Background: XRCC1 (X-ray repair cross complimenting group-I) gene in BER (base excision repair) pathway promotes the efficiency of the DNA repair process. Polymorphisms in this gene are associated with variations in the repair efficiency which might influence the process to predispose individuals to various cancers. Two variants of XRCC1gene (at codon 399); eighter Gln/Gln or Arg/Gln, correlate with lowered DNA repair capacity and increased genomic instability in multiple studies. Hence our investigation focuses on genotyping these variants to correlate with other multiple risk factors in lung cancer (NSCLC) patients since we hypothesize that these variants of the XRCC1 gene may influence the disease susceptibility. Materials and Methods: We examined the frequency of this polymorphism in one hundred cases and almost equal number of controls after recording their demographics in a structured questionnaire. Genomic DNA from blood samples was extracted for PCR studies, followed by RFLP to determine the variants. The significance of these data was statistically analyzed. Results: Three genotypes in cases and controls included Arg/Arg (40% and 54.45%); Gln/Gln (19% and 9.90%), and Arg/Gln (41.0% and 35.64%) respectively. Among these 3 genotypes, we found Gln/Gln and Arg/Gln showed association with lung cancer. Correlating these genotypes with several parameters, we also found that these two variants were associated with risk in males (p<0.05) with smoking habits (p<0.05). In females Arg/Gln genotype showed association with stage of the disease (p=0.04). This is the first report in South Indian scenario where Arg399Gln genotypes were found to be associated with stage of the disease in females. Conclusions: It is concluded that XRCC1 genotypes Gln/Gln and Arg/Gln may influence cancer susceptibility in patients with smoking habits and these functional SNPs in XRCC1 gene may act as attractive candidate biomarker in lung cancer for diagnosis and prognosis.


The possibility of using cotton stems as a roughage source in animal feeding was explored. Ground cotton stems (T2 and T3) or stems treated with 0.5% urea (T4 and T5) were ensiled with pearl millet green fodder in double lined plastic bags of 3k g capacity for 50 days. Formic acid (0.4% v/v) was sprayed on T3 and T5 silages. The treatments were compared with pearl millet silage alone (T1) which constituted the control. All the bags were placed in the silo pit of pearl millet silage. Results indicated that urea treatment of cotton stems increased and formic acid application reduced dry matter loss of the silages. Inclusion of cotton stems in the silage significantly (p<0.05) increased CF, ADF, cellulose and ADL due to its higher cell wall content. The hemicellulose was significantly lower in T3 (16.7%) and T5 (22.52%) as compared to T2 (23.45%) and T4 (24.6%) due to formic acid application. Ammoniation significantly increased NH3-N content in T4 (0.202%) and formic acid controlled NH3-N level in T5 (0.107%).The in sacco dry matter digestibility was significantly higher (p<0.05) in formic acid preserved silages T3 and T5 (47.73 and 47.93%) as compared to silages without formic acid (44.94 and 41.22 %) in T2 and T4 respectively, but lower than T1 (54.39%). It is concluded that cotton stems can be ensiled with pearl millet fodder in 1:4 ratio with or without urea treatment. Formic acid application further increases the silage quality. (Asian-Aust. J. Anim. Sci. 2003. Vol 16, No. 12 : 1722-1724)


In this paper, a new real-time and intelligent mobile robot system for path planning and navigation using stereo camera embedded on the pan/tilt system is proposed. In the proposed system, face area of a moving person is detected from a sequence of the stereo image pairs by using the YCbCr color model and using the disparity map obtained from the left and right images captured by the pan/tilt-controlled stereo camera system and depth information can be detected. And then, the distance between the mobile robot system and the face of the moving person can be calculated from the detected depth information. Accordingly, based-on the analysis of these data, three-dimensional objects can be detected. Finally, by using these detected data, 2-D spatial map for a visually guided robot that can plan paths, navigate surrounding objects and explore an indoor environment is constructed. From some experiments on target tracking with 480 frames of the sequential stereo images, it is analyzed that error ratio between the calculated and measured values of the relative position is found to be very low value of 1.4 % on average. Also, the proposed target tracking system has achieved a high speed of 0.04 sec/frame for target detection and 0.06 sec/frame for target tracking.


There are several predictions for the behaviour of the gluon distribution in nuclei at small Bjorken-x and experimental data are needed to choose among them. This is achieved by measuring the cross section of processes specially sensitive to this parton distribution. The high flux of photons from lead ions at the LHC allows us to study photon-induced reactions in ultra-peripheral collisions of Pb–Pb nuclei, in particular of those producing a J/ψ meson exclusively. The study of these collisions, where projectiles do not overlap, provides information about the initial state of nuclei. The newest ALICE results on vector meson photoproduction are presented. The increased statistics and higher collision energy of sNN=5.02TeV of Run 2 allow us to put new constraints on available models.


In the U.K., a full recovery of Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus breeding numbers is prevented by illegal culling by some gamekeepers who fear the species threatens the future of grouse moors. This study's main purpose was to estimate how many more Hen Harriers there would be in the U.K. if this culling were to cease. A review of 33 studies of the Hen Harrier in nine countries showed that the densities of nesting females decreased strongly as the size of the areas studied increased and also that such information could not be used to estimate the potential density over a large area, such as the U.K. Correcting for the size of the areas studied showed that the potential density of nesting Hen Harriers on grouse moors could be predicted from studies overseas. Estimates of the densities of Hen Harriers in occupied areas globally were therefore used to estimate the density appropriate for the U.K. If all potential habitats were occupied, present numbers could more than double, to an estimated 1660 nesting females. This estimate represents an average of one nesting female per 2 5 km2 of habitat, a density which would cause little or no significant economic damage on grouse moors. However, because Hen Harriers tend to aggregate, they would not spread out evenly but would nest in relatively high densities on a number of moors. The economic impact on Red Grouse Lagopus lagopus would not be a function of overall numbers, rather it would arise from the uneven dispersion of nesting Hen Harriers.


Purpose: To determine the value of diffusion-weighted MRI (DWI-MRI) for treatment response assessment in 2-[18F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG)–avid lymphoma. Experimental Design: Patients with FDG-avid Hodgkin (HL) or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) at pretherapeutic 18F-FDG-PET/CT, who had also undergone pretherapeutic whole-body DWI-MRI, were included in this prospective study. Depending on the histologic lymphoma subtype, patients received different systemic treatment regimens, and follow-up DWI-MRI and 18F-FDG-PET/CT were performed at one or more time points, depending on the clinical course. For each follow-up DWI-MRI, region-based rates of agreement, and rates of agreement in terms of treatment response (complete remission, partial remission, stable disease, or progressive disease), relative to the corresponding 18F-FDG-PET/CT, were calculated. Results: Sixty-four patients were included: 10 with HL, 22 with aggressive NHL, and 32 with indolent NHL. The overall region-based agreement of DWI-MRI with 18F-FDG-PET/CT was 99.4%. For the 51 interim examinations (performed after 1–3 therapy cycles), region-based agreement of DWI-MRI with 18F-FDG-PET/CT was 99.2%, and for the 48 end-of-treatment examinations, agreement was 99.8%. No significant differences, in terms of region-based agreement between DWI-MRI and 18F-FDG-PET/CT, were observed between the three lymphoma groups (HL, aggressive NHL, indolent NHL; P = 0.25), or between interim and end-of-treatment examinations (P = 0.21). With regard to treatment response assessment, DWI-MRI agreed with 18F-FDG-PET/CT in 99 of 102 follow-up examinations (97.1%), with a κ value of 0.94 (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: In patients with FDG-avid lymphoma, DWI-MRI may be a feasible alternative to 18F-FDG-PET/CT for follow-up and treatment response assessment. Clin Cancer Res; 21(11); 2506–13. ©2015 AACR.


A hybrid simulation method is used to generate two group artificial ground motions that are compatible with the same acceleration response spectrum, same peak displacement and different peak ground velocity (PGV). The influences of PGV on the internal forces of subway station are studied. For the time histories with the same response spectrum and same peak displacement, the larger PGV of input motions may lead to the great plastic deformation of the soil, and then cause the larger internal forces for the most elements of subway station. The influence of PGV should be considered reasonably in determination of design ground motion parameters for underground structures.


This thesis provides an account of an empirical study into the institutionalisation of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (PRME) in UK university business schools. 29 academics in 22 schools were engaged in dialogic interviews to address three questions: (1) What are the reported practices and strategies deployed by PRME advocates (institutional entrepreneurs) in their work to institutionalise PRME in their business schools (2) What are the dimensions of institutional logics within business school settings that hinder or promote the work of PRME institutional entrepreneurs and (3) How do PRME's field level characteristics affect PRME outcomes at organisational level? A context for PRME is presented, including recent critiques of alleged ethical failings in business education. Core constructs in neo-institutional and relevant other theoretical domains are outlined. The social constructionist, interpretivist basis of the research design and related methodologies are explained. Findings are presented in a way consistent with institutional theory; at individual entrepreneur, organisational and field levels. Conclusions include the proposition that PRME as currently enacted lacks the capacity to disrupt dominant institutional logics and enable sustained institutional change. Despite strategic, adept and emotionally demanding institutional work by PRME advocates, the power of current logics and weaknesses in PRME's framing appear to mean that implementation is often partial or easily derailed. Closing reflections include an evaluation of the research design and process. Contributions to future practice as well as to theory, particularly in relation to institutional logic complexity and an understanding of the affective dimensions of institutional work, are suggested.


Manganese chloride (MnCl2) is capable of stimulating luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) secretion in adult male Sprague-Dawley rats through the activation of the hypothalamic nitric oxide/cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP)/protein kinase G pathway. The present study aimed to determine the involvement of specific neurotransmitters involved in this action. Our results indicate that dopamine, but not glutamic acid and prostaglandins, mediates the MnCl2 stimulated secretion of LHRH from medial basal hypothalami in vitro, as well as increases the activity of nitric oxide synthase. Furthermore, a biphasic response was observed in that gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA) release was also increased, which acts to attenuate the MnCl2 action to stimulate LHRH secretion. Although it is clear that manganese (Mn+2) can acutely induce LHRH secretion in adult males, we suggest that the additional action of MnCl2 to release GABA, a LHRH inhibitor, may ultimately contribute to suppressed reproductive function observed in adult animals following exposure to high chromic levels of Mn+2.


We examine whether prior outcomes influence the order selection decisions of proprietary stock traders who trade the capital of a National Securities Dealer. Trader's decision to either take or provide liquidity is correlated with their prior trading performance. When traders experience increasing trading gains or decreasing trading losses, they subsequently increase the rate at which they take liquidity. These finding are consistent with behavioral theories on sequential decision-making. The trader's behavior appears suboptimal because traders who systematically deviate from their normal order submission strategies experience lower profitability.


The European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is in dire straits. Prone to design problems and suffering from the effects of the economic crises the scheme is criticised for its poor achievements. In this paper we will analyse some of the features of this situation from an ethical perspective. The major part is dedicated to the complications within each phase of the EU ETS and to the recent developments it has undergone. We will briefly discuss the remedies suggested by prominent commentators. Furthermore, any policy tool to tackle climate change should be evaluated in view of the profound equity issues that are inherent to the climate problem. We will evaluate the EU ETS according to two justice-based criteria, related to effectiveness and the distribution of the duties involved in climate change, respectively. We will conclude that the EU ETS, in its current form, clearly lacks fairness on both criteria. However, the biggest problem is the unwillingness of EU leaders to mend, what could be, a commendable climate policy tool. To that extent, we argue, those leaders are acting unjustly.


With increasing life expectancy, the early diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease has become critical in sustaining a healthy society. Noninvasive markers of disease progression starting from the earliest stages of pathologic involvement are required for determining the effectiveness of putative disease-modifying therapies that are under development. Cross-sectional and longitudinal studies indicate that magnetic resonance-based volume measurements of atrophy are potential markers of the progression of Alzheimer's disease, starting from the preclinical stages. Other magnetic resonance techniques that are sensitive to the different aspects of Alzheimer's disease pathology, such as biochemical (proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy), microstructural (diffusion magnetic resonance imaging), functional (functional magnetic resonance imaging) and blood flow (perfusion magnetic resonance imaging) changes, have not been as extensively studied longitudinally. Recent efforts of imaging amyloid plaques with magnetic resonance imaging generate the prospect for in vivo imaging of the pathologic substrate of Alzheimer's disease in the future. In order for magnetic resonance modalities to qualify as surrogate markers for early diagnosis and progression of Alzheimer's disease, multicenter longitudinal studies are needed.


Carcinoma of the esophagus is classified according to the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) TNM staging system. The 7th edition of the UICC TNM staging system was published in 2009. This is the first study to compare the prognostic value of the TNM 6th and 7th editions in patients with esophageal carcinoma treated with chemotherapy followed by surgery. Two hundred forty-three patients with esophageal carcinoma were retrospectively selected from two referral centers. All patients received chemotherapy before surgery. Histopathologic data from the resection specimens were retrieved and restaged according to the TNM 7th edition. Disease-specific survival curves were plotted for depth of tumor invasion (ypT), lymph node status (ypN), and ypTNM stage and then compared. Median follow-up after surgery was 2.5 years (range 0.2-9 years). Survival analysis using the log-rank method revealed that there was a significant difference in survival between ypT4 disease and ypT3 disease (P= 0.003), but no difference between ypT0, ypT1, ypT2, and ypT3 categories irrespective of TNM edition used. Survival probability was significantly different between ypN0 and ypN1 (P= 0.001 for TNM 6th and 7th edition), as well as ypN2 and ypN3 (TNM 7th edition, P= 0.004), but not between ypN1 and ypN2 (TNM 7th edition, P= 0.89). Neither the TNM 6th nor 7th edition T staging provides accurate survival probability stratification. However, the advantage of the 7th edition is the introduction of a third tier in survival stratification for patients with nodal involvement.


The output of an ideal photodetector that is modeled as a doubly stochastic Poisson Process is used to excite a phase-locked loop. The rate of this Poisson process contains an angle modulated subcarrier process that is modeled as a Gauss-Markov process. A measure transformation involving a martingale translation is applied to the suboptimal filter used to estimate the Phase. Cycle slipping is then discussed with respect to the evolution of the Phase error Process under the new measure. The approach is in the context of a first passage problem and uses a Kramers-Moyal expansion of the equation satisfied by the mean slip time. Various approximations to the jump rate and size are assumed, and a perturbation analysis results in asymototic representations of the correspondinq solutions. Comparisons with solutions obtained from so-called diffusion approximations are also included, as well as a specific example to illustrate the procedure.


The business model (BM) concept which has emerged in the scientific literature and business world over the past fifteen years is a new management concept that, although characterised by fuzzy boundaries, can be synthesized as "the rationale of how an organisation creates, delivers and captures value". Many authors see the BM as an excellent tool for the strategic evaluation of business ideas, but the literature review shows a lack of efficient quali-quantitative tools for evaluating potential BM alternatives and selecting the best BM solution from among them. In this paper, we propose a Business Model Decision Support Tool (BM-DST) based on a quali-quantitative methodology of Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) called Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and specifically based on a modified AHP procedure called Value-Analytic Hierarchy Process (V-AHP). A case study with a numerical example was carried out in the field of industrial plants, specifically in the context of the Industrial Product-Service Systems, in order to select the best BM solution from among three potential BM alternatives usually taken into account by an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and Engineering-Procurement- Construction (EPC) company: Transactional Project Deliveries, Project Led Solutions and Life-Cycle Solutions.


Self-explanation is an effective teaching/learning strategy that has been used in several intelligent tutoring systems in the domains of Mathematics and Physics to facilitate deep learning. Since all these domains are well structured, the instructional material to self-explain can be clearly defined. We are interested in investigating whether self-explanation can be used in an open-ended domain. For this purpose, we enhanced KERMIT, an intelligent tutoring system that teaches conceptual database design. The resulting system, KERMIT-SE, supports self-explanation by engaging students in tutorial dialogues when their solutions are erroneous. We plan to conduct an evaluation in July 2002, to test the hypothesis that students will learn better with KERMIT-SE than without self-explanation.


Walker-Smith pointed out, there have been few reports of well documented coeliac disease in non-Caucasian children.6 As the children of immigrant parents grow to be adults in Western society, we should be aware of coeliac disease among them. Nelson and others found rickets in six of 17 immigrant children with coeliac disease but did not find rickets in Caucasian children with coeliac disease in a series of over 100 cases.4 The two patients of Dr Dandona and his colleagues may explain the underdiagnosis of coeliac disease.7 The only relevant test to exclude adult coeliac disease is jejunal biopsy.


Series of diaryl-based pyrazole and triazole derivatives were designed and synthesized in a facile synthetic approach in order to produce selective COX-2 inhibitor. These series of derivatives were synthesized by different reactions like Vilsmeier–Haack reaction and click reaction. In vitro COX-1 and COX-2 inhibition studies showed that five compounds were potent and selective inhibitors of the COX-2 isozyme with IC50values in 0.551–0.002 μM range. In the diarylpyrazole derivatives, compound4bshowed the best inhibitory activity against COX-2 with IC50 = 0.017 μM as one of theN-aromatic rings was substituted with sulfonamide and the other aromatic ring was unsubstituted. However, when theN-aromatic ring was substituted with sulfonamide and the other aromatic ring was substituted with sulfone (compound4d), best COX-2 selectivity was achieved (IC50 = 0.098 μM, SI = 54.847). In the diaryltriazole derivatives, compound15ashowed the best inhibitory activity in comparison to all synthesized compounds including the reference celecoxib with IC50 = 0.002 μM and SI = 162.5 as it could better fit the extra hydrophobic pocket which is present in the COX-2 enzyme. Moreover, the docking study supports the obtained SAR data and binding similarities and differences on both isozymes.


Kinouchi, Toshi, Kyoko Koizumi, Tamotsu Kuwata, and Takaji Yajima. Crucial role of milk-borne insulin in the development of pancreatic amylase at the onset of weaning in rats. Am. J. Physiol. 275 (Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 44): R1958–R1967, 1998.—The development of pancreatic amylase activity was examined in rats fed in regular cages or in special cages, designed so the pups could not reach solid food to prevent weaning. In both groups, the amylase activity in zymogen granules increased in rat pups aged 14 days, peaked at 18 days, and thereafter remained at a 1.6-fold higher level than at 14 days of age. An increase in the plasma concentration of immunoreactive insulin preceded the increase of amylase activity, whereas the plasma concentration of C-peptide, indicating the secretion rate of endogenous insulin, remained unchanged. The administration of insulin at 20 ng/ml (the physiological concentration) in the milk formula caused an increase in the plasma insulin concentration of 17-day-old pups. In addition, increased pancreatic amylase activity was observed in 17-day-old rats raised on milk formula to which insulin was added. We propose that the increase of amylase activity at the beginning of weaning is dependent on the milk-borne insulin and not on the dietary change in rats.


Background/Aims Atrial fibrillation (AF)-related stroke accounts for 20% of ischemic strokes. Rivaroxaban use in AF patients for preventing stroke and systemic embolism was approved in 2013 in Korea. This study was to investigate the safety and effectiveness of rivaroxaban use in Korean patients with non-valvular AF in a real-world setting. Methods This was an analysis of the Korean patients in Xarelto for Prevention of Stroke in Patients with Atrial Fibrillation in Asia-Pacific (XANAP), which was a prospective, observational cohort study including patients with non-valvular AF starting rivaroxaban treatment to prevent stroke or non-central nervous system systemic embolism (non-CNS SE), conducted in 10 Asian countries. Results A total of 844 patients were enrolled in the Korean portion of the XANAP study. In XANAP Korea, the mean age was 70.1 years and 62.6% were males. The mean CHADS2 score was 2.5 and the mean CHA2DS2-VASc score was 3.8. 47% of the patients had experienced prior stroke or non-CNS SE or transient ischemic attack. 73.6% of the patients had CHADS2 score ≥ 2. Incidence proportions of 0.8% of the patients (1.1 per 100 patient-years) developed adjudicated treatment-emergent major bleeding. Death was observed in 1.2% of the patients. The incidence of non-major bleeding as well as thromboembolic event were 8.4% (11.6 per 100 patient-years) and 1.5% (2.0 per 100 patient-years), respectively. Conclusions This study reaffirmed the consistent safety profile of rivaroxaban. We found consistent results with overall XANAP population for rivaroxaban in terms of safety in non-valvular AF patients for the prevention of stroke and non-CNS SE.


The HELLP syndrome is a severe and life-threatening form of preeclampsia associated with typical laboratory findings. The major problems are the fluctuating course of the disease, the unpredictable occurrence of severe maternal complications and the high maternal and perinatal mortality. Time-limited reversal of the laboratory parameters has been observed in 20-40% of cases; however, the majority of patients shows a deterioration of the disease within 1-10 days. As no reliable clinical and laboratory indicators exist, as well as no precisely defined cut-off values in predicting the course and prognosis, the outcome of the HELLP syndrome is unpredictable. The high maternal morbidity and mortality are mainly due to the development of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC); the frequency of DIC has been shown to increase significantly with the time interval between diagnosis and delivery. The management of the HELLP syndrome has been controversial, with some authors recommending a conservative approach to induce fetal maturity in pregnancies below the 32nd (34th) week of gestation, whereas the majority recommend immediate delivery by Caesarean section in patients with an unfavourable cervix irrespective of the gestational age. It is generally agreed that early diagnosis by laboratory screening methods is mandatory and that patients with the HELLP syndrome should be transferred to a perinatal centre. A literature review since 1990 clearly demonstrates that aggressive management is associated with a significant reduction in maternal and perinatal mortality. We believe that conservative management is only justified in cases of fetal immaturity under the following conditions: no evidence of progression of the disease, no suspected or manifest DIC, fetal wellbeing and intensive monitoring of the patient in a specialised obstetric care unit cooperating closely with experienced neonatologists and anaesthesiologists.


: Although chest wall osseous tumors are frequent in infancy, a few cases have been reported in the last years. Most of these cases had a benign course although in many of them a malignant histological diagnosis was formerly made. We report a case of chest wall tumor in a two months old boy. The histological pattern was similar to that described by McLeod and Dahlin as "chest wall hamartoma of the infancy". Seven months after the tumor resection the child lived well and without recurrence.


In this work, we demonstrate (1) a facile method to prepare Mn doped CdSe quantum dots (QDs) on Zn2SnO4 photoanodes by pulsed laser deposition and (2) improved device performance of quantum dot sensitized solar cells of the Mn doped QDs (CdSe:Mn) compared to the undoped QDs (CdSe). The band diagram of photoanode Zn2SnO4 and sensitizer CdSe:Mn QD is proposed based on the incident-photon-to-electron conversion efficiency (IPCE) data. Mn-modified band structure leads to absorption at longer wavelengths than the undoped CdSe QDs, which is due to the exchange splitting of the CdSe:Mn conduction band by the Mn dopant. Three-fold increase in the IPCE efficiency has also been observed for the Mn doped samples.


During the past 20 years there has been growing interest in the importance of nutritional factors in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease. There are so far no definite links between ulcerative colitis and diet, but links with Crohn's disease have been studied by both epidemiologists and clinicians. Epidemiological studies, although retrospective, have suggested that patients with Crohn's disease eat more sugar and sweets that control individuals; however, when dietary sugar is restricted, there is little clinical benefit. The clinical approach to nutrition in Crohn's disease has been by the use of elemental diets, which will produce symptomatic and objective remission in up to 90% of compliant patients. Those who return to normal eating soon relapse but, in some studies, have enjoyed prolonged remission on exclusion diets. The foods excluded have been not sugar, but predominantly cereals, dairy products and yeast. Attention has now switched to the possible harmful role of fat in Crohn's disease. The efficacy of elemental feeds appears to depend not on the presentation of nitrogen but on the amount of long chain triglyceride present. Increases in recent years in the frequency of Crohn's disease in Japan have been correlated with increased dietary fat intake, and a recent study suggested that W-3 fatty acids, which are metabolized by immunomodulatory leukotrienes and prostaglandins, may have a beneficial role to play. The links between nutrition and Crohn's disease have now become strong and the role of fat may be the most exciting of all.


The principle hypothesis of the current study is that events associated with the acute ictus of acute subaraclmoid haemorrhage (SAH) elicit changes in cerebrovascular physio-pharmacology that are independent of any subsequent effects of chronic clot lysis. As a result, such changes might interact with the effects of chronic clot lysis in a way that may, in consequence, ultimately explain why currently favoured 'clot-VSM' fail to adequately explain delayed VSM and DCI. The principle aim of the current thesis was to formally categorize cerebrovascular physio-pharmacological properties in sham and non-operative controls, and to compare these with those obtained in the acute period after SAH in a model more representative of the true clinical scenario. Clearly, the most ideal SAH model would be one in which arterial rupture is created inside a closed skull, since only here will the acute intracranial pressure changes be faithfully recreated. Ironically, the earliest SAH models came close to such an ideal: nevertheless, all utilized a prior craniotomy. More recently, endovascular filament (EF) models have instead gained credence. Because, in such models, intracranial arterial rupture is created in small animals by EF advancement through the intracranial internal carotid artery from an extracranial source in the neck, the potential disadvantages associated with a prior craniotomy are avoided. However, to date no EF-SAH model has yet been used to study cerebrovascular reactivity: this thesis is the first to do so. Hypothetically, however, two sources of 'side bias' potentially thwart the application of EF-SAH cerebrovascular study. One source relates to the manipulation and temporary ischaemia suffered during EF insertion (in particular, with prolonged carotid clamping). Another relates to relative uncertainty regarding the precise site of intracranial rupture. A secondary aim of the thesis, then, was to formally assess the hypothesis that EF-SAH introduce procedural 'side bias' by comparing cerebrovascular responses ipsilateral and contralateral to EF insertion using a range of constrictory and dilatory agonists-conceivably all relevant to SAH. The successful exclusion of 'side bias' would be important to any future study of delayed (i.e. chronic) VSM because, should any side differences be subsequently found in such delayed studies, then these could be attributable to focal factors-such as thickened clot lateralization-with somewhat greater confidence. Another potential flaw with current 'clot-VSM' models, however, resides not in their design but in their application. Thus, many do not use as substrate for cerebrovascular study vessels from the anterior cerebral circulation-where both VSM and DCI are most frequently apparent. Instead, most choose vessels from the posterior circulation: in particular, the basilar artery. Furthermore, many do not appear to restrict study to particular segments of specific arteries, and thus potentially thwart 'like-wit-like' comparisons. Most studies also do not quote vessel diameters in relation to subgroups and their responses: in this regard, most assume that randomisation for vessel side would make up for any 'size effects' on vessel responses. And finally, most ignore a principle implied by Brandt, that variation in vasoreactivity in individual arteries might be discontinuous-and not continuous-and so therefore not amenable to routine statistical analysis. It was therefore considered critical in this thesis to assess and limit such potentially confounding factors by fully reviewing what is already known about cerebral vessels before and after SAH, by critically reviewing all experimental models used to derive such data, and by assiduously analyzing normal vessel responses in a standard small vessel study model before progressing to their ultimate study post-SAH. To this end, middle cerebral arteries (MCA) medial to the olfactory tract were analyzed by 'wire myography'. Whilst the ultimate aim of all DCI research must clearly be in the effects of delayed VSM on a post-ictal brain, it is a scientific duty to delineate cerebrovascular reactivity at all stages prior to this. Unfortunately, it is not possible to apply the methodology of this current thesis to assess all of the 192 hours that pass between the acute ictus and the typically delayed start of VSM: instead, restriction of study to a shorter time interval would only be possible in one thesis. As a result, the current thesis was restricted to an analysis of the first three hours of EF-SAH for the following reasons: 1. To assess the principle hypothesis that events associated with acute SAH elicit changes in MCA physio-pharmacology that are independent of any subsequent effects of chronic clot lysis 2. To assess the secondary hypothesis that EF-SAH models introduce a procedural 'side bias' by comparing constrictory and dilatory MCA responses ipsilateral and contralateral to EF insertion. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).


During the last decade of the twentieth century, McHenry County had the fastest-growing population in Illinois. Just north of the Chicago metropolitan area, land use in the eastern half of the county changed from row-crop agriculture to urban sprawl. Water supplies are from shallow sand and gravel aquifers and are highly vulnerable. We evaluated the change of groundwater quality in McHenry County during most of the twentieth century and identified the degree and extent of contamination, and sources, using available historic water-quality data. To evaluate historic data, we calculated background concentrations of selected ions using cumulative probability plots to identify the presence of anthropogenic contamination. Timing of groundwater contamination coincides with that of population growth and the onset of utilization of artificial N-fertilizer and road salt. Groundwater from urban areas showed greater Na + and Cl − contents than rural areas, which reflect more extensive applications of road salt beginning in the early 1960s. Groundwater was collected for chemical and isotope analyses from selected shallow wells with historically elevated NO 3 − concentration as well as from farms with livestock. The isotope data suggest N-fertilizer and soil nitrogen are the predominant sources for NO 3 − in shallow groundwater. Animal waste was also a source for NO 3 − near farms with livestock. Spatial analysis suggested that the source of NO 3 − in the groundwater was from surface-borne contaminants. The permeable soils and near-surface sand and gravel aquifer found in most of McHenry County provide pathways for surface contaminants to migrate into shallow groundwater.


This dissertation explores the contemporary educational construct known as Social and Emotional Learning, or SEL. It investigates how the child, the teacher and the relationship between children and teachers are figured in the SEL-managed classroom. The dissertation also examines the extent to which SEL is produced by, and productive of, culture, as well as what becomes of negative and unruly affect in the context of SEL. The dissertation triangulates data from Critical Discourse Analysis of selected SEL materials, classroom observations in two different public school elementary school classrooms, and interviews with participating teachers. A combination of Kleinian psychoanalysis and affect theory are drawn on as a theoretical frame. The dissertation argues that SEL figures the child as someone feral and in need of external control, which can be provided by the teacher as knowing subject and emotional expert. Further, analysis shows that SEL contributes to and is influenced by an ongoing cultural disavowal of race, class, sex, and the body in the childhood classroom. Finally, the dissertation argues that SEL contributes to a phenomenon called hegemonic positivity, refusing to take seriously the lessons and possibilities constituted within negative affect and conflict.


This paper includes the discussion about the principle of working and simulation of FPGA controlled 3-level diode clamped inverter, which is fed by solar PV based DC bus.DC bus was created with help of solar PV models and charge controller to feed DC loads directly or AC loads indirectly through proposed 3-level inverter. FPGA based 3-level inverter was simulated on Xilinx and MATLAB Simulink environments. Firing pulses ware generated through Xilinx system generator flat form to control the switches of multi-level inverter in MATLAB Simulink environment. And also discussed and calculated the performance parameters of inverter to judge the performance. FPGA is used to generate pulses at fast switching frequency to Also with the addition of FPGA this three level inverter having the fast processing speed and since the FPGA having low cost in order to hardware implementation this will make these topologies better than the previous topologies which have been made in inverters. Keywords3-Level Inverter, SPV system, Diode Clamped Multi Level Inverter, FPGA Controller, SPWM.


In the world of work, work problems or issues that arise is as a part of the dynamics of employment, with the problems faced and solved by someone, then someone will be more mature when he was able and capable of handling the problem. Ideally we are working according to interests or educational background, and most people would think so. But the reality is often different, due to existing conditions or demands that we mangharuskan 'swerved' and elaborate area we do not like or the original beyond our expertise. The purpose of this study was to find out what psychological problems faced by employees of educational backgrounds are not in accordance with his work and to learn how to cope
with psychological problems experienced by employees with educational backgrounds do not fit with her work. This study used a qualitative descriptive approach, using the four subjects of the employees who have the educational background does not match the job characteristics and degree educated D3. Data analysis is done by using qualitative descriptive data analysis method that is usually in the form of literary studies or empirical studies. Based on the results of the research shows the employees who have the educational background does not match the job to have psychological problems such as nervous, nervous and anxious at the time of interview the employees because they do not master the theory of human behavior, was afraid of when recruiting employees, less confident when they have to convince the customer, to feel less capable in terms of arithmetic. They sometimes find it hard to sleep because of thinking about work. As for how employees cope with psychological problems is by way of complaint asking each subject to a competent person, in this case leadership, looking for customers or clients outside of work, sharing with co-workers, maintaining good relations with the leaders and co-worker.


This paper constructs and tests the robustness of consistently measured poverty trends in the Islamic Republic of Iran after 2008, using international poverty lines based on U.S. dollars at 2011 purchasing power parity. The constructed estimates reveal three distinct periods of welfare in the Islamic Republic of Iran: increase in poverty and inequality between 2008 and 2009, decline in poverty and inequality between 2009 and 2012, and gradual deterioration of both indicators again after 2012. The results are robust regardless of the choice of welfare aggregate, inclusion or exclusion of different components, and spatial adjustment accounting for regional variation in food and housing prices.


This report is one in the series of 'POINT' reports that over the years have presented temperature dependent cross sections for the then current version of ENDF/B [R1]. In each case I have used my personal computer at home and publicly available data and codes: (1) publicly available nuclear data (the current ENDF/B data, available on-line at the National Nuclear Data Center, Brookhaven National Laboratory, http://www.nndc.bnl.gov/) and, (2) publicly available computer codes (the current PREPRO codes, available on-line at the Nuclear Data Section, IAEA, Vienna, Austria, http://www-nds.iaea.or.at/ndspub/endf/prepro/) and, (3) My own personal computer located in my home. I have used these in combination to produce the temperature dependent cross sections used in applications and described in this report. I should mention that today anyone with a personal computer can produce these results: by its very nature I consider this data to be born in the public domain.


We describe three patients with severe myoclonic epilepsy in infancy (SME) who suffer from choreoathetosis due to the adverse effect of phenytoin. Choreoathetosis appeared when these patients were 8, 19, and 21 years old, 2 days to 6 months after increasing the phenytoin dosage. Choreoathetosis disappeared when the phenytoin dosage was decreased. The two elder patients experienced episodic and rather paroxysmal onset of long-lasting choreoathetosis, requiring the differential diagnosis from degenerative disease. In one of the patients, an ictal SPECT revealed decreased perfusion in the basal ganglia contralateral to the unilateral choreoathetosis. Polypharmacy, including carbamazepine and zonisamide, may have facilitated the onset of choreoathetosis. Phenytoin-induced choreoathetosis in the patients with SME is an important differential diagnosis among degenerative disorders involving involuntary movements. The episodic and paroxysmal nature of this movement disorder can delay its diagnosis and effective treatment. Patients with SME appear to be particularly vulnerable to this side effect of phenytoin, indicating the possible involvement of basal ganglia in the pathophysiology of this type of epilepsy.


In this paper, we examine the profit persistency for energy industry around the world during the sample period between 2010 and 2016. We distinguish our dataset into two groups: the listed and unlisted companies to see whether these groups show a different pattern. Profit is measured using four different proxies; namely, return on asset, return on equity, return on capital employed and profit margin. The results of this study indicates that profits do not persist. where it means that competition in the energy industry is high. In addition, the competition is found to be higher in listed companies compare to unlisted companies.


This paper will describe risk based process safety content that meets an ABET, Inc. Program Criteria requirement to include the hazards associated with chemical processes that is used in Louisiana State University's chemical engineering curriculum. The process to select the curriculum content follows that was used to define the outline for the Center for Chemical Process Safety resource book Introduction to Process Safety for Undergraduates and Engineers. Risk based process safety elements are widely used in industry and exposure to tools associated with understanding hazards and risks helps prepare students for practical application early in their career.


The Kintampo Complex is the first settled, sub-Sahelian complex in West Africa, and central to our understanding of West African prehistory. Kintampo appeared in Ghana around 4000 years ago, just after the onset of the last arid phase in the Sahara. This volume is based on research undertaken on the Gambaga Escarpment in Northern Ghana and expands knowledge in three ways: it provides the first description of the area; it places the northern manifestation of Kintampo within the context of what is known about the Kintampo complex; it explores the question of a framing base for Kintampo subsistence and embeds it in the current discussions on the origins of agriculture.


The recently discovered p53-family member p73 displays significant homology to p53, but data from primary tumors and knockout mice argue against p73 being a classical tumor suppressor. We report on the overexpression of NH2-terminally truncated, transactivation-deficient p73 proteins (ΔTA-p73) in human cancer cells. Moreover, we show that ΔTA-p73 overexpression results in malignant transformation of NIH3T3 fibroblasts and tumor growth in nude mice, thereby providing the experimental evidence for an oncogenic function of ΔTA-p73. Apparently, increased expression of NH2-terminally truncated p73 isoforms conveys the TP73 gene with oncogenic activity that appears to be actively selected for during tumor development.


The aim of this paper is to relate algebraic quantum mechanics to topos theory, so as to construct new foundations for quantum logic and quantum spaces. Motivated by Bohr's idea that the empirical content of quantum physics is accessible only through classical physics, we show how a noncommutative C*-algebra of observables A induces a topos T (A) in which the amalgamation of all of its commutative subalgebras comprises a single commutative C*-algebra A. According to the constructive Gelfand duality theorem of Banaschewski and Mulvey, the latter has an internal spectrum (A) in T (A), which in our approach plays the role of the quantum phase space of the system. Thus we associate a locale (which is the topos-theoretical notion of a space and which intrinsically carries the intuitionistic logical structure of a Heyting algebra) to a C*-algebra (which is the noncommutative notion of a space). In this setting, states on A become probability measures (more precisely, valuations) on , and self-adjoint elements of A define continuous functions (more precisely, locale maps) from to Scott's interval domain. Noting that open subsets of (A) correspond to propositions about the system, the pairing map that assigns a (generalized) truth value to a state and a proposition assumes an extremely simple categorical form. Formulated in this way, the quantum theory defined by A is essentially turned into a classical theory, internal to the topos T (A). These results were inspired by the topos-theoretic approach to quantum physics proposed by Butterfield and Isham, as recently generalized by Döring and Isham. Supported by N. W. O. C. Heunen, N. P. Landsman, B. Spitters Motto: 'Ces "nuages probabilistes", remplaçant les rassurantes particules matérielles d'antan, me rappellent étrangement les élusifs "voisinages ouverts" qui peuplent les topos, tels des fantômes évanescents, pour entourer des "points" imaginaires.' (A. Grothendieck [43])1


Though Russian voicing assimilation and final devoicing have received a great deal of attention in the literature on generative phonology, there are still basic aspects of the data that are not widely understood or agreed upon. They can be unified under the question, What role does prosody play in the Russian voicing facts? The answer given here will in some ways affirm the role of prosody in the Russian facts and in others exclude it. On the affirmative side, Russian voicing assimilation cannot be understood without reference to higher prosodic units such as the prosodic word. I will present an analysis of the word-level prosody of Russian inspired by Ito and Mester (2007; 2009; see also this volume) (an approach also pursued by Selkirk to appear), one which eschews the 'Clitic Group' and other categories apart from the Phonological Word and the Phonological Phrase. On the negative side, I argue that characterizing the triggers and targets of the voicing processes by means of syllable position cannot work for Russian; the account instead requires a cue-based approach, of the sort advocated by Steriade (1997).


LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF FIRST-TIME FRESHMEN USING DATA MINING Ashutosh R. Nandeshwar In the modern world, higher education is transitioning from enrollment mode to recruitment mode. This shift paved the way for institutional research and policy making from historical data perspective. More and more universities in the U.S. are implementing and using enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, which collect vast amounts of data. Although few researchers have used data mining for performance, graduation rates, and persistence prediction, research is sparse in this area, and it lacks the rigorous development and evaluation of data mining models. The primary objective of this research was to build and analyze data mining models using historical data to find out patterns and rules that classified students who were likely to drop-out and students who were likely to persist. Student retention is a major problem for higher education institutions, and predictive models developed using traditional quantitative methods do not produce results with high accuracy, because of massive amounts of data, correlation between attributes, missing values, and non-linearity of variables; however, data mining techniques work well with these conditions. In this study, various data mining models were used along with discretization, feature subset selection, and cross-validation; the results were not only analyzed using the probability of detection and probability of false alarm, but were also analyzed using variances obtained in these performance measures. Attributes were grouped together based on the current hypotheses in the literature. Using the results of feature subset selectors and treatment learners, attributes that contributed the most toward a student's decision of dropping out or staying were found, and specific rules were found that characterized a successful student. The performance measures obtained in this study were significantly better than previously reported in the literature.


This article compares the situation in Denmark and Sweden regarding research and policy making around the issue of men's violence to women and children. It does so by drawing on two comprehensive reviews of academic and policy data in those countries that were part of a broader European Union—funded project. Although the picture emerging from this comparison is complex, the overall conclusion is that in Sweden over recent years many more examples can be found of a critical, power-oriented approach than is the case in Denmark.


OF PRODUCT DEGRADATION by MICAH ANTHONY LEWIS (Under the Direction of Walter D. Potter) ABSTRACT Various oil seed and cereal grain products are stored by farmers and commercial manufacturers each year, world wide. However, it is while in storage that these products are most susceptible to quality degradation or even spoilage. Present detection methods, such as random sampling, are not practical for preventing such events during storage. Therefore, our system was designed to rectify this occurrence. The system is a conglomerate of real-time monitoring and data management. Utilizing a sensor network, streaming data are analyzed to determine the conditions of the stored product and decide if any corrective action is needed, such as aeration. The system also affords the functionality of storing and querying historical data. This thesis explains how various computer science concepts were pooled together to construct this real-life application.


The radical copolymerization of (p-chlorophenoxycarbonyl)cyclopropyl styrene with styrene and methyl methacrylate has been carried out. New cyclopropane-containing copolymers have been obtained. It has been established that the synthesized copolymers due to peculiarities of their structure and polyfucntionality, namely with content of carbonyl and cyclopropane groups sensitive to UV irradiation in the macromolecule have photosensitivity. The constant values of relative activity of monomers have been determined and Q-e parameters on Alfrey and Price have been calculated. The copolymerization constants of this compound (r1) with styrene and methyl methacylate (r2), calculated on Fineman-Ross method are: r1 = 1.1 and1.05, but r2 = 0.56 and 0.48, respectively; Q and e parameters values: Q1 = 3.1 and 2.4, e1 = –1.4 and –0.8, respectively. The photochemical structuring has been investigated and it has been shown that the structuring process proceeds due to of cyclopropane ring opening and carbonyl group. The composition and structure of these copolymers have been established and their some characteristics (heat resistance, hardness, adhesive strength, water absorption) have been investigated. The structuring process has been also studied and it has been established that the synthesized copolymer has relatively high photosensitivity (50–55 cm2J-1)


Purpose: Cardiovascular applications of CT are primarily limited by temporal resolution of the scanner. Recent development in scanner technology has greatly increased temporal resolution. We here describe a standardized method of assessing temporal properties of various CT techniques. Material and Methods: the Novacor left ventricular assist device was mounted in a water-filled circulation phantom and scanned at different pump rates with a spiral CT unit and an electron beam unit. We also evaluated the use of ECG-triggered subsecond scanning on a spiral CT unit. Results: Using the fastest conventional scanning protocol, severe motion artifacts occurred. These artifacts could not be reproduced from image to image, even if the pump rate was adjusted to scan rate (1/s). Electron beam tomography (EBT) reproducibly yielded few artifacts at 100 ms and practically no artifacts at 50 ms scanning time. Even without ECG-triggering, pump motion could be reproduced as a cine-cycle. With the ECG-triggered partial scanning CT technique, limited motion artifacts could be reproduced during diastole at a heart rate of 70–80 beats/min. Conclusion: the Novacor ventricular assist device may serve as a benchmark test in the evaluation of new scanning techniques for cardiovascular CT. While EBT presently remains the only CT technique to freeze cardiac motion throughout its cycle, ECG-triggered subsecond scans may, under certain conditions, capture cardiac anatomy in diastole.


Abstract. In WEB2.0 environment, the number of map-based mashups which display user-led POI data keeps increasing. When the cartographic processing of these map mashups is lacking, the display of the POI data showed on the maps are quite unsatisfactory because of the overlapping of symbols.At present, some widely used methods commonly use selection and simplification operations based on a quadtree data structure, which can get a good result in the small and medium scales in which users mainly focus on the distribution characteristics and the density difference of POI, but will lose a lot of information in the large scales in which users mainly focus on the specific location and detailed information of the data. For example, two hotels with the same size will retain only one symbol after using selection or simplification operation although in the large scale if they are adjacent to each other, which will bring trouble to users when using maps. Displacement is a suitable operation to deal with this situation, however, current displacement methods face the problems of symbol position drift and nevertheless the loss of information in high-density areas.In order to address these problems, this paper proposes a real-time POI visualization algorithm combining the characteristics of traditional quadtree data structure and the advantages of an improved displacement operator.


Due to the relevance of item damages on a building, a power transmission mechanism that can reflect the damage relevance is introduced into the dangerous houses hierarchical fuzzy evaluation model (JGJ125-99). The proposed item description model uses a force-delivery tree to describe the relevant relationship among items. A new risk rating formula and a method to calculate the model parameters are addressed. The practical result by applying the approach to Ezhou city primary school in Hubei province shows that the item description model can reduce error judgments in appraising dangerous buildings.


In order to optimize the design method and improve the performance of hydraulic retarder, the numerical simulation of multi-field coupling of heat, fluid and solid is carried out to hydraulic retarder, based on the numerical computation and algorithm of heat-fluid coupling and fluid-solid coupling. The computation models of heat-fluid coupling and fluid-solid coupling of hydraulic retarder are created. The three dimensional model of hydraulic retarder is established based on CATIA software, and the whole flow passage model of hydraulic retarder is extracted on the basis of the three dimensional model established. Based on the CFD calculation and the finite element numerical simulation, the temperature field, stress field, deformation and stress state are analysised to hydraulic retarder in the state of whole filling when the rotate speed is 1600 r/min. In consideration of rotating centrifugal force, thermal stress and air exciting vibration force of blade surface, by using the sequential coupling method, the flow field characteristics of hydraulic retarder and dynamic characteristics of blade structure are analysised and researched based on multi-field coupling of heat, fluid and solid. These provide the theoretical foundation and references for parametric design of hydraulic retarder.


: The need for more efficient and effective public private partnerships (PPP) projects in transport is gaining momentum and will not rescind as population of persons and cars takes upward shifts. This paper seeks to identify international experiences of PPPs in transport from the wider spectrum and ends with narrowing its scope to tolls in road transport. The study undertook an exploratory design. We delved into secondary data collected that majorly from studies that undertook empirical assessment of PPPs using country to coun-try perspective. Data was sourced from scholarly journals, documents, websites searches and newspapers. A collective memory approach is further used to forecast future trends while providing implications for the tomorrow's actions for PPPs adoption in transport. The outcome of the study provides a hub of experiences for implementing PPPs in transport while acknowledging the concession types, remuneration types and critical success factors that policy makers implementers and academia can consider to inform the practice and theory of PPPs in transport.


ABSTRACT Between 24 July and 31 August 1998, thousands of domestic pigs died of hemorrhagic shock in three adjunct counties along the YangZi River in Jiangshu Province, China. From 28 July to 6 September 1998, 40 local farmers (36 males and 4 females, ages 23 to 78 years) were hospitalized with severe illness characterized by high fever, erythematous rash or petechiae, and profound lethargy after contact with sick pigs. Twelve (30%) of these patients died of respiratory failure and shock. Eleven bacterial isolates recovered from 11 blood and cerebrospinal fluid specimens collected from seven patients and two pigs were identified as Enterococcus faecium based on biochemical reactions and 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Both pig and human E. faecium isolates displayed indistinguishable antibiotic susceptibility and pulsed-field gel electrophoresis patterns. These data strongly suggest the spread of an outbreak of E. faecium-related sepsis from pigs to humans.


Physical phenomena (optical, electronic and optoelectronic) occurring in metallic nanostructures offer an interesting potential in that they may allow us to overcome the limits of diffractive optics and to develop new functional devices complementing the dielectric-based conventional optics. Optical waves incident to a metallic structure, for example, can excite a collective oscillation of electrons, so-called surface plasmons (SPs). The spatial extension of SP fields is governed by the size of the nanostructure and can be made much smaller than the wavelength of light. These features are potentially useful in developing ultracompact photonic chips, i.e., miniaturizing the optics into subwavelength dimensions.In this thesis, we have investigated the plasmonic phenomena occurring in metallic nanoaperture array structures. A novel fabrication process has been developed to form highly ordered nanoaperture (both slits and holes) arrays on metallic layers. Optical characterization of the fabricated nanostructures revealed many interesting properties (in transmission, reflection, filtering, confinement, etc.) involving plasmonic interactions. The plasmonic phenomena in nanoaperture arrays have been analyzed theoretically: analytical solutions of plasmonic waveguiding inside nanoslits were formulated; funneling of light into nanoslit was simulated; the in-plane surface plasmon band structures at the metal/dielectric interfaces were modeled; the dynamic evolution of polarization in metal islands was analyzed. The finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) analysis of optical field distribution and propagation has been performed, and the simulation results were compared with the analytic results and experimental data. Detailed mechanisms of the plasmonic interactions in nanoaperture arrays have been developed and proposed based on this experimental and theoretical study.We further studied optical transmission properties of bi-layer metallic nanoslit arrays. The structure is found to reveal Fabry-Perot-resonator-like characteristics and the transmittance, passband, and beam polarization properties are determined by structure, dimension, and configuration. Near-field interaction and coupling in the bi-layer slit array structures were also analyzed with FDTD simulation. We also studied surface plasmon effects in reflective metallic grating structures, which show strong reflection quenching under cross-metal SP coupling conditions. We have designed and analyzed metallic nano-optic lenses based on nanoslit array structures. The phase of optical radiation emanating from each aperture is controlled by the metal thickness and aperture size. FDTD simulation of the nano-optic lenses demonstrates refractive transmission of light and beam shaping (focusing and collimation). This study opens up the possibility of developing a new class of optics that can complement the conventional dielectric-based refractive/diffractive optics.


As part of carbon pools, forest soil stores soil organic matter (SOM) that contains many elements including organic C, N, P, and K. These elements contribute nutrients for biogeochemical cycles within the ecosystem. This study was done to determine the ecological value of forest soil organic matter at tropical evergreen Aglaia-Streblus forest of Meru Betiri National Park (MBNP), East Java, Indonesia. The data were sampled along gradient topography in Pringtali tropical forest of TMBNP. Direct measurements of soil moisture, temperature, and pH were taken in the field. The soil samples were extracted from 6 points of soil solum using soil auger, and then oven-dried to get value of dry-weight. The elements content of organic C, N, P, and K were analyzed and estimated at the laboratory. The ecoval of SOM was appraised using developed ecological valuation tool. The result showed that SOM contributed higher ecoval of organic C (66.03 Mg ha-1) than other elements. Compared to P and K elements, N had the highest stock of element content. However, comparing to other two tropical forest ecosystems of Asia the ecoval of SOM elements in TMBNP was relatively low because of its natural geomorphological features.The ecoval of SOM elements in TMBNP was relatively low because of its natural geomorphological features. The ecovals contributed about 2.440,64 - 6.955,50 USD or  31.271.923,73 - 89.120.837,23  IDR per hectare of ecological value (d) to the ecosystem. This value was mainly contributed by organic C stock in the TMBNP forest SOM. It means the forest SOM had higher element content of organic C than N, P, and K elements. This d value is an indicator for TMBNP to protect the SOM elements meaning protecting their resources to sustain the biogeochemical cycles in the forest ecosystem. All the management and policy correlated to this protected area should consider this valuable information for their plan and actions.


We use genomics to identify the natal origin of a grey whale found in the South Atlantic, at least 20 000 km from the species core range (halfway around the world). The data indicate an origin in the North Pacific, possibly from the endangered western North Pacific population, thought to include only approximately 200 individuals. This contributes to our understanding of Atlantic sightings of this species known primarily from the North Pacific, and could have conservation implications if grey whales have the potential for essentially global dispersion. More broadly, documenting and understanding rare extreme migration events have potential implications for the understanding of how a species may be able to respond to global change.


Inorganic and organic particles, including bacteria, viruses and parasites, which are retained within a granular filter during surface water filtration, are removed by backwashing the filter with clean water or water and air. The objective of the study was to characterize SFBW and determine its treatability by coagulation. Microbial and physical-chemical characterization of SFBW collected from a number of different water treatment plants was performed. Experiments to determine the impact of coagulation/flocculation on the SFBW samples were also conducted. SFBW was collected from six different water treatment plants and analyzed for microbial and physical parameters. Physical characterization was done on SFBW collected from all of the treatment plants. Turbidity and pH measurements were taken over the course of the backwash run, and the backwash samples were collected in two to four 20 L containers. A number of parameters were measured for the samples in each container, as well as for SFBW composites made by mixing equal portions of the container contents. The measured parameters included: turbidity, pH, TSS, DOC, UV-254 and alkalinity. Jar tests were carried but on individual containers, on SFBW composite and on SFBW composite that was allowed to settle for one hour. Turbidity and particle count data was collected for both settled and filtered samples.


The global marketplace demands quicker, cheaper standards development. The preparations by the IEEE standards writing community to ready itself for global participation makes for an exciting and timely topic. Nowhere on this globe is there a single standards-developing body, I believe, that is not reviewing its international relationships. No matter what our country of origin, we all must realize that the customers of our standards systems now require products that can respond to the pressures of the international marketplace. Standards developers can no longer ignore this broader marketplace, any more than can those who buy and sell there. Indeed, it would be harmful, even shameful were we not to capitalize on the tremendous strengths our industry has already demonstrated. For example, here in North America, our industry faces global competition even when only doing business at home; North American borders, for the most part, are transparent to the movement of goods and services from other countries. Thus, the same forces driving the telecommunications and information technologies industries to think globally will drive the rest of industry to do likewise. Our future standards must reflect those realities. We must prepare ourselves, and we must take the lead. >


The objectives of this study were: (1) to submit co mprehensive information about the distinctions among pan coefficient ( Kp), crop coefficient ( Kc), and crop-pan coefficient ( Kcp); (2) to reveal the importance of using pan evaporation for irrigation scheduling. The amount of water allocated for agricultural production has been decreasing due to rapid population growth, industrialization and contamination. Therefore, to obtain maximum yield a nd avoid excessive water application, the water requirements of the cultivated plants should be acc urately determined, and irrigation water should be applied according to the needs of the plants. Crop water consumption ( ETc) varies from region to region depending on crop type, stage of growth, soi l, and climate conditions. Different evapotranspiration rates may be observed even in di fferent parts of the same region. Considering global warming and climate change in recent years, it is clear that the predicted ET values of a year can not be used safely for upcoming years. Research stu dies have revealed a linear correlation between crop water consumption and the amount of water evap orated from open water surface. Therefore, irrigation scheduling through using the combination of proper crop-pan coefficient and pan evaporation (Class-A pan) is very important due to both ease of adjustment to the climate changes and ease of application. Even though many studies have been conducted on this issue, there is still need to collective and detailed information about use of evaporation p an for irrigation scheduling and above mentioned coefficients.


Granulocytic and monocytic chemotaxis are studied by means of Boyden's modified method using as chemotactic agent human serum complement activated by Zymosan. The study has been made on healthy controls and a group of patients suffering from chronic renal failure treated with periodic haemodialysis. Observations were made before and after the dialysis session. In the patients with chronic renal failure is observed a decrease in leucocytic mobility of granulocytes and monocytes which give chemotactic granulocytic and monocytic indexes of 32.1 +/- 3.1 and 32.3 +/- 3.5 with relation to healthy controls with indexes of 46.7 +/- 8.4 and 37.0 +/- 4.3 and with significative differences between the measurements of p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.005 respectively. The parametres of polymorphonuclear and monocytic kinetics did not improve after the haemodialysis session. The possible mechanisms which produce such chemotactic leucocytic deficit in uraemics and the non-positive influence of the dialysis session on such deficit are hereby discussed.


The influence of bleeding on post-mortem tenderization of fish muscle during storage was studied. Six fish species were used for the present study. Among them, delay of post-mortem tenderization of muscle by bleeding was shown in the pelagic fishes: yellowtail, horse mackerel, and striped jack. On the other hand, bleeding had no influence on the muscle firmness of the bottom fishes: red sea bream, flatfish, and rudder-fish. According to transmission electron microscopy, degradation of pericellular collagen fibrils was delayed in bled yellowtail and horse mackerel. In the case of striped jack, though, collagen fibril degradation could not be observed; slower weakening of the pericellular connective tissue was detected by compression tests on the bled sample. On the contrary, no structural difference was observed between the tested and the control samples in the bottom fishes during storage. According to these results, the delay of muscle tenderization of pelagic fishes would be due to the outflow of a collagenolytic factor contained in blood .


Transmission electron microscopy is the technique of choice to visualize the spatial relationships between nanoconstructs and cells, and especially to monitor the uptake process of nanomaterials. It is therefore crucial that the cell surface be preserved in its integrity, to obtain reliable ultrastructural evidence: the plasmalemma represents the biological barrier the nanomaterials have to cross, and the mode of membrane-nanoconstruct interaction is responsible for the intracellular fate of the nanomaterials. In this paper, we describe a simple and inexpensive method to process cell monolayers for ultrastructural morphology and immunocytochemistry, ensuring consistent preservation of the cell surface and of the occurring interactions with nanoparticles of different chemical composition.


Supertetrahedral clusters of main-group metal chalcogenides (Tn) have been well-studied for decades. Most of them are polymerized 2D or 3D structures and have been used as porous materials for ion exchange and as ion conductors. Large discrete T5 clusters of main-group metal chalcogenides are attractive in that they might be used as nanocluster materials with uniform size and definite structures. However, until now, discrete T5 clusters have been reported only in the solid state and their dispersed solution has not yet been obtained due to their low solubility in common solvents, thus not to mention their application as nanodots. We prepare a crystal compound with discrete T5 CuInS clusters using a simple and economical way. A solution of the T5 clusters was obtained by a strategy using a medium with strong ionic strength to overcome the strong ionic force in crystals. The discrete T5 clusters in solution is proved by HRTEM and ESI-MS. The nano-T5 CuInS clusters can be easily modified on a TiO2 electrode by a wet process and the clusters show excellent photo-sensitive properties tested by photocurrent and photocatalysis.


GABAA receptors are predominantly composed of αβγ and αβδ isoforms in the brain. It has been proposed that αβγ receptors mediate phasic inhibition, whereas αβδ receptors mediate tonic inhibition. Propofol (2,6-di-isopropylphenol), a widely used anesthetic drug, exerts its effect primarily by modulating GABAA receptors; however, the effects of propofol on the kinetic properties of αβγ and αβδ receptors are uncertain. We transfected human embryonic kidney (HEK293T) cells with cDNAs encoding rat α1, α6, β3, γ2L, or δ subunits and performed whole-cell patch-clamp recordings to explore this issue. Propofol (3 μM) increased GABA concentration-response curve maximal currents similarly for both α1β3γ2L and α6β3γ2L receptors, but propofol increased those for α1β3δ and α6β3δ receptors differently, the increase being greater for α1β3δ than for α6β3δ receptors. Propofol (10 μM) produced similar alterations in α1β3γ2L and α6β3γ2L receptor currents when using a preapplication protocol; peak currents were not altered, desensitization was reduced, and deactivation was prolonged. Propofol enhanced peak currents for both α1β3δ and α6β3δ receptors, but the enhancement was greater for α1β3δ receptors. Desensitization of these two isoforms was not modified by propofol. Propofol did not alter the deactivation rate of α1β3δ receptor currents but did slow deactivation of α6β3δ receptor currents. The findings that propofol reduced desensitization and prolonged deactivation of γ2L subunit-containing receptors and enhanced peak currents or prolonged deactivation of δ subunit-containing receptors suggest that propofol enhancement of both phasic and tonic inhibition may contribute to its anesthetic effect in the brain.


OBJECTIVE AND METHODS
To suggest a cost-effective strategy with a high degree of surveillance for the transmission of tuberculosis infection to employees in community hospitals. We performed a cost-benefit analysis of tuberculin skin testing over a 4-year period. The setting was a community hospital in Bronx, NY. The subjects consisted of employees of the hospital who were categorized into high-risk employees defined as individuals who worked daily in patient care and low-risk employees defined as those not directly involved in patient care. All cases of tuberculin skin test conversion among employees were reviewed over a 4-year period. The departments involved, total number of employees, chest radiographic findings, and prophylaxis instituted were noted.

RESULTS
The number of employees who were screened over the past 4 years consisted of 897 in 1990, 857 in 1991, 1357 in 1992, and 1316 in 1993. The mean annual conversion rate was 1%, 1.5%, 1.7%, and 1.4% for the 4 years, respectively. Skin test conversions according to job description revealed that of the total number of conversions 42% were from the nursing staff, 6.2% among the physicians and residents, and 52% among the ancillary staff. There was no difference in conversion between medical and nonmedical services such as the gynecology and surgical floors.

CONCLUSION
Since tuberculin conversion rates of high-risk employees and those exposed to infectious tuberculosis cases have been low, we suggested a comprehensive strategy of 6-month tuberculin testing for high-risk employees and yearly testing for low-risk employees and eliminating boosting and repeated testing at 12 weeks in those exposed to infectious cases of tuberculosis.


Sequential measurements of the density of calcaneal trabecular bone were made in normal postmenopausal women and in patients treated for osteoporosis. Cross-sectional measurements of density were made in previously normal patients who had been without ovarian function for a known length of time of at least one year. There was a significant reduction in calcaneal density associated with aging in normal postmenopausal women. Estrogen lack was also associated with density reductions and the reduction was related to the length of time of estrogen deprivation. When osteoporotic patients were treated with combination therapy, density rose in females while in males the expected age dependent reduction was prevented. It is concluded that photon scattering measurements of calcaneal density can be used to monitor changes in the mineral status of the skeleton.


Early intervention efforts have been effective in reducing disruptive behaviors and the probability of poor developmental outcomes. Early interventions include common practice elements to improve social functioning and decrease problem behaviors that disrupt the teaching-learning process. The First Step Next intervention has been well validated across early childhood and early elementary settings. In the present article, we provide a best-evidence synthesis of five randomized controlled replication studies between 2009 and 2021. Collectively, these studies show the intervention has resulted in small to large effect sizes and statistically significant improvements, compared with students randomized to control conditions, on multiple indicators of prosocial and problem behavior. The current synthesis focuses on a range of outcomes across elementary and preschool populations, as well as implementation fidelity and social validity ratings, to help school professionals in determining whether First Step Next might be useful in their efforts to support students at risk of school failure.


A surprising diversity and abundance of microorganisms resides in the cold desert soils of Antarctica. The metabolic processes that sustain them, however, are poorly understood. In this study, we used metagenomic and biogeochemical approaches to study the microbial communities in 16 physicochemically diverse mountainous and glacial soils from remote sites in South Victoria Land, north of the Mackay Glacier. We assembled 451 metagenome-assembled genomes from 18 bacterial and archaeal phyla, constituting the largest resource of Antarctic soil microbial genomes to date. The most abundant and prevalent microorganisms are metabolically versatile aerobes that use atmospheric hydrogen and carbon monoxide to meet energy, carbon, and, through metabolic water production, hydration needs. Phylogenetic analysis and structural modelling infer that bacteria from nine phyla can scavenge atmospheric hydrogen using a previously unreported enzyme family, the group 1l [NiFe]-hydrogenases. Consistently, gas chromatography measurements confirmed most soils rapidly consume atmospheric hydrogen and carbon monoxide, and provide the first experimental evidence of methane oxidation in non-maritime Antarctica. We also recovered genomes of microorganisms capable of oxidizing other inorganic compounds, including nitrogen, sulfur, and iron compounds, as well as harvesting solar energy via photosystems and novel microbial rhodopsins. Bacterial lineages defined by symbiotic lifestyles, including Patescibacteria, Chlamydiae, and predatory Bdellovibrionota, were also surprisingly abundant. We conclude that the dominant microorganisms in Antarctic soils adopt mixotrophic strategies for energy and sometimes carbon acquisition, though they co-exist with diverse bacteria and archaea that adopt more specialist lifestyles. These unprecedented insights and associated genome compendium will inform efforts to protect biodiversity in this continent.


New seasonal retrospective forecasts for 1901-2010 show that skill for predicting ENSO, NAO and PNA is reduced during mid-century periods compared to earlier and more recent high-skill decades. Forecasts of seasonal climate anomalies using physically-based global circulation models are routinely made at operational meteorological centers around the world. A crucial component of any seasonal forecast system is the set of retrospective forecasts, or hindcasts, from past years which are used to estimate skill and to calibrate the forecasts. Hindcasts are usually produced over a period of around 20-30 years. However, recent studies have demonstrated that seasonal forecast skill can undergo pronounced multi-decadal variations. These results imply that relatively short hindcasts are not adequate for reliably testing seasonal forecasts and that small hindcast sample sizes can potentially lead to skill estimates that are not robust. Here we present new and unprecedented 110-year-long coupled hindcasts of the next season over the period 1901 to 2010. Their performance for the recent period is in good agreement with those of operational forecast models. While skill for ENSO is very high during recent decades, it is markedly reduced during the 1930s to 1950s. Skill at the beginning of the 20th Century is, however, as high as for recent high-skill periods. Consistent with findings in atmosphere-only hindcasts, a mid-century drop in forecast skill is found for a range of atmospheric fields including large-scale indices such as the NAO and the PNA patterns. As with ENSO, skill scores for these indices recover in the early 20th Century suggesting that the mid-century drop in skill is not due to lack of good observational data. A public dissemination platform for our hindcast data is available and we invite the scientific community to explore them.


Against external loads, shells with ideal symmetries, such as perfect spheres and cylinders, show enhanced rigidities, whose origin is known to be largely geometric and is often termed "geometric rigidity." In contrast, shells with free boundaries (i.e., open shells) may respond quite differently to external loads. They may deflect significantly as free boundaries may allow (almost) inextensional bending deformations that are impossible in the case of closed surfaces. Herein, we investigate the smooth deformation of an open cylindrical shell induced by pinching through a combination of experiment, simulations, and theory. To be more specific, we apply a localized pinch at one end of a long semi-cylindrical shell, and investigate the distance at which the shell recovers its undeformed form; we call this distance the persistence length of a pinch. We establish a new scaling law for the persistence length of shallow shells, which is shown to be valid for an arbitrarily deep shell. We show that the persistence length of a sufficiently deep open cylinder exceeds that of a closed cylinder, thereby highlighting the importance of the subtle interplay between the intrinsic curvature and the free edges on shell mechanics. These findings are rationalized by a detailed asymptotic analysis of the shallow shell equations. Our results reveal how the free boundaries essentially alter the balance between bending and stretching in thin shells.


Abstract The Milner Landmark Task allows the disentanglement of perceptual and response-related components of unilateral neglect. If these two components reflect separate functional systems, then cases should be observed in which the two components evolve differently across time. To test this hypothesis we surveyed a continuous series of 21 right hemisphere stroke patients. Five patients from the sample were affected by unilateral neglect at the outset and could be submitted to repeated administrations of the Landmark task in the first weeks post stroke. Two versions of the task were used, Landmark-Manual and Landmark-Verbal, differing in the type of response required. Two patients showed independent changes in the perceptual and the response-related component of neglect, hence confirming the view of separate functional systems underlying them. Dissociations between the task versions were found, witnessing a role of the type of response. Unexpectedly, one patient showed an initial leftward deviation of the subjective midpoint of the stimulus line, which later reversed to a classical rightward deviation. We interpreted such a pattern in terms of co-existing "productive" and "negative" components of perceptual neglect.


To achieve 1000-fold capacity increase in 5G wireless communications, ultradense network (UDN) is believed to be one of the key enabling technologies. Most of the previous research activities on UDNs were based very much on human-to-human communications. However, to provide ubiquitous Internet of Things services, machine-to-machine (M2M) communications will play a critical role in 5G systems. As the number of machine-oriented connections increases, it is expected that supporting M2M communications is an essential requirement in all future UDNs. In this paper, we aim to bridge the gaps between M2M communications and UDNs, which were commonly considered as two separate issues in the literature. The paper begins with a brief introduction on M2M communications and UDNs, and then will discuss the issues on the roles of M2M communications in future UDNs. We will identify different ways to implement M2M communications in the UDNs from the perspectives of layered architecture, including physical, media access control, network, and application layers. Other two important issues, i.e., security and network virtualization, will also be addressed. Before the end of this paper, we will give a summary on identified research topics for future studies.


Excessive air leakage through the building envelope increases the infiltration heat loss and therefore lowers the energy efficiency. Therefore, very good airtightness is required in case of well insulated buildings equipped with a mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery (e.g. n50 < 0.6 h for passive houses). Although the building industry has progressively adopted strategies to comply with such strict limits, it is still important to study how and how much the airtightness influences the energy efficiency of different types of buildings in different climatic conditions. This study investigates the impact of building envelope airtightness on the heat demand of a single-family house and a multi-family residential building in the central European climate (Prague). Both model buildings are passive houses, equipped with a balanced mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery. Their heat demand was calculated in function of the envelope airtightness (n50 varying from 0 to 1 h). Several combinations of leakage distribution over the building envelope and wind shielding conditions were considered. The singlefamily house was modelled as a single zone building. In the multi-family building, each flat and the staircase were considered as separate pressure zones. The heat demand was calculated considering the following alternatives of internal air leakage between the zones: no internal air leakage between zones each flat connected with the staircase (air leakage between flats not allowed) each flat connected with the staircase and neighbouring flats (air leakage between flats allowed) The air leakage distribution over the residential building envelope and the characteristics of the internal leakage paths were estimated from results of airtightness tests of a real building. For the purpose of this study, transient thermal and air infiltration models were developed using Matlab – Simulink. Iterative approaches were adopted for a reliable coupling of the thermal and air infiltration models (differently in the single and multi-zone models). The heat demand increases noticeably with the building envelope air permeability. The increase is more pronounced in case of the residential building (eg. 3 kWh/(m∙a) per unit of n50 against 4 kWh/(m∙a) for the single-family house under the same conditions). The wind shielding and the leakage distribution influence significantly the results. The highest heat demand was identified in cases with the air leakage paths distributed half and half at the bottom and on the top of the building. The internal air leakage does not affect significantly the heat demand of the residential building, which depends mostly on the envelope air leakage and its distribution. However, significant air flow rates were detected between the zones (up to 24 m/h between flats). The internal leakage may therefore cause an issue for IAQ, ventilation system function and fire safety.


The manufacture of superconducting tapes based on the ceramic high temperature superconductor (HTS) is a promising product for high current applications such as electro-magnets and current transmission cables. The tapes are manufactured by using the "Powder in Tube" method (PIT). This implies drawing and rolling of metal tubes containing powder. The mechanical processing of the tape is critical to the final result; as such it becames imperative to understand the mechanical properties of the superconducting powder used.
 The aim of the present work is to perform and opimize an alternative tri-axial test, called the Powder in Flexible die test (PFD), for powder testing in order to characterize the plastic properties of MgB2 powder and to define the yield surface for a fixed relative density of 77%.
 The attention has been focused on the test and refinement of PFD-test in order to define its reproducibility and to fit a yield surface for a fix density and to the Drucker-Prager model.
 The characterization of the plastic properties of MgB2 powder will be useful for the definition of plastic behaviour of the powder during the flat rolling, a key step of Powder In the Tube process (PIT).
 The results collected in the lab show a good degree of reproducibility of PFD-test. The low scattering of the data, obtained during PFD-test, with the results of three additional tests: Diametrical Compression test, Uniaxial Compression test, Die Compaction test, has resulted in obtaining of a yield surface for MgB2 with 77% of relative density.
 Finally the yield surface has been fitted to the Drucker-Prager model.


Graeme Caughley developed many of his ideas on wildlife management, and how it should be underpinned by evidence rather than by dogma, during the mid-1960s when he was working for the New Zealand Forest Service and doing the fieldwork for his Ph.D. on the population dynamics of Himalayan thar in the Southern Alps of New Zealand. However, there was a 30-year lag between the advice on the management of wild animals Caughley was providing to the New Zealand Government in the 1960s and its uptake in a national plan to manage thar in the 1990s. Eventually his ideas of setting measurable goals that were based on science, in this case on his ideas on interactive systems between herbivores and their food supply, and on management systems that led to stable outcomes were at least partially taken up. This paper reviews how some of Caughley's ideas were, or were not, included in a plan developed in 1993 and its subsequent application to manage Himalayan thar in New Zealand.


RESERVOIR HETEROGENEITY IN A CARBON SEQUESTRATION TARGET: THE DONOVAN SAND MEMBER OF THE RODESSA FORMATION, CITRONELLE FIELD, ALABAMA Keith Coffindaffer The Citronelle field, located in Mobile County, Alabama, has been chosen as a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) pilot site, and supercritical CO2 has been injected for the combined purposes of long-term storage testing and enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The target formation for injection is the Early Cretaceous Donovan Sand of the Rodessa Formation, and is characterized by discontinuous fineto medium-grained, heterogeneous arkosic fluvial sandstones interbedded with fissile mudstones and micaceous silts. Based upon core analysis of the Donovan Sand, depofacies indicate a fluviodeltaic/estuarine depositional environment for the Donovan Sand. Probable sources of the Donovan sediments are the Motts Gneiss and the Hospilika Granite, both of which are exposed within the Pine Mountain Window at the Georgia/Alabama state border and into central Georgia. Through synthesis of core, thin section, and well log analysis, reservoir heterogeneity and porosity development within the Upper Donovan Sand is highly variable, with porosity averages of ~2-5%, but locally can be up to ~13%. In more porous zones there is more evidence of grain alteration and creation of secondary porosity, while in the lower porosity sections cementation or high matrix content fill interstitial space and the main pore type is primary pores. Porosity and cement percentages, rather than mineralogic composition, were used to categorize sandstones into petrofacies due to the consistent mineral composition of the Donovan Sand. According to petrofacies-to-well log correlations, the most porous petrofacies are present within the same stratigraphic zone (defined herein as a 'high porosity zone') and this zone is interpreted to represent a porous (> 5% ɸ) fluid migration pathway in the subsurface. An Upper Donovan Sand structure map, thickness map, and average porosity map generated using transform equations from SP and bulk density curves show that the thickest portions of the Upper Donovan do not directly correlate with the most porous areas within the formation. This research may serve as an analog for other mature oil and gas fields and CCS sites targeting fluvial-deltaic reservoirs.


The objective of this study was to investigate the relationship between household structure and mortality at older ages in Parma, Italy. The household is an important setting for older people's social roles and social relations and its composition has a strong association with their health. The study examines 57,830 people aged 65 or more years drawn from the population registers of Parma (Italy). Record linkage from 1989 to 2000 was carried out using their unique identification numbers. Through the linked records, it was possible to follow changes in each person's and family's history provided they remained resident in Parma. The descriptive analyses show that elderly women were more likely than men to live alone, probably on account of their higher longevity. Only 10 per cent of elderly men lived alone, as compared with 32 per cent of older women. Nonetheless, the survival curves demonstrate that up to the age of 80 years, women living alone experienced lower mortality than those living with partners. A logistic regression model based on 'event history analysis' was performed using the longitudinal data. The results suggest that being married provides a protective role against mortality in later life only for men. It is possible that elderly women who take care of a husband or relatives do not care for themselves (or their health), as do older women who live alone.


This paper presents an integrated ultra-low power analog front-end (AFE) architecture for UWB impulse radio receivers. The receiver is targeted towards applications like wireless sensor networks typically requiring ultra energy-efficient, low data-rate communication over a relative short range. The proposed receiver implements pulse correlation in the analog domain to severely relax the power consumption of the ADCs and digital backend. Furthermore a fully integrated prototype of the analog front-end, containing a PLL, programmable clocking generator, analog pulse correlator, a linear-in-dB variable gain amplifier and a 4-bit ADC, is demonstrated. Several design decisions and techniques, like correlation with a windowed LO instead of with a matched template, exploiting the duty-cycled nature of the system, operation in the sub-1 GHz band as well as careful circuit design are employed to reach ultra-low power consumption. The analog front-end was manufactured in 130 nm CMOS and the active circuit area measures 1000 mum times 1500 mum. A maximum channel conversion gain of 50 dB can be achieved. Two symbol rates, 39.0625 M pulses per second (Mpps) and 19.531 Mpps are supported. The AFE consumes 2.3 mA from a 1.2 V power supply when operating at 39.0625 Mpps. This corresponds to an energy consumption of 70 pJ/pulse. A wireless link over more than 10 m in an office-like environment has been demonstrated at 19.531 Mpps with a PER < 1E -3 under direct LOS conditions.