More than 90% of renal injuries in children result from blunt abdominal trauma. A 10-year-old female had a blunt abdominal trauma with macro-hematuria. The computed tomography scan revealed the presence of a horseshoe kidney and a 3rd grade renal lesion and contrast leakage from the right ureter. The ureteral rupture was confirmed by cystoscopy and ascendant pyelography and than a double J-stent was implanted. The stent was removed one month later. Non-surgical management has become the standard of care for both ureteral and renal lesions in children. Non-surgical treatment is a safe procedure for renal trauma with ureteral rupture in children.


We present preliminary results of a new global Magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) simulation model of the Jovian magnetosphere. The model incorporates mass loading from Jupiter's satellite Io, the planet's fast corotation, and electrostatic coupling between its magnetosphere and ionosphere (M‐I coupling). The basic configuration of the Jovian magnetosphere including the equatorial plasma flow pattern, the corotation enforcement current system, and the field aligned currents (FACs) in the ionosphere are presented under an antiparallel interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) condition. The simulation model results for equatorial density and pressure profiles are consistent with results from data‐based empirical models. It is also found that there are similarities between the FACs distribution in the ionosphere and the observed aurora features, showing the potential application of the simple ionospheric model to the complicated M‐I coupling. This model will help deepen our understanding of the global dynamics of the Jovian magnetosphere.


Most data on the market value of farm real estate are presented on the basis of national aggregates. Though continuing to serve many useful purposes, such data have limited use when more exacting economic analysis is required. Data are needed that more accurately reflect 10eal market responses. Thus, an automatic interaction detection model was used to group counties on the basis of their similarity across selected farm and nonfarm factors into optimal farm real estate submarket areas. Through use of the model, factors are identified and examined that help to discriminate between both local markets and variations in land values.


With an uncanny similarity to President Barack Obama across the Atlantic, Cem Ozdemir won the German Green Party's election in November 2008, becoming his country's first ethnic Turk to be elected the leader of a major political party. At age 43 he is also one of the youngest political leaders in Germany. The son of Turkish guest workers who arrived in Germany in the 1960s, he quickly rose to power. Within a decade of becoming the first Turkish member of the German parliament at the age of 28, Ozdemir served as the interior policy spokesman for the Greens, a fellow for the German Marshall Fund, and an elected member of the European Parliament. In the wake of Obama's election, Ozdemir--often called "Germany's Obama"--has the potential to expand greatly the role of racial minorities in European politics, a role that is still quite small across the continent. The comparison between Obama's and Ozdemir's victories is hard to ignore--after all, during Ozdemir's campaign, his supporters coined the term "Yes We Cem," modeled after Obama's campaign slogan, "Yes We Can." This phrase may be fitting, given their common decision not to make ethnicity a campaign issue, but a closer examination reveals a large distinction between the two. Obama allowed the historical significance of his victory to run its course and focused on the message of change. Ozdemir, however, has made the deliberate effort not to campaign on behalf of Germany's 2.7 million Turks who make up the country's biggest, yet still marginalized, ethnic minority. While acknowledging that most Turks live in ghettos and lack good education, Ozdemir has demonstrated no desire to address the specific issues of minority rights and integration policies. In fact, he laments that the very fact that his background has generated such interest shows how much progress is necessary to transcend ethnicity in politics. He has pointed fingers at both native Germans and immigrants for the tense situation, arguing that Germans must accept "hyphenated identities" of fellow citizens of foreign origin and that immigrants should cease to view Germany as "enemy territory." Ozdemir's unwillingness to discuss ethnicity and call for a "color-blind Germany" is unfortunate for Europe. Through his refusal to speak up for more diverse political leadership in Germany, he is failing to take advantage of a unique opportunity to transform the white-male dominated political landscape. Only two lawmakers in the 612-seat Bundestag, the German parliament, can claim Turkish roots, with another eight coming from all other minority backgrounds. On the state level, all 16 premiers are white men. These numbers hardly reflect the fact that almost 20 percent of the population has some minority background. The disappointingly minimal diversity in politics is by no means unique to Germany. Though only 15 out of 646 members of the British House of Commons are of non-Caucasian origins, ethnic minorities make up at least eight percent of Britain's population. Even worse, although 7 percent of its population is of North African descent and Islam is the second-largest and fastest-growing religion in the country, France has little ethnic diversity in politics: none of the 577 deputies in the French National Assembly, except for those from the overseas territories, represents these two groups. …


Big data has met its match. In field after field, the ability to collect data has exploded, overwhelming human insight and analysis. But the computing advances that helped deliver the data have also conjured powerful new tools for making sense of it all. In a revolution that extends across much of science, researchers are unleashing artificial intelligence (AI), often in the form of artificial neural networks, on these mountains of data. Unlike earlier attempts at AI, such "deep learning" systems don't need to be programmed with a human expert's knowledge. Instead, they learn on their own, often from large training data sets, until they can see patterns and spot anomalies in data sets far larger and messier than human beings can cope with.


In the authoritative body of mainstream work citizenship has typically been conceptualized in a universal, often abstract manner, easily leading to its construction as a very general, supposedly 'objective' notion. Such tendencies to decontextualization tend to locate the concept of citizenship within the nation-state and, simultaneously, give a lack of attention to diversified contexts in which citizenship, and gendered citizenship in particular, are practiced, articulated and experienced. Citizenship is usually conceived of as based in rights, responsibilities and/or obligations, and is inclusive of, and sometimes conflating, political and economic entitlements, access, and belonging. This not only involves, in different combinations and degrees, formal political representation, but also social and cultural rights, access to state machinery and public services, and perhaps most obviously national militaries and militarisms.


A Counter-Rotating System (CRS) is composed of a front rotor and a rear rotor which rotates in the opposite direction. Compared with traditional rotor-stator system, the rear rotor is used not only to recover the static head but also to supply energy to the fluid. Therefore, to achieve the same performance, the use of a CRS may lead to a reduction of the rotational speed and may generate better homogeneous flow downstream of the stage. On the other hand, the mixing area in between the two rotors induces complicated interacting flow structures.Blade sweep has attracted the turbomachinery blade designers owing to a variety of performance benefits it offers. However, the effect of blade sweep on the performance, stall margin improvements whether it is advantageous/disadvantageous to sweep one or both rotors has not been studied till now. In the current investigation blade sweep on the performance characteristics of contra rotating axial flow fans are studied. Two sweep schemes (axial sweeping and tip chord line sweeping) are studied for two sweep angles (20° and 30°). Effect of blade sweep on front rotor and rear rotor are dealt separately by sweeping one at a time. Both rotors are swept together and effect of such sweep scheme on the aerodynamic performance of the stage is also reported here. The performance of contra rotating fan is significantly affected by all these parameters. Blade sweep improved the pressure rise and stall margin of front rotors. Axially swept rotors are found to have higher pressure rise with reduced incidence losses near the tip for front rotors. Sweeping the rear rotor is not effective since the pressure rise is less than that of unswept rotor and also has less stall margin.Copyright © 2015 by ASME


One way to provide fault isolation among cooperating software modules is to place each in its own address space. However, for tightly-coupled modules, this solution incurs prohibitive context switch overhead. In this paper, we present a software approach to implementing fault isolation within a single address space.Our approach has two parts. First, we load the code and data for a distrusted module into its own fault do main, a logically separate portion of the application's address space. Second, we modify the object code of a distrusted module to prevent it from writing or jumping to an address outside its fault domain. Both these software operations are portable and programming language independent.Our approach poses a tradeoff relative to hardware fault isolation: substantially faster communication between fault domains, at a cost of slightly increased execution time for distrusted modules. We demonstrate that for frequently communicating modules, implementing fault isolation in software rather than hardware can substantially improve end-to-end application performance.


The effect of mung-bean dietary fibre on the acidification in culture broths by using six intestinal bacterial strains was investigated. The strains were cultured anaerobically individually in broths containing 2 kinds of mung-bean fibre, mung-bean hull and cellulose at 37°C. The results showed that Bifidobacterium bifidum andBifidobacterium longum in the broths containing each kind of mung-bean fibre had the highest acidification ability than the broths containing mung-bean hull and cellulose. Lactobacillus acidophilus, Enterococcus faecalisand, Escherichia coli, and Bacteroides fragilis also showed acidification ability in the broths containing each kind of fibres, but the acidification ability of these intestinal bacterial strains was significantly different. However, the mung-bean fibre played an important role in acidification of broths cultured with intestinal microflora.

 Key words: Acidification, fibre, intestinal, microflora, mung-bean.


Crowdsourcing is lately developed expression which meaning that the outsourcing process of activities by crowd in the form of an 'open call' or a firm to an online community. An assigned task can be completed by any member of the crowd and be paid due to their efforts, also to attract the best possible ideas and approaches to boost innovation or to complete data processing tasks. Though the labor organization form was pioneered in the calculation sector, businesses companies have begun using 'crowdsourcing' for a various domain of tasks that they discover can be preferable completed and good achieved with crowds' members instead of their own employees. This research will define the principle of crowdsourcing, types of it, challenges of crowdsourcing, also it will explain advantages and disadvantages and the way that firms are utilizing marketing task application crowdsourcing for the completion, discuss some of legal issues and ethical issues with regulations. Finally, this article will be completed as a paper research for crowdsourcing.


This illustrative case study aims to explore the use of
turn-taking and negotiation of meaning between two low-intermediate female Japanese
university students and consider pedagogical implications. After a voice-recorded
online conversation between the participants via Zoom was transcribed by an
online automatic transcription tool and the researcher, a conversation analysis
was conducted based on Wong and Waring (2021). The findings illustrated that
the participants utilised various negotiation strategies, especially confirmation
check, clarification requests, and comprehension check, to elicit more
information about the interlocutor and shift from one conversation topic to
another. Furthermore, their first language communicative beliefs might play an
important role in their use of negotiation and turn-taking. Therefore, language
teachers may need to provide learners with many opportunities to learn and use
various negotiation strategies in meaning-driven interactive activities whilst
appreciating the learners' first language communication cultures.


Gafatar is a form of community upheaval in Indonesia in the current reformed era. Issues surrounding the ideology and the attempts of treason case became the problem that caused Gafatar to lose the masses of the public. Gafatar has the concept of food self-sufficiency that is then implemented in a peasant movement as its criticism of the government. To explain the dynamics of the Gafatar social movement, this work used McAdam et al theories about Political Opportunities, Mobilizing Structures, and Cultural Framings. The political opportunity arises from the distrust of government programs that have been offered to the people who are deemed ineffective. Mobilizing structures of Gafatar movement is manifested through the formation of the organization, forming a network of cooperation, and collective action. While cultural framing, created through the issues addressed to Gafatar causing the formation of negative stigma in society.


Recent environmental policies favor the 'pollutant-payer' Principle. This Principle points out the pollutant financial liability for eventual incident induced by its activities. Investing in technological innovations generates uncertainty on the future returns, as well as on the damages that such innovations could involve and on the cost to pay in case of troubles. To reduce this uncertainty, the firm has the opportunity to acquire information, for example through research activities, on its project's potential consequences on human health and on the environment. However, in their efforts to obtain and/or to maintain a marketing authorization with the Regulator affairs, firms may develop specific strategies to exploit scientific uncertainty. They may produce favorable scientific findings. In case of accident, the firm having this type of behavior can be legally charged. We then analyze whether liability rules and tort law incentive the firm both to invest in research and development in order to reduce the uncertainty and to decrease miscommunication on the results. We find that the firm's decision to stop or continue to sell its product depends on the levels of precision of the exogenous and of the endogenous information she receives, and on the ratio between marginal benefit and damages from maintaining the product in the future. We then understand that the firm's decision to adopt a lobby behavior depends on its expected payoff, its level of research, and its belief being sentenced when she has chosen to adopt a lobby behavior. Finally, we clarify the effect of the penal liability on the firm's investment in research decision. The level of the fine pushes the firm to reduce its uncertainty about the risk of accident. However, if she perceives that the risk of accident is high, its investment in research will decrease with the level of the fine for maintaining its expected payoff.


Following non-specific inflammation, greater numbers of mononuclears than polymorphonuclear leukocytes were found to migrate into a 'skin-window' in patients with late syphilis. This mononuclear preponderance was statistically significant, the normal control subjects showing a preponderance of polymorphonuclears.


In the weeks and months following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, New Yorkers and others began what would turn into a heated and protracted debate about the appropriate way to rebuild the space occupied by the World Trade Center and to memorialize those killed. Families of the victims, politicians, property developers, and neighborhood residents, among others, all held their own strong - and often conflicting - opinions about the rebuilding and the memorial space. This paper examines the ways in which the final memorial design, Reflecting Absence by Michael Arad and Peter Walker, negotiates the difficult task of balancing the need for intimate, personal recollection with the intensely public nature of the memorial. How effectively do the formal elements of the memorial respond to the goals outlined in the competition brief, including "recogniz[ing] each individual who was a victim of the attacks, provid[ing] a space for contemplation, creat[ing] a unique and powerful setting, and convey[ing] historic authenticity"? How does the completed memorial engage its visitors during their exploration of the site? In what ways are visitors encouraged to interact with the memorial, thus claiming, however briefly, a connection to the events that unfolded in that space? I suggest that Reflecting Absence has mixed success in addressing these elements and other critical aspects of memorial design, while recognizing that the intensely personal nature of the memorial experience resonates differently for each visitor. I also suggest that the impact of the memorial will change over time as construction of other buildings on the site is completed and as the memorial becomes a familiar part of the fabric of lower Manhattan.


Intellectual Disability (ID) (formerly called mental retardation) is the most common developmental disability. Intellectual disability (ID) is characterized by significant impairment in cognitive and adaptive behavior. The overall prevalence of intellectually challenged children is between 1-3% among all children under 18 years of age. Intellectual disability can be mild, moderate or severe. Children with such disability typically require more support from the family, society and especially from school. Children with milder IDs can gain some independent skills, especially in communities with good teaching and support. There are many programs and resources available to help these children as they grow into adulthood. The education for children with intellectual disabilities has changed from no education to special education and so many special schools have evolved in the community to cater to the needs of the intellectually disabled children. Children enrollment in these schools has increased to a greater extend at present. This study aims to understand the socioeconomic profile of the families of the children attending schools. Questionnaire was framed to collect the needed data of 338 children's family and individual record of the children maintained by the institution where the child is enrolled were used to get the pertinent information. It is inferred from the study results that, the study population belonged to the age group of 9-16 years. The percentage of boys in the study population was 67.2% and female 32.8%. Majority of the children who attended the school were from nuclear type of family (71.3%) and hailed from urban area (65%). The religion of majority of the children was Hindu and the financial position was moderate in 62% of the family. The educational level of the children's father (Middle School) was better than the mothers (Primary School). Consanguineous type of marriage was found in 66.9% of the family. The obtained results showed a statistically significant association between the level of retardation and socioeconomic determinants such as age and gender.


Introduction: Penumbra SMART COIL® (SMART) System is a novel generation embolic coil with varying stiffness. The study purpose was to report real-world usage of the SMART System in patients with intracranial aneurysms (ICA) and non-aneurysm vascular lesions. Materials and Methods: The SMART Registry is a post-market, prospective, multicenter registry requiring ≥75% Penumbra Coils, including SMART, PC400, and/or POD coils. The primary efficacy endpoint was retreatment rate at 1-year and the primary safety endpoint was the procedural device-related serious adverse event rate. Results: Between June 2016 and August 2018, 995 patients (mean age 59.6 years, 72.1% female) were enrolled at 68 sites in the U.S. and Canada. Target lesions were intracranial aneurysms in 91.0% of patients; 63.5% were wide-neck and 31.8% were ruptured. Adjunctive devices were used in 55.2% of patients. Mean packing density was 32.3%. Procedural device-related serious adverse events occurred in 2.6% of patients. The rate of immediate post-procedure adequate occlusion was 97.1% in aneurysms and the rate of complete occlusion was 85.2% in non-aneurysms. At 1-year, the retreatment rate was 6.8%, Raymond Roy Occlusion Classification (RROC) I or II was 90.0% for aneurysms, and Modified Rankin Scale (mRS) 0-2 was achieved in 83.1% of all patients. Predictors of 1-year for RROC III or retreatment (incomplete occlusion) were rupture status (P < 0.0001), balloon-assisted coiling (P = 0.0354), aneurysm size (P = 0.0071), and RROC III immediate post-procedure (P = 0.0086) in a model that also included bifurcation aneurysm (P = 0.7788). Predictors of aneurysm retreatment at 1-year was rupture status (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: Lesions treated with SMART System coils achieved low long-term retreatment rates. Clinical Trial Registration: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/, identifier NCT02729740.


Objectives Despite extensive research into the determinants of electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) uptake, few studies have examined the psychosocial benefits ENDS users seek and experience. Using a consumer ritual framework, we explored how ENDS users recreated or replaced smoking practices, and considered implications for smoking cessation. Design In-depth interviews; data analysed using thematic analysis. Setting Dunedin, New Zealand. Participants 16 young adult ENDS users (age M=21.4, SD=1.9; 44% female). Results Participants reported using different ENDS to achieve varying outcomes. Some used 'cigalikes' to recreate a physically and visually similar experience to smoking; they privileged device appearance over nicotine delivery. In contrast, others used personally crafted mods to develop new rituals that differentiated them from smokers and showcased their technical expertise. Irrespective of the device they used, several former smokers and dual users of cigarettes and ENDS experienced strong nostalgia for smoking attributes, particularly the elemental appeal of fire and the finiteness of a cigarette. Non-smoking participants used ENDS to maintain social connections with their peers. Conclusions Participants used ENDS to construct rituals that recreated or replaced smoking attributes, and that varied in the emphasis given to device appearance, nicotine delivery, and social performance. Identifying how ENDS users create new rituals and the components they privilege within these could help promote full transition from smoking to ENDS and identify those at greatest risk of dual use or relapse to cigarette smoking.


Allan Peterkin and Cathy Risdon

Toronto: University of Toronto Press; 2003. 336 pp. $85 (cloth) ISBN 0-8020-4857-9 $40 (paper) ISBN 0-8020-8379-X

Rating: ****

Audience: All medical trainees and physicians

Content: With this clinical guide, psychiatrist Allan Peterkin and family physician Cathy Risdon have made an outstanding contribution to the global literature on gay and lesbian health. Anchored solidly in scientific literature and well supported by references, the text is remarkably practical.

Chapters open with clear, topical overviews and are cleverly enhanced with clinical vignettes that offer concrete examples of best practice. There are sections on building rapport between physician and patient, sexual health, gay and lesbian adolescents, sexually transmitted diseases, issues surrounding HIV infection and prevention, mental health, substance use, body image and modification, relationships, and special groups within the gay and lesbian population — ethnic minorities, Aboriginals, the elderly, people with disabilities, rural residents and bisexual, transsexual and transgendered people.

Strengths: The chapter on professional and training issues is an excellent must-read for all leaders in medical education in Canada. Helpful strategies for curriculum development at undergraduate and postgraduate levels are provided. This chapter describes and amply illustrates how to identify and reduce homophobia in professional settings, develop a healthy and mature practice environment and promote the health and well-being of gay and lesbian physicians.

It would be an advantage to our communities if this book were a mandatory read for medical trainees and adopted as a staple resource by Canadian physicians in their daily clinical work.

Limitations: None noted.

Derek Puddester Director Faculty Wellness Program Associate Professor Department of Psychiatry University of Ottawa Ottawa, Ont.

This book is available through your local book retailer, or through the publisher at www.utppublishing.com/detail.asp?TitleID=2588


In this study, we aimed to elucidate the effects of temperature on the photoluminescence from ZnO–SiO2 nanocomposite and to describe the preparation of SiO2-coated ZnO nanocrystals using a chemical precipitation method, as confirmed by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and powder X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) techniques. Analyses using high-resolution transmission microscopy (TEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and electrophoretic light scattering (ELS) techniques showed that the new nanocomposite has an average size of 70 nm and 90% silica. Diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (DRS), photoluminescence (PL), and photoluminescence-excitation (PLE) measurements at different temperatures revealed two emission bands at 385 and 590 nm when the nanomaterials were excited at 325 nm. The UV and yellow emission bands were attributed to the radiative recombination and surface defects. The variable-temperature, time-resolved photoluminescence (VT-TRPL) measurements in the presence of SiO2 revealed the increase in the exciton lifetime values and the interplay of the thermally induced nonradiative recombination transfer of the excited-state population of the yellow emission via deep centers (DC). The results pave the way for more applications in photocatalysis and biomedical technology.


PURPOSE
To investigate the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS) as the prime initiators of the angiogenic response after alkali injury of the cornea and observe the effects of antioxidants in preventing angiogenesis.

METHODS
The corneal epithelia of SOD-1-deficient mice or wild-type (WT) mice were removed after application of 0.15 N NaOH to establish the animal model of alkali burn. ROS production was semiquantitatively measured by dihydroethidium (DHE) fluorescence. Angiogenesis was visualized by CD31 immunohistochemistry. The effects of the specific NF-κB inhibitor DHMEQ, the antioxidant N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), and hydrogen (H2) solution were observed.

RESULTS
ROS production in the cornea was enhanced immediately after alkali injury, as shown by increased DHE fluorescence (P<0.01). NF-κB activation and the upregulation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were significantly enhanced (P<0.01), leading to a significantly larger area of angiogenesis. Angiogenesis in SOD-1-/- mice corneas were significantly higher in WT mice (P<0.01), confirming the role of ROS. Pretreatment with the specific NF-κB inhibitor DHMEQ or the antioxidant NAC significantly reduced corneal angiogenesis by downregulating the NF-κB pathway (P<0.01) in both WT and SOD-1-/- mice. Furthermore, we showed that irrigation of the cornea with hydrogen (H2) solution significantly reduced angiogenesis after alkali-burn injury (P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONS
Immediate antioxidant therapy with H2-enriched irrigation solution is a new potent treatment of angiogenesis in cornea to prevent blindness caused by alkali burn.


11 cases, initial Gram stain of the dialysate identified a fungus, indicating the value of this test for diagnosis. This finding is of further importance because it takes two to three days for a fungus to grow on culture. Nine of the 11 patients were treated with continuous peritoneal lavage with dialysate containing either amphotericin B (5 mg/I), or 5-fluorocytosine (50-1000 mg/l), or miconozole (20 mg/I). In seven of these nine patients this treatment proved unsuccessful and the infection was controlled only after the removal of the permanent peritoneal catheter. It is of interest that three of these patients (one with Candida and two with Fusarium peritonitis) were not given any systemic antifungal agent after the catheter had been removed. Five patients were able to continue or recommence chronic peritoneal dialysis following reimplantation of a new catheter after a period of two to eight weeks, during which time they were maintained on haemodialysis. Four patients were transferred to haemodialysis and one subsequently received a successful kidney transplant. Two patients who had bowel perforation-that is, simultaneous infection with a fungus and another enteric organism such as Bacteroides, Pseudomonas, or Proteusdied. Our experience indicates that removal of the permanent peritoneal catheter and temporary discontinuation of peritoneal dialysis are very important steps in the management of fungal peritonitis. Its prognosis is favourable so long as it is not a manifestation of faecal peritonitis. R KHANNA D G OREoPouLos S VAS D MCNEELY W MCCREADY Division of Nephrology, Toronto Western Hospital, Toronto, Ontario M5T 258, Canada


This study examines the effects of family leave policy on eight child health outcomes - five age specific child mortality rates (infant, perinatal, neonatal, post-neonatal, and child mortality rates), low birth weight, and immunization rates for measles and DPT (diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus) across 19 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries from 1969 to 2010. In addition, this dissertation investigates the extent to which the effects of leave policy vary by period and across welfare regimes. This research contributes to the existing literature (Ruhm, 2000; Tanaka, 2005) by including one additional country, South Korea, a highly developed but considerably understudied country, and by incorporating data from 2001 to 2010. I use data on family leave policy from Ruhm (2000) and Tanaka (2005) and extend it using data from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research (MPIDR), Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Health Organization (WHO), International Labour Organization (ILO), and World Bank. Additional data sources include the United States Social Security Administration (SSA), International Social Security Association (ISSA), and various government sources. I estimate the effects of family leave policy (specially, number of weeks provided) - considering both job protected paid leave and other leave (unpaid or non-job protected leave) - on child health using ordinary least squares (OLS) models. I control for other relevant variables including gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, health expenditures, healthcare coverage, dialysis patients, and fertility and female employment rates. I also include: (1) country fixed effects; (2) year fixed effects; and (3) country-time trend interactions. Missing values are imputed 20 times using the predictive mean matching method. The results suggest job protected paid leave significantly reduces infant mortality (deaths less than 1 year of age) and post-neonatal mortality (deaths between 1 month and 1 year of age). In particular, the largest effects of job protected paid leave are found in reducing post-neonatal mortality; the effects are robust throughout all model specifications. Comparing the effects of other leave (unpaid or non-job protected) and job protected paid leave, other leave has no significant effects on any of the outcome indicators. This suggests that parents do not respond to leave provided without adequate payment benefits or job protection, and mothers may return to work early. As a result, other leave does not have any significant effects on infant health. When investigating the effects of family leave policy by period with models estimated separately by two time periods, somewhat larger effects of job protected paid leave on post-neonatal mortality are found in the earlier period (1969-1989) compared to the later period (1990-2010); however, the difference in the policy effects between the two periods is not statistically significant. This difference may be explained by the fact that it was during the earlier period when most OECD countries provided leave for the first critical weeks and months after birth. In addition, when examining the effects of leave policy by welfare regime type with models estimated separately by regime type, larger effects of job protected paid leave on post-neonatal mortality are found in the Social Democratic and Conservative regimes than in the other regime types; however, the difference in the policy effects across regime types is not statistically significant. This difference may be explained partly by the fact that overall Social Democratic and Conservative welfare state countries provide more generous payment benefits for parents on leave. The concluding section discusses how these findings compare to previous research and explores future research and policy implications.


We examine trends in wage inequality in the US and other countries over the past four decades. We show that there has been a secular increase in the 90-50 wage differential in the US and the UK since the late 1970s. By contrast the 50-10 differential rose mainly in the 1980s and flattened or fell in the 1990s and 2000s. We analyze the reasons for these trends and conclude that a version of the skill biased technical change hypothesis combined with institutional changes (the decline in the minimum wage and trade unions) continues to offer the best explanation for the observed patterns of change.


This study explored the impact of preschools with a language and literacy focus on the development of early literacy. The aims of the study were to: (1) compare the emergent literacy development of children who attended a preschool with a language and literacy focus with that of a comparable group of children who did not attend such a preschool; (2) examine changes in preschoolers' conceptual understanding of print; and (3) examine changes in preschoolers' prereading skills. Subjects were 32 low-income Hawaiian children attending two preschools with a language and literacy focus and 1C nildren from a different preschool. A set of early literacy tasks, including tasks reflecting concepts about print and tasks measuring prereading skills, were administered. Results showed thac participants performed significantly better on all tasks involving traditional prereading skills than did children from tbe preschool that was not oriented towards literacy. Findings on the development of concepts about print, however, showed that the preschool experience had a measurable effect only on trie task gauging children's understanding of the functions of print. The data suggest that exposure to preschool accelerates the development of prereading skills and sophisticated aspects of emergent literacy. However, beginning print awareness derives from ordinary daily experiences. (SH) ************************ ******** **************** *********************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ********************************************** ******* ******f***********


Photographic reproductions of plates in Lamont's Handbuch des Erdmagnetismus (1849).—Professor Max Eschenhagen, in charge of the Potsdam Magnetic Observatory, informs the editor that he is in a position to be able to furnish those possessing a copy of Lamont's wellknown work, in which the plates are missing, with photographic reproductions of the same at cost price.

Mean magnetic elements for the year 1897 at Observatory Infant D. Luiz (Lisbon).—The following data have been courteously sent the JOURNAL by the director, Senhor Capello:

Declination Diurnal Variation Inclination  Intensity in C.G.S. Units(h     h8a +2p2)  (h     h8a +2p2)        Horizontal  Vertical  Total17°31′.55W    6′.23    58°08′.20  0.23385    0.36724    0.44299


of a dissertation at the University of Miami. Dissertation supervised by Professor Charles W. Luetje. No. of pages in text. (138) Insects detect specific chemicals in the environment with olfactory receptors (ORs), which represent a novel class of ligand-gated ion channel. Insect ORs are comprised of at least one common subunit (OR83b in Drosophila) and at least one odorant-binding subunit. However, the molecular details of insect OR architecture, such as how they bind odorants, are unknown. This lack of knowledge hinders the development of compounds that may modulate OR function and potentially control insects involved in disease propagation and agricultural damage. The intent of this project is to investigate the structure and function of insect ORs. To this end, the utility of the Xenopus oocyte heterologous expression system was explored. Assay optimization, accuracy, and investigations on functional requirements were first performed using the Drosophila OR (DmOR) 35a/83b. The utility of the assay system was also demonstrated by identification of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) OR 11/2 as a receptor for the queen pheromone, 9-oxo-2-decenoic acid. A series of DmORs was cloned and expressed in Xenopus oocytes and individual receptors were selected for further study. DmOR85a/83b was shown to possess an incredibly high degree of enantioselectivity for the odorant ethyl 3-hydroxybutyrate. The receptive range of DmOR67a/83b was explored and observations were made on potential features of the odorant-binding site and a ligand odorophore. DmORs were also used to investigate the contributions of individual subunits toward the odorant-binding site and pore structure. Also, evidence for receptor antagonism by odorants was revealed. DmORs were screened with methanethiosulfonate reagents and the substituted cysteine accessibility method to identify residues 146-150 of DmOR85b as functionally important in receptor activation. This region, located at the predicted interface between transmembrane segment 3 (TMS3) and extracellular loop 2, was shown to be physically adjacent to the odorant-binding site itself. Finally, residues within the extracellular half of TMS3 in DmOR85b were implicated in odorant-induced activation by screening DmOR85b mutants for altered ligand preferences. Therefore, this project provides the first identification of insect OR subunit components involved in odorant recognition, and represents an important starting point for detailed analysis of the molecular basis for insect OR activation by odorants.


Equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) causes respiratory disorders and abortion in equids while EHV-1 regularly causes equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy (EHM), a stroke-like syndrome following endothelial cell infection in horses. Both EHV-1 and EHV-9 infections of non-definitive hosts often result in neuronal infection and high case fatality rates. Hence, EHV-1 and EHV-9 are somewhat unusual herpesviruses and lack strict host specificity, and the true extent of their host ranges have remained unclear. In order to determine the seroprevalence of EHV-1 and EHV-9, a sensitive and specific peptide-based ELISA was developed and applied to 428 sera from captive and wild animals representing 30 species in 12 families and five orders. Members of the Equidae, Rhinocerotidae and Bovidae were serologically positive for EHV-1 and EHV-9. The prevalence of EHV-1 in the sampled wild zebra populations was significantly higher than in zoos suggesting captivity may reduce exposure to EHV-1. Furthermore, the seroprevalence for EHV-1 was significantly higher than for EHV-9 in zebras. In contrast, EHV-9 antibody prevalence was high in captive and wild African rhinoceros species suggesting that they may serve as a reservoir or natural host for EHV-9. Thus, EHV-1 and EHV-9 have a broad host range favoring African herbivores and may have acquired novel natural hosts in ecosystems where wild equids are common and are in close contact with other perissodactyls.


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We describe an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) front end for readout and control of planar high-frequency contactless inductive position sensors that contain transmitter and receiver coils on a fixed printed circuit board and a moving passive resonant target. Such an inductive position sensor suffers from transmitter-to-receiver signal coupling, which can result in a phase-sensitive offset; hence, an error in the position measurement occurs. For the receiver front end, we consider two analog synchronous mixer demodulators, which we call mixer-1 and mixer-2, and analyze their ability to reject phase-sensitive offsets due to transmitter signal breakthrough. The mathematical analysis is validated with measured results from the fabricated ASIC in a 0.35-mum CMOS process technology. The ASIC front end contains the transmitter driver, the two receiver mixer variants, a frequency divider/shifter, and an amplifier low-pass filter. Measurements from five ASIC samples connected to the sensor show that, with a system gain of 320, the average output offset variation with phase difference from -99 to +117deg is more than 237 mV with mixer-1 compared to less than 7 mV with mixer-2.


The hot deformation behavior of DC cast phosphorous modified and unmodified hypereutectic Al-Si alloys was studied in the temperature range of 400-500 °C and strain rate range of 0.001-1 s-1. Processing maps were developed to evaluate the efficiency of the hot deformation and to identify the instability region. The results show that the peak stresses of the unmodified alloy are higher than that of the modified alloy at the strain rate of 1 s-1 and temperatures of 400 and 440 °C. The maximum power dissipation efficiencies for both the alloys are in the region of T=480-500 °C and =0.01-0.1 s-1. The flow instabilities for both the alloys occur in regions of high strain rate about 1 s-1 and temperature about 400 and 500 °C. The instability region area of the unmodified alloy is larger than that of the modified alloy. In addition, the primary Si cracking frequencies of the unmodified alloy are higher than that of the modified alloy when compared at the same deformation rate and temperature. The coarser primary Si particles of the unmodified alloy cause higher stress concentration around them when deformed at low temperature and high strain rate.


Ubiquitin confined within nanodroplets was irradiated with a variable-power CO2 laser. Mass spectrometry analysis shows evidence for a protein "melting"-like transition within droplets prior to solvent evaporation and ion formation. Ion mobility spectrometry reveals that structures associated with early steps of denaturation are trapped because of short droplet lifetimes.


. Finite State Machine (FSM) based approaches are widely used for deriving tests with guaranteed fault coverage for discrete event systems and as the behavior of many nowadays information and control systems depends on time, classical FSMs are extended by clock variables. Moreover, optionality in the real system's specifications motivates the studying test derivation against models with the nondeterministic behavior. In this paper, we adapt classical FSM based test derivation methods for nondeterministic FSMs with timed guards and timeouts (TFSMs). We show that unlike classical FSM conformance relation, the check cannot be reduced to checking the correspondence between TFSMs transitions and this violates the main principle of FSM based test derivation methods. Respectively, a proposed approach and the appropriate fault model are based on the FSM abstraction of the given TFSM specification that is used to adequately describe the behavior of a TFSM. The fault domain contains TFSMs with the known upper boundary on the number of FSM abstraction states and allows to avoid explicit enumeration of implementations under test. We study properties of the FSM abstraction for a nondeterministic TFSM and justify that the use of an FSM abstraction allows to adapt classical FSM based test derivation methods when deriving tests with guaranteed fault coverage for TFSMs. A method is proposed for deriving a complete test suite for a complete possibly nondeterministic TFSM when an implementation under test is a deterministic complete TFSM.


Abstract This paper addresses the bias associated with parametric measurement of timing skill based on monthly timer returns when timers can make daily timing decisions. Simulations suggest that the classic Henriksson-Merton parametric measure of timing skill is weak and biased downward when applied to the monthly returns of a daily timer. The paper proposes an adjustment that mitigates this problem without the need to collect daily timer returns. Four tests of timing skill, carried out on a sample of 558 mutual funds, show that very few funds exhibit statistically significant timing skill. More encompassing, the adjusted-FF3 test (based on the specification that incorporates both the proposed adjustment and the Fama-French three-factor model) is the least biased measure of timing skill among the four—it provides for a sharper inference regarding timing skill and helps mitigate biases associated with the choice of investment style.


Trenchless pipe replacement, or pipe bursting, is a construction method that provides an alternative for rehabilitating underground infrastructure with minimal disruption to surface traffic. It is recognized as the only method of trenchless pipe rehabilitation in which a buried pipe can be replaced with a completely new pipe that functions independently of the existing line and permits the diameter of the new line to be increased. This paper presents an overview of three bursting systems currently used in the North American industry with discussion on the anatomy of a pipe bursting project, sequencing, risks, and a comparison of project elements to traditional open trench methods of construction. This paper concludes with three case studies describing the application of pipe bursting on projects that extended the current operating envelope of the technology to illustrate project specific engineered solutions to particular rehabilitation requirements. Through the sharing of knowledge and experience, a grea...


Mechanisms of Lethal Cell Injury Models of Toxicity Screening Using Cultured Cells, R.L. Grant and D. Acosta, Jr. Apoptosis: Cellular Signaling and Molecular Mechanisms, R.B. Evans and J.A. Cidlowski Role of Mitochondrial Injury During Oxidative Injury to Hepatocytes: Evidence of a Mitochondrial Permeability Transition by Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy, A.-L. Nieminen, R. Imberti, A.K. Saylor, S.A. Tesfai, B. Herman, and J.J. Lemasters Cytoprotective Strategies Glycine Cytoprotection and Inhibition of Nonlysosomal Calcium-Dependent Proteolysis During Anoxia Injury of Rat Hepatocytes, J.C. Nichols, R.C. Dickson, S.F. Bronk, and G.J. Gores Di-Calciphor-Dependent Protection against Cell Death Due to Mitochondrial Failure, D.P. Jones Role of Mitochondrial ATPase Inhibitor, IF1, in Cytoprotection During Ischemia in Slow and Fast Heart-Rate Hearts, W. Rouslin and C.W. Broge The Discovery and Pharmacology of Tirilazad Mesylate, J.M. McCall Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury The Role of Neutrophils and Reactive Oxygen Metabolites in Reperfusion Injury, B.J. Zimmerman and D.N. Granger The Inflammatory Response after Hepatic Ischemia-Reperfusion, H. Jaeschke The pH Paradox in Reperfusion Injury to Heart Cells, J.J. Lemasters, J.M. Bond, I.S. Harper, E. Chacon. H. Ohata, B. Herman, and W.E. Cascio Pathophysiology of Spinal Cord Injury in a Rat Model of Decompression Sickness, L. Marzella Stress Response and Wound Healing The Stress Response and Stress Proteins, M.E. Feder, D.A. Parsell, and S.L. Lindquist Cross Talk between Heat Shock and Oxidative Stress Inducible Genes During Myocardial Adaptation to Ischemia, D.K. Das and N. Maulik Alterations in Cell Cycle Control Factors and the Induction of Oxygen Regulated Proteins by Hypoxic Stress, H.C. Smith, R.L. Howell, and J.W. Ludlow Stress Proteins in Renal Ischemia, S. Hilden Human Keratinocyte Migration Involves Extracellular Matrix and Soluble Factors, D.T. Woodley, J.D. Chen, E. Shim, J.P. Kim, J.-C. Lapiere, and C. Peavey Endothelial Cell Signaling During Wound Healing, L.H. Romer Preservation of Cells and Organs Development and Optimization of Preservation Solutions, J.H. Southard Hypoxia, Free Radicals and Reperfusion Injury Following Cold Storage and Reperfusion of Livers for Transplantation, R.G. Thurman, W. Gao, H.D. Connor, S. Bachmann, R.T. Currin, R.P. Mason, and J.J. Lemasters Cellular Injury Associated with Organ Cryopreservation: Chemical Toxicity and Cooling Injury, G.M. Fahy, C. da Mouta, L. Tsonev. B.S. Khirabadi, P. Mehl, and H.T. Meryman


The on-going discussion on fake news is mostly focused on American and British societies in the political and social atmosphere of "alternative facts" which is non-truth. However, the issues about the impact of fake news on journalism are not contained to British and American contexts only. This paper attempts to examine the alternative facts in Indian and Nigerian societies as well as the Journalism practices in this contemporary media-savvy phase. Unlike the issues projected in the western debate on the need to re-engage and empathize with the audience and the rise of a non-facts checking culture, the apprehensions appear to be slightly different in India and Nigeria. Findings in these two countries reveal that there is a higher rate of fake news pedalled around social media platforms. According to a study conducted in India and Nigeria by the BBC in 2018, it found out that the lack of faith in mainstream news made people spread unreliable information from varying sources. The study summarises how digital platforms like Facebook. Twitter and WhatsApp fuels people to share, comment and retweet information without fact-checking. Unfortunately, this has caused a lot of violence and lack of trust in politicians and their political narratives in both countries.


BACKGROUND: Adverse psychosocial work environments, i.e. a lack of 'good' work, are implicated in the aetiology of mental and physical health problems that represent a significant, and in some cases growing, public health burden and cost to the UK economy. The contribution that an increased provision of 'good' work can make to improving population health, and addressing inequalities, is recognised by local and national government. There is some theoretical support, and limited empirical evidence to suggest, that social enterprises – organisations with social aims that use profits for that purpose – may provide 'good' work that positively impacts upon employee health and wellbeing.
AIMS: This study aimed to explore the impact of working in a social enterprise on employee health and wellbeing through the lens of 'good' work.

METHODS: A mixed-methods approach was used. Stage One involved a 'mapping' exercise of the Greater Manchester (GM) social enterprise sector. This provided a sampling frame for subsequent stages. In Stage Two, social enterprise employees (n = 21) in the region were interviewed. The findings informed the development of a questionnaire, designed to assess employees' health, wellbeing and work quality. The questionnaire was distributed in Stage Three, to all organisations identified by the mapping exercise. Results were compared to data provided by a national survey of UK employees and the general population.
RESULTS: The mapping exercise found 177 active GM social enterprises. The interviews suggested social enterprises provide 'good' work and highlighted potential pathways through which working in a social enterprise might positively impact upon health and wellbeing. The questionnaire results provided support for the interview findings and indicated, in comparison to national data, that GM social enterprise employees (n = 212) have significantly more control over work, support at work, job satisfaction and job-related wellbeing. The findings contributed to the development of a conceptual model and partly evidence how working in a social enterprise may lead to improved health and wellbeing outcomes.
CONCLUSIONS: Overall, this study suggests that social enterprises provide 'good' work environments that, in a number of ways, could be conducive to employee health and wellbeing. This is a notable finding given the contribution 'good' work can make to population health and adds to the understanding of how working in a social enterprise might impact on employee health and wellbeing.


Fog computing plays an important role to improve the efficiency of time-sensitive applications, cost reduction, and proper data management. In this paper, the above goals are made possible by processing some time-sensitive data and aggregating the rest of the data, by the modules in the fog data manager and associated storage servers, before sending it to the cloud servers. In this paper, we set the optimal workload allocation to the cloud and fog system by considering the compromise between costs of energy consumption of cloud and fog system, transfer bandwidth and revenue losses due to the WAN propagation delay, and time constraints in the Fog and Cloud system. The mixed linear programming obtained by IBM ILOG CPLEX software is solved to achieve the lowest possible cost by optimally allocating loads to fog devices and cloud servers. In addition, we show that using this approach, the total cost can be reduced by about 29%.


Abstract The social sciences have shaped how the science of public administration perceives innovations. Therefore, economic concepts of productivity and competitiveness frame the way innovations in public administrations are perceived. In contrast, this introduction develops a model for the historical analysis of innovations in administrative organizations. Using the concept of innovation, this model focuses on three levels of change processes that are analytically distinct but often occur together: (1) discourses of novelty, (2) actors of change, and (3) administrative practices.


In the Local Lymph Node Assay (LLNA), a stimulation index of 3 (SI = 3) is established as a threshold value for hazard identification of sensitization. The corresponding EC3 value, the effective concentration inducing a threefold increase compared to controls, can possibly predict threshold levels for sensitization in humans. Exposure to a dose below the threshold dose would not result in an induction of an immune response. Each repeated contact would be considered and viewed as a new contact and as long as the dose is below the threshold there will be no response, even after repeated exposures. However, repeated exposure may result in local accumulation eventually resulting in a dose that induces a response above the threshold for immunization. We investigated lymph node responses after short and prolonged exposure to formaldehyde donors, chemicals that are highly reactive with proteins and may thus persist in the skin. The studies were performed with formaldehyde and formaldehyde releasers (formaldehyde, paraformaldehyde, Quaternium-15, 2-Chloro-N-(hydroxymethyl)acetamide, and hexamethylenetetramine), at concentrations that induce a SI = 2, i.e., below the threshold for hazard identification. For all test chemicals investigated enhanced lymph node responses were obtained when comparing long-term prolonged exposure to short-term exposure, while three of five chemicals induced responses above SI = 3. Our results show that repeated and prolonged exposure to doses below the EC3 value can induce reactions above the SI = 3, the hazard identification threshold for sensitization in mice. So, when discussing the possible use of the EC3 as benchmark for risk assessment, one should consider duration of exposure and the possibility of local accumulation of the chemical under investigation.


When Mycobacterium aurum MO1 was grown with morpholine, the release of ammonia into the supernatant was proportional to the disappearance of morpholine, showing that this compound was mineralized. MO1 was able to grow in high concentrations of morpholine but accumulation of ammonia inhibited growth and degradation of morpholine. Immobilization of bacterial cells in carrageenan gel beads showed that morpholine degradation in these conditions began earlier and was faster than in free culture. One of the two branches of the lower pathway of morpholine biodegradation was induced while the other branch was inhibited in the presence of morpholine. Strain MO1 grew on heterocyclic compounds similar to morpholine, demonstrating that MO1 is able to degrade heterocyclic compounds containing nitrogen atoms (piperidine and pyrrolidine). Compounds containing sulphur or oxygen atoms or compounds with double bonds were not degraded.


This paper describes how one teacher educator used action research methodology to investigate the feasibility of using Web 2.0 technology to build a virtual professional learning community (PLC) in special education to support the preparation of highly qualified special education teachers. Study participants included 218 pre-service and in-service teachers who joined the virtual PLC over a four-year period. Data were collected using two Web 2.0 tools, wiki and Ning, and analyzed to evaluate the degree to which the virtual community met the essential characteristics of a PLC. The results showed that 200 of the 218 graduate students who joined the PLC as graduate students continued their membership after graduation but participated in community work as observers only, rarely if ever contributing anything to community growth and development. The implication of the results are discussed with respect to the importance of preparing teachers for service in today's modern 21st Century academically diverse, inclusive learning communities.


For a number of decades many governments have withdrawn from direct involvement in the provision of many goods and services. Under the broad umbrella of privatisation, authorities have used a number of techniques to make government departments more business-like and responsive to consumer needs. While privatisation involves complete divestment of a government entity, corporatisation involves converting it to a more corporate model, albeit a nonprofit one, while still retaining ownership. Using the literature on corporatisation and the nonprofit firm, this paper develops a series of models designed to help explain the potential issues that may impact on government owned cultural organisations that undergo such a process. The paper uses the case of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's six symphony orchestras as an example to demonstrate the application of the framework.


Abstract : This paper looks at the performance of the United States on the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index (GEDI), which captures the contextual features of entrepreneurship. The index builds on and improves earlier measures by capturing quantitative and qualitative aspects of entrepreneurship. It measures entrepreneurial performance in 71 countries over three sub-indexes, 14 pillars, and 31 individual and institutional variables. The United States appears among the top entrepreneurial economies and ranks third on the GEDI. It performs very well on the aspirations subindex but lags somewhat on the attitudes and activity sub-indexes. At the pillar level, the United States is strong in startup skills, competition, and new technology but weak in cultural support, tech sector, and high-growth business. U.S. performance appears be stronger on institutional variables than on individual variables. The United States? apparent weakness in the tech sector and its lack of cultural support for entrepreneurship, coupled with lack of high-growth business can be traced to a number of sources. Chief among these are the changing political environment and international volatility, the bursting of the tech sector bubble of the 1990s, the recent recession, and the improving performance of other counties. However, despite some drawbacks, U.S. performance on the index remains strong.


Background: Self-mastery is an important psychological resource to cope with stressful situations. However, we have limited understanding of self-mastery among minority aging populations. Objective: This study aims to examine the presence and levels of self-mastery among U.S. Chinese older adults. Methods: Data were drawn from the PINE study, a population-based survey of U.S. Chinese older adults in the Greater Chicago area. Guided by a community-based participatory research approach, a total of 3,159 Chinese older adults aged 60 and above were surveyed. A Chinese version of the Self-Mastery Scale was used to assess self-mastery. Results: Out of the 7-item Chinese Self-Mastery Scale, approximately 42.8% to 87.5% of Chinese older adults experienced some degree of self-mastery in their lives. Older adults with no formal education and the oldest-old aged 85 and over had the lowest level of self-mastery in our study. A higher mastery level was associated with being married, having fewer children, better self-reported health status, better quality of life, and positive health changes. Conclusion: Although self-mastery is commonly experienced among the Chinese aging population in the Greater Chicago area, specific subgroups are still vulnerable. Future longitudinal studies are needed to improve the understanding of risk factors and outcomes associated with self-mastery among Chinese older adults.


A monkey model of human pegivirus infection provides new insights into the biology of this virus. An animal model for the "Good Boy Virus" Human pegivirus (HPgV, formerly called GB virus C) can protect HIV-infected individuals from developing AIDS, a phenomenon that has earned it the nickname of the "Good Boy Virus." How HPgV imparts this protective effect remains a mystery, in part because no animal model of HPgV infection exists. Bailey and colleagues discovered viruses related to HPgV in wild baboons and showed that these viruses can infect laboratory macaque monkeys, providing unprecedented insights into the transmission, replication, and anatomical preference of HPgV with a view towards understanding HPgV-mediated protection from AIDS. Human pegivirus (HPgV)—formerly known as GB virus C and hepatitis G virus—is a poorly characterized RNA virus that infects about one-sixth of the global human population and is transmitted frequently in the blood supply. We create an animal model of HPgV infection by infecting macaque monkeys with a new simian pegivirus (SPgV) discovered in wild baboons. Using this model, we provide a high-resolution, longitudinal picture of SPgV viremia where the dose, route, and timing of infection are known. We detail the highly variable acute phase of SPgV infection, showing that the viral load trajectory early in infection is dependent on the infecting dose, whereas the chronic-phase viremic set point is not. We also show that SPgV has an extremely low propensity for accumulating sequence variation, with no consensus-level variants detected during the acute phase of infection and an average of only 1.5 variants generated per 100 infection-days. Finally, we show that SPgV RNA is highly concentrated in only two tissues: spleen and bone marrow, with bone marrow likely producing most of the virus detected in plasma. Together, these results reconcile several paradoxical observations from cross-sectional analyses of HPgV in humans and provide an animal model for studying pegivirus biology.


Nitrogen (N) is one of the most important limiting nutrients for sugarcane production. Conventionally, sugarcane N concentration is examined using direct methods such as collecting leaf samples from the field followed by analytical assays in the laboratory. These methods do not offer real-time, quick, and non-destructive strategies for estimating sugarcane N concentration. Methods that take advantage of remote sensing, particularly hyperspectral data, can present reliable techniques for predicting sugarcane leaf N concentration. Hyperspectral data are extremely large and of high dimensionality. Many hyperspectral features are redundant due to the strong correlation between wavebands that are adjacent. Hence, the analysis of hyperspectral data is complex and needs to be simplified by selecting the most relevant spectral features. The aim of this study was to explore the potential of a random forest (RF) regression algorithm for selecting spectral features in hyperspectral data necessary for predicting sugarcane leaf N concentration. To achieve this, two Hyperion images were captured from fields of 6–7 month-old sugarcane, variety N19. The machine-learning RF algorithm was used as a feature-selection and regression method to analyse the spectral data. Stepwise multiple linear (SML) regression was also examined to predict the concentration of sugarcane leaf N after the reduction of the redundancy in hyperspectral data. The results showed that sugarcane leaf N concentration can be predicted using both non-linear RF regression (coefficient of determination, R 2 = 0.67; root mean square error of validation (RMSEV) = 0.15%; 8.44% of the mean) and SML regression models (R 2 = 0.71; RMSEV = 0.19%; 10.39% of the mean) derived from the first-order derivative of reflectance. It was concluded that the RF regression algorithm has potential for predicting sugarcane leaf N concentration using hyperspectral data.


Building a complete inertial navigation system using the limited quality data provided by current smartphones has been regarded challenging, if not impossible. This paper shows that by careful crafting and accounting for the weak information in the sensor samples, smartphones are capable of pure inertial navigation. We present a probabilistic approach for orientation and use-case free inertial odometry, which is based on double-integrating rotated accelerations. The strength of the model is in learning additive and multiplicative IMU biases online. We are able to track the phone position, velocity, and pose in realtime and in a computationally lightweight fashion by solving the inference with an extended Kalman filter. The information fusion is completed with zero-velocity updates (if the phone remains stationary), altitude correction from barometric pressure readings (if available), and pseudo-updates constraining the momentary speed. We demonstrate our approach using an iPad and iPhone in several indoor dead-reckoning applications and in a measurement tool setup.


To the Editor.— Pachyonychia congenita (PC), a rare genodermatosis, to our knowledge was first described by Jadassohn and Lewandowsky in 1906. It is characterized by the typically thickened dystrophic nails, keratoderma of the palms and soles, hyperhidrosis, plantar blisters, keratosis pilaris, leukokeratosis oris, ichythosis, steatocytoma multiplex, epidermal cysts, and other features of dyskeratosis such as corneal dystrophy, cataract, hypoplastic hair, and changes in the teeth, nose, ears, and mucous membranes. A majority of the cases were reported from Europe and America, and studies from several large families have demonstrated that PC is transmitted as a simple mendelian dominant gene with incomplete penetrance. 2-6 Asian cases were rarely reported, and the disease, as far as we are aware, has not been known to be inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. Recently, an Indian girl from Western Malaysia was found to have PC, but the disease appeared to be a recessive disorder, as she was


The Kennedy Space Center Network Documentation System (KSC NDS) is being designed and implemented by NASA and the KSC contractor organizations to provide a means for network tracking, configuration, and control. Currently, a variety of host and client platforms are in use as a result of each organization having established its own network documentation system. The solution is to incorporate as many existing 'systems' as possible in the effort to consolidate and standardize KSC-wide documentation.


Gliomas take a number of different genetic routes in the progression to glioblastoma multiforme, a highly invasive variant that is mostly unresponsive to current therapies. Gliomas express elevated levels of matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which have been implicated in the control of proliferation and invasion as well as neovascularization. Progressive loss of LGI1 expression has been associated with the development of high grade gliomas. We have shown previously that the forced re-expression of LGI1 in different glioma cells inhibits proliferation, invasiveness, and anchorage-independent growth in cells null for its expression. Here, using Affymetrix gene chip analysis, we show that reexpression of LGI1 in T98G cells results in the downregulation of several MMP genes, in particular MMP1 and MMP3. LGI1 expression also results in the inhibition of ERK1/2 phosphorylation but not p38 phosphorylation. Inhibition of the MAPK pathway using the pharmacological inhibitors PD98059, U0126, and SB203580 in T98G LGI1-null cells inhibits MMP1 and MMP3 production in an ERK1/2-dependent manner. Treatment of LGI1-expressing cells with phorbol myristate acetate prevents the inhibition of MMP1/3 and restores invasiveness and ERK1/2 phosphorylation, suggesting that LGI1 acts through the ERK/MAPK pathway. Furthermore, LGI1 expression promotes phosphorylation of AKT, which leads to phosphorylation of Raf1, an event shown previously to negatively regulate ERK1/2 signaling. These data suggest that LGI1 plays a major role in suppressing the production of MMP1/3 through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/ERK pathway. Loss of LGI1 expression, therefore, may be an important event in the progression of gliomas that leads to a more invasive phenotype in these cells.


The influence of gas flow on the plasma generation in the atmospheric plasma jet is described with the theory of hydrodynamics. The plasma discharge is affected by the gas-flow streams with Reynolds number (Re) as well as the gas pressure with Bernoulli`s theorem according to the gas flow rate inserted into the glass tube. The length of plasma column is varied with the flow types such as the laminar flow of Re4,000 as it has been known in a general fluid experiments. In the laminar flow, the plasma column length is increased as the increase of flow rate. Since the pressure in the glass tube becomes low as the increase of flow velocity by the Bernoulli`s theorem, the breakdown voltage of plasma discharge is reduced by the Paschen`s law. Therefore, the plasma length is increased as the increasing flow rate with the fixed operation voltage. In the transition of laminar and turbulent flows, the plasma length is decreased. When the flow becomes turbulent as the flow rate is increasing, the plasma length becomes short and the discharge is shut down ultimately. In the discharge of laminar flow, the diameter of plasma beam exposed on the substrate surface is kept less than the glass diameter, since the gas flow is kept to the distinct distance from the nozzle of glass tube.


Although insights uncovered by design cognition are often utilized to develop the methods used by human designers, using such insights to inform computational methodologies also has the potential to improve the performance of design algorithms. This paper uses insights from research on design cognition and design teams to inform a better simulated annealing search algorithm. Simulated annealing has already been established as a model of individual problem solving. This paper introduces the Heterogeneous Simulated Annealing Team (HSAT) algorithm, a multi-agent simulated annealing algorithm. Each agent controls an adaptive annealing schedule, allowing the team develop heterogeneous search strategies. Such diversity is a natural part of engineering design, and boosts performance in other multi-agent algorithms. Further, interaction between agents in HSAT is structured to mimic interaction between members of a design team. Performance is compared to several other simulated annealing algorithms, a random search algorithm, and a gradient-based algorithm. Compared to other algorithms, the team-based HSAT algorithm returns better average results with lower variance.


Low market rates call for special types of debt instruments. This report discusses the tax questions presented by several of those instruments, including fixed-to-floating rate instruments, range accrual debt instruments, and callable step-up instruments. The authors note several ambiguities in the regulations regarding variable-rate and contingent payment debt instruments and call for clarification. They also explore some counterintuitive results of the technical operation of the regulations and argue that a possible explanation may be that the regulations were drafted during times of different market characteristics.


Leishmania (L.) killicki (syn. L. tropica), which causes cutaneous leishmaniasis in Maghreb, was recently described in this region and identified as a subpopulation of L. tropica. The present genetic analysis was conducted to explore the spatio-temporal distribution of L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) and its transmission dynamics. To better understand the evolution of this parasite, its population structure was then compared with that of L. tropica populations from Morocco. In total 198 samples including 85 L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) (from Tunisia, Algeria and Libya) and 113 L. tropica specimens (all from Morocco) were tested. Theses samples were composed of 168 Leishmania strains isolated from human skin lesions, 27 DNA samples from human skin lesion biopsies, two DNA samples from Ctenodactylus gundi bone marrow and one DNA sample from a Phlebotomus sergenti female. The sample was analyzed by using MultiLocus Enzyme Electrophoresis (MLEE) and MultiLocus Microsatellite Typing (MLMT) approaches. Analysis of the MLMT data support the hypothesis that L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) belongs to the L. tropica complex, despite its strong genetic differentiation, and that it emerged from this taxon by a founder effect. Moreover, it revealed a strong structuring in L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) between Tunisia and Algeria and within the different Tunisian regions, suggesting low dispersion of L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) in space and time. Comparison of the L. tropica (exclusively from Morocco) and L. killicki (syn. L. tropica) population structures revealed distinct genetic organizations, reflecting different epidemiological cycles.


A root separation experiment was conducted to investigate the plant growth and rhizosphere soil microbes and enzyme activities in a mulberry/soybean intercropping system. As compared with those in plastic barrier and nylon mesh barrier treatments, the plant height, leaf number, root length, root nodule number, and root/shoot ratio of mulberry and soybean in non-barrier treatment were significantly higher, and the soybean's effective nodule number was larger. The available phosphorous content in the rhizosphere soils of mulberry and soybean in no barrier and nylon mesh barrier treatments was increased by 10.3% and 11.1%, and 5.1% and 4.6%, respectively, as compared with that in plastic barrier treatment. The microbial number, microbial diversity, and enzyme activities in the rhizosphere soils of mulberry and soybean were higher in the treatments of no barrier and nylon mesh barrier than in the treatment of plastic barrier. All the results indicated that there was an obvious interspecific synergistic effect between mulberry and soybean in the mulberry/soybean intercropping system.


The antioxidative phytochemicals in various fruits and vegetables are widely recognized for their role in scavenging free radicals, which are involved in the etiology of many chronic diseases. Colored fruits are especially considered a quality trait that correlates with their nutritional values and health benefits. The specific aim of this study was to investigate the antioxidants in the juice and freeze-dried flesh and peel of red pummelo and their ability to scavenge free radicals and compare them with those in white pummelo juice. The total phenolic content of red pummelo juice extracted by methanol (8.3 mg/mL) was found to be significantly higher than that of white pummelo juice (5.6 mg/mL). The carotenoid content of red pummelo juice was also significantly higher than that in white pummelo juice. The contents of vitamin C and delta-tocopherol in red pummelo juice were 472 and 0.35 mug/mL, respectively. The ability of the antioxidants found in red pummelo juice to scavenge radicals were found by methanol extraction to approximate that of BHA and vitamin C with a rapid rate in a kinetic model. The ability of methanol extracts of freeze-dried peel and flesh from red pummelo to scavenge these radicals was 20-40% that of BHA and vitamin C effects. Fresh red pummelo juice is an excellent source of antioxidant compounds and exhibited great efficiency in scavenging different forms of free radicals including DPPH, superoxide anion, and hydrogen peroxide radicals.


A search motivated by supersymmetric models with light top squarks is presented using proton-proton collision data recorded with the CMS detector at a center-of-mass energy of ffiffiffi s p ¼ 7 TeV during 2011, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 4 : 98 fb (cid:1) 1 . The analysis is based on final states with a single lepton, b -quark jets, and missing transverse energy. Standard model yields are predicted from data using two different approaches. The observed event numbers are found to be compatible with these predictions. Results are interpreted in the context of the constrained minimal supersymmetric standard model and of a simplified model with four top quarks in the final state.


Two novel acceptor–acceptor (A–A) type polymer electron acceptors, PPDI-DTBT and PFPDI-DTBT, which contain perylene diimide (PDI) and fused PDI (FPDI) with electron deficient 4,7-dithienyl-2,1,3-benzothiadiazole (DTBT) units, respectively, are designed and synthesized to investigate their application in all-polymer solar cells (all-PSCs). With a narrow band-gap polymer, PTB7-Th, as the polymer donor, all-PSCs based on PTB7-Th:PPDI-DTBT showed a promising power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 4.07%, whereas the photovoltaic performance of PTB7-Th:PFPDI-DTBT was further improved with a PCE of 6.23%, which is the best device performance (ca. 75% higher) for all-PSCs of PDI-based A–A type polymer acceptors reported so far. Their optical, electrochemical, photoluminescence and charge transport properties were investigated to illustrate the difference in the photovoltaic performance. The results open a design strategy of PDI-based A–A type polymer electron acceptors through modifying the polymer structure to restrict molecular chain interactions to achieve high performance all-PSCs.


Discrete feature models (DFMs) are widely used to represent complex geological systems involving fracture networks and faults. Because DFMs explicitly incorporate these features, the complexity of the simulation model increases with the number of features included. The explicit resolution of very large numbers of features is therefore not tenable, which motivates the development of effective-property models for such systems. Previous work has incorporated full-tensor treatments for the matrix into DFMs through use of multipoint flux approximation (MPFA). This enables the matrix to include the permeability effects of subgrid fractures, though it does not model the dual-continuum behavior that will result for well-connected fracture networks. In this work, we introduce a new model, called the Dual Continuum – Discrete Feature Model (DC-DFM), that accounts for the dual-continuum nature of matrix–subgrid fracture interactions. In the DC-DFM methodology, the matrix continuum and the subgrid fracture continuum are both connected to the explicitly represented discrete features. To account for the full-tensor nature of the effective matrix and fracture permeability, the MPFA-O discretization scheme is applied to each continuum separately. Mass transfer between subgrid fractures and matrix rock is modeled using a transfer function. Numerical results for single-phase gas and two-phase oil-water systems are presented. High degrees of accuracy using DC-DFM, relative to reference fine-grid simulations, are achieved for the gas production examples. DC-DFM accuracy is not as high, though it is still reasonable, for the two-phase flow case. Speedups of a factor of 150 or more relative to fine-grid simulations are achieved using DC-DFM.


The research investigates the potential of a geographical information system to analyse the recorded displacement of office and industrial occupiers in Tyne and Wear, England. The paper demonstrates that a GIS provides an effective tool with which to illustrate, analyse and model occupier displacement and market filtering. The research goes on to develop and test an indicator with which to identify urban areas that may be most vulnerable to property occupier displacement. The correlation of rateable value and VAT registration datasets, with the origin of occupiers of new office and industrial developments and the location of vacant chain-end property, was tested. The strongest correlation is with new VAT registrations within a three-year period. A property market resilience indicator is developed, with which to classify urban areas in terms of their resilience or vulnerability to business occupier displacement generated by commercial property development.


Detection and quantification of Cryptosporidium parvum (C. parvum) oocysts in natural soil matrix and leachates are critical to elucidate the fate and transport of C. parvum in the nature, assess the risk of contamination of water resources and potential threat to public health. Traditional detection and quantification methods are time-consuming, labor-intensive, lack of sensitivity and specificity. Real-Time Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (qPCR) overcomes the limitations in traditional methods and produces sensitive and accurate detections of small numbers of C. parvum. A few qPCR studies were present in the literature for detection and quantification of C. parvum in environmental water samples; however C. parvum in natural soil matrices and leachates have not been researched yet. This research was focused on developing a qPCR protocol for sensitive and specific detection and quantification of C. parvum in natural soil matrices and leachates. The physicochemical parameters—lysis media (TE buffer, Chelex-100), number of thermal shocks (5, 10 or 15) and thawing temperatures (37, 65 or 95oC)—controlling the DNA extraction efficiency were investigated. The oocyst age was found to be the most critical parameter affecting the oocyst disruption and it was found to be less dependent when oocysts were disrupted in TE than in Chelex-100 buffer. Changes in thawing temperature and number of thermal shocks were found more remarkable in aged than in young oocysts and increasing the number of thermal shocks beyond five did not improve the oocyst disruption. The most efficient oocyst disruption method for C. parvum oocysts regardless of their age was then established as 5 thermal shocks with thawing at 65oC in TE buffer. The DNA extraction method was coupled with purification columns to remove PCR inhibitors in environmental samples and additional PCR facilitators—MgCl2 and BSA—were examined to remove residual inhibitors and improve the amplicon yield. The combination of 3 mM MgCl2 and 600 ng/µl BSA yielded highest amplicon yield for both young and aged oocysts. The optimized parameters of DNA extraction and qPCR assay provided very specific and sensitive detections of C. parvum in our study. The minimum detection limit was 0.667 for young and 6.67 for aged C. parvum per PCR reaction and the accuracy of the detections and quantifications were 0.999. The performance of developed protocol was further tested in contrasting soil and leachate samples on the basis of PR values. Mean PR values were calculated as 40±20% Trenton, Greenson and Sparta soil leachates and 43±13% for DI water. Sucrose flotation was determined as a better isolation method than two-phase flotation and it was further experimented for varying concentrations of C. parvum. The lowest and highest PR values were determined as 4.3% and 107.8%, respectively.


Long-term care for older adults is highly affect by the COVID-19 outbreak. The objective of this rapid review is to understand what we can learn from previous crises or disasters worldwide to optimize the care for older adults in long term care facilities during the outbreak of COVID-19. We searched five electronic databases to identify potentially relevant articles. In total, 23 articles were included in this study.
Based on the articles, it appeared that nursing homes benefit from preparing for the situation as best as they can. For instance, by having proper protocols and clear division of tasks and collaboration within the organization. In addition, it is helpful for nursing homes to collaborate closely with other healthcare organizations, general practitioners, informal caregivers and local authorities. It is recommended that nursing homes pay attention to capacity and employability of staff and that they support or relieve staff where possible. With regard to care for the older adults, it is important that staff tries to find a new daily routine in the care for residents as soon as possible. Some practical tips were found on how to communicate with people who have dementia. Furthermore, behavior of people with dementia may change during a crisis. We found tips for staff how to respond and act upon behavior change. After the COVID-19 outbreak, aftercare for staff, residents, and informal caregivers is essential to timely detect psychosocial problems.
The consideration between, on the one hand, acute safety and risk reduction (e.g. by closing residential care facilities and isolating residents), and on the other hand, the psychosocial consequences for residents and staff, were discussed in case of other disasters. Furthermore, the search of how to provide good (palliative) care and to maintain quality of life for older adults who suffer from COVID-19 is also of concern to nursing home organizations. In the included articles, the perspective of older adults, informal caregivers and staff is often lacking. Especially the experiences of older adults, informal caregivers, and nursing home staff with the care for older adults in the current situation, are important in formulating lessons about how to act before, during and after the coronacrisis. This may further enhance person-centered care, even in times of crisis. Therefore, we recommend to study these experiences in future research.


Venous thromboembolic disease, including deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, is a cause of significant mortality and morbidity. For several decades, anticoagulant options for the treatment and prevention of thrombosis have been limited mainly to agents such as unfractionated heparin and oral vitamin K antagonists such as warfarin. Although these therapies have proven benefits, they also have important limitations that result in their underuse in routine clinical practice. A variety of novel anticoagulants with improved pharmacologic and clinical profiles are in development, offering benefits over traditional therapies. Specifically, progress has been made in the development of small molecule Factor Xa inhibitors and thrombin inhibitors. The most advanced drugs reviewed include DPC-423, DPC-602, razaxaban, GSK's 813893, Portola's Xa inhibitors (formerly Millennium), otamixaban, DU-176b, KFA-1982, BAY-59-7939, DX-9065a, YM-150, LY-517717, Exanta, 3DP's thrombin inhibitors, SSR-182289, LB-30057, LB-30870, BIBR-1048 and Merck's thrombin inhibitors. With their potentially consistent and predictable pharmacological profile, oral formulation, and decreased need for coagulation monitoring, these new agents will likely increase the use and duration of anticoagulation treatment in thromboembolic disorders and reduce the burden associated with long-term management.


This dissertation comprises four essays on the topic of industrial organization and environmental economics. The first essay investigates the profitability of horizontal mergers of firms with price adjustments. We take a differential game approach and both the open-loop as well as the closed-loop equlibria are considered. In the second essay, using the same approach as the first one, we study the profitability of horizontal merger of firms where the demand function is nonlinear. We take into consideration the open-loop equilibrium. The third essay studies the profitability of exogenous output constraint in a differential game model with price dynamics under the feedback strategies. The fourth essay investigates a second-best trade agreement between two countries when pollution spillovers are asymmetric to examine the strategic behavior of governments in using pollution taxes and tariffs under trade liberalization.


One of the major ecological and environmental problems confronting the Niger Delta region of Nigeria today is degradation and hazard arising from oil spill. Spillage occurs in this region either from vandalisation or sabotage by ethnic militants, youths who are jobless and therefore deliberately break open crude oil transport pipelines to scoop fuel for sale in the black market to earn a living or rupture of pipes due to ageing and mechanical malfunction. In most spillages, farmlands are lost, aquatic and wildlife is affected, and people are in many cases displaced from their homes. In extreme cases as occurred in Jesse, lives were lost. This paper examines the use of Geoinformation technology in oil spill response modelling and management. The use Global Positioning System (GPS) derived data for the creation of a management database is discussed. Data generated from the Jesse spill and fire site covering these areas were used to generate case study scenario for oil spill response modelling and clean up management operation.


Existing design schemes of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) usually focus on pedagogy, assessment and technology and rarely take into account learners' experience and motivation. Drawing from the success of quest-based initiatives, gamified web platforms, and multiuser digital games, this paper introduces an innovative motivational framework for MOOCs instructional design coined as Open Quest Framework (OpenQuest). The framework is grounded on established motivational theories such as the Self-Determination Theory and Situated Motivational Affordance. It features specific motivational mechanisms including, quests and narration, reputation systems, progression mechanisms, multiple learning pathways, well-designed feedback and social elements, that can be used to enhance learners' engagement and reduce attrition rates in MOOCs.


Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is an aggressive malignancy with a relapse rate approaching 50%, despite aggressive chemotherapy. New therapies for AML are targeted at signal transduction pathways known to support blast survival, such as the Stat3 pathway. Aberrant activation of Stat3 has been demonstrated in many different malignancies, including AML, and this finding is frequently associated with more aggressive disease. The objectives of this study were: (1) to characterize Stat3 signaling patterns in AML cells lines and primary pediatric samples; and (2) to test the efficacy and potency of a novel Stat3 inhibitor in inducing apoptosis in AML cells. We found that Stat3 was constitutively activated in 6 of 7 AML cell lines and 6 of 18 primary pediatric AML samples. Moreover, constitutively phosphorylated Stat3 was frequent in samples with normal karyotype but uncommon in samples with t(8;21). Most cell lines and primary samples responded to G-CSF stimulation, although the sensitivity and magnitude of the response varied dramatically. Our novel small-molecule Stat3 inhibitor, C188-9, inhibited G-CSF-induced Stat3 phosphorylation, induced apoptosis in AML cell lines and primary samples, and inhibited AML blast colony formation with potencies in the low micromolar range. Therefore, Stat3 inhibition may be a valuable strategy for targeted therapies for AML.


This paper studies a two-body wave energy converter which is a two-degrees-of-freedom oscillating point absorber. The two-body wave energy converter oscillating in heave with a floating body of variable geometry connected to a submerged body is designed for the Australian ocean wave conditions with excitation frequency ranging from 0.08 Hz to 0.12 Hz and wave height of 1 m. Taguchi method has been applied to investigate the system model parameters' influences on the average power output where the main input variable parameters are the power take-off stiffness and damping coefficients, submerged and floating body geometries, depth of the submerged body, floating body draft, diameter and geometry inclination angle. ANSYS AQWA is employed to obtain the hydrodynamic parameters in the regular wave conditions in order to calculate the output power. Both linear and non-linear dynamic models of the two-body wave energy converter will be analysed and simulated in both the time and frequency domains. The Power-take-off stiffness coefficient and submerged body geometry have been identified to be the most important parameters in influencing the average power output in the studied frequency range.


In the existing methods for solving matrix completion, such as singular value thresholding (SVT), soft-impute and fixed point continuation (FPCA) algorithms, it is typically required to repeatedly implement singular value decompositions (SVD) of matrices.When the size of the matrix in question is large, the computational complexity of finding a solution is costly. To reduce this expensive computational complexity, we apply Kronecker products to handle the matrix completion problem. In particular, we propose using Kronecker factorization, which approximates a matrix by the Kronecker product of several matrices of smaller sizes. Weintroduce Kronecker factorization into the soft-impute framework and devise an effective matrix completion algorithm.Especially when the factorized matrices have about the samesizes, the computational complexity of our algorithm is improved substantially.


OBJECTIVE
This study examined the positive effects on recovery outcomes for people with severe and persistent mental illness using peer-led groups based on Pathways to Recovery: A Strengths Recovery Self-Help Workbook (PTR). PTR translates the evidence-supported practice of the Strengths Model into a self-help approach, allowing users to identify and pursue life goals based on personal and environmental strengths.

METHODS
A single-group pretest-posttest research design was applied. Forty-seven members in 6 consumer-run organizations in one Midwestern state participated in a PTR peer-led group, completing a baseline survey before the group and again at the completion of the 12-week sessions. The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, the General Self-Efficacy Scale, Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, the Spirituality Index of Well-Being, and the Modified Colorado Symptom Index were employed as recovery outcomes. Paired Hotelling's T-square test was conducted to examine the mean differences of recovery outcomes between the baseline and the completion of the group.

RESULTS
Findings revealed statistically significant improvements for PTR participants in self-esteem, self-efficacy, social support, spiritual well-being, and psychiatric symptoms.

CONCLUSIONS
This initial research is promising for establishing PTR as an important tool for facilitating recovery using a peer-led group format. The provision of peer-led service has been emphasized as critical to integrating consumers' perspectives in recovery-based mental health services. Given the current federal funding stream for peer services, continued research into PTR and other peer-led services becomes more important.


Production of elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) would be better if fertilized with the proper doses and appropriate. This study aimed to determine the production of fresh matter, dry matter, ratio of grass stems and leaves, dry matter and organic matter of elephant grass given fertilizer N, P and K with the doses of 0%, 50% and 100% at defoliation at 45th day. This study used an experimental method of randomized block design experiment consisted of 5 and 3 treatments groups, so there were 15 experimental units. The treatments used were: Treatment 1 (control/not fertilizer), Treatment 2 (100 kg Urea/ha; 50 kg TSP/ha; 50 kg KCl/ha) and Treatment 3 (200 kg Urea/ha, 100 kg TSP/ha: 100 kg KCl/ha). The results showed that the doses of fertilization treatments did not significantly (P≥ 0,05) affect the fresh matter, dry matter, ratio of grass stems:leaves, dry matter and organic matter value of elephant grass at the first harvest aged 45th day. Treatment 2 and 3 increased forage the fresh matter production by 29.86% and 28.51%, respectively, while production of dry matter by 28.85% and 30.77% compared to treatment 1 (control). The ratio of grass stems and leaves varied between 59.1 - 61.26%:38,7 - 40, 9%. Organic matter content tended to increase with increasing doses of N, P and K fertilizer. Key words : elephant grass production, N, P, and K fertilizer, fertilizer doses