A method is suggested to determine toxigenicity of microscopic fungi from genera Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, etc. which contaminate fodder, food products and environment objects. The method is based on the property of micromycetes isolated from fodder, food products and environment objects to produce mycotoxins under optimal conditions of their cultivation on the nutrient media. Their further extraction by the organic solvent, evaporation and emulsification of the extract and its peroral introduction to young female rats cause a disease and death of animals. The suggested method may be used for recognizing and preventing mycotoxicoses of farm animals and poultry.


This study investigates on 4000 employees in several enterprises through questionnaires, analyzes Imapcting Mechanism of Transformational Leadership on Employee Organizational commitment with SEM analysis. The result shows that transformational leadership behavior is positive with organizational commitment. Organizational justice is related with those of organizational commitment. And the relationships between the transformational leadership and organizational commitment will be partially mediated by organizational justice. Finally, indicate some limitations of the research and give some suggestion of future research.


Objective:The purpose of this investigation was to perform a cost-effectiveness analysis of adjunctive oral and intravenous proton pump inhibitor (PPI) therapies for patients with acute peptic ulcer-related bleeding of sufficient severity to warrant hospitalization. Design:Cost-effectiveness investigation. Four clinical scenarios were considered: scenario 1, diagnostic endoscopy with oral PPI therapy; scenario 2, diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy with high-dose intravenous PPI therapy; scenario 3, diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy available with oral PPI therapy; and scenario 4, diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy (no PPI). Effectiveness was evaluated in terms of episodes of bleeding averted and quality-adjusted life years. Setting:University teaching hospital in the United States. Patients:Hospitalized patients with acute peptic ulcer bleeding. Interventions:None. Measurements and Main Results:Therapeutic endoscopy with high-dose intravenous PPI therapy (scenario 2) was the most cost-effective approach in terms of bleeding episode averted ($8,490 vs. $10,201 for scenario 1, $8,756 for scenario 3, and $12,459 for scenario 4) and per quality-adjusted life year ($4,810 vs. $5,533 for scenario 1, $4,946 for scenario 3, and $5,876 for scenario 4). The high-dose intravenous PPI scenario was the dominant approach as evidenced by both superior effectiveness and lower costs over the range of probability and cost variables used in the sensitivity analysis. However, the dominance would be lost if the purchase cost of the intravenous PPI was substantially higher than the baseline cost assumed in this investigation ($61 per 3-day course of therapy). Conclusion:High-dose intravenous PPI therapy in conjunction with therapeutic endoscopy is the most cost-effective approach for the management of hospitalized patients with acute peptic ulcer bleeding.


: The combined effects of ethanol (20 and 40%, 0.1 ml/egg) and caffeine (0.5 and 1 mg/egg) on early chick embryos were investigated. After treatment with 0.5 mg caffeine and 20% ethanol at 48 h incubation, teratogenicity was potentiated, but without affecting embryonic growth. Embryotoxic interactions of this nature might account for congenital defects of doubtful etiology.


To do useful work, the exothermic process of combustion should be carried out in an enclosure, as is typically the case with i.c. engines -- the subject of this paper`s particular concern. To meet the requirements of high efficiency and low pollutant production, this process should be executed at a relatively low temperature -- a condition attainable by the use of lean air-fuel mixtures. For this purpose it has to be distributed in space upon multipoint initiation and kept away from the walls to minimize their detrimental effects. In principle, all this can be accomplished by a system referred to as fireball combustion that takes advantage of entrainment and spiral mixing associated with large scale vortex structures of jet plumes. As demonstrated in this paper, the success in such an endeavor depends crucially upon the utilization of the essential elements of classical aerodynamics: the properly distributed sources, expressed in terms of velocity divergences prescribed by the thermodynamic process of combustion and of the vorticity field generated by shear between the jets and the fluid into which they are injected.


Chlorogenic acids (CGA) in green coffee bean extract (GCE) reduce blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats and humans. The authors examined the blood pressure-lowering effect and safety of CGA in patients with mild hypertension through a placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial. Subjects (n=28) were randomized to receive treatment with CGA (140 mg/day) from GCE or placebo. Blood pressure, pulse rate, body mass index, routine blood test, hematochemistry, urinalysis, and subjective symptoms were recorded throughout the study. In the CGA group, but not the placebo group, blood pressure (systolic and diastolic) decreased significantly during the ingestion period. There was no difference in body mass index and pulse rate between groups, nor were there any apparent side effects. Thus, CGA from GCE is effective in decreasing blood pressure and safe for patients with mild hypertension.


Background In 2008, an outbreak of leptospirosis caused high mortality in Sri Lanka. The General Hospital, Peradeniya recorded nine deaths in May, which prompted the medical staff to change the treatment protocol. Addition of intravenous methylprednisolone (MP) to the treatment regimen of severely ill patients was implemented on the basis of immune mediated pathogenesis of the disease to reduce mortality. Methods The day MP commenced (25 May 2008), the study period was divided into a 'pre-MP period' and an 'MP period'. A clinical score ranging from 0–6 was applied to assess the severity of the infection. A score ≥2 was considered severe. Thus, 62 patients received bolus MP 500 mg intravenously for 3 days, followed by oral 8 mg for 5 days (MP given). Ten patients to whom MP was withheld were included in the MP period severe group (n=72). The same score was applied to pre-MP periods and 60 cases were identified as the historical control group (pre-MP period severe). Results There were 78 and 149 cases of leptospirosis in the pre-MP period and MP period, respectively. Of these cases, 17 and 16 patients died, with case death rates of 21.8% and 10.7%, respectively; the difference was significant (p=0.025). The survival rate at score 4 in the MP period severe group was 100% (16 of 16), compared to 38% (5 of 13) in pre-MP period severe group; this difference was highly significant (p<0.001). Six patients who died despite MP therapy had a clinical score of 5 or 6; four were alcohol consumers, and two had heart disease and hypertension. Conclusion MP may reduce mortality in patients with severe leptospirosis, except in cases with established multiple organ dysfunction and comorbidities. Therefore, early administration of MP seems advisable.


Hospital readmissions are significant to Public Health because of the growing need for improved quality with minimal resources. Readmissions that occur within 30 days of a hospital discharge decrease access care, as indicated throughout the paper, and waste clinical resources in acute care inpatient hospitals. The 30 day all cause readmission rate (30 DRR) was 15.5% for Fiscal Year 2014, Quarter 1 at the Veterans Administration Pittsburgh Healthcare System (VAPHS) University Drive (UD) campus, and the National goal is to decrease the national rate by 5%. The VAPHS Veterans Engineering Resource Center (VERC) is leading a facility-wide quality improvement project to reduce the 30 DRR. The project consists of three inpatient and outpatient pilot studies, utilizing health systems engineering methodologies to improve the processes related to admission, discharge, and post-discharge management. Multidisciplinary work groups utilized process improvement tools to identify areas that were relevant to VAPHS. Literature reviews were completed to identify best practices and strategies for improvement. The strategies for improvement were organized in a matrix and prioritized by feasibility and impact. The three areas with highest impact and identified feasibility were post-discharge follow-up appointments, medication reconciliation, and disease specific education. Each strategy was tested in the medicine patient population at different time intervals to ensure patients did not receive multiple strategies. The appointment scheduling pilot showed a 10% decrease in readmissions. The medication reconciliation pilot did not have a statistically significant sample size, but found that 59% of patients had a medication discrepancy. The patient education pilot showed a 14% decrease in readmissions in the Congestive Heart Failure, Pneumonia, Renal Disease, Diabetes, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) disease populations. The literature suggests that bundling these three strategies and providing them to patients at the same time would have a greater impact on reducing 30-day readmissions and improving transitional care measures than would any strategies individually.


Objections to the computational theory of cognition, inspired by twentieth century phenomenology, have tended to fixate on the embodiment and embeddedness of intelligence. In this paper I reconstruct a line of argument that focusses primarily on the abstract nature of scientific models, of which computational models of the brain are one sort. I observe that the critique of scientific abstraction was rather commonplace in the philosophy of the 1920s and 30s and that attention to it aids the reading of The Organism ([1934] 1939) by the neurologist Kurt Goldstein. With this background in place, we see that some brief but spirited criticisms of cybernetics by two later thinkers much influenced by Goldstein, Georges Canguilhem (1963) and Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1961), show continuity with the earlier discussions of abstraction in science.


The familiar landscape of substance misuse in the UK is changing. Recently a briefing in the BJGP highlighted two newer misuse scenarios: legal highs and 'chemsex'.1 Another new misuse scenario generally escapes the attention of health professionals and others because it does not fit our concept of the term 'recreational drugs', since motivation for use is to enhance performance in exams or at work. However, so-called 'smart drugs' are prescription-only medicines; some being class B drugs. After becoming aware of this emerging issue the BMA Occupational Medicine Committee published a report.2 This editorial aims to distil the evidence most relevant for primary care specialists.

Pharmacological cognitive enhancers are licensed for use in three disorders: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dementia, and narcolepsy. There is no evidence of misuse of drugs used to treat patients with dementia, such as, acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (donepezil, galantamine and rivastigmine) and memantine hydrochloride. Those misused are modafinil, licensed to treat narcolepsy-related excessive daytime sleepiness; and the class B drug methylphenidate licensed to treat patients with ADHD. The class B drugs dexamfetamine and mixed amfetamine salts (Adderall®), used as second-line treatment for ADHD and narcolepsy are also misused as smart drugs. Modafinil3 and methylyphenidate4 are prescribed off-label, for example for refractory depression, narcolepsy, and Parkinson's disease, and modafinil additionally for multiple sclerosis.

Off-label use in patients with comorbid conditions and concurrent medications raises concerns about potential for adverse events.3 Methylphenidate is associated with, for example, drug dependence, overdose, and suicide attempts. In France, 43% of reported methylphenidate adverse drug reactions are attributable to off-label prescribing (children 30%; adults 88%).4 Modafinil is associated with psychiatric disorders, cardiovascular symptoms, and serious skin and multiorgan hypersensitivity reactions, …


This section of the journal is aimed at providing the essential information readers should know about the topics that are addressed in the 'Statistics in practice' paper published in the same issue of the journal. This stand-alone section has to be seen as an articulated summary of the main notions clinicians have to know about some basic concepts in statistics, which may be useful for their evidence-based practice. After going through these notes, readers are encouraged to read the 'Statistics in practice' articles. Of course, we welcome any feedback from you (via email or Twitter) about this! The EBMH Editors Relative treatment effects studied in trials are typically measured using an effect size. The observed effect sizes are synthesised to obtain a summary treatment effect via meta-analysis.


Purpose
By means of several auto-ethnographic stories (including a scene from a working script for a proposed film), the author interrogates numerous ideas and misconceptions about gay youth, both past and present. A "bargain of silence" sometimes following gay sexual encounters in youth is described. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach
The author recounts a sexual experience with a male college student in his past. This dissonance catapulted the author to move from his small liberal arts college to the city and begin his education again at an art college.

Findings
The author then describes his personal attraction to a 16-year-old boy who lived near his lodgings during one summer's break from art college. This time, the relationship remained purely platonic, but that did not seem to matter where the boy's parents were concerned. The author's social position and pretence coupled with his romantic outlook convinced him that anything was possible, even this platonic love. The painful lesson learned that summer was that this was not the case, and never would be. The boy's parents threatened Jones, and he never saw the youth again. The author continues by discussing his award-winning research-based film, Rufus Stone, and the reactions and conversations following screenings, particularly with youth. This present generation seems to Jones to be a sexually ambivalent one, more comfortable with multiple choices or no choice at all. Nonetheless, these young people do identify with the complexity of feelings and insecurities presented by youth within the film.

Research limitations/implications
In a recent report on sexuality of American high school students by the Center for Disease Control, researchers found an ambivalence and "dissonance" amongst youth regarding sexuality and choice. The author acknowledges that there remains a contemporary problem of genuine acceptance by society, and that there still is work to be done. He also admits that present-day attitudes by youth regarding sexuality are one that he had previously assumed to be historical ones.

Originality/value
Being straight or being gay can be viewed within the wider culture's need to set up a sexual binary and force sexual "choice" decision-making for the benefit of the majority culture. Through the device of the fleeting moment, this essay hopes to interrogate the certainties and uncertainties of the "norms" of modernity by portraying sexuality in youth.


AN ANALYSIS OF STUDENTS' PERCEPTION OF BIBLICAL COMMUNITY WITHIN THE ENVIRONMENT OF DIGITAL MEDIA: A MIXED METHODS STUDY Matthew Alan Vander Wiele, Ed.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2014 Chair: Dr. Troy W. Temple This study is an examination of teen perception regarding their understanding of biblical community within the environment of digital media. The study also examines the principles, essentials, or characteristics of biblical community regardless of environment. The researcher surveyed a sample of teens that attend classical, open enrollment, and closed enrollment Christian schools of various denominations as well as no denomination. A survey presenting a list of the essential principles of biblical community, regardless of environment, including questions for each objective was sent to the sample. The respondents were asked to participate in a quantitative Lickert-scale survey. An expert panel was utilized to validate and approve the principles of biblical community that were used in the student survey. The validation by the experts regarding the literature review was then used to form objective questions regarding the principles or characteristics of biblical community regardless of environment. Triangulation was utilized as the principles reviewed in the literature review, validated by the expert panel, were formulated into a survey to measure perception. The researcher analyzed the data in light of the principles or essentials of biblical community reviewed in the literature review and validated upon by the experts to demonstrate a need to better measure the effectiveness of biblical community within a particular environment. Also, the research demonstrated a need to educate parents and students alike as to what makes a community biblical. The benefit of the expert panel allowed for the findings to be validated in order to then create an instrument that measures student perception. The researcher sought to answer the question: Do teens, that attend Christian high schools, perceive their online relationships to facilitate the principles or essentials of biblical community? The more commonly asked questions concerning the effects of digital media on one's face-to-face relationships cannot adequately be answered until the above question is answered.


The kinetics of the synthesis of a riboflavin (RF) precursor, 2,6-dihydroxy-5-amino-4-ribitylaminopyrimidine (DHARAP), was studied using the washed cells of RF-deficient mutants of Pichia guilliermondii R7G and Pichia ohmeri R32 with blocked lumasine synthetase. RF inhibited the synthesis of DHARAP while cycloheximide in the absence of RF had no effect on this process. The data suggest that flavins regulate the biosynthesis of RF in P. guillier mondii and P. ohmeri b7 means of feed-back inhibition mechanism.


Background Podocytes are postmitotic visceral epithelial cells, located at the Bowmans capsule of the kidney building up the slit diaphragm with their foot processes to filtrate the blood and keep valuable large proteins in the vessels. In Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) different organs are affected by autoantibodies which results in chronic inflammation and a high percentage of patients develop Lupus nephritis (LN) resulting in podocyte damage and disruption of the slit diaphragm. The risk for LN correlates directly with the level of anti-double stranded DNA antibodies (adsDNAabs). In this study, we wanted to identify the direct effect of adsDNAabs on podocytes. Methods We established an in vitro system to investigate the specific impact of monoclonal antibodies and their immune complexes directly on podocytes (AB8 cell line). Monoclonal antibodies were generated by transfecting HEK293T cell line with Ig heavy and corresponding light chain encoding plasmid DNA obtained from single B cells of patients with SLE and LN. Podocytes were incubated with the produced monoclonal antibodies and the internalisation process and functional consequences were analysed by immunofluorescence, Western Blot, FACS and electron microscopy. For comparison, primary human podocytes were isolated from LN patient urine and analysed by immunofluorescence. Results The recombinantly produced adsDNAabs from LN patients were specific against nuclear structures and build complexes with double stranded DNA, essential for the internalisation by cultivated podocytes. Interestingly, viability and migratory capacity were not influenced by the exposure to adsDNAabs for 48 hour. The internalised antibodies were enclosed by membranous structures and reach the cytosol via clathrin dependent endocytosis. The process of internalisation was time and dose dependent and reversible. Furthermore, internalised antibody complexes could also be detected in primary human LN podocytes. Conclusion In our in vitro model the specific uptake of adsDNAabs was observed, in line with human LN data. Podocytes from patients with LN show IgG positive aggregates in the cytosol. The internalisation depends on the complex formation of the antibodies with dsDNA and could be important part of the LN pathogenesis.


Background:Acupotomy has been widely used clinically to relieve low back pain. However, the efficacy of acupotomy for the third lumbar vertebrae transverse process syndrome is still uncertain. The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness and safety of acupotomy therapy for the third lumbar vertebrae transverse process syndrome. Methods: Relevant randomized controlled trials will be searched from the databases of PubMed, the Cochrane Library, Embase, the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, Wanfang Database, Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database, and Chinese Biomedical Literature Database from their inception to May 2020. Two reviewers will independently select studies, collect data, and assess the methodology quality by the Cochrane risk of bias tool. The RevMan V.5.3 will be used for meta-analysis. Results: This study will provide an assessment of the current state of acupotomy for the third lumbar vertebrae transverse process syndrome, aiming to show the efficacy and safety of acupotomy treatment. Conclusion:This study will provide evidence to judge whether acupotomy is an effective intervention for the third lumbar vertebrae transverse process syndrome. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42019134945. Abbreviations: 95% CI = 95% confidence interval, MDs =mean differences, RCTs = randomized controlled trials, RR = relative risk, VAS = visual analog scale, WMDs = weight mean differences.


See also pp 1460, 1480, 1483

Despite the fact that the Labour party promised greater openness when in opposition, now that it is in government it seems as anxious as its Conservative predecessor to ensure that bad news about the health service is suppressed. In this article and the next, Judy Jones looks at ways in which the government controls what we hear about the NHS and at how it took the health department 10 months to reply to the BMJ 's critique of its policy on the private finance initiative.

When the last Conservative government was in power the BMJ published articles about the suppression of free speech and information and the politicisation of the NHS and health care.1 2 These cited numerous examples, ranging from "gagging" clauses in contracts and suppression of independent reports to people being told, in essence, to keep quiet about service cuts or other matters that were potentially embarrassing to politicians.

The Labour party's promises of free speech, openness, impartiality, and more democracy and accountability in and around the NHS and elsewhere helped secure the party a landslide victory in the last general election. In the interests of free speech and pursuance of political impartiality, the BMJ has repeated these earlier exercises. We have collected some fresh examples of attempts to prevent disclosure of "public interest" information and of political chicanery since the change of government in May 1997. Against the backcloth of recent rebellion in Labour's ranks over the government's freedom of information bill, we feel it timely to report, once again, on what the government of the day would rather you didn't know.

#### Summary points

The Labour party's promises of openness and more democracy and accountability in the NHS helped secure the party a landslide victory in the last general election, but the …


Author(s): Figliulo-Rosswurm, Joseph | Advisor(s): Lansing, Carol L. | Abstract: My project is a social history of the emergence and use of popular identity and popular discourse in late medieval Florence and its territory. Its central theme is the role that the Florentine popolo's discursive identity-a set of norms and associational models based on the core values of social peace and the rule of law-played in the commune's consolidation of its institutional power in city and countryside. My main sources are the voluminous records of medieval Florence's foreign-staffed courts: the Executor of the Ordinances of Justice, the Capitano del Popolo, and the Podesta, in addition to the Notarile Antecosimiano, tax records (estimi), and the commune's legislative corpus. The Italian Renaissance state is a venerable topic in medieval and early modern historiography, yet rarely has the question been asked: how did rural non-elites, the majority of the population, receive the categories of popular identity and solidarity that successive popular regimes elaborated over the period 1250-1350? Recent scholarship on the topic has incorporated mountaineers and rural elites into the narrative, without moving beyond a conceptual binary of acceptance-resistance: later medieval states either deployed enough coercion and enticements to achieve their ends, or non-elites responded to these states in the most dramatic way possible, open rebellion. This schema does not reflect the complexity of mundane reality: case studies of urban non-elites' and rural peoples' interactions with Florentine popular institutions and their discursive imaginary reveal their provisional and tactical quality. Florentine public courts played an important role in legitimizing public power in city and countryside, and residents of Florence's countryside used these courts in large numbers, deploying the language of the commune's popular regime to initiate legal action and impugn their enemies. Non-elites' assent to public power did not exclude a calculating, instrumentalist view of the Florentine courts as an ambiguous source of authority, able to improve or damage one's standing in the community. The density and variety of the Florentine archives allows me to study the contradictions and evasions at the heart of the Florentine state's relationship with rural society in some detail. I thus move beyond a binary in which premodern non-elites are either docile victims of hegemony, or are always already resisting their landlords and public officials. The project bridges Florentine historiography with wider questions surrounding the emergence of the Italian communes, rural life, and the intersection between society and the law in the late Middle Ages. More broadly, the project offers a socio-cultural approach to understanding premodern state formation, non-elite self-organization, and rural life and society in an exceptionally well-documented corner of Mediterranean Europe.


The Freyja Mottles, Venus, deformation zone consists of a distinctive linear orogenic belt (Freyja Montes), an adjacent plateau, a steep scarp separating the plateau from the North Polar Plains lying about 3 km below the plateau, and a volcanically flooded foredeep and rise at the base of the scarp. On the basis of mapping of radar images and interpretation of the geologic units and topography, the Freyja Montes deformation zone is interpreted to be the site of large-scale crustal convergence and imbrication involving the underthrusting of the North Polar Plains beneath Ishtar Terra. This deformation is interpreted to have begun with north-south regional compressional deformation causing flexure, buckling, and underthrusting of the crust and lithosphere of the North Polar Plains beneath the relatively higher proto-Ishtar/ Lakshmi. Further convergence and underthrusting caused crustal thickening and uplift and created compressive stresses in the upper part of the underthrusting layer. Failure of this layer led to a new site of underthrusting outboard of the rise and a new detachment surface. The detached layer and the wedge of volcanic flows in the intervening foredeep were further deformed and incorporated (sutured) onto the plateau and mountain range. This crustal underthrusting and imbrication caused crustal thickening and corresponding crustal uplift. The continuing process of convergence underthrusting, detachment, and imbrication produced large-scale crustal thickening, uplift, and the formation of the plateau behind the asymmetrical front of Freyja Montes. The present configuration of topography and units and the distinctive elevation of the scarp and Freyja Montes suggest that the process continues to operate at the present time.


Expression of the antimicrobial peptide hCAP18/LL-37 is associated to malignancy in various cancer forms, stimulating cell migration and metastasis. We report that LL-37 induces migration of three cancer cell lines by activating the TRPV2 calcium-permeable channel and recruiting it to pseudopodia through activation of the PI3K/AKT pathway. Ca2+ entry through TRPV2 cooperated with a K+ efflux through the BKCa channel. In a panel of human breast tumors, the expression of TRPV2 and LL-37 was found to be positively correlated. The D-enantiomer of LL-37 showed identical effects as the L-peptide, suggesting that no binding to a specific receptor was involved. LL-37 attached to caveolae and pseudopodia membranes and decreased membrane fluidity, suggesting that a modification of the physical properties of the lipid membrane bilayer was the underlying mechanism of its effects.


Ligand exchange reactions between [Cp*Ru(NCMe)3][PF6], where Cp* represents η(5)-C5Me5, and the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) pyrene, acenaphthylene and fluoranthene afforded the known [Cp*Ru(η(6)-pyrene)][PF6] (1) and the new mixed sandwiches [Cp*Ru(η(6)-acenaphthylene)][PF6] (2) and [Cp*Ru(η(6)-fluoranthene)][PF6] (3), respectively, isolated in quantitative yields (94-100%). Complex 3 is formed as a mixture of two isomers: 3A as the major product where the [Cp*Ru(+)] moiety is coordinated to the naphthalene fragment of fluoranthene, and 3B with the coordination of the arenophile to the peripheral benzene ring, in a 90/10 spectroscopic ratio. The composition and identity of the complexes were deduced by elemental analysis, (1)H and (13)C multidimensional NMR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. Compounds 1A, 3A and 2A have been characterized using X-ray structural investigations. That showed that the [Cp*Ru(+)] unit is η(6)-attached to one of the two naphthalene rings in each complex. Heating 1 and 3 at 90 °C in CD3NO2 solutions or heating 3 at 120 °C in the solid phase did not provide any evidence for thermally induced intramolecular inter-ring haptotropic rearrangements. These rearrangements were modelled by DFT calculations which indicated rather high activation energies.


Background: Uncontrolled asthma during pregnancy is associated with the maternal hazards of asthma exacerbation, and perinatal hazards including intrauterine growth restriction and preterm birth. Interventions directed at achieving better asthma control during pregnancy should be considered a high priority in order to optimise both maternal and perinatal outcomes. Poor adherence to asthma medication regimens during pregnancy and suboptimal prescribing in pregnant women have both been shown to jeopardise asthma control. These barriers need to be understood in order to inform the development of interventions for resolving these problems. The aim of this PhD was firstly to ascertain the safety of preventive asthma medications during pregnancy, then explore barriers to and facilitators of maternal asthma management and finally, to design and evaluate an informed intervention to optimise asthma management during pregnancy. Methods: A four phase project was conducted to contribute to optimising asthma management during pregnancy. Phase 1 was a systematic review of the safety of preventive asthma medications during pregnancy. Phase 2 involved investigating asthma management and prescribing trends during pregnancy through a postal survey of general practitioners (n=842) involved in shared maternity care at the three largest maternity hospitals in Victoria, Australia. Phase 3 explored the factors associated with adherence to asthma medications and experiences of pregnant asthmatic women through in-depth interviews (n=23). Finally, Phase 4 brought the results together in a randomised controlled trial testing a Multidisciplinary Approach to Management of Maternal Asthma (MAMMA©) in pregnant women with asthma (n=60). Both intervention and control (usual standard care) groups were followed prospectively and their asthma control was assessed at 3 and 6 months using the Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention. Pregnant women with asthma were recruited from antenatal clinics and/or databases from two maternity hospitals in Victoria, Australia (Mercy Hospital for Women, and The Royal Women's Hospital). Key findings: • Phase 1 (Chapter 2): current safety data have not been able to establish a direct association between asthma medication use during pregnancy and poor outcomes, whereas there is an abundance of literature supporting the risks of uncontrolled asthma. Women should not refrain from taking their asthma medications during pregnancy. • Phase 2 (Chapter 4) : Over a quarter of general practitioner respondents may be advising patients to reduce or discontinue their asthma medications during pregnancy when it is unnecessary for them to do so (i.e. patient's asthma adequately controlled on current therapy), putting them at risk of uncontrolled asthma. Furthermore, lack of knowledge in regards to management of deteriorating asthma during pregnancy became evident, with over 12% of respondents being unsure about what to do. • Phase 3 (Chapter 5): By interviewing participants, it became apparent that many pregnant women were unaware of the risks of poorly controlled asthma. Consequently, they were discontinuing their current asthma therapy and increasing the risks of poor asthma control during pregnancy and poor perinatal outcomes. Reasons behind their decisions revolved around lack of support and information about what to do, concerns about the safety of the medications, past experiences, and desire for an "all natural" pregnancy. Asthma monitoring was also found to be poor or nonexistent in pregnancy. • Phase 4 (Chapters 6 and 7): MAMMA© involved many interventions by the trial pharmacist aimed at improving asthma control in the intervention participants. These included initiation of asthma action plans (n=7), restarting of preventers (n=5), initiation of preventers (n=5), increase in preventer doses (n=4) and referral to a respiratory specialist (n=1). The Asthma Control Questionnaire (ACQ) score in the intervention group (n = 29) decreased by a mean (SD) of 0.46 (1.05) at 3 months and 0.89 (0.98) at 6 months. The control group (n = 29) had a mean decrease of 0.15 (0.63) at 3 months and 0.18 (0.73) at 6 months. The difference between groups, adjusting for baseline, was -0.22 (95%CI: -0.54 to 0.10) at 3 months and -0.60 (-0.85 to -0.36) at 6 months. The difference at 6 months was statistically significant (p 0.5). No asthma-related oral corticosteroid use, hospital admissions, emergency visits or days off work were reported during the trial. Conclusion: These findings confirm the safety of preventive asthma medications, the importance of health professionals, such as pharmacists, monitoring asthma management during pregnancy, and the value of a multidisciplinary model of care involving education, regular monitoring and follow-up in routine antenatal care. This thesis has promoted more awareness of the risks of poorly controlled asthma in pregnancy and clarifies the need for future research in this area.


Background and Aim: Needs assessment can assist practitioners in using resources effectively to improve program decision making. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the educational needs of health care providers (Behvarzan) working towards maternal health in health networks in Savehby means of  knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP). Material and Methods: A descriptive- cross sectional study was conducted on 86 employees of Saveh Health Centers. The instrument for data collection was a researcher-developed questionnaire including four parts: demographic characteristics (6 questions), knowledge (17 questions), attitude (7 sentences) and practice (20sentences) about maternal health. The questionnaire was used for data collection along with face to face interviews and observation to fulfillthe required validity and reliability. Data were coded and analyzed by SPSS software using one-way ANOVA, chi-square, and T-test. Results: The results showed that, 54.6% of the subjects had high knowledge about maternal health, whereas 34.9% and 10.5% of them had moderate and low level of awareness, respectively. In addition, 76.8% of the subjects had high attitude towardsmaternal health. Regarding the performance of maternal health, only 18.6% had good practice. There were significant differences for KAP by the level of education and sex. Conclusion: The level of care providers'knowledge and attitude of health were better than their practice. Provision of theory base educational programs for the improvement of practice is recommended.


Notwithstanding large cooperative epidemiological studies, in depth pathophysiological studies on subarachnoid hemorrhage, a unique surgical strategy has not emerged on the timing of aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage. We define as early surgery the one which is practiced in the first 72 hours after the hemorrhage, and delayed surgery the one which is practiced more than 72 hours after the bleeding. Early and delayed surgery have both advantages and disadvantages, but as shown in the "International Cooperative Study on the Timing of Aneurysm Surgery" there are no significant differences in term of mortality and morbidity between early and delayed surgery. In fact the postoperative risk following early surgery is equivalent to the risk of rebleeding and vasospasm in patients waiting for delayed surgery. The novelty in the surgical timing of patients harboring an aneurysm which has bleed, is on one hand the "Ultra early surgery" which is performed not longer than 24 hours after the bleeding and on the other hand the attempt to individualize the timing of surgery on each single patient.


This is an excellent little book for its purpose. Bound with plastic rings, it lies flat at the open page and will fit into the pocket. It will surely come to be kept in or near labour wards and in residents's rooms though it is highly likely that it will not stay long in public places but will find its way into private libraries. The book is written in note form with strong emphasis on practicality, and has a good index. Diagnosis and differential diagnosis are succinct and very much to the point. The outstanding value of the book lies in the detail of treatment, which is brief yet comprehensive and clear. Especially good are sections on central venous pressure monitoring, side-effects of drugs, anaesthesia, neonatal resuscitation, and coagulation disorders, as well as the purely obstetric nmnoeuvres for maipresentations and positions and twins. But none of these sections ought to be specially picked out, because the standard is so good throughout. There can be few dbstetric residents who do not suffer at some time from "telephone twitch," when the call comes to an emergency and anxiety mounts. With this book as a companion a lot of the tension will be eased and the first steps in coping with the acute problems of obstetrics, which are so worrying, will be on the right lines.


Spontaneous magnetization Ms of the ferromagnetic compound Mn5Ge3 with the Curie temperature TC=305 K has been studied in the temperature range from 2 to 400 K. The relationships between the magnetic part of the heat capacity (CMAG), the magnetic part of the volume thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) MAG, and the Ms for the compound Mn5Ge3 have been considered. It has been found that the magnetic part of the heat capacity can be well approximated by the dependence CMAG(T)=a×|dMs2/dT|–b×|dMs4/dT| with a>0 and b>0, and the magnetic part of the TEC, by the dependence  MAG=C1×dMs2/dT+C2×dMs4/dT with C1<0 and C2>0 in the whole temperature. It is assumed that the main sources in the formation of the observed CMAG(T) and MAG(T) dependences are the changes in the elastic, magnetoelastic, magnetovolume, and magnetostatic energies of the sample that appear as a result of the spontaneous magnetostrictive deformation with temperature changing.


It seems that post 9/11 me topic of evil and particularly collective evil has been on almost everyone's mind. Although philosophers have always inquired about the origin and nature of evil, since 9/11 there has been an unprecedented increase of philosophical literature on evil. However, collective evil is nothing new to the human condition. By collective evil I mean acts of violence or acts that are destructive of human persons carried out by one social group against another. By social group I mean an aggregate of individuals who bond with each other on the basis of some recognizable identity trait or marker such as race, religion, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, class, etc. Human history, well before 9/11 is filled with not only conflicts between social groups, but also attempts by some social groups to enslave or even obliterate others. Evil here goes well beyond the lack of impulse control by individuals. In this context, evil may be systematic, systemic, well-organized, and may even appear to be rational. The purpose of this essay is to explore the origin of collective evil in the structure of human consciousness. I will put two unlikely thinkers (Fichte and Freud) in dialogue to this end. It is my belief that while Fichte and Freud may seem radically opposed to each other on many issues, nevertheless, they both offer important insights for understanding collective evil that are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Drive Theory and the I At first glance the attempt to create a dialogue between Fichte and Freud on the topic of evil and the human condition in general may seem a bit foolish. Indeed, such an attempt seems like something that would occur only in me final competition for the title of academic court jester. However, it seems to me that such an investigation is worthwhile. Therefore, if I am awarded the title academic court jester I will count my losses and move on to the next thing. What makes this conversation between Freud and Fichte seem fool-hearted is that in these two theories we have two entirely different approaches to the study of the human subject. With Freud we have a commitment to empirical research and almost a form of biologism in the early Freud. Also, in spite of certain persistent philosophical explorations in Freud we still get an attempt to avoid philosophy altogether. Further, Freud seems to have no specific ethical orientation. Like his contemporary Husserl, Freud takes himself to be engaged in a purely descriptive science. Fichte on the other hand is committed to the project of transcendental philosophy. Rather than occupy himself with empirical science and research, Fichte, in ways that also reminds one of Husserl, explores the necessary conditions for empirical science by investigating the necessary conditions for experience. Hence, the Wissenschaftslehre is not empirical science but rather a system that discloses the possibilities of such. The question that motivates this essay is, "can Freud and Fichte help us understand the origin and nature of collective evil?" After examining both theories the stark differences become clear; however, also revealed is the need to think about the problem of collective evil through both Fichtean and Freudian frameworks. I think that at the end of the day we may not have a happy marriage between the two but we can have an interesting first date. The key differences and the point of connection between Fichte and Freud lie in their drive theories. I will begin with Fichte. In the Introduction to the Sittenlehre Fichte claims that the task of philosophy is to explain how something objective can become subjective. That is, how something objective can become an object for human consciousness. The point or system of unification for the objective and me subjective is I-hood. However, there is no unification without distinction. The process of unifying and distinguishing the subjective and the objective is dependent on the I's activity. …


We study the effects of twisted boundary conditions on the quark fields in the epsilon regime of chiral perturbation theory. We consider the SU(2){sub L} x SU(2){sub R} chiral theory with non-degenerate quarks and the SU(3){sub L} x SU(3){sub R} chiral theory with massless up and down quarks and massive strange quarks. The partition function and condensate are derived for each theory. Because flavor-neutral Goldstone bosons are unaffected by twisted boundary conditions chiral symmetry is still restored in finite volumes. The dependence of the condensate on the twisting parameters can be used to extract the pion decay constant from simulations in the epsilon regime. The relative contribution to the partition function from sectors of different topological charge is numerically insensitive to twisted boundary conditions.


. Our overall objective was to use a soil water model to predict spatial patterns in germination and establishment of two important perennial C4-bunchgrasses across the North American shortgrass steppe and desert grassland regions. We also predicted changes in establishment patterns under climate change scenarios. Bouteloua gracilis dominates the shortgrass steppe from northeastern Colorado to southeastern New Mexico. Bouteloua eriopoda dominates desert grasslands in central and southern New Mexico. Germination and establishment for each species were predicted at 16 sites along the gradient using a daily time step, multi-layer soil water model (SOILWAT) to determine the percentage of years that temperature and soil water criteria for germination and establishment were met. Percentage of years with predicted establishment decreased from north to south for B. gracilis, but increased from north to south for B. eriopoda, comparable to observed dominance patterns. The 95 % confidence interval around the point at which simulated establishment were equal for the two species was near the location of the shortgrass steppe-desert grassland ecotone where both species are abundant. The intersection in percentage of years with establishment for the two species was predicted to move further north when climate was scaled using three Global Circulation Models (GCMs), indicating a possible northward expansion of B. eriopoda. Our results suggest that recruitment by seed may be an important process in determining, at least in part, the geographic distribution of these two species. Changes in climate that affect establishment constraints could result in shifts of species dominance that may or may not be accompanied by changes in species composition.


Developing efficient noble metal-free multifunctional electrocatalysts is highly effective to dramatically reduce the overall cost of electrochemical devices. In this work, we demonstrate for the first time a facile strategy for in situ coupling of ultrafine Co0.85Se nanocrystals and N-doped carbon (Co0.85Se@NC) by directly selenizing zeolitic imidazolate framework-67 (ZIF-67) polyhedra. Benefiting from the synergistic effect of the coupling between Co0.85Se and NC, the Co–N–C structure, and the porous conductive carbon network, Co0.85Se@NC affords excellent oxygen evolution reaction (OER) performance with a small overpotential, remarkable stability, and high faradaic efficiency. Furthermore, Co0.85Se@NC can also efficiently catalyze hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen reduction reaction (ORR), and we therefore investigated its applications as a trifunctional electrocatalyst for overall water splitting and Zn–air batteries. When used as both the anode and cathode for overall water splitting, a low cell voltage of 1.76 V is sufficient to reach the current density of 10 mA cm−2; the obtained Zn–air batteries exhibit a very low discharge–charge voltage gap (0.80 V at 10 mA cm−2) and long cycle life (up to 180 cycles). These results not only demonstrate a facile strategy for the synthesis of affordable Co0.85Se@NC but also present its huge potential as a trifunctional electrocatalyst for clean energy systems.


We present spectroscopic observations of 26 galaxies of type E and S0, based on their blue morphologies, located in voids by the study of Grogin & Geller in 1999. Measurements of redshift, velocity dispersion, and four Lick line indices, Mgb, Fe5270, Fe5335, and Hβ with their errors are given for all of these galaxies, along with Hβ, [O iii], Hα, and [N ii] emission line strengths for a subset of these objects. These sources are brighter than M* for low-density regions and tend to be bluer than their counterpart early-type objects in high-density regions. Using the models of Thomas et al., developed in 2003, gives metal abundances and ages with a median α enhancement, [α/Fe] = +0.13, and median metal abundance, [Z/H] = +0.22, values comparable to those found for E and S0 galaxies in clusters, but with a wider spread in [Z/H] toward low values. If the emission line subsample is interpreted as younger, the proportion of young objects is higher than for early types in higher-density regions. There is a significant incidence of sources in the sample with emission lines in their spectra (46% with Hβ and [O iii] and 69% with Hα or [N ii]) as well as shells and rings in their morphologies (19%). The diagnostic , diagram places 10 of 12 emission line galaxies in or near the star-forming and liner region and two among the Seyferts. The Hα fluxes indicate star-formation rates of 0.2–1.0 M☉ yr−1. The percentage of these early-type void galaxies undergoing star formation appears to be higher compared to their cluster counterparts and the range of ages wider.


There are many reasons for developing materials or even a whole course based on listening skill. First of all, people have different abilities for learning a foreign language and part of them rely on their aural capacity, so that we can suppose that it would be easier for them to acquire knowledge based on what they can hear. Secondly, the learner can be exposed to listening stimuli every day if the teacher knows how to find the way to guide him towards developing the skill. Listening to different people speaking, could help the student with his pronunciation. Thirdly, a course on line is more attractive if it is based on the listening with or without image. An audio visual material could be exploited in many ways by designing exercises for reading, listening, writing, grammar and speaking, according to the purpose of those implied in the educational process. Even if the teacher's role is reduced to supervising and monitoring, the students can work at their pace and concentrate more on their individual needs. The teacher's work can be seen in the way they develop the courses, the subjects, that in our case, may be used both for military and civilian students that are prepared for maritime environment. Such an e-learning-based class should interweave the traditional steps in designing a plan for a class with the modern visual and aural methods represented by e-learning. Pre-listening and post-listening exercises may be connected to other skills in order to enhance the vocabulary in a certain field.


A nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) algorithm based on a neural network model is proposed for multivariable nonlinear systems. A multi-input multi-output model is developed using multilayer perceptron (MLP) neural network which is trained by Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm and amplitude modulated pseudo random binary (APRBS) signals with noise as data sets. Model predictive control also uses Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm for the control signal optimization. The control performance is improved by using a disturbance model that compensates both model mismatch and external disturbance. The learning rate of disturbance estimation network changes adaptively to treat the model mismatch differently from the external disturbance. Simulation results using the quadruple-tank are employed to show the effectiveness of the method.


Other than the traditional classroom-based learning in which students learn from the teacher directly, students should share their knowledge with others to facilitate the learning process. The application of the information technologies creates a common, user-friendly, and universally accessible learning platform that should not only focus on providing access to information and expertise, but also embrace a far richer architecture of online resources. Knowledge management includes the capability to collect, archive, manage, evaluate, and distribute information across the learning community. In the learning process, a student may like to share knowledge with other students and learn from them. After doing some exercises, students can learn and reflect on these practices. They recognize rules and patterns in practice.
 The paper presents a web-based knowledge management system. It is used to facilitate students' learning of some practical IT skills such as programming. The system can provide ways for students to communicate on a regular basis. It brings instantaneous and real-time information and expertise to students. Knowledge management defines electronic learning in ways that make it more acceptable and more a part of learning culture than an adjunct to it. It is the key to the success of electronic learning. It is found that collaborative knowledge creation and sharing can be supported by the system. Its success is dependent on a number of factors: students' engagement, familiarity of the technology and careful class plan design. It is also found that electronic learning is not to replace traditional learning taken place in classrooms.
 Knowledge is the most serious resource for future social and economic development. Online education is an answer to solving some problems of education today. To students of this new era, it is empowering tools helping them to equip themselves to adapt to increasing complexities of such knowledge society.


Anthropomorphic robotic hands are seeking to achieve key features such as multi-degree-of-freedom motion ability, bi-directional actuation, high adaptability, and sufficient stiffness. In this research, we propose a 10 active degrees-of-freedom anthropomorphic robotic hand with a soft-rigid hybrid structure and positive-negative pneumatic actuation. The fingers of the hand utilize pneumatic actuators composed of soft bellows to actuate a rigid skeleton for bending motion with unidirectional-stretchable nylon elastic fabric as a strain limiting layer. The positive-negative pneumatic actuation mimics the flexors and extensors of the human hand to implement bi-directional finger actuation. We present a prototype implementation of this robotic hand and provide a preliminary evaluation. The experimental results show that the combined positive-negative pneumatic actuation can extend the workspace of the finger and increase the finger stiffness compared to using only positive pneumatic actuation. The proposed robotic hand has good comprehensive performance (generated a blocking force of 7.5 N, scored seven in the Kapandji test, achieved 32 of the 33 grasp postures from the Feix taxonomy, and could implement five human grasping strategies) compared to other robotic hands in literatures.


Abstract This article explores how the Elizabethan religious settlement of 1559 was experienced at parish level, up to the year 1572. Churchwardens' accounts for the Yorkshire parishes of Masham, Sheffield and St Martin's, Coney Street, York, are used alongside ecclesiastical court records and other sources to build a picture of local responses to the settlement. The factors found to be significant include the degree to which the reforms demanded a change in previous community practices, and the pace and sequence with which sacred material objects were removed and installed. The latter are viewed as concrete aspects of religiosity which gave meaning to more abstract doctrines for both clergy and laity. The way in which authority was realised in the parishes, through coercion, collaboration, negotiation or conversion is also explored. Most significantly, the ability of lay parishioners to negotiate among themselves, and with external agents of authority during the process, determined the resulting style of local Protestantism.


BACKGROUND
Television viewing is associated with childhood obesity. Eating during viewing and eating highly advertised foods are 2 of the hypothesized mechanisms through which television is thought to affect children's weight.

OBJECTIVES
Our objectives were to describe the amounts and types of foods that children consume while watching television, compare those types with the types consumed at other times of the day, and examine the associations between children's body mass index (BMI) and the amounts and types of foods consumed during television viewing.

DESIGN
Data were collected from 2 samples. The first sample consisted of ethnically diverse third-grade children, and the second consisted predominantly of Latino fifth-grade children. Three nonconsecutive 24-h dietary recalls were collected from each child. For each eating episode reported, children were asked whether they had been watching television. Height and weight were measured by using standard methods and were used to calculate BMI.

RESULTS
On weekdays and weekend days, 17-18% and approximately 26% of total daily energy, respectively, were consumed during television viewing in the 2 samples. Although the fat content of the foods consumed during television viewing did not differ significantly from that of the foods consumed with the television off, less soda, fast food, fruit, and vegetables were consumed with the television on. The amount of food consumed during television viewing was not associated with children's BMI, but in the third-grade sample, the fat content of foods consumed during television viewing was associated with BMI.

CONCLUSIONS
A significant proportion of children's daily energy intake is consumed during television viewing, and the consumption of high-fat foods on weekends may be associated with BMI in younger children.


UNITED STATES HEALTH CARE, OFTEN HAILED AS "THE best health care system in the world," is also faulted for being too costly, leaving many millions of individuals uninsured, and having avoidable lapses in quality. Criticism often draws on comparisons with other countries of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). This Viewpoint also makes such comparisons, over a broad range of variables, and reaches one inescapable conclusion—US health care is very different from health care in other countries. Potential reasons for the differences are discussed, leading to the conclusion that future efforts to control cost, provide universal coverage, and improve health outcomes will have to consider the United States' particular history, values, and political system.


Abstract:  Augmented reality (AR) offers significant potential in construction, manufacturing, and other engineering disciplines that employ graphical visualization to plan and design their operations. As a result of introducing real‐world objects into the visualization, less virtual models have to be deployed to create a realistic visual output that directly translates into less time and effort required to create, render, manipulate, manage, and update three‐dimensional (3D) virtual contents (CAD model engineering) of the animated scene. At the same time, using the existing layout of land or plant as the background of visualization significantly alleviates the need to collect data about the surrounding environment prior to creating the final visualization while providing visually convincing representations of the processes being studied. In an AR animation, virtual and real objects must be simultaneously managed and accurately displayed to a user to create a visually convincing illusion of their coexistence and interaction. A critical challenge impeding this objective is the problem of incorrect occlusion that manifests itself when real objects in an AR scene partially or wholly block the view of virtual objects. In the presented research, a new AR occlusion handling system based on depth‐sensing algorithms and frame buffer manipulation techniques was designed and implemented. This algorithm is capable of resolving incorrect occlusion occurring in dynamic AR environments in real time using depth‐sensing equipment such as laser detection and ranging (LADAR) devices, and can be integrated into any mobile AR platform that allows a user to navigate freely and observe a dynamic AR scene from any vantage position.


thf,J-treatmentof many graveconstitutionaldisorders, sueh asexophthalmicgoitre and many forms of infeetive arthritis. .Ontheother hand, it is roost important to bear in' mind that multiple foci of infection often exist in various organsof the body, anyoneof which may be: responsiblefor' the general.clinieal features of cln'onic septic absorption. Before incriminating the teeth, it is necessaryto eliminate as far as may be possible' all foci elsewhere, particularly the tonsils and accessorynasal sinuses, as well asinfections of the urinary tract. and inflammatory diseasesof thepelvic organs. In the absence of definitebacterio-' logical evidence,extremecare shouldbe takenbefore ascribing any particular general infection or any process ofchronicsepticabsorptionto the oral cavity. Considerableexperienceis necessaryin correctly interpreting the photographicfindings in relation to dental and all other branchesof skiagraphy. The widespreadpopular use of radiography which has recently become soconspicuousa feature in advertisementsappearingin the daily press, cannotbe regarded as invariably founded on a scientific basis. Until closerco-operationexists betweenphysicianand dentist it is probablethat many teeth may be saerificed needlessly. While not endeavouringto minimize the importanceof oral sepsis inrelation,to disease,our conceptof its relation to individual constitutional diseasesshould be founded on a firm pathological basis. At thepresent time the attitude of many members of themedical professionsavourstoo much of empiricism in this regard. • THE SIGNIFICANCE OF BLOOD PLATELETS.


Recent program synthesis techniques help users customize CAD models(e.g., for 3D printing) by decompiling low-level triangle meshes to Constructive Solid Geometry (CSG) expressions. Without loops or functions, editing CSG can require many coordinated changes, and existing mesh decompilers use heuristics that can obfuscate high-level structure. This paper proposes a second decompilation stage to robustly "shrink" unstructured CSG expressions into more editable programs with map and fold operators. We present Szalinski, a tool that uses Equality Saturation with semantics-preserving CAD rewrites to efficiently search for smaller equivalent programs. Szalinski relies on inverse transformations, a novel way for solvers to speculatively add equivalences to an E-graph. We qualitatively evaluate Szalinski in case studies, show how it composes with an existing mesh decompiler, and demonstrate that Szalinski can shrink large models in seconds.


The hybrid MIMO phased array radar (HMPAR) is a notional concept for a multisensor radar architecture that combines elements of traditional phased-array radar with the emerging technology of multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) radar. A HMPAR comprises a large number, MP, of T/R elements, organized into M subarrays of P elements each. Within each subarray, passive element-level phase shifting is used to steer transmit and receive beams in some desired fashion. Each of the M subarrays are in turn driven by independently amplified phase-coded signals which could be quasi-orthogonal, phase-coherent, or partially correlated. Such a radar system could be used in an airborne platform for concurrent search, detect, and track missions. This paper considers various signaling strategies which could be employed in the notional HMPAR architecture to achieve various objectives quantified by transmit beampatterns and space-time ambiguity functions. First, we propose a method to generate multiple correlated signals for uniform linear and rectangular arrays that achieve arbitrary rectangular transmit beampatterns in one and two dimensions, while maintaining desirable temporal properties. Examples of the range of transmit beampatterns possible with this technique are illustrated for an array of MP=900 elements, arranged using different values of M and P. Then the space-time, or MIMO, ambiguity function that is appropriate for the HMPAR radar system is derived. Examples of ambiguity functions for our signals using a one-dimensional HMPAR architecture are given, demonstrating that one can achieve phased-array-like resolution on receive, for arbitrary transmit beampatterns.


Family preservation services (FPS) include a set of services designed to prevent out-of-home placement for children at risk of child maltreatment. Research examining FPS is inconsistent, with some studies reporting positive results, while others fail to demonstrate improved outcomes for many families. To understand the experience of receiving these services from the perspective of consumers, this paper reports the qualitative findings from a mixed methods study to examine families' experiences with FPS. To accomplish this objective, a purposive sample of 36 families was followed from referral to case closure. Specifically, 85 semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted at onset, midpoint and case closure to examine the perceptions of clients throughout service delivery. Each interview was audiotaped, transcribed and analysed using open and secondary coding strategies. Findings suggest that similar to other studies, families' perceptions of FPS were mixed. Some found the services relevant and supportive, while others were less satisfied. The four qualitative themes discussed by these participants included service content, service delivery, emotional support and tangible support. These themes help to provide in-depth descriptions of the perspectives of this sample of families. Implications for practice are discussed.


Peptic ulcer bleeding is associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. The goals of management are to control any active bleeding and prevent re‐bleeding and then to heal the ulcer and prevent its recurrence. Initial management strategies are guided by the patient's clinical condition and endoscopic findings. Thus, treatment may consist of endoscopic and medical therapy and, sometimes, surgery. Control of acid secretion, preferably with proton pump inhibitor therapy in the initial management continues to evolve; it has also been used as both an adjunct to endoscopic therapy and as primary treatment. These agents have been found to be effective in some trials in the reduction of re‐bleeding and the need for surgery, although there is no clear benefit demonstrated for overall mortality. Proton pump inhibitors have been administered either intravenously or orally in different trials. The long‐term management of patients with peptic ulcer, after the initial bleeding episode, should include patient stratification based upon risk factors for ulcer recurrence (i.e. Helicobacter pylori infection, use of aspirin or nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs). Elimination or modification of these risk factors reduces the risk of ulcer recurrence and, hence, of recurrent ulcer bleeding.


Few patients with pancreatic cancer have resectable disease at the time of diagnosis, and a variety of nonsurgical techniques are available to provide effective palliation of jaundice and pain. Accurate preoperative staging is essential to identify patients with unresectable disease, thereby minimizing unnecessary surgery. Currently used diagnostic tests include contrast-enhanced computerized tomography (CT), visceral angiography, endoscopic ultrasound, and laparoscopy, but their utility remains controversial. To evaluate the accuracy of these various diagnostic tests, 30 consecutive patients with histologically proven pancreatic or ampullary adenocarcinoma treated between 1992 and 1996 were evaluated. All 30 patients had contrast-enhanced CT and laparoscopy, 22 patients (73%) had visceral angiography, and 16 patients (53%) had endoscopic ultrasound. Individual and combined predictive values of resectability and unresectability as well as the sensitivities and specificities were determined for all diagnostic tests and compared with intraoperative findings. When CT, visceral angiography, and laparoscopy were combined, the predictive values of resectability and unresectability were 75 and 90 per cent, respectively, with a sensitivity of 75 per cent and a specificity of 90 per cent. Therefore, the combined use of selected diagnostic tests proved more effective than any single diagnostic test for accurately staging patients with pancreatic head and ampullary cancers and should be considered to minimize unnecessary surgery.


A reliable computer simulation of natural and artificial lighting of an indoor environment requires the thorough knowledge of the angular intensity distribution of light scattered or emitted by the various objects involved such as the illuminated surfaces, the trans-illuminated windows or fenestration systems, as well as the luminaires. The angular intensity distribution of light flux reflected, transmitted or emitted as a function of the illumination angle can be measured with an instrument called goniophotometer. Fast measurement, essential in most practical applications, requires the simultaneous detection of all scattering directions with a so-called parallel goniophotometer. In this paper we define and explain the three working principles on which a parallel goniophotometer can rest, namely (i) screen imaging, (ii) dioptric angular mapping, and (iii) catadioptric angular mapping. We provide a state-of-the-art of these instruments and compare their performance and limitations based on a few key parameters.


Diamond quantum processors consisting of a nitrogen-vacancy centre and surrounding nuclear spins have been the key to significant advancements in room-temperature quantum computing, quantum sensing and microscopy. The optimisation of these processors is crucial for the development of large-scale diamond quantum computers and the next generation of enhanced quantum sensors and microscopes. Here, we present a full model of multi-qubit diamond quantum processors and develop a semi-analytical method for designing gate pulses. This method optimises gate speed and fidelity in the presence of random control errors and is readily compatible with feedback optimisation routines. We theoretically demonstrate infidelities approaching ∼10−5 for single-qubit gates and established evidence that this can also be achieved for a two-qubit CZ gate. Consequently, our method reduces the effects of control errors below the errors introduced by hyperfine field misalignment and the unavoidable decoherence that is intrinsic to the processors. Having developed this optimal control, we simulated the performance of a diamond quantum processor by computing quantum Fourier transforms. We find that the simulated diamond quantum processor is able to achieve fast operations with low error probability.


Bribery and corruption violations are often hard to detect. For this reason, the U.S. enforcement authorities typically struggle to produce the right incentives for corporations to cooperate with public enforcement efforts in anti-corruption cases. In November 2017, following the successful implementation of an eighteen-month pilot program, the Trump Administration announced its revised Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) Corporate Enforcement Policy. The new policy offers significant benefits to corporations that voluntarily self-report their involvement in corruption, cooperate with the Department of Justice's investigation, and take remediation actions. However, under the FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy, corporate recidivists — repeat violators of the FCPA — are not eligible for the policy's benefits. Although in many respects the new policy may represent an important step toward the establishment of an efficient cooperative-enforcement regime, a closer examination of the policy reveals its major shortcoming — that is, the very exclusion of recidivists. This Piece assesses the expected effect of the new policy on a corporation's motivation to cooperate with enforcement authorities. In addition, this Piece suggests that the exclusion of FCPA recidivists not only weakens the overall positive impact of the revised policy but may also render the entire policy counterproductive to its own enforcement goals. Following a law and economics approach, this contribution proposes amendments to the policy that will increase its social desirability.


One-atmosphere experiments in the system diopside-albite-anorthite (Di-Ab-An) have been used to explore the controls on plagioclase-melt partitioning of trace elements (Li, K, Rb, Cs, Mg, Zn, Sr, Ba, La, Sm, Y). By performing experiments along isotherms it was possible to isolate compositional controls from those of temperature. The lattice strain model accounts for variations in partition coefficients (Kp(i)) for isovalent series of cations (in+) and the experimental data are used to optimize the lattice strain parameters so that partition coefficients for n = 1 to 3 can be derived from Kp(Na), Kp(Ca), and Kp(La), respectively, at the conditions of interest. The optimized lattice strain parameters have magnitudes and compositional and thermal dependences that are consistent with elastic data for plagioclases. Kp(La) is parameterized via an exchange reaction involving CaAl2Si2O8 and the La-feldspar component La0.5Na0.5Al2Si2O8. The free energy change of this reaction is small, but well constrained by the data, such that for a given P-T-X Kp(La) can be derived from a combination of Kp(Na) and Kp(Ca). In the case where Kp(Na) and Kp(Ca) are independently constrained, the models reproduce the experimental values of 749 Kps for Li, Mg, K, Rb, Sr, Y, Cs, Ba, and REE (obtained from 91 individual experiments varying over five orders of magnitude) within a factor of 1.5 for 53 percent of the data and a factor of 2 for 74 percent of the data. The isothermal experimental data reveal that additional compositional effects, arising from non-ideal mixing in plagioclase and in melt, also influence Kp(i). A thermodynamic model based on the free energy of fusion of albite (NaAlSi3O8) and anorthite (CaAl2Si2O8), and taking into account plagioclase and melt non-ideality in Di-Ab-An, is developed to express Kp(Na), Kp(Ca) as functions of pressure (P), temperature (T) and composition (X). The thermodynamic models are extended to a wider compositional range by means of an empirical parameterization of 919 Kp(Na) and 920 Kp(Ca) from a database of 991 published experiments. These models are able to reproduce 919 measured partitioning values for Li, Na, Mg, Ca, K, Rb, Sr, Y, Cs, Ba, and REE (from 91 experiments) with 47 percent of the model values within a factor of 1.5 of the measured values and 69 percent within a factor of 2 for any P-T-X condition. The models can also be used to constrain the dependence of the chemical potential of trace cations in plagioclase solid solutions (μipl) for use in diffusion chronometry where the fully equilibrated trace element concentration profile must be known in order to calculate timescales. It is shown that μipl is not adequately described by existing empirical models used to predict Kp as a function of anorthite because of the conflating effects of T and X in the polythermal experimental datasets from which those models were derived.


The admissibility of hearsay evidence in criminal proceedings in England and Wales is now governed by provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, a result of Law Commission reform proposals. The Law Commission's Report left several issues concerning the admissibility of confessions in the context of its proposed hearsay regime unclear, some of which have not yet been clarified by the post-2003 Act jurisprudence. In particular, whilst the authorities have established that confessions made by third parties may be admissible in exceptional circumstances, the courts have not yet engaged with s. 128(2) of the 2003 Act which limits the extent to which confessions made by defendants may be admissible under the 2003 Act's provisions. Moreover, whilst the Court of Appeal has recognised both that certain confessions may exist outside the 2003 Act's statutory framework and that the admissibility of such a confession for the prosecution when made by a defendant is governed by s. 76 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, other issues concerning the admissibility of such confessions have not yet been resolved.


This paper investigates the impact of nominal and real effective exchange rate volatility on exports of six Middle Eastern and North Africa (MENA) countries to 15 member countries of the European Union (EU), for the period 1970Q1-2002Q4. Moving average standard deviation and conditional standard deviation at ARCH model are used to generate four different measures of volatility for each country. The cointegration results indicate a significant relationship, negative for four countries (Algeria, Egypt, Tunisia, and Turkey), positive for the last two (Israel and Morocco), between MENA exports and exchange rate volatility. The short run dynamics, using an error correction model, shows that the Granger – causality effects of the volatility on real exports are significant, whereas the effects of real exchange rate and the gross domestic product of EU are more contrasted. Indications on appropriate exchange rate regime are derived from these results.


The issue of accountability in the non-profit sector and its subset of charitable entities is an important and emerging area of research. This paper reports on interviews held with the managers of three charitable entities operating in the Waikato area, to determine the issues and challenges facing them regarding the accountability required from their grant recipients. While accountability requirements in the sector generally differ from the requirements of a business model, the degree of difference depends on the nature of the charity. Two of these charities were Community Trusts and the third was a gaming charity. We find that business accountability procedures are not appropriate for the charities such as Community Trusts, where relationships are close and alternative social accountability techniques exist. We find the gaming charity has additional legal requirements and an increased distance with its recipient stakeholders; a situation that requires more formal business-like accountability. The findings suggest that calls for greater accountability may not be productive and changes should consider the contextual nature of charities.


Swine are an important model in many areas of biomedical research. These animals have been used predominantly as preclinical models involving surgical and interventional protocols. The systems most commonly studied include cardiovascular, integumentary, digestive, and urological. Swine are intelligent social animals and require species-specific socialization and handling techniques. It is important to acclimate the animals to the facility and to personnel before they are placed on chronic protocols. Gentle handling techniques instead of forceful procedures are essential to their socialization. They require sturdy caging with specific construction standards, and toys for environmental enrichment. Because the species is covered by both the Animal Welfare Act and the US Department of Agriculture, interstate transport requires a health certificate with destination state-specific disease screening standards. This manuscript provides an overview of best practices that have been utilized in the authors' facility.


Background: Stage IIIB non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) consists of T4N2M0 and TXN3M0 NSCLC. In the present study, we aimed to evaluate the efficacy of different treatment strategies on the survival of patients with radiologically confirmed T4N2M0 NSCLC. Methods: A total of 145 patients were evaluated in three groups according to the treatment protocol: induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiotherapy (induction group); chemoradiotherapy (CRT group), and chemoradiotherapy followed by consolidation chemotherapy (consolidation group). The groups were compared regarding survival. Results: The median progression-free survival (PFS) was 10.9, 10.8 and 17.1 months for the induction, CRT and consolidation groups, respectively (p = 0.021). The median overall survival (OS) was 17.6, 13.8 and 25.2 months for the induction, CRT and consolidation groups, respectively (p = 0.001). Conclusions: The patients with T4N2M0 NSCLC who were treated with chemoradiotherapy followed by consolidation chemotherapy had the best outcome in terms of PFS and OS.


Abstract: The paper focuses on technology designers' representations and discourses about advanced driving assistance systems (ADAS). This issue has been empirically explored by means of seven in-depth interviews with academic experts in intelligent transportation systems (ITS). Two main areas are investigated: 1) the meaning of advanced driver assistance and 2) the failures in intelligent driving and the consequent need to cope with them. The overall aim is to identify dominant views about the instances of "failing" and the possibilities for control, which are inscribed in the design processes of ADAS. One of the main findings concerns the designers' emphasis on the continuous supervising, correction, and enhancement of human functioning as the core of driver assistance. According to this view, human senses, reactions and interactivity with technology turn into subjects of continuous supervision, prevention, correction, improvement and restriction – a sort of "real-time human maintenance and repair". Keywords: intelligent technology; advanced driver assistance; driver monitoring; human-machine co-agency; automobilities.


Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the preferred learning style and personality types of freshman-level pre-athletic training students. The secondary purpose was to identify any possible differences in learning styles and personality types of students admitted into the athletic training program versus those that were denied admission or changed their major. Methods: Data collection took place during a college introductory course over a period of seven years. Four hundred seventy-two freshmen (188 men, 284 women; average age 18.66 ± 0.87 years) considering athletic training as their major at a CAATE-accredited athletic training program participated in this study. A 48-item Kolb's Learning Style Inventory questionnaire and 126-question Myers-Briggs Type Indicator form G were used to determine students' preferred learning style and personality types. Results: The most common personality types among pre-athletic training students were Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, Perception (ESTP) (14.2%) and Introversion, Sensing, Thinking, Judging (ISTJ) (13.3%), and 35.8% of pre-athletic training students preferred accommodator learning style. However, converger learning style was the most common (30%) among students admitted into the athletic training program. The most common personality type for students admitted into the athletic training program was Extraversion, Sensing, Thinking, Judging (ESTJ). This was true for both groups of admitted and not admitted students. Personality types of students specific to their preferred learning styles were also examined. Accommodators placed in Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging (ESTJ) category (21%), divergers in Extraverted, Sensing, Feeling, Judging (ESFJ) category (14.9%), convergers in Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking, Perception (ESTP) (22%), and assimilators in Extraverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging (ESTJ) (14.7%) category. Conclusions: Based on the findings of this study, freshman pre-athletic training students demonstrated great diversity in their learning styles and personality types. These students prefer hands-on learning, rely on each other to solve a problem, enjoy solving problems, and excel in finding practical use while learning. They benefit from multimodal teaching methods. Educators should consider integrating concrete and abstract material into the curriculum. Athletic training students need to have the ability to participate in all different learning style preferences because athletic training is a science–based profession where abstract conceptualization is important along with effective interpersonal relationships with their patients and ability to act effectively in critical situations.


Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an infectious disease caused by spirochetes, and these spirochetes form biofilms, which attract the innate immune system. The innate immune system first responder, Toll-like receptor 2, generates both NF-κB and TNF-α which try to kill the spirochetes in the biofilm, but cannot penetrate the "slime". NF-κB is also responsible for the generation of amyloid-β (Aβ) which itself is anti-microbial. Aβ cannot penetrate the biofilm either, and its accumulation leads to destruction of the cerebral neurocircuitry. Treatment with penicillin (as in tertiary syphilis, the comparator to AD) is outlined; a biofilm dispersing agent may need to be added to the protocol.


The everyday adoption of digital technologies such as mobile phones and social media has had transformative effects on interactions within the family (Clark, 2013), as families become increasingly dependent on their capacities for coordinating day-to-day activities and maintaining intimate relationships (Licoppe, 2004; Ling, 2014). Concurrently, these technologies enable new forms of surveillance, allowing parents to observe their children's movements and interactions remotely, eg. via GPS-apps (Marx & Steeves, 2010), as well as lateral forms of surveillance embedded in social media practices like 'Facebook stalking' (Albrechtslund, 2013). This paper explores how the surveillant capacities of communication technologies are involved in shaping relations of trust in the family, drawing on empirical data from in-depth interviews with adolescents at two schools and 17 Danish families conducted during 2017. Despite surveillance often being represented as a practice which undermines trust (Mayer, 2003; Neyland, 2006; Rooney, 2010), our findings suggest that the relationship between trust and surveillance, for the families in our study, was far less straightforward. Surveillance was an important part of care practices for parents and, in some instances, tracking technologies were able to offer a kind of 'relief' from social pressures to remain in contact. This paper explores the perceptions of parents and adolescents regarding using communication technologies for surveillance, to examine the nuanced constitution of trust occurring.


Abstract Purpose: Testicular seminoma cancer incidence has significantly increased over the last few decades, and although it is successfully treated by radiotherapy, long-term health risks are still unclear. The aim of the study was to show long-term genome damage in patients with seminoma after radiotherapy. Materials and methods: Chromosome aberration (CA) and micronucleus (MN) assays seven years after radiotherapy with a total dose of 25 Gy were conducted in 10 testicular seminoma patients aged 23–49 years and results were compared with 10 healthy control subjects matched for age and smoking status. Results: Although mean CA frequency did not deviate from control values, significantly increased frequencies of dicentrics, double minutes, and ring chromosomes were detected in seminoma patients. MN frequency in binuclear lymphocytes of patients was similar to controls (4.60/1000 vs. 5.82/1000, respectively). Significantly higher MN frequency was detected in mononuclear lymphocytes of patients than in controls (2.55/1000 vs. 0.73/1000, respectively). Average percentage of centromere-positive MN was 62.6% in seminoma patients. Conclusion: This study shows the persistence of unstable CA in seminoma patients seven years after radiotherapy and the relevance of long-term follow up. MN frequency in mononuclear lymphocytes was shown to be relevant biomarker of long-term genome damage.


An autonomous navigation method for intelligent mobile robots is proposed by the authors. It uses two levels of map information, i.e. a world map and a route map. The route map includes geometric information on the path from the starting point to the destination, and the surrounding data along the path. The execution system for travelling along the route map using sensor information is called Route Runner. In this paper, the data format of the route map to represent the building environment is defined and the algorithm of the route map is given. Route Runner has the following functions: (1) travelling straight and turning according to the route map; (2) adjustment of the robot's own position information using a map and sensors; and (3) taking proper action for obstacles on the route. For practical experiments, Route Runner is implemented on the self-contained mobile robot Yamabico 9.


Background Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the most common sustained tachyarrhythmias. It increases risk of developing stroke by up to five times. There is an increased incidence in patients with adult congenital heart disease (ACHD). The CHA2DS2VASC scoring system is validated for assessing the risk of ischaemic stroke in AF in the general population. Its role in ACHD is unclear. This study assesses the burden of AF in patients with uncomplicated atrial septal defects (ASD). Methods A retrospective analysis of the ACHD database of all patients at a large quaternary specialist ACHD centre. Results 135 (3%) patients with a diagnosis of ASD and co-existing AF were identified out of 4500 patients under regular follow up at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. 101 (75%) secundum ASD, 12 (9%) sinus venosus ASD, 1 (1%) coronary sinus ASD and 21 (15%) unclear. 47 (35%) surgical closures, 28 (21%) percutaneous closure, 57 (42%) unrepaired, 3 (2%) both surgical and percutaneous. There were 7 residual defects post closure. -The mean age was 67.8(+/-12.8) years, range 36–90 years, 65 male (48.1%). -The mean CHA2DS2VASC score was 2.21 (Range 0–6). -The mean age of onset of AF was 56(+/-12.3) years. In 40% the AF was asymptomatic. -90% of patients with a CHA2DS2VASC score of 2 or more were anticoagulated with either warfarin or a novel oral anticoagulant (n = 75). 11 patients had suffered a stroke (8.15%). -7 presented initially with a stroke and asymptomatic AF; of these 6 were also found to have ASDs after the stroke. The mean age stroke occurred was 58.7(+/-20) years. The mean CHA2DS2VASC score for patients who had a stroke was 4.18 (Range 2–6). Discussion The incidence of AF in ASDs is high and is frequently asymptomatic. AF and strokes occur at a young age in this population. A significant proportion of our patients presented for the first time with a stroke and asymptomatic AF. Expert consensus currently advocates screening for arrhythmias in certain ACHD groups but not ASD. This data suggest that patients with ASD should be actively screened for AF. The role of the CHA2DS2VASC score if unclear in these patients but a high CHA2DS2VASC does appear to correlate with a higher incidence of stroke.


Three-dimensional (3D) serpentine mesostructures assembled by mechanics-guided, deterministic 3D assembly have potential applications in energy harvesting, mechanical sensing, and soft robotics. One limitation is that the serpentine structures are required to have sufficient bending stiffness such that they can overcome the adhesion with the underlying substrate to fully buckle into the 3D shape (global buckling). This note introduces the use of cellular substrate in place of conventional homogeneous substrate to reduce the adhesion energy and therefore ease the above limitation. A theoretical model based on energetic analysis suggests that cellular substrates significantly enlarge the design space of global buckling. Numerical examples show that the enlarged design space enables 3D serpentine structures with reduced maximum strains and resonant frequencies, which offers more possibilities for their potential applications.


The work presents a review devoted to the metabolism and the mechanism of toxicity of selenium-containing supplements: elemental selenium, sodium selenite, diacetophenonyl selenide, selenopyrane, ebselen, dimethyl dipyrasolyl selenide and selenium-containing amino acids used for correction of selenium deficiency. Elemental selenium penetrating through cell walls, but not through transport channels demonstrates poorly predicted and difficultly regulated bioavailability. Sodium selenate is known to be the most toxic form of selenium in food. The metabolism of xenobiotic diacetophenonyl selenide resembles that of sodium selenide. The xenobiotic reacts with thiols, for instance, with the reduced form of glutathione leading to the formation of hydrogen selenide. Ebselen is not considered to be a well bioavailable form of selenium and thus possesses low toxicity. Xenobiotic selenopyrane eliminates selenium only in processes of xenobiotic liver exchange, and in our investigations – partially in acid-catalyzed hydrolysis. The metabolism of xenobiotic dimethyl dipyrasolyl selenide having low toxicity is poorly investigated. The toxicity of high doses of selenomethionine is determined by the possibility of incorporation in proteins and vitally important enzymes with dramatic changes of protein quaternary structure. The toxicity of high doses of methylselenocysteine seems to be caused by the lack of an exchange pool in the body and quick regeneration of hydrogen selenide from methylselenol which is formed as a result of enzymatic destruction of this amino acid. Also the issue of the most prospect selenium donor is discussed. The physiological compatibility, the low toxicity, the presence of an exchangeable pool in the organism, the antioxidantal properties and the simplicity of production indicate selenocystine as an optimal selenium donor.


As information explodes across the Internet and intranets, information retrieval (IR) systems must cope with the challenge of scale. How to provide scalable performance for rapidly increasing data and workloads is critical in the design of next generation information retrieval systems. This dissertation studies scalable distributed IR architectures that not only provide quick response but also maintain acceptable retrieval accuracy. Our distributed architectures exploit parallelism in information retrieval on a cluster of parallel IR servers using symmetric multiprocessors, and use partial collection replication and selection as well as collection selection to restrict the search to a small percentage of data while maintaining retrieval accuracy.
We first investigate using partial collection replication for IR systems. We examine query locality in real systems, how to select a partial replica based on relevance, how to load-balance between replicas and the original collection, as well as updating overheads and strategies. Our results show that there exists sufficient query locality to justify partial replication for information retrieval. Our proposed replica selection algorithm effectively selects relevant partial replicas, and is inexpensive to implement. Our evidence also indicates that partial replication achieves better performance than caching queries, because the replica selection algorithm finds similarity between nonidentical queries, and thus increases observed locality.
We use a validated simulator to perform a detailed performance evaluation of distributed IR architectures. We explore how best to build parallel IR servers using symmetric multiprocessors, evaluate the performance of partial collection replication and collection selection, and compare the performance of partial collection replication with collection partitioning as well as collection selection. At last we present experiments for searching a terabyte of text. We also examine performance changes when we use fewer large servers, faster servers, and longer queries.
Our results show that because IR systems have heavy computational and I/O loads, the number of CPUs, disks, and threads must be carefully balanced to achieve scalable performance. Our results show that partial collection replication is much more effective at decreasing the query response time than collection partitioning for a loaded system, even with fewer resources, and it requires only modest query locality. Our results also show that partial collection replication performs better than collection selection when there exists enough query locality, and it performs worse when the collection access is fairly uniform after collection selection. Finally our results show that replica and collection selection can be combined to provide quick response time for a terabyte of text. Changes of system configurations do not significantly change the relative improvements due to partial collection replication and collection selection, although they affect the absolute response time.