Aims: The study was aimed at identifying the acute effects of dynamic sitting exercises (DSE) on Stroop performance and quality of sleep in elderly persons with cognitive impairment. Materials and Methods: Sixty-eight elderly males with cognitive impairment were attended in research voluntarily, following screening tests, 62 participants were assigned randomly assigned to either DSE or control groups. At the end, 5 participants discontinued from the study. The experimental group participated in eight sessions of DSE in 2 weeks (four sessions a week). The exercise protocol consisted of stepping patterns on a chair; stretching and finger movements. The Stroop test was used to evaluate the cognitive performance of participants before and after exercise intervention. Actiwatch 7 was used to measure sleep quality. Paired t-test and independent t-test were used to analyze the data. Results: It was suggested that Stroop performance was positively affected by DSE (P ≤ 0.05); meanwhile, no statistically significant change was found in the control group (P ≥ 0.05). All parameters of sleep patterns, including sleep efficiency, wake after sleep onset, and movement and fragmentation index, were improved significantly (P ≤ 0.05). Conclusion: Although the aging process besides the environmental factors, especially lifestyle could result in cognitive impairment, DSE would improve the cognitive performance in Stroop performance test.


Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) has received increasing attention over the years, leading to multiple conceptualizations of the condition. One model in particular, the intolerance of uncertainty model (IUM; Dugas, Gagnon, Ladouceur, & Freeston, 1998), posits that individuals with GAD have an intolerance of uncertainty (IU) in which they respond negatively to uncertainty on an emotional, cognitive, and behavioral level. Furthermore, IU may be conceptualized as a cognitive bias through which individuals experience and interpret their environments. To further examine the role of IU in GAD, participants with and without GAD completed a probe discrimination task (MacLeod, Mathews, & Tata, 1986) using both general threat- and uncertainty-related stimuli. We hypothesized that relative to NonGAD participants, GAD participants would demonstrate an attentional bias toward both threat-related and uncertainty-related words. Although our results replicated findings regarding a pre-attentive attentional bias toward general threat-related stimuli, we did not find evidence of an attentional bias toward uncertainty-related stimuli. Implications of these findings are discussed.


Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. With advances in medical therapy, more and more patients are being put on androgen deprivation therapy. Literature demonstrates men undergoing surgery for prostate cancer have significant unmet needs. However, as yet, no systematic review has examined diet and diabetes. Adult males (≥18, <55 years) AND Prostate cancer AND Androgen deprivation therapy with dietary supplements, dietary control and diabetes. Intervention: ADT, dietary supplements, diabetes, dietary supplements and lycopene. Experimental vs. Control, Experimental vs. Experimental, Control vs. control. Primary outcomes: Benefit: Improvement in side effects. Harm: Adverse events following treatment. Secondary outcomes: BFRR Suvival outcomes. To assess mens' needs regarding diet and diabetes when on androgen deprivation therapy. A systematic review was conducted of prostate cancer and androgen deprivation therapy, to investigate role of diet and diabetes in androgen deprivation therapy. The systematic review elicited over 580 papers, 10 of which conformed to the search criteria. The dietary requirements were identified from the systematic review by patients as an unmet need. Additionally, very few papers addressed dietary interventions for diabetes when on ADT. These findings were confirmed by existing systematic reviews and conference papers. This systematic review demonstrated a large unmet need for dietary and diabetic care in men on ADT. Poor health related quality of life was also associated with men on ADT, within the systematic review. This study strives to explore dietary and diabetic needs, and subsequent development and implementation of an intervention to address these needs.


The study was aimed to determine the antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibition activities of the stem and leaf of five different traditional medicinal plants. The studied plants exhibited varied antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibition activities. The antioxidant activities of the plants were determined through their free radical scavenging capabilities using DPPH assay. The most potent antioxidant activity was demonstrated by Neptunia oleracea with an IC 50 of 35.45 and 29.72 µg/mL for leaf and stem, respectively. For α-glucosidase inhibition activity, Neptunia oleracea exhibited potential α-glucosidase inhibition activity with IC 50 value of 19.09 and 19.74 µg/mL for leaf and stem, respectively. The highest total phenolic content (TPC) was also marked in Neptunia oleracea leaf and stem with value of 40.88 and 21.21 mg GAE/g dry weight, respectively. The results also showed that Strobilanthes crispus collected from two different locations possessed different levels of phenolic content, antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibition activities. The study revealed that phenolic compounds could be the main contributors to the antioxidant and α-glucosidase inhibition activities with R values of 78.9 and 67.4%, respectively. In addition, antioxidant and α-glucosidase were positively correlated (R = 81.9%). Neptunia oleracea could be suggested as a potential natural source of antioxidant and antidiabetic compounds that can be used for the prevention or treatment of diabetes.


We consider the application of compressed sensing (CS) to the estimation of doubly selective channels within pulse-shaping multicarrier systems (which include orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) systems as a special case). By exploiting sparsity in the delay-Doppler domain, CS-based channel estimation allows for an increase in spectral efficiency through a reduction of the number of pilot symbols. For combating leakage effects that limit the delay-Doppler sparsity, we propose a sparsity-enhancing basis expansion and a method for optimizing the basis with or without prior statistical information about the channel. We also present an alternative CS-based channel estimator for (potentially) strongly time-frequency dispersive channels, which is capable of estimating the ¿off-diagonal¿ channel coefficients characterizing intersymbol and intercarrier interference (ISI/ICI). For this estimator, we propose a basis construction combining Fourier (exponential) and prolate spheroidal sequences. Simulation results assess the performance gains achieved by the proposed sparsity-enhancing processing techniques and by explicit estimation of ISI/ICI channel coefficients.


Inflation pressure affects every aspect of tire performance. Most tire models, including the Radt/Milliken Nondimensional Tire Model, are restricted to modeling a single inflation pressure at a time. This is a reasonable limitation, in that the Nondimensional model forms an input/output relationship between tire operating conditions and force & moment outputs. Traditional operating conditions are normal load, slip angle, inclination angle, slip ratio and road surface friction coefficient. Tire pressure is more like a tire parameter than a tire operating condition. Since the Nondimensional Tire Model is semi-empirical it does not specifically deal with tire parameters like sidewall height or tread compound. Still, tire pressure is the easiest tire parameter to change, and as the air temperature within the tire varies during use so does the inflation pressure. Thus, it is desirable to incorporate inflation pressure into the Nondimensional Tire Model as an input. This paper discusses the effects of tire pressure on tire force and moment output. Effects on lateral force and aligning torque are investigated in detail. Additionally, the effects on cornering stiffness, friction coefficients, peak aligning torque coefficient and peak shape are reviewed. New techniques to implement pressure effects in the Nondimensional Model are presented. Applications of these techniques are shown on a Formula SAE tire and a full-size radial racing tire. Additionally, the effects of inflation pressure on tire spring rate and loaded radius are investigated. While these are not modeled using Nondimensional techniques, they are important variables accompanying any tire model.


An experimental study was made to clarify and confirm: (1) the effects of a specimen preparation method on the fabric of sand; and (2) the change of sand fabric due to cyclic loading leading to liquefaction. Microscopic observations were made on the thin sections produced from sand specimens prepared by dry pluviation, dry vibration, and wet tamping methods. This study showed that dry pluviation tends to produce more "random" particle orientations and larger deviation of local void ratios than wet tamping. On the other hand, the dry vibration method produced intermediate results. This difference in fabric has the key impact on the liquefaction resistance of specimens prepared by different methods. Application of cyclic shear tends to alter the initial fabric of sand. For a "randomly" arranged sand mass, cyclic shear tends to line up the orientations of sand particles, resulting in less random arrangement of sand particles. For a "regularly" arranged sand mass, cyclic shear tends to diverge the orientations of sand particles. These findings help explain various static and cyclic behavior of sand.


Heat treatment of Pt based nanoparticles under various conditions is one of the conventional ways to modify the electrocatalytic properties for enhancement of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). However, the effect of the heat treatment atmosphere on the ORR activity especially upon specific anion adsorption still remains unclear. This paper investigates the Pt-Ni bimetallic nanoparticles (Pt2Ni1), under various heat treatment atmospheres, as enhanced cathodic electrocatalysts for the high temperature-proton exchange membrane fuel cell (HT-PEMFC) using a phosphoric acid doped polybenzimidazole (p-PBI) membrane. The X-ray spectroscopic measurement showed the variations of the electronic structures of Pt-Ni nanoparticles under the heat treatment condition. In the half-cell measurement, the argon treated electrocatalyst demonstrated the highest catalytic activity owing to the appropriate electronic interaction between Pt and Ni. The single cell test with a p-PBI membrane, at 160 °C, also confirmed the excellent oxygen reduction reactivity and durability of the argon-treated Pt-Ni nanoparticles. This result suggested that the alteration of the electronic structure by a proper heat treatment atmosphere upon specific anion adsorption decisively influenced the ORR activity both at half-cell and single-cell scales.


Abstract. This paper presents the application of a modular approach for real-time streamflow forecasting that uses different system-theoretic rainfall-runoff models according to the situation characterising the forecast instant. For each forecast instant, a specific model is applied, parameterised on the basis of the data of the similar hydrological and meteorological conditions observed in the past. In particular, the hydro-meteorological conditions are here classified with a clustering technique based on Self-Organising Maps (SOM) and, in correspondence of each specific case, different feed-forward artificial neural networks issue the streamflow forecasts one to six hours ahead, for a mid-sized case study watershed. The SOM method allows a consistent identification of the different parts of the hydrograph, representing current and near-future hydrological conditions, on the basis of the most relevant information available in the forecast instant, that is, the last values of streamflow and areal-averaged rainfall. The results show that an adequate distinction of the hydro-meteorological conditions characterising the basin, hence including additional knowledge on the forthcoming dominant hydrological processes, may considerably improve the rainfall-runoff modelling performance.


The cable-stiffened lattice shell is a new structural system for its translucence and lighting. This article discusses the effect of the connections' behavior and geometric imperfection on the structural stability and reveals the buckling mechanism of the cable-stiffened lattice shell. The spring stiffness for bolted connections of cable-stiffened lattice shells is deduced from the spring in series model. The buckling mechanism of cable-stiffened lattice shells with three types of joints have been studied based on the prototypical static experiments of bolted connections. The decrease of bolted connections' stiffness would lead to the change in the displacement distribution for the lattice shell under its ultimate load. The buckling loads and initial structural stiffness of cable-stiffened lattice shells with shim-strengthened bolted joints are approximately 80% of those for cable-stiffened lattice shells with rigid joints. The result indicates that the buckling loads of cable-stiffened lattice shells with bolted connections decrease much more slowly than the decrease of bolted connections' stiffness. The cable-stiffened lattice shell with SBP connections is more sensitive to the initial geometric imperfection. Finally, a formula has been proposed for estimating buckling loads of elliptic paraboloid cable-stiffened lattice shells with bolted connections.


Paramuricea clavata Risso, 1826 (Cnidaria: Octocorallia) is a characteristic species of Mediterranean benthic fauna. The natural diet and prey capture rate of the species were studied in the field at the Medes islands (NW Mediterranean Sea) using continuous flow incubation chambers. In situ grazing rates on DOC, detrital POC, and pico-, nano- and microplankton were examined over 1 annual cycle. P. clavata capture nanoeukaryotes, phytoplankton and ciliates as well as detrital POC. Colonies ingested an annual mean of 0.19 ± 0.17 pg C μg -1 C d -1 from these food sources. No significant capture of DOC and picoplankton (heterotrophic bacteria, Prochlorococcus sp., Synechococcus sp. and picoeukaryotes) was observed. Carbon of detrital origin accounted for 86 ± 14 % of the total ingested carbon and showed a marked seasonal pattern in which winter and spring were the seasons with the highest ingestion rates. Ingestion of live POC also exhibited a marked seasonal pattern, with the highest values occurring in winter. The results show that P. clavata has a broad and heterogeneous diet that ranges from 3.8 μm (nanoeukaryotes) to 700 μm (copepods). Capture of detrital and live POC showed minimum values during the summer period, which supports the hypothesis that trophic limitations may underlie the summer regression in activity of the species. The results, together with evidence from previous studies, suggest that the capture of detrital POC may be a common and important feature among gorgonian species. It was calculated that the species daily captured 1-22 % of diatoms, 1-9 % of nanoeukaryotes, 1-26% of dinoflagellates, 2-99% of ciliates, and 2-10% of suspended detrital POC m -3 of the water adjacent to the bottom. The estimated capture rate of the species suggests that, in littoral ecosystems, grazing by macroinvertebrates on planktonic communities and suspended detrital POC should not be disregarded.


Synchronous reluctance machines with internal rotor flux barriers can be designed to have a high saliency. Permanent magnets inserted into the rotor flux barriers considerably increase the effective saliency. The parameters of a 5 kW machine with a maximum speed of 8000 RPM for an application in a position-sensorless drive with a wide field-weakening range are evaluated by means of nonlinear finite element analyses. In addition to the normal reluctance machine, the machine with permanent magnets inserted into the rotor flux barriers is analyzed. The comparison of the characteristics of both the conventional reluctance machine and the permanent magnet assisted reluctance machine clearly shows the improved performance due to the interior permanent magnets. The main focus of the presented results is on the implementation of the machine behaviour in the control scheme of the drive.


This paper examines some discursive practices of `progressivist' education, in order to investigate the forms of power and control which constitute pedagogic knowledges and institutional subjects in the context of the `progressivist' classroom. It draws on the work of Basil Bernstein (1990), so as to theorize the classroom as `pedagogic discourse' and to foreground classroom practices as regulative practices which `recontextualize' discourses and knowledges under a principle of institutional control, rather than under a principle of pedagogic experience and learning, for pupils. Simultaneously, it uses Critical Discourse Analysis (Fairclough, 1992, 1995) as a methodology which grounds the theoretical claims on the regulative practices of `progressivist' pedagogic discourse onto concrete data of individualized teacher-pupil interaction. By examining textual properties of such interactions (particularly the teacher's extensive use of modality), the article claims that `progressivist' practices work in a subtle way, so as to privilege `procedural' or `ritual' types of knowledge rather than `principled' ones (Edwards and Mercer, 1987) and to produce pedagogic subjects who are oriented towards executing secretarial tasks, rather than developing autonomy and creativity in their learning.


Waves, by way of their speed of propagation, interaction with boundaries, and energy loss mechanisms, yield information related to the physical properties of media, through which they pass. Measurements of wave characteristics at the ground surface or in boreholes, therefore, provide a means by which to ascertain the geologic properties and internal geometry of a rock mass. The resolution of wave propagation techniques is shown to be theoretically limitless, depending only on instrument sensitivity and noise. Because of this, we recommend using techniques that can be applied in immediate proximity to candidate rock masses. Geotomography and wavefront reconstruction (holography) are considered two promising techniques for site investigation and characterization. Of the two, geotomography is treated in detail because of its lower sensitivity to noise, and ease of implementation. Algorithms are presented for both ray-optic geotomography and diffusion geotomography. Although the diffusion geotomography algorithm is more general and more satisfying from a physics standpoint, for large numbers of measurements (typical field situations) the mathematics of the inverse problem implicitly requires source frequencies that approach ray optic behavior. The ultimate conclusion is that, regardless of the algorithm used, one should probe using the highest source frequencies possible for given site conditions.


Capital structure has been a widely discussed subject among researchers, but no clear-cut answer regarding the optimal level has yet been provided. A great amount of previous researchers has studied how main theories, such as Modigliani and Miller´s "irrelevance of capital structure", perform in real life and an extensive amount of studies have been made on the conceptual link between capital structure and performance. Although the majority of previous studies have been conducted on international public firms, less attention has been given to private firms in Sweden. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the association between capital structure in Swedish unlisted firms and performance. Furthermore, this study aims to investigate whether the location of the firm influence this relationship. In line with previous research, this study use a robust regression model and a random effect model to analyze a sample of 7444 unlisted Swedish firms, operating in 28 industries, in 21 different locations, during the time period 2009-2014. Return on assets is used as a proxy for performance and capital structure is defined as total, short term and long term debt scaled to total assets respectively. Our results show that there is a negative association between capital structure and performance and thereby reveals results in line with the pecking order theory. This implies that high levels of debt seems to increase the cost of outside financing in the presence of asymmetric information, which will make managers of private firms in Sweden more likely to use inside finance to acquire capital for their operations. Furthermore, a concave association between capital structure and performance is tested for total debt and short term debt in line with the agency cost theory. This result is also significant and provides reasons to assume that there might be an optimal capital structure in private firms in Sweden. To the authors' best knowledge this study is one of the first to examine a concave relationship between capital structure and performance on private listed firms in Sweden as well as finding a significant impact of location on this association. In our additional analysis we also observe that the relationship between capital structure and performance is significantly different in Stockholm, Vastra Gotaland and Skane in comparison to firms located in other places.


A new approach called Flow Curvature Method has been recently developed in a book entitled Differential Geometry Applied to Dynamical Systems. It consists in considering the trajectory curve, integral of any n-dimensional dynamical system as a curve in Euclidean n-space that enables to analytically compute the curvature of the trajectory or the flow. Hence, it has been stated on the one hand that the location of the points where the curvature of the flow vanishes defines a manifold called flow curvature manifold and on the other hand that such a manifold associated with any n-dimensional dynamical system directly provides its slow manifold analytical equation the invariance of which has been proved according to Darboux theory. The Flow Curvature Method has been already applied to many types of autonomous dynamical systems either singularly perturbed such as Van der Pol Model, FitzHugh-Nagumo Model, Chua's Model, etc. or non-singularly perturbed such as Pikovskii-Rabinovich-Trakhtengerts Model, Rikitake Model, Lorenz Model,... Moreover, it has been also applied to non-autonomous dynamical systems such as the Forced Van der Pol Model. In this article it will be used for the first time to analytically compute the slow invariant manifold analytical equation of the four-dimensional Unforced and Forced Heartbeat Model. Its slow invariant manifold equation which can be considered as a "state equation" linking all variables could then be used in heart prediction and control according to the strong correspondence between the model and the physiological cardiovascular system behavior.


In recent years, healthcare has shifted towards treating each cancer patient as an individual, rather than one of thousands with a similar disease. With the advances that have been made in molecular profiling, it is no longer feasible to apply a broad cancer treatment when there is a plethora of tumour variability. In this day and age, there is a vast amount of healthcare data at our fingertips which can be targeted and analyzed using machine learning. Machine learning, a subset of artificial intelligence, allows physicians to quickly identify evidenced-based personalized treatments specific to each patient and the molecular profile of their particular tumour. In addition to identifying the optimal treatment dosage to maximize efficacy and minimize side effects, machine learning can standardize information received by patients regardless of their physical location and the physician that they see. Although machine learning has the potential to change how we treat cancer, research is a long way from actualizing this goal. With time, research, and investments, our colleagues of the future will be utilizing this technology in their everyday practice to tailor treatments to each individual, rather than offering the same blanket treatment to all.


This paper presents the linearised Boltzmann equation for photons for scalar, vector and tensor perturbations in flat, open and closed FLRW cosmologies. We show that E- and B-mode polarisation for all types can be computed using only a single hierarchy. This was previously shown explicitly for tensor modes in flat cosmologies but not for vectors, and not for non-flat cosmologies.


When the old oak tree in the park dies, the local paper runs a competition for children to write a poem about trees. Jed starts writing immediately. The prize is his photo in the paper and lunch with the mayor! But best of all, Jed discovers that even an old oak tree can have many new lives...Recycling makes caring about the environment a worthwhile project for all young readers.


Results: 189 fetuses showed a non-visible or nearly empty stomach at the time of the scan. 54 fetuses showed additional malformations, which resulted in termination of pregnancy. In 135 fetuses NVS was an isolated abnormality. Postnatally, 2 of 135 neonates (1,48%) showed TEF. In one of those two fetuses with TEF, polyhydramnios developed in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy like in 20/133 fetuses, who did not show TEF after birth. Conclusion: Statistically the risk of TEF is elevated 50fold in cases of NVS in the second trimester of pregnancy (0.03 vs. 1.5%). In most cases of isolated NVS, the child is healthy and only 1.48% of fetuses showed TEF postnatally. A detailed scan is recommended in the third trimester in cases of NVS to detect polyhydramios and to search for direct signs of TEF like the pouch sign or the distance aorta/left atrium of the heart. Postnatally TEF should be ruled out after NVS during pregnancy to avoid aspiration pneumonia in the affected neonates.


Nowadays with the emerging of small-scale integrated energy systems (IESs) in form of residential smart microgrids (SMGs), a large portion of energy can be saved through coordinated scheduling of smart household devices and management of distributed energy resources (DERs). There are significant potentials to increase the functionality of a typical demand-side management (DSM) strategy, and typical implementation of building-level DERs by integrating them into a cohesive, networked package that fully utilizes smart energy-efficient end-use devices, advanced building control/automation systems, and an integrated communications architecture to efficiently manage energy and comfort at the end-use location. By the aid of such technologies, residential consumers have also the capability to mitigate their energy costs and satisfy their own requirements paying less attention to the configuration of the energy supply system. Regarding these points, this chapter initially defines an efficient framework for coordinated DSM and DERs manage‐ ment in an integrated building and SMG system. Then a working energy manage‐ ment system (EMS) for applications in residential IESs is described and mathematically modeled. Finally, the effectiveness and applicability of the proposed model is tested and validated in different operating modes compared to the existing models. The findings of this chapter show that by the use of an expert EMS that coordinates supply and demand sides simultaneously, it is very possible not only to reduce energy costs of a residential IES, but also to provide comfortable lifestyle for occupants. management systems


This Meta - thesis is an accompaniment to the practical work I engaged in for my Honours study. I worked with several different groups in the area of Directing Children's Theatre. My aim was to explore the ways in which one could direct children's theatre for the purposes of education, entertainment and vocation. This paper covers the theoretical side of my studies, working from theories on education, direction and Theatre in Education. From these three theoretical bases, I have developed a working theory for myself centred on a concept of "creative learning.'

I have also provided documentation of my work in the field with three organisations - Barking Gecko Children's Theatre Company, the Murdoch Children's Performing Group and Thornlie Primary School. This documentation covers the work I was engaged in, my aims and objectives and the processes I encountered/employed, including examples of how my own theory was put into practice, and the successes and failures of that practice.


In Reply. —We agree with Hess that a single-payer health insurance system would increase access to care. In fact, in our letter we stated that "one of the solutions [to the access problem for children] is to increase the percentage of Americans with health insurance." Our response to Hess' contention that a single-payer system will increase access to care for everyone is this: access to what kind of care? If care is not available in the community in which patients live, or it is provided by employees and physicians who do not speak the patient's or family's language and who do not understand their cultural background, or it is provided in an office in which racial and ethnic diversity is not respected, we question the value of that care or whether care will be received. The point of our letter was that in addition to universal health insurance, we need to create


Abstract : As advances in computer architecture and changing economics make feasible machines with large-scale parallelism, Artificial Intelligence will require new ways of thinking about computation that can exploit parallelism effectively. We present the actor model of computation as being appropriate for parallel systems, since it organizes knowledge as active objects acting independently, and communicating by message passing. We describe the parallel constructs in our experimental actor interpreter Act 1. Futures create concurrency, by dynamically allocating processing resources much as Lisp dynamically allocates passive storage. Serializers restrict concurrency by constraining the order in which events take place and have changeable local state. Using the actor model allows parallelism and synchronization to be implemented transparently, so that parallel or synchronized resources can be used as easily as their serial counterparts. (Author)


Background There is considerable evidence that mindfulness-based interventions help in the treatment of psychological and emotional distress. Incarcerated young men are known to experience difficulties in these areas. However, the utility of mindfulness-based interventions among incarcerated young men remains largely unknown. This thesis set out to explore mindfulness for young men, aged 18-21 years, housed at Her Majesty's Young Offender Institute in Polmont, Scotland. The specific research objectives were to:
1. Develop a bespoke mindfulness-based course;
2. Determine recruitment and retention to the mindfulness course and research study;
3. Investigate the feasibility of data collection and potential effectiveness of the
mindfulness course, in terms of its impact on impulsivity, mental wellbeing, inner resilience, mindfulness, and emotional regulation;
4. Explore the young men's experience of the course.

Methods The research was guided by the United Kingdom Medical Research Council guidance for developing and evaluating complex interventions. A scoping review assessed existing evidence for the use of mindfulness-based interventions in offending populations. A bespoke mindfulness-based intervention was developed and the feasibility of its evaluation assessed using a mixed-methods approach to data collection. Qualitative interviews with course participants (n=20), prison staff (n=4) and the mindfulness teacher (n=1) were conducted. Interviews with course participants and the mindfulness teacher were first subject to rapid appraisal to inform course development. The full qualitative data set were subject to in-depth thematic analysis to understand barriers to recruitment and retention and experience of the course. Quantitative measurements were targeted at key outcomes of interest: impulsivity, mental wellbeing, inner resilience, mindfulness and emotional regulation. SPSS was used to analysis the data.

Results The scoping review identified that there is currently no optimal mindfulness-based intervention for use with incarcerated young men. A standardised Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course was initially delivered and then required numerous adaptations to meet the young men's needs. Recruitment and retention was challenging; remaining low throughout the duration of the study despite trying several recruitment strategies and successive modifications to the intervention. Data collection was found to be
feasible at baseline and post-course but not at 3-month follow-up. Most measures used were age appropriate and demonstrated good internal consistency. A trend towards positive improvements by the end of the course was shown for: impulsivity (effect size: 0.72, p=0.001), mental wellbeing (ES: 0.50, p= 0.003), mindfulness (ES: 0.32, p=0.03), and inner resilience/meaningfulness (ES: 0.32, p=0.03).
Most young men spoke of finding the course boring, strange, and unfamiliar at first, but this changed as they began to experience benefit. They reported finding the 'body scan' and 'breathing techniques' most helpful. A range of positive experiences were described including better sleep, reduced stress, greater relaxation, enhanced sense of control, and improved relationships. Most of the young men said they hoped to sustain their mindfulness practices when released back into the community.

Conclusions Despite the challenges faced, preliminary findings suggested that mindfulness-based interventions have the potential to benefit incarcerated young men. More high quality research is required before definitive recommendations on the effectiveness of a mindfulness-based course for incarcerated young men can be made.


The rise of social networking websites such as MySpace and Facebook over the past decade has been nothing short of phenomenal. Once regarded as nothing more than a passing "fad", these websites have grown to astronomical proportions; each website currently boasts 60+ million unique visitors each month. Certain businesses are beginning to notice the potential for reaching out to their target audiences through this new medium and have already begun a series of advertising efforts in order to do so; however, the spend on this form of advertising is relatively minor compared to other efforts. This paper will establish why social networks are important to businesses as an advertising medium and attempt to review the current advertising methods that are in place.


Is there a mindset gap holding women back in business? Can entrepreneurship training instill a set of attitudes, behaviors, and strategies that are thought to underpin success in business such as motivation, perseverance, and self-confidence? This study conducted two randomized controlled trials to evaluate the effect of mindset-oriented business trainings on the performance of women-owned micro and small enterprises in Ethiopia. The trainings were underpinned by psychology with a mission to foster self-esteem and entrepreneurial spirit. Despite a similar approach, however, the quality of delivery seemed to matter as impacts of the trainings on business performance were mixed. A key channel for an impact on profits is if the training can actually effectuate the mindset change, with only one training transferring higher levels of entrepreneurial self-efficacy, personal initiative, and entrepreneurial locus of control to the women, relative to a control group. The study finds suggestive evidence that psychological skills and mindset are better inspired by a trainer who previously owned a business themselves and therefore may have a better understanding of the entrepreneurs' specific challenges. The study concludes that psychological skills are important for women's business success, and these skills can indeed be transferred using training, assuming a shared identity match between trainer and student. Service delivery appears to be critical for inculcating these important skills.


School websites are not only sources of information and documentation, but also means of communication that are increasingly being accessed by members of society, especially by the different educational communities, thanks to the democratisation of Internet access. This paper deals with a qualitative research project in which information and communication technology coordinators of infant and primary publicly funded private schools (concertados) and state schools in urban, rural and semi-urban/rural areas within the Region of Cantabria (Spain) were interviewed in order to understand how school websites are managed. The findings show a range of views and practices in the schools' management of their websites, some positive developments in their uses and functions, and numerous opportunities for improvement. School websites are essential communication tools, which need to be continuously improved/updated by their managers, with the support of the education authorities. (Published: 13 January 2017) Citation:  Research in Learning Technology, 25:1, 1270579, DOI: 10.1080/21567069.2017.1270579


THE JOURNAL OF CLINICAL HYPERTENSION 359 We are living in the Decade of Pain Control and Research, as officially designated by Congress in January 2001. There was no new legislation or funding attached to this designation, unfortunately, but it may, at least, raise awareness of the issue. Pain is a phenomenon that we all experience to a greater or lesser extent, and the associations between pain and blood pressure are potentially of great interest but poorly understood. There are a number of issues here, some practical and others of more theoretical interest. It is well recognized that pain can raise blood pressure acutely, but it is not so well known that hypertension is associated with a diminished sensitivity to pain (hypalgesia). We know relatively little about the relationships between blood pressure and chronic pain like that in arthritis, and there is also the issue of whether high blood pressure can cause pain like headache. Headache has been discussed previously in this column,1 but there are surprising new data on the subject.


The Jovian-sized object WD 1856 b transits a white dwarf (WD) in a compact 1.4 day orbit. Unlikely to have endured stellar evolution in its current orbit, WD 1856 b is thought to have migrated from much wider separations. Because the WD is old, and a member of a well-characterized hierarchical multiple, the well-known Kozai mechanism provides an effective migration channel for WD 1856 b. The tidal dissipation that makes this mechanism possible is sensitive to the mass of WD 1856 b, which remains unconstrained by observations. Moreover, the lack of tides in the star allows us to directly connect the current semimajor axis to the pre-migration one, from which we can infer the initial conditions of the system. By further requiring that planets must survive all previous phases of stellar evolution before migrating, we are able to constrain the main-sequence semimajor axis of WD 1856 b to have been ∼2.5 au, and its mass to be ≃0.7–3M J. These mass limits put WD 1856 b firmly within the planet category. Furthermore, our inferred values imply that WD 1856 b was born a typical gas giant. We further estimate the occurrence rate of Kozai-migrated planets around WDs to be (10−3−10−4) , suggesting that WD 1856 b is the only one in the TESS sample, but implying (102) future detections by the LSST survey. In a sense, WD 1856 b was an ordinary Jovian planet that underwent an extraordinary dynamical history.


Introduction: Microscopic detection of appropriately stained blood smear for the diagnosis of Malaria has been the standard diagnostic technique for identifying malaria infections for more than a century. The technique is capable of accurate and reliable identification when performed by skilled microscopists using defined protocols. The problems associated with implementing and sustaining a level of skilled microscopy appropriate for clinical diagnosis have particularly prompted the development of malaria rapid diagnostic devices (MRDDs). The current MRDDs are based on antigen capture immunoassay methodologies using immunochromatographic strip (ICS) technology. The newer generations of MRDDs are using more antigens like Merozoite protein 2 and circumsporozoite proteins. Further these antigens are obtained using recombinant techniques. This study was done for the evaluation of two commercially available immunossays against QBC for the diagnosis of Malaria.
Aim of the study: The aim of the study is to evaluate Falcivax (Immunochromatographic Strip) test for the diagnosis of Malaria and to compare with Quantitative Buffy Coat (QBC).
Materials & methods: A total of 100 patients attending outpatient department of Kasturba Hospital, Manipal, India, with their own initiative and meeting the inclusion criteria are included in the study. 2ml of blood was collected by venipuncture into tubes (Vacutainer blood collection system) containing EDTA as anticoagulant from all patients. Tests were run in batches of 8 samples at a time for Falcivax, Smear status by QBC, clinical features and relevant laboratory data of each sample was noted down.
Results: Out of 100 patients 70 tested positive for malaria by QBC with P. falciparum accounting for 32(45.7%) and P. vivax 37(52.9%). In comparison with the study control – QBC in the detection of malaria, Falcivax test showed sensitivtiy, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of 90.0%, 100.0%, 100.0% and 81.0% respectively.
Conclusion: Falcivax showed a reduced sensitivity compared to the QBC. Hence QBC still continues to be better option than MRDDs for detection of plasmodium infection in health care facilities with all expertise.


Programming is a complex learning activity that involves coordination of cognitive processes and affective states. These aspects are often considered individually in computing education research, demonstrating limited understanding of how and when students learn best. This issue confines researchers to contextualize evidence-driven outcomes when learning behaviour deviates from pedagogical intentions. Multimodal learning analytics (MMLA) captures data essential for measuring constructs (e.g., cognitive load, confusion) that are posited in the learning sciences as important for learning, and cannot effectively be measured solely with the use of programming process data (IDE-log data). Thus, we augmented IDE-log data with physiological data (e.g., gaze data) and participants' facial expressions, collected during a debugging learning activity. The findings emphasize the need for learning analytics that are consequential for learning, rather than easy and convenient to collect. In that regard, our paper aims to provoke productive reflections and conversations about the potential of MMLA to expand and advance the synergy of learning analytics and learning design among the community of educators from a post-evaluation design-aware process to a permanent monitoring process of adaptation.


The paper presents an optimization approach for facial modeling from an uncalibrated face image using flexible generic parameterized facial models (FGPFMs). An FGPFM consists of a topological structure and geometric knowledge of human faces. The topological description consists of a set of well-designed triangular polygons with a multilayered elastic structure in which the microstructural information can be expressed without complicated facial features. All the geometric values are obtained from a set of training facial models using statistical approaches and genetic algorithms. FGPFM can be easily modified using facial features as FGPFMs parameters to create an accurate specific three-dimensional (3D) facial model from only a photograph of an individual with a yawed face. In addition, the facial modeling problem is formulated as a parameter optimization problem. A hybrid optimization approach based on the Taguchi method and a best-first search algorithm is used to accelerate the search for a near optimal solution. Furthermore, sensitivity analysis and experimental results with texture mapping demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


J. A. Mangan has made a notable, original and lasting contribution to the history of sport. Central to Mangan's interests has been the exploration of the construction and projection of masculinity. In his edited text, Shaping the Superman: the Fascist Body as Political Icon he drew on the disciplines of social anthropology, political ideology, mythology and iconography as well as history and aesthetics; which helps to explain the richness and depth of his work. Inter alia he dealt with film and the construction of masculinity. Film is a special interest of mine and in writing this essay I wish to demonstrate how I have drawn upon the insights in his work on Nazi fascism. In doing so I wish to demonstrate how sport can be integrated holistically into the wider field of cultural history which is unquestionably the enduring hallmark of so much of Mangan's work and one of its enduring strengths. © 2018, Logos Verlag Berlin GmbH. All rights reserved.


: This article studies the effects of the soil data and exposure data of residential building inventories, as well as their spatial resolution, on seismic damage and loss estimates for a given earthquake scenario. Our aim is to investigate how beneficial it would be to acquire higher resolution inventories, at the cost of additional effort and resources. Seismic damage computations are used to evaluate the relative influence of varying spatial resolution on a given damage model, where other parameters were held constant. We use soil characterization maps and building exposure inventories, provided at different scales from different sources: the European database, a national data set at the municipality scale, and local field investigations. Soil characteristics are used to evaluate site effects and to assign amplification factors to the strong motion applied to the exposed areas. Exposure data sets are used to assign vulnerability indices to sets of buildings, from which a damage distribution is produced (based on the applied seismic intensity). The different spatial resolutions are benchmarked in a case-study area which is subject to moderate-to-average seismicity levels (Luchon valley in the Pyrénées, France). It was found that the proportion of heavily dam-aged buildings is underestimated when using the European soil map and the European building database, while the more refined databases (national/regional vs. local maps) result in similar estimates for moderate earthquake scenarios. Finally, we highlight the importance of pooling open access data from different sources, but caution the challenges of combining different data sets, especially depending on the type of application that is pursued (e.g., for risk mitigation or rapid response tools).


Agronomists are faced to the multiple stakeholders' landscape design as a rising issue in the management of farming systems. Furthermore, the European Landscape Convention (ELC) has formally acknowledged the expectations of local stakeholders and decision-makers for a greater support to protect, manage and plan the landscapes. A renewed perspective of agronomy on landscape research has recently tried to tackle this challenge. This perspective, called "landscape agronomy" (LA), strives to widen again the agronomic spatial focus beyond the field or the farm to the landscape. For that, LA has proposed a conceptual model of agricultural landscapes to relate farming practices and natural resources with the continuous reshaping of land use patterns operated by farmers. Interpreting the ELC landscape definition accordingly, we consider that the character of agricultural landscapes results uppermost from farming practices. On this underpinning assumption we have further developed the LA conceptual model to characterize some land management units of rural spaces. Our aim is to articulate landscape management with farming systems. In this paper, after a short presentation of the LA conceptual model, we analyze the agricultural landscape features as example of elementary management unit. Finally, we discuss how the landscape management by farming systems can help to structure the interaction of agronomy with other disciplines, such as geography and landscape ecology.


Conducting polymer composites of polyvinylferrocene and polypyrrole (PVF/PPy) were synthesized chemically by the in situ polymerization of pyrrole in the presence of PVF using FeCl3 as oxidant. Acetic (CH3COOH) and boric (H3BO3) acids were used as the synthesis medium. Effects of the synthesis medium on the properties of the PVF/PPy composite were investigated. The PVF/PPy composites and homopolymers were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and magnetic susceptibility techniques. Conductivity measurements were performed using the four‐probe technique. We found that the conductivities of PVF/PPy‐H3BO3 (1.19 S cm−1) and PVF/PPy‐CH3COOH (4.5×10−1 S cm−1) increased relative to those of the homopolymers of PPy‐H3BO3 (2.1×10−2 S cm−1) and PPy‐CH3COOH (1.2×10−2 S cm−1) due to the interaction of PVF with the pyrrole moiety. The stability of all homopolymers and composites were investigated by thermogravimetric analysis and by conductivity measurements during heating‐cooling cycles. There was a small drop in conductivity caused by the annealing of PVF/PPy composites at 70°C. The conductivity of all samples increased with temperature and exhibited stable electrical behavior with increasing temperature. TGA analysis of samples showed that the composites were more stable than the homopolymers or PVF separately. The magnetic susceptibility values of samples were negative, except for PVF/PPy‐H3BO3. Morphology changes of the composites investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), attributed to synthesis conditions, have a significant effect on their conductivity.


Programming education traditionally has been an important part of Information Technology-related degrees but, more recently, it is also becoming essential in many STEM domains as well. Despite this, drop-out rates in programming courses in higher education institutions are considerable and cannot be ignored. At the same time, analysing learning behaviours has been reported to be an effective way to support the improvement of teaching and learning quality. This article aims to deliver an in-depth analysis of students' learning behaviours when using course material items. We analyse an introductory programming course at a University in Dublin. The dataset is extracted from automatically logged learning data from a bespoke online learning system. The analysis makes use of the power of Principal Component Analysis and Random Matrix Theory to reduce dimensionality in, and to extract information from, the data, verifying the results with rigorous statistical tests. Overall, we found that all the students follow a common learning pattern in accessing all given learning items. However, there is a noticeable difference between higher and lower-performing cohorts of students when using practical and theoretical learning items. The high performing students have been consistently active in practice during the study progress. On the other hand, the students who failed the exam have more recorded activities in reading lecture notes and appear to become discouraged and unmotivated from the practical activities, especially in the later stage of the semester.


Problem statement: Multimedia Conferencing System (MCS) is a server-based video conferencing system. One of the most critical limitations faced by this approach is the scalability issue. In the MCS, the outgoing bandwidth of the server is shared among all concurrent clients. Thus, the more clients there are, the lesser the bandwidth each client can have. The performance of this approach therefore deteriorates rapidly as the number of simultaneous clients increases. In addition, a pure server-based solution is expensive. Approach: In this research, the server-based infrastructure is modified into a peer-to-peer video conferencing system while preserving the same functionality and features of the existing MCS. This modification can be achieved using a hybrid content distribution model, which is a combination of fluid and chunk content distribution models to distribute parts of the video stream fairly among participants. The hybrid content distribution model offers a better way of handling heterogeneous networks because it can distinguish between a fast peer and a slow peer, dealing with each one according to its capabilities. Results: In our proposed system, the function server will not be used for video distribution. Instead, it will only be used for monitoring and controlling the peers to reduce the burden on the servers. Experimental results conducted in the nation advanced IPv6 center as a real environment and live conferencing. Conclusion: This will lead to overcome the problem of scalability and a bandwidth bottleneck on the main server and achieve good way to distribute video chunks.


Chrysanthemum is one of the top cultivated flowers, the undisputed queen of gardens in the autumn season. Due to its exceptional decorative qualities having a special range of shapes and colors, storage resistance, suitability in different cultivation systems and the possibility of cultivation all over the year chrysanthemum is one of the most loved and appreciated flowers. It is one of the major crops worldwide and it is cultivated as cut flowers and potted plants, depending on market demand. In Romania, nowadays, the cultivated areas with Chrysanthemum are developing quickly through potted cultures which have gained a significant increase. Also, due to the progress made in the selection of chrysanthemums, many cultivars have been introduced in the recent plant assortment. The present study was carried out to evaluate the influence of three rooting biostimulators on five potted chrysanthemums cultivars to determine the most efficient way to obtain a significant result for roots and aerial part's growth and development. The greatest effects of rooting were obtained with Radistim 1 biostimulator. In which case was determined an increase of rooting percentage, number of roots, the height of plants, number of leaves and number of branches.


Hydrogen permeation and embrittlement behavior of hot-dip galvanized steels with different sulphite sediment on surface exposed to stimulant marine atmospheric environment was investigated by hydrogen permeation current measurement using modified Devanathan-Stachurski cell, slow strain rate tensile test and scanning electron microscopy technique. The results indicated that hydrogen permeation curves were increasing along with the sediment rising gradually. On the other hand, it was found that hydrogen absorption was accelerated by the cathodic protection of scratched steel surface afforded by zinc coating. Hydrogen absorption and permeation reduced the percentage elongation after fracture of galvanized steel specimens; meanwhile, the fracture characteristics of samples fringe occurred some lacerated phenomena, i.e., galvanized steels show a higher susceptivity of hydrogen embrittlement when exposed to marine atmospheric environment with sulphite.


Designers of component-based software face two problems related to dealing with abnormal events: developing exception handling at the level of the integrated system and accommodating (and adjusting, if necessary) exceptions and exception handling provided by individual components. Our intention is to develop an exception handling framework suitable for component-based system development by applying general exception handling mechanisms which have been proposed and successfully used in concurrent/distributed systems and in programming languages. The framework is applied in three steps. Firstly, individual components are wrapped in such a way that the wrappers perform activity related to local error detection and exception handling, and signal, if necessary, external exceptions outside the component. At the second step the execution of the overall system is structured as a set of dynamic actions in which components take parts. Such actions have important properties which facilitate exception handling: they are atomic, contain erroneous information and serve as recovery regions. The last step is designing exception handling at the action level: each action (i.e. all components participating in it) handles exceptions signalled by individual wrapped components.


Overhead spray and brush roller (OSBR) treatment has been shown to remove significantly more Salmonella from tomato surfaces than flume treatment. However, OSBR is not widely used in tomato packing facilities compared with other commodities, and little is known about whether brushing causes microabrasions or other physical damage. Bacteria such as Pectobacterium, a soft rot-producing plant pathogen, and Salmonella, a human pathogen, show increased survival and growth on damaged tomato surfaces. This study evaluated whether OSBR treatment had a negative effect on the safety and/or marketability of tomatoes by examining its effect on Pectobacterium and Salmonella survival. Pectobacterium survival was evaluated on inoculated tomatoes that were OSBR treated with water or sanitizer (100 ppm of NaOCl, 5 ppm of ClO2, or 80 ppm of peracetic acid). A 15-s OSBR treatment using water or sanitizer achieved a 3-log CFU/ml reduction in Pectobacterium levels. Survival of Pectobacterium and Salmonella on OSBR-treated, untreated, and puncture-wounded tomatoes stored at 25°C and 75 to 85 % relative humidity for 7 days was also assessed. Both Pectobacterium and Salmonella populations declined rapidly on OSBR-treated and untreated tomatoes, indicating that brushing does not damage tomato fruit to the extent of promoting better pathogen survival. In contrast, the survival of both organisms was significantly (P ≤ 0.05) higher on artificially wounded fruit. These results indicate that OSBR treatment does not increase the survival and growth of Pectobacterium or Salmonella on tomato surfaces and that it is effective in reducing Pectobacterium levels on the surface of inoculated tomatoes. These results suggest that, if used properly, an OSBR system in packinghouses is effective in removing surface contamination and does not affect tomato quality or safety.


An analysis of the pressure in a runner channel of a low-specific speed Francis model runner during resonance is presented, which includes experiments and the development of a pressure model to estimate both the convective and acoustic pressure field from the measurements. The pressure was measured with four pressure sensors mounted in the runner hub along one runner channel. The mechanical excitation of the runner corresponded to the forced excitation from rotor-stator interaction. The rotational speed was used to control the excitation frequency. The measurements found a clear resonance peak in the pressure field excited by the second harmonic of the guide vane passing frequency. From the developed pressure model, the eigenfrequency and damping were estimated. The convective pressure field seems to diminish almost linearly from the inlet to outlet of the runner, while the acoustic pressure field had the highest amplitudes in the middle of the runner channel. At resonance, the acoustic pressure clearly dominated over the convective pressure. As the turbine geometry is available to the public, it provides an opportunity for the researchers to verify their codes at resonance conditions.


Silicon is the backbone of semiconductor industry. It is the building block of most of the modern solid slate electronic devices like ICs, transistors, photovoltaic solar cells, Sensing devices etc. The promotion of silicon from being {he key substrate material for icroelectronic devices to a potential light emitter has emerged as a consequence of the possibility to reduce its dimensionality by different techniques. Quantum confinement of photoexcited carriers that yields a band gap widening and an increased radiative transition rate is the most probable reason for visible light emission of Si nanostructures with dimensions less than 7 nm. The present study involved synthesis of Si nanocrystals (Si-nc) in two different routes: (i) by electrochemical etching in HF based solutions 10 produce porous silicon (PS) structures and (ii) by mechanical milling of Si powder followed by chemical oxidation to produce colloidal solution of oxidized Si-ncs Structural and luminescence properties of nanostructured PS produced by electrochemical etching were investigated. Visible photoluminescence (PL) was observed from oxidised PS and the PL band peak was found to be dependent on the various formation and post-formation parameters. AFM and STM measurements revealed that the pores ore highly non-uniform. Mechanical stability of nanostructured PS was investigated by nanoindentation and it appeared that these structures ruptured under an external load < 0.5 mN A macroporous Si sample was prepared with DMF treatment ofhigh resistivity Si wafer by anodic etching. The macroporous Si exhibited uniform pore growth and could potentially be used as templates. The second part of the study involved preparation of nanocrystalline Si by mechanical milling followed by oxidation to reduce the dimension of the nanocrystals to the desired level. Ball milled silicon nanocrystals at different milling hours (25, 50. 75 and 100 h) in toluene medium were studied. Chemical and thermal treatment to promote oxidation of these nanocrystals was carried out for further size reduction. XRD spectrum of milled Si nanocrystals at different stages of milling time revealed that the least size (~40 run) was obtained after 75 h of milling. However as-milled samples did not show any visible PL but intense visible PL detectable by unaided- eye, was observed from colloidal suspension of the chemically treated and annealed silicon nanocrystals prepared by mechanical milling. The PL bands peak were obtained at 3.14, 3.11, 2.93 and 2.79 e V under UV excitation. Phase contrast AFM and TEM investigations of the light emitting Si nanocrystals revealed the existence of Si crystallites with dimensions < 5 nm embedded in an oxide matrix. Some of the particles formed a core-shell structure with a c-Si core surrounded by an amorphous Si and Si oxide shell. It is proposed that invasive oxidation takes place at the interface of the nanocrystalline Si and amorphous silicon oxide leading to the formation of large number of oxide and defect related states. The origin of violet blue PL is discussed in relation to the oxide related surface states, non-stoichiometric suboxides and defect related states. Initial investigation in this route has been successful and encouraging since visible blue-violet PL with PL band peaks at around 400 nm has been observed from the colloidal suspension Si nanocrystals. This preparation route is novel and can be a very good substitute for expensive techniques like plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition for the preparation of Si quantum dots. These Si-ncs can also have potential application in a standard solar cell where they may be used to transform the un-utilized UV light to visible light which a solar cell can use for generation of electricity.


A central element of emerging service oriented architectures (SOA) is the ability to develop new applications by composing enterprise functionality encapsulated in the form of services - whether within a given organization or across multiple ones. Semantic service annotations, including annotations of both functional and non-functional attributes, offer the prospect of facilitating this process and of producing higher quality solutions. A significant body of work in this area has aimed to fully automate this process, while assuming that all services already have rich and accurate annotations. In this article, we argue that this assumption is often unrealistic. Instead, we describe a mixed initiative framework for semantic Web service discovery and composition that aims at flexibly interleaving human decision making and automated functionality in environments where annotations may be incomplete and even inconsistent. An initial version of this framework has been implemented in SAP's guided procedures, a key element of SAP's enterperise service architecture (ESA)


X-rays produced by 90" Thomson scattering of a femtosecond, near infrared, terawatt laser pulse off a 50 MeV electron beam are shown to be an effective diagnostic to measure transverse and longitudinal density distributions of an electron beam (e-beam) with subpicosecond time resolution. The laser beam was focused onto the e-beam waist, generating 30 keV x-rays in the forward direction. The transverse and longitudinal e-beam structure have been obtained by measuring the intensity of the x-ray beam, while scanning the laser beam across the e-beam in space and time. The e-beam divergence has been obtained through measurement of spatial and spectral characteristics of the scattered x-ray beam.


Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C) associated with new coronavirus infection (COVID-19), with signs of Kawasaki disease (KD) and toxic shock syndrome, well-defined diagnostic criteria, is the most severe manifestation of COVID-19 in pediatric patients. MIS-C is analogous to the cytokine storm in children with COVID-19. The article presents a clinical observation of a child with MIS-C with a lethal outcome. Clinical and anamnestic data, the results of laboratory and instrumental research allowed to diagnose MIS-C in a 2-year-old girl with full KD form. Autopsy results, detailed microscopic examination, which revealed systemic vasculitis of small and mediumsized vessels, inflammatory infiltrates in different organs, are presented, clinical and morphological comparisons are made.


The basic idea in this study relates to the interesting research problem to employ with the knowledgeable pharmacy staff N-acetylcarnosine (NAC) in the developed suitable compounded prodrug ophthalmic preparations, which are currently used for the treatment of cataract and have antioxidant effect, in order to provide the molecular support to one of the most popular beliefs of the growing market for the treatment of senile cataract in patients and animals with efficacious NAC drug formulations worldwide patented by the author. This work presents the progress in ocular NAC prodrug and codrug design and delivery in light of revealed ocular metabolic activities. There is a considerable interest in the ophthalmic codrug design including NAC prodrug based on the strategies to improve ophthalmic drug delivery of the active peptide principal L-carnosine through the sustained intraocular metabolic activation of a dipeptide while making it resistant to enzymatic hydrolysis. Novel approaches to ocular NAC drug delivery, developed by Innovative Vision Products, Inc. (IVP), aim at enhancing the drug bioavailability by ensuring a prolonged retention of the medication in the eye, and/or by facilitating transcorneal penetration. IVP team studied the effects of lubricant eye drops designed as 1% NAC prodrug of L-carnosine containing a mucoadhesive cellulose-based and corneal absorption promoters in a drug delivery system. The predicted responses of the corneal and conjunctival penetrations to the synergistic promoters are useful in controlling the extent and pathway of the ocular and systemic absorptions of instilled NAC prodrug in designed ophthalmic formulations thereof. Utility of peptidase enzyme inhibitors in the codrug formulation to modulate the transport and metabolism of NAC prodrug appears to be a promising strategy for enhancing dipeptide drug transport across the cornea. The developed and officially CE mark registered by IVP NAC prodrug and codrug lubricating eye drop systems (including principal regulatory registered eye drops design and lubricating eye drops marketed under numerous brand labels), increase the intraocular uptake of the active principle L-carnosine from its ophthalmic carrier NAC in the aqueous humor and the permeability of a drug into the eye, and so enhance the ocular bioavailability, bioactivating universal antioxidant, and anti-cataract efficacy (in human and in canine eyes) of the developed NAC eye drops.


Purpose To investigate the validity of contrast kinetic parameter estimates from Active Contrast Encoding (ACE)-MRI against those from conventional Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced (DCE)-MRI for evaluation of tumor treatment response in mouse tumor models. Methods The ACE-MRI method that incorporates measurement of T1 and B1 into the enhancement curve washout region, was implemented on a 7T MRI scanner to measure tracer kinetic model parameters of 4T1 and GL261 tumors with treatment using bevacizumab and 5FU. A portion of the same ACE-MRI data was used for conventional DCE-MRI data analysis with a separately measured pre-contrast T1 map. Tracer kinetic model parameters, such as Ktrans (permeability area surface product) and ve (extracellular space volume fraction), estimated from ACE-MRI were compared with those from DCE-MRI, in terms of correlation and Bland-Altman analyses. Results A three-fold increase of the median Ktrans by treatment was observed in the flank 4T1 tumors by both ACE-MRI and DCE-MRI. In contrast, the brain tumors did not show a significant change by the treatment in either ACE-MRI or DCE-MRI. Ktrans and ve values of the tumors from ACE-MRI were strongly correlated with those from DCE-MRI methods with correlation coefficients of 0.92 and 0.78, respectively, for the median values of 17 tumors. The Bland-Altman plot analysis showed a mean difference of -0.01 min-1 for Ktrans with the 95% limits of agreement of -0.12 min-1 to 0.09 min-1, and -0.05 with -0.37 to 0.26 for ve. Conclusion The tracer kinetic model parameters estimated from ACE-MRI and their changes by treatment closely matched those of DCE-MRI, which suggests that ACE-MRI can be used in place of conventional DCE-MRI for tumor progression monitoring and treatment response evaluation with a reduced scan time.


Photoradiation therapy is a new technique currently under clinical investigation for the treatment of a variety of solid malignant tumors. The technique involves intravenous (IV) administration of hematoporphyrin derivative, a photosensitizing compound that is preferentially retained by malignant cells, and photoactivation of a neoplasm with red light (630 nm) to obtain selective destruction of cancer cells. A modification of this technique was used to treat iris neovascularization produced in a primate model of retinal vein occlusion. Following IV injection of hematoporphyrin derivative, the anterior surface of the iris was exposed to red light for 30 to 45 minutes. In the four eyes treated, there was a marked reduction of fluorescein leakage from the neovascular tissue within 24 hours following treatment. Histologic examination of two eyes demonstrated a selective response of the iris neovascularization to this therapy, with apparent preservation of surrounding tissue.


Breast cancer resistance protein (BCRP) is a recently discovered ATP-binding cassette drug transporter. Hence, the full spectrum of therapeutic agents that interact with BCRP remains to be elucidated. Because human immunodeficiency virus protease inhibitors (HPIs) are well known P-glycoprotein (P-gp) substrates, and there is an overlap in substrate specificity between P-gp and BCRP, this study was performed to investigate whether HPIs are substrates and/or inhibitors of BCRP. First, the effect of HPIs on BCRP efflux activity in human embryonic kidney (HEK) cells stably expressing wild-type BCRP (482R) and its two mutants (482T and 482G) was studied by measuring intracellular mitoxantrone fluorescence using flow cytometry. We found that ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir were effective inhibitors of wild-type BCRP (482R) with IC50 values of 19.5 ± 0.8 μM, 19.5 ± 7.6 μM, and 12.5 ± 4.1 μM, respectively. Ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir inhibited 482T and 482G with IC50 values that were approximately 2 times greater than that for 482R. Indinavir and amprenavir had no significant inhibition on BCRP activity. Direct efflux of radiolabeled HPIs in HEK cells was measured to determine whether the HPIs are substrates of BCRP. None of the HPIs were found to be transported by BCRP. Together, ritonavir, saquinavir, nelfinavir, indinavir, and amprenavir are not substrates for BCRP. However, ritonavir, saquinavir, and nelfinavir are effective inhibitors of the transporter. These results suggest that BCRP may play an important role in drug-drug interactions involving coadministration of the HPIs with drugs that are substrates of the transporter.


The effects of aspect ratio and fiber-epoxy weight ratio of coir fibre/epoxy composite wing idealized as flat plate on flutter speed were preliminary studied in the current research to investigate the aeroelastic instability on natural fiber composite material. Among the main concerns of composite materials application for aircraft are weight saving and cost reduction factor while the design of structures should be made stiffer to avoid aeroelastic instability problems. In connection between aeroelasticity and environmental issue, the usage of natural material like coir fiber reinforce composite might turn up as potential solutions for the problem of increasing aircraft weight & cost in making airframe more rigid with the purpose of reducing aeroelastic instability in addition of utilization of eco-friendly factor material. The coir fiber reinforces offer low in weight and cost reduction, and is more environmentally friendly compared to metallic materials. For the current work, the analysis of the coir fiber on the aeroelastic problem will be preliminary investigated to establish related data to be served especially in the aerospace research areas. Several previous researches that introduced the natural fibres to optimize the performance of structure have been done generally in other mechanical and civil research areas while conventional glass or carbon fibre reinforced composites has been traditionally used in the aeroelastic research. The research began with the existing raw untreated coir fibre which in the form of pressed mat and originally in random oriented fibre form are used in the composite preparation process by simple handlay-up and compression moulding method under room temperature and controlled pressure conditions. Then, the fabricated panels underwent material mechanical tests; tensile, flexural, and torsion test to obtain material mechanical properties. The 25% wt fiber composite has been selected as the highest performance specimen among others. The specimen with different aspect ratios (AR5, AR6, and AR7) with 25% wt fiber reinforcement composite underwent modal testing to get the mode shapes, natural frequencies, and damping ratios. The result shows that the plates with higher aspect ratio seem to have higher natural frequency and damping ratio. Then, the specimens of different aspect ratio (6 and 7) were installed in the wind tunnel for subsonic experimental aeroelastic test. The result shows that the plates with lower aspect ratio seem to have higher flutter speed. In terms of aeroelastic point of view, the results shows that there is a potential in the use coir fibers for secondary aircraft structures due to low density and vibration damping characteristics, in addition to low cost and green technology considerations. The preliminary data established potentially serve as a reference for future studies.


The implementation of the Varsity Cup rugby competition among South African universities has sparked interest in university rugby cultures around the country. The Varsity Cup has established itself as one of the most important rugby competitions for full-time students. The development of specific conditioning programs for rugby players requires a thorough understanding of the game and the unique demands of playing positions. Therefore, the study aimed to investigate the in-match running demands of South African university rugby players by using GPS during match play for primary and secondary positional groups. Rugby players (n = 40) from two universities were assessed during match play (n = 17) over a competitive season by using GPS. Players were grouped into two primary positional groups, forwards (n = 22) and backs (n = 18), and five secondary positional groups, tight forwards (n = 14), loose forwards (n = 8), half backs (n = 5), inside backs (n = 6), and outside backs (n = 7). The GPS analysis provided the following match-play movements: total distance, high-speed meters, maximum velocity, match intensity, the number of accelerations and decelerations, and velocity zone. Halfbacks recorded the highest total distance (6620.9 ± 784.4 m; p = 0.02) and match intensity (77.7 ± 11.6 m/min; p = 0.01). Outside backs recorded the highest maximum velocity (8.385 ± 1.242 m/s; p = 0.00). Loose forwards registered the highest number of accelerations (385.5 ± 122.1) and decelerations (378.7 ± 108.1). Backs and their specific subgroups play at and within high velocity thresholds, significantly higher (p = 0.01) than that of the forwards. Forwards tend to be involved in a higher amount of accelerations and decelerations during match play, suggesting that forward play is at close quarters to the opposition. During university rugby matches, the backs covered greater distances and speeds than the forwards, whereas the forwards achieved more accelerations and decelerations than backs. Results from the study can assist Varsity Cup strength and conditioning coaches to prepare players for the position-specific demands of the competition.


Use of the CD28/B7 costimulatory signal for T-cell activation was analyzed in granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (GCSF) mobilized peripheral blood mononuclear cells (GPBMCs) and in peripheral blood mononuclear cells obtained before administration of G-CSF (preG-PBMCs). CTLA4Ig inhibition of OKT3-stimulated proliferation was significantly lower in G-PBMCs compared with preG-PBMCs (39.9% 6 5.6% and 72.2% 6 5.4%, respectively; P F .001). Furthermore, as shown in electrophoretic mobility-shift assays, the inducible level of the T-cell transcription factor CD28 responsive complex (CD28RC) was suppressed in CD4 cells derived from G-PBMC. However, depletion of CD14 cells from G-PBMCs restored CD28RC induction to normal levels. Taken together, these findings suggest that the large number of CD14 monocytes in G-PBMCs may limit T-cell responsiveness by suppressing the induction of the CD28RC. r 1998 by The American Society of Hematology.


Mixed-phenotype acute leukemia (MPAL) is rare subtype of leukemia characterized by blasts with both acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) and acute myeloid leukemia (AML) markers. MPAL is a high-risk disease which represents only 2%–3% of acute leukemias and involves a genetically and immunophenotypically diverse group of patients with poor clinical outcomes. The limited incidence and lack of prospective data on therapeutic outcomes poses uncertainty about the best approach for patients with MPAL. The modest evidence on therapeutic decisions is based on uncontrolled studies and retrospective data suggesting higher remission rates with an ALL-like induction approach than with an AML-like regimen followed by allogeneic stem cell transplant during the complete remission. Advances in understanding the genetic landscape of MPAL demonstrates that most cases are associated with somatic mutations in tumor suppressors, transcription factors, and epigenetic regulators. Recent studies showed that MPALs derive from multipotent primitive cells with considerable genetic diversity, which may promote treatment with targeted therapy. Prospective studies should be prioritized to provide answers about this innately heterogeneous disease.


We propose a single-particle experiment that is equivalent to the conventional two-particle experiment used to demonstrate a violation of Bell's inequalities. Hence, we argue that quantum mechanical nonlocality can be demonstrated by single-particle states. The validity of such a claim has been discussed in the literature, but without reaching a clear consensus. We show that the disagreement can be traced to what part of the total state of the experiment one assigns to the (macroscopic) measurement apparatus. However, with a conventional and legitimate interpretation of the measurement process one is led to the conclusion that even a single particle can show nonlocal properties.


[1] Nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were monitored at the University of New Hampshire Atmospheric Observing Station at Thompson Farm (TF) during the ICARTT campaign of summer 2004. Simultaneous measurement of ozone (O3), temperature, and the photolysis rate of NO2 (jNO2) allow for assessment of the O3 photostationary state (Leighton ratio, Φ). Leighton ratios that are significantly greater than unity indicate that peroxy radicals (PO2), halogen monoxides, nitrate radicals, or some unidentified species convert NO to NO2 in excess of the reaction between NO and O3. Deviations from photostationary state occurred regularly at TF (1.0 ≤ Φ ≤ 5.9), particularly during times of low NOx (NOx = NO + NO2). Such deviations were not controlled by dynamics, as indicated by regressions between Φ and several meteorological parameters. Correlation with jNO2 was moderate, indicating that sunlight probably controls nonlinear processes that affect Φ values. Formation of PO2 likely is dominated by oxidation of biogenic hydrocarbons, particularly isoprene, the emission of which is driven by photosynthetically active radiation. Halogen atoms are believed to form via photolysis of halogenated methane compounds. Nitrate radicals are believed to be insignificant. Higher Φ values are associated with lower mixing ratios of isoprene and chloroiodomethane and lower ratios of NOx to total active nitrogen, indicating that photochemical aging may very well lead to increased Φ values. PO2 levels calculated using a zero-dimensional model constrained by measurements from TF can account for 71% of the observed deviations on average. The remainder is assumed to be associated with halogen atoms, most likely iodine, with necessary mixing ratios up to 0.6 or 1.2 pptv, for chlorine and iodine, respectively.


This paper briefly describes a pilot project to design and develop a multilingual- English and eight other languages of India – thesaurus for 'Education'. The thesaurus is derived from the bilingual (English-Kannada) Colon Classification (CC), (Ed. 7 revised). The CC number and Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) number are metadata in the thesaurus structure. The thesaurus for each language is separately built using Greenstone Digital Library software. The descriptors are hyperlinked. Descriptor terms, terms in the Scope Note (text), CC and DDC numbers are indexed. Two or more of the thesauri can be searched simultanseously. The advantages of using class number in the search and retrieval are mentioned. Other issues discussed include interoperability as key to effective interlinking among knowledge organising tools (KOTs) and in integrating two or more KOTs, and issues and problems in building multilingual thesaurus (thesauri) with particular reference to the cultural frames and languages of India. http://dx.doi.org/10.14429/djlit.33.4883


This study investigated four statistical models for combining teacher assessment scores with external examination scores for certifying secondary school graduates in Ghana in terms of validity of the composite scores. The models studied were (1) external examination moderation with nominal weights, (2) reference school moderation using nominal weights and square-mean-root combination, (3) reference school moderation using achieved weights and square-mean-root combination, and (4) external examination moderation using nominal weights and square-mean-root combination.

The population of study was 56,924 graduates of the 455 public senior secondary schools in Ghana for the 1996 academic year. A sample of 2,378 graduates from 11 randomly selected public secondary schools was chosen for the study.

The data collected for the study were teacher assessment mathematics scores for the three years and external examination mathematics scores. University entrance examination scores in mathematics were obtained for a subsample of 115 graduates who took that examination.

Although the results show that two of the models have a potential to serve as alternatives to the external examination moderation with nominal weights, their improvement in this study over that model is not substantial. Further research with subject matters other than mathematics is needed.

 IFE PsychologIA Vol 9, No1 2001, pp. 12-34


AlN–SiC solid solutions with p-type electrical conduction were fabricated with the addition of small amounts of Al and C. Powder mixtures of AlN and SiC with small amounts of Al and C (below 10 mol%) were consolidated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) at 2000°C for 10 min under 1 atm Ar, and then heat-treated at 2200°C for 3 h in an Ar flow to afford 2H AlN–SiC solid solutions. The relative densities of the 50AlN-50SiC-Al4C3 (A50-1AC) and 50AlN-50SiC-3Al4C3 (A50-3AC) samples were about 95%, whereas that of the 75AlN-25SiC-Al4C3 (A75-1AC) sample was about 86%. X-ray diffractometry (XRD) analysis showed that the samples comprised only the 2H phase, and except in the case of the A50-3AC sample, no diffraction peaks of Al and C were observed. Although the samples without the additives (Al and C) were electrical insulators, addition of Al and C introduced p-type semiconduction. The electrical conductivities at 300°C of the A50-1AC and A50-3AC samples were about 30 and 100 S/m, respectively, whereas that of the A75-1AC sample was about 10–1 S/m. It was found that addition of Al and C brought about electrical conduction in AlN–SiC solid solutions.


Mutant p53 protein is highly expressed in most cancer cells due to its protein stabilization. Mutant p53 loses wild-type p53 function but gains new oncogenic functions in driving tumor growth and drug resistance. Depletion of mutant p53 is an attractive strategy for cancer therapy. We reported a small-molecule NSC59984 destabilizes mutant p53 protein via protein degradation (Zhang et al., Cancer Research, 2015). In this study, we demonstrate that the ERK2 pathway plays a specific role in NSC59984-induced mutant p53 degradation via MDM2-mediated ubiquitination. We observe a sustained-phosphorylation of ERK1/2 in cancer cells treated with NSC59984. ERK1/2 pathway is negatively regulated by MKP-1. We find that MKP-1 activity is partially inhibited by NSC59984 in a dose dependent manner in vitro. These results suggest that NSC5998 sustains ERK1/2 phosphorylation partially via disruption of the feedback-loop between MKP-1 and ERK2 pathway. Knockdown of ERK2 rescues mutant p53 from NSC59984-mediated degradation, and inhibits NSC59984-restoration of p53 signaling in mutant p53-expressing cells. On the contrary, the effect of NSC59984 on the mutant p53 is not inhibited by the blockage of JNK and P38, two pathways negatively regulated by MKP-1. These results suggest that the ERK2 phosphorylation is specifically required for NSC59984-mediated mutant p53 degradation. We further find that NSC59984 induces ERK2-dependent MDM2 phosphorylation. The effect of NSC59984 on MDM2 phosphoryation is partially inhibited by the blockage of ERK2 signaling (via U0126 treatment or Knockdown of ERK2), not by the attenuation of the JNK pathway. Furthermore, NSC59984-mediated mutant p53 protein degradation is inhibited by MDM2 knockdown, and enhanced by MDM2 overexpression in cancer cells. NSC59984-increased ubiquitination of mutant p53 is attenuated by U0126. Our results suggest that the ERK2 signaling pathway-MDM2 axis is a major determinant of NSC59984-mediated mutant p53 degradation. We further demonstrate that NSC59984 induces cell death via apoptosis, and NSC59984-induced cell death is mainly rescued by inhibition of the ERK2 pathway in p53 mutant cancer cells. Taken together, our results suggest that phosphorylated-ERK2 is an important factor required for NSC59984-mediated mutant p53 degradation which may further contribute to NSC59984-induced cell death in cancer cells. Citation Format: Shengliang Zhang, Lanlan Zhou, David Dicker, Wafik S. El-Deiry. NSC59984 induces mutant p53 degradation via activating ERK2 pathway-MDM2 axis [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 2156. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-2156


ABSTRAK

Trading Company of Badan Pekreditan Rakyat Sub district credit Agency in one of credit agencies sponsored by the government that is operated in rural area—rural area of Central Java. The purpose of establishing this institution is to generate fund from society and then to distribute it back to the people to use for various trade form. In its development, this institution can be accepted well by the people so that it can progress and develop fast. It can be seen from the increase of service number as well as facilitation offered by this institution. Beside, it can also be seen from people's enthusiasm toward the service of BPR BKK.
 The step taken in the research is by doing direct communication by the related party existing in BPR BKK. In addition, the researcher uses direct observation toward the document completeness used and participates in doing direct observation in the field and also the investigation of the related document through credit distribution sistem.
 The result of credit analysis shows that BPR BKK Jumantono has done credit distribution to the people through method that is generally applied in credit sistem. BPR BKK Jumantono show that there are strengths/advantages possessed by the applied credit distribution sistem.
 Based on the findings toward the research result, then the researcher gives suggestion to improve its weaknesses. For improving the existing sistem used, it is need a recondition or addition toward the policy sistem applied. This is perhaps can add the effectiveness and efficiency as well as fraudulence that may be done by the officer of BPR BKK Jumantono.

Keywords : internal control system, credit distribution.


Abstract Highlighting the role of applying mathematics within the life and social sciences through research produced by undergraduate participants of Arizona State University's (ASU) Mathematical and Theoretical Biology Institute (MTBI), we offer a brief account of what this community has learned from a research model that deliberately relinquishes the scientific agenda to its undergraduate participants. Over the past 21 years MTBI's summer research program has focused on training a diverse population of student researchers in the art of identifying and investigating questions primarily at the interface of the mathematical, life, and social sciences. At the heart of this paper are insights gained from the research leadership of twenty-one cohorts of undergraduate students. We highlight three selected projects that capture MTBI's philosophy of student-driven research, a model that has motivated hundreds of students to enroll in quantitative graduate programs across the nation. The first models collaborative active learning and its role in building robust communities of learners; the second studies the effects of oil spills on the spatial dynamics of loggerhead sea turtles; and the third develops a new, student-created version of pair-approximation modeling which has led to new research and a wide variety of applications.


ABSTRACT Archaeological and geomorphological investigations of Little Bluff (47Tr32), in Trempealeau, Wisconsin, reveal how and, possibly, why this loess-capped sandstone ridge spur was anthropogenically altered in the mid-eleventh century A.D. Project excavation units and trenches dug in 2010–2011 revealed the timing, rate of completion, structure, symmetry, and orientation of the construction. In addition to delineating construction details and associated archaeological features, our research suggests that Cahokians, by sculpting and rebuilding this ridge spur, were actively positioning themselves vis-à-vis the wider Mississippi Valley landscape, if not the cosmos generally.


The documented Unix facilities data set provides the details regarding the evolution of 15596 unique facilities through 93 versions of Unix over a period of 48 years. It is based on the manual transcription of early scanned documents, on the curation of text obtained through optical character recognition, and on the automatic extraction of data from code available on the Unix History Repository. The data are categorized into user commands, system calls, C library functions, devices and special files, file formats and conventions, games et. al., miscellanea, system maintenance procedures and commands, and system kernel interfaces. A timeline view allows the visualization of the evolution across releases. The data can be used for empirical research regarding API evolution, system design, as well as technology adoption and trends.


The robust symmetrical number system (RSNS) is a modular system formed using Nges2 integer sequences and ensures that two successive RSNS vectors (paired terms from all N sequences) differ by only one integer. This integer Gray-code property reduces the possibility of encoding errors and makes the RSNS useful in applications such as folding analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), direction finding antenna architectures, and photonic processors. This paper determines the length of combined sequences that contain no vector ambiguities. This length or longest run of distinct vectors we call the RSNS dynamic range (Mcirc). The position of Mcirc which is the starting point in the sequence is also derived. Computing Mcirc and the position of Mcirc allows the integer Gray-code properties of the RSNS to be used in practical applications. We first extend our two-sequence results to develop a closed-form expression for Mcirc for a three-sequence RSNS with moduli of the form 2r-1,2r,2r+1. We then extend the results to solving the N-sequence RSNS ambiguity locations in general


The flowers of N. nouchali were collected from lakes in Thane district dried, powdered and extracted with Pet ether, toluene, chloroform, acetone, ethyl acetate and methanol. These crude extracts were tested for antibacterial activity by agar streak method, the extracts found to be active were subjected to Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) determination by TTC assay, the extracts were prepared according to the MIC and antibacterial susceptibility test was carried out using Agar well diffusion method. All the extracts showed antibacterial activity against the tested strains. But the polar extracts showed a greater antibacterial potential as compared to the non polar extracts. Methanolic extract was the most active. The highest activity was seen against Salmonella paratyphi A and the lowest activity was seen against Salmonella paratyphi B. The present study showed the effectiveness of the crude plant extract against the tested bacterial strains and indicates the potential use of the extract as antimicrobial agent for the control of infectious diseases.


Background Stillbirth remains a significant problem worldwide. Unexplained stillbirth is the most common classification of cause of death accounting for between 10–70%. Studies that investigate recurrence risk of unexplained stillbirth yield inconsistent results. Objective To investigate the association between unexplained stillbirth in a first pregnancy and recurrence risk of stillbirth in a subsequent pregnancy in high-income countries. Methods Six databases were searched using a comprehensive search strategy to identify relevant cohort and case-control studies. No publication status, language or date restrictions were applied. Internet resources and reference lists of relevant papers were also searched. Using explicit a priori criteria two reviewers independently screened titles to identify eligible studies, extract data and assess methodological quality. Random-effects meta-analyses were used to combine results of included studies. Results Seventeen studies were included in the systematic review fifteen of which were considered eligible for the meta-analysis. Stillbirth and unexplained stillbirth in a first pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of stillbirth in a subsequent pregnancy. Compared with women who had a live birth in a first pregnancy the pooled crude and adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) of stillbirth recurrence for women with a previous stillbirth were 4.75(3.74, 6.03) and 2.34(1.53, 3.57) respectively. Compared with women who had a live birth in a first pregnancy the pooled adjusted OR of stillbirth recurrence for women with a previous unexplained stillbirth was 1.83(1.38, 2.44) Conclusion This systematic review and meta-analysis provides some evidence to support an increased recurrence risk for unexplained stillbirth.