demonstrate gross atheroma of any artery at necropsy. Most Africans in Uganda take a low fat diet at all ages. In my opinion, other abnormalities of lipid metabolism must be considered and the participation of the adrenal cortex in many of these states is accepted. A recent symposium7 at this medical school presented data which would suggest that the cortex of the adrenal glands is strikingly reduced in the majority of African necropsies seen herethe top of the African " normal " range barely approaching the lower range of the normal weight of the adrenal cortex as seen at necropsy in other races. At birth and for the first few months of life the adrenal gland appears the same as that seen in other races. The age at which the first marked abnormality occurs is in children dying of severe kwashiorkor. The large majority of African children around Kampala (and probably in many other parts of the Tropics) are growing poorly after weaning ; evidence is accumulating that this is largely due to minor degrees of protein malnutrition. These children have not only a delay in their growth but a variant on the growth pattern as seen in other parts of the world. Against this pattern of development certain diseases seldom emerge, as a severe conzditionz, in adult life: clinical experience here suggests this includes severe manifestations of atheroma, coronary thrombosis, angina of effort, cholelithiasis. essential hypertension, and rheumatoid arthritis. In all of these there are changes in lipid metabolism and/or the adrenal cortex. The hypothesis is advanced that low protein intakes during the period of rapid growth in infancy may be one that protects certain individuals against severe manifestations of these diseases. Other workers in Africa have also shared these views and reported widespread endocrine abnormalities.'-I am, etc.,


A biopsy specimen of the motor nerve to the gracilis muscle was obtained in 151 patients to aid in the diagnosis of neuromuscular disorders. The procedure is simple, safe, and has low morbidity and complication rates. The surgical technique is described. Indications for the use of this technique are motor neuropathy, motor neuron disease, Guillain-Barre syndrome, and mixed neuropathy with prominent motor symptoms.


The effectiveness at reducing interfacial tension between water and different organic solvents was studied, with 14 structurally different dichain sulfosuccinate surfactants. Variations in chemical structure ranged from linear/branched alkyl tail groups, to phenyl-tipped tail units, to partially and fully fluorinated tails. The solvents n-heptane, toluene, and perfluoroheptane were used as example oil phases. Interfacial activity was measured in terms of a reduced interfacial tension scale, R(IFT), based on the value in the presence of surfactants compared to that for the pure solvent-water interface. Overall surfactant chain structure was determined to be the key factor affecting R(IFT). Furthermore, a strong correlation was observed between R(IFT) and the electron density rho(e) of the different surfactants: with any given oil, the most effective surfactants have rho(e) values closest to that for the solvent. For example, phenyl-tipped surfactants were shown to be comparatively more effective at the interface with an aromatic solvent (toluene) than with an aliphatic n-alkane (heptane). Furthermore, fluorination of the tail groups decreased effectiveness at the hydrocarbon/water interface, which was substantially increased at the fluorocarbon/water interface: this too followed the electron density-matching pattern. The importance of chain-tip chemical structure was also noted, with regard to the introduction of phenyl, CF3-, and H-CF2- terminal moieties. For branched alkyl-tailed surfactants, it was found that effectiveness could be linked to an empirical "branching factor". The significance of the electron density matching of organic solvent and surfactant for the prediction of interfacial activities is highlighted, and this concept may prove useful for the future design of new high-efficiency surfactants.


In this paper, a multiverse optimized (MVO) fuzzy PID controller with a derivative filter (fuzzy-PIDF) is proposed for the load frequency control (LFC) of a two-area multisource hydrothermal power system. The superiority of the MVO algorithm is demonstrated by comparing the system LFC performance with integral and fuzzy-PIDF controllers, both optimized using MVO, as well as some of the recent heuristic optimization techniques such as the ant lion optimizer, gray wolf optimizer, differential evolution, bacterial foraging optimization algorithm, and particle swarm optimization. To the best of the knowledge of the authors, the use of the MVO technique has not yet been reported for LFC studies. Among many of the controllers implemented here for comparison, the proposed MVO fuzzy-PIDF controller exhibits the best performance under different operating conditions in terms of settling times, maximum overshoot, and values of cost function, i.e. integral time absolute error. Furthermore, the robustness of the proposed control scheme is also investigated against variation of system parameters within ±10%, along with random step load disturbances. The proposed control scheme is not very sensitive to parametric variations and therefore keeps providing effective performance even under ±10% variations in system parameters. System modeling and simulations are carried out using MATLAB/Simulink.


Why do individuals or groups support vigilantism as a means of conflict resolution? Most researchers tend to agree that support for and participation in vigilantism occurs in "stateless locations," that is, when formal justice institutions are weak or absent. Despite this general consensus, quantitative evidence of this relationship is limited to a handful of country-specific studies that used only subjective survey-based measures of institutional weakness. This study seeks to extend research on vigilantism by assessing the relationship between subjective and objective conditions of formal justice institutions and public support for vigilantism across 323 provinces in 18 Latin American countries by using the 2012 AmericasBarometer Survey. Specifically, this study uses multilevel logistic regression techniques to examine the variability of public support for lethal vigilantism within and across Latin American countries. When controlling for a wide range of potential confounds, the results show that the most robust predictors of support for violent vigilantism are subjective indicators of institutional illegitimacy, personal victimization, and punitive attitudes. Evidence also exists that objective insecurity, as measured by province-level homicide rates, fosters public support for violent vigilantism in certain situations.


The purpose of this study was to identify the best practices of study abroad programs before, during, and after the experience. The results of this study will add further to implementing quality educational programs in agricultural and life sciences. A qualitative methodology with participant observation was employed to provide a thick and rich examination of a study abroad experience conducted in Latin America. Results provided specific best practices for activities before, during, and after such an experience. Recommendations and implications are provided.


OBJECTIVES
Brachial plexus injury is a rare complication after median sternotomy. We investigated that injury to the brachial plexus was retrospectively assessed in the results of three patients who underwent median sternotomy for open heart surgery.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
All patients were placed in the hands-up position after right internal jugular vein cannulation, and the internal mammary artery was prepared for all of those. Nerve conduction measurements and electromyography were performed besides neurological examination.

RESULTS
Brachial plexus injury was detected in three cases (0.5%) of 575 patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting with median sternotomy. The main symptoms were continuous pain, and motor and sensory disturbances at the affected upper extremity (left arm in all cases). The common feature was that in all cases the left internal mammary artery was harvested. While the symptoms were relieved in two patients about six months after the operation, the other one had intractable pain and paresthesia.

CONCLUSION
The most important measure is careful sternal retraction and use of the hands-up position for the low incidence and benign course of brachial plexus problems. Inappropriate sternal retraction during preparation of internal mammary artery should be avoided.


Ionic liquid electrolytes with high alkali salt concentrations have displayed some excellent electrochemical properties, thus opening up the field for further improvements to liquid electrolytes for lithium or sodium batteries. Fundamental computational investigations into these high concentration systems are required in order to gain a better understanding of these systems, yet they remain lacking. Small phosphonium-based ionic liquids with high concentrations of alkali metal ions have recently shown many promising results in experimental studies, thereby prompting us to conduct further theoretical exploration of these materials. Here, we conducted a molecular dynamics simulation on four small phosphonium-based ionic liquids with 50 mol. % LiFSI salt, focusing on the effect of cation structure on local structuring and ion diffusional and rotational dynamics-which are closely related to the electrochemical properties of these materials.


A guide to assist students in Professor Beth Kissileff's ENGLIT 0500: Introduction to Critical Reading on the theme of Confronting Evil.


Carotid endarterectomy has become a standard surgical procedure in the therapy of cerebrovascular insufficiency. An important consideration in this form of therapy is to maintain a low perioperative morbidity and mortality. In planning the procedure the two most frequent complications deserve special consideration. Thromboembolism is the major cause of new neurological deficits and prevention should be emphasized as therapeutic interventions are of limited value. The cardiovascular status needs special attention, since the long-term prognosis is predominantly influenced by concomitant coronary artery disease. Regional anaesthesia provides good cardiovascular stability and the chance to monitor neurological changes in an awake patient. Patient discomfort and limited control of vital functions are obviated by general anaesthesia raising the challenge of maintaining cardiovascular stability and establishing adequate cerebral monitoring. Both electroencephalography and somatosensory evoked potentials monitor cerebral function continuously and enable detection of cerebral ischaemia secondary to inadequate blood flow. Another continuous technique is transcranial Doppler sonography; this, however, does not monitor brain function and its role in carotid surgery is still under investigation. Carotid stump pressure or cerebral blood flow measurements provide intermittent data and should therefore only be used as an adjunct. The goal to find an approach that minimizes the risk for the individual patient can only be attained by close cooperation between anaesthesiologists and surgeons.


Partial response class-IV signaling combined with Viterbi decoding to perform maximum-likelihood sequence detection is considered for high-speed data transmission over twisted-pair cables. In order to establish which data rates and distances can be achieved by this method, a performance evaluation is conducted. Binary and quaternary modulations are considered, and disturbance of the received signal by near-end and far-end crosstalk and additive white Gaussian noise is taken into account. A benchmark comparison with rigorously optimized symbol-by-symbol detection systems using AMI and HDB3 line coding is presented. >


Teachers in tertiary education need new strategies to communicate with students of the net generation and to shape enticing educational experiences for them. The use of new approaches such as video-recorded lectures to communicate directly and individually with all students has been the preserve of technology-savvy educators. However, a recent technological advance – the Apple iPad – has the potential to change this situation, offering access to effective and efficient pedagogy in an easy and intuitive way. This paper is a report on the use of the iPad in teaching activities over the past 15 months, showing how it can be used to enhance engagement with learning for tertiary students, both those studying live on campus and those studying at a distance.


All Water Resource Recovery Facilities (WRRFs) must comply with evolving treatment objectives and product water quality requirements, using technologies which also evolve over time. The useful life of the physical structures, especially hydraulic conveyance (pipes and channels) and water holding structures, is significantly longer than that of the specific technologies used. Thus, the WRRF of the future must, first and foremost, be designed with the flexibility to adapt to a wide variety of requirements over its life using a wide variety of technologies, some of which are currently known while others will be invented and/or further developed over time. This might be seen as the true essence of the WRRF of the future, rather than the specific technology implemented at a particular time. While incorporating flexibility and adaptability into facilities may seem daunting, especially since future requirements and technologies are largely unknown, experience indicates that much can be done to prepare for such changes. Proven engineering approaches are presented and discussed in the paper, including the 'building block approach' to plant layout and design, and the choice of process tank configurations which can accommodate numerous technologies.


Thermal-sprayed zinc anodes are used in impressed current cathodic protection systems for some of Oregon's coastal reinforced concrete bridges. Electrochemical aging of zinc anodes results in physical and chemical changes at the zinc-concrete interface. Concrete surfaces heated prior to thermal-spraying had initial adhesion strengths 80 pct higher than unheated surfaces. For electrochemical aging greater than 200 kC/m{sup 2} (5.2 A h/ft{sup 2}), there was no difference in adhesion strengths for zinc on preheated and unheated concrete. Adhesion strengths decreased monotonically after about 400 to 600 kC/m{sup 2} (10.4 to 15.6 A-h/ft{sup 2}) as a result of the reaction zones at the zinc-concrete interface. A zone adjacent to the metallic zinc (and originally part of the zinc coating) was primarily zincite (ZnO), with minor constituents of wulfingite (Zn(OH){sub 2}), simonkolleite (Zn{sub 5}(OH) {sub 8}C{sub l2}{sup .}H{sub 2}O), and hydrated zinc hydroxide sulfates (Zn{sub 4}SO{sub 4}(OH){sub 6}{sup .}xH{sub 2}O). This zone is the locus for cohesive fracture when the zinc coating separates from the concrete during adhesion tests. Zinc ions substitute for calcium in the cement paste adjacent to the coating as the result of secondary mineralization. The initial estimate of the coating service life based on adhesion strength measurements in accelerated impressed current cathodic protection tests is about 27 years.


The aim of the article is to discuss alternatives to the traditional peer review system and reconstruct the review praxis to include ideas from Mode 2 and the second generation of web solutions, often called Web 2.0. The article starts by discussing the concept of Research 2.0 which basically propose a gentle marriage between the concepts Mode 2 in the the researchosphere and Web 2.0 in the webosphere. The following discussion concerns the concept Open Peer Review. Open Peer Review is a young and still quite open concept, used to describe a general transparency in the review process as well as a complete shift in the ideology of peer review. Our preference goes to the later interpretation. The last section before the conclusion describes International Journal of Feminist Technoscience. The journal is a way of realising our ideas in a working praxis.


Strain XIII guinea pigs immunized with rabbit tubular basement membrane (TBM) develop a severe tubulointerstitial nephritis mediated by anti-TBM antibodies. Experiments were performed to determine whether heterologous antibodies to the anti-TBM antibodies (anti-idiotypes) could suppress this autoimmune disease. Anti-TBM antibodies were eluted from strain XIII kidneys with anti-TBM disease and were partially purified by ion exchange chromatography. Antisera to various fractions (I, IV, VI; corresponding to IgG2, IgG1+2, and IgG1, respectively) were raised in rabbits. The antisera were repeatedly absorbed with normal strain XIII serum to remove reactivity to normal IgG. Ten milliliters of the absorbed rabbit antisera or control sera were given i.p. to strain XIII animals at the same time they were sensitized with rabbit TBM and ovalbumin in complete Freund's adjuvant. After 14 days, control animals immunized with TBM, but given either no serum, normal rabbit serum, or antiserum raised against eluates from normal strain XIII kidneys, developed severe tubulointerstitial nephritis with 84.4 ± 5.8, 64.6 ± 9.8, and 96.2 ± 3.5% of the renal cortex involved, respectively. Animals given the anti-idiotype sera had significantly less disease, with 12.6 ± 8.3 (VI), 16.5 ± 5.1 (IV), and 31.2 ± 10.4% (I) of the cortex affected. These animals also had significantly reduced levels of anti-TBM antibodies as measured by a solid phase radioimmunoassay. The antibody response to ovalbumin and tuberculin skin test reactions were not affected. A radioimmunoassay was developed to determine whether the most active rabbit antisera (VI) had anti-idiotypic activity. These sera bound specifically to the iodinated fraction VI anti-TBM antibody eluate, and pre-absorption of the fraction VI with either anti-guinea pig IgG or by guinea pig TBM removed the reactivity with the rabbit antisera.
 These results indicate that specific inhibition of an autoantibody response and its consequent disease can be achieved by means of antisera raised to the autoantibodies. The mechanism has not been established, but it is believed to be due to idiotype suppression. A similar approach might prove suitable in other autoimmune diseases.


Time delay control (TDC) for non-linear systems has rapidly drawn attention as a result of its unusually robust performance and yet its extraordinarily compact form. In many real applications, TDC has been implemented digitally and the time delay, λ, was set to the sampling period of the control system, which is a constant during the control process. The existing stability analysis, however, has been made based on the assumption of the continuous-time TDC and infinitesimal time delay (λ→0). The assumption not only fails to reflect the reality that the closed-loop system (CLS) is a sampled-data system, but also leads to a stability criterion in which important parameters, such as λ, are absent. In this paper, therefore, sufficient stability criteria for a non-linear system based on the premise of discrete-time TDC and λ that is equal to the sampling period are presented. To this end, we have first proposed a discretization method to derive the approximate discrete-time model of CLS. Then by using the model and the concepts of consistency and Lyapunov stability, we have derived stability criteria for the exact discrete-time model of CLS. The suggested criteria consist of the sampling period and other parameters of TDC. These criteria have been verified by simulation results.


"In one sense, my story is a common one, a white boy misdemeanant who lands in a ditch and is restored to sanity through the love of his family, a God of his understanding and a support group that will go unnamed. But if the whole truth is told, it does not end there. "The book will be fundamentally different than a tell-all, or more commonly, tell-most. It will be a rigorously clear-eyed reported memoir in which the process of discovery will be part of the narrative motor...For instance, my brother asked if I was going to give him credit for bailing me out after I was arrested for possession of pot as an 18-yr.-old in a Wisconsin state park. I had not even remembered the incident. "You remember the story you can live with, not the one that happened."


amid concern about the status of skates and rays in welsh waters the present work set out to provide up-to-date information on the population biology of raja clavata in caernarfon bay. the von bertalanffy growth parameters were l∞=100.9 cm, k=0.18 y−1 and t0=−0.95 y for males; and l∞=117.6 cm, k=0.16 y−1 and t0=−0.7 y for females. male r. clavata reached 50% maturity at 58.8 cm and 3.9 y, which was smaller and younger than females (l50 and a50 were 70.5 cm and 5.3 y, respectively). although previously over-exploited, the present estimate of total mortality (z) was 0.48–0.49 y−1 which, in terms of replacement mortality (calculated as 0.7 y−1), suggests no immediate prospect of recruitment failure for r. clavata in caernarfon bay. the potential for the recovery of a depleted population is discussed in relation to the allee effect.


This paper explores how cross-sectional data can be exploited jointly with longitudinal data, in order to increase estimation efficiency while properly tackling the potential bias due to unobserved individual characteristics. We propose an innovative procedure and we show its implementation by analysing the determinants of consumption in Nicaragua, based on data from three Living Standard Measurement Study surveys from 1993, 1998 and 2001. The last two rounds constitute an unbalanced longitudinal data set, while the first is a cross-section of different households. Under the assumption that the relationship between observed and unobserved characteristics is homogeneous across time, information from longitudinal data is used to clean the bias in the unpaired sample. In a second step, corrected unpaired observations are used jointly with panel data. This reduces the standard errors of the estimation coefficients and might increase their significance as well, otherwise compromised by the limited variation provided by the short longitudinal data.


Dr. P.H. Ritter jr. (1882-1962) was the most active book reviewer on Dutch radio during the interwar period. His radio talks for the major broadcasting company AVRO contributed greatly to his national fame and influence. In this article, we explain Ritter's metacritical discourse regarding book reviewing on radio by focusing on his evolving notion of 'objective' criticism. We illustrate this with an exemplary radio talk from the thirties, which shows his standard analytic and didactic reviewing procedure. In addition to that, we discuss meaningful variations and contractions within his reviewing practice, thus showing that Ritter positioned himself not only as a cultural mediator, but also as a bookseller, an entertainer and a polemist.


The end of the Cold War has freed Eastern Europe from the Soviet Union and Western Europe from the United States. This article explores how the Americans have attempted to adapt to these new uncertainties by redefining the threat and by seeking a new political and military identity for NATO. The individual, societal, and external variables that may explain how strategies of adaptation are chosen are then identified. The turbulence of the System, by concentrating decision-making, by giving more weight to budgetary variables, by encouraging neo-isolationist trends, and by favouring local political priorities accentuates an approach of reacting to events and preserving the status quo, an approach which leaves NATO at the mercy of German objectives in Europe without resolving the issue of European security.


Due to increasing volume of measurements in smart grids, surrogate based learning approaches for modeling the power grids are becoming popular. This paper uses regression based models to find the unknown state variables on power systems. Generally, to determine these states, nonlinear systems of power flow equations are solved iteratively. This study considers that the power flow problem can be modeled as an data driven type of a model. Then, the state variables, i.e., voltage magnitudes and phase angles are obtained using machine learning based approaches, namely, Extreme Learning Machine (ELM), Gaussian Process Regression (GPR), and Support Vector Regression (SVR). Several simulations are performed on the IEEE 14 and 30-Bus test systems to validate surrogate based learning based models. Moreover, input data was modified with noise to simulate measurement errors. Numerical results showed that all three models can find state variables reasonably well even with measurement noise.


This thesis presents several aspects of simulation-based point estimation in the context of Bayesian decision theory. The first part of the thesis (Chapters 4 - 5) concerns the estimation-then-minimisation (ETM) method as an efficient computational approach to compute simulation-based Bayes estimates. We are interested in applying the ETM method to compute Bayes estimates under some non-standard loss functions. However, for some loss functions, the ETM method cannot be implemented straightforwardly. We examine the ETM method via Taylor approximations and cubic spline interpolations for Bayes estimates in one dimension. In two dimensions, we implement the ETM method via bicubic interpolation. The second part of the thesis (Chapter 6) concentrates on the analysis of a mixture posterior distribution with a known number of components using the Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) output. We aim for Bayesian point estimation related to a label invariant loss function which allows us to estimate the parameters in the mixture posterior distribution without dealing with label switching. We also investigate uncertainty of the point estimates which is presented by the uncertainty bound and the crude uncertainty bound of the expected loss evaluated at the point estimates based on MCMC samples. The crude uncertainty bound is relatively cheap, but it seems to be unreliable. On the other hand, the uncertainty bound which is approximated a 95% confidence interval seems to be reliable, but are very computationally expensive. The third part of the thesis (Chapter 7), we propose a possible alternative way to present the uncertainty for Bayesian point estimates. We adopt the idea of leaving out observations from the jackknife method to compute jackknife-Bayes estimates. We then use the jackknife-Bayes estimates to visualise the uncertainty of Bayes estimates. Further investigation is required to improve the method and some suggestions are made to maximise the efficiency of this approach.


This paper is the outcome of a first research project on the Belgian transport logistics sectors. In the past few years, the logistics business has turned out to play a significant part in wealth creation in our country, whose economy is driven by services. An overview of some developments per sub-sector is provided for the period 2000 2005, with the emphasis on 2005. The core of the analysis looks more specifically into developments in terms of value added, employment, investment and the financial situation of the companies concerned. A first estimate is also provided for 2006.


In 2001, the normalization method was approved as ASTM Method E 1820-01 [1] for use in high loading rate J-R tests. Prior to its approval, High Rate Round Robin was conducted under the coordination of ASTM Subcommittee E08.08.02 for the verification of accuracy and reproducibility of the method. However, the results of the normalization method cannot be verified against those of other well-established methods because no other method is available in the high loading rate condition. In this round robin test, J-R curves were measured under static loading conditions for A106Gr. C nuclear piping steel by the normalization method so that results can be compared with those obtained simultaneously by the unloading compliance method. The deviation of JIc by normalization and differences of JIc values from those of the unloading compliance method were quantified. The normalization method showed JIc deviation up to 60 % when tested with initial a/W=0.5. In order to seek ways to reduce the deviation, both offset method and tangent method were tried for normalization analysis, but with limited improvement. These partially modified normalization methods of the offset method and tangent method decreases the deviation of JIc, but increases the difference from those of the unloading compliance method. More fundamental approaches are warranted for adequate improvement.


By employing molecular dynamics simulations, the evolution of deformation of a monolayer graphene sheet under a central transverse loading are investigated. Dependence of mechanical responses on the symmetry (shape) of the loading domain, on the size of the graphene sheet, and on temperature, is determined. It is found that the symmetry of the loading domain plays a central role in fracture strength and strain. By increasing the size of the graphene sheet or increasing temperature, the tensile strength and fracture strain decrease. The results have demonstrated that the breaking force and breaking displacement are sensitive to both temperature and the symmetry of the loading domain. In addition, we find that the intrinsic strength of graphene under a central load is much smaller than that of graphene under a uniaxial load. By examining the deformation processes, two failure mechanisms are identified namely, brittle bond breaking and plastic relaxation. In the second mechanism, the Stone-Wales transformation occurs.


Human leishmaniasis is distributed worldwide, butmainly in the tropics and subtropics, with a prevalenceof 12 million cases and an approximate incidence of 0.5million cases of VL (visceral leishmaniasis) and 1.5 million cases of cutaneousleishmaniasis (CL) Leishmaniaspecies are intra‐cellularparasites invading monocytes, macrophages, and langerhans celland begin the  differentiation process into amastigotes, the parasite form which persists in the host. Theirinfection in man induces both humoral andcellular immune responses, but the balanceof their expression varies with the type of the disease. To identify the profile of autoantibodies  levels of patients with cutaneous leishmaniasis, this study showed that a significance changes of immunoglobulin levels as high level, especially in IgG and  no significance value  for elevation of IgM and IgA.


ODS rat has a hereditary defect in ascorbic acid biosynthesis and is a useful animal model for elucidating the physiological role of ascorbic acid. We previously demonstrated by using ODS rats that ascorbic acid deficiency changes the hepatic gene expression of acute phase proteins, as seen in acute inflammation. In this study, we investigated the effects of ascorbic acid deficiency on the production of inflammatory chemokine, cytokine-induced neutrophil chemoattractant-1 (CINC-1), in ODS rats. Male ODS rats (6 wk of age) were fed a basal diet containing ascorbic acid (300 mg/kg diet) or a diet without ascorbic acid for 14 d. Obvious symptoms of scurvy were not observed in the ascorbic acid-deficient rats. Ascorbic acid deficiency significantly elevated the serum concentration of CINC-1 on d 14. The liver and spleen CINC-1 concentrations in the ascorbic acid-deficient rats were significantly elevated to 600% and 180% of the respective values in the control rats. However, the lung concentration of CINC-1 was not affected by ascorbic acid deficiency. Ascorbic acid deficiency significantly elevated the hepatic mRNA level of CINC-1 (to 480% of the value in the control rats), but not the lung mRNA level. These results demonstrate that ascorbic acid deficiency elevates the serum, liver and spleen concentrations of CINC-1 as seen in acute inflammation, and suggest that ascorbic acid deficiency stimulate the hepatic CINC-1 gene expression.


One of the goals in the curriculum is that the students in junior high schools must know how to seek information and how to do critical evaluations. Therefore is the aim of this bachelor thesis to examine how the school librarian work with teaching in information seeking in junior high schools. The theoretical framework that has been used is based on Limberg & Folkssons project IDOL s five categories. The data has collected through qualitative interviews with three school librarians in three different junior high schools in Sweden. The results shows that school librarians teach information seeking by talk about source criticism, sources, information queries, the importance of verifying information and to teach different search tips. The lessons usally was based on a basic presentation about information seeking and source criticism. The school librarian was even a part of bigger school project to teach information seeking and to support the students when they seek information. The conclusions is that this is helpful to know because the schools mission is to learn the students to be reflecting individuals. It is important that school librarians and teachers work together in this process and to contribute with each unique expertice in teaching information seeking. It is also important to support and welcome the students to the library when they need more help with information seeking.


Turchin (Oikos 68, 167-172 (1993)) provided point estimates of the dominant Lyapunov exponent suggesting that chaos occurs in microtines north of 60° N. Falck et al. (Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 261, 159-165 (1995)) proposed to use bootstrapping methodology to investigate the uncertainty associated with the reported estimates. Based on this, Falck et al. (1995) found no reason to conclude that the northern populations are chaotic. The methodology employed, and the conclusions reached, were criticized by Turchin (Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B 262, 357-361 (1995)). Here we discuss the critique as well as analyse the new data set introduced by Turchin (1995). In addition to analysing pooled data for all microtines at seventeen localities (as Turchin does), we also analyse data for each species at the sites separately. As an integral part of our response, we address some fundamental statistical and biological issues. We reach the same conclusion as earlier: there is no statistical evidence to conclude that northern microtine populations are characterized by chaotic dynamics.


OBJECTIVE
To report technique, surgical time, complication rate, and postoperative activity in dogs undergoing 2 intracorporeally-sutured total laparoscopic gastropexy (TLG) techniques compared with a laparoscopic-assisted gastropexy (LAG) technique.

STUDY DESIGN
Randomized clinical trial.

ANIMALS
Dogs (n=30) weighing >25 kg.

METHODS
Dogs were randomly assigned to 1 of 3 groups. Two TLG techniques were performed using a median 3 portal technique. One of 2 suturing techniques was used to approximate corresponding incisions made in the stomach and body wall; using intracorporeal hand-suturing or a suture-assist device (Endostitch). In a 3rd group, a previously reported LAG technique was used. All dogs had an activity monitor placed for 7 days pre- and postoperatively. Linear regression analyses were performed to evaluate the association of surgical procedure on gastropexy time and the percentage change in activity counts.

RESULTS
Median gastropexy time was 28 minutes (range, 20-41 minutes) for LAG, 48 minutes (range, 39-61 minutes) for the hand suture TLG technique, and 56 minutes (range, 30-90 minutes) for the Endostitch TLG technique. LAG was performed faster than TLG (P<.05). LAG dogs had a greater decrease in postoperative activity than TLG dogs (P=.005); however there was no difference in surgical time or postoperative activity between TLG techniques.

CONCLUSIONS
TLG can be performed safely and effectively in dogs and although it takes longer, it has less impact on postoperative activity compared with LAG.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE
TLG techniques may have advantages over LAG as measured by a greater willingness of dogs to move around postoperatively.


Brian Helmke is currently Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Virginia. He received the B.S.E. in bioengineering from the University of Pennsylvania, the B.S.Econ. from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and the Ph.D. in bioengineering from the University of California, San Diego. Brian's research interests include cardiovascular physiology, cellular mechanobiology, and nanotechnology-based biomaterials. He is also interested in technology-enhanced teaching and in experiential learning for undergraduates in science and engineering.


Association rule mining is known to be computationally intensive, yet real-time decision-making applications are increasingly intolerant to delays. The state-of-the-art PARAS1 solution, a parameter space framework for online association mining, enables efficient rule mining by compactly indexing the final ruleset and providing efficient query-time redundancy resolution. Unfortunately, as many association mining models, PARAS was designed for static data. Modern transaction databases undergo regular data updates that quickly invalidating existing rules or introducing new rules for the PARAS index. While reloading the PARAS index from scratch is impractical, as even upon minor data changes, a complete rule inference and redundancy resolution steps would have to be performed. We now propose to tackle this open problem by designing an incremental parameter space construction approach, called iPARAS, that utilizes the previous mining result to minimally adjust the ruleset and associated redundancy relationships. iPARAS features two innovative techniques. First, iPARAS provides an end-to-end solution, composed of three algorithms, to efficiently update the final ruleset in the parameter space. Second, iPARAS designs a compact data structure to maintain the complex redundancy relationships. Overall, iPARAS achieves several times speed-up on parameter space construction for transaction databases comparing to the state-of-the-art online association rule mining system PARAS.


Abstract The Cenomanian–Turonian (C–T) boundary interval is marked by one of the most prominent perturbations of the Mesozoic carbon cycle, Oceanic Anoxic Event 2 (OAE2). Increased fertilization of surface waters caused by greater fluvial input of nutrients may have caused the widespread deposition of organic-rich black shales during the OAE2 (productivity model). Alternatively, sluggish oceanic circulation may have enhanced stratification of the water column favoring the preservation of organic matter due to anoxic bottom-water conditions (preservation model). In order to gather evidence for the driving mechanism behind the deposition of the OAE2 black shales, calcareous nannofossils from the midlatitudinal Holywell section (Eastbourne, southeastern England) were studied. Ten bioevents, including last occurrences of six species and first occurrences of four, were recognized throughout the 11-m-thick interval. Preservation of calcareous nannofossils was moderate to good in all studied samples. The C–T interval here contains an abundant (mean 2.4 × 109 specimens/g sediment) and highly diverse (mean 58 spp./sample) calcareous nannoflora, with Watznaueria, Zeugrhabdotus, Biscutum, and Prediscosphaera the most common taxa. The most remarkable change in assemblage composition through the OAE2 is the decrease of Biscutum spp. Low abundances of Biscutum, combined with elevated numbers of Watznaueria spp. and/or Polycyclolithaceae, indicate reduced surface-water fertility during the OAE2 in midlatitudinal European shelf areas. A reduction of primary productivity seems to be quite common in midlatitudinal sections, whereas calcareous nannofossils and geochemistry indicate an increase in primary productivity in low-latitudinal sections. It is therefore likely that the origin of the OAE2 in mid latitudes was caused by sluggish ocean circulation, which intensified stratification. Reduced rates of mixing prevented the oxygenation of bottom waters in these regions, causing black shale deposition.


Six hundred and seventy two loci belonging to 275 expressed sequence tag-simple sequence repeats [EST-SSRs, including 93 wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and 182 rye (Secale cereale L.) EST-SSRs] were physically mapped on 21 wheat chromosomes. The mapping involved two approaches, the wet-lab approach involving use of deletion stocks and the in silico approach involving matching with ESTs that were previously mapped. The number of loci per EST-SSR mapped using the in silico approach was almost double the number of loci mapped using the wet-lab approach (using deletion stocks). The distribution of loci on the three subgenomes, on the seven homoeologous groups and on the 21 individual chromosomes was nonrandom (P « 0.01). Long arms had disproportionately (relative to the difference in DNA content) higher number of loci, with more loci mapped to the distal regions of chromosome arms. A fairly high proportion of EST-SSRs had multiple loci, which were largely (81%) homoeoloci. Rye EST-SSRs showed a high level of transferability (≈77%) to the wheat genome. Putative functions were assigned to 216 SSR-containing ESTs through homology searches against the protein database. As many as 104 SSR-containing ESTs (a subset of the above ESTs) were also mapped to the 12 rice chromosomes, which corresponded with the known homology between wheat and rice chromosomes. These physical maps of EST-SSRs should prove useful for comparative genomics, gene tagging, fine mapping, and cloning of genes and QTLs. Dna-based molecular markers, particularly SSRs, have been developed and mapped on chromosomes in a variety of crop plants. In bread wheat, genetic and physical mapping of SSRs has been an ongoing exercise, and, to date, ≈2450 SSRs (1 SSR 1.63 cM-1) have been genetically mapped (for details see Torada et al., 2006) and ≈1320 SSRs (62 SSRs chromosome-1) have been physically mapped (for details see Goyal et al., 2005). With a genome size of ≈16 000 Mbp, it is evident that despite concerted efforts, the density of mapped SSRs in bread wheat remains relatively low and continued efforts are needed to increase the density of these SSRs on available genetic and physical maps. In recent years, emphasis has also shifted from genomic SSRs to EST-SSRs due to the availability of very large databases of ESTs from all of the cereals including bread wheat. Consequently, the number of EST-SSRs in cereals now includes 43 598 from bread wheat (Peng and Lapitan, 2005), 16 917 from rice and 184 from rye (La Rota et al., 2005; Hackauf and Wehling, 2002). The genetic mapping of these EST-SSRs is difficult due to a low level of polymorphism, as a result of their conserved nature. Physical mapping of these EST-SSRs in wheat is equally difficult due to the occurrence of homoeoloci exhibiting no polymorphism. This has discouraged wheat researchers from undertaking a large-scale project to genetically or physically map wheat EST-SSRs although genetic mapping of 325 EST-SSRs (Gao et al., 2004; Nicot et al., 2004; Yu et al., 2004) and physical mapping of 305 EST-SSRs was recently undertaken (Yu et al., 2004; Zhang et al., 2005; Peng and Lapitan, 2005). We previously reported genetic mapping of 58 and physical mapping of 270 genomic SSRs (Gupta et al., 2002; Goyal et al., 2005). The present study is an extension of our earlier studies on physical mapping of SSRs and involved both wet-lab and in silico approaches, leading to the successful mapping of as many as 672 loci. The in silico approach allowed mapping of twice the number of loci (per EST-SSR) mapped using wet-lab analysis.


Phosphorus (P) is an endemic soil constraint to crop production in rainfed semi-arid regions like the 1.82-Mha Pothohar Plateau in Pakistan, where we monitored the P status of rainfed wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) and determined crop responses to P application by broadcast and banding methods. Nutrient indexing of young whole shoots and associated soils revealed severe to moderate P deficiency in most fields. In a 3-year field trial on P-deficient soils, grain yield increases were 130–233% with broadcast and 175–239% with banded P; fertilizer requirement for optimum crop yield was twice as high for broadcasting than banding. Fertilizer use was highly profitable, especially with banding, and increased both available soil P and organic matter. This comprehensive approach of soil–plant nutrient indexing and selective field trials provided a rational economic basis for P fertilizer use in rainfed agriculture and serves as a model strategy for stimulating crop productivity in developing countries.


The development of the communication world brought many changes in public awareness. One form of communication is the Internet revolution. The Internet is a medium of communication that uses computers and communication channels as his spine. In practice, the Internet has opened a new social space for communication. Where the internet individuals can find all necessary information, increasing knowledge, has even become a social technology that allows personal and social needs. Internet can also be used as a land ugliness, evil, and the event shut down even disobedience. For some teens who have problems with socialization and self-confidence crisis, making the internet or chatting as a venue for socializing new. This study aims to determine the intensity difference Chatting someone if the review of adolescent self-concept. This type of research that is in use is non-experimental research. This research was conducted on December 10 to 12 February 2007. The population in this study is the customer or a customer of the cafe DinoyoNet Malang. Sampling technique using incidental sampling technique which numbered 40 people. Methods of data collection in this study using a scale. Data analysis was conducted using different test analysis (t-test). The results showed no significant difference in the intensity of Chat t: 4.674 p = 0.000 (0.010) in terms of self-concept, where the teenager who has a negative self-concept has Chatting intensity is higher (= 12.18) compared with adolescents who have self-concept positive (= 4.52).


My concern here is with the enclosure and delimitation of a politics of communication within and across the knowledge and creative sectors. I show how this enclosure is enacted by reform agendas and specifically by the alignment of copyright and access reform in the UK. While policy on copyright and access implements neoliberal values by means of the apparently valueless a-politics of openness, I explore the possibilities of re-politicisation - of opening out from openness - through publishing projects that (re)enact specifically feminist agendas and investments in, for example, care, ethics, agency, responsibility, experimentation and intervention. A feminist politics of communication does not (could not) posit radicalism in opposition to neoliberalism but does constitute a relation of antagonism (Mouffe) within a nexus of trouble understood here as the configuration of writing, publishing, privatisation and marketisation. To the extent that this nexus of trouble is already troubled (and not least by crisis models in publishing, the humanities and academia generally), the specific and strategic question of writing itself is, I suggest, currently underexplored. The question of writing brings philosophy to bear on policies of openness but, I argue, in an environment of increasingly proprietorial knowledge and of creativity as market competition, the key question (to ask) of writing is not the metaphysical one (what is writing?) but rather the more provisional question: why write?


If there's one thing one can expect from information technology deployments in developing countries–it's the unexpected. From 2007-2010, I combined my skills as a software developer with ethnographic methods to observe the use of information technology in a non-governmental organization (NGO) in Southwest Uganda. This NGO subsidizes health facilities by paying for sexually transmitted infection treatment on the basis of claims submitted after the patient consultation, targeting treatment of 99,000 clients between 2006-2011. The program addresses a real need - in the program area, a household survey found that while 39% of the population reported STI symptoms, only 1/3 sought care. However, management of this program is information intensive. As part of my studies, I implemented and tested Claim Mobile, a smartphone-based data collection application intended to reduce claims processing delays and improve health facility engagement. I successfully tested Claim Mobile in Summer 2008, processing 35 claims for two health facilities, and then discontinued its deployment six months later, when I decided that integration and scale-up of the technology would be problematic for the changing context the NGO. New priorities and new program management practices revealed `invisible constraints' that a redesign of Claim Mobile would not accommodate.
This dissertation addresses the ways in which I as a researcher, an NGO, and their beneficiary health service providers deal with and understand social and technological change. I discuss how the NGO program staff 'braided' communications together to address their communications needs, the ways in which choices in design can affect stakeholder relationships, and reflect on the reasons for Claim Mobile's 'failure'. I find that 1) designs must account for all stakeholders, not just users, 2) ICTs are used in co-evolving and co-dependent, braided ways, 3) affordances and constraints change over time, as well as in relation to the different user contexts, and as a result 4) designs are subject to changing context.


Computational Intelligence (CI) is a term corresponding to a new generation of algorithmic methodologies in artificial intelligence, which combines elements of learning, adaptation, evolution and approximate (fuzzy) reasoning to create programs that can be considered intelligent. Supply Chain Optimization, Design, and Management: Advances and Intelligent Methods presents computational intelligence methods for addressing supply chain issues. Emphasis is given to techniques that provide effective solutions to complex supply chain problems and exhibit superior performance to other methods of operations research.


Lavishly illustrated, extensively researched, and superbly written, this in-depth study of Picasso's work from 1926 to 1939 is an essential resource for all art-historians and students. Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) was without doubt the most prolific and influential artist of the 20th century. The various steps that critics and historians have managed to identify in his long career have been more helpful with regard to the classification of his works than in their analysis and interpretation. Abandoning the traditional use of subject matter to achieve variety and meaning, Picasso gradually reduced his options to a handful of standardized motifs but used a vast array of different styles as the principal means of communicating ideas and feelings. In short, style is meaning in Picasso's art; his notoriously mercurial nature found expression in stylistic variety and experimentation. In the course of his illuminating and in-depth essay, Fabre pinpoints the keys to understanding a period (1926-1939) and an artist who was fully aware of the complexity of his time and the timelessness of true art.


This is a small collection of articles initiated by the Centre of Excellence in Cultural Theory and dedicated to the study of some selected aspects of the culture of death in archaeology, folkloristics, and media studies. Such a selection of research fields is to some extent random depending mostly on authors who responded to the call for papers and succeeded in finishing their contributions before the deadline. This selection could easily be quite different and the collection itself much thicker because the focus--the topic of death--touches everyone and forms an essential part in human culture. Nevertheless, even this casual selection of different aspects in the culture of death gives a good overview of the essential and inexhaustible nature of the topic, and of how some nuances of the culture of death share surprisingly many features in totally different research disciplines. The authors hope that their modest contribution complements that extremely large and rich discussion which does exist on the culture of death in various social and human sciences. Although due to the nature of this journal the emphasis is on archaeology, it makes sense to start with the question from the last paper about the death in newspapers written by Halliki Harro-Loit and Kadri Ugur. They ask: "since everyone dies, whose death is worthy of media coverage?" One can replace the word "media" in this question with some other words more characteristic of someone's own research field. An archaeologist, for instance, could ask: since everyone dies, whose death was worthy of proper burying? The problem here lies in the circumstance that the graves and cemeteries we know from prehistory have often belonged only to a minor part of human population, while the majority of prehistoric people were buried in a way, which has not preserved their burials over longer times. Death leaves traces in human culture only if it is interpreted through that culture, as stated by Valter Lang in his article in the current volume, and by far not every death has shared this fate in prehistoric past. The proper burying, leaving traces in material culture, has been selective for a very long time, in our corner of the world until the spread of Christianity at the latest. But such selectiveness can also be found in many other prehistoric and historical societies around the world, while towards the modern societies it has achieved more shaded or hidden features. The media coverage of death today is actually also selective, therefore compensating the selectiveness of culturally treated death by other and modern means. Thus, death touches everyone of us but its phenomena interpreted through culture very much depend on both time and place. This culture-specificity is also demonstrated by the articles included in this volume. Trying to answer the question, whose death is worthy of rendering cultural meaning, the researchers of prehistoric to modern societies usually refer to those persona who have possessed more remarkable and outstanding positions in their lifetime. Still, in egalitarian societies of distant past the question of who was buried in a few graves is quite incomprehensible for us, as there is insufficient data to make reliable suggestions. In more complex and stratified (pre)historic societies the buried people were most likely those who shared social, religious and economical power. Today the range of such people is much wider embracing also politically and culturally (in its broader sense) or otherwise active and outstanding individuals. Anyway, whatever has been the exact practice in particular cultures, death has been used as a means for distinguishing and remembering people who were somehow important for those societies. Speaking of the representation of death in modern press, the main idea of death notices is the wish of survivors (e.g. relatives, friends, colleagues) to inform the others about someone's demise. All such notices and other texts share the grief and mourning; they speak much more about the living people than about those who died (Harro-Loit & Ugur, this volume). …


Objective To evaluate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic exposure on changes in alcohol use and mood from years 1 to 2 after traumatic brain injury (TBI). Methods We used a difference-in-difference (DiD) study design to analyze data from 1,059 individuals with moderate-to-severe TBI enrolled in the TBI Model Systems (TBIMS) National Database. We defined COVID-19 pandemic exposure as participants who received their year 1 post-injury interviews prior to January 1, 2020, and their year 2 interview between April 1, 2020 and January 15, 2021. Pandemic-unexposed participants had both year 1 and 2 follow-up interviews before January 1, 2020. We measured current alcohol use as any past month alcohol use, average number of drinks per drinking occasion, and past month binge drinking. We measured depression symptoms using Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and anxiety symptoms using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7. Results We found persons with TBI exposed to the pandemic had greater increases in the average number of drinks per occasion from year 1 to 2 post-injury compared to pandemic-unexposed individuals (β = 0.36, 95% CI: 0.16, 0.57, p = 0.001), with males, adults <65 years old, and Black and Hispanic subgroups showing the greatest increases in consumption. Though average consumption was elevated, changes in rates of any alcohol use or binge drinking by pandemic exposure were not observed. Overall, there were no significant changes in depressive and anxiety symptoms over time between pandemic exposed and unexposed groups; however, pandemic-exposed Hispanics with TBI reported significant increases in anxiety symptoms from year-1 to year-2 post-injury compared to pandemic-unexposed Hispanics (β = 2.35, 95% CI: 0.25, 4.47, p = 0.028). Conclusion Among persons living with TBI, those exposed to the pandemic had significant increases in average alcohol consumption. Pandemic-exposed Hispanics with TBI had large elevations in anxiety symptoms, perhaps reflecting health inequities exacerbated by the pandemic, and suggesting a need for targeted monitoring of psychosocial distress.


Surgical resection is the effective treatment modality for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC); however, rapid recurrence of the tumors are frequently observed even after apparently curative resection. The recurrence and prognostic assessment of patients with HCC after resection is an important clinical issue. We recently reported that aberrant expression of Aurora B is observed in primary HCC, and that it can be a predictive factor for HCC recurrence exceeding Milan criteria after curative hepatectomy. In this study we investigated the expression of the newly observed Aurora B splicing variant forms in HCC, and their roles in hepatocarcinogenisis. The expression of Aurora B and splicing variant forms were screened in 125 HCC patients (94 chronic hepatitis with cirrhosis background liver specimens), 18 metastatic liver cancer patients and 16 normal liver specimens by cDNA microarray, reverse transcription – polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) and Real time quentitative Reverse Transcription PCR (qRT‐PCR). The results showed that expression of Aurora B splicing variant 2 (AURKB‐Sv2) variant form was absent in normal liver and was higher in metastatic liver cancer than HCC. This aberrant expression was associated with the advanced stages of HCC (P < 0.01), correlated with a poor outcome (P = 0.008) and short disease‐free period (P = 0.018). Furthermore, AURKB‐Sv2 variant form is associated with a higher level of serum α‐fetoprotein, protein induced by vitamin K absence or antagonist‐II (PIVKAII), tumor capsular invasion, multiple tumor formation and at an age younger than those with other variant forms (P < 0.05). The results thus suggest that AURKB‐Sv2 variant form is more significantly associated with the advanced stages of HCC than others and is a marker of poor prognosis. Founded in the tumor capsular invasion and multiple tumor regions, suggests that this might play a role in enhancing multiple malignant tumor formation and recurrence of HCC in hepatocarcinogenesis. This is the first study to report clinicopathological significance of aberrant expression of AURKB‐Sv2 variant form in hepatocellular carcinoma. (Cancer Sci 2009; 100: 472–480)


The need to apply modern technologies to analyze DNA from diverse clinical samples often stumbles on suboptimal sample quality. We developed a simple approach to assess DNA fragmentation in minute clinical samples of widely different origin and the likelihood of success of degradation-tolerant whole genome amplification (restriction and circularization-aided rolling circle amplification, RCA-RCA) and subsequent polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A multiplex PCR amplification of four glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase amplicons of varying sizes was performed using genomic DNA from clinical samples, followed by size discrimination on agarose gel or fluorescent denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography (dHPLC). RCA-RCA followed by real-time PCR was also performed, for correlation. Even minimal quantities of longer PCR fragments ( approximately 300 to 400 bp), visible via high-sensitivity fluorescent dHPLC or agarose gel, were essential for the success of RCA-RCA and subsequent PCR-based assays. dHPLC gave a more accurate correlation between DNA fragmentation and sample quality than agarose gel electrophoresis. Multiplex-PCR-dHPLC predicted correctly the likelihood of assay success in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded samples fixed under controlled conditions and of different ages, in laser capture microdissection samples, in tissue print micropeels, and plasma-circulating DNA. Estimates of the percent information retained relative to snap-frozen DNA are derived for real-time PCR analysis. The assay is rapid and convenient and can be used widely to characterize DNA from any clinical sample of unknown quality.


The tangling of two tethered microswimming worms serving as the ends of "active strings" is investigated experimentally and modeled analytically. C. elegans nematodes of similar size are caught by their tails using micropipettes and left to swim and interact at different separations over long times. The worms are found to tangle in a reproducible and statistically predictable manner, which is modeled based on the relative motion of the worm heads. Our results provide insight into the intricate tangling interactions present in active biological systems.


A cytogenetic analysis of Down's syndrome revealed straight trisomy 21 in 96.5 per cent affected. Remaining 3.5 per cent were found to have chromosomal mosaicism. In addition, a normal karyotype was observed in 2 individuals with Down's phenotype. A survey of Down's syndrome in Hyderabad gave an incidence of 1.17 per 1000 or 1 in 853 live births. There was a significant increase in the mean maternal age of the affected over the controls. Sex ratio was also higher in our sample of Down's syndrome as compared to the general population.


Data from the 2005 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) and the 2007 Zambia Demographic Health Survey (ZDHS) were analyzed to examine the association between World Health Organization (WHO) recommended IYCF indicators and nutritional status among children 0-23 months of age in Ethiopia and Zambia. A total of 1810 and 2512 children within this age group from Ethiopia and Zambia, respectively, were included in the analysis. Exclusive breast-feeding among children 0-5.9 months of age is low in both Ethiopia (43 %) and Zambia (51 %). Timely introduction of complementary food is lower in Ethiopia (61 %) compared to Zambia (90 %). Only 7 percent of children between 6-23 months of age consumed diets that met the minimum dietary diversity requirement of four or more food groups consumed per day compared to 37 % in Zambia. Multiple linear and logistic regression analyses using appropriate measures to account for the complex survey design were applied to examine the associations between IYCF practices and child anthropometry. Linear regression results show that exclusive breast-feeding (EBF) is positively associated with weight-for-height z-score (WHZ) (effect size (ES) 0.65; p<0.001) and weight-for-age z-score (WAZ) (ES 0.28; p<0.01) in Zambia. In Ethiopia, EBF under 6 months of age is negatively associated with height-for-age zscore (HAZ) (ES 0.81; p<0.01). Timely introduction of complementary food between 6-8 months of age was positively associated with HAZ (ES 1.19; p<0.01) in Zambia. Higher dietary diversity score was associated with higher HAZ (ES 0.23, p<0.001 in Ethiopia; ES 0.12, p<0.01 in Zambia) and WAZ (ES 0.17, p<0.001 in Ethiopia; ES 0.04, p<0.10 in Zambia) in both countries. The findings demonstrate the need to reinforce age- appropriate IYCF practices to address child undernutrition. Special attention is needed to improve the complementary feeding practices, particularly diet diversity for children 6-23 months of age, while sustaining a focus on EBF among children under 6 months of age, in order to improve overall nutritional status of young children in Ethiopia and Zambia.


AIM
To study clinical features and gene mutations within the paired-like homeodomain transcription factor 2 (PITX2) gene in a pedigree of bilateral limbal dermoids.

METHODS
Complete eye examinations have been performed on each individual of the family. Exons of paired-like homeodomain transcription factor 2 (PITX2) were amplified by polymerase chain reaction, sequenced, and compared with a reference database.

RESULTS
We described the phenotype, clinic findings in a family with two affected members. The masses of the proband's eyes were excised surgically demonstrating a dermoid cyst by histopathological examination. No mutation was detected in the gene PITX2 in this pedigree.

CONCLUSION
A family of limbal dermoid cyst was reported. In addition, no pathogenic sequence variations were found in PITX2, indicating that this phenotype in this family is a distinctive entity.


The prevalence of Internet of Things (IoT) allows heterogeneous and lightweight smart devices to collaboratively provide services with or without human intervention. With an ever-increasing presence of IoT-based smart applications and their ubiquitous visibility from the Internet, user data generated by highly connected smart IoT devices also incur more concerns on security and privacy. While a lot of efforts are reported to develop lightweight information assurance approaches that are affordable to resource-constrained IoT devices, there is not sufficient attention paid from the aspect of security solutions against hardware-oriented attacks, i.e. side channel attacks. In this paper, a COTS (commercial off-the-shelf) based Randomized Switched-Mode Voltage Regulation System (RSMVRS) is proposed to prevent power analysis based side channel attacks (P-SCA) on bare metal IoT edge device. The RSMVRS is implemented to direct power to IoT edge devices. The power is supplied to the target device by randomly activating power stages with random time delays. Therefore, the cryptography algorithm executing on the IoT device will not correlate to a predictable power profile, if an adversary performs a SCA by measuring the power traces. The RSMVRS leverages COTS components and experimental study has verified the correctness and effectiveness of the proposed solution.


Busulfan is an alkylating agent used in preparative regimens before bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Busulfan concentrations in plasma, expressed as the area under the concentration–time curve (AUC), were reported to correlate with treatment outcome. Because busulfan is administered in 16 doses of 1 mg/kg every 6 hours for 4 days, the opportunities to "correct" the dose as a consequence of the measured AUC are limited to the 16-dosage protocol. In the present research busulfan pharmacokinetics were prospectively evaluated in 27 adult patients treated according to the above protocol by measuring the first, second, and fifth dose AUC. The pharmacokinetic analysis was based on a noncompartment model for extravascular absorption, but calculations according to a 1-compartment model gave similar results. A simple mathematical approximation allowed prediction of the AUC of the second dose from that of the first and the busulfan concentration at trough. Fifteen patients had the dose adjusted at the fourth dose to obtain an AUC within the "therapeutic window" of 950–1500 μM-min. This procedure was then validated by the measurement of the fifth dose AUC. It appears that this simple pocket calculator method allows a rapid evaluation of the need and the extent of dose adjustment and proved to be a valuable tool to improve busulfan administration in pre BMT treatment.


This work analyzes the operational data of direct stock assessment cruises carried out on nylon shrimp (Heterocarpus reedi) off the central coast of Chile between 1998 and 2006. These data were modeled using the product of the expected CPUA (catch per unit area) for hauls with catch and the probability of catch (that is, catch greater than zero) to estimate the CPUA. A generalized linear model was applied; the model used four effects as factors: year, zone, depth layer, and year-zone interaction. The results showed that the year was the most relevant effect, followed by the year-zone interaction for each model analyzed. The effects of the year of the assessment and the probability of catch showed sustained growth during the study period. The interaction effect showed growth in the shrimp population mainly from Valparaiso southward. Moreover, we found that shrimp abundance was related positively to the probability of catch and inversely to the area of aggregation of the population. Finally, the discrepancy found between the analyzed abundance indexes and the biomass (particularly north of 32°S) due to the geomorphological characteristics of the sea floor and the diverse methodological criteria used in the "swept-area" assessment of this species leads us to we recommend CPUA modeling as the best option for obtaining a relative abundance index comparable over time and space.


Importance
B-cell-depleting therapies may affect the development of a protective immune response following vaccination. Understanding the ability to develop vaccine-specific immunity to COVID-19 in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) treated with B-cell-depleting therapy is of importance for clinical decisions.

Objective
To assess SARS-CoV-2 vaccine-specific humoral and cellular responses in patients treated with ocrelizumab compared with healthy controls.

Design, Setting, and Participants
This single-center study performed at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel, included patients with MS treated with ocrelizumab, healthy controls, and untreated patients with MS. Vaccination occurred between December 2020 and April 2021. Participants donated blood 2 to 4 and 2 to 8 weeks after the second vaccine dose for antibody and T-cell assessments, respectively.

Exposures
All participants received 2 doses of BNT162b2 vaccine (Pfizer/BioNTech) and completed the study.

Main Outcomes and Measures
Proportion of patients treated with ocrelizumab with SARS-CoV-2-specific serology and/or T-cell responses following vaccination. All participants underwent SARS-CoV-2 antibody testing; 29 patients treated with ocrelizumab and 15 healthy controls had evaluation of SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell responses.

Results
Of 112 participants, 49 (43.8%) had MS and were treated with ocrelizumab (33 [67.3%] female; mean [SD] age, 47.9 [13.3] years), 23 (20.5%) had MS and were not treated with disease-modifying therapies (18 [78.3%] female; mean [SD] age, 49 [13.4] years), and 40 (35.7%) were healthy controls (25 [62.5%] female; mean [SD] age, 45.3 [16] years). Twenty-six of 29 patients (89.7%) treated with ocrelizumab and 15 of 15 healthy controls (100%) had SARS-CoV-2-specific T cells following vaccination at similar levels (mean [SD], 15.4 [7.6] and 14.3 [6.3] spot-forming cells, respectively). Mean antibody titers and positive serology rate were lower in the group of patients treated with ocrelizumab (mean [SD] antibody titers and positive serology rate, 26.2 [49.2] and 376.5 [907.6] AU/mL; 10 of 40 [25%] and 20 of 49 [40.8%] for S1/S2 and receptor-binding domain, respectively) compared with healthy controls (mean [SD] antibody titers and positive serology rate, 283 [100] and 12 712 [9114] AU/mL; 100% S1/S2 and receptor-binding domain) and untreated patients (mean [SD] antibody titers and positive serology rate, 288.3 [113.8] and 10 877 [9476] AU/mL; 100% S1/S2 and receptor-binding domain), with positive association to time from ocrelizumab infusion (S1/S2: r = 0.7, P < .001; receptor-binding domain: r = 0.4, P = .04).

Conclusion and Relevance
In this study, patients with MS who were treated with ocrelizumab generated comparable SARS-CoV-2-specific T-cell responses with healthy controls and had lower antibody response following vaccination. Given the potential role of T cells in protection from severe disease, this is reassuring and will help physicians develop consensus guidelines regarding MS treatment in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic.


Cast magnesium alloys are constantly increasing used in the automotive and electronic industry because of the excellent performance. Squeeze casting is an innovative and energy-saving manufacturing process which can be used to produce near net-shape magnesium components. In order to improve the quality of the squeeze casting,the different process parameters were adopted to study the forming property of AZ91D alloy by applying multifactor orthogonal test and analysis of range under the laboratory condition. The metal pouring and die temperatures considered in the investigation were within the range of 680-780 and 300°C respectively. The results showed that the samples' synthetic mechanical properties was the best, and squeeze casting can refine grain and the second phase particle β(Al12Mg17)separated out more by using mechanical properties test and analyzing microstructure when casting temperature is 730°C, squeezing force is 100 Mpa and time of keeping forces 25s.


This study of the root causes of the current extremely high levels of defaults and foreclosures among residential mortgages represents the final report to Congress by the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) pursuant to Section 1517 of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008 (P.L. 110-289). The problems in the mortgage market are routinely referred to as a "foreclosure crisis" because the level of defaults and foreclosures greatly exceed previous peak levels in the post-war era and, as a result, have drawn comparisons to the levels of distress experienced in the Great Depression. This report contains a review of the academic literature and industry press on the root causes of the current foreclosure crisis, data and analysis of trends in the market, and policy responses and recommended actions to mitigate the current crisis and help prevent similar crises from occurring in the future.


Background and Hypothesis:
Brain-machine interfaces (BMIs) aim to restore motor control to patients. To develop effective BMIs, it is imperative that we build highly accurate models relating cortical neural activity with natural movements. Neurons in the visual cortex of the brain respond strongly to visual signals, but are also modulated by fluctuating internal states such as alertness, which closely correlates pupil size. We thus hypothesized that an animal's pupil size can be decoded directly from the activity of a population of neurons in mouse primary visual cortex.

Project Methods:
We used an open-access dataset from the Allen Institute for Brain Science, which consisted of in-vivo 2 photon calcium imaging data of 128 neurons recorded from primary visual cortex of an awake mouse viewing a video screen. Video imaging was used to track the mouse's pupil size.

To relate neural activity with pupil size, we used linear regression, first smoothing the data with a Savitzky Gall filter. The model was fit on the first 80% of the data, and tested on the remaining 20%, using the computed coefficients to predict pupil size from neural activity. A Pearson correlation coefficient between the true and predicted data was computed. All analyses were performed in Python.

Results:
We found that there was a strong linear relationship between neural activity and pupil size, as the correlation coefficient between the true and predicted data was 0.376. Therefore, we have shown quantitatively that pupil size can be modeled based on neuronal activity within the visual cortex with a high level of accuracy.

Conclusion and Potential Impact:
This experiment demonstrates the feasibility of linear regression for modeling neuronal behavior in the visual system, particularly related to pupil size. Results suggest opportunities for further experimental analysis of the relationship between neural activity and other physiological markers, such as running speed.


The registration of 3D models by a Euclidean transformation is a fundamental task at the core of many application in computer vision. This problem is non-convex due to the presence of rotational constraints, making traditional local optimization methods prone to getting stuck in local minima. This paper addresses finding the globally optimal transformation in various 3D registration problems by a unified formulation that integrates common geometric registration modalities (namely point-to-point, point-to-line and point-to-plane). This formulation renders the optimization problem independent of both the number and nature of the correspondences. The main novelty of our proposal is the introduction of a strengthened Lagrangian dual relaxation for this problem, which surpasses previous similar approaches [32] in effectiveness. In fact, even though with no theoretical guarantees, exhaustive empirical evaluation in both synthetic and real experiments always resulted on a tight relaxation that allowed to recover a guaranteed globally optimal solution by exploiting duality theory. Thus, our approach allows for effectively solving the 3D registration with global optimality guarantees while running at a fraction of the time for the state-of-the-art alternative [34], based on a more computationally intensive Branch and Bound method.


Serum is a complex heterogeneous matrix contianing endogenous proteins with potential diagnostic value. No previously reported methods have allowed the detection of all its constituent proteins from a single sample. In the work described in this thesis, normal human serum was separated by reversed-phase or dye affinity chromatography, ultrafiltration and by extraction under various pH and salt concentrations in aqueous and organic solutions. The serum extracts were analyzed by SDS-PAGE, MALDI and LC-ESI-Qq-TOF MS/MS without prior enzymatic digestion. Peptides observed as multiple isotopic peaks in MS mode were correlated with known serum proteins by ProteinPilot and X!Tandem analysis of their fragmentation spectra using the no enzyme [XX] condition. Fragment ion masses within 0.04 Da of those predicted yielded high confidence identifications from both algorithms. Angiotensin 1 and [G1u1] fibrinopeptide B were clearly detected in serum spiked with as little as 250 and 100 femtomoles respectively. Post-translational modifications of serum peptides were identified using ProteinPilot.


In 124 patients suffering from a local recurrence after primary treatment of a breast cancer the course of disease was checked in a retrospective manner. This particular study points out the dependence of the clinical outcome on morphological indicators. The results show that local recurrence is mostly accompanied by a generalisation of the disease and on the whole by a poor prognosis. After five years only 29% of the patients with local recurrence are still alive. Of the morphological indicators the lymphatic carcinomatosis is the most important factor related with poor prognosis. Infiltration of the pectoralis muscle has no influence on the further course. Only in few cases breast tissue that has been left after the first surgical therapy can be regarded as the starting point of a local recurrence. To avoid a further local recurrence the excision with clear tumour margins is necessary. If an incomplete removal has been carried out or in cases of narrow resection margins one has to reckon with new local recurrencies in half of all cases despite adjunctive radiotherapy. The results suggest that in cases of local recurrence beside the local treatment systemic therapy with hormones or chemotherapy might be important.


[1] Using a discrete wavelet transform with a Meyer wavelet basis, we present a new quantitative algorithm for determining the onset time of Pi1 and Pi2 ULF waves in the nightside ionosphere with � 20- to 40-s resolution at substorm expansion phase onset. We validate the algorithm by comparing both the ULF wave onset time and location to the optical onset determined by the Imager for Magnetopause-to-Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE)–Far Ultraviolet Imager (FUV) instrument. In each of the six events analyzed, five substorm onsets and one pseudobreakup, the ULF onset is observed prior to the global optical onset observed by IMAGE at a station closely conjugate to the optical onset. The observed ULF onset times expand both latitudinally and longitudinally away from an epicenter of ULF wave power in the ionosphere. We further discuss the utility of the algorithm for diagnosing pseudobreakups and the relationship of the ULF onset epicenter to the meridians of elements of the substorm current wedge. The importance of the technique for establishing the causal sequence of events at substorm onset, especially in support of the multisatellite Time History of Events and Macroscale Interactions During Substorms (THEMIS) mission, is also described.


Background Bemisia tabaci (whiteflies) are a global insect pest causing billions of dollars in damage each year, leaving farmers with low yields. In East Africa, whiteflies are superabundant and present on cassava plants throughout the year. Whiteflies do not decrease in number in the hot dry seasons in East Africa, therefore, it has been suggested that the synthesis of Heat Shock Protein (HSP) may protect the whitefly from heat stress and other biotic factors. In this study we used data sequence generated from individual whiteflies to assess variability and recombination of the HSP90 gene in members of the B. tabaci species complex. Results A total of 21 samples were sequenced on Illumina Hiseq 2500 and Hiseq 4000. These included eight genetic groups of B. tabaci: 7 SSA1, 5 SSA2, 2 Australia I (AUSI), 2 New World Africa (NWAfrica), B. afer, Uganda, Mediterranean (MED), and Middle East Asia Minor 1 (MEAM1). An alignment of 21 HSP90 sequences was generated after mapping and de novo assembly. Recombination analysis was performed on an alignment of 27 HSP90 sequences (we added an additional 6 sequences from GenBank). There were 18 recombination events detected in the HSP90 gene of the B. tabaci species complex, 7 of which were regarded as events that could be caused by evolutionary mechanisms such as gene duplication other than recombination. The phylogenetic analysis carried out on dataset without recombination events revealed a tree pattern with short terminal branches. Conclusion Recombination events were detected for members of the B. tabaci species complex in the HSP90 gene. This could explain the variability in the HSP90 gene of the B. tabaci species complex and highlight the phenomenon of the increased chance of survival and reproductive abundance of whiteflies in hot conditions in East Africa, since recombination is a major driving force of evolution.


Purpose: We conducted a systematic review of studies that focus on existing protocols for oncologists and other physicians who are in touch with cancer patients. Method: We searched all internationally published articles on the introduction of a protocol as the guideline. To this purpose, we did a thorough search of Pubmed and Cochrane Collaboration Library databases and reviewed all articles from 2010 to 2017. Results: We introduced 7 papers from 7 countries and evaluated their proposed protocols. A primary protocol called SPIKES had been discussed in most studies. This protocol emphasized the six steps of setting, perception, invitation, knowledge, empathy and summary. Conclusion: BBN is a balanced action that requires oncologists and other specialists to consistently adapt to its different criteria. Developing the ability to personalize and adapt to therapeutic treatment with respect to communications can be a major step forward in the training and exercises that physicians receive in connection to communication skills.


We present Deep Speaker, a neural speaker embedding system that maps utterances to a hypersphere where speaker similarity is measured by cosine similarity. The embeddings generated by Deep Speaker can be used for many tasks, including speaker identification, verification, and clustering. We experiment with ResCNN and GRU architectures to extract the acoustic features, then mean pool to produce utterance-level speaker embeddings, and train using triplet loss based on cosine similarity. Experiments on three distinct datasets suggest that Deep Speaker outperforms a DNN-based i-vector baseline. For example, Deep Speaker reduces the verification equal error rate by 50% (relatively) and improves the identification accuracy by 60% (relatively) on a text-independent dataset. We also present results that suggest adapting from a model trained with Mandarin can improve accuracy for English speaker recognition.


Cultured human fetal lung fibroblasts produce some chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans that are extracted as an aggregate in chaotropic buffers containing 4 M guanidinium chloride. The aggregated proteoglycans are excluded from Sepharose CL4B and 2B, but become included, eluting with a Kav value of 0.53 from Sepharose CL4B, when Triton X-100 is included in the buffer. Conversely, some of the detergent-extractable chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans can be incorporated into liposomes, suggesting the existence of a hydrophobic membrane-intercalated chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan fraction. Purified preparations of hydrophobic chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans contain two major core protein forms of 90 and 52 kD. A monoclonal antibody (F58-7D8) obtained from the fusion of myeloma cells with spleen cells of BALB/c mice that were immunized with hydrophobic proteoglycans recognized the 90- but not the 52-kD core protein. The epitope that is recognized by the antibody is exposed at the surface of cultured human lung fibroblasts and at the surface of several stromal cells in vivo, but also at the surface of Kupffer cells and of epidermal cells. The core proteins of these small membrane-associated chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans are probably distinct from those previously identified in human fibroblasts by biochemical, immunological, and molecular biological approaches.


The role of resource availability and competition in determining the distributions and abundances of species remains one of the most controversial subjects in ecology. In particular, the spatial scales over which these factors influence patterns of distribution and abundance is unclear. In this thesis I examine the effects of habitat selection, habitat availability and competition for space on the distribution and abundance of obligate coral-dwelling gobies (genus Gobiodon) at multiple spatial scales. I also examine the link between habitat specialisation and competitive ability, and assess the fitness consequences of inhabiting different species of coral. To achieve this I used a combination of comparative studies and manipulative experiments within and among four geographic locations, extending from the southern Great Barrier Reef to northern Papua New Guinea.

In a broad sense, all species of Gobiodon included in this study were found to be habitat specialists. However, some species inhabited only one or two species of coral and exhibited very conservative patterns of habitat use at all spatial scales examined. Other species exhibited a more flexible pattern of habitat use, particularly among geographic locations. Variation in the abundance of most species of Gobiodon, within and among locations, was closely associated with variation in the abundance of the corals they usually inhabit. Therefore, habitat availability appears to play a major role in determining the abundances of Gobiodon species at both local and regional scales. However, abundances were also correlated with reef zones, reef types and geographic locations, independently to coral availability. Therefore, as spatial scales increase a variety of other factors influence patterns of distribution and abundance of coral-dwelling gobies. A multiscale model of Gobiodon distribution and abundance is presented that includes: 1. Geographical differences in abundance, 2. Broad scale habitat selection of reefs within locations, 3. Finer scale habitat selection for reef zones and then individual coral colonies within zones and, 4. Competition for space within reef zones.

In laboratory experiments, species of Gobiodon differed in their ability to compete for preferred corals. Body size and prior residency of coral colonies also had a significant effect on competitive ability. A competitor removal experiment in the field demonstrated that some species of Gobiodon compete for space. Following the removal of a dominant competitor (G. histrio) from replicate patches of reef at Lizard Island (Great Barrier Reef), the abundances of two species, G. axillaris and G. brochus, significantly increased in abundance. Moreover, there was a very close relationship between the change in abundance of G. histrio and the change in abundance of G. axillaris and G. brochus combined. G. axillaris and G. histrio inhabit and compete directly for the same species of corals in the field but exhibit habitat partitioning at larger spatial scales (reef zones and reef types). G. brochus is apparently forced to use an inferior species of coral as a result of competition with G. histrio. Three other species of Gobiodon did not compete for space with G. histrio, either because they inhabit different species of coral or are able to co-habit coral colonies with G. histrio. The results of the competitor removal experiment were largely predictable from knowledge of overlap in habitat use and an understanding of these species' competitive abilities. Experiments at other geographic locations indicate that the intensity of competition appears to decline in locations where the relative abundance of preferred corals is high.

Transplant experiments demonstrated significant differences in growth and survival of fish inhabiting different species of coral. Furthermore, estimated lifetime reproductive success differed by more than an order of magnitude for fish inhabiting different species of coral. Habitat related differences in fitness might explain habitat preferences of Gobiodon species and the intense competition for some species of coral. Differences in habitat structure between species of coral may be the mechanism underlying habitat related differences in fitness. The consequences of inhabiting different species of coral were similar at two locations on the Great Barrier Reef (Lizard Island and One Tree Island) and, therefore, habitat related differences in fitness appear to have general relevance to habitat preferences and competition among species of Gobiodon. For at least some species of Gobiodon, the degree of habitat specialisation exhibited appears to be linked to their competitive abilities and the fitness consequences of inhabiting different species of corals.


Powerful radio galaxies exist as either compact or extended sources, with the extended sources traditionally classified by their radio morphologies as Fanaroff--Riley (FR) type I and II sources. FRI/II and compact radio galaxies have also been classified by their optical spectra into two different types: high excitation (HERG; quasar-mode) and low excitation (LERG; jet-mode). We present a catalogue of visual morphologies for a complete sample of $>$1000 1.4-GHz-selected extended radio sources from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. We study the environment and host galaxy properties of FRI/II and compact sources, classified into HERG/LERG types, in order to separate and distinguish the factors that drive the radio morphological variations from those responsible for the spectral properties. Comparing FRI LERGs with FRII LERGs at fixed stellar mass and radio luminosity, we show that FRIs typically reside in richer environments and are hosted by smaller galaxies with higher mass surface density; this is consistent with extrinsic effects of jet disruption driving the FR dichotomy. Using matched samples of HERGs and LERGs, we show that HERG host galaxies are more frequently star-forming, with more evidence for disk-like structure than LERGs, in accordance with currently-favoured models of fundamentally different fuelling mechanisms. Comparing FRI/II LERGs with compact LERGs, we find the primary difference is that compact objects typically harbour less massive black holes. This suggests that lower-mass black holes may be less efficient at launching stable radio jets, or do so for shorter times. Finally, we investigate rarer sub-classes: wide-angle tail, head-tail, FR-hybrid and double-double sources.


A great deal of research work on PD based cable insulation monitoring, diagnostics and localisation has been published in recent years on medium voltage (MV) cables. The work to be reported on extends PD detection and localisation into cross-bonded HV cable systems. The main challenge in PD monitoring of cross bonded HV cables lies in the interconnectedness of sheaths of the three phases, making it difficult to localise which of the three phases a PD signal has emanated from. A second challenge is the use of coaxial cables for connecting cable sheaths to cable link box for ease of installation and protection against moisture. The proposed paper addresses PD detection and localisation in cross-bonded HV cables. It presents experimental investigations into PD pulse coupling between the centre conductor and the cable sheath and the behaviour of PD pulse propagation in cross-bonded HV cables. It also proposes a model to describe the coupling effect in cross-bonding (CB) cable system for PD monitoring and localisation and demonstrates the effectiveness of the application of the model. (4 pages)


It has long been claimed that there is no lexical field of smell, and that smell is of too little validity to be expressed in grammar. We demonstrate both claims are false. The Cha'palaa language (Ecuador) has at least 15 abstract smell terms, each of which is formed using a type of classifier previously thought not to exist. Moreover, using conversational corpora we show that Cha'palaa speakers also talk about smell more than Imbabura Quechua and English speakers. Together, this shows how language and social interaction may jointly reflect distinct cultural orientations towards sensory experience in general and olfaction in particular.


The new immigration policy of the United States could intensify deportations of undocumented migrants with an economic, social and political effect in Mexico. This problem could generate economic, political and social instability in some Mexican states then it is relevant to study how to diminish this effect. Social investment could reduce the impact of this situation and could reduce the reasons for those Mexicans that want to migrate. Social investment focuses on considering the migrant as an asset that could be incorporated into the labor market with government programs that stimulate intensive labor public investment, reduced violence, training and increased wages. By using multiple linear regressions and descriptive statistics, it is shown that the levels of education, economic growth, poverty, labor purchasing power, violence and unemployment have an effect on Mexican migration levels. In this way, it is shown that it is possible to reverse this problem with positive impacts on the Mexican economy. Keywords: Migration, Social Investment, Intensive labor investment, Local income, Sustainable economic growth


A weak and reversibly acting neurotoxic protein of Laticauda semifasciata venom, Laticauda semifasciata III (component LsIII), was sequenced. Component LsIII consists of 66 amino acid residues and has five disulphide bridges, one of which was located between residues 26 and 30. The weak and reversible neurotoxicity of component LsIII is discussed in relation to its structure, which falls between those of the neuro- and cardiotoxins of sea snakes and Elapidae snakes isolated and sequenced so far.


A morphologically complex igneous basement was penetrated at Leg 125 Site 786 beneath approximately 100 m of
Eocene-Pleistocene sediments at 31°52.45 'N, 141°13.59'E in a 3082-m water depth. The site is located on the forearc basement high (FBH) of the Izu-Bonin (Ogasawara) Arc. In the broadest terms, the sequence in Hole 786B consists of a basal sheeted dike complex, heavily mineralized in places, with overlying pillow lavas giving way to a complex and repeated sequence of interlayered volcanic breccias and lava flows with some thin sedimentary intervals. The sequence has been further cut by dikes or sills,
particularly of high-Ca and intermediate-Ca boninite, and is locally strongly sheared by faulting. The whole basement has been covered with middle Eocene-early Pleistocene sediments. A monomict breccia forms the shallowest portion of Hole 786B and a polymict breccia having Mn-oxide-rich clast coatings and matrix forms the deepest part of Hole 786A (-100-160 mbsf). The basement is tectonized in some places, and a mineralized stockwork is present in the deepest part of Hole 786B. A wide variety
of rock types form this basement, ranging from mafic to silicic in character and including high-, intermediate-, and low-Ca boninites, intermediate- and low-Ca bronzite andesites, andesite, dacite, and rhyolite groups. Intragroup and intergroup relationships
are complicated in detail, and several different upper mantle source(s) probably were involved. A significant role for orthopyroxene-clinopyroxene-plagioclase fractionation is indicated in the mafic-intermediate groups, and the most probable complementary cumulates should be noritic gabbros.
Many overall similarities but some subtle differences are noted between the igneous basement at Site 786 and the subaerial outcrops of the FBH to the south in the type boninite locality of Chichijima. Both suites were derived by hydrous melting of a relatively shallow, refractory (harzburgitic) upper mantle source. These Bonin forearc basement rocks are similar in many respects
to those of Eocene-Oligocene age now forming the forearc of the Marianas at Leg 60 Site 458 and on Guam. In sharp distinction, the geochemistry of the Eocene-Pleistocene ash sequences overlying the Bonin FBH must have been derived from a very different upper mantle source, implying considerable across-strike differences in sub-arc mantle composition