the larger diameter catheters are associated with increased thrombosis rates. Methods and Materials: A retrospective chart review of dialysis-dependent end-stage renal disease patients at the Memphis VAMC was performed to identify patients who had received tunneled internal jugular catheters for hemodialysis. Since 2002, large-diameter, 16 French Ash-Split catheters have been primarily used. Eligible patients were those with 16 French catheters placed from January 1, 2002, to October 1, 2006. A total of 60 patients were identified. Additional information obtained from patient records included catheter site placement, number of catheters placed in each site, history of hypertension, history of diabetes mellitus, and number of catheter-related infections. Results: All of the 60 patients were men. A diagnosis of hypertension was present in 85% (51 of 60) and diabetes mellitus was present in 35% (21 of 60). These percentages are similar to the overall prevalence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus seen in ESRD patients at this center. In 7 of the 60 patients in the study, bilateral internal jugular veins were used for tunneled catheter placement; thus, the total number of access sites was 67. Thrombosis was present in 16.4% (11 of 67) of the total number of catheter access sites. Of the total number of thromboses present, 63.6% (7 of 11) were in the right internal jugular vein and 36.4% (4 of 11) in the left internal jugular vein. Also, of the 11 thromboses present, 82% (9 of 11) of the occlusions were associated with catheter-related infections. Conclusion: Previous studies have reported the prevalence of internal jugular thrombosis in patients with standard dialysis catheters (14.5 French) to be around 10 to 25%. The prevalence of thrombosis demonstrated in this study shows no increased rate of thrombosis with larger catheters. There was an extremely high frequency of catheter-related infections in patients with thrombosis.


Quality systems entail having the organizational structure, responsibilities, procedures, processes and resources for implementing quality management such that there is a guiding framework to ensure that every time a process is performed the same information, method, skills and controls are used and practiced in a consistent manner. With its primary focus being the involvement of everyone, TQM has the potential to improve business results, greater customer orientation and satisfaction, worker involvement and fulfilment, teamworking and better management of workers within companies. However, the construction industry has been slow to embrace the concept of TQM. Construction firms have been continually struggling with its implementation. Historically, construction has been an industry reluctant to implement change. Consequently, it has remained behind where it should be on the implementation of TQM. Generally, the principles of TQM are not applied beyond management levels within general contractors. This paper reports on a study to identify those factors that hinder the implementation of TQM principles in the actual field operations of a construction jobsite.


INTRODUCTION
Diabetes is a critical health issue that impacts over 422 million people worldwide to include more than 500 000 children. Diabetes prevalence is higher in rural areas compared to urban areas and people living with diabetes in rural areas face significant challenges to care. Children with diabetes need appropriate care in the school setting to reduce the risk of short- and long-term complications. The inconsistencies of laws surrounding diabetes care in schools and lack of access to resources has resulted in insufficient training and poor provision of care to students, particularly in rural areas. The purpose of this study was to analyze the impact of the online diabetes education program Diabetes Care at School: Bridging the Gap on the diabetes knowledge and self-efficacy of school personnel in rural areas to administer care to students with diabetes.

METHODS
A total of 132 participants working in rural school districts throughout South Central Texas completed the program. A pretest-post-test design was used to measure knowledge and self-efficacy before and after completion of the 12-module online diabetes education program for school personnel. Knowledge and confidence to administer care change scores were compared, and user satisfaction with the online program was analyzed.

RESULTS
Results of this study showed a significant increase in the knowledge and confidence scores of the participants from pre- to post-test. Although the non-medical school personnel had baseline knowledge and confidence scores that were lower than the school nurses, they had significant change scores, resulting in similar post-test scores. Furthermore, those with no prior diabetes training had significant change in knowledge and confidence, resulting in post-test scores that were almost equivalent to those with prior diabetes training.

CONCLUSION
As the prevalence of school-aged children with diabetes continues to increase, an important finding of this study is that online programs with up-to-date information on diabetes care may enhance the ability of school personnel to include both lay/non-medical individuals and school nurses to effectively manage the care of students with diabetes. With up-to-date diabetic information delivered in a user-friendly and accessible format, more school personnel in rural and remote areas can be trained. Ultimately, ensuring that staff receive adequate training on diabetes and possess the confidence to administer care should improve outcomes for students with diabetes in rural, remote and underserved areas.


BACKGROUND/AIMS
Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory cardiovascular disease. Macrophages are major components of atherosclerotic plaques and play a key role in the development of atherosclerosis by secreting a variety of pro-inflammatory factors. Our previous studies have confirmed that upconversion nanoparticles encapsulating chlorin e6 (UCNPs-Ce6) mediated photodynamic therapy (PDT) can promote cholesterol efflux and induce apoptosis in THP-1 macrophages. In this study, we investigated whether reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated by UCNPs-Ce6-mediated PDT can induce autophagy to inhibit the expression of pro-inflammatory factor in M1 peritoneal macrophages.

METHODS
Peritoneal macrophages were collected from C57/BL6 mice injected with 3% thioglycollate broth medium and induced by lipopolysaccharides and interferon-γ. Intracellular ROS production was assessed by 2'-7'-dichloroforescein diacetate and flow cytometry. Autophagy was assayed by western blot, transmission electron microscopy and immunofluorescence. Pro-inflammatory cytokines were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and western blot.

RESULTS
Model M1 peritoneal macrophages were established after 24 h induction. Protein expression levels of LC3 II and Beclin1, and degradation of p62 increased and peaked at 2 h in the PDT group. Meanwhile, levels of inflammatory cytokines iNOS, IL-12, and TNF-α markedly decreased after PDT. The increase in autophagy levels and decrease in pro-inflammatory cytokines were significantly inhibited by 3-methyladenine. Furthermore, ROS generated by UCNPs-Ce6 mediated PDT activated autophagy. The expression of autophagy related-protein and inflammatory cytokines iNOS, IL-12, and TNF-α were inhibited by the ROS inhibitor N-acetyl cysteine.

CONCLUSIONS
ROS generated by UCNPs-Ce6-mediated PDT activated autophagy and inhibited the expression of pro-inflammatory factors of M1 peritoneal macrophage via the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway.


Pulse-coupled synchronization is attracting increased attention in the sensor network community. Yet its properties have not been fully investigated. Using statistical analysis, we prove analytically that by controlling the number of connections at each node, synchronization can be guaranteed for generally pulse-coupled oscillators even in the presence of a refractory period. The approach does not require the initial phases to reside in half an oscillation cycle, which improves existing results. We also find that a refractory period can be strategically included to reduce idle listening at nearly no sacrifice to the synchronization probability. Given that reduced idle listening leads to higher energy efficiency in the synchronization process, the strategically added refractory period makes the synchronization scheme appealing to cheap sensor nodes, for which energy is a precious system resource. We also analyzed the pulse-coupled synchronization in the presence of unreliable communication links and obtained similar results. QualNet experimental results are given to confirm the effectiveness of the theoretical predictions.


In dental health community programmes there are several kind of efficiency application patron such as dental health programme worthy to do, like comparing various alternatives procedures in a dental health programmes. Cost effectiveness analysis (CEA) is becoming increasingly popular as society moved toward rationalizing dental health cost to optimized programmes. CEA compares the cost of procedure with its effectiveness thus helping an adiminstrator to judge whether the procedure is worth itrs cost. CEA also permit comparison of various interventions that result in a similar dental health outcome. A major benefit of CEA is that it forces decision maker to confront the trade-offs implicit in all decision regarding alternative approaches. Caries dentis and gingivitis are still aserious oral health problem to solve especially for primary school student. Curative effort is relative more expensive, so it was chosen alternative for preventing caries must be together with preventing gingivtis. The purpose of the research is gerring the cost effective moel of preventive caries and gingivitis for a primary school student at DKI Jakarta. The opportunity cost of alternative model preventive caries and gingivitis intervention such a modern dentistry approach (Fissure Sealant and Oral-Hygiene instruction procedures by the dentist) to compare against model routine intervention approach (fluoride mouth rinsing and ART procedures by the full time dentist or by dentist together with teachers) along with the relative effectiveness of preventive treatment. In this quasi experiment research with multistage randomized designed we use respondent of all primary school student in DKI Jakarta for two different treatment group. Fissure Sealant and Oral Hygiene Instruction procedures by the Dentist were judged to be more cost effective than fluoride mouthrinsing and ART procedures by the dentist together with teachers, or by the full time dentist.


Background: In this study, we aimed to evaluate ambulatory clinic responsibilities that neurology clerkship students perceive as having the highest educational value and to evaluate the association between a student's presence and level of responsibility and a preceptor's clinical and financial productivity during a clinic session. Methods: Physician preceptors (n = 43) and medical students (n = 67) in the Johns Hopkins Neurology clerkship from 2014 to 2015 were included. Students rated their experience and responsibilities in 291 neurology clinic sessions. Productivity metrics (e.g., relative value units [RVU]/clinic) were collected for each preceptor in the presence and absence of students. Results: A student's rating of a clinic as an effective learning experience increased with each additional patient the student interviewed (odds ratio [OR] 1.89, p < 0.001), presented (OR 1.86, p < 0.001), or documented (OR 2.00, p < 0.001). The mean RVU/session for preceptors also increased based on the number of patients interviewed (&bgr; = 2.64, p = 0.026), presented (&bgr; = 2.42, p = 0.047), and documented (&bgr; = 2.70, p = 0.036) by students. On average, preceptor RVU/session increased by 42% (mean 5.6 ± 1.2, p < 0.0001) when a student was present in clinic compared to sessions without students. In addition, preceptor invoices increased by 35% (mean 2.7 ± 0.6, p < 0.0001) and charges by 39% (mean $929 ± $210, p < 0.0001) when a student was present in clinic. Conclusions: This observational study suggests a mutual benefit to preceptor clinical productivity and student-perceived educational value when students have active responsibilities in neurology clinics. Despite concerns that students slow down preceptors in clinic, these results suggest that preceptors may have an overall boost in productivity, potentially by performing billable work while students independently see patients.


During a biological invasion, we expect that the expanding front will increasingly become dominated by individuals with better dispersal abilities. Over many generations, selection at the invasion front thus will favour traits that
increase dispersal rates. As a result of this process, cane toads (Bufo marinus) are now spreading through tropical Australia about 5-fold faster than in the early years of toad invasion; but how have toads changed to make this happen? Here we present data from radio-tracking of free-ranging cane toads from three populations (spanning a 15-year period of the toads' Australian invasion, and across 1800 km). Our data reveal dramatic shifts in behavioural traits (proportion of nights when toads move from their existing retreat-site to a new one, and distance between those successive retreat-sites) associated with the rapid
acceleration of toad invasion. Over a maximum period of 70 years (~50 generations), cane toads at the invasion front
in Australia apparently have evolved such that populations include a higher proportion of individuals that make long,
straight moves.


The collaboration among public–private partnerships that applied to the Community Care Network (CCN) demonstration program of the Hospital Research and Educational Trust is examined. These partnerships link broad-based community coalitions with health and human service providers in efforts to improve community health and local service delivery. Although they willingly collaborated in identifying community health needs, coordinating services, and reporting to the community, partnership participants showed less alacrity in joining forces to reduce redundancy and increase efficiency. Such patterns suggest that organizations might best profit from working together on activities that maintain existing power relations and that have the potential to add prestige and attract new clients. Collaboration in these areas may be essential to building a foundation of trust that leads to future cooperation in more sensitive areas.


This study investigated the impact of different input variables on the predictability of the water content using soil water retention curve (SWRC) models. The particle and aggregate size distribution model parameters were calculated by fitting the Perrier model to the related distributions for 75 soil samples. Nine SWRC models were fitted to the experimental data and their coefficients were obtained. The regression method was used to estimate the coefficients for nine SWRC models at three input levels. Cluster analysis classified the SWRC models into more homogeneous groups according to the accuracy of their predictions. The SWRC estimated using the Gardner model had the highest accuracy, but it was not an appropriate model for the soils because of its low fitting accuracy. Boltzman, Campbell, and Fermi models obtained the highest accuracy after the Gardner model. The Durner model yielded the lowest prediction accuracy due to the lack of correlation between the input variables and coefficients in this model. Thus, the water content predictions obtained using different SWRC models varied because different input variables were employed.


by Samantha A. Girard, Ph.D., RN Washington State University December 2015 Chair: Renee Hoeksel The need for a more highly educated nurse workforce has never been more evident as researchers are beginning to examine the effect of higher levels of nursing education and skill mix on nurse-specific indicators of patient care. National organizations along with preeminent nurse scholars agree that increasing the number of baccalaureate-prepared registered nurses is critical, at this time more so than ever before. This increase is due to the challenging and complex health care environments in which nurses function and the evolving and dynamic nature of the United States Health Care System. Despite the numerous interventions aimed at reducing attrition and increasing retention in nursing programs, graduation rates have remained virtually unchanged. There is a gap in the literature on attrition decisions and experiences of registered nurses, who voluntarily withdraw from RN-BSN programs prior to completion. Embedded in the significance of this study are the critical needs to understand the experiences of RN-BSN student non-completers, examine influences on RN-BSN students' decisions to voluntarily withdraw from nursing school, and understand the interplay among such influences so that barriers to degree completion may be eliminated. A Heideggerian hermeneutic approach was used to interpret the meaning of the experiences of RNs, who prematurely withdraw from their BSN programs. Two overarching patterns of understanding emerged: Withdrawing as Revisiting Failure and Withdrawing as Impasse: On One Side of the Divide.


Although still one of the largest organisations in civil society in Northern Ireland, the Orange Order has only recently been the focus of serious academic study. Kaufmann (2007) and Patterson and Kaufmann (2007) enjoyed unprecedented access to Orange Order archives and Ulster Unionist Council papers to produce illuminating studies of the evolution of the Order, Orange geographic density and relations with the Ulster Unionist Party. Their findings refute perceptions of a homogeneous, united Orange-Unionist movement, instead offering a more nuanced and convincing picture of, firstly, intra-Orange divisions between urban, left-leaning working-class Orangemen and conservative rural brethren suspicious of Catholic encroachment and secondly, a sometimes fractious relationship between the Orange Order and the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). Nonetheless, an overarching sense of cross-class Protestant-Orange-British-Unionist unity usually inhibited serious fragmentation.

The Northern Ireland peace process and the 1998 Belfast Agreement brought to the fore internal
unionist divisions. Although the UUP supported the deal, it was soon evident that this backing
was not shared by many Protestants. Most Orange Order members opposed the Agreement and the anti-Agreement Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) increased its support. Long bereft of political influence, strongly opposed to the Agreement and fearful of a dilution of their Orange-British culture (a concern exacerbated by restrictions upon some contentious Orange parades) the Orange Order finally severed its contentious, century-old formal alliance with the UUP in 2005, many of its members within the UUP having opposed that party's leadership and many of those outside the party supporting the DUP.

To properly assess these developments, it was necessary to explore the demographic basis (was there, for example, a social class or age basis to the allegiance shift?) and political outlook (is there a clear 'Orange' view on political issues?) of the Orange Order membership. Hitherto, no systematic study of Orange Order members had been conducted. This research aimed to fill that void by completing a detailed quantitative survey of the characteristics and attitudes of Orange Order members, allied to in-depth qualitative interviews. Seemingly politically isolated, afflicted by secularism, culturally defensive and socially increasingly confined to the lower social classes, what are the contemporary characteristics of a member of the Orange Order; what shapes continuing loyalty to Orangeism and what does this entail?


Key points Not all patients with "difficult-to-control" asthma have "severe asthma". Many of them have either an incorrect diagnosis, or mild-moderate asthma with unrecognised aggravating factors, or are non-compliant with prescribed therapy. For a diagnosis of severe asthma, it is necessary to confirm the diagnosis of asthma, to evaluate and treat endogenous and exogenous aggravating factors, and to closely follow the patient for ≥6 months. Severe asthma is a heterogeneous condition with different phenotypes. Defining clinical phenotypes is necessary to improve understanding of underlying mechanisms, to help guide current treatment and to provide clues for novel therapeutic interventions. Despite intensive multi-drug treatment with high-dose inhaled and oral corticosteroids, many patients with severe asthma remain uncontrolled. There is an urgent need for new, more-effective treatments. Educational aims To help the reader distinguish between "difficult-to-control", "refractory" and "severe" asthma. To discuss the initial approach to and assessment of a patient with difficult-to-control asthma. To inform the reader how to recognise different clinical phenotypes of severe asthma. To outline management strategies and discuss treatment modalities. Summary "Severe asthma" refers to asthma that remains difficult to control despite intensive multidrug therapy, extensive assessment and management of comorbidity, and long-term observation by an asthma specialist. The three main clinical phenotypes of severe asthma include asthma with frequent severe exacerbations, asthma with chronic airflow limitation, and steroid-resistant asthma. Many patients with severe asthma are oral-steroid dependent. Classical steroid-sparing drugs (gold, methotrexate, cyclosporin) are only weakly effective and have unacceptable side-effects. Monoclonal antibodies against immunoglobulin (Ig)E and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α have shown clinical benefit in subgroups of patients with severe asthma, and large studies are under way to confirm these promising findings.


The surface quality is a critical factor affecting the performance and reliability of advanced ceramics. This paper focuses on the application of Taguchi method for optimization of advanced ceramics lapping process parameters to obtain the best finish. An optimization experiment for lapping silicon wafer with Al2O3 was designed by Taguchi method. Surface roughness Ra and Rt are considered as criteria for optimization. Influence of parameters involving load, speed, and slurry concentration for a given workmaterial with given abrasive (material and size) are discussed, and the optimum lapping conditions are figured out. Compared with single parameter experimental results, it illustrates that the experiment design based on Taguchi method can successfully applied to determine the optimum processing conditions for advanced ceramics lapping process.


An interferometric technique was developed for detecting fast displacements of small areas in beam direction by less than \lambda/8 . It utilizes a modified Michelson interferometer and a He-Ne laser light source. The technique was applied to measure the temporal and spatial evolution of the thermal mirror deformation of a GaAs-Ga 1-x Al x As single heterostructure laser diode. A small spot on the facet of the laser diode formed one mirror of the interferometer. The other mirror was moved linearly with time by applying a ramp voltage to a piezoelectric transducer. The diode was pulsed during this motion. The local elongation of the laser diode was evaluated from the interferometer output signal. The measured elongation of the active region at a time 1 μs after a 150-ns pulse with current density 48 000 A/cm2was between 4 and 20 nm, indicating a temperature rise of 2-11\deg C. The smallest elongations detected were in the range of 0.5-1 nm. The measured values are in substantial agreement with theoretical expectations from thermal model calculations.


Background: The pattern of nasopharyngeal colonization by potential respiratory pathogen bacteria is important to be understood as they can be a source of infection for other people. As Age is one of determinant factors affecting nasopharyngeal colonization by potential respiratory pathogen bacteria in healthy people, so there will be difference in colonization among age groups. This study is aimed to know the distinct pattern of potential pathogen respiratory bacteria colonization between children and elderly.
Methods: This was an analytic observational study by taking a cross-sectional data with cluster random sampling from the working area of Semarang. Samples were 150 subject children (0-5 years) and the elderly (45-70 years) who were free from symptoms of respiratory tract infection and were conducted nasopharyngeal swab in February-March 2010. Nasopharyngeal swab specimen was isolated in microbiology laboratories of RSUP Dr. Kariadi. The differences of colonization between children and the elderly were tested with χ 2 test and as alternative test, Fischer test, both were processed in SPSS for Windows 15.
Results: The prevalence of nasopharyngeal colonization of potential respiratory pathogens in the healthy children and the elderly are respectively S. pneumonia 45.3% and 10.7% (p=0.0001), H. influenzae 12.0% and 1.3% (p=0.009), Enterobacteriaceae 10.7% and 25.3% (p=0.019), S. aureus 6.7% and 8.0% (p = 0.681), M. catharralis 5.3% and 2.7% (p=0.405).
Conclusions: Nasopharyngeal colonization of S. pneumoniae and H. influenzae in healthy children is higher than in the elderly, in contrast to Enterobacteriaceae in which colonization is higher in the elderly. Colonization of S. aureus and M. catharralis is not significantly different.

Keywords: nasopharyngeal colonization, potential respiratory pathogen bacteria, S. pneumonia, Enterobacteriaceae, H. influenza, M. catharralis, S. aureus, healthy children, healthy elderly.


The public/private debate has not been a major feature in recent sociological theory. However, Bailey (2000) has argued for a renewed sociological research programme to focus on the sociological private. He outlines three dimensions of this: intimate relationships, the self and the unconscious. This article seeks to address two of these dimensions, the production of self-theories and unconscious dis-avowal. We extend this theorizing to account for the experience of sexual engagement, and present a discourse analysis of the diaries of the comedian and actor Kenneth Williams (1928-1988). Drawing principally on the thought of Merleau-Ponty (1962) we argue that our analysis demonstrates the importance of a pre-reflective engagement with the social world that is then reflected on in internal dialogue. We show how discourse analysis may be used to demonstrate the dis-cursive production of a self-theory and the role of such a self-theory in the dis-avowal of the principal's pre-reflective engagement with others.


Sieges of the Morea War in the celebratory cycle of Francesco Morosini. Art, topography and military historyThe forty-eight paintings executed between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries to celebrate the military campaigns of Francesco Morosini (1619-1694) are an exceptional repertoire of military genre painting. The canvas uses different figurative registers to represent naval battles, cities and territories, siege operations. If the relations with war literature and propaganda prints, which spread across Europe and which had their official "historiographer" in Vincenzo Coronelli in Venice, are evident, equally strong relationships can be established between the paintings, war reports and the plans made on the battlefield by military engineers. This paper deals with the paintings dedicated to the sieges of Corone and Negroponte are examined here.


Management of saline-sodic water from the coalbed natural gas (CBNG) industry in the Powder River Basin (PRB) of Wyoming and Montana is a major environmental challenge. Clinoptilolie zeolites mined in Nevada, California, and New Mexico were evaluated for their potential to remove sodium (Na+) from CBNG waters. Based on the exchangeable cation composition, naturally occurring calcium (Ca2+)-rich zeolites from New Mexico were selected for further evaluation. Batch adsorption experiments were conducted to evaluate the potential of the Ca(2+)-rich natural clinoptilolites to remove Na+ from saline-sodic CBNG waters. Batch adsorption experiments indicated that Na+ adsorption capacity ofclinoptilolite ranged from 4.3 (4 x 6 mesh) to 7.98 g kg(-1) (14 x 40 mesh). Among the different adsorption isotherms investigated, the Freundlich Model fitted the data best for smaller-sized (6 x 8, 6 x 14, and 14 x 40 mesh) zeolites. Passing the CBNG water through Ca(2+)-rich zeolite columns reduced the salt content (electrical conductivity [EC]) by 72% with a concurrent reduction in sodium adsorption 10 mmol 1/2 L(-1/2). Zeolite technology appears to be an effective water treatment alternative to industrial membrane treatment for removing Na+ from poor-quality CBNG waters.


In this letter, results on the autonomous response of a third‐order digital filter with two's complement arithmetic realized as a first‐order subsystem cascaded by a second‐order subsystem are reported. The behaviour of the second‐order subsystem depends on the pole location and the initial condition of the first‐order subsystem, because the transient behaviour is affected by the first‐order subsystem and this transient response can be viewed as an excitation of the original initial state to another state. New results on the set of necessary and sufficient conditions relating the trajectory equations, the behaviours of the symbolic sequences and the sets of the initial conditions are derived. The effects of the pole location and the initial condition of first‐order subsystem on the overall system are discussed. Some interesting differences between the autonomous response of the second‐order subsystem and the response due to the exponentially decaying input are reported. Some simulation results are given to illustrate the analytical results. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


There are jerks in this world. There are jerks at work. As managers and leaders we are obligated to insure that people have a healthy environment in which they can be nurtured and grow. Patient safety cannot be compromised because we allow jerks to create chaos. This is a serious issue that is very expensive in terms of the toll it takes on people, patients, and the organization. However, there are solutions so we must act. Jerks don't need to be a part of the culture of nursing. Incivility does not need to exist in hospitals and health care facilities. As Carter (1999) notes, the barbarians are truly at the door and this is true of hospitals and of nursing. However, we have the opportunity to change the self-interest behavior of jerks in our communities of caring. That is what leadership is all about.


Data on the survival of pollen ofTypha latifoliaL. stored for up to 261 d over seven different saturated salt solutions (providing 0.5 to 66% relative humidity) and six different constant temperatures (from −5 to +45 °C) were analysed to quantify the effect of air-dry storage environment on pollen longevity. Pollen survival curves conformed much more closely to negative cumulative normal distributions than to negative exponential relations. Estimates ofp50(storage period required to reduce pollen viability to 50%), provided by negative cumulative normal distributions, were available from 37 different storage environments in which pollen viability was reduced below 50%. Once observations at 0.5% and 5.5% relative humidity were excluded from analysis, there was a negative logarithmic relation between these estimates of longevity and pollen moisture content (%, wet basis) and a curvilinear semi-logarithmic relation between longevity and temperature. When the negative logarithmic relation between longevity and moisture content was replaced by a negative semi-logarithmic relation between longevity and the relative humidity of the storage environment the resultant model was less satisfactory, principally because pollen longevity over saturated solutions of calcium nitrate (43–62% relative humidity) and sodium nitrite (60–66% relative humidity) were consistently greater and smaller, respectively, than fitted values. Notwithstanding these errors, comparison between the fitted relations and observations at the two lowest relative humidities provided estimates of the lower-relative-humidity limits to these relations. These provisional estimates varied with storage temperature being lowest at 25 °C ( 0.25): the mean estimate was 11.9 (s.e.=1.4)%. The considerable similarities among models of pollen longevity in air-dry storage, and their estimated lower limits, and those developed previously for orthodox seeds and spores are discussed.


Meiotic recombination between artificial repeats positioned on nonhomologous chromosomes occurs efficiently in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Both gene conversion and crossover events have been observed, with crossovers yielding reciprocal translocations. In the current study, 5.5-kb ura3 repeats positioned on chromosomes V and XV were used to examine the effect of ectopic recombination on meiotic chromosome segregation. Ura3 random spores were selected and gene conversion vs. crossover events were distinguished by Southern blot analysis. Approximately 15% of the crossover events between chromosomes V and XV were associated with missegregation of one of these chromosomes. The missegregation was manifest as hyperploid spores containing either both translocations plus a normal chromosome, or both normal chromosomes plus one of the translocations. In those cases where it could be analyzed, missegregation occurred at the first meiotic division. These data are discussed in terms of a model in which ectopic crossovers compete efficiently with normal allelic crossovers in directing meiotic chromosome segregation.


Two synthetic peptides with sequences identical with those of fragments of the extracellular domain of the Alzheimer's-disease amyloid precursor protein (APP) were used to raise antibodies. SP28 comprises positions 597-624 of the APP695 isoform, whereas SP41 extends towards the N-terminus (amino acids 584-624) and contains the entire SP28 peptide. Using e.l.i.s.a. and inhibition experiments we identified the two beta-turn-containing segments 602-607 and 617-624 as the epitopes recognized by anti-SP41 and anti-SP28 respectively. Both antibodies immunolabelled amyloid lesions in brains from Alzheimer's-disease patients and patients with related disorders, whereas they were unreactive in control brains. However, when probed on immunoblots, anti-SP28 failed to detect full-length APP from baculovirus-infected Sf9 cells, and anti-SP41 reacted weakly compared with other anti-APP antisera. The data suggest that these antibodies are directed to conformational epitopes not existent in the native molecules but present after alternative APP processing.


Given the theoretical inevitability of human cloning, this Article attempts to fill a current intellectual void by providing an analysis of the most significant legal implications of cloning human beings. Part II sets forth the basic science behind cloning and how cloning differs from other, non-traditional forms of procreation such as in vitro fertilization and artificial insemination. Part III discusses the most commonly feared "science fiction" abuses associated with human cloning and current laws that may prevent such abuses from occurring. Part IV discusses the possible constitutional impediments to banning human cloning, including the First Amendment, the procreational liberty interest of the Due Process Clause, and the Equal Protection Clause. Part V considers the possible governmental interest in regulating human cloning to assess whether such regulation would survive the applicable level of judicial scrutiny. The Article concludes that, contrary to popular public opinion, the current legal regime appears prepared to handle human cloning. Moreover, should Americans wish to ban the practice, they may not be able to do so consistent with the current Constitution.


In November 2016, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) released an update of its 2010 Clinical Guideline CG951 on patients presenting with stable chest pain.2 This article covers the main changes in the updated CG95, and comments on how GPs can expect the management of patients referred to a cardiology/rapid-access chest pain clinic (RACPC) to change.

Accurate assessment of patients presenting with chest pain is challenging. The combination of a detailed clinical history of the pain, with concomitant risk factors provides the most accurate clinical assessment.3,4 The 2010 guidance used pre-test probability scoring to guide patient investigation and management. The 2016 NICE guidelines do not advocate this and rely on a purely qualitative approach because all those with a clinical suspicion of angina will be investigated the same way. Presenting symptoms are divided into 'typical' and 'atypical'. 'Typical' chest pain is classified as including all three of the following features:

1. Constricting discomfort in the front of the chest, or in the neck, shoulders, jaw, or arms;

2. Precipitated by physical exertion; and

3. Relieved by rest or sublingual nitrate within approximately 5 minutes.

'Atypical' pain is suggested by any two of the above, whereas 'non-anginal' pain is described as one or fewer. In the event of pain being classified as 'non-anginal', a diagnosis of stable angina can be excluded unless other features within the history or the risk factor profile (Box 1 …


Next-generation memory (NGM) technologies present a major opportunity but also a significant challenge, due to their intricate reliability issues. In particular, multilevel-cell (MLC) storage is highly desirable for increasing storage capacity and lowering total cost-per-bit. In phase-change memory (PCM), MLC storage is hampered by sensitivity to temperature variations and resistance drift. A novel drift-invariant detection (DID) scheme that estimates variable read thresholds based on ordered statistics and clustering of the soft read-back signals from a small block of 32 cells has been developed and implemented in hardware to improve reliability and prolong data retention. A low-complexity implementation of the DID on a FPGA platform comprises 20'000 LUTs and 6'000 flip-flops and has a latency of 90ns. We present results from an extensive performance verification that ascertains highly reliable data retrieval up to 13 orders of magnitude in time after programming. Such elevated reliability is necessary for the most anticipated application of NGM, namely persistent far-memory, where the NGM is used as a large memory pool, possibly together with DRAM.


This study sets out to empirically estimate the optimum annual replacement rate and age of cocoa trees in order to maximize the net present value of four common cocoa production systems. The study examines the costs and returns of four common cocoa production systems in Ghana associated with changes in cocoa prices, fertilizer prices, inflation rates, and labor prices. While this study focuses on cocoa, the methodology is applicable to any perennial crop. This study uses empirical yield curves and cost of production data from Ghana to determine when and what percentage of a cocoa orchard should be replaced annually to maximize net present value of revenues over time. Successive versions of the model are solved to determine how input and output price changes affect optimal replacement rates and replacement ages. Producers in both high- and low-income countries are reluctant to cull still productive assets, such as trees that are diminishing in yield over time. The Excel based model developed in this study could provide extension personnel with a simple yet powerful tool to illustrate to producers the benefits of systematic tree replacement. This study provides strong evidence of the benefits of replacing trees at the optimal time and rate.


Will construction—the process wherein a trier of fact must determine the testator's probable intent because the testator's actual intent is not clear—is too little discussed and too often misunderstood in succession law jurisprudence. Yet, construction issues are becoming increasingly important due to a growing number of will and trust disputes concerning the determination of beneficiaries in a post-Obergefell United States. Currently, courts are being asked to construe terms like "spouse," "husband," "wife," "child," "son," "daughter," and "descendants" in estate planning documents during a time in which understandings of marriage, identity, reproduction, religious liberty, and public policy are rapidly evolving. Interestingly, these various construction cases may have disparate legal outcomes depending upon the states in which the cases are litigated, even in cases with similar underlying facts. In fact, these definitions and consequent outcomes may correlate with the views of the state's dominant political party—whether a state is red or blue. Data support the notion that red states and blue states generally have different attitudes toward LGBT issues, artificial reproductive technology, and religion. Data also support the inference that judges— particularly elected judges—tend to be influenced by their respective state's attitude. Where a judge's decision-making is influenced one way or the other—toward the red side or the blue side—her approach to will construction and her understanding of public policy may reflect that tendency. Therefore, diverging public policies in red states and in blue states may affect judicial construction and govern dispositions. Accordingly, this Article addresses real-world construction issues in the estate planning context where a particular state's approach to the redefinition of both words and policy may influence the deemed intent ascribed to a donor's words.


A rapid culture assay which allows for the simultaneous typing and subtyping of currently circulating influenza A(H1N1), A(H3N2), and B viruses in clinical specimens was developed. Pools of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) against influenza A and B viruses and MAbs HA1-71 and HA2-76, obtained by immunizing mice with the denatured hemagglutinin subfragments HA1 and HA2 of influenza virus A/Victoria/3/75, were used for immunoperoxidase staining of antigens in infected MDCK cells. MAb HA1-71 reacted exclusively with influenza A viruses of the H3 subtype, while MAb HA2-76 reacted with subtypes H1, H3, H4, H6, H8, H9, H10, H11, and H12, as determined with 78 human, 4 swine, and 10 avian influenza virus reference strains subtyped by the hemagglutination inhibition test. To determine if the technique can be used as a rapid diagnostic test, 263 known influenza virus-positive frozen nasal or throat swabs were inoculated into MDCK cells. After an overnight incubation, the cells were fixed and viral antigens were detected by immunoperoxidase staining. Influenza A viruses of the H1 and H3 subtypes were detected in 31 and 113 specimens, respectively. The subtypes of 10 influenza A virus-positive specimens could not be determined because they contained too little virus. Influenza B viruses were detected in 84 specimens, and 25 specimens were negative. We conclude that this assay is a rapid, convenient, non-labor-intensive, and relatively inexpensive test for detecting, typing, and subtyping influenza viruses in clinical specimens.


Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a leading cause of dementia in the elderly and is characterized by amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) and neuronal dysfunction. Early onset AD (EOAD) is commonly caused by mutations in amyloid precursor protein (APP) or genes involved in the processing of APP including the presenilins (e.g. PSEN1 or PSEN2). In general, mouse models relevant to EOAD recapitulate amyloidosis, show only limited amounts of NFTs and neuronal cell dysfunction and low but significant levels of seizure susceptibility. To investigate the effect of genetic background on these phenotypes, we generated APPswe and PSEN1de9 transgenic mice on the seizure prone inbred strain background, DBA/2J. Previous studies show that the DBA/2J genetic background modifies plaque deposition in the presence of mutant APP but the impact of PSEN1de9 has not been tested. Our study shows that DBA/2J.APPswePSEN1de9 mice are significantly more prone to premature lethality, likely to due to lethal seizures, compared to B6.APPswePSEN1de9 mice—70% of DBA/2J.APPswePSEN1de9 mice die between 2-3 months of age. Of the DBA/2J.APPswePSEN1de9 mice that survived to 6 months of age, plaque deposition was greatly reduced compared to age-matched B6.APPswePSEN1de9 mice. The reduction in plaque deposition appears to be independent of microglia numbers, reactive astrocytosis and complement C5 activity.


During September 1983 an unusually early freeze-up and persistent northwesterly winds that drove heavy multi-year ice into Proliv Longa and against the north coast of Chukotka resulted in a critical situation with regard to shipping in the Soviet eastern Arctic. Ports such as Zelenyy Mys and Mys Shmidta were prematurely closed by ice, leaving Pevek as the only functioning port in this part of the Arctic. Worse still, dozens of ships were beset in the ice at various points from the mouth of the Indigirka east to Bering Strait. One freighter, Nina Sagaydak, was crushed and sank near Kosa Dvukh Pilotov on 8 October; a sister ship, Kolya Myagotin, was badly holed and barely managed to limp out of the Arctic. Practically all available ice breakers, including the nuclear-powered icebreakers Lenin, Leonid Brezhnev and Siber', were transferred from the western to the eastern Arctic to free the jammed ships. Ultimately all were rescued, but it was late November before the last ship sailed from Pevek. Many ships were forced to head west from Pevek to the Atlantic, rather than attempt to battle their way through the heavy ice in Proliv Longa in order to return to their Pacific home ports. Singled out for particular praise in Soviet post-mortems of the crisis were the nuclear-powered icebreakers and the new Noril'sk class (SA-15) icebreaking freighters, several of which came straight from the Finnish shipyards to help rectify the situation in the eastern Arctic. Key words: Soviet eastern Arctic, Soviet Union, navigation, icebreaker


UNLABELLED
BackgroundAcquired alopecia of the lower legs may occur secondary to friction due to socks, footwear, or both on the lower extremities. There is scant literature that reports on this phenomenon.Methods and MaterialsWe describe 5 patients who presented with alopecia of their lower legs induced by socks, footwear, or both.

METHODS AND MATERIALS
We reviewed PubMed for the following terms: ankle alopecia, friction alopecia, frictional alopecia, lower extremity alopecia, non-scarring leg alopecia, and sock alopecia. We also reviewed papers containing these terms and their references.ResultsAcquired frictional alopecia of the lower extremities is often an asymptomatic condition found incidentally on physical examination. The condition can persist for many years despite removal of the source of friction.ConclusionThe incidence of acquired frictional alopecia of the lower extremities may be greater than reflected in previously published reports. It is a non-scarring subtype of alopecia that was noted as an incidental finding during the patient's dermatology appointment.


Cushing's Syndrome (CS) is rare in children and adolescents (10%). It is classified as exogenous and endogenous; dependent ACTH or independent ACTH, the latter with an incidence of 2 to 4 cases per million inhabitants per year; having its origin in tumors of the adrenal gland, which are rare in children.

Clinical case: 11-month-old male infant who attended a medical consultation for 5 days due to obesity, physical examination showed virilization data, high blood pressure, laboratory studies with elevated morning cortisol and normal ACTH, suspecting independent ACTH Cushing's syndrome, a simple abdominal CT was requested with evidence of adrenal gland dependent tumor of approximately 3.3 cm × 4 cm, so surgical management of right suprarenalectomy was decided, with postoperative admission to intensive therapy, being withdrawn on the 13th day of hospital stay. Histopathological report of adrenal adenoma; Follow-up was given to the outpatient clinic at six months with laboratory and cabinet controls without evidence of tumor activity.

Conclusion: There should be a broad diagnostic suspicion of Cushing's syndrome in pediatric patients, to correct the underlying cause that originated it and to reverse possible future complications.


p53 tumor suppressor is a transcription factor that controls cell cycle and genetic integrity. In response to genotoxic stress p53 activates DNA repair, cell cycle arrest, apoptosis or senescence, which are initiated via p53 binding to its specific DNA response elements (RE). The consensus p53 DNA RE consists of two decameric palindromic half-site sequences. Crystallographic studies have demonstrated that two isolated p53 DNA-binding core domains interact with one half-site of the p53 DNA REs suggesting that one p53 tetramer is bound to one RE. However, our recent 3D cryo-EM studies showed that the full-length p53 tetramer is bound to only one half-site of RE. Here, we have used biochemical and electron microscopy (EM) methods to analyze DNA-binding of human and murine p53 tetramers to various p53 DNA REs. Our new results demonstrate that two p53 tetramers can interact sequence-specifically with one DNA RE at the same time. In particular, the EM structural analysis revealed that two p53 tetramers bind one DNA RE simultaneously with DNA positioned between them. These results demonstrate a mode different from that assumed previously for the p53-DNA interaction and suggest important biological implications on p53 activity as a transcriptional regulator of cellular response to stress.


Medical Image:  We present the case of a 4-year-old boy, who, two months after suffering a growing gingiva in the buccal aspect of right decidous canine, developed a painless, exophytic swelling of approximately 1,5 cm, with non-bleeding on palpation (Figure 1). The lesion demons¬trated rapid, progressive and continuous growth. The X-ray study showed no signs of bone involvement. The lesion was excised under local anesthesia (Figure 2). The histological study confirmed the diagnosis of peripheral giant cell granuloma. The postoperative course was uneventful. Control examination after 2 months showed a remarkable healing (Figure 3).


In this paper, a PWM scheme for three-level full-SiC uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs) has been developed to achieve a high power-density. Two key passive components have been selected for size reduction of the full-SiC UPS; common-mode (CM) EMI filter and dc-link capacitors. To reduce the CM noise, a new vector combination has been proposed based on a synchronous switching of three-phases. The proposed combinations align CM voltage (CMV) to be a single pulse per a switching period. CMV cancellation between a three-level rectifier and inverter can be maximally utilized while a drift of neutral point voltage can be prevented by transition among three combinations. Secondly, to reduce dc-link capacitors, a simple algorithm to compensate neutral point voltage fluctuation has been proposed both for differential-and common-mode output voltage. The proposed algorithm can simply be implemented by a correction on carrier-slopes and injected zero-sequence voltage. The proposed scheme has been verified with 20 kW full-SiC UPS switching at 60 kHz with 146 μF dc-link capacitors.