In this paper, I have considered certain aspects of the ecology and behaviour of the early hominids in the light of the available literature on this subject. The first section discusses the place, nature and significance of the early hominids in the overall history, of the hominid line, as well as discussing the possibility that it was a change in the habits of the ancestral hominids, brought about by altered environmental circumstances that encouraged the selection of modifications for more efficient bipedalism. The second section reviews the arguments that have been put forward by Reynolds in support of his contention that human society arose from an ape-like system of open groups. Although agreeing with much that he has written on this topic, I have questioned the validity of some of his views on the openness of pongid and early hominid society. The third section discusses the cultural capacities of the various early hominid forms with reference to the palaeontological evidence and the known tool-using abilities of other, especially sub-human primate, species. Moreover, it draws attention to the behavioural preadaptedness of these creatures for developing tool-using habits, as well as reviewing the arguments that have been expressed on whether tool-using arose from agonistic displays or food getting habits. The fourth section deals with the feeding habits of the early hominids, and argues that vegetable foods were the staple diet of the early hominids, as they are of tropical hunter gatherers, with only relatively small, though significant, additions of other items. The final section constitutes a general appreciation of the behaviour and ecology of the early hominids, with special reference to the arguments expressed elsewhere in this work.


Abstract One-way approximations for regional phases slice the half-space crustal wave guide into a number of slabs perpendicular to the propagation direction; the Moho discontinuity can be easily treated as a perturbation from the crustal background. The advantage of one-way propagation methods is their great saving of computing time and memory compared to full-waveform numerical methods, especially for 3D simulations. In this article, we present general 2.5D SH formulas for the thin-slab method and a generalized screen propagator (GSP) for simulating SH wave propagation in the heterogeneous half-space crustal wave guide. Comparisons of numerical results with a finite-difference (FD) algorithm for a standard flat crustal model show excellent agreement, demonstrating the validity and accuracy of the 2.5DGSP for the half-space problem. We then compare the curves of energy attenuation calculated by the 2D and 2.5D formulas. The comparison shows that the energy attenuation of the 2.5D case is about 1.5–3 times greater than that of the 2D case when the trapped mode is formed. The SH screen propagator is also used to simulate two laterally unvarying (in the y direction) crustal models, showing the path effects on regional wave propagation.


In this article, I report findings from an investigation into the politics and coordination of school fundraising in the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Theoretically grounded in institutional ethnography and critical policy analysis, the study began from the standpoint of parents asked to give money to their children's school(s). I show how provincial and TDSB funding, parent involvement, fundraising, and school council policies organize parents' experience of school fundraising. I also explore how participating in fundraising enables parents to meet neoliberal expectations of a "good parent" and how through their efforts to secure advantages for their children, fundraising parents are accomplices in the privatization of public education. I conclude by discussing possibilities for intervention into the social organization of school fundraising in TDSB schools.


BACKGROUND/AIM
The aim of this study was to gain insight into the mechanisms of microvascular dysfunction after local surgical trauma.

METHODS
The effect of anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha antibody (Ab) on microvascular function, including arteriolar diameter response, nutritive perfusion, leukocyte-endothelial cell interaction and endothelial integrity disruption, was studied in hamster skinfold chamber preparations using intravital fluorescence microscopy.

RESULTS
Directly after the surgical procedure, arteriolar diameters were found to be markedly (p < 0.05) reduced, but recovered significantly at 8 h and reached plateau levels after 24 h. Surgical trauma further induced a strong inflammatory response characterized by a significant (p < 0.05) increase in leukocyte adherence to the endothelium of postcapillary venules. This inflammatory response was associated with an increase in microvascular permeability, indicating endothelial integrity disruption. Anti-TNF-alpha Ab had no significant effect on the surgical trauma-induced arteriolar vasomotor dysfunction; however, it effectively (p < 0.05) reduced venular leukocyte adherence and attenuated the increase in microvascular permeability.

CONCLUSION
Our study indicates that arteriolar constriction, leukocyte-endothelial cell interaction and endothelial macromolecular leakage have to be considered as the characteristic microvascular response after local surgical trauma. It is conceivable that TNF-alpha plays a role in mediating the inflammatory response, but not the dysfunction of vasomotor control.


BACKGROUND
The objective of the study was to screen for sleep habits and various sleep disorders, using a standard questionnaire.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
The questionnaire was designed to assess sleep habits, the degree of daytime sleepiness using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and specific sleep problems. A random sample of Saudi employees working as medical or paramedical personnel was selected.

RESULTS
There were 163 respondents (65%) comprising 33 females and 130 males. The mean ESS score was 9.4. Sixty-four respondents (39.3%) had an ESS score of more than 10, i.e., excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). When subjects with poor sleep habits and/or sleep problems were excluded, there were 65 ânormalâ sleepers, with a mean ESS score of 8.9+/-3.6. This did not differ from the rest of the sample population, who had a score of 9.8+/-3.7 (P=0.15). Subjects with inadequate sleep or insomnia consisted of 17 females (51.5%) and 45 males (34.6%). There were seven subjects, all males (5.4%), with habitual snoring. Ten males (7.7%) and two females (6.1%) reported having breathing pauses while asleep. Symptoms of restless leg syndrome, sleep paralysis, and cataplexy were reported by 21 (12.9%), 26 (16.0%) and two (1.2%) subjects, respectively.

CONCLUSION
The prevalence of EDS in the Saudi population is higher compared to that reported from other populations when a Western ESS normal range is used. Nevertheless, the range of normal score of ESS is probably broader for Saudis compared to other populations. In general, sleep disorders are common but unrecognized in our community.


Background Diagnosis of coarctation can be notoriously difficult. In the presence patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), classical signs of coarctation may not be seen on the echocardiogram. Big right ventricle should arouse the suspicion of evolving coarctation of aorta. Case report A full term baby with severe IUGR was found to have borderline low oxygen saturations with no difference in pre and post ductal sats. Baby had normal femoral pulses and there was no heart murmur. When baby was seen at tertiary paediatric cardiology centre, echocardiogram showed big right ventricle with PFO/ASD, small VSD, large PDA and bicuspid aortic valves. Baby was closely monitored for the evolving coarctation at the tertiary neonatal unit. Within 12 h of the paediatric cardiology review this baby collapsed suddenly. PDA must have closed suddenly and commonly used small dose of Prostin was ineffective. Despite the appropriate monitoring and resuscitation, unfortunately, this baby could not be saved as deterioration was so rapid. Discussion and learning points (1) Big right ventricle on the antenatal and postnatal echocardiogram can be a normal finding but may be pathological. It should arouse suspicious of evolving coarctation of aorta. Other rare causes include left ventricular outflow tract obstruction, hypoplastic left ventricle, double outlet ventricle, TAPVC and AV malformation. (2) Ductus arteriosus can close suddenly (fortunately very rarely!). (3) In collapsed patients with suspicion of coarctation of aorta we should start a much higher (50–100 ng/kg/min) dose of Prostin. Much higher doses have been used in discussion with the paediatric cardiologist.


Aerosols consumed at home are supported in France in the recycling of aluminum or steel household waste stream. This process requires storage and crushing in a press, the latter operation leading as indirect consequence in random perforation of aerosols. As aerosols include flammable gaseous, liquid or liquefied chemical compounds, this process can induce fire and explosion hazards. Such incidents have been reported by many waste sorting plants in France. This work analyses potential of hazard associated to full or empty aerosols recycling. Three types of hazardous scenarios have been identified: 1) an ignition of an explosive atmosphere, 2) a BLEVE occurrence and 3) a liquid pool fire. In each case, the potential effects have been quantified. Then, technical and organizational solutions are proposed to prevent these fires and explosions and to protect waste sorting plants, regarding hazards associated to the treatment of aerosols.


Development of the neuromuscular junction on differentiating muscle was investigated in the regenerating limb of the newt Triturus . Motor end-plate formation begins when vesiclefilled axon terminations approach differentiating muscle cells that have reached the stage of a multinucleate cell containing myofibrils . Slight ridges or elevations occur on the muscle surface, and there is an increase in density of the cytoplasm immediately beneath the plasma membrane of the elevation . The axon becomes more closely approximated to the muscle cell and comes to lie in a shallow depression or gutter on the surface of the muscle . The surface ridges increase in length and constrict at their bases to form junctional folds. In the axon terminal, focal accumulations of vesicles are found where the axon contour projects slightly opposite the secondary synaptic clefts . Cholinesterase activity in the developing junctions was demonstrated by the thiolacetic acid-lead nitrate method . Enzymatic activity is not found on intercellular nerve fibers or the muscle surface prior to close approximation of axon endings and muscle . Eserineand DFP-sensitive activity appears concurrently with morphological differentiation . Activity occurs in membranous tubulovesicles in the sarcoplasm subjacent to the neuromuscular junction and in association with the sarcolemma . The largest reaction deposits occur at the tips of the emerging junctional folds. Smaller and less numerous localizations occur on the axon membrane and within the axoplasm. It is concluded from these studies that the nerve endings have an inductive effect on both the morphological and chemical specializations of the neuromuscular junction . 1965; Lentz, 1969) . Subsequently, the undifferentiated mesenchymal cells differentiate to reform muscle, bone, and connective tissue . Thus, during limb regeneration, muscle undergoes a complete developmental cycle in which all of its differentiative states are represented. This system affords an


ABSTRACT This article uses an integrated methodology based on a chi-squared automatic interaction detection (CHAID) model combined with analytic hierarchy process (AHP) for pair-wise comparison to assess medium-scale landslide susceptibility in a catchment in the Inje region of South Korea. An inventory of 3596 landslide locations was collected using remote sensing, and a random sample comprising 30% of these was used to validate the model. The remaining portion (70%) was processed by the nearest-neighbour index (NNI) technique and used for extracting the cluster patterns at each location. These data were used for model training purposes. Ten landslide-conditioning factors (independent variables) representing four main domains, namely (1) topology, (2) geology, (3) hydrology, and (4) land cover, were used to produce two landslide-susceptibility maps. The first landslide-susceptibility map (LSM1) was produced by overlaying the terminal nodes of the CHAID result tree. The second landslide-susceptibility map (LSM2) was produced using the overlay result of AHP pair-wise comparisons of CHAID terminal nodes. The prediction rate curve results were better with LSM2 (area under the prediction curve (AUC) = 0.80) than with LSM1 (AUC = 0.76). The results confirmed that the integrated hybrid model has superior prediction performance and reliability, and it is recommended for future use in medium-scale landslide-susceptibility mapping.


The pathologic spectrum of diseases that infiltrate the pituitary infundibulum includes a broad variety of clinical entities. There are significant differences in the prevalence of these etiologies depending on the age of presentation. Lymphocytic infundibuloneurohypophysitis (LINH) predominates over other causes of infundibular disease in adults over age 21. Differentiating LINH from other causes of infundibular disease can be difficult because the various etiologies often have similar clinical presentations and radiologic imaging characteristics. We report the first case in an adult of a mixed germ cell tumor comprised of germinoma and embryonal cell carcinoma infiltrating the pituitary infundibulum. In our case, a 23-year-old female was initially misdiagnosed as having LINH. She presented with panhypopituitarism and diabetes insipidus, which is the most common initial presentation in both entities. The two diagnoses are difficult to distinguish based on MRI imaging, CSF findings, and histopathological examination. Our case demonstrates the need for close follow-up of patients with isolated lesions of the pituitary infundibulum and reinforces the need for biopsy of an infundibular lesion when progression of disease is demonstrated. In our case, biopsy with comprehensive immunohistochemical staining was the sole means of making a definitive diagnosis.


Deposit policy of banks is defined as an important component of the banking strategy, since banks operate mainly with attracted resources. Therefore, volume and quality of the resource base of banks determine their opportunities for lending and investment activity. An important component of the study is the impact of the National Bank of Ukraine on the deposit policy of commercial banking institutions in terms of interest rate policy and deposit insurance system, which needs to be improved. The author's definition of the term "deposit program" is proposed, and a determining factor in a bank's deposit program is that it is developed individually and is aimed at providing the required amount of attracted resources in order to maximally meet the needs of customers and taking into account the priorities of the bank. The prospects for improving the deposit policy of the banks are highlighted as providing marketing innovations is a prerequisite for ensuring competitiveness. They need to be implemented systematically and interconnected with other business processes, including introducing new types of accounts and modern channels for selling banking products. In particular, due to the pension reform in Ukraine, the non-state pension insurance system is developing, and opening of IRA for clients is a promising direction for attracting funds by commercial banks.


Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-intoxicating chemical in cannabis plants that is being investigated as a candidate for treatment in Fragile X Syndrome (FXS), a leading known cause of inherited intellectual developmental disability. Studies have shown that CBD can reduce symptoms such as anxiety, social avoidance, hyperactivity, aggression, and sleep problems. This is a qualitative study that utilized a voluntary-anonymous survey that consisted of questions regarding demographics, medical information, the form, type, brand, dose, and frequency of CBD use, the rationale for use, the perception of effects, side effects, and costs. The full survey contained a total of 34 questions, including multiple-choice, Likert-scale, and optional free-response questions. This research revealed that there are a wide range of types, brands, and doses of CBD being administered to individuals with FXS by their parents and caregivers. There were many reasons why CBD was chosen, the most common ones being that respondents had heard positive things about CBD from members of the community, the perception that CBD had fewer side effects than other medications, and because respondents felt that CBD was a more natural substance. Most of the parents and caregivers who responded agreed that CBD improved some of the symptoms of FXS and made a positive difference overall. CBD has the therapeutic potential to help relieve some FXS symptoms. Future research is necessary to understand the benefits of CBD in FXS.


Major resections of bone tumors of the head and neck, owing to their small dimensions and their proximity to the organs in this region, cause important functional and aesthetic problems that significantly compromise patients' quality of life. Therefore, therapeutic planning should always extend beyond the resection to include functional and aesthetic reconstruction, preferably immediately. Microsurgical reconstruction represents a significant advance, but has not yet been perfected. Rapid prototyping (RP) comes as a new technology for the purpose of assisting the surgeon in the visual and tactile aspects of surgery, providing diagnostic accuracy and increasing the success of surgical planning. The authors demonstrate the technological advances in the manufacture of customized mandibular prostheses with the assistance of RP and practical applications of these methods.


Following the reactor 4 explosion of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (ChNPP), at least 1019 Bq of radionuclides (RN) were released in the environment. In order to protect workers and prevent further atmospheric RN dispersion in the area adjacent to the ChNPP, contaminated wastes including fuel particles, topsoil layer and forest remains were buried in approximately 800 shallow trenches in the sand formation in the Red Forest waste dump site [1]. No containment measures were taken, and since then RN have leaked to the unsaturated zone and to the groundwater. Since 1999, migration of RN in the vicinity of the trench 22 at Red Forest site has been investigated within the frame of the EPIC program carried out by IRSN in collaboration with UIAR and IGS [2, 3]. A plume of 90Sr was shown downgradient from the trench 22 with activites reaching 3750 Bq/L [2]. In 2008, further studies were initiated through the TRASSE research group, based on a collaboration between IRSN and CNRS. These programs aim at combining groundwater dating with RN migration monitoring studies in order to constrain RN transport models [3]. Groundwater residence time was investigated based on 3H/He and CFC. Both tracers led to ages ranging from modern (1-3 y) at 2 m depth below the groundwater table to significantly higher apparent ages of 50-60 y at 27 m below the groundwater table [3]. 36Cl/Cl ratios 2 to 4 orders of magnitude higher than the theoretical natural ratio are measured in groundwater. Similarly, SF6 shows concentrations as high as 1200 pptv while natural concentrations are in the order of 6-7 pptv. Based on apparent groundwater ages, both contaminations are linked to the Chernobyl explosion. Hence those tracers show excellent potential to constrain conservative and reactive transport, respectively. In contrast, 238U/235U ratio down gradient from trench 22 remains similar to the natural ratio. This suggests that either most of the U contained in the trench is in a non soluble form, associated with U-Zr matrix fuel particles [5] and/or that migration of U is limited due to redox processes and/or microbial activity. The above described experience of post-Chernobyl studies shows that a combined analysis of radionuclides, natural and anthropogenic tracers provides an efficient research tool to better understand and quantify contaminant transport processes in the geo-sphere. Similar approaches can be applied to the study transport of RN in the subsurface, issued from both, diffuse (contaminated watersheds) and point (damaged NPP and fuel storage units) radioactive sources produced by the Fukushima accident. References [1] Dzhepo S. P., Skalskyy A., 2002, In Chernobyl disaster and groundwater, Shestopalov, V., Ed. A.A. Balkema: Lisse, pp 25-70. [2] Dewiere L., Bugai D. et al., 2004, J. Environ. Radioactiv., 74, (1-3), 139-150. [3] Van Meir N., Bugai, et al., 2009, in: Oughton, D.H., Kashparov, V. (Eds.), Radioactive Particles in the Environment. Springer Science+Business Media B.V., pp.197-208. [4] Le Gal La Salle C., Aquilina L., et al., 2012, Appl. Geochem., 27 1304-1319. [5] Kashparov V.A., Ahamdach N., et. al., 2004, J. Environ. Radioactiv., 72, 335-353.


Focal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury induced cerebral inflammation, aggravates brain damage. The aim of the present study was to investigate the protective mechanisms of dexmedetomidine (DEX) on I/R brain injury in rats. Sprague‑Dawley rats were divided to seven experimental groups (18 rats/group): Sham surgery; middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) surgery (90 min); DEX10 [10 µg/kg intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection 30 min prior to MCAO]; DEX50 (50 µg/kg i.p. 30 min prior to MCAO); DEX100 (100 µg/kg i.p. 30 min prior to MCAO); DEX50+Yohimbine [YOH; 5 mg/kg 10 min prior to DEX (50 µg/kg i.p.) administration and MCAO] and YOH (5 mg/kg 40 min prior to MCAO). At 24 h post‑MCAO surgery, neurological deficit was examined by staining damaged brain tissues with 2,3,5‑triphenyltetrazolium chloride. Neuronal apoptosis in the cerebral cortex was histologically assessed by terminal deoxynucleotidyl‑transferase‑mediated dUTP nick end labeling staining, and the expression levels of phosphorylated (p)‑AMP‑activated protein kinase (AMPK; Thr172) was detected by western blotting. In addition, the expression levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‑α and interleukin (IL)‑1β were assessed by ELISA. At days 1, 2 and 5 following I/R, motor functions were assessed by an observer blinded to the study. The brain infarct size, neurological deficit scores, number of apoptotic neurons, expression levels of pro‑inflammatory cytokines TNF‑α and IL‑1β were increased following MCAO, whereas the motor function scores were reduced. Pretreatment with DEX prior to MCAO can reverse the effects induced by I/R. Compared with rats in the Sham group, the expression levels of p‑AMPK were mildly increased in the MCAO group and highly increased in the three DEX‑treatment groups. Pretreatment with YOH reversed the above effects of DEX and produced a similar level of cerebral I/R injury. The results demonstrated that precondition with DEX exhibited anti‑inflammatory effects on brain ischemic injury mediated by AMPK signal pathway.


PURPOSE
Surgical resection of gastric cancer has produced suboptimal survival despite multiple randomized trials that used postoperative chemotherapy or more aggressive surgical procedures. We performed a randomized phase III trial of postoperative radiochemotherapy in those at moderate risk of locoregional failure (LRF) following surgery. We originally reported results with 4-year median follow-up. This update, with a more than 10-year median follow-up, presents data on failure patterns and second malignancies and explores selected subset analyses.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
In all, 559 patients with primaries ≥ T3 and/or node-positive gastric cancer were randomly assigned to observation versus radiochemotherapy after R0 resection. Fluorouracil and leucovorin were administered before, during, and after radiotherapy. Radiotherapy was given to all LRF sites to a dose of 45 Gy.

RESULTS
Overall survival (OS) and relapse-free survival (RFS) data demonstrate continued strong benefit from postoperative radiochemotherapy. The hazard ratio (HR) for OS is 1.32 (95% CI, 1.10 to 1.60; P = .0046). The HR for RFS is 1.51 (95% CI, 1.25 to 1.83; P < .001). Adjuvant radiochemotherapy produced substantial reduction in both overall relapse and locoregional relapse. Second malignancies were observed in 21 patients with radiotherapy versus eight with observation (P = .21). Subset analyses show robust treatment benefit in most subsets, with the exception of patients with diffuse histology who exhibited minimal nonsignificant treatment effect.

CONCLUSION
Intergroup 0116 (INT-0116) demonstrates strong persistent benefit from adjuvant radiochemotherapy. Toxicities, including second malignancies, appear acceptable, given the magnitude of RFS and OS improvement. LRF reduction may account for the majority of overall relapse reduction. Adjuvant radiochemotherapy remains a rational standard therapy for curatively resected gastric cancer with primaries T3 or greater and/or positive nodes.


Abstract Illegal hunting is a widespread problem in the Maltese Islands. As well as having a significant impact on the islands' breeding birds, the illegal hunting of migratory birds has a wider, international dimension. To investigate the international impact of illegal hunting in Malta we considered the entire ring recovery database of the Valletta Bird Ringing Scheme, from the 1920s to the present. All records of birds that were ringed overseas and shot by hunters in Malta were analysed, comprising a total of 435 records of 84 species from 36 countries. The majority of these ring recoveries (91.7%) were from species listed as protected and non-huntable throughout the European Union, with a significant proportion listed as European Species of Conservation Concern. Birds of prey were particularly represented in the database, 78.6% of which were ringed as nestlings or juveniles, highlighting the impact of illegal hunting on this group of species in particular. Species targeted illegally by Maltese hunters originate from countries throughout Europe and Africa, particularly Finland, Sweden, Tunisia, Italy and Germany. For rare species or those with small breeding populations in affected countries, illegal hunting could therefore have a significant impact on the long-term persistence of European populations. Poaching of species such as the pallid harrier Circus macrourus and saker falcon Falco cherrug could have a global impact on their populations.


The vitreous of three patients with asteroïd hyalosis (average age: 57 years) was obtained by a two-hand closed pars plana vitrectomy. Asteroïd hyalosis was associated with alcoholic neuropathy in the first case, long standing retinal detachment in the second case, and diabetes mellitus in the third case. The visual acuity before and after the surgical procedure improved from 1.2/6 to 6/6 in the first case, from light perception to 0.3/6 in the second case, from 0.6/6 to 4.8/6 in the third case. The vitreous was studied by different ultrastructural technics : transmission electron microscopy (T.E.M.) scanning electron microscopy (S.E.M.) and electron diffraction X ray analysis (E.D.A.X.). By S.E.M. the asteroïd bodies appeared as rounded structures with an irregular surface connected to each other by fibrous strands among sodium chloride crystals. No cellular remnants were observed. By T.E.M. the asteroïd bodies were composed of interwinned ribbons of multilaminar membranes with a periodicity (10 to 60 A) characteristic of complex lipids, especially phospholipids. At the edge of the ribbons there were dots and sometimes clumps of opaque material that tended to crack out of the specimen with the heat of the electron beam. T.E.M. study disclosed the irregular disposition of the calcific bodies. By E.D.A.X. the calcific composition of the rounded structures could be determined : calcium and phosphorus were the main elements detectable in asteroïd bodies of all sizes for all three patients. The average calcium counts for the three successive cases were : 18, 30, 43 and for phosphorus : 9, 14, 26. Potassium was found in the first case, and sulfur in the third case.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


The efficiency of Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) depends on how the underlying geometry of the problem is taken into account. For distributions with strongly varying curvature, Riemannian metrics help in efficient exploration of the target distribution. Unfortunately, they have significant computational overhead due to e.g. repeated inversion of the metric tensor, and current geometric MCMC methods using the Fisher information matrix to induce the manifold are in practice slow. We propose a new alternative Riemannian metric for MCMC, by embedding the target distribution into a higher-dimensional Euclidean space as a Monge patch and using the induced metric determined by direct geometric reasoning. Our metric only requires first-order gradient information and has fast inverse and determinants, and allows reducing the computational complexity of individual iterations from cubic to quadratic in the problem dimensionality. We demonstrate how Lagrangian Monte Carlo in this metric efficiently explores the target distributions.


This paper reports on a 400 watt boost converter using a SiC BJT and a SiC MOSFET as the switch and a 6 Amp and a 50 Amp SiC Schottky diode as the output rectifier. The converter was operated at 100 kHz with an input voltage of 200 volts DC and an output voltage of 400 volts DC. The efficiency was tested with an output loaded from 50 watts to 400 watts at baseplate temperatures of 25°C, 100°C, 150°C and 200°C. The results show the converter in all cases capable of operating at temperatures beyond the range possible with silicon power devices. While the converter efficiency was excellent in all cases, the SiC MOSFET and 6 Amp Schottky diode had the highest efficiency. Since the losses in a boost converter are dominated by the switching losses and the switching losses of the SiC devices are unaffected by temperature, the efficiency of the converter was effectively unchanged as a function of temperature.


Drought is one of the frequently observed natural hazard resulting from precipitation deficit and increased evapotranspiration caused by high temperatures. Remote sensing indices are used to analyze spatio-temporal distribution of drought conditions and identify drought severity. In this study, we analyzed the spatio-temporal distribution of drought conditions in Turkey from February 2000 to January 2019 by using different drought indices produced from MODIS satellite data in Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform. Vegetation Health Index (VHI), Normalized Multiband Drought Index(NMDI) and Normalized Difference Drought Index (NDDI) maps in country level for different years and months of the related years were utilized to assess the drought conditions. Time series were also created for some specific locations to deeply analyze the drought conditions in 20-year period. Our results show that MODIS derived drought indices provide useful geospatial information to assess drought conditions in country level. Moreover, GEE platform is very handy and rapid tool to reach related satellite images and conduct remote sensing analysis of huge and long term date efficiently. Geospatial big data could be successfully accessed and processed in this platform not only for drought monitoring but also for other environmental monitoring applications.


In reality there are various kinds of explanations for each type of extinction. This paper introduces a new theory to explain and to estimate the size and frequency of all extinctions over the entire period of 600 my of the fossil record. The central point was the search for a common pattern and even one common formula. The current explanation seemed to be excellent. We will demonstrate in what way death is a fact of life: by making calculations with the new formula: there is a constant margin of 10 pct, and about seven peaks with at least 25 pct of extinction victims. Those peaks occur each 85 million years, but their frequency has increased over time. In principle, the predictability of the next peak is limited, because of chaos (within the solar system and the ecosystem on Earth), the unpredictability of mutations in Nature, of innovations by Man, and let alone the disastrous impacts of asteroids. It also depends on the concept of whether life is cyclical or linear. Therefore, some predictions have a low likelihood of occurrence In the traditional theory or Old Vision there are many extinctions and even mass extinctions, each with various theories believed to be their cause. There is no single theory explaining all extinctions. Man was witness to and perhaps later on even guilty of extinctions. Even as early as in the Ice Ages he tried to find facts and continued later on in the Age of Science. But we still do not see extinctions in their right perspective, and it would be very useful to change this. The right perspective depends on the modern vision on the structure of the world, that is in the Chaotic Solar System, with changing orbits of the planets.


Objectives: The Nucleus auditory brain stem implant (ABI) has been used in the hearing rehabilitation of totally deaf individuals for whom a cochlear implant is not an option such as in the case of neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2). Intraoperative electrically evoked auditory brain stem responses (EABRs) are recorded to assist in the placement of the electrode array over the dorsal and ventral cochlear nuclei in the lateral recess of the IVth ventricle of the brain stem. This study had four objectives: (1) to characterize EABRs evoked by stimulation with an ABI in adolescents and adults with NF2, (2) to evaluate how the EABR morphology relates to auditory sensations elicited from stimulation by an ABI, (3) to establish whether there is evidence of morphology changes in the EABR with site of stimulation by the ABI, and (4) to investigate how the threshold of the EABR relates to behavioral threshold and comfortably loud sensations measured at initial device activation. Design: Intraoperative EABRs were recorded from 34 subjects with ABIs: 19 male and 15 female, mean age 27 yrs (range 12 to 52 yrs). ABI stimulation was applied at seven different sites using either wide bipolar stimulation across the array or in subsections of the array from medial to lateral and inferior to superior. The EABRs were analyzed with respect to morphology, peak latency, and changes in these characteristics with the site of stimulation. In a subset of eight subjects, additional narrow bipolar sites were stimulated to compare the intraoperative EABR threshold levels with the behavioral threshold (T) and comfortably loud (C) levels of stimulation required at initial device activation. Results: EABRs were elicited from 91% of subjects. Morphology varied from one to four vertex-positive peaks with mean latencies of 0.76, 1.53, 2.51, and 3.64 msecs, respectively. The presence of an EABR from stimulation by electrodes across the whole array had a high predictive value for the presence of auditory electrodes at initial device activation. When examining subsections of the array, the absence of an EABR was a poor predictor for the absence of auditory electrodes. The morphology of the EABRs varied with site of stimulation in 16 cases, but there was no consistent pattern of change with stimulation site. There was a trend for more auditory electrodes to be present in stimulation sites that evoked EABRs with a higher number of peaks in the waveform. The EABR threshold was closer to the behavioral C level than the T level, but there was no overall correlation between the intraoperative EABR threshold level and the behavioral T and C levels. Conclusions: The presence of an intraoperative EABR corresponded well to the presence of auditory electrodes. The absence of an EABR from stimulating subsections of the array was not; however, a good indicator for the absence of auditory electrodes and the EABR from such stimulation would not be of assistance in identifying the nonauditory sections of the array to exclude in behavioral fitting of the device. The morphology of the EABR did not relate to site of stimulation. More peaks in the EABR was associated with a greater number of electrodes with auditory sensations, suggesting that correct positioning of the ABI activated more auditory subsystems within the cochlear nucleus. The intraoperative EABR thresholds did not correlate with the behavioral T and C levels and could not be used to assist in device fitting.


This communication reports an analysis of Tn5/IS50 target site selection by using an extensive collection of Tn5 and IS50 insertions in two relatively small regions of DNA (less than 1 kb each). For both regions data were collected resulting from in vitro and in vivo transposition events. Since the data sets are consistent and transposase was the only protein present in vitro, this demonstrates that target selection is a property of only transposase. There appear to be two factors governing target selection. A target consensus sequence, which presumably reflects the target selection of individual pairs of Tn5/IS50 bound transposase protomers, was deduced by analyzing all insertion sites. The consensus Tn5/IS50 target site is A-GNTYWRANC-T. However, we observed that independent insertion sites tend to form groups of closely located insertions (clusters), and insertions very often were spaced in a 5-bp periodic fashion. This suggests that Tn5/IS50 target selection is facilitated by more than two transposase protomers binding to the DNA, and, thus, for a site to be a good target, the overlapping neighboring DNA should be a good target, too. Synthetic target sequences were designed and used to test and confirm this model.


The disastrous effects of the 1999 Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan demonstrated an urgent need for better knowledge of the island's potential earthquake sources as well as their neotectonic context. Toward this end, we have utilized digital elevation models of the island to prepare a neotectonic map of Taiwan and proposed a neotectonic model for the orogen. Taiwan's numerous active faults and folds reveal that the active orogen is a tandem suturing and tandem disengagement of a volcanic arc and a continental sliver to and from the Eurasian continental margin. The collision and suturing in the southern part of the orogen and the post-collisional collapse and extension in the island's northern and northeastern flanks have produced eleven distinct neotectonic domains. Each domain is defined by a distinctive suite of active structures. In most of the domains, the size of the principal active fault is large enough to produce future earthquakes with magnitudes in the mid-7 range. In order to further understand the suturing processes, we have focused the second part of our investigation on the Longitudinal Valley suture in eastern Taiwan. The earthquakes of November 1951 within this suture constitute one of the most destructive seismic episodes in Taiwan's history. The surface ruptures of the earthquakes consist of three distinct sections, two of which are along segments of the Longitudinal Valley fault. From fluvial terraces along the Hsiukuluan River, we have reconstructed a shallow listric geometry for the Longitudinal Valley fault. On the other hand, many uplifted lateritic fluvial terraces along the eastern flank of the Central Range indicate the presence of a west-dipping Central Range reverse fault. We believe the majority of the horizontal shortening across the Longitudinal Valley suture is accommodated by the slip on the Longitudinal Valley fault. The remaining horizontal convergence may be absorbed by a combination of slip on the Central Range fault and subsidence of the Longitudinal Valley floor. The along-strike difference in geometry of the two major faults along the Longitudinal Valley is likely the manifestation of the northward maturation of the suturing of the Luzon volcanic arc to the Central Range continental sliver.


Diabetes is a metabolic issue wherein there is an increment in the level of glucose in the blood. The principle explanation behind diabetes is less emission of insulin from the pancreases. After some time, high blood glucose levels can harm the body's organs. This research study aims to predict diabetes for a patient with a higher exactness by consolidating the aftereffects via Machine Learning methods including Support Vector Machine (SVM). In this system, four types of kernel Linear, RBF, Polynomial, Sigmoid are used. From Sigmoid, the best Kappa Statistics (98%) is gained whereas polynomial kernel has shown the lowest performance. From the perspective of Accuracy, Precision, Recall, F1-Score, Specificity and ROC area Sigmoid kernel is also given the best outcome rather than other kernels. So, in this research study, out of these four kernels, the Sigmoid is the most preferable for predicting diabetes disease.


Background: Africa faces a number of unique environmental challenges. Unfortunately, it lacks the infrastructure needed to support the comprehensive environmental studies that could provide the scientific basis to inform environmental policies. There are a number of known sources of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and other hazardous chemicals in Africa. However, a coordinated approach to identify and monitor these contaminants and to develop strategies for public health interventions has not yet been made. Objectives: This commentary summarizes the scientific evidence presented by experts at the First African Endocrine Disruptors meeting. We describe a "call to action" to utilize the available scientific knowledge to address the impact of EDCs on human and wildlife health in Africa. Discussion: We identify existing knowledge gaps about exposures to EDCs in Africa and describe how well-designed research strategies are needed to address these gaps. A lack of resources for research and a lag in policy implementation slows down intervention strategies and poses a challenge to advancing future health in Africa. Conclusion: To address the many challenges posed by EDCs, we argue that Africans should take the lead in prioritization and evaluation of environmental hazards, including EDCs. We recommend the institution of education and training programs for chemical users, adoption of the precautionary principle, establishment of biomonitoring programs, and funding of community-based epidemiology and wildlife research programs led and funded by African institutes and private companies. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP1774


the treatment of hypertension has been the subject of intense interest and debate over the last several years.1–5 Although a "lower is better strategy" has been adopted in clinical practice for many but not all patient cohorts, the boundary conditions for blood pressure treatment have not been established rigorously by clinical trials involving middle-aged and older adults with hypertension and other prespecified cardiovascular disorders such as acute coronary syndromes, heart failure, and valvular heart disease. Concern remains that a Jor U-curve association between blood pressure and outcomes exists in vulnerable patients with impaired coronary flow reserve or myocardial dysfunction.6 Excessive lowering of the diastolic blood pressure (DBP) may result in critical reductions in coronary perfusion pressure below the autoregulatory limit and render the heart ischemic, especially when myocardial oxygen demand is increased. Nevertheless, the evidence base is not uniformly consistent, and issues such as confounding and reverse causality have been invoked to explain the observations made in some but not all trials.5 The deleterious effects of significantly elevated systolic blood pressure (SBP) or DBP, however, across essentially all patient populations are not in question. The prevalence of hypertension and significant valvular heart disease, especially calcific aortic valve stenosis, increases with age,7,8 and their combined treatment can prove quite challenging. Older patients not uncommonly have coexistent coronary or cerebrovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, atrial fibrillation, and diabetes mellitus, comorbidities that further complicate management decisions and argue for an individualized approach. Polypharmacy, drug-drug interactions, side effects, and cost are additional considerations. For the practitioner trying to strike the right balance, it would be useful to know the range of blood pressures within which treatment might be considered effective and safe. The primary results of the SEAS trial (Simvastatin and Ezetimibe in Aortic Stenosis) were published in 2008.9 Investigators from Scandinavia, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Ireland randomized 1873 patients (mean age, 67 years; range, 45–85 years) with mild to moderate aortic stenosis (AS), normal left ventricular (LV) systolic function, and no traditional indication for lipid-lowering therapy to simvastatin 40 mg plus ezetimibe 10 mg or placebo and demonstrated no significant between-group differences in a composite end point of major cardiovascular events or in the rate of progression or course of AS over a median follow-up of 52 months despite a 54% reduction in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the active treatment arm. Although historically viewed as a "negative" trial, the SEAS study has proven to be a robust source of information on the natural history and assessment of AS. In SEAS, ≈50% of patients had a history of hypertension or elevated blood pressure at baseline, and comparable numbers of patients in both groups were taking angiotensinconverting enzyme inhibitors/angiotensin receptor blockers (25%), calcium channel blockers (17%), and/or β-blockers (28%). The effects of hypertension on LV strucManagement of Hypertension in Patients With Mild to Moderate aortic Stenosis


The proverbial communication gap between business and IT experts has led to substantial problems in interoperability between different stakeholders of different (business and IT) systems, leading, in turn, to significant monetary losses together with loss of customers' trust and patience. The paper demonstrates not only the problems but also the solution — a clear separation between the business and IT domains based on an explicit usage of a system of concepts common to all domains and understood by all stakeholders. These elegant concepts come from exact philosophy, mathematics, programming and systems thinking and have been described in an international standard, the Reference Model of Open Distributed Processing The paper shows how a system of exactified concepts and approaches has been used to understand and specify the semantics of non-trivial industrial business and IT systems, thus establishing a basis for successful communication between business and IT experts, that is, for semantic (and sometimes syntactic) interoperability.


We conducted a cross-sectional study on a randomly selected sample of 2304 males aged 15-49 years from 4 governorates in Lower Egypt to assess their condom use and knowledge and attitudes towards condom use. Condoms were considered an effective method of contraception and prevention of transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) by 60.5% and 60.0% respectively. Only 23.9% had ever used condoms, mainly for contraception, but 26.8% would consider using them in the future. A quarter reported knowing how to use condoms properly. Obstacles to condom use included perceived lack of need (75.7%), rejection by partner (57.6%) and hazards of condoms (31.9%). The majority knew about HIV/AIDS (90.8%) but a few felt at risk of STIs (11.2%) or HIV infection (10.3%).


: A 37-year-old black West Indian woman with sarcoidosis developed obstructive jaundice due to stenosis involving the entire length of the common hepatic bile duct associated with stenosis of the cystic duct. Neither gallstones nor extrahepatic biliary tract lymph node involvement were found. Stenosis was ascribed to biliary involvement of sarcoidosis because of the presence of noncaseating granulomas in the cystic duct and the gallbladder neck. There was no hepatic involvement. Cholecystectomy and left hepaticojejunostomy were performed. Postoperative recovery was unremarkable. Jaundice disappeared and liver tests returned to normal values. This case report underlines the importance of verifying the patency of the extrahepatic biliary tract before severe cholestasis can be ascribed to intrahepatic involvement of sarcoidosis.


Abstract : To date, much effort has been spent on improving the detection of space objects; however, the ability to track and catalogue space objects remains only as good as the ability to determine the object's position and angular rate. The foundation of space situational awareness (SSA) is the ability to detect a space object and to predict its location in the future. In order to accomplish SSA for Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) space objects, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) developed the Space Surveillance Telescope (SST) to enable ground-based, broad-area search, detection and tracking of small GEO objects in space. In general, the SST tracks along the sky at the sidereal rate where the stars will appear to be stationary, while objects within space not moving at this rate will appear to move across the focal array from data frame to data frame. As the time between each frame is known and the position of the detected object can be determined in the focal array, it is possible to measure the angular position and angular rate of a detected object. The two main types of detection algorithms used in this thesis are the binary hypothesis test (BHT) and the multi-hypothesis test (MHT), which both rely on a log-likelihood ratio (LLR); however, the MHT algorithm adds an additional step to correlate nine system point spread functions, or hypotheses, with the image data. These detection algorithms lead to varying degrees of accuracy and precision in determining the position and angular rate for a detected space object. The research within this thesis shows that the MHT algorithm is more accurate and precise than the BHT algorithm.


The interview was recorded in Washington, D.C., on April 3, 2000.The Interviewer was James S. Sutterlin.
Ambassador Pickering had a diplomatic career which spanned for four decades. This included ambassadorships in Jordan (1974-1978), Nigeria (1981-1983), El Salvador (1983-1985), Israel (1985-1988), United Nations (1989-1992), India (1992-1993) and Russia (1993-1996). During his assignment as Permanent Representative to the United Nations, he played a critical role during the First Gulf War by taking the lead in the United Nations Security Council's response to the Iran–Iraq situation that began in August 1991.

During the interview, conducted on 3 April 2000, while he was Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs for the State Department, Ambassador Pickering speaks of the Iran-Iraq situation and especially about the establishment and working of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), which was set up to ensure Iraq's compliance with policies concerning production and use of weapons of mass destruction as set out in Security Council resolution 687 (1991)(S/RES/687(1991)).


This thesis investigates spatial attraction in urban space and arising potential for spatial interaction. It grounds on Space Syntax theories that spatial attraction is governed by network configurations of the urban grid but also by the particular nature of land use activities which at tract across distance in space. An open question is raised concerning the interplay between those attracting forces and the configuration of the urban grid: how can spatial attraction be conceived of as the main driver in creating surplus-value for trips through urban space - and what are the consequences for both local building attractors but also for the performance of the urban grid as a means to communicate space The research is carried out through the analysis of the Barbican Arts Centre (BAC) and the Royal Festival Hall (RFH) as two London based cultural venues. On the one hand, both places are acting as local attractors within their urban context due to their land use activities as concert halls. On the other hand, both places reveal pathological malfunctions related to spatial attraction. Based on the notion of the urban grid itself being a spatial attractor, this thesis focuses on the by-product of movement, which is the series of spaces passed through when moving from an origin a to a destination b. A method is tested which considers the local context around each case study as a field of attracting forces. Space Syntax axial analyses transforms urban space into the graph structure of an axial map, whereas land use data is assigned to buildings or groups of build ings of same land use to represent interfaces of activities. It is hypothesised that combinations between attracted movement flows and interfaces are either amplifying or reducing the effects of the by-product in urban space. The application of the analyses reveals no contribution of the by-product on the segregat ed site of the BAC, and little impact of the by-product on the RFH. Thus, a more general question can be asked: do local building attractors necessarily have to rely on spatial attraction in the form of the by-product of movement Or do specific kinds of local attractors overcome low segregation by means of their specific transpatial nature The conclusion shows that local attractors are able to do so - to the expense of not amplifying but reducing the by-product effects for the local urban context. Hence, it is speculated about the advantages of the urban grid as a physical, faster and more powerful communicator of space in contrast to transpatiality as a virtual, constraint and less efficient communicator. Keywords Spatial attraction, spatial interaction, decay, urban grid, by-product.


In contrast to aryliodine(III) compounds, which have matured into a particularly attractive class of oxidants in modern synthesis, the synthetic potential of related alkyliodine(III) derivatives has remained widely underestimated. This is surprising since a number of unique synthetic possibilities arise directly from the low stability of their central carbon-iodine bond. In this respect, these high oxidation state iodine compounds resemble environmentally benign variants of the prominent metal counterparts such as derived from palladium, nickel and copper. This concept article summarizes general reactivity trends in alkyliodine(III) chemistry, and discusses selected examples of their strategic use as highly reactive, transient species in organic synthesis and homogeneous catalysis.


The RRIM's 1988 Hand-Pollination Programme was conducted using
two different sources of materials. e.i. Wickham and Amazon. The progenies
obtained from the Hand-Pollination Programme were used to establish a
Seedling Evaluation Trial at RRIM Experiment Station, Sungai Buloh. Test
tapping was carried out at three and half years after planting. The trial was
opened for normal tapping at seven years old. The p erformances of progenies
using data both at immature and mature stages were studied.
Generally. progenies from W x Am crosses were inferior to that of W x
W crosses in latex yield. However. there was a W x Am family (PB 5/51 x
64/151) and produced high yield in normal tapping that was comparable to the
best of W x W families. High correlation (r = 0. 972) was found between the two test tapping yield characters (mean yield over three cycles and five cycles
of tapping). The correlation between normal tapping yield and the two test
tapping yields were significant but lower (r = 0.660 and 0.715, respectively).
The family ranking order based on yield of normal tapping in comparison with
that on yield of test tapping was not very much different except for few cases.
There were families that produced better yield at normal tapping than in test
tapping and vice versa. Selection for top 10% yield of test tapping can get only
about half of expected individuals in the same proportion selected on yield at
normal tapping.


Children and young people's right to participate in the decisions made about them is enshrined in national and international Acts and Charters: the Children Act 1989 and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1999. This right takes on particular importance for Looked After Children and Young People, a frequently excluded group, as it concerns major decisions about their lives. This study sought to explore the views of 10 young people between the ages of 16 and 19 in looked after care on decision making in review and planning meetings. A critical realist grounded theory was deemed to be the most appropriate methodology for the research, partly because it allowed interviews and research directions to be led by the participants.
Interviews and analyses yielded interesting and novel results but also reflected many themes that have been found in previous research. The core category generated by the research was the ongoing process of Pushing and Decision Making. The main categories that comprise that core category were: Becoming Active and Involved, Wanting more than just 'Good Enough', Making Oneself Heard and Coming of Age in the Care System. The core and four main categories are discussed with reference to other research into participation and decision making, and in terms of the young people getting their needs met within the context of the care system and corporate parenting.


The objective of this research was to provide structural performance data and information for straw bale home builders, building inspectors and engineers. Structural testing of 2 full-scale straw bale walls was undertaken. The tested walls were instrumented and subjected to compressive vertical loading. The results were interpreted in the light of the expected loads that must be withstood in single storey domestic applications. Two specimens of straw baled walls were tested using two techniques for measuring displacement under a maximum load of 2 ton. Pre-compression improved initial stiffness of the straw bale walls. The displacements recorded ranged between 7- 10 mm. It was concluded that placement of a wooden cap plate on top of the straw bale wall is important to insure uniform transfer of the loads along the whole length of the wall. Also this technique of building would confine the connection between the wire mesh, the straw and the plaster to insure the sandwich panel behavior in the section.


In mesomechanics performance studies of porous asphalt concrete (PA), one of the crucial component materials influencing the raveling performance of the mixture is bituminous mortar. In relation fatigue performance, the viscoelastic response of the mortar for loads corresponding to the magnitude and frequency of the truck loading is important. In this paper, the mechanical response of a bituminous mortar material is investigated at various shear stress levels and loading frequencies. A dynamic shear rheometer setup with a specimen geometry specially developed for mortar testing is utilized. The mortar, which consists of bitumen, filler, and fine fractions of sand, is produced with a composition similar to that of a standard PA mixture. The tests were conducted at various temperatures in the frequency domain. The results show that the selected mortar test setup produces results with good repeatability. The results of high shear measurements show the presence of nonlinear behavior at shear stress levels in the range of 10 kPa for temperatures of 30°C and above. At temperatures of 0°C and below, the mortar exhibits linear viscoelastic behavior at shear stress levels of up to 1 MPa. The observed nonlinear viscoelastic behavior is described using Schapery nonlinear theory. The paper discusses the testing methods and the interpretation and description of results with the nonlinear theory. It also discusses the implications of the results for mechanistic based PA performance models.


Ultrafiltration (UF), due to its reliability, robustness and stable quality of the water produced ,
offers technical advantages over conventional pretreatments such as sand filtration coupled
with coagulation/flocculation or activated carbon.
In this study, the real case of a prototype designed, commissioned and operated consisting of
an advanced Ultrafiltration unit (DOW™ UF) followed by a Reverse Osmosis system (Filmtec
™ Reverse Osmosis elements) is evaluated. The work presented has been obtained wihtin
the framework of the UFTEC LIFE+ project financed by the European Union. The prototype,
which is located in the Drinking Water Treatment Plant in Sant Joan Despi (Barcelona), treats
surface brackish water from the Llobregat River. The raw water has a turbidity ranging between
1--500NTU and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) content around 50-250mg/l.
The article discusses the economic optimization of the Ultrafiltration system by experimentally
finding which operating conditions enable the lowest operating costs without compromising
the overall capacity of the unit and the sustainability of the process. A detailed Design of
Experiments has been undertaken in order to assess the impact on the final cost of water of
each one of the key operational parameters, such as: operational flux, backwash frequency
and sequence, chemical enhanced backwash frequency, sequence and chemicals consumption,
etc.. Normalization software tools provided by DOW are used to evaluate the operational data
generated by the prototype (Ultrafiltration and Reverse Osmosis). The on-line measurements
coupled with the off-line laboratory results demonstrate that the quality of the UF product is
not influenced by the quality of the raw water.


ABSTRACT This article examines the domestic causes of the Iran–Iraq War. It delves into secret discussions among Iranian political and military elites during the conflict, their analyses of their own performance on the battlefield, and their revealing public disputes and blame game decades later. It contends that an underexplored and yet critical driving force behind Iran's prosecution of the war was factional politics. Along with state-level geo-strategic, regime-level security and individual-level ideological concerns, factional factors must also be examined to understand Tehran's war-time decisions. Iran's factional rivalries began between the Islamists and the nationalists; and between the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the army at war's outbreak, and eventually penetrated into the heart of the Islamist camp between the militant clerics and the IRGC.


We performed ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of the C2c and Cmca-12 phases of hydrogen at pressures from 210 to 350 GPa. These phases were predicted to be stable at 0 K and pressures above 200 GPa. However, systematic studies of temperature impact on properties of these phases have not been performed so far. Filling this gap, we observed that on temperature increase diffusion sets in the Cmca-12 phase, being absent in C2c. We explored the mechanism of diffusion and computed melting curve of hydrogen at extreme pressures. The results suggest that the recent experiments claiming conductive hydrogen at the pressure around 260 GPa and ambient temperature might be explained by the diffusion. The diffusion might also be the reason for the difference in Raman spectra obtained in recent experiments.


In this article, we report on several studies that explore peoples' preferences for strict liability or negligence in assigning responsibility for accidents. Depending on the situation, a substantial percentage of individuals stand prepared to assign liability to actors who are not negligent. We relate these findings to current debate over whether the essence of tort law is compensation to victims for wrongs committed by defendants.Part II reflects on the fact that early in their legal careers many law students are sympathetic with the idea of a tort system based on strict liability. We then turn to a brief discussion of the relative roles that strict liability and negligence play in the tort system, both historically and in current doctrine. In essence, both the scholarly literature and the law have, in recent decades, moved away from liability without fault, except in a limited number of circumstances.Part III reports four experimental studies that presented participants with scenarios in which one person caused another to be injured, but varied whether the injury was negligently or innocently caused, and varied the circumstances in which it occurred. In brief, we found that many of the factors considered relevant by courts and legal scholars – e.g., whether the activity was unusual, whether it was being conducted in a seemingly inappropriate locale, whether the actors imposed reciprocal risks on each other – affected the extent to which participants imposed liability absent negligent conduct. However, other factors, such as whether the defendant was acting for business or for pleasure, also played a role.Perhaps most significantly, we further found a baseline of strict liability well beyond what the law would impose, even when we degraded the conditions for strict liability as far as we could – an accident in which one cyclist bumps into another through no fault of either while both are out for a pleasure ride. Finally, when asked to put themselves in the role of jurors and instructed on the negligence standard, participants routinely applied that standard in many instances – but not when injury occurred by virtue of an innocent accident involving a chemical spill. Part IV is a brief conclusion in which we attempt to explain these results in light of current competing theories about the nature of tort law.


Background—Tamoxifen, a selective estrogen-receptor modulator, increases venous thromboembolic events (VTE), but the factors explaining this risk are unclear. Atherosclerosis may induce VTE, or the 2 conditions may share common risk factors. We assessed the effect of tamoxifen on VTE in a breast cancer prevention trial and studied its association with risk factors for VTE. Methods and Results—The incidence of VTE was studied in 5408 hysterectomized women randomly assigned to tamoxifen 20 mg/d or placebo for 5 years. There were 28 VTEs on placebo and 44 on tamoxifen therapy (hazard ratio [HR]=1.63; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02 to 2.63), 80% of which were superficial phlebitis, accounting for all of the excess due to tamoxifen within 18 months from randomization. Compared with placebo, the risk of VTE on tamoxifen was higher in women aged 55 years or older, women with a body mass index ≥25 kg/m2, elevated blood pressure, total cholesterol ≥250 mg/dL, current smoking, and a family history of coronary heart disease (CHD). Of the 685 women with a CHD risk score ≥5 who entered the trial, 1 in the placebo arm and 13 in the tamoxifen arm developed VTE (log-rank P=0.0013). In multivariate regression analysis, age ≥60 years, height ≥165 cm, and diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mm Hg had independent detrimental effects on VTE risk during tamoxifen therapy, whereas transdermal estrogen therapy concomitant with tamoxifen was not associated with any excess of VTE (HR=0.64; 95% CI, 0.23 to 1.82). Conclusions—Women with conventional risk factors for atherosclerosis have a higher risk of VTE during tamoxifen therapy. This information should be incorporated into counseling women on its risk-benefit ratio, particularly in the prevention setting.


We have studied the effects of the Berry phase on the linear transmission properties of optical microcoil resonators and analyzed the resonant behavior for different input polarizations and coil geometries. Contrary to previous expectations, we find that on resonance the size of the Berry phase shift can be magnified significantly, leading to a measurable polarization rotation for some geometries. Our model also considers other polarization effects including elasto-optic bend birefringence and the polarization dependent coupling coefficients, which were also previously neglected, and we still find that observable Berry phase effects persist. For example, in a three turn microcoil with a diameter of 0.2 mm, close to 100% of an initially x polarized light will be coupled into the orthogonal y polarization, due to the optical activity arising from the cumulative effects of Berry phase on resonance. More generally, the cross-polarization coupling also significantly influences the resonance extinction ratio and quality factor.


This study examines how smartphones, laptops and tablets are used to create a sense of security, place, and time in the everyday lives of their consumers. Mark Deuze (2012) and his take on the modern society as a zombie apocalypse has been an inspiration for my work, there of the title. "We're all fucking zombies" is a metaphor for how highly-connected people of today are by living in and through the media, instead of living with it. To implement this I've chosen a phenomenological perspective, as it is the media-users' subjective experiences of their everyday lives that I'm mainly interested in studying. I decided to focus on the mobile use of media since most of the research in this area focus on domestic media use. The theoretical framework that has set the foundation for the study is a combination of the time- space-dimensions of mobility, media as practice, symbolic interactionism, relational artifacts and phenomenological sociology. The purpose of using these theories is to get insight on how the media creates new opportunities for our social life, and to get an overview of how the new technological media leads to entirely new types of practices. The empirical data has been collected through a qualitative focus group interview with four respondents. They were selected to participate as they perceive themselves to be above average in comparison with the statistics of Mediebarometern (2014). The results showed that being connected through mobile media is considered to be of high importance. Although the "connectedness" is only vital when being present in the locations directly related to the everyday life. Based on Silverstones (1994) explanation of phenomenology, and his studies of how television contributes to the ontological security, I conclude that the personalized mobile media has the same effect on it's users.


In this study, it was aimed to determine some physical, chemical, microbiological and sensorial properties of yogurts traditionally made from water buffalo milk in the Western Black Sea Region (WBSR) in Turkey. Totally 86 yogurt samples were collected from producers or sellers in the cities of Kastamonu, Karabuk, Bartin, Zonguldak, Duzce and Boluin WBSR and analyzed. As a result of the analysis, mean dry matter (%), fat (%), non-fat dry matter (%), protein (%), ash (%), lactose (%), pH, acidity (LA, %), color values L*, a* and b*were obtained as 17.13±3.524, 6.98±2.327, 9.92±1.362, 4.48±0.690, 0.84±0.102, 4.59±1.011, 4.20±0.208, 1.22±0.236,96.22±2.217, -3.30±0.412 and 8.50±1.513, respectively. Starch was determined in none of the samples. Average water holding capacity was 67.48±9.594% and viscosity was 1249.67±1077.762 mPa.s. In addition; firmness (g), consistency (g.sec), cohesiveness (g) and index of viscosity (g.sec) were found as 246.43±138.898, 4910.66±2234.522, 182.32±87.672 and 334.79±149.087, respectively. Acetaldehyde, ethanol, diacetyl, acetoin and aceton values were obtained as 8.93±4.205, 114.93±154.807, 0.95±0.014, 24.44±16.905 and 0.59±0.504 (mg/kg), respectively. Mean aerobic mesophilic count was found as 4.41±1.032 log cfu/g, coliforms as 2.37±1.077 log cfu/g, yeasts and molds as 4.16±1.076 log cfu/g and total lactic acid bacteria count as 5.96±0.923 log cfu/g. Sensorial analyses showed that average appearance score was 3.76±1.005, smell 4.03±0.978, taste 3.64±1.105, consistency by spoon 3.93±1.005 and consistency by mouth3.71±1.022 on scale 5. Important variations in properties analyzed were observed among the samples collected from different cities. For example, the values of dry matter, fat, protein, ash, water holding capacity, viscosity and color were the highest in the samples of Karabuk city among the others.


The study examined factors that determined labor input of male and female managed farms among yam producing households in Paiko Local government area of Niger State. Primary data were used and a structured questionnaire was the instrument used to collect data. Simple random sampling technique was used to select 60 households from where 60 respondents (30 male and 30 female) were obtained. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data collected. The findings of the study revealed that 76.63% of the male respondents were aged 20-40 years, while 78.3% of the female were aged 20-40 years. Determinants of labor supply among the female managed farms had R 2 of 49% with family size, farm size and yam farming experience being statistically significant while among male managed farms, R 2 was 90.3% and farm size, age, wage rate, number of extension visits and family size were statistically significant. The major constraints to yam farming among the male yam farmers were lack of transportation and disease. On the other hand, the major constraints faced by the female farmers were time spent in household chores and transportation. It was recommended that Government should design policies that will help yam farmers to easily access loans at low interest. In order to ensure that the labor imputed into yam production is not wasted, farming inducement packages should be instituted. Such packages to be targeted at farmers include access to extension services and membership of cooperatives.


Faraday Rotation Measure (RM) synthesis requires the recovery of the Faraday Dispersion Function (FDF) from measurements restricted to limited wavelength ranges, which is an ill-conditioned deconvolution problem. Here, we propose a novel deconvolution method based on an extension of the MUltiple SIgnal Classification (MUSIC) algorithm. The complexity and speed of the method is determined by the eigen-decomposition of the covariance matrix of the observed polarizations. We show numerically that for high to moderate Signal to Noise (S/N) cases the RM-MUSIC method is able to recover the Faraday depth values of closely spaced pairs of thin RM components, even in situations where the peak response of the FDF is outside of the RM range between the two input RM components. This result is particularly important because the standard deconvolution approach based on RM-CLEAN fails systematically in such situations, due to its greedy mechanism used to extract the RM components. For low S/N situations, both the RM-MUSIC and RM-CLEAN methods provide similar results.


Because of the long‐term co‐evolution of TCR and MHC molecules, numerous nucleotide substitutions have accumulated within the domains of TCRβ genes. We previously found that nonsynonymous nucleotide substitutions occurred more frequently in complementarity determining region (CDR)β than in CDRα, even though only a limited number of common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) and human T‐cell receptor β variable (TRBV) sequences were compared. This interesting finding raised the question of whether the increased selective pressure within CDRβ was species‐specific. In this study, we identified 21 TRBV region sequences from the common marmoset and performed comparative sequence analyses of the T‐cell receptor α variable (TRAV) and TRBV regions from human, chimpanzee, rhesus monkey, cotton‐top tamarin, Ma's night monkey, and common marmoset. The ratios of the number of nonsynonymous nucleotide substitutions per site (dN) to the dS values (dN/dS) were less than 1 within the framework regions (FRs) of TRAV and TRBV region sequences, suggesting that purifying selection is largely dominant within the FRs. In contrast, the dN values were statistically significantly greater for CDRβ than for CDRα only in New World monkeys. Also, increased dN/dS ratios (dN/dS>1) were observed within CDRβ between humans and New World monkeys and, interestingly, between New World monkeys, which share a relatively recent common ancestor. Moreover, phylogenetic analysis by maximum likelihood analysis provided firm evidence to support that positive selection occurred within CDRβ along New World monkey lineages. These results suggest that increased positive selection pressure within CDRβ is common in New World monkeys rather than being species‐specific. This study provides an intriguing insight into the co‐evolution of TCR and MHC molecules within primates. Am. J. Primatol. 73:1082–1092, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Using longitudinal data from Indonesia and drawing on relevant literature—on the stress process, social support, and migrant assimilation—this study examines the consequences of rural-to-urban labour migration for mental health (as measured by depressive symptoms) and risk behaviours (as measured by smoking). The study addresses two analytic difficulties facing previous studies—the choice of an appropriate comparison group and selection bias. The results demonstrate that migration imposes considerable costs on mental health and encourages higher levels of smoking, and that the effects differ between women and men: female migrants tend to internalize the stress experienced in migration and display depressive symptoms, whereas male migrants tend to externalize various stressors by smoking more cigarettes if they already smoke though not by starting smoking. The negative impacts of migration are mitigated by family-level social support and a high degree of migrant assimilation.


theologian, there is a fascinating anticipation in him, as elsewhere in the Greek Fathers, of many insights usually thought to have been 'discovered' by Whitchead. Furthermore, the relation of God and creation is much more real, much more pervasive, than the rather artificial one set up in much western thought, not least in the scholastic tradition of the Middlc Ages. And finally, the centre of the Christian message is seen to bc, as ought to be recognized everywhere, man's (and the cosmos's) being 'in God' and hence 'in Love'; for like all Orthodox thinkers Lossky takes God's love as being more than adjectival to his essence but indeed actually his essence. This hook represents a theology which is not only Orthodox but 'orthodox', in the fullest sense of both words. Whatever may be needed by way of reconception of that theology, it is richly and enrichingly Christian in its emphases, its methodology, and its implications. NORMAN PITTENGER


Whether we blink an eye, lift a finger, throw a spear or a ball, walk, run, or merely breathe, we are using muscle. Although muscles differ little in appearance and performance across the animal kingdom, they accomplish tasks as diverse as making flies fly, rattlesnakes rattle, and squid shoot their tentacles. Our everyday activities turn on the performance of nature's main engine: we may breathe harder going uphill, but we put more strain on our muscles walking downhill. Those of us who are right-handed can tighten screws and jar lids more forcibly than we can loosen them. Here we're treated to the story of how form and performance make these things happen-how nature does her work. Steven Vogel is a leader in the great new field of bioengineering, which is rapidly explaining the beauty and efficiency of nature. His talents as both scientist and writer shine in this masterful narrative of biological ingenuity, as he relates the story-and science-of nature's greatest engine.


The ancient concept of humanitarian intervention has become the subject of renewed debate and discussion at the inter-governmental level, within the non-governmental sector, and in the academy. This concept can be defined as the intervention into the territorial state by another state or a collective of states, with or without authorization from the United Nations Security Council, for the promotion or protection of basic human rights where the territorial state is perpetuating abuses or is unable or unwilling to provide the necessary protection to its inhabitants. Although intrigued by the concept in theory, interested parties are grappling with the specifics of identifying substantive criteria justifying intervention, mechanisms for doing so within and without the U.N. institutional framework, operational considerations, and means to protect against abuses of the doctrine. The crisis in Darfur, Sudan has provided an immediate test of the international community's commitment to humanitarian intervention and its resolve to avoid the debacle of Rwanda, where the world stood largely silent while entire communities were exterminated with rudimentary farm tools. And yet, the international discourse concerning the humanitarian crisis in Darfur has conflated two distinct inquiries: The legal definition of genocide as it applies to the unique circumstances of Darfur and the propriety of humanitarian intervention, which remains mired in international politics. This conflation can be traced to a number of factors, including a misunderstanding of the obligations imposed by the Genocide Convention, the temptation to employ semantic hyperbole to provoke an international response, a persistent unwillingness to risk blood and treasure in defense of humanity, and the manipulation of a plausible delay tactic. This Article argues that irrespective of the source of this conflation, the question of whether or not the violence in Darfur constitutes genocide is irrelevant outside the context of an international criminal tribunal with jurisdiction over events in Darfur. At the point in time at which state responsibility is at issue and economic, political, and military solutions to mass violence are being contemplated - be it on multilateral, regional, or even unilateral grounds - debating legal semantics about whether violence rises to the level of genocide simply has no place. Indeed, the methodology necessary to determine the commission of genocide is inapt - and the surrounding discourse discordant - when people are being systematically killed and expelled from their homes through violence on a mass scale. What matters is that the level of violence and the risk to humanity has reached a certain threshold. If international law creates a right - or even a duty - to intervene in countries where massive rights violations are occurring, such a right or a duty has long since been triggered in Darfur. This Paper seeks to disentangle the discourse on genocide and humanitarian intervention by arguing that any right or duty of states to engage in humanitarian intervention should be untethered from specific findings of genocide under international criminal law (ICL). It proceeds in three parts. First, by way of background, it situates the conflict in Darfur in the context of the Sudanese civil war that has raged on and off since Sudan achieved its independence in 1956. Second, it sets out the elements of the crime of genocide and identifies several problems of proof posed by this definition and the nature of mass violence in general that led to the finding by a U.N. International Commission of Inquiry (Commission) that the government of Sudan is not committing genocide in Darfur. This paper does not reach its own conclusion about whether genocide is or is not occurring in Darfur, but it does evaluate the Commission's reasoning within the ICL jurisprudence in an effort to demonstrate the complexity and subtlety of such an inquiry. Finally, it argues that there is a basic incongruity in undertaking a genocide analysis, which requires detailed considerations of identity and intent, while abuses are ongoing and some form of intervention or state sanction is being contemplated. The nuances inherent to the definition of genocide under ICL provide an inapt metric for determining state responsibility and designing an appropriate preventative response.


To remain competitive for federal and state funding, state cooperative extension services must proactively incorporate issues programming and performance-based budgeting. State major program (SMP) design teams, which provide linkages between clientele groups and the research base, must conduct needs assessments to adjust to this new atmosphere of accountability. A case study illustrates how one Florida SMP (FL107, vegetable production, harvest, handling and integrated pest management in Florida) restructured its design team to become more flexible and proactive to target a wider range of outcomes. While still in the implementation phase, this model has already resulted in improved communication within the organization, better addressing extension needs at county level while facilitating reporting at the state level.


Aim A collaborative exercise with several institutes was organized by the Forensic DNA Service (FDNAS) and the Institute of the Legal Medicine, 2nd Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic, with the aim to test performance of different laboratories carrying out DNA analysis of relatively old bone samples. Methods Eighteen laboratories participating in the collaborative exercise were asked to perform DNA typing of two samples of bone powder. Two bone samples provided by the National Museum and the Institute of Archaelogy in Prague, Czech Republic, came from archeological excavations and were estimated to be approximately 150 and 400 years old. The methods of genetic characterization including autosomal, gonosomal, and mitochondrial markers was selected solely at the discretion of the participating laboratory. Results Although the participating laboratories used different extraction and amplification strategies, concordant results were obtained from the relatively intact 150 years old bone sample. Typing was more problematic with the analysis of the 400 years old bone sample due to poorer quality. Conclusion The laboratories performing identification DNA analysis of bone and teeth samples should regularly test their ability to correctly perform DNA-based identification on bone samples containing degraded DNA and potential inhibitors and demonstrate that risk of contamination is minimized.


Many excellent empirical studies of law practice have been conducted over the years, mostly focusing on practice in various workplaces,1 locales,2 specialties,3 or forums.4 These studies have unquestionably enriched our understanding of law practice and the American legal profession, but their impact on public policy is less clear. Because empirical research is costly, one would expect funding sources to be vitally interested in the practical payoff of the studies they support. Yet surprisingly few studies directly address policy issues or provide data that have influenced or seem likely to influence public policy as it bears on professional regulation or access to legal services. Steve Daniels and Joanne Martin's study of Texas "plaintiffs' IMAGE FORMULA4 lawyers"5-lawyers who specialize in representing plaintiffs for contingent fees-is a welcome exception.6 A policy debate has been raging for some time regarding both the reasonableness of the fees that plaintiffs' lawyers charge and the manner in which those fees should be regulated.7 A leading critic, Professor Lester Brickman, asserts that, under existing forms of regulation, contingent fees often yield above-normal returns on plaintiffs' lawyers' time.8 Indeed, by his estimate plaintiffs' lawyers earn "no less than $7.5 to $10 billion in unethical, windfall contingency fees" each year!9 Because lawyers in any given locale tend to charge the same contingent-fee rate (e.g., one-third of any recovery) and tend to charge each of their clients at that rate even though the risk of non-recovery10 varies from case to case, Brickman concludes that competition in the field is far from robust,11 and he supports stringent new IMAGE FORMULA6 restrictions on contingent-fee rates, even where statutory fee caps already exist for personal-injury cases.12 Other scholars, notably Professor Kritzer, view matters quite differently.13 Using data available for the mid-1990s, Kritzer estimates the "effective hourly rates" that lawyers earn in contingent-- fee cases.14 He finds that, although a small percentage of plaintiffs' lawyers earn very large incomes, returns from contingent-fee practice overall are similar to what lawyers earn from hourly-fee practice, or "at best" only marginally higher. 15 The Daniels-Martin study sheds new light on this debate, although it does not directly address the magnitude of prevailing contingent-fee rates or the adequacy of existing regulations. The profitability of contingent-fee work depends not only on fee rates, but also on the percentage of claims that result in recoveries, the amounts recovered, and the costs lawyers incur in pursuing recoveries. The debate often seems to proceed on the assumption that the latter variables remain fairly stable over time.16 Daniels and Martin question that assumption. The policymaking value of their study stems precisely from their focus on market dynamics. The study strongly IMAGE FORMULA8 suggests17 that the market for plaintiffs' lawyers' services in Texas between 1995 and 2000 was quite "unstable"18-that tort-case filings, recovery rates and amounts, and lawyers' net incomes all fell, while costs rose. It suggests, too, that these changes were occasioned by local manifestations of a nationwide phenomenon-the "tort reform" movement of the past two decades. On this account, the reduced circumstances of plaintiffs' lawyers in Texas are probably far from unique. Daniels and Martin conclude that, in contrast to the pre-1990 period, the challenge for many Texas plaintiffs' lawyers during the 1990s was simply "to keep the lights on"19 (i.e., to continue to do plaintiffs' work) in a contracting market.20 Between 1995 and 2000, considerably more lawyers in their survey reduced the percentage of their practices devoted to contingent-- fee work than expanded it. …


Based on the knowledge of PVC degradation and stabilisation, chemical modifications were imposed on degraded PVC and raw PVC with the aim of obtaining non-migrating additives. The modifications were carried out mainly in the presence of dibutyl maleate (DBM), and the resulting polymer contained dibutyl maleic residues. Such modifications result in a polymer which contain substantive additives which resist migration under aggressive environments. Previous studies have shown that stable nitroxyl radicals function as stabilisers in polymer during processing (e.g. PP, PVC) by deactivating a large number of kinetic chains via a redox process whereby the concentrations of the nitroxyl and its reduced form, the hydroxylamine, fluctuate reciprocally and rhythmically. In order to understand the major reactions involved in such systems, a simulation method was used which resulted in a mathematical model and some rate constants, explaining the kinetic behaviour exhibited by such system. In the process of forming a suitable model, two nonlinear oscillators were proposed, which could be of interest in the study of nonlinear phenomenon because of their chaotic behaviour.


New models that describe gas flow behaviour in microtubes are presented. To avoid time-consuming calculations in solving the integral equation which is obtained from the microscopic point of view, the high-order slip-flow boundary condition is utilized to correct the gas flow in such a micron or submicron spacing. The proposed model can be applied to arbitrary Knudsen number conditions under the assumption that the bulk flow velocity is negligible compared with the sonic velocity of the gas. The analytical solution of the pressure distribution for the first-order slip-flow model is obtained. The results show that the first-order slip-flow model is in good agreement with this model. The nonlinear pressure distribution is due to gas compressibility. The dominant mechanism influencing the nonlinear pressure distribution comes from the rarefaction of gas and the inlet pressure. The rarefaction effect increases the pressure drop at the inlet region of the channel and decreases the pressure drop at the exit region of the channel. The decrease of inverse Knudsen number changes the pressure distribution from concave to almost linear and increases the mass flow.


The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of soil moisture condition and irrigation regime on the bioelectric potential of crops with different growth stages. The bioelectric potential of broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) plants at the initial and mid-growth stages was measured under different soil moisture conditions and irrigation regimes using pot experiments. The results indicated that the bioelectric potential varied as a function of the soil moisture, irrigation regime, and stage of crop growth. To more accurately clarify the relationship among the changes in bioelectric potential, soil moisture, and crop growth stage, a wavelet analysis was performed. The results showed that the bioelectric potential changed as a function of both soil moisture and crop growth stage. Further, the dominant frequency band under wet soil condition at the initial growth stage before irrigation had a large wavelet coefficient compared with the results obtained under the other soil moisture conditions. In the mid-growth stage, the dominant frequency bands under wet and intermediate soil conditions were similar before and after irrigation. However, the characteristics of the wavelet conversion chart under dry soil conditions changed after irrigation. The results showed that the growth stage and irrigation regime both affect the crop bioelectric potential. Although clarifying the relationship among the bioelectric potential, soil moisture and crop growth stage was difficult, the wavelet analysis was shown to be effective for evaluating the effect of soil moisture and crop growth stage on the bioelectric potential. The results of the analysis indicated the bioelectric potential could be an important indicator for managing soil moisture and for optimizing irrigation regimes.


Based on the experience in surgically treating 2300 patients with different pathological orbital processes, the author formulates risk factors of possible postoperative complications. These include primarily the form and size of the osseous orbit, no precise information on the topometry of an orbital lesion focus, and inadequate choice of a surgical approach. Postoperative complications are analyzed and evaluated. A role of consideration of risk factors and the application of new technologies using microsurgical techniques is shown to reduce the frequency of complications, late ones in particular.


We report that modular millifluidic networks are simpler, more cost-effective alternatives to traditional microfluidic networks, and they can be rapidly generated and altered to optimize designs. Droplet traffic can also be studied more conveniently and inexpensively at the millimeter scale, as droplets are readily visible to the naked eye. Bifurcated loops, ladder networks, and parking networks were made using only Tygon(®) tubing and plastic T-junction fittings and visualized using an iPod(®) camera. As a case study, droplet traffic experiments through a millifluidic bifurcated loop were conducted, and the periodicity of drop spacing at the outlet was mapped over a wide range of inlet drop spacing. We observed periodic, intermittent, and aperiodic behaviors depending on the inlet drop spacing. The experimentally observed periodic behaviors were in good agreement with numerical simulations based on the simple network model. Our experiments further identified three main sources of intermittency between different periodic and/or aperiodic behaviors: (1) simultaneous entering and exiting events, (2) channel defects, and (3) equal or nearly equal hydrodynamic resistances in both sides of the bifurcated loop. In cases of simultaneous events and/or channel defects, the range of input spacings where intermittent behaviors are observed depends on the degree of inherent variation in input spacing. Finally, using a time scale analysis of syringe pump fluctuations and experiment observation times, we find that in most cases, more consistent results can be generated in experiments conducted at the millimeter scale than those conducted at the micrometer scale. Thus, millifluidic networks offer a simple means to probe collective interactions due to drop traffic and optimize network geometry to engineer passive devices for biological and material analysis.