Although the 1997/98 and 2015/16 El Niño events are considered to be the strongest on record, their subsequent La Niña events exhibited contrasted evolutions. In this study, we demonstrate that the extremely strong period of Tropical Instability Waves (TIWs) at the beginning of boreal summer of 2016 played an important role in hindering the subsequent La Niña's development by transporting extra off-equatorial heat into the Pacific cold tongue. By comparing the TIWs contribution based on an oceanic mixed-layer heat budget analysis for the 1998 and 2016 episodes, we establish that TIW-induced nonlinear dynamical heating (NDH) is a significant contributor to the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phase transition in 2016. TIW-induced NDH contributed to around 0.4°C per month warming during the early boreal summer (May-June) following the 2015/16 El Niño's peak, which is found to be an essential inhibiting factor that prevented the subsequent La Niña's growth. A time-mean eddy kinetic energy analysis reveals that anomalous TIWs during 2016 mainly gained their energy from the baroclinic instability conversion due to a strong SST warming in the northeastern off-equatorial Pacific that promoted an increased meridional SST gradient. This highlights the importance of accurately reproducing TIW activity in ENSO simulation and the benefit of off-equatorial SST anomalies in the eastern Pacific as an independent precursor for ENSO predictions.


Today, the use of SWOT analysis is increasingly popular for the strategic planning of businesses. However, we argue that a traditional and conventional way of approaching the SWOT analysis contains an interpretative mistargeting which, in the background, derives from the absence of a comprehensive evolutionary methodological framework. Therefore, a conventional SWOT analysis that articulates lists of strengths-weaknesses and opportunities-threats in an absolute and non-correlative way is probably inappropriate to give answers to the needs of strategic planning. In this direction, by also exploring elements from the criticism to the traditional SWOT analysis, we counter-propose a new conceptual framework that perceives SWOT analysis in a correlative and evolutionary way, for all the kinds of socioeconomic organisms.


Endmember extraction is the process of selecting pure spectral signatures of materials from hyperspectral data. Most of the endmember extraction methods in the literature use only the spectral information, and disregard the spatial composition of the image. Spatial-spectral preprocessing methods, motivated by the assumption that endmembers are more likely to be located in homogenous regions, can increase the performance of endmember extraction by directing the extraction process to homogenous regions. However, such an approach generally results in a failure of extracting anomalous or scarce endmembers, which can be important in practical applications, e.g., to extract endmembers of materials such as landmines, rare minerals, or stressed crops. Although anomaly detection can be applied in parallel to endmember extraction, the process of endmember extraction and unmixing provides a summary of the data, which is important for concepts such as data scanning and compression, and disregarding anomalous endmembers in such a summary or compression of big data may result in undesired consequences for many application fields. In this paper, an approach that guides the endmember extraction process to spatially homogenous regions instead of transition areas, while also extracting anomalous pixel vectors as endmembers, is proposed. The proposed approach can be used with any spectral-based endmember extraction method. The experimental results validate the approach for both synthetic and real hyperspectral images.


Effective life-long deployment of an autonomous agent in a complex environment demands that the agent has some model of itself and its environment. Such models are inherently predictive, allowing an agent to predict the consequences of its actions. In this paper, we demonstrate the use of General Value Functions (GVFs) for learning and representing such a predictive model on a robotic arm. Our model is composed of three types of signals: (1) predictions of sensorimotor signals, (2) measures of surprise using Unexpected Demon Error (UDE) and (3) predictions of surprise. In a proof-ofprinciple experiment, where the robot arm is manually perturbed in a recurring pattern, we show that each perturbation is detected as a jump in the surprise signal. We demonstrate that the recurrence of these perturbations not only can be learned, but can be anticipated. We propose that introspective signals like surprise and predictions of surprise might serve as a rich substrate for more abstract predictive models, improving an agent's abilitypredictive models, improving an agent's ability to continually and independently learn about itself and its environment to fulfill its goals.


This book is "designed to inform the wide variety of researchers interested in historical population studies about the fundamental sources methods and approaches to explanatory modeling that appear...most promising for describing analyzing and understanding demographic features of past societies." Examples of sources and empirical research in different regions of the world are included. The book is divided into five parts. The first section provides an introduction to the intellectual ancestry of historical demographic research. Part 2 deals with fundamental source materials including sources of prehistoric demography parish registers and civil registration records enumerations and censuses genealogies and population registers and organizational and institutional records. Part 3 focuses on methods of population reconstruction and analysis of historical sources and Part 4 on major themes in causal model building and hypothesis testing. Attention is given to population genetics biometric evolutionary-ecological and socioeconomic models. In the conclusion the need for an interdisciplinary approach to historical demographic research is stressed. (EXCERPT)


The concept of probiotics has evolved immensely since it was first proposed a century ago. There are numerous potential health benefits attributed to certain probiotic bacteria, from preventing gastrointestinal (GI) infections to stimulating the immune system. Recent evidence is now quite compelling for a role of probiotics in enhancing liver health. Liver injury is on the rise worldwide with non-alcohol fatty liver disease (NAFLD) the fastest rising liver problem, due largely to the rise in obesity and type II diabetes. A damaged liver can progress to more serious conditions such as steatohepatitis and cirrhosis, and the intestinal microflora are believed to play a large role in this progression. When the intestinal microbial flora is high in facultative microbes, particularly the Enterobacteriaceae, and low in anaerobes such as bifidobacteria, higher levels of ammonia, endotoxins and other compounds enter the blood stream. This results in direct liver damage and also indirectly from pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha. Probiotics have been shown to modulate the intestinal microflora and decrease the urease producing gram negatives and increase the anaerobic population. While results have been obtained with current probiotic strains, more effective strains could be obtained if all the characteristics bacteria use to survive and compete successfully in the intestine were known. The genomics era is now providing the tools to more effectively understand probiotic interactions in the intestine. This will lead to a new generation of exciting probiotics in the future.


2011 The views expressed in this working paper are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or policy of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Secretariat or of its individual member countries. This paper is a work in progress, designed to elicit comments and further debate; thus, comments are welcome, The International Energy Agency (IEA), an autonomous agency, was established in November 1974. Its primary mandate was – and is – twofold: to promote energy security amongst its member countries through collective response to physical disruptions in oil supply, and provide authoritative research and analysis on ways to ensure reliable, affordable and clean energy for its 28 member countries and beyond. The IEA carries out a comprehensive programme of energy cooperation among its member countries, each of which is obliged to hold oil stocks equivalent to 90 days of its net imports. The Agency's aims include the following objectives:  Secure member countries' access to reliable and ample supplies of all forms of energy; in particular, through maintaining effective emergency response capabilities in case of oil supply disruptions.  Promote sustainable energy policies that spur economic growth and environmental protection in a global context – particularly in terms of reducing greenhouse-gas emissions that contribute to climate change.  Improve transparency of international markets through collection and analysis of energy data.  Support global collaboration on energy technology to secure future energy supplies and mitigate their environmental impact, including through improved energy effi ciency and development and deployment of low-carbon technologies.  Find solutions to global energy challenges through engagement and dialogue with non-member countries, industry, international organisations and other stakeholders. The European Commission also participates in the work of the IEA. Please note that this publication is subject to specii c restrictions that limit its use and distribution. The terms and conditions are available online at (NDRC ERI) provided important inputs. This paper is partly a result of closer co‐operation between IEA and China's NDRC ERI, especially in the areas of renewable energy and technology roadmaps. The IEA Chief Editor, Marilyn Smith, provided editorial guidance; Corinne Hayworth designed the cover pages and Anne Mayne developed the final layout.


Abstract Digital Dental Photography (DDP) represents a must-have instrument for all dentists in their daily activities. Nowadays, DDP represents a tool that is no longer reserved for a select small number of dentists but is accessible to every practitioner. Although the number of dentists who use DDP daily is increasing, there is much hesitance, many questions, and resistance regarding the introduction of dental photography in daily practice. This series of articles aims to demystify all the misconceptions related to the DDP and offer readers a transparent image of how DDP can become the most powerful tool for their offices. All the "mysterious" terms related to the DDP will be explained, and simple protocols that can be easily incorporated in any dental office in daily practice will be presented. This article is the first in a five-part series dedicated to DDP. Part 1 defines the role of DDP in daily practice covering the four significant indications: documentation, communication, education, and marketing.


Ubuntu is a value system that is known to be found in African communities.  Like other values within African communities, it is perceived to have transcended the colonialist rule which changed the landscape of Africa including its socio-cultural makeup.  Although KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) is credited for the initiation of Ubuntu, the erosion of certain cultural values has been found to be more acute in KwaZulu-Natal. That being the case, an empirical study into the existence of Ubuntu in rural KZN, Umgungundlovu District, was conducted and the results revealed that Ubuntu is an important cultural value in the community which is however perceived to be losing its importance in the younger generation.

 Key words: Ubuntu, African value system, patriarchy, African worldview, African epistemology.


Williams syndrome (WS) is a genetic developmental disorder characterized by severe spatial impairments and structural and functional abnormalities in the hippocampus (Meyer-Lindenburg et al., 2006). Although the spatial deficit is well-documented, we know little about other deficits that would be predicted by the hippocampal abnormalities. Here, we examine episodic memory (i.e. memory for personally experienced events in a spatio-temporal context, Tulving, 1983), asking people with WS to recount past personal events. We use an interview method developed for patients (Levine et al., 2002) and typically developing children (Willoughby et al., 2012). People with WS recounted significantly fewer episodic details than age-matched controls. Importantly however, they offered just as many semantic details (reflecting general world knowledge), indicating that global factors (e.g., verbal skill or IQ) cannot account for these results. Our work identifies a specific cognitive deficit in WS and further highlights the critical involvement of the hippocampus in episodic memory.


The Bohr effect in hemoglobin, which refers to the dependence of the oxygen affinity on the pH, plays an important role in its cooperativity and physiological function. The dominant contribution to the Bohr effect arises from the difference in the pKa values of His residues of the unliganded (deoxy) and liganded (carbonmonoxy) structures. Using recent high resolution structures, the residue pKa values corresponding to the two structures are calculated. The method is based on determining the electrostatic interactions between residues in the protein, relative to those of the residue in solution, by use of the linearized finite difference Poisson-Boltzmann equation and Monte Carlo sampling of protonation states. Given that good agreement is obtained with the available experimental values for the contribution of His residues in HbA to the Bohr effect, the calculated results are used to determine the atomic origin of the pKa shift between deoxy and carbonmonoxy HbA. The contributions to the pKa shift calculated by means of the linear response approximation show that the salt bridge involving His146 plays an important role in the alkaline Bohr effect, as suggested by Perutz but that other interactions are significant as well. A corresponding analysis is made for the contribution of His143 to the acid Bohr effect for which there is no proposed explanation. The method used is summarized and the program by which it is implemented is described in the Appendix .


African nutmeg, Monodora myristica (Gaertn.) Dunal, seed was extracted using: methanol, ethanol, acetone. petroleum-ether. n-hexane or water. The extracts were tested for insecticidal activity against cowpea seed bruchid, Callosobruchus maculatus (Fab.), at ambient tropical conditions of temperature and relative humidity. Results showed that steam distillate caused the highest percentage mortality (92.5 ± 0.80) at 4 days post-treatment compared to 40.0 ± 0.8 – 68.8 ± 1.0 for other solvents. However, only acetone caused significantly (P<0.05) lower mortality. When the bruchids had choice of oviposition substrate, they laid significantly fewer eggs (18.8 ± 0.8) on cowpea seeds treated with steam distillate compared to 2: 32.8 ± 1.8 eggs laid on cowpea seeds treated with other solvent extracts. Significantly lower number of adults emerged from seeds treated with extracts than from untreated seeds. There was no adult emergence in seeds treated with steam distillate, therefore suggesting that steam distillate was the most potent of all biopesticide tested for insecticidal activity on C. maculatus.


Skin carcinogenesis can be divided into at least three major stages: initiation, promotion, and progression. In the mouse skin model, the first stage is thought to involve the interaction of a tumor initiator with the genetic material of stem cells, leading to an irreversible alteration in growth control or differentiation, probably by activation of the Ha-ras oncogene. The major effect of all skin-tumor promoters seems to be the specific expansion of the initiated stem cells. The correlation between the abilities of tumor promoters to induce sustained hyperplasia and their tumor-promoting activities is very good. We found that the appearance of alpha-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) and keratin 13 and the lack of expression of keratins 1 and 10 are good markers for skin tumor progression. These alterations occur when papillomas change from a diploid to an aneuploid state, mainly as a result of developing trisomies 6 and 7. To evaluate the role of GGT in skin-tumor progression, we transfected a functional GGT cDNA into two cell lines that normally produce papillomas when grafted into the skin of nude mice. When injected subcutaneously, all of the GGT-transfected clones formed malignant tumors, whereas only 24% of vector-transfected cells did. When GGT-transfected clones were placed into grafts, the grafts had an average mass almost three times that of grafts of vector-transfected cells. Our recent studies also suggest that the ribonucleoprotein telomerase and the gap-junctional proteins connexins (Cxs) are also important in skin-tumor progression. A progressive increase in telomerase activity was associated with the increased level of genomic instability during tumor progression. In addition, the level and expression of Cx26, Cx43, and Cx31.1 were significantly altered during skin tumor promotion and progression. The differences of various mouse stocks and strains in susceptibility to multistage skin carcinogenesis seem to be related more to alterations in tumor promotion than to tumor initiation; however, the critical events have not been determined. Results with an inbred strain of SENCAR mice, which are very sensitive to papilloma formation by the two-stage protocol, also suggest that susceptibility is related to promotion. Despite the high incidence of papillomas in these inbred SENCAR mice, the number of malignant tumors was extremely low, suggesting that sensitivity to promotion and progression are independent in these mice.


A 128-point FFT/IFFT processor has been designed and implemented in a standard CMOS process using the TSPC logic style. The processor uses a high performance bit-serial SIC architecture and calculates an FFT in 58 ms. A structured technique to derive a hierarchical control structure from the pseudo-code for the FFT has been used, resulting in a control unit implemented as a set of co-operating bit-serial control processors. The computational requirements are met using only one butterfly-PE and two RAMs.


The Nablus Collection is a previously-unpublished hoard of imperial Roman bronze coins from the Tetrarchic Period (294-318) housed at the Catholic University of America. The Collection is comparable to many other, similar hoards and confirms common trends such as weight, time span, and inflation during the period. One programmatic weight reduction, in the year 307/308, is well documented in the Collection, and the hoard further substantiates a lesser-known weight reduction in the year 312 for which no material evidence had as yet been discovered. The Collection, however, differs from other hoards in several remarkable ways, raising questions that require creative hypotheses. The mint distribution supported by comparable hoards of the period contrasts strikingly with that of the Collection, which evidences a balance of eastern and western mints peculiar for the period. The hoard testifies to the economic rise of a frontier colony which by the 320s had become an established community with its own bishop and the importance to attract a flow of foreign coin from across the Empire. The Collection adds a small piece to the story of that turbulent period when Constantine marched from York, crossed the Empire, and finally settled in the East.


It has come to my attention that thousands of children each year are given chloral hydrate as a sedative for dental and other medical practices. It is usually administered as a syrup or in fruit punch. Dentists consider this procedure safe because of the few adverse effects observed in children receiving this drug. Chloral hydrate is, however, a toxic metabolite of the rodent carcinogen trichloroethylene (TCE) and is a mutagen and chromosome-damaging agent (1). The dose typically administered to young children is 900 milligrams (mg). Using a typical weight of 15 kilograms (kg), I calculated this dose to be 60 mg/kg. This single dose is equivalent to drinking 1 liter of water a day contaminated with 5 parts per billion of TCE (the maximum contaminant level allowed by the Environmental Protection Agency) for 1000 years, if one assumes that half the TCE is converted to chloral hydrate in the body. These calculations indicate to me that we should be concerned about cancer induction resulting from the use of chloral hydrate in pediatrics. Further, they indicate that we may be missing a major risk factor for the induction ofcancer in humans, that is, widely used, supposedly "safe" drugs, while spending inappropriate amounts of money on trivial cancer risks. State and federal regulatory agencies may therefore find it appropriate to review the use of chloral hydrate and to evaluate the health risk associated with its use. MARTYN T. SMrm Department ofBiomedical and Environmental Health Sciences, School ofPublic Health, University ofCaltfornia, Berkeley, C-A 94720


Abstract. Visualization of disaster dispersion prediction enables decision makers and civilian to prepare disaster and to reduce the damage by showing the realistic simulation results. With advances of GIS technology and the theory of volcanic disaster prediction algorithm, the predicted disaster dispersions are displayed in spatial information. However, most of volcanic ash dispersion predictions are displayed in 2D. 2D visualization has a limitation to understand the realistic dispersion prediction since its height could be presented only by colour. Especially for volcanic ash, 3D visualization of dispersion prediction is essential since it could bring out big aircraft accident. In this paper, we deals with 3D visualization techniques of volcanic ash dispersion prediction with spatial information open platform in Korea. First, time-series volcanic ash 3D position and concentrations are calculated with WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting) model and Modified Fall3D algorithm. For 3D visualization, we propose three techniques; those are 'Cube in the air', 'Cube in the cube', and 'Semi-transparent plane in the air' methods. In the 'Cube in the Air', which locates the semitransparent cubes having different color depends on its particle concentration. Big cube is not realistic when it is zoomed. Therefore, cube is divided into small cube with Octree algorithm. That is 'Cube in the Cube' algorithm. For more realistic visualization, we apply 'Semi-transparent Volcanic Ash Plane' which shows the ash as fog. The results are displayed in the 'V-world' which is a spatial information open platform implemented by Korean government. Proposed techniques were adopted in Volcanic Disaster Response System implemented by Korean Ministry of Public Safety and Security.


Hematite (α-Fe 2 O 3 ) suspension was used in this study to investigate the effects of aggregate size and solution chemical characteristics on particle removal and headloss development in a deep bed filter. When electrolyte (KCl) concentration in the suspension was increased from 0-80 mM, the size of hematite aggregates in suspension increased from 85 to 990 nM but had no significant effect on zeta potential. It was found that at low KCl concentrations (0-10 mM), the initial removal is governed by surface chemical properties while at higher concentrations (40-80 mM), the effect of particle size (steric effect) predominates. The transient stage filter performance was found to be controlled by the favourable chemical conditions prevailing in the filtration system rather than the size of the particles. Studies of the effect of a natural organic material (fulvic acid) on particle removal indicated that fulvic acid at low concentrations (less than 0.75 mg/L) enhanced particle aggregation and improved filtration efficiency. At concentrations higher than 2 mg/L, it was found to increase the stability of particles thus affecting filtration efficiency.


Objective To analyse the temporal and spatial characteristics of traumatic brain injury and the distribution of combined injuries in the Wenchuan earthquake, and describe the treatment opportunities and preferences for therapy. Methods The diagnosis and treatment of 92 patients with traumatic brain injury who survived the massive earthquake (magnitude 8) in Wenchuan, Sichuan Province, on 12 May 2008 were systematically analysed. Results The patients all came from the plains northwest of Chengdu city. Seventy-six patients were admitted during the early stage (within 12 h) after the earthquake. Ten patients underwent surgery and three patients died. Conclusion Patients with traumatic brain injury during the early period accounted for a large proportion of the patients wounded in the Wenchuan earthquake, and their conditions changed quickly. The patients all came from the plain area which has convenient transportation. After admission, providing first-aid early had a significant effect on increasing the success of treatment for these patients.


Using divorce cases and involuntary homicide cases from the tribunal de province and tribunal de cercle of the 1930s, this paper examines the ways in which corporal punishment of wives was characterized as either acceptable correction or unacceptable domestic abuse in court narratives from the large market town of Sikasso, French Soudan. I argue that the two sets of cases reveal distinct, gendered articulations of the corporal punishment of wives, the contested place of such punishment in the maintenance of a moral economy in marriage, and the different roles that men and women played in supporting and contesting the physical punishment of wives. How ‐ ever, the testimony from these cases reveals more than the contested meanings of wife punishment in the marriages that were put on trial in Sikasso in the 1930s. I argue that the evidentiary tools used in the court cases–autopsy, physical examinations, and witness testimony– were all part of the shifting legal terrain of the 1930s. Whereas women in the early years of colonial Sikasso successfully argued for divorce in the colonial tribunals, the 1920s and 1930s marked a period where women were required by the courts to provide more proof to support their claims for divorce. This reflected the pressure that chiefs and male heads of households placed on the local colonial government officials to uphold their patriarchial authority, but it also revealed an increasingly codified notion of customary practice. African marriage lay at the center of so many studies on customary law, and by the 1930s there existed published studies on customary African marriage that influenced colonial court assessors and African legal intermediaries in their appraisal of marriage-related legal claims. By this time, the French colonial legal system in the French Soudan had established categories of behavior that were considered either "contrary to French civilization"–a term used often in writings on colonial judicial systems–or "customary practice". However, I contend that claims of abuse, and the protracted debates and witness testimony concerning the physical punishment of wives in divorce cases reveal that abuse remained in a legal liminal state for the colonial civil court. This was for at least two reasons. First, while writings on customary law in French Soudan in the 1930s did not recognize physical punishment as a legitimate claim for divorce, women continued to claim divorce on grounds of excessive abuse, and they crafted their own testimony and evidence to support these claims. Second, physical abuse of wives was considered, by colonial adjudicators and African elites who served as court assessors, to be both "contrary to French civilization" and within the boundaries of "customary practice". Work on domestic violence, where female bodies are the object of violent acts, is historically useful because it not only helps scholars understand the role of power and authority in relationships between African men and women, but also because it reveals the central role of women and control over female bodies and sexuality in the debates on customary law between colonial administrators and African male leaders. It is also a significant contribution to the growing corpus of academic work on African marriage and law. Research on these forms of gender violence reminds scholars that because acts of domestic violence are ultimately political in nature and linked to larger socio-cultural values, we should look more closely at the links between brutality directed towards women in their conjugal relationships and families, social and economic strife, and challenges to local political authorities and issues of state power Disputing Wife Abuse Cahiers d'études africaines, 187-188 | 2007 16


It is not a secret that global economies are no longer shaped by huge reserves of natural resources alone because developed economies are driven more by the power of information. After all, information is power. It must be noted that licensing of electronic communications is one of the most important instruments that could be employed in the context of the on going communication sector reform in Zambia. Licensing should evolve to ensure that it remains relevant and beneficial. It is a well known fact that Information and Communication Technology is not an end in itself but is used to achieve commercial and social ends, and it is these that may be changed by technological development in a way which outdates the regulation.In light of technological advances, it is necessary to have in place a strong regulatory framework capable of addressing the interests of both service providers and consumers as well as responding to the social and economic factors prevailing in the country, In summary, it has been identified that the industry practice in Zambia is far ahead of the current legal framework, hence the need for reform.
In view of the foregoing, this essay examines the licensing regime under the Information and Communication Technologies Act2 and seeks to advance recommendations on how best it may be reformed so as to address the on going technological developments in the country. The methodology consists of an examination of published and unpublished materials as well as interviews with key personnel at the Zambia Information and Communication Technology Authority. Firstly, the essay examines the regulatory framework that governed the ICT sector in Zambia prior to the enactment of the ICT Act of 2009. Secondly, it examines the licensing regime under the newly enacted ICT Act of 2009 and lastly, the essay examines the concept of Technology neutrality and its impact on the regulation of the ICT sector at international, regional and national level. The findings indicate that the legal regime prior to the enactment of the ICT Act was inadequate in that, the Communications Authority's autonomy was not insulated against external interference, secondly, it did not provide for issues such as, inter alia, interconnection by service providers and dispute resolution and the licensing regime was not technology and service neutral. It is further established that the ICT Act of 2009 addressed some of the lacunas in the previous legal regime. However, it is concluded that generally the legislation remains unchanged, as for instance the exercise of discretionary power by the minister and the licensing regime not being technology and service neutral.In view of the findings and conclusion, the following recommendations are advanced, inter alia, enhancing the autonomy of the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority, change of the current licence format, change of current regulatory model and finally, vesting the mandate to determine and prescribe licence fees in the Zambia Information and Communications Technology Authority.


Purpose
There is a growing interest in artisan entrepreneurs around the world. Scholars are increasingly interested in how artisan enterprises use tourism in a resource-constrained resources. Based on the concept of artisan chocolate entrepreneur, the purpose of this paper is to examine the phenomenon of artisanal chocolate making in a small island with limited resources yet influenced by increased tourism.

Design/methodology/approach
Artisan enterprises are considered relevant in developing countries and their creation merits further attention. This study examines artisan enterprises using in-depth interviews, case studies, and an interpretative approach. The approach enables examining how artisan chocolate enterprises use tourism to develop their businesses in a context characterized by limited resources.

Findings
The findings show that artisan entrepreneurs are encouraged to start and develop enterprises due to lifestyle choices. The findings reveal a connection between artisan chocolatiers developing place-bound features to address a growing demand of tourists' expectation for authentic and local products. The approach of artisan entrepreneurs in such conditions can be explained through entrepreneurial bricolage.

Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature on the initial stages of artisan enterprises particularly in resource-constrained environments influenced by tourism. More specifically, the study provides evidence of the relevance of tourism for artisanal enterprise emergence, which is a relatively overlooked area in tourism and artisanal studies in developing countries. The study highlights the key place bound features that artisanal chocolate entrepreneurs associate to their products based on tourists' demand for authentic and local products.


Abstract. In the context of the European Water Framework Directive, we studied the possible impact of reduced emissions on phosphorus and nitrogen concentrations in a lowland river-lake system (Havel River, Germany). As a prerequisite, we quantified the retention of nutrients in the river from mass balances and deduced its seasonal variation. We detected that about 30% of the total nitrogen input is retained within the surveyed river section. In contrast, phosphorus release from sediments was shown to cause a considerable increase in present P concentrations. Average net phosphorus release rates of about 20 mg P m−2 d−1 in late summer were estimated for the Havel Lakes. Based on the observed patterns of N retention and P release we parametrized a newly developed water quality simulation program (TRAM), which allows alternative model approaches of different complexity to be implemented and tested. To account for the future trend of internal P loading, the phosphorus excess in lake sediments was estimated from core samples and included in the model as a state variable. For analyzing scenarios of reduced nutrient emissisions, the water quality simulation program was linked to mesoscale hydrological catchment models for the first time. From scenario simulations we conclude that internal P loading is likely to counteract efforts of emission control for decades. Even by significant reductions in external P loads, a persistent phosphorus limitation of primary production can hardly be established in the analyzed time frame of 13 years. Though in the short run a continued reduction in nitrogen loads appears to be the more promising approach of eutrophication management, we recommend enhanced efforts to diminish both N and P emissions.


Domestic private enterprises have dramatically re-emerged in China's unique transition from a planned to a market-oriented economy, where the private sector plays an increasingly important role. Over the last quarter of a century, there has been a decline in 'red-hat' enterprises and an increased dominance of family businesses among private enterprises.This paper employs the concept of trust, which stems from traditional culture and comprises two important components (government and family), to investigate the changing patterns of corporate governance. The core argument of this paper is that family trust is replacing government trust within Chinese private enterprises. The study of the determinants of government and family trust (Guanxi) of this paper is based on a survey conducted in 2006 over 296 private enterprises in Ningbo China. The empirical results show that private firms prefer family members to the government for co-operation as the firm ages and the instability of the business environment increases. The findings of this paper give additional support to our understanding of why family businesses constitute the majority of Chinese private firms. The results also reflect the different effects of government and family Guanxi on the firm's economic activities, representing respectively the separation or combination of ownership and control in terms of corporate governance in private firms.


The role of iron in the pathogenesis of Vibrio parahaemolyticus, an intestinal pathogen, is not clearly understood. In an intraperitoneally infected mouse model, viable bacteria of a Kanagawa-negative food isolate CCRC12958 and a Kanagawa-positive clinical isolate ST550 of V. parahaemolyticus were rapidly recovered from the cardiac blood before the death of these animals. Iron-limitation during the preparation of bacterial culture decreased the appearance of CCRC12958 strain in the cardiac blood, and this effect was compensated for by the addition of complementary iron during infection. This phenomenon may be related to the survival and multiplication of this pathogen in 50% murine serum and in phagocytosis by murine peritoneal macrophages. However, the effect of iron-limitation on the serum survival of this pathogen was strain-dependent, and the resistance to phagocytosis was not significant.


Artificial neural networks (ANN) have become the mainstream acoustic modeling technique for large vocabulary automatic speech recognition (ASR). A conventional ANN features a multi-layer architecture that requires massive amounts of computation. The brain-inspired spiking neural networks (SNN) closely mimic the biological neural networks and can operate on low-power neuromorphic hardware with spike-based computation. Motivated by their unprecedented energy-efficiency and rapid information processing capability, we explore the use of SNNs for speech recognition. In this work, we use SNNs for acoustic modeling and evaluate their performance on several large vocabulary recognition scenarios. The experimental results demonstrate competitive ASR accuracies to their ANN counterparts, while require only 10 algorithmic time steps and as low as 0.68 times total synaptic operations to classify each audio frame. Integrating the algorithmic power of deep SNNs with energy-efficient neuromorphic hardware, therefore, offer an attractive solution for ASR applications running locally on mobile and embedded devices.


The potential applications of measuring reproductive steroids in saliva were examined for investigating the basis of the lower prevalence of breast cancer and cancers of the reproductive system among former college athletes compared to non-athletes. Daily salivary progesterone measurements during the menstrual cycle by a rapid cost effective enzyme-immunoassay provided a more accurate method than established procedures for detecting abnormal ovarian function such as luteal phase defects. These abnormalities are common in athletes who have a later menarche, a higher incidence of oligomenorrhoea and amenorrhoea than non-athletes. A control corridor was established of upper and lower limits for normality of daily salivary progesterone values during the complete menstrual cycle in 42 volunteers. It is concluded that salivary steroid assays provide an accurate and non-invasive procedure suitable for long term comparative studies on ovarian steroids in female athletes and non-athletes before and after menarche.


We consider the real topological string on certain non-compact toric Calabi-Yau three-folds X, in its physical realization describing an orientifold of type IIA on X with an O4-plane and a single D4-brane stuck on top. The orientifold can be regarded as a new kind of surface operator on the gauge theory with 8 supercharges arising from the singular geometry. We use the M-theory lift of this system to compute the real Gopakumar-Vafa invariants (describing wrapped M2-brane BPS states) for diverse geometries. We show that the real topological string amplitudes pick up certain signs across flop transitions, in a well-defined pattern consistent with continuity of the real BPS invariants. We further give some preliminary proposals of an intrinsically gauge theoretical description of the effect of the surface operator in the gauge theory partition function.


Ninety-five generations of stabilizing selection for pupa weight in Tribolium castaneum resulted in a significant decrease in phenotypic variance, moderate reductions in additive genetic variance, but only slight changes in heritability for the trait. Sterility was significantly lower and the average number of live progeny per fertile mating was significantly higher in populations where stabilizing selection was practiced as compared with random selected populations. The results indicate that more genetic variability is being maintained than would be expected unless a fraction of the genes have a heterozygote advantage on the fitness scale. The reduction in phenotypic variance indicated that the populations with stablizing selection became somewhat more buffered against environmental sources of variation over the course of the experiment.


Summary.  With the ready availability of spatial databases and geographical information system software, statisticians are increasingly encountering multivariate modelling settings featuring associations of more than one type: spatial associations between data locations and associations between the variables within the locations. Although flexible modelling of multivariate point‐referenced data has recently been addressed by using a linear model of co‐regionalization, existing methods for multivariate areal data typically suffer from unnecessary restrictions on the covariance structure or undesirable dependence on the conditioning order of the variables. We propose a class of Bayesian hierarchical models for multivariate areal data that avoids these restrictions, permitting flexible and order‐free modelling of correlations both between variables and across areal units. Our framework encompasses a rich class of multivariate conditionally autoregressive models that are computationally feasible via modern Markov chain Monte Carlo methods. We illustrate the strengths of our approach over existing models by using simulation studies and also offer a real data application involving annual lung, larynx and oesophageal cancer death‐rates in Minnesota counties between 1990 and 2000.


: Dental adhesive techniques have led to a significant simplification of the immediate and definitive treatment of traumatic dental injuries. Composite restoration of fractured teeth, bonding of tooth fragments, the use of laminate veneers or porcelain onlays and resin retained bridges are some of the ways adhesive techniques are used to treat fractured teeth. Furthermore, splinting of luxated teeth almost entirely relies on the combination of adhesion and a flexible resin which simulates the mobility of a normal periodontal ligament during the healing period. The internal strengthening of immature root-filled teeth with composite using an adhesive technique may possibly prevent late root fractures caused by weakening of the tooth structure resulting from endodontic procedures. Finally, the adhesive principle using a retro-seal with composite after apicoectomy significantly increases the healing rate and healing mode.


The analytical solution of a free convection problem is particularly simple thanks to the introduction of a variable $x$ which describes the features of the phenomenon independently of the boundary conditions.
The thermodynamical meaning of this variable is examined and the hypothesis is advanced that it generally represents the intensive conjugate of the internal energy and that the new couple obeys a general rule of symmetry similar to the other couples of coniugate variables such as $p-V$ and $S-T$.
By assuming this model, 6 new thermodynamical potentials are written which are coincident with the 3 classical ones when the system is close to equilibrium. The 12 Maxwell's relationships reduce contemporarily to 4.
The new description includes the Prigogine's principle and may be applied to systems far from equilibrium. In particular, the time derivative of $x$ is aiways positive, providing a general picture of non-equilibrium which appears promising.


Unquestionably, the doctrine of the resurrection is a foundation without which the Gospel message loses its purpose. However, the Corinthian epistle is an example that the message of the Gospel can be neglected. It happened to the church in Corinth because of the strong influence of the surrounding society. In this rich correspondence Paul's approach is that of a spiritual father who worries about the condition of the church in Corinth. He writes from his own experiences and knowledge about the resurrection in order to bring them to soberness and to restore their ways of thinking. This article is a reminder of truths that are necessary for the life of believers and which can be found in Scripture. At that time, and because of the challenges of contemporary ways of thinking, the truth about the resurrection can be neglected. That is why this article should be observed as a reminder of primary components of the Christian faith.


The army with which Alexander the Great conquered the Persian empire was "built around the Macedonian Companion cavalry and the Macedonian heavy infantry. The Macedonian nobility were traditionally fine horsemen, hut the infantry was poorly armed and badly organised until the reign of Alexander II in 369/8 B.C. This king formed a small royal standing army; it consisted of a cavalry force of Macedonian nobles, which he named the 'hetairoi' (or Companion) cavalry, and an infantry body drawn from the commoners and trained to fight in phalangite formation: these he called the 'pezetairoi' (or foot-companions). Philip II (359-336 B.C.) expanded the kingdom and greatly increased the manpower resources for war. Towards the end of his reign he started preparations for the invasion of the Persian empire and levied many more Macedonians than had hitherto been involved in the king's wars. In order to attach these men more closely to himself he extended the meaning of the terms 'hetairol' and 'pezetairoi to refer to the whole bodies of Macedonian cavalry and heavy infantry which served under him on his campaigning. In addition to these bodies, he formed an elite infantry force of Macedonians, distinct from the regular levy, and named them 'hypaspists'. Philip was killed as he was about to begin the invasion of Asia and his son inherited the army and the expedition. During the early years of the Asian campaign, which was begun in 334 B.C., Alexander made few changes in the structure of the army: the Companion cavalry was organised into seven territorial squadrons and a royal guard, all under a single commander; the foot-Companions consisted of six territorial battalions, organised together with the Greek hoplites under an overall commander; the hypaspists also were grouped together into one command. One battalion was added to the foot-Companions in 331 B.C. but there was no major reorganisation until the hard fighting against the scattered tribes of Iran was encountered. Then, faced by a different style of opposition, Alexander adopted a more flexible structure. In 330 B.C. the overall commander of the pezetairoi was removed and the battalions became fully independent command units: later in the same year the commander of the hypaspists died and was not replaced; the Companion cavalry also lost its commander in this year and was divided into two independent parts. In the winter of 328/7 B.C., in preparation for the Indian campaign, the Companion cavalry was further divided to form six independent commands in addition to the royal guard. No Macedonian reinforcements were received by Alexander after the end of 331 B.C., until his return from India in 324 B.C. During this time the strength of the pezetairoi was maintained by reinforcements of Greek mercenaries, and from 328/7 B.C. Iranian cavalry was introduced to the Companion cavalry to reinforce the strength of that body. In the final year of his life, after his return from India, Alexander set about establishing the structure of the imperial armies. He discharged many veterans and received fresh troops from Macedonia and his subjects in the Persian empire. Many of these forces he dispatched for service under satraps and garrison commanders, but he maintained a large main army directly under his command and prepared for a major expedition into Arabia. At the core of the cavalry was the Companion cavalry consisting of Macedonian and Iranian nobility: the nucleus of the infantry was the Macedonian hypaspists and pezetairoi and beside them were ranged Iranian guards, called 'melophoroi', and Iranian archers. The political relationship between Alexander and his Macedonian soldiers was of the most primitive nature. The Macedonian commoners had no background of political involvement and had no consciousness of defined roles for themselves or their king. On the Asian campaign they were intimately involved in the king's policies and their opinions influenced the conduct of affairs, but they showed no sign of being aware of their role and their powers as a political body.


Using speech recognition to create virtual dialogues is now possible, although it is still difficult to build real conversation partners. In this context, the CALL-SLT system developed by the University of Geneva offers a platform to create virtual dialogues with an avatar on the Web (http://callslt.unige.ch/). In this type of game, the student participates in a virtual dialogue by translating and properly verbalizing a speech act (a conceptual proposal that is not syntactic) provided in their native language. In order to provide a more immersive learning situation, we proposed an adaptation of the CALL-SLT system which does not use the learner's native language. In this paper we describe how we used this tool in the context of a real French foreign language (FFL) training for employees of French companies. For exploratory purposes, 10 adult learners of FFL through distance learning were given access to the tool. We collected audio and usage data, as well as reports of interviews with the participants and their trainer. In the paper, we will summarize all the results. These are very encouraging but show, amongst other things, that the interaction and the relationship with a virtual conversation partner is not entirely straightforward for adult learners.


With some telescopes standing still, now more than ever simple access to archival data is vital for astronomers and they need to know how to go about it. Within European Virtual Observatory (VO) projects, such as AIDA (2008-2010), ICE (2010-2012), CoSADIE (2013-2015), ASTERICS (2015-2018) and ESCAPE (since 2019), we have been offering Virtual Observatory schools for many years. The aim of these schools are twofold: teaching (early career) researchers about the functionalities and possibilities within the Virtual Observatory and collecting feedback from the astronomical community. In addition to the VO schools on the European level, different national teams have also put effort into VO dissemination. The team at the Centre de Donn\'ees astronomiques de Strasbourg (CDS) started to explore more and new ways to interact with the community: a series of blog posts on AstroBetter.com or a lunch time session at the virtual EAS meeting 2020. The Spanish VO has conducted virtual VO schools. GAVO has supported online archive workshops and maintains their Virtual Observatory Text Treasures. In this paper, we present the different formats in more detail, and report on the resulting interaction with the community as well as the estimated reach.


The exchange rate has by 1984 become as central to United States economic policy discussions as it has long been in the rest of the world. In this paper we show how the standard closed-economy macroeconomic model -- the Phillips curve augmented IS-LM analysis -- has to be modified for the United States to take account of the economy's international interactions. The only key structural equation that goes unamended is the money demand equation. Foreign prices,foreign activity, and foreign asset yields in the goods and asset markets appearas important determinants of domestic activity, prices, and interest rates. We show that international interactions exert an important effect on the manner in which monetary and fiscal policies operate. The Phillips curve is much steeper under flexible than fixed interest rates. A tight money policy leads to appreciation under flexible rates, and thus to more rapid disinflation. Fiscal expansion, because it induces currency appreciation, is less inflationary under flexible than fixed exchange rates, but it also involves more crowding out. We show that these effects are in practice significantly large for the United States economy.


The chemotactic specificity of three types of macrophage chemotactic factors (MCF) ‐a, ‐b, and ‐c, from delayed hypersensitivity reaction (DHR) skin sites in guinea pigs, was analysed. MCF‐c shared common antigenicity with the macrophage chemotactic lymphokine released from bovine gamma globulin (BGG) and horse radish peroxidase (HRPO) ‐stimulated lymphocytes, using an immunoadsorbent column conjugated with anti‐MCF‐c antiboby. These purified lymphokines were very similar, or possibly identical in terms of physicochemical and serological properties. BCG‐induced lymphokine seemed to exist as complexes with serum protein at the skin site. A change in the proportion of each MCF was observed during the development of DHR. Furthermore, MCF‐a and ‐b attracted Ia− M1 cell line cells, while MCF‐c attracted Ia+ cells. Moreover, the responsive guinea‐pig monocytes were divided mainly into two distinctive migrating subpopulations. One subpopula‐tion was responsive to MCF‐a and ‐b, and the majority of responding cells were "la‐negative". The second subpopulation was responsive to MCF‐c and the predominant cell type was "la‐positive". The data suggest that macrophage reactions in the DHR are mediated by MCF‐a, ‐b, and ‐c and that MCF‐c attracts la bearing accessory macrophages and MCF‐a and b‐ attract la negative macrophages. ACTA PATHOL. JPN. 35 : 269–280, 1985.


Employees are the most important part of the company. Therefore, the company should be able to treat employees properly. However, with the phenomenon of the high turnover in PT Primayudha Mandirijaya indicate that efforts are being made to ensure that the employees remain in the company is still less than the maximum. This study used three independent variabels are the reward system, employee motivation, and organizational commitment with one dependent variabel is employee retention. This study aims to examine and analyze the effect of reward systems, employee motivation, and organizational commitment to employee retention in PT Primayudha Mandirijaya.
Data collection methods used in this study was a questionnaire by using random sampling method. The sample used in this study were jobholder of PT Primayudha Mandirijaya with the number of 83 respondents. This study uses data analysis includes reliability test, validity test, classic assumption test, multiple linear regression analysis, coefficient determination. F test and t test.
The result of this study indicate that variable reward system, employee motivation, and organizational commitment positively influence on the employee retention of PT Primayudha Mandirijaya. These variabels give a contribution of 52.8% of employee retention. The remaining 47.2% is influenced by variables outside of this study.


Previous attempts to summarize the vehicular accident involvement literature have been nonquantitative. Outcomes of these reviews have also reflected the equivocality of research in this area. In an attempt to synthesize the diverse research findings into a collective result, a meta-analysis procedure that con- trolled for sampling error was used. Four classes of variables were identified as predictors of vehicular accident involvement. These were information- processing, cognitive ability, personality, and demographic/biographical vari- ables. Moderate-to-marginally favorable overall meta-analysis results were obtained for selective attention, regard for authority, locus of control, and cognitive ability as predictors of vehicular accident involvement. Suggestions and directions for future research are discussed.


The mechanism of polymerization of methacrylonitrile initiated by triethylphosphine in dimethylformamide and tetrahydrofuran was investigated. The elemental analysis has shown that phosphorus is chemically bound to the polymeric molecules. Analysis by NMR spectroscopy, as well as conductivity measurements, prove that the zwitter-ion structure is formed in the initiation process CH 3 (C 2 H 5 ) 3 P + CH 2 = C ― CH 3 → (C 2 H 5 ) 3 P + ― CH 2 ― C ― I CN CN Monomer addition to the carbanion leads to macrozwitter-ion. The initiation reaction is slow and it is the rate determining step. Spontaneous monomolecular termination reaction is inherent to the system. During its life-time, the active centres can exist as either ion pairs or free ions. In the propagation step the free ion is by far the more reactive of the two species. In dimethylformamide the ion pairs play virtually no part in the propagation step and the polymer is formed through the propagation of free ions. The ion pairs-free ions intramolecular equilibrium constant depends on the length of the macrozwitter-ion. Consequently, the polymerization rate depends on the length of the growing chains. The paper presents experimental evidence for this and reports elementary constants for the macrozwitter-ion polymerization. It could have been expected that the zwitter-ion polymerization is strongly influenced by the polarity of the reaction medium. Therefore, we investigated the polymerization of methacrylonitrile initiated by triethylphosphine in tetrahydrofuran, as well as the influence of an external electric field on this system. In tetrahydrofuran polymerization is very slow and only oligomers are formed. Addition of dimetylformamide to tetrahydrofuran ― monomer mixture, i.e. an increase in the dielectric constant of the reaction medium, increases the rate of polymerization and molecular weight of the polymer. In tetrahydrofuran, the presence of an external electric field was found to lead to a strong increase in both polymerization rate and molecular weight. These results medium as well as the application of external electric field both enable the dissociation of low reactivity ion pairs into the highly reactive free ions.


In this paper, complementary Huffman coding techniques are proposed for test data compression/decompression of complex SOC designs during manufacturing testing. Instead of the compatible relationship between test data blocks, complementary features between test blocks are also exploited. Based on this property, more test data blocks can share the same codeword and the size of the modified Huffman tree can be reduced. This will not only reduce the area overhead of the decoding circuitry but also substantially increase the compression ratio. A graph model is also proposed for don't-care assignment of test cube. This problem can be transformed to the clique partitioning problem whose complexity is basically NP-hard. Therefore, in order to exploit the compatible and complementary relationships between test blocks, a heuristic algorithm is proposed for filling test cubes. Thereafter, given the set of test vectors, two algorithms are proposed for complementary Huffman encoding. The compression ratio and hardware overhead of the decoding circuitry are analyzed. According to experimental results, the area overhead of the decompression circuit is lower than that of the full Huffman coding technique. However, it is a little bit higher than that of the selective Huffman coding technique. Moreover, the compression ratio is higher than that of the selective and optimal selective Huffman coding techniques.


Like many viruses, papillomaviruses appear to have evolved mechanisms resulting in escape from host immune surveillance and delay of resolution of infection. The E5 protein is expressed early in papillomavirus infection in the deep layers of the infected epithelium. Human papillomavirus type 16 (HPV-16) E5 is a small protein, 83 amino acids long, and has three hydrophobic domains connected by less hydrophobic regions. It is located mainly at the endosomal membranes, Golgi apparatus (GA) and, to a lesser extent, the plasma membrane. The E5 protein of bovine papillomavirus (BPV) impairs the synthesis and stability of major histocompatibility (MHC) class I complex and prevents their transport to the cell surface due to retention in the GA. The results in this thesis demonstrated that HPV-16 E5 wild type down-regulates surface expression of MHC class I, retains MHC class I complexes in the GA and impedes their transport to the cell surface, which is rescued by treatment with interferon. Unlike BPV E5, HPV-16 E5 does not affect the synthesis of MHC class I heavy chains, and the morphology of the GA. HPV-16 E5 physically interacts with MHC heavy chain in the GA and this interaction is associated with the down-regulation of surface MHC class I. Moreover, we determined that HPV-16 E5 down-regulates selectively HLA-A and B but does not inhibit HLA-C and non-classical HLA-E thus potentially escaping both cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) and natural killer (NK) cells. Deletion mutants of HPV-16 E5 lacking each one of the hydrophobic domains were generated to define its functional domains. HaCaT cells expressing either HPV-16 E5 wild type or its mutants were analysed for their ability to down-regulate surface MHC class I and determine the localization in the cells. All deletion mutants were expressed and localised in the GA. The deletion mutants containing the first hydrophobic domain were all able to down-regulate surface MHC class I, to retain the complex in the GA and interact with MHC heavy chain to extent as HPV-16 E5 wild type. Only the deletion mutant which lacks the first hydrophobic domain was unable to down-regulate surface MHC class I, to retain the complex in the GA and to interact with MHC heavy chain. This study demonstrated that the separate domains of HPV-16 E5 did not have the same function. We found that the first hydrophobic domain of HPV-16 E5 is important for down-regulation of surface MHC class I. Lack of surface MHC class I in infected epithelial cells expressing E5 would allow evasion of CTL killing and thus establishment of viral infection. However, MHC class I down-regulation by E5 is selective, as E5 does not down-regulate HLA-C and non-classical HLA-E. It remains to be seen if E5 expressing cells evade CTL killing, through down-regulation of classical MHC I, and NK killing, through lack of down-regulation of non-classical MHC I.


The automated guided vehicle (AGV) is a key component for the successful implementation of flexible manufacturing systems (FMS). AGVs are wheeled mobile robots (WMR) employed for material handling in the constantly evolving layouts of these modern factory shop floors. As such their ability to navigate autonomously is an equally important aspect to sustain an efficient manufacturing process. However, their mobility efficiency is inherently affected by the unproductive systematic and non-systematic odometry errors. Odometry errors mainly occur due to the mobility configuration of the AGV drive train and the surface characteristics the robot is interacting with. Odometry error accumulates over the distance traveled and leads to severe dead reckoning inaccuracy if the robot's feedback control mechanism is unable to correct the error fast. This paper proposes an innovative drive train mechanism called dual planetary drive (DPD) that will minimize odometry errors without the need for complex electronic feedback control systems


Lake Van fish (Alburnus tarichi Guldenstadt 1814) is the only fish that can adapt to the extreme conditions (pH 9.8 salinity 0.2% and alkalinity 151.2 meq/L) of Lake Van. In this study, it was aimed to determine the cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of chlorpyrifos (CPF) on Lake Van fish primary gill cell culture. Gill epithelium from Lake Van fish was isolated enzymatically and grown in primary culture on Leibovitz's L-15 medium. After different doses (0.01, 0.1, 1, and 10 μM) of CPF were applied to the gill cells, the total oxidant status (TOS), total antioxidant status (TAS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and DNA damage levels (8-hydroxyguanine (8-OHdG)) were examined at the end of 24 and 48 h. It was determined that the TOS, MDA, and 8-OHdG levels increased in the cells exposed to high doses (1 and 10 μM) of CPF and the TAS was decreased (P < 0.05). It was revealed from this study that CPF administered at a dose higher than 1 μM can cause oxidative stress and DNA damage in the primary gill cell culture of Lake Van fish. In addition, the findings showed that Lake Van fish primary gill cell culture was useful in determining the effects of toxic substances likely to be the contaminants of a lake.


The optical and UV variability of the majority of active galactic nuclei may be related to the reprocessing of rapidly changing X-ray emission from a more compact region near the central black hole. Such a reprocessing model would be characterized by lags between X-ray and optical/UV emission due to differences in light travel time. Observationally, however, such lag features have been difficult to detect due to gaps in the lightcurves introduced through factors such as source visibility or limited telescope time. In this work, Gaussian process regression is employed to interpolate the gaps in the Swift X-ray and UV lightcurves of the narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy Mrk 335. In a simulation study of five commonly employed analytic Gaussian process kernels, we conclude that the Matern 12 and rational quadratic kernels yield the most well-specified models for the X-ray and UVW2 bands of Mrk 335. In analyzing the structure functions of the Gaussian process lightcurves, we obtain a broken power law with a break point at 125 days in the UVW2 band. In the X-ray band, the structure function of the Gaussian process lightcurve is consistent with a power law in the case of the rational quadratic kernel while a broken power law with a break point at 66 days is obtained from the Matern 12 kernel. The subsequent cross-correlation analysis is consistent with previous studies and furthermore shows tentative evidence for a broad X-ray-UV lag feature of up to 30 days in the lag-frequency spectrum where the significance of the lag depends on the choice of Gaussian process kernel.


Mannose is an important constituent of the immunomodulatory glycoconjugates of the mycobacterial cell wall: lipoarabinomannan (LAM), lipomannan (LM) and the related phospho-myo-inositol mannosides (PIMs). In Mycobacterium tuberculosis and the related bacillus Corynebacterium glutamicum, mannose is either imported from the medium or derived from glycolysis, and is subsequently converted into the nucleotide-based sugar donor guanosine diphosphomannose (GDP-mannose). This can be utilized by the glycosyltranferases of the GT-A/B superfamily or converted to the lipid-based donor polyprenyl monophosphomannose, and used as a substrate by the transmembrane glycosyltransferases of the GT-C superfamily. To investigate GDP-mannose biosynthesis in detail, the gene encoding a putative ManC in C. glutamicum was deleted. Deletion of manC resulted in a slow-growing mutant, with reduced but not totally abrogated guanosine diphosphomannose pyrophosphorylase activity. However, a comprehensive cell wall analysis revealed that C. glutamicumΔmanC is deficient in PIMs and LM/LAM. Closer inspection suggests that promiscuous ManC activity is contributed by additional putative nucleotidyltransferases, PmmB, WbbL1, GalU and GlmU, and a hypothetical protein, NCgl0715. Furthermore, complementation analyses of C. glutamicumΔmanC with Rv3264c suggested that it is a true homologue of ManC in M. tuberculosis, and the essentiality of PIMs in M. tuberculosis makes it an attractive drug target.


Abstract Objective This study aimed to evaluate the performance of the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC) admission risk criteria for stratifying postpartum hemorrhage risk in a large obstetrics population. Study Design Using detailed electronic health record data, we classified 261,964 delivery hospitalizations from Kaiser Permanente Northern California hospitals between 2010 and 2017 into high-, medium-, and low-risk groups based on CMQCC criteria. We used logistic regression to assess associations between CMQCC risk groups and postpartum hemorrhage using two different postpartum hemorrhage definitions, standard postpartum hemorrhage (blood loss ≥1,000 mL) and severe postpartum hemorrhage (based on transfusion, laboratory, and blood loss data). Among the low-risk group, we also evaluated associations between additional present-on-admission factors and severe postpartum hemorrhage. Results Using the standard definition, postpartum hemorrhage occurred in approximately 5% of hospitalizations (n = 13,479), with a rate of 3.2, 10.5, and 10.2% in the low-, medium-, and high-risk groups. Severe postpartum hemorrhage occurred in 824 hospitalizations (0.3%), with a rate of 0.2, 0.5, and 1.3% in the low-, medium-, and high-risk groups. For either definition, the odds of postpartum hemorrhage were significantly higher in medium- and high-risk groups compared with the low-risk group. Over 40% of postpartum hemorrhages occurred in hospitalizations that were classified as low risk. Among the low-risk group, risk factors including hypertension and diabetes were associated with higher odds of severe postpartum hemorrhage. Conclusion We found that the CMQCC admission risk assessment criteria stratified women by increasing rates of severe postpartum hemorrhage in our sample, which enables early preparation for many postpartum hemorrhages. However, the CMQCC risk factors missed a substantial proportion of postpartum hemorrhages. Efforts to improve postpartum hemorrhage risk assessment using present-on-admission risk factors should consider inclusion of other nonobstetrical factors.


A new family of flowering plants, Gerrardinaceae M. H. Alford, is created for Gerrardina Oliver, an African genus of two species formerly allied to tribe Homalieae of Flacourtiaceae. Unlike Homalieae, now placed in Salicaceae s.l. (Malpighiales), Gerrardina has cunonioid leaf teeth, a cupular receptacular disk, introrse anther dehiscence, and apical placentation. Phylogenetic analyses of DNA sequence data from plastid rbcL and atpB indicate that Gerrardina is not closely allied with any family. It is unresolved among the "eurosids II" ("malvids"), a clade that includes Brassicales, Huerteales, Malvales, and Sapindales.


The Tavsanli Zone (TZ) is a high-pressure/low-temperature metamorphic belt representing subduction and exhumation between the Sakarya Zone and the Afyon-Bolkardag Zone in western Anatolia. This paper provides new and precise geological data including whole-rock and mineral chemistry, phengite 40 Ar/ 39 Ar ages, zircon laser ablation ICP-MS U-Pb, and apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronological information for a region of the Sivrihisar metamorphic complex that has been less studied than other regions of the TZ. This region comprises Permo-Carboniferous metamorphic units, Eocene granodiorite and microgranodiorite, terrestrial clastics, and Holocene alluvium. The mineral assemblage of the granite-gneiss contains quartz, plagioclase, K-feldspar, microcline, muscovite, and rare biotite and garnet, while the blueschist comprises plagioclase, white mica, biotite, Na-amphibole, and garnet that are considered to represent greenschist and blueschist facies metamorphism, respectively. We estimate the peak metamorphic conditions for schists of the Permo-Carboniferous metamorphics and associated rocks as T = 303-484 °C and P >=10 kbar. This high-pressure event occurred at ca. 83 Ma, indicated by a well-defined 40 Ar/ 39 Ar plateau age for phengite. Laser ablation ICP MS U-Pb analyses of euhedral or subeuhedral magmatic zircons from previously unknown microgranodiorite, intruding the metamorphic rocks, yield an Eocene (50 Ma) age. The new results are interpreted to indicate that lithospheric collision and northward subduction beneath the Sakarya Zone occurred between 83 and 50 Ma. Apatite crystals separated from microgranodiorite yield (U-Th)/He ages consistent with cooling of the Tavsanli Zone to ~65 °C by ~38 Ma.


In cellular network models, the base stations are usually assumed to form a lattice or a Poisson point process (PPP). In reality, however, they are deployed neither fully regularly nor completely randomly. Accordingly, in this paper, we consider the very general class of motion-invariant models and analyze the behavior of the coverage probability (the probability that the signal-to-interference-plus-noise-ratio (SINR) exceeds a threshold) as the threshold goes to zero. We show that, surprisingly, the slope of the outage probability (complementary to the coverage probability, in dB) as a function of the threshold (also in dB) is the same for essentially all motion-invariant point processes. The slope merely depends on the fading statistics. Using this result, we introduce the notion of the asymptotic deployment gain (ADG), which characterizes the horizontal gap between the coverage probability of the PPP and another point process in the high-reliability regime (where the coverage probability is near 1). To demonstrate the usefulness of the ADG for the characterization of coverage probabilities, we investigate the coverage properties and the ADGs for different point processes and fading statistics by simulations.


We show that electromagnetically induced transparency suppresses nonlinear absorption of all orders in a multilevel atomic system and leads to selective, multiphoton excitation of resonantly coupled atomic states. Under appropriate conditions, higher-order nonlinear absorption becomes dominant and selective steady-state population inversion is created among the resonantly coupled states.


A design idea has been brought forward about SRC beams strengthened with CFRP, in order to solve flexural capacity shortage and need strengthening engineering problems. By analyzing loading process, failure mode and loading mechanism, flexural capacity was calculated by superposition method. According to different failure modes and neutral axis' location in the steel, the computed formula of flexural capacity about SRC beams strengthened with CFRP was proposed, and it provided references for design of SRC beams strengthened with CFRP.


Natural disasters are still insufficiently studied and understood within the scope of public health in this country, with impacts in the short and long term. The scope of this article is to analyze the relationship between disasters and their impact on health based on disaster data recorded in the country. The methodology involved the systematization of data and information contained in the Brazilian Atlas of Natural Disasters 1991-2010 and directly from the National Department of Civil Defense (NSCD). Disasters were organized into four categories of events (meteorological; hydrological; climatological; geophysical/geological) and for each of the latter, the data for morbidity, mortality and exposure of those affected were examined, revealing different types of impacts. Three categories of disasters stood out: the hydrological events showed higher percentages of mortality, morbidity and exposure; climatological events had higher percentages of incidents and people affected; the geophysical/geological events had a higher average of exposure and deaths per event. Lastly, a more active participation of the health sector in the post-2015 global political agenda is proposed, particularly events related to sustainable development, climate change and disaster risk reduction.


A detailed effect and relationship of tribological performance regarding friction and
wear of two commercial additives (X and Y) in two types of commercial lubricants
(A and B) has been investigated. Three samples were prepared for each commercial
lubricants; with 10% additive X; 10% additive Y; and without additive. All six
samples were tested using DUCOM Four Ball Tester and the data is collected with
the aid of built-in software called WINDUCOM. The results showed significant
differences in friction and wear when both commercial additives are blended in two
different lubricants. Coefficient of friction increases with presence of additive X and
decreases with presence of additive Y for both commercial lubricants. In contrast,
higher wear damage is observed upon samples with additive Y compared to additive
X. On the other hand, pure commercial lubricants without additional commercial
additives showed stable performance in term of friction's coefficient and least wear
damage comparing with other samples. These results have significant implications
for commercial additives application in commercial lubricants. As the conclusion,
commercial lubricants are superior without any additional commercial additives for
automotive lubrication.


The influence of the terminal substituent of azobenzene on the liquid crystalline property of ABA triblock copolymers was studied. Three kinds of azobenzene-containing monomers with different terminal substituents were respectively used to synthesize ABA triblock copolymers (denoted as PMMAzo12-PEG13-PMMAzo12, PEMAzo14-PEG13-PEMAzo14, and PNMAzo14-PEG13-PNMAzo14) by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). These copolymers were characterized with 1H NMR and GPC, and exhibited controlled molecular weights and narrow molecular weight distributions. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing optical microscopy (POM) have shown that these copolymers have mesophases. PMMAzo12-PEG13-PMMAzo12 has a smectic mesophase and a nematic mesophase, while both PEMAzo14-PEG13-PEMAzo14 and PNMAzo14-PEG13-PNMAzo14 have a nematic mesophase. This demonstrates that the LC properties of these copolymers highly depend on the terminal substituent of azobenzene.


General topics for consideration when designing expert display systems and nuclear power plant control room displays are summarized. A system is proposed in which the display of segments (a combined series of graphic primitives or a reusable collection of graphic primitives and primitives attributes stored in memory) controls a cathode-ray-tube's screen to form an image of plant operations. The image consists of an icon of: (1) the process (heat engine cycle), (2) plant control systems, and (3) safety systems. A set of data-driven, forward-chaining computer-stored rules control the display segments. As plant operation changes, measured plant data are processed through the rules, and the results control the deletion and addition of segments to the display format. The icon contains information needed by control rooms operators to monitor plant operations. One example of an expert display is illustrated for the operator's task of monitoring leakage from a safety valve in a steam line of a boiling water reactor (BWR). In another example, the use of an expert display to monitor plant operations during pre-trip, trip, and post-trip operations is discussed as a universal display. >


Domain generalization (DG) aims to learn a generalized model to an unseen target domain using only limited source domains. Previous attempts to DG fail to learn domain-invariant representations only from the source domains due to the significant domain shifts between training and test domains. Instead, we re-formulate the DG objective using mutual information with the oracle model, a model generalized to any possible domain. We derive a tractable variational lower bound via approximating the oracle model by a pre-trained model, called Mutual Information Regularization with Oracle (MIRO). Our extensive experiments show that MIRO significantly improves the out-of-distribution performance. Furthermore, our scaling experiments show that the larger the scale of the pre-trained model, the greater the performance improvement of MIRO. Source code is available at https://github.com/kakaobrain/miro.


Long-term dietary exposure to chromium in young children living in 12 different European countries was estimated using both the deterministic observed individual means (OIM) and the stochastic beta-binomial normal (BBN) approach. For this, food consumption data of children aged 1 up to 14 years were combined with chromium concentration data in food as supplied by EFSA. Food consumption data were all categorised according to a harmonised system to allow for linkages with chromium concentration data in a standardised way. The results showed differences in exposure between countries and that the exposure decreased with age. Exposure levels were higher using the deterministic model compared to the stochastic model, although the latter model could not be applied to data from some countries because of a lack of required normality. Food groups "milk/dairy drinks" and "cereals" contributed most to the exposure in almost all countries. The study also showed that, food consumption data collected in different European countries can be categorised in a standard way to allow for harmonised exposure modelling. Due to the lack of a Tolerable Upper Intake Level for chromium, it is unclear if the exposure levels calculated for the different countries pose a possible health risk.


This paper explores a causal link between the aging of the labor force and declining trends in the real interest rate and inflation in Japan. We develop a new Keynesian search/matching model that features heterogeneities in age and firm-specific skill levels. Using the model, we examine the long-run implications of the sharp drop in labor force entry in the 1970s. We show that the changes in the demographic structure driven by the drop induce significant low-frequency movements in per-capita consumption growth and the real interest rate. They also lead to similar movements in the inflation rate when the monetary policy rule follows the standard Taylor rule, failing to recognize the time-varying nature of the natural rate of interest. The model suggests that the aging of the labor force accounts for roughly 40% of the decline in the real interest rate observed between the 1980s and 2000s in Japan.


Air pollution is a major environmental health problem affecting developed and developing countries alike. Concern focuses not only on ambient air quality in cities but also in indoor air quality at home and the workplace. Unplanned urbanization and industrialization are causing deterioration of the environment and quality of life in the developing countries. Several studies evidence that the shape of a city and the land use distribution determines the location of emission sources and the pattern of urban traffic, affecting urban air quality, and consequently, human health. It is essential to assess the spatial distribution of air quality and its impact on human beings in urban regions. This work aims to estimate the impacts of air quality of city areas with different urban structures on population health. A methodology was developed to determine the population exposure in urban areas, combining information on air pollutants concentrations at different microenvironments and population timeactivity pattern data. This methodology was applied to imaginary cities, which were created, based on alternative urban planning strategies and considering different land use patterns: from the scenario of urban sprawl to the opposite scenario of a compact city with mixed land use. A mesoscale photochemical model was applied to estimate the air quality in the idealized cities. Relations between outdoor and indoor air concentrations were taken from the literature, since people spend most of their time indoors. It was considered that each city has the same population but it is differently distributed according to the distinct land use classes and microenvironment definition. Results indicate that city structure affects population exposure to atmospheric pollutants, by affecting not only urban air quality but also the spatial distribution of people in the city, related to their time-activity patterns. Although compact cities provide better air quality compared to disperse cities, they have greater exposures and thus higher health risk, due to the higher population density.


This paper proposes a method for identifying event sequences leading to blackouts in power systems. To identify the cascades, grid is modeled like an event tree where each branch represents a contingency and each node represents state of the system. Due to huge number of possible paths in the event tree, computational burden is the key issue in searching the cascades. In this paper, computational burden has been reduced in two ways. In the first step, search space is reduced by defining a region of vulnerability and in the second step, less important events in the region of vulnerability are discarded using a risk index which condenses both the severity and probability of any event. Proposed method is tested on benchmark New England 39-bus system and simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the method.


ABSTRACT Introduction: Anti-oxidants are vital substances which possess the ability to protect the body from damage caused by free radical induced oxidative stress. There is an increasing interest in natural anti-oxidants, e.g., polyphenols, present in medicinal and dietary plants, which might help prevent oxidative damage. Methods: In this present study we investigated preliminary phytochemical, total phenolic, alkaloid content and In-vitro antioxidant activity of hexane, ethyl acetate, ethanol (70%) and methanol extracts of Thespesia populnea Seeds. Results: Thespesia populnea Seeds revealed the presence of steroids, flavonoids and alkaloids, glycosides, tannins, quinones and carbohydrates. The extracts do not contain the amino acids, oils and the hexane fraction do not contain triterpenes and tannins. The ethyl acetate extract have more phenolic content than other extracts and the methanolic extract has more alkaloidal than other extracts. The selected plant extracts were produced concentration dependent percentage inhibition of superoxide radical and produced maximum activity at a concentration of 160 μg and there after the percentage inhibition were raised gradually to its maximum level with higher concentrations. Conclusion: Among the four types of T.populnea seeds extracts, the methanolic extract showed better activity than aqueous extracts at 160 μg concentrations.


In the recent times Cybersecurity is the hot research topic because of its sensitivity. Especially at the times of digital world where everything is now transformed into digital medium. All the critical transactions are being carried out online with internet applications. Malware is an important issue which has the capability of stealing the privacy and funds from an ordinary person who is doing sensitive transactions through his mobile device. Researchers in the current time are striving to develop efficient techniques to detect these kinds of attacks. Not only individuals are getting offended even the governments are getting effected by these kinds of attacks and losing big amount of funds. In this work various Artificial intelligent and machine learning techniques are discussed which were implements for the detection of malware. Traditional machine learning techniques like Decision tree, K-Nearest Neighbor and Support vector machine and further to advanced machine learning techniques like Artificial neural network and convolution neural network are discussed. Among the discussed techniques, the work got the highest accuracy is 99% followed by 98.422%, 97.3% and 96% where the authors have implemented package-level API calls as feature, followed by advanced classification technique. Also, dataset details are discussed and listed which were used for the experimentation of malware detection, among the many dataset DREBIN had the most significant number of samples with 123453 Benign samples and 5560 Malware samples. Finally, open challenges are listed, and the future directions are highlighted which would encourage a new researcher to adopt this field of research and solve these open challenges with the help of future direction details provided in this paper. The paper is concluded with the limitation and conclusion section


Investment professionals often screen the investment universe for investment opportunities that meet some benchmark criteria. This screening process provides a subset of acceptable investment opportunities that are not all equally acceptable. A technique that allows prioritization of the subset on the basis of deviations from the benchmark criteria used to obtain it is an adaptation of the Taguchi loss function, which has found application in the management, marketing, accounting, and real estate literature.


The focus of this study is to explore if a product's country of origin (COO) is still relevant in 21st century. Integrating Means-End-Chain (MEC) theory as a guiding lens, the findings of this study suggest that the COO concept is still relevant for elites; who can afford to buy "made in" and that COO acts as a mean through which elites achieve their desired psychological and inter-personal consumption end goals. The data were gathered through thirty in-depth laddering interviews conducted among elites in Sri Lanka. The results suggest that product COO remains a relevant attribute for elite consumers. However, the importance of COO varies across hedonic vs. utilitarian product types and purchase occasions (personal use vs. gift buying). According to COO preferences, four patterns of 'means end' chains were identified, which segmented the elites as ethnocentric-value-seekers, esteem-enhancers, similarity-avoiders and sentimentalists. The present study contributes towards a deeper understanding of COO effects and provides valuable insights into how relevance gap effects can be minimized. This is achieved through utilising COO as a means to achieve the desired end goals of consumer's by focusing on lucrative niches in emerging markets such as Sri Lankan elites.


Background: Lumbar disc disease (LDD) is one of the leading causes of disability in the working-age population. A functional single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), +1184T→C, in exon 8 of the cartilage intermediate layer protein gene (CILP) was recently identified as a risk factor for LDD in the Japanese population (odds ratio (OR) 1.61, 95% CI 1.31 to 1.98), with implications for impaired transforming growth factorβ1 signalling. Aim: To validate this finding in two different ethnic cohorts with LDD. Methods: This SNP and flanking SNPs were analysed in 243 Finnish patients with symptoms of LDD and 259 controls, and in 348 Chinese subjects with MRI-defined LDD and 343 controls. Results and conclusion: The results showed no evidence of association in the Finnish (OR = 1.35, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.87; p = 0.14) or the Chinese (OR = 1.05, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.43; p = 0.71) samples, suggesting that cartilage intermediate layer protein gene is not a major risk factor for symptoms of LDD in Caucasians or in the general population that included individuals with or without symptoms.


In risk-sensitive learning, one aims to find a hypothesis that minimizes a risk-averse (or risk-seeking) measure of loss, instead of the standard expected loss. In this paper, we propose to study the generalization properties of risk-sensitive learning schemes whose optimand is described via optimized certainty equivalents (OCE): our general scheme can handle various known risks, e.g., the entropic risk, mean-variance, and conditional value-at-risk, as special cases. We provide two learning bounds on the performance of empirical OCE minimizer. The first result gives an OCE guarantee based on the Rademacher average of the hypothesis space, which generalizes and improves existing results on the expected loss and the conditional value-at-risk. The second result, based on a novel variance-based characterization of OCE, gives an expected loss guarantee with a suppressed dependence on the smoothness of the selected OCE. Finally, we demonstrate the practical implications of the proposed bounds via exploratory experiments on neural networks.


The world's major sources of drinking water are groundwater particularly wells water. In the present study, the quality of the wells in the 10 villages nearby the city of Zakho were selected for investigation and their suitability for drinking purposes. All the well water samples were analyzed for 11 chemical and physical analysis including dissolved oxygen, total hardness, chloride, total dissolved solids, electrical conductivity, pH, sulfate, and four heavy metals, such as Cu, Fe, Pb, and Zn using standard methods. The results showed that the value of heavy metals in well water samples were in these ranges: Zn (0.027± 0.004 to 0.005 ± 0.007) mg/L; Fe (0.0109 ± 0.035 to 0.183 ± 0.061) mg/L; Cu (0.001 ± 0.022 to 0.025 ± 0.023) mg/L; Pb (0.045 ± 0.015 to 0.069 ± 0.096) mg/L. The range of physical and chemical parameters were; pH (7.1 to 8.3), EC (411 to1579 µS/cm), TDS (263 to 1010 mg/L), Total Alkalinity (287 to 584 mg/L), Total hardness (176 to 848 mg/L), Chloride (11.6 to 56.9 mg/L), calcium (80 to 673 mg/L), dissolved oxygen (6.1 to 8.7 mg/L), sulfate (10.3 to 42.5 mg/L) and temperature (17.0 to 23.4°C). The results were compared with international standards and showed that the mean values of total hardness and TDS in locations betas, Bezehe and Dolla are ranged from (827.13 ± 5.330), (544.25 ±3.178) ,(782.63 ± 3.257), (930.38 ± 3.545), (675.75± 3.639) ,( 996.25 ± 3.245) mg/L respectively, were found to be higher than WHO water standards, and unsuitable for drinking use. The results have proven the presence of heavy metal as especially lead, Zn, Cu, and Fe have been containing in the study area. Other parameters were within (WHO) drinking water standards. In conclusion, the other sites of well water sources of the Selevania region are suitable for drinking purposes.


Many granulocyte-specific mouse monoclonal antibodies recognize the carbohydrate sequence 3-fucosyllactosamine, Ga 1 beta 1-4[Fuc alpha 1-3]GlcNAc, which occurs in cell-surface glycolipids and glycoproteins. In general, these antibodies bind to blast cells from most patients with acute myeloblastic leukemia, but not to those with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Neuraminidase treatment, however, increases exposure of this antigen on both myeloid and lymphoid cells. In the present study, the glycolipids from 13 lymphoid and nonlymphoid human cell lines were examined for the presence of unsialylated and sialylated 3-fucosyllactosamine sequences using a thin-layer chromatography immunostaining method. Nine of the cell lines were also tested by indirect immunofluorescence both before and after neuraminidase treatment. None of the six B-cell and T-cell lines had detectable neutral or sialylated glycolipid antigen. In contrast, six out of seven and five out of seven nonlymphoid cell lines had neutral and sialylated glycolipid antigens, respectively. These results agreed, in general, with those found by indirect immunofluorescence. They also represent the first direct demonstration of these sialylated glycolipids on human leukemic cells. Thus, in some cases increased antibody binding to neuraminidase-treated cells can be explained by the presence of sialylated glycolipid antigen.