Cancer treatment with biological response modifier (BRM) therapies is characterized by many of the same issues observed with other modalities. Yet, the nurse caring for the patient receiving BRM therapy frequently is faced with the need to develop interventions that respect both the integrity of investigational studies and the patient's unique needs. Coping with BRM therapy is influenced by many factors. Several models may be used simultaneously to assess coping behaviors and to provide effective interventions. The goals of investigational therapy and the management of symptom distress influence the ability to cope with BRM therapy. The interruption or impediment of normal adult developmental activities also influences the individual's response to the psychological stressors associated with this cancer therapy. Consequently, the most significant challenge faced by anyone receiving cancer therapy is the same for the individual receiving BRM therapy--living with uncertainty.


iii Dedication To my husband, Ben, for his encouragement, support, and unconditional love. To my parents, Danny and Barbara Buckner, for providing me with a strong foundation and continuous support, motivation, and endless love. The purpose of this study is (1) to ascertain the nature of teacher quality in rural schools; (2) to determine the extent to which rural teachers meet the standards set by NCLB requirements for highly qualified teachers; and (3) to search for patterns of regional differences in the demographic characteristics and/or academic qualifications of rural high school teachers. The study utilizes survey research as the method for data collection. The research findings are derived from a secondary analysis of an existing large, comprehensive, nationally representative survey dataset of public school teachers collected by the National Center for Education Statistics. The analysis of data concerning the quality of the rural high school teaching force provides valuable information to a variety of education stakeholders who are working to address the teacher quality issue— rural school administrators, policymakers, and educational researchers. To date, limited research has been conducted on this issue in the U.S. v Major findings from research question one were: The race/ethnicity of rural high school teachers is more homogeneous than any other group of high school teachers. On average, the more rural the school district, the less diverse the race/ethnicity of the high school teaching force. The average age of a rural high school teacher is 42 and there are approximately 55 percent female and 45 percent male teachers in rural high schools. Major findings from research question two were: There are major disparities for rural high school teachers in terms of advanced degrees. The vast majority of rural high school teachers earn their teaching certificate through a bachelor's degree program. When examining rural high school core subject area teachers, the findings reveal that 42 percent of these teachers are teaching out-of-field in at least one core subject area. Major findings from research question three were: Approximately 98 percent of rural high school teachers hold a bachelor's degree and 96 percent hold a teaching certificate in their main teaching assignment. After controlling for the subject matter competency variable, it was determined that at most 92 percent of rural high school teachers meet the highly qualified teacher requirements set forth in NCLB. Major findings from research question four were: Rural high school teachers in the Western states …


Set in the context of the evolving political tapestry of the Caspian region, encompassing the five riparian states of Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Russia, and their immediate neighbours in the South Caucasus (Armenia and Georgia) and Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan) this PhD presents an analysis of Iranian foreign policy in the first six years following the Soviet break-up (1991-1997), an era that overlapped with the administration of President Ali Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani (1989-1997). This thesis aims to build upon two distinct areas of current scholarship creating linkages between Tehran's domestic and external environment between 1988 and 1991 which resulted in the comprehensive pragmatist alliance and the emergence of opportunities in the Caspian after the Cold War. The crux is that Rafsanjani's material interests were aligned with the changing geopolitics of its northern region, inducing an Iranian policy driven by a pragmatic construction of strategic concerns.


We show that internationalised production, modelled as trade in intermediate goods, brings the dynamics of a small open economy closer to that observed in the data. We build a stylized new-Keynesian small open economy model and we show that when production is internationalised, movements of international relative prices affect the economy through an additional channel, denoted as the "cost channel". Both qualitatively and quantitatively, this channel (i) increases the share of output variance explained by foreign shocks, consistent with empirical evidence, (ii) implies that the exchange rate pass-through is closer to estimated values, and (iii) increases the international correlation of output relative to that of consumption.


Background The role of circadian rhythm of energy and macronutrient intake in influencing cardiometabolic risk factors is increasingly recognised. However, little is known of the association between time of energy intake and long-term risk of hypertension. Objectives To examine the association between time of day of energy intake and risk of hypertension. Methods The analysis included 517 men and 635 women who were members of the MRC National Survey of Health and Development (1946 British birth cohort). Diet was assessed using 5d estimated diaries at ages 43 years (1989) and 53 years (1999). Diet diaries were divided into seven time slots: breakfast, mid-morning, lunch, mid-afternoon, evening, night and extra. The association between time of day of energy intake in 1989 or 1999 and blood pressure in 1999 was assessed using logistic regression after adjustment for sex, social class, smoking status, region and body mass index. Hypertension was defined by systolic blood pressure ≥140 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mm Hg. Results Compared to the lowest quintile, cohort members from the highest quintile of energy intake at night in 1989 were more likely to have high systolic (OR=1.69; 95% CI 1.08 to 2.7; p=0.024) but not high diastolic blood pressure in 1999 (OR=1.64; 95% CI 1.02 to 2.66; p=0.055). Energy intake at night in 1999 was not related to high systolic or diastolic blood pressure in 1999. No associations between energy intake at other time slots and hypertension were observed. Conclusions Increased energy intake at night is predictive of higher risk of systolic hypertension 10 years later.


Proton pump inhibitor (PPI)-induced hypomagnesemia has been recognized since 2006. Our aim was to further characterize the clinical consequences and possible mechanisms of this electrolyte disorder using 4 cases. Two men (aged 63 and 81 years) and 2 women (aged 73 and 62 years) had been using a PPI (esomeprazole, pantoprazole, omeprazole, and rabeprazole, 20-40 mg) for 1-13 years. They developed severe hypomagnesemia (magnesium, 0.30 0.28 mEq/L; reference, 1.40-2.10 mEq/L) with hypocalcemia (calcium, 6.4 1.8 mg/dL), relative hypoparathyroidism (parathyroid hormone, 43 6 pg/mL), and extremely low urinary calcium and magnesium excretion. One patient was admitted with postanoxic encephalopathy after a collapse likely caused by arrhythmia. The others had electrocardiogram abnormalities (prolonged QT interval, ST depression, and U waves). Concomitant hypokalemia (potassium, 2.8 0.1 mEq/L) was considered the trigger for these arrhythmias. Hypomagnesemiainduced kaliuresis (potassium excretion, 65 24 mEq/L) was identified as the cause of hypokalemia. This series of PPI-induced hypomagnesemia shows that this is a generic effect. It also indicates that hypomagnesemia may occur within 1 year of PPI therapy initiation and can have serious clinical consequences, likely triggered by the associated hypokalemia. A high index of suspicion is required in PPI users for unexplained hypomagnesemia, hypocalcemia, hypokalemia, or associated symptoms. Am J Kidney Dis 56:112-116. © 2010 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc.


As part of the Annual Survey of the American Bar Association Section on Business Law, this article examines the impact of the Dodd-Frank Act on the auto finance industry. Regulation of auto finance is being reshaped at the federal level by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection ("CFPB"), which has oversight over many of the activities, products, and services that auto finance companies offer. Other federal regulators, including the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC"), with its enforcement authority over deceptive trade practices and debt collection activities, and the Department of Justice ("DOJ"), which has increased enforcement of fair lending laws, also contribute to the reshaping. This year's Annual Survey focuses on the most significant changes in the auto finance regulatory environment and review the impact of those changes on the life cycle of auto finance products from origination through servicing and collection.


We present a scheme to establish nonclassical correlations in the motion of two macroscopically separated massive particles without resorting to entanglement in their internal degrees of freedom. It is based on the dissociation of a diatomic molecule with two temporally separated Feshbach pulses generating a motional state of two counterpropagating atoms that is capable of violating a Bell inequality by means of correlated single-particle interferometry. We evaluate the influence of dispersion on the Bell correlation, showing it to be important but manageable in a proposed experimental setup. The latter employs Bose-Einstein condensation of fermionic lithium atoms, uses laser-guided atom interferometry, and seems to be within the reach of present-day technology.


The focus of this research is Saudi Arabian Higher Education (HE), specifically, how business schools are perceived by their key stakeholders. This study enriches the existing body of literature pertaining to Higher Education (HE) in the Saudi Arabian context. It also aims to provide HE policy makers with insights to influence strategic decisions pertaining to business schools in Saudi Arabia in the future, drawing on the concepts of 'stakeholder differences' and 'reputation' The context of the research reveals important findings regarding its contribution and potential impact. All aspects of society and education in Saudi Arabia are influenced by religion and this is set out in the context and later examined in a discussion of how stakeholder views are influenced by the wider societal background. The concept of reputation is the lens through which this study positions and assesses stakeholders' views of business schools. Reputation is examined here in order to fully comprehend its underlying constructs, dimensions and the different ways in which these can be understood. In particular, reputation can be classified here as being based on judgment where stakeholders' own experience determines how reputation is constructed by them, or non-judgment based criteria where an external factor such as accreditation or ranking determines reputation. Methodologically, the research adopts an interpretivist approach, employing semi-structured interviews with individuals from different stakeholder groups including, academics, students, employers, and students' family members. Template Analysis, a specific form of thematic analysis for analysing and interpreting the collected interview data was adopted. The research contributes to methodological practice in this area by using parallel coding, in which English and Arabic transcripts were considered side by side to enhance the reliability of data. The methodology used also exemplifies the phases of Template Analysis and documents the progress from one phase to another. The research makes a significant contribution to our understanding of business education in Saudi Arabia, by demonstrating that business schools and business education in Saudi Arabia have significant distinguishing characteristics that differentiate them from their counterparts in the US and the UK. This is important as it reveals that existing research, mainly conducted in and written from a Western perspective is not entirely applicable to the Saudi context. The study is also the first of its kind to assess a wide spectrum of HE stakeholders in Saudi Arabia to understand their individual perspectives directly. By doing so it identifies potential conflicts of interest, whereby some aspects were viewed positively by some stakeholders and negatively by others. This adds detail and nuance to our understanding of how the reputation of business schools and business education is constructed in Saudi Arabia. This not only provides an interesting research finding but will also be of potential interest to policy makers in this field. The research concludes that for universities and business schools, an awareness of their own reputation and how it is managed could contribute significantly to their operation and further development, and a key outcome from this research is the call to introduce reputation management into the strategic development and policy guidelines for business schools in Saudi Arabia.


ABSTRACT Recent studies have described fungal communities in indoor environments using gene sequencing-based approaches. In this study, dust-borne fungal communities were elucidated from a water-damaged office building located in the northeastern region of the United States using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rRNA gene sequencing. Genomic DNA was extracted from 5 mg of floor dust derived from 22 samples collected from either the lower floors (n = 8) or a top floor (n = 14) of the office building. ITS gene sequencing resolved a total of 933 ITS sequences and was clustered into 216 fungal operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Analysis of fungal OTUs at the 97% similarity threshold showed a difference between the lower and top floors that was marginally significant (p = 0.049). Species richness and diversity indices were reduced in the lower floor samples compared to the top floor samples and there was a high degree of compositional dissimilarity within and between the two different areas within the building. Fungal OTUs were placed in the phyla Ascomycota (55%), Basidiomycota (41%), Zygomycota (3%), Glomeromycota (0.4%), Chytridiomycota (0.3%), and unassigned fungi (0.5%). The Ascomycota classes with the highest relative abundances included the Dothideomycetes (30%) and Eurotiomycetes (16%). The Basidiomycota consisted of the classes Ustilaginomycetes (14%), Tremellomycetes (11%), and Agaricomycetes (8%). Sequence reads derived from the plant pathogen Ustilago syntherismae were the most abundant in the analysis as were obligate Basidiomycota yeast species that accounted for 12% and 11% of fungal ITS sequences, respectively. ITS gene sequencing provides additional insight into the diversity of fungal OTUs. These data further highlight the contribution of fungi placed in the phylum Basidiomycota, obligate yeasts, as well as xerophilic species that are typically not resolved using traditional culture methods.


ABSTRACT The red microalga Porphyridium cruentum is exploited industrially for its exopolysaccharides (EPS) and pigments production. EPS produced by P. cruentum are partially released and dissolved into the surrounding environment, they can be recovered from the culture medium after removing the cells. This paper presents a parametric study of the ultrafiltration of EPS solutions on organic membrane. The EPS solutions were produced in conditions representative of an industrial production. They were filtered at lab-scale on a flat, PES 50 kDa MWCO membrane in a complete recirculation mode of permeate and retentate. Permeate flux-transmembrane pressure (TMP) curves were established up to the limiting flux for the filtration of solutions with various values of concentration in EPS (0.10–1.06 kg GlcEq m–3), fluid tangential velocity (0.3–1.2 m s–1) and temperature (20°C and 40°C). The reversible and irreversible parts of fouling were evaluated for each experiment and the critical flux was determined for an intermediate EPS concentration (0.16 kg GlcEq m–3). The results showed that EPS solutions had a strong fouling capacity. When filtering the lowest concentrated solution (0.10 kg GlcEq m–3) with moderate fouling conditions, the overall fouling resistance was approximately half of the membrane and the share of irreversible/reversible fouling was 88% and 12%. However, the part of reversible fouling becomes predominant when approaching the limiting flux. Permeate fluxes which were obtained allow to estimate that a VRR of approximately 10 could be obtained when concentrating EPS solutions using PES membranes in flat or tubular modules but not in spiral-wound. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT


Arctic river deltas are sensitive polar landscapes at the land-ocean interface. In contrast to lower latitude deltas, Arctic deltas are characterized by low temperatures, a strong seasonality and the presence of permafrost. Seasonal freezing conditions and underlying permafrost hinders runoff for most of the year and leads to typical land forms such as ice wedge polygons, frost mounds and thermokarst lakes. However, compared to other permafrost dominated landscapes, Arctic deltas are more dynamic. The surface morphology is changing constantly due to river ice break up and subsequent spring flooding, coastal and shoreline erosion, thaw slumping, and degradation of ice rich deposits. Deltaic sediments also tend to be highly susceptible to ground-ice aggradation, making them more ice-rich than adjacent nondeltaic landscapes. In addition, Arctic deltas will be severely affected by global climate change through sea level rise, lengthened thaw season, changing river discharge, storm surge flooding and thawing permafrost. We are therefore at risk, to face reactivation of millennia-old soil carbon and nitrogen deposits by the degradation of previously permanently frozen river delta deposits. However, there is a lack of studies on Arctic deltas and only very coarse estimates on Arctic delta carbon and nitrogen stocks exist.
Here we present a new data-set of 140 soil cores, including more than 1400 samples from 17 different deltas spread across the Arctic. We combine new and legacy soil core data to estimate for the first time pan-Arctic deltaic carbon and nitrogen stocks and close a knowledge gap for deep permafrost stock estimations. We found that Arctic deltas present a significant pool for organic carbon and nitrogen, thus their change poses risks far beyond the Arctic. Permafrost thaw in such dynamic landscapes will increase nutrient transport from land to ocean with implications on Arctic near-shore zones (e.g. affecting foodwebs and biogeochemical processes) as well as increased greenhouse gas release due to large amounts of carbon and nitrogen becoming available from previously frozen ground. Our study highlights the need to better understand dynamic processes in Arctic deltas, since these vulnerable carbon and nitrogen rich deposits will be severely affected by the effects of global climate change.


Abstract. We compared the spatial biology of Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) in typical and highly disturbed habitats in the Weaver Dunes area of Wabasha County, Minnesota. The typical habitat (Old Zumbro River Wetlands) is a large area of riparian forest with open shallow wetlands containing emergent vegetation, whereas the highly disturbed area (Weaver Bottoms) is a large shallow wetland that was previously vegetated but at the time of this study was mostly open water. Between 15 April 1999 and 1 April 2000, we used radiotelemetry to determine the distance and rate of movements of 35 adult turtles (23 females, 12 males). We used ArcView GIS to examine movements, activity areas, and home ranges of 16 females and 8 males with the most complete records. During the activity season, males made more and shorter-distance movements and had more activity areas (mean = 3.13, standard error = 0.40) than did females (mean = 1.75, standard error = 0.19), although females made longer overland movements typically associated with nesting. Mean home range estimates, calculated using the minimum convex polygon, bivariate normal density kernel, and poly-buff methods, averaged 91.59 ha (standard error = 29.95) for males and 46.0 ha (standard error = 7.40) for females. Poly-buff home ranges of adults in Old Zumbro River Wetlands were significantly smaller than in Weaver Bottoms. Average home ranges of adults at Old Zumbro River Wetlands were typical of Blanding's turtles and home ranges reported at other locations across their range, whereas the average home ranges of adults at Weaver Bottoms were approximately 7 times larger than that found in Old Zumbro River Wetlands and larger than reported for any other population of Blanding's turtles. The large home ranges at Weaver Bottoms were associated with expanses of open water and fragmented vegetated areas, which suggests that the maintenance of or even an increase in emergent vegetation in the Weaver Bottoms is important for the long-term stability of the Blanding's turtle population at the Weaver Dunes area.


In up-to-date manufacturing, industrial quality has proven to be a key competitive advantage. An active market position and profits are associated with high quality products and services.

Like the optical properties of a natural crystal, quality reflects the state of the whole industry, its marketing, research and development, design, production methods, human resources, logistics, costing and pricing, and capital background. All advancement in the productive and commercial capability of a company relates somehow to the quality of the delivered goods.

The holistic approach to industrial quality appeals to industrial policymaking and company leadership; quality improvement converted into an authoritative management issue. Active commitment and program implantation by the people at the top usually decides the whole quality image of the company.

The outstanding role that quality plays in industry, obliges IIASA to follow closely the developments in international strategies of quality promotion. We highly appreciate the enthusiastic response of Hungarian industry. It has been proved that an advanced knowledge of comprehensive quality management, accumulated in leading industrial countries, is clearly compatible with the socio-economic environment of the Hungarian Republic.

Encouraging results achieved so far invite other countries, with at least comparable societal structure, to follow the Hungarian example. IIASA would be pleased to provide an intellectual background for such breakthroughs in the challenging area of total quality movement.


From the foundations of the world's first great empires to the empires of today, war has preoccupied human civilisation for as many as 4000 years. It has fascinated, horrified, thrilled, confused, inspired and disgusted mankind since records began. Provoking such a huge range of emotions and reactions and fulfilling all the elements of newsworthiness, it is hardly surprising that war makes 'good' news.

Modern technological advancements, such as the camera and television, brought the brutality of war into the homes and daily lives of the public. No longer a far-away and out-of-sight affair, the public's ability to 'see' what was happening on the frontline changed not only how wars were fought but why they were fought. Even when a war is considered 'popular,' the involvement of the press and the weight of public opinion has led to criticisms that have transformed modern warfare almost in equal measure to the changes brought about by weapon technology. War reporting seeks to look beyond the official story, to understand the very nature of conflict whilst acknowledging that it is no longer simply good versus evil.

This edited volume presents a unique insight into the work of the war correspondent and battlefield photographer from the earliest days of modern war reporting to the present. It reveals how, influenced by the changing face of modern warfare, the work of the war correspondent has been significantly altered in style, method, and practice. By combining historical analysis with experiences of modern day war reporting, this book provides an important contribution to the understanding of this complicated profession, which will be of interest to journalists, academics, and students, alike.


Intelligent Soft Computation and Evolving Data Mining: Integrating Advanced Technologies is a compendium that addresses this need. It integrates contrasting techniques of conventional hard computing and soft computing to exploit the tolerance for imprecision, uncertainty, partial truth, and approximation to achieve tractability, robustness and low-cost solution. This book provides a reference to researchers, practitioners, and students in both soft computing and data mining communities, forming a foundation for the development of the field.


The study was conducted on nine right-handed male subjects 20-24 year old and consisted of two series. In the first series one warning signal in the form of one of the digits (from 1 to 8) was successively presented to the subjects on the display and then four trigger signals which required either simple pressing of the push button (an arrow with a dot) or its holding during 0.5 s (two arrows) by the right or left hand depending on the arrow direction. The digit corresponded to one variant of signals succession. Each variant was repeated randomly among other variants 15 times. In the second series instead of arrows asterisks were presented. Reaction time and duration of push button holding were recorded. Two regularities were observed: significant decrease of RT in the series of reacting by memory and successive decrease of RT in accordance with the decrease of the number of the remaining signals observed in both series. In the first series RT successively decreased by 35-40 ms, in the second one-by 16-20 ms. It is supposed that the difference in RTs between series characterizes the time of signal structure analysis, while the difference in RTs within one block of signals in the second series-the time of extraction of selected motor program from memory.


DNA methylation is essential for epigenetic gene regulation during development. The cyclic AMP (cAMP)responsive element (CRE) is found in the promoter of many cAMP-regulated genes and plays important roles in their gene expression. Methylation occurs on the CRE site and results in transcriptional repression via a direct mechanism, that is, prevention by the methyl group of binding of the cAMP-responsive factor CREB to this site. A recent study indicated that the nucleosome is also important in repressing transcription. In this study, we investigated the regulation of transcriptional repression on methylated CRE. We focused on methylCpG binding domain protein 2 (MBD2). MBD2 consists of two forms, MBD2a and MBD2b, the latter lacking the N-terminal extension of MBD2a. Unexpectedly, we found that MBD2a, but not MBD2b, promoted activation of the unmethylated cAMP-responsive genes. An in vivo binding assay revealed that MBD2a selectively interacted with RNA helicase A (RHA), a component of CREB transcriptional coactivator complexes. MBD2a and RHA cooperatively enhanced CREB-dependent gene expression. Interestingly, coimmunoprecipitation assays demonstrated that MBD2a binding to RHA was not associated with histone deacetylase 1. Our results indicate a novel role for MBD2a in gene regulation.


Programmed death-1 (PD-1) is a costimulatory molecule of CD28 family expressed onactivated T, B and myeloid cells. The engagement of PD-1 with its two ligands, PD-L1 and PD-L2, inhibitsproliferation of T cell and production of a series of its cytokines. The blockade of PD-1 pathway is involvedin antiviral and antitumoral immunity. In this study, human PD-1 cDNA encoding extracellular domain wasamplified and cloned into expression plasmid pGEX-Sx-3. The fusion protein GST-PD-1 was effectivelyexpressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) as inclusion bodies and a denaturation and refolding procedure was per-formed to obtain bioactive soluble GST-PD-I. Fusion protein of above 95% purity was acquired by a conve-nient two-step purification using GST affinity and size exclusion columns. Furthermore, a PD-L1-dependentin vitro bioassay method was set up to characterize GST-PD-1 bioactivity. The results suggested that GST-PD-1 could competently block the interaction between PD-Ll and PD-l and increase the production of IL-2 and IFN-γ of phytohemagglutinin-activated T cells.


We report an unusual case of an interstitially-implanted pregnancy presenting with retained placenta after normal vaginal delivery of a live fetus at term. A 32 year-old primigravida, with no previous uterine surgery or instrumentation underwent induction of labour at term for suspected intrauterine growth retardation. The placenta was retained after normal vaginal delivery. Manual removal of the placenta under anaesthesia was attempted but unsuccessful. Exploratory laparotomy and hysterotomy were performed for removal of the placenta, which was found to be implanted in the right cornual region of the uterus. This part of the uterus was sacculated, thinned out and poorly-contracted after the removal of the placenta, resulting in postpartum hemorrhage necessitating uterotonics, compression sutures and placement of a B-lynch suture. This case highlights the need to consider abnormal implantation sites when the placenta is retained in a low risk patient.


Alternatives to traditional cap-weighted indexes have been growing in popularity as investors strive to add diversification using a transparent, mechanical, and low-cost approach. Alternative index strategies, sometimes called smart beta, promise enhanced return, often with lower risk and greater diversification power. We examine a number of such strategies and find that many feature persistent tilts (especially to value and small-cap stocks), which account for the majority of their risk and return characteristics. Because alternative index strategies reweight stocks from the same universe, diversification with standard benchmarks has been very weak. Investors can use alternative index strategies to capture factor tilts instead of relying on active management, or they can reallocate assets out of cap-weighted index strategies to a middle ground between traditional passive and active. Although past performance results have been strong, there is no reason to expect future outperformance from these strategies unless the embedded tilts continue to be rewarded. For those who really believe in factor tilts (such as value and small cap), risk-premia strategies—which can invest across multiple asset classes and permit short selling— are far more compelling than single-asset-class, long-only alternative index strategies.


Purpose Sepsis is the leading condition associated with acute kidney injury (AKI) in the hospital and intensive care unit (ICU), sepsis-induced AKI (S-AKI) is strongly associated with poor clinical outcomes. Curcumin possesses an ability to ameliorate renal injury from ischemia-reperfusion, but it is still unknown whether they have the ability to reduce S-AKI. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of curcumin on S-AKI and to assess its therapeutic potential on renal function, inflammatory response, and microcirculatory perfusion. Methods Male Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats underwent cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) to induce S-AKI and immediately received vehicle (CLP group) or curcumin (CLP+Cur group) after surgery. At 12 and 24h after surgery, serum indexes, inflammatory factors, cardiac output (CO), renal blood flow and microcirculatory flow were measured. Results Serum levels of creatinine (Scr), cystatin C (CysC), IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly lower in the CLP+Cur group than those in the CLP group (P < 0.05). Treatment with curcumin improved renal microcirculation at 24h by measurement of contrast enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) quantitative parameters [peak intensity (PI); half of descending time (DT/2); area under curve (AUC); P < 0.05]. In histopathological analysis, treatment with curcumin reduced damage caused by CLP. Conclusion Curcumin can alleviate S-AKI in rats by improving renal microcirculatory perfusion and reducing inflammatory response. Curcumin may be a potential novel therapeutic agent for the prevention or reduction of S-AKI.


Numbers of children as talents in national television commercials tend to increase in 2008-2010,  those are not limited to children's consumer goods such as snacks, milk, medicines, there are also  tendency of children are used as models of television commercials for adult's consumer goods, by utilizing the characteristics of their innocent and cute appeal to pose for the target audience. What exactly is the role of children's figure which appears in advertisements for adult's consumer goods? Purposive sampling to four TV commercials that aired on national TV broadcast in 2008 and 2010 is selected according to the criteria of the study such as, Television commercials that use children as model for adult's consumer goods in terms of narrative and its visual aspect is thought to contain the positive or negative values and the product is restricted from food products, cellular phone providers, cosmetics and cleaning clothes, represented a more dominant advertisements, deemed contains the values that want to revealed in the research and deserves represent one type of product which aired on national television stations like Indosiar, RCTI, SCTV, TRANS TV. Interpretive semiotic analysis of signification models through denotation and connotation, to gain an overview of the relationship between visual and verbal elements. Advertising theory approach, body language and cinematography are used to analyze the components contained in the ads, to find out the role of models and to reveal the raised values. The result finds that children had the role as the influencer, the originator of the idea, and advocating the product purchase decisions. The values contain in the fourth television advertisements are associated with positive values such as modesty, decency or fairness as well as negative values, contrary to prevailing norms in society such as lying and demeaning behavior of others. These results benefit for assessing and refining the things that can impact positively or negatively in television commercials. Keywords: advertising, children , talent artist, TV commercials, semiotics


Despite the expectations of economic theory, a century of Arab-Jewish economic interaction in Palestine has not led to the convergence that is supposed to result from exchange between a capital-rich economy and a labor-intensive one. After 60 years of failed integration, the Arab population in Israel has fallen to the bottom of the socio-economic ladder. With the Palestinian "regional economies" in Israel and the occupied territories operating as part of the same Israeli economic regime, the challenge for Palestinian economic policy makers is to build on the new paradigm in shaping a national development strategy aimed at reconstructing Arab-Jewish economic relations on the principles of balanced cooperation embodied in the Economic Annex of the 1947 UN partition resolution.


Matching visual appearances of the target over consecutive video frames is a fundamental yet challenging task in visual tracking. Its performance largely depends on the distance metric that determines the quality of visual matching. Rather than using fixed and predefined metric, recent attempts of integrating metric learning-based trackers have shown more robust and promising results, as the learned metric can be more discriminative. In general, these global metric adjustment methods are computationally demanding in real-time visual tracking tasks, and they tend to underfit the data when the target exhibits dynamic appearance variation. This paper presents a nonparametric data-driven local metric adjustment method. The proposed method finds a spatially adaptive metric that exhibits different properties at different locations in the feature space, due to the differences of the data distribution in a local neighborhood. It minimizes the deviation of the empirical misclassification probability to obtain the optimal metric such that the asymptotic error as if using an infinite set of training samples can be approximated. Moreover, by taking the data local distribution into consideration, it is spatially adaptive. Integrating this new local metric learning method into target tracking leads to efficient and robust tracking performance. Extensive experiments have demonstrated the superiority and effectiveness of the proposed tracking method in various tracking scenarios.


The studty aims to present the Emotional Intelligence construct, and to determine the extent to which Emotional Intelligence influence social interaction and perceived social support. The study reveals important dimensions within the EI construct and emphasizes the relationships between these dimensions and predictive value for social interaction and perceived social support. Studies in the field of Emotional Intelligence, indicate that the this new construct of Intelligence, (EI), operates within the social context, therefore, the examination of socially relevant variables is perceived to be crucial for the results of the study. It has been hypothesised that there is a positive relation between Emotional Intelligence, its dimensions and social interacion and perceived social support. Data were gathered through using a structured questionnaire of Emotional Intelligence ( Schutte, N. S., Malouff, J. M., Hall, L. E., Haggerty, D. J., Cooper, J. T., Golden, C. J., - Dornheim, L. 1998) , Interpersonal Communication Inventory, Millard J. Bienvun, Sr, 1971) for measuring aspects of social interaction, and Multidimensional Scale on Perceived Social Support, (Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet - Farely, 1998). Correlation analysis was used to test the hypothesis of the study. Preliminary results appear to present interesting data and to offer an initial platform for interaction on the importance and relevance of the study and its related variables.


The fluvial morphosedimentary records of Mount Orjen, western Montenegro have been used to investigate the response of Mediterranean river basins to Pleistocene glaciation. A range of depositional contexts at 12 sites have been analysed, including: terraced alluvial valley fills, poljes and alluvial fans. These are set within a limestone karst terrain and are broadly representative of the depositional environments found within glaciated catchments across the Mediterranean. The timing of fluvial activity has been constrained using detailed stratigraphical analysis, 35 U-series dates, calcite micromorphology, and soil profile analysis. The fluvial record is in good agreement with the Pleistocene glacial history of Mount Orjen (Hughes et al., 2010). Two main phases of Pleistocene fluvial sedimentation have been identified in the morphosedimentary record. The most extensive phase is correlated to MIS 12 (Kotorska-Susica Member) and is characterised by the infilling of large depocentres beyond the MIS 12 ice margins. The next recorded phase is correlated to MIS 6 (Krivosije Member) and contains only limited evidence of fluvial activity. Fluvial morphosedimentary evidence from MIS 5d-2 has not yet been observed in the study area. The limestone karst of Mount Orjen has exerted an important influence on meltwater pathways and sediment delivery from the Orjen ice cap over successive glacial cycles. Evidence suggests that since MIS 12 sediment supply to the fluvial system has declined in accord with the decreasing magnitude of glaciation. Subterranean karst flows have increasingly dominated over surface flows and the Pleistocene glacial and surface fluvial systems have become progressively decoupled. Two types of surface meltwater routes dominated during MIS 12: Type 1 – steep sided limestone bedrock gorges; and Type 2 - alluvial channels draining directly from the ice margin. These contrasting pathways have distinctive sedimentological signatures. This study is one of the first attempts to directly correlate Pleistocene glacial and fluvial records in a range of depositional contexts at the landscape scale. Hughes, P. D., Woodward, J. C., van Calsteren, P. C., Thomas, L. E. and Adamson, K. R. (2010) 'Pleistocene ice caps on the coastal mountains of the Adriatic Sea' in Quaternary Science Reviews 29(27-28) 3690-3708


ABSTRACT This article presents the findings of a qualitative interview study undertaken with RE teachers (n = 30), working in English schools with secondary status. Despite recent policy interest in character education, there is a lacuna of information about the extent RE contributes to character education. The present study focuses on teachers' perspectives on virtue literacy, a theme identified across participants in response to open-ended prompts about RE, religion and character. The participants in the sample hold different worldviews and work across a range of schools, providing a variety of informative perspectives. There were clear differences between the responses of participants' from faith and non-faith schools regarding the contribution of RE to pupils' virtue literacy. These findings mark a distinctive contribution to our understanding of the differences between RE in faith and non-faith schools.


Objective. To determine whether neuroticism and educational level are predictive variables for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in women following an unsuccessful pregnancy. Design. Prospective. Method. In the periodJune-September I999, via advertisements in national newspapers, pregnant women with a gestation period shorter than I2 weeks were asked to participate in a study into their perception of the pregnancy. After they had agreed to participate they were given the 'Eysenck personality questionnaire' (EPQ) for neuroticism and other questionnaires, including a scale to determine their highest attained level. Every other month during the pregnancy and one month after the expected date of birth the participants were given brief questionnaires about the pregnancy, in which they were also asked to report miscarriage or stillbirth if such had occurred. Participants in whom the pregnancy had in fact ended unsuccessfully were contacted by telephone and asked to participate in a follow-up study with the 'Post-traumatic symptom scale' (PSS), among others. Results. Of the I339 women studied, I26 (9%) experienced an unsuccessful pregnancy; 8 of these dropped out of the study (response rate: 94%); one had not indicated her educational level. The remaining II7 women filled out the PSS after about one month. The average age was 3I years (SD: 4). The average duration of gestation at the moment of loss was 12 weeks (SD: 6; range 5-40). The average EPQ-score was 7.3 (SD: 4.6) and the average PSS-score was I8.I (SD: 9.I). On the basis of the DSM IV, 3I women (26%) fulfilled the criteria for PTSS and 86 women did not. The average PSS-score was 28.2 (SD: 7.0) for the group with PTSS and I4.7 (SD: 6.7) for the group without PTSS. Logistic regression analysis revealed that a later diagnosis of PTSS was significantly associated with a higher score for neuroticism (RR = 4.49; p = 0.004; 95% CI: I.60-I2.60), a lower educational level (RR = 0.65; p = 0.009; 95% CI: 0.48-0.90) and a longer duration of gestation (RR = 2.48; p = 0.00I; 95% CI: I.45-4.25). Conclusion. In patients with a high educational level and a low score for neuroticism the risk of developing PTSS was negligible, while with a low educational level and a high score for neuroticism the estimated risk was about 70%. Care and guidance should be concentrated primarily on this group.


Microspheres infused into the coronary microcirculation were used as markers to define segments within isolated cat papillary muscles. Video recording and analysis provided measurements of the variations of segment lengths as the muscles contracted at lengths of 76-100% Lmax. In all muscles, segments in the center region were found to shorten during muscle isometric contraction while those in the end regions lengthened. Central shortening was typically 10-15%. In the passive state, segment lengths varied directly with muscle length over a broad range characterized by low force. Segments in the center region, however, displayed an abrupt transition to high stiffness at a certain length while end regions continued to stretch. Force-length relationships obtained for the presumably healthy center segment are significantly different from those obtained for the whole muscle. These results suggest that there may be major difficulties with the interpretation of mechanical measurements on papillary muscles unless contractile inhomogeneity is eliminated or taken into account.


This paper discusses the hypothesis that the outputs of derived pre-stressed high vowels [i] and [u], in Brazilian Portuguese, are acoustically different from the outputs of the non-derived high vowels, although both are perceptually equivalent. The sample totalizes 1152 tokens extracted from a controlled corpus, recorded at the Phonetic Laboratory of Rio de Janeiro Federal University (UFRJ), with eight university graduate students, four men and four women, from Rio de Janeiro, using acoustic measurements (PRAAT) and multivariational analysis (GOLDVARB X) in order to detect the conditioning factors related to the first and second formant values. The results reveal differences between underlying and derived vowels.


Salinity is one of the main problems related to agricultural production, since it affects the plant growth. Most of crop species are glycophytes, which are sensitive to salinity. That is the reason why there is an interest in studying the defense mechanisms of plants against saline stress. Potassium is an essential ion for plants, while sodium can become toxic at high concentrations, which is what plants face when they grow in saline conditions. Salinity produces a toxic and osmotic effect on plants due to the increase of the entrance and accumulation of sodium, altering the physiological K+/Na+ ratio. Plants have two mechanisms to reduce Na+ cytoplasmic levels: they could compartmentalize it into cellular organelles such as vacuoles, or they could extrude it outside; in this last mechanism SOS1 transporters highlight. SOS1 proteins are very important in the defense of plants against salinity. They are Na+/H+ antiporters located in the plasma membrane of epidermal root cells, where the extrude Na+ out of plants, they are also located in xylem parenchyma cells loading Na+ to the xylem. In recent work done in the laboratory, it has been compared by heterologous expression in yeast mutants the functioning of SOS1 of a halophyte species, Eutrema salsugineum, with SOS1 of the glycophyte Arabidopsis thaliana. Results showed differences in their functioning as ionic transporters depending on the pH of the medium. In order to know whether differences in SOS1 functions of the two species, were associated with a difference in subcellular location, SOS1-GFP fusion proteins were constructed in this work, using the new ligation method named NEBuilder HiFi DNA Assembly and expressed in yeast mutants. At pH 5.5 and 6.5 both proteins were detected mainly in plasma membrane. However, at pH 7.5 A. thaliana SOS1 showed a preferential location in plasma membrane, whereas E. salsugineum SOS1 was observed at the plasma membrane as well as in internal cellular membranes. Although the exact intracellular location could not be determined, the difference shown with respect to A. thaliana could explain the difference in the function. On the other hand, in laboratory assays, it has been observed that silenced plants in E. salsugineum SOS1 gene have shown an increase of K+ content in the aerial part. These results suggested a possible role of SOS1 as a Na+/K+ antiporter. To find out whether EsSOS1 and AtSOS1 proteins can transport K+, they were expressed in the Escherichia coli TKW4240 mutant which is defective in its endogenous K+ uptake systems. Drop test complementation assays showed that the expression of SOS1 proteins recovered the ability of the mutant to grow at low K+ concentrations while there was no growth when SpSod2 was expressed, which is a known antiporter that works in a specific way only transporting Na+ against the H+ gradient. These results suggest that SOS1 transporters can transport K+. In this work, different assays have been conducted to study the function of transporters and their GFP fusions. Yeast assays have shown that constructions obtained were functional. In addition, it has been demonstrated that SOS1 has to be regulated by the SOS2- SOS3 complex in order to improve its function. Finally, the well-known function of SOS1 as Na+ transporters was also studied by heterologous expression in yeast and bacterial mutants. While in yeast a clear complementation of the sensitivity to grow in saline conditions was observed, in the bacterial mutants no conclusive results were obtained, so they should be studied in more detail in the future.


The anomaly of human bodily structure most often encountered is excessive storage of fat and, as a consequence, abnormal increase in weight. Only a few investigations have been made to ascertain the cause. Obesity is generally divided into two groups: endogenous and exogenous; but a sharp distinction between the two has not been drawn. Some investigators consider as endogenous obesity only that type in which symptoms other than corpulence indicate an endocrine disease, while others are of the opinion that ultimately almost all cases of obesity are exogenous. However, there is much confusion on this point. It is certain that a regulation of the body weight takes place. When we consider what minimal amounts of fat must be stored per day in order to produce a considerable increase in weight and compare them with the daily intake of food, it is easily seen that this regulation must be delicate, so


Our regular review section features some of the best new books, films, and sound recordings in southern studies. From time to time you'll also find reviews of important new museum exhibitions and public-history sites, and retrospectives on classic works that continue to shape our understanding of the region and its people. Our aim is to explore the rich diversity of southern life and the methods and approaches of those who study it. Please write us to share your suggestions, or to add your name to our reviewer file.


The authors have demonstrated earlier, by direct measurement of acetylcholine (ACh), that d-tubocurarine (d-Tc) and other nondepolarizing muscle relaxants decrease the release of ACh from the indirectly stimulated mouse hemidiaphragm preparation. It was the purpose of the present study to determine whether the decrease of the stimulated release of ACh and the increase in the intensity of the partial neuromuscular block observed at higher stimulation rates is caused by the inhibition of mobilization of ACh from reserve depots to release sites or by inhibition of the release process itself. To attain our objective, the authors have investigated the influence of the progressive increase of the rate of stimulation from 0.1 to 1, 2, 3, and 5 Hz on the force of contraction on the in vitro phrenic nerve-hemidiaphragm and in vivo sciatic nerve-tibialis anterior preparation in the absence of drugs and after about 20% neuromuscular block produced by d-Tc or by Mg2+. The latter is known to inhibit the Ca2+ dependent release of ACh. In the absence of drugs increasing the stimulation rate increased the force of contraction, in vivo and in vitro, during both indirect and direct stimulation. In the phrenic nerve-hemidiaphragm preparation the increase was significant at 1, 2, 3, and 5 Hz (P less than 0.001) with both types of stimulation. In the sciatic nerve-tibialis anterior preparation the force of contraction was only higher at 3 and 5 Hz (P less than 0.01). The similar magnitude of the increase of the force of contraction during direct and indirect stimulation indicates that it is caused by facilitation of the contraction of the muscle fibers.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


This study documents three categories of oral texts for children - riddles, folktales, and rhymes - and discusses the procedures used to transcribe and translate the material into English. The material is analyzed based on close reading and content analysis. The study discusses their form and social relevance in the child culture in Uganda, and attempts to answer questions regarding transfer of oral elements to the page; for example, what choices ought to be made in the transcription and translation process? What are the challenges of achieving "transparency" when dealing with "untranscribable" and "untranslatable" elements of the oral text? The study presents the texts in the original languages and in English translation, and thereby open this fresh archive of material to further critical inquiry.


The first exciting clues that Antarctica had not always been ice-covered were the leaf fossils
of Glossopteris plants that Scott's party brought back from the Beardmore Glacier region in 1912.
Since dated at ~ 250 million years old, it has become evident that Antarctica has been vegetated
longer than it has been ice-covered. These first plant fossils from the Beardmore have led to over
100 years of scientific investigation of the rich macro- (e.g. leaves and fossil wood) and micro-
(terrestrial and marine palynomorph) fossil record of Antarctica. Palynomorphs from the
sedimentary record of Antarctica continue to provide an exceptionally detailed interpretation of
high latitude vegetation and climate from Devonian to Neogene times, complementing and
extending the macrofossil record. They document the transition from the Glossopteris-dominated Gondwanan flora to more modern conifer and then beech-dominated polar forests, followed
eventually by a less diverse and lower stature vegetation as climates cooled and ice sheets
became large and relatively stable into the Neogene. Continued research into terrestrial and
marine palynomorphs provides essential insight into the environmental sensitivity of the polar
regions in a future warmer world.


Well-designed polymeric self-assembled materials are in high demand because of the need for better alternatives to the conventional system. A nano-structure that is self-assembled, driven by different forces related to synthetic polymers follows different uptake kinetics at the cellular level. Herein we designed a norbornene-functionalized amphiphilic homopolymer that represents a unique self-assembled nanostructure in polar solvent. The self-assembled nanoaggregates were scrutinized using dynamic light scattering (DLS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. The vesicular nanoaggregates of the homopolymer changed their shape to nanorods in the presence of Fe(II) in polar medium. The self-assembled nanorods we reutilized for doxorubicin loading showed a higher uptake than the vesicular structures loaded with the drug in the absence of Fe(II). This simple strategy of preparing nanorods can be helpful for future application in the field of drug delivery.


ABSTRACT From November 2009 to December 2013 in the Philippines, 15 influenza C viruses were isolated, using MDCK cells, from specimens obtained from children with severe pneumonia and influenza-like illness (ILI). This is the first report of influenza C virus isolation in the Philippines. In addition, from January 2008 to December 2013, 7 influenza C viruses were isolated from specimens that were obtained from children with acute respiratory illness (ARI) in Sendai city, Japan. Antigenic analysis with monoclonal antibodies to the hemagglutinin-esterase (HE) glycoprotein showed that 19 strains (12 from the Philippines and 7 from Japan) were similar to the influenza C virus reference strain C/Sao Paulo/378/82 (SP82). Phylogenetic analysis of the HE gene showed that the strains from the Philippines and Japan formed distinct clusters within an SP82-related lineage. The clusters that included the Philippine and Japanese strains were shown to have diverged from a common ancestor around 1993. In addition, phylogenetic analysis of the internal genes showed that all strains isolated in the Philippines and Japan had emerged through reassortment events. The composition of the internal genes of the Philippine strains was different from that of the Japanese strains, although all strains were classified into an SP82-related lineage by HE gene sequence analysis. These observations suggest that the influenza C viruses analyzed here had emerged through different reassortment events; however, the time and place at which the reassortment events occurred were not determined.


We investigate a model of a corporation which faces constant liability payments and which can choose a production/business policy from an available set of control policies with different expected profits and risks. The objective is to maximize the expected present value of the total dividend distributions. The main purpose of this paper is to deal with the impact of constraints on business activities such as inability to completely eliminate risk (even at the expense of reducing the potential profit to zero) or when such a risk cannot exceed a certain level. We analyze the case in which there is no restriction on the dividend pay-out rates. By delicate analysis on the corresponding Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation we compute explicitly the optimal return function and determine the optimal policy.


Today´s enterprises are often challenged by managing a large amount of data used in their business operation. Assurance and maintenance of adequate data quality level are important aspects of data quality management due to many reasons. On the one hand, the adequate data quality level represents a competitive advantage, and on the other hand, low data quality level leads to many unpleasant consequences.
In the past, frameworks, methodologies, and tools to help ensuring adequate level of data quality were formed. Besides, the question of data quality is discussed in legislation and various standards. Despite that fact, some researches show poor state of data quality in enterprises.
A purpose of the thesis is to research and present the area of data quality, and to show subsequent issues of low data quality. The thesis presents consequences as well as reasons of low data quality. It also shows reasons of data quality importance. In addition, it presents standards, legislation, and best practices that deal with the field of data quality. Data quality issues also arise in the field of the Internet of Things, which is an object of many researches lately, therefore, the thesis also presents main issues from that point of view.
The main emphasis of the thesis is on the part of the field dealing with data quality and data cleaning. The thesis presents error types, various data cleaning frameworks, and combines their main activities in a consolidated view. Furthermore, the thesis presents an overview of the existing software solutions available on the market to support data cleaning tasks. The aforementioned is introduced in the theoretical part of the thesis. The second part of the thesis represents a practical part, where a proposal for data quality improvement is given using a prototype of a software solution to address a specific part of data quality management, which deals with data accuracy maintenance by sensing errors in data, and the possibility of error elimination (data cleaning). In addition, the thesis proposes installation of the solution in a concrete organisation´s information system by considering principles and rules the literature suggests.
In the conclusion, there are essential approaches given to aid the improvement of data quality field in enterprises.


A market basket is a set of products that form a single retail transaction. This purchase data of products can shed important light on how product(s) might influence sales of other product(s). Departing from the standard approach of frequent itemset mining, we posit that purchase data can be modeled as a social network. One can then discover communities of products that are bought together, which can lead to expressive exploration and discovery of a larger influence zone of product(s). We develop a novel utility measure for communities of products and show, both financially and intuitively, that community detection provides a useful complement to association rules for market basket analysis. All our conclusions are validated on real store data.


Osteolytic bone diseases are characterized by excessive osteoclast formation and activation. Protein kinase C (PKC)‐dependent pathways regulate cell growth, differentiation and apoptosis in many cellular systems, and have been implicated in cancer development and osteoclast formation. A number of PKC inhibitors with anti‐cancer properties have been developed, but whether they might also influence osteolysis (a common complication of bone invading cancers) is unclear. We studied the effects of the PKC inhibitor compound, GF109203X on osteoclast formation and activity, processes driven by receptor activator of NFκB ligand (RANKL). We found that GF109203X strongly and dose dependently suppresses osteoclastogenesis and osteoclast activity in RANKL‐treated primary mouse bone marrow cells. Consistent with this GF109203X reduced expression of key osteoclastic genes, including cathepsin K, calcitonin receptor, tartrate resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) and the proton pump subunit V‐ATPase‐d2 in RANKL‐treated primary mouse bone marrow cells. Expression of these proteins is dependent upon RANKL‐induced NF‐κB and NFAT transcription factor actions; both were reduced in osteoclast progenitor populations by GF109203X treatment, notably NFATc1 levels. Furthermore, we showed that GF109203X inhibits RANKL‐induced calcium oscillation. Together, this study shows GF109203X may block osteoclast functions, suggesting that pharmacological blockade of PKC‐dependent pathways has therapeutic potential in osteolytic diseases. J. Cell. Physiol. 230: 1235–1242, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., A Wiley Company


For a number of years there has been a controversy regarding whether installing roundabouts in a business area are good for business in the area, or whether they have negative impacts on business in the area. This study attempts to answer this question with emphasis on Kansas cities, particularly Topeka, Kansas; however, it does use examples and data from other cities and studies that are relevant to this study. This study reviewed the literature and all sources where national data or reliable case studies addressed the issue of the impact of roundabouts on business to serve as a basis for Kansas studies. Some data that was initially thought to be available; namely, business profits, before and after economic data like sales taxes, property values, building permits and so forth, were not generally available and/or beyond the scope of the project. The study concentrated on the literature, surveys to businesses, and case studies that showed roundabouts' ability to move traffic more efficiently. Conclusions were based on the widely accepted assumption that businesses and business areas that have good vehicle and pedestrian access and traffic flow should prosper and grow and, conversely, businesses that do not have good access and good traffic flow will not. Case studies that were found in the literature, and from personal contacts, are reported in the study report. Surveys were conducted and sent to several Kansas cities as well as Carmel, Indiana, which is known to have a great number of roundabouts in the city. Personal contact was also made with a number of business managers and/or owners in Topeka. Since no reliable before and after corridor data could be found that would lead to definite conclusions, a task was added to do a simulation study of a business corridor in Topeka, Kansas. The study used VISSIM software to simulate a hypothetical before and after study of converting several traditional intersections in the corridor to roundabouts. The most relevant study found in the literature was a study of South Goldman Road in Golden, Colorado, where four roundabouts were built in a business corridor with many positive results which led to the conclusions that "yes, roundabouts are good for business." Survey results, reported in detail in the full report, were generally positive albeit mixed. For example, the survey results from businesses in Topeka indicated that 76.9% of businesses answered that the impact of the addition of roundabouts was fair, good or very good, and only a combined 15.2% indicated they were bad or very bad. Personal contact with business managers and owners in Topeka found that they were of the opinion that roundabouts in their area were good for business. The simulation study of the Topeka business area, assuming several intersections were replaced with roundabouts, showed significant reductions in delay and queuing for most all significant traffic movements. Based on the authors' assumption that better traffic flow and access are good for business, it was concluded that the addition of roundabouts in this corridor would have been good for business. The overall conclusion of the study was that roundabouts have a positive impact on traffic flows and business.


Abstract A screw dislocation perpendicular to free surfaces and an interface in a two-phase plate, and a screw dislocation piercing a two-phase hollow sphere are considered. The analytical solutions of the boundary-value problems have been found for the first time with the help of the virtual defects technique. Elastic fields of the screw dislocation in the plate are presented in the form of integrals with Bessel functions. Elastic fields of the screw dislocation in the hollow sphere have the form of series with Legendre polynomials. Stress distributions in both of the considered geometries are plotted. The influence of the geometric parameters of the considered solids and the ratio of the shear moduli on the stresses is analyzed. The interaction of a screw dislocation with a parallel edge dislocation is discussed.


Atmospheric temperature retrievals from thermal emission spectrometer (TES) observed radiances make possible the most complete separation of the constituent wave modes evident in Mars atmosphere to date. We use all of the data from the first aerobraking period as well as the science phasing orbits, which affords good sampling of the diurnal tides and stationary waves. TES retrievals of atmospheric temperature on a grid of pressure levels are the fundamental data set in this study. We then fit this data to selected Fourier modes in longitude and time for altitude, latitude, and Ls bins. From this we have identified the amplitudes and phases of the diurnal and semidiurnal tides, the first few (gravest) stationary waves, and a few modes which arise because of couplings between sun-fixed tides and topography. We also retrieve estimates of the zonal and time of day mean temperature meridional cross sections and their rates of change. The zonal and time of day mean temperature meridional cross sections agree with those of Conrath et al. [this issue] to within 1 K where we can reliably retrieve this mode (90°S to ∼20°S). Heating rates of up to 2.4 K/sol were observed around three scale heights above 60°S-90°S during the Ls = 310°–320° dust storm. Diurnal tide amplitudes of greater than 8 K were observed during the Noachis and Ls = 310°–320° dust storms. From Ls = 255°–285° an unexplained phase reversal at two scale heights was observed in the diurnal tide from 60°S-80°S. Convective penetration above the unstable boundary layer may explain anomalous (180° out of phase with the sun) diurnal tide phases between 0.5 and one scale height above the subsolar point. Semidiurnal tides are of order 2 K throughout the southern extratropics. A stationary mode of wavenumber one was observed with amplitude 1–4 K in the southern extratropics. Topographically coupled tidal modes were also quantified.


Explore reinforcement learning (RL) techniques to build cutting-edge games using Python libraries such as PyTorch, OpenAI Gym, and TensorFlow
Key Features
Get to grips with the different reinforcement and DRL algorithms for game development

Learn how to implement components such as artificial agents, map and level generation, and audio generation

Gain insights into cutting-edge RL research and understand how it is similar to artificial general research
Book Description
With the increased presence of AI in the gaming industry, developers are challenged to create highly responsive and adaptive games by integrating artificial intelligence into their projects. This book is your guide to learning how various reinforcement learning techniques and algorithms play an important role in game development with Python.

Starting with the basics, this book will help you build a strong foundation in reinforcement learning for game development. Each chapter will assist you in implementing different reinforcement learning techniques, such as Markov decision processes (MDPs), Q-learning, actor-critic methods, SARSA, and deterministic policy gradient algorithms, to build logical self-learning agents. Learning these techniques will enhance your game development skills and add a variety of features to improve your game agent's productivity. As you advance, you'll understand how deep reinforcement learning (DRL) techniques can be used to devise strategies to help agents learn from their actions and build engaging games.

By the end of this book, you'll be ready to apply reinforcement learning techniques to build a variety of projects and contribute to open source applications.
What you will learn
Understand how deep learning can be integrated into an RL agent

Explore basic to advanced algorithms commonly used in game development

Build agents that can learn and solve problems in all types of environments

Train a Deep Q-Network (DQN) agent to solve the CartPole balancing problem

Develop game AI agents by understanding the mechanism behind complex AI

Integrate all the concepts learned into new projects or gaming agents
Who this book is for
If you're a game developer looking to implement AI techniques to build next-generation games from scratch, this book is for you. Machine learning and deep learning practitioners, and RL researchers who want to understand how to use self-learning agents in the game domain will also find this book useful. Knowledge of game development and Python programming experience are required.


In this work, we present the SOMOS dataset, the first large-scale mean opinion scores (MOS) dataset consisting of solely neural text-to-speech (TTS) samples. It can be employed to train automatic MOS prediction systems focused on the assessment of modern synthesizers, and can stimulate advancements in acoustic model evaluation. It consists of 20K synthetic utterances of the LJ Speech voice, a public domain speech dataset which is a common benchmark for building neural acoustic models and vocoders. Utterances are generated from 200 TTS systems including vanilla neural acoustic models as well as models which allow prosodic variations. An LPCNet vocoder is used for all systems, so that the samples' variation depends only on the acoustic models. The synthesized utterances provide bal-anced and adequate domain and length coverage. We collect MOS naturalness evaluations on 3 English Amazon Mechanical Turk locales and share practices leading to reliable crowdsourced annotations for this task. Baseline results of state-of-the-art MOS prediction models on the SOMOS dataset are presented, while we show the challenges that such models face when assigned to evaluate synthetic utterances.


A pregnant patient had Dubin-Johnson syndrome. Although the mother had hyperbilirubinemia, there were no untoward fetal effects. The infant's neonatal course, however, was complicated by hepatitis with giant cell transformation.


This paper presents the results of FEM simulations of the rotary piercing process in which disc guiding devices of the Diescher type are used. During this process the material is formed by means of two skew rolls, two guiding devices, and the piercing plug mounted on the mandrel. The aim of the analysis was to determine the effect of the plug diameter, the plug advance, the feed angle and the diameter reduction on the piercing process. Nine cases of piercing with three different plugs used were analyzed. The effects of the basic process parameters on the tube shell diameter and the tool load were analyzed. The numerical results obtained using Simufact.Forming 10.0 were verified under experimental conditions in which the tube shell made from 100Cr6 bearing steel was pierced. The results of the FEM calculations show agreement with the experimental results.


Some people believe that the very idea of interpretation requires judges to adopt a particular method for interpreting the Constitution. The problem with this view is that in constitutional law, the general idea of interpretation is compatible with a range of different approaches, and among them, none is mandatory, in the sense of having some unique or privileged connection with the general idea. Any particular approach must be defended on the ground that it would make our constitutional order better rather than worse. No one should doubt that there are legitimate questions about the institutional capacities of judges, and about the virtues and vices of a deferential role on their part; the answers to those questions can motivate a view about constitutional interpretation. But they do not depend on an understanding of what interpretation necessarily requires.


Keywords: sustainable agriculture; organic farming; whole farm management; decision support; farming systems research; designing; modeling; beta-gamma integration The objective of the research described in this thesis was to develop a model that helps farmers to design a sustainable farm system. If sustainability must go beyond the level of vague statements, it must be implemented in operational farm management. Sustainable development was considered as an active design process by the farmer that should focus on creating and maintaining adaptive capacities in order to tune the farm system to an ever-changing environment. Because sustainability involves social, ecological and economic aspects, the farmer must be enabled to integrate soft and hard parameters in decision-making. From literature research in the fields of management science and sociology, a three-phase methodology was defined: (i) negotiate with the environment, (ii) solve problems in a heuristic way and (iii) implement solutions in operational control. This methodology enables the farmer to make his visions, intentions and values explicit. It was argued that the current scientific concept of agricultural production, production ecology, is not suitable for designing sustainable farm systems. A new concept was defined: ecological production, which takes the social and ecological environment as a starting point, while production is tuned to it. This requires a design-oriented approach in which the farmer is enabled to improve his skills. Management should focus on preventive and recycling management, which requires that the primary processes must be considered as a logistic chain of product flows. Based on the three-phase-methodology and the concept of ecological production, a model was developed. The model consists of several components of which the so-called Product Flow Model is the most important one. It represents the production process as a chain or network of product flows between production units, internal and external resources. Other components help to define sustainability goals and connect them with the Product Flow Model, followed by a translation into operational management, resulting in the so-called Sustainability Management Handbook. The model was tested and illustrated by two case studies on potato production and nutrient management. The model and methodology was evaluated by expert validation. The general conclusion was that the approach is suitable for implementing sustainability in operational farm management and that, potentially, it helps to improve farmer's skills, but this was not sufficiently justified.


Organic citrus production has been increasing recently in Turkey. In this study, we compared several nutri-elements concentrations of organically (ORG) and conventionally (CON) grown citrus orchards in the Mediterranean region of Turkey. The samples included Satsuma mandarins (Citrus unshiu L.) and Washington navel and Valencia oranges (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck), which were grafted on sour orange (Citrus aurantium L.). In 1996, 58 citrus orchards were sampled and 48 of them used for analyses. Three years after the first sampling, some orchards switched from CON to ORG production. Sampling was repeated in 2007 and included 31 samples from CON and 30 samples from orchards that switched to ORG after the 1996 samples were taken. Concentrations of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Na, B, Cu, Fe, Mn and Zn were determined using the samples from 1996; with the exception of B, no significant differences were observed. Analysis of the samples from 2007 indicated statistically significant differences between the two groups for concentrations of N, K, Mg, B and Mn. The means of both samples were subjected to principle component analysis (PCA); the results indicated that, after several years of ORG culture, the two groups were clearly separated. The variables highly correlated with PC1 were Na, Fe and Ca, while P, K, Mn and Mg were correlated by PC2. B, Fe and Zn correlated by PC3. Several trace elements (Pb, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni and Zn) from five randomly chosen soil samples from both CON and ORG growing groups were determined, and the results indicated that the mean concentrations for the two groups were similar for most of the elements (Pb, Cu, Fe and Ni). Our results shed light on the optimization of plant nutrient programs in organic citrus production.


The harmonic and intermodulation distortions of SOI MOSFETs are studied with the help of the Wiener-Volterra
series. Simple relationships are given and validated through
Large-Signal Network Analyser measurements. The simplicity
of the formulation makes it attractive to circuit designers.
Furthermore, it may be used to determine the validity range of
low-frequency based distortion characterization techniques. It is shown that the dominant poles of the HD for a 0.25 µm Partially Depleted SOI MOSFET lies at a few GHz, depending on the load impedance and the biasing and that its IMD3 depends on the tone separation.


Context: Pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) is a critical and essential parameter during the assessment and selection of modality of treatment in patients with congenital heart disease accompanied by pulmonary arterial hypertension. Aim: The present study was planned to evaluate non-invasive echocardiographic parameters to assess pulmonary vascular resistance. Settings and Design: This prospective observational study included 44 patients admitted in the cardiology and pediatric cardiology ward of our institution for diagnostic or pre-operative catheter based evaluation of pulmonary arterial pressure and PVR. Materials and Methods: Detailed echocardiographic evaluation was carried out including tricuspid regurgitation velocity (TRV) and velocity time integral of the right-ventricular outflow tract (VTIRVOT). These parameters were correlated with catheter-based measurements of PVR. Results: The TRV/VTIRVOT ratio correlated well with PVR measured at catheterization (PVRcath) (r = 0.896, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.816 to 0.9423, P < 0.001). Using the Bland-Altman analysis, PVR measurements derived from Doppler data showed satisfactory limits of agreement with catheterization estimated PVR. For a PVR of 6 Wood units (WU), a TRV/VTIRVOT value of 0.14 provided a sensitivity of 96.67% and a specificity of 92.86% (area under the curve 0.963, 95% confidence interval 0.858 to 0.997) and for PVR of 8 WU a TRV/VTIRVOT value of 0.17 provided a sensitivity of 79.17% and a specificity of 95% (area under the curve 0. 0.923, 95% confidence interval 0.801 to 0.982). Conclusions: Doppler-derived ratio of TRV/VTIRVOT is a simple, non-invasive index, which can be used to estimate PVR.


Objective: Essay and multiple-choice questions are both used to evaluate the mastery of academic courses. Each has their unique advantages as well as limitations. Multiple-choice tests provide an inexpensive means of evaluating the understanding of facts and concepts across an extensive range of topics whereas essay questions evaluate the organizational and productive skills in a more restricted content area. So, the aim of our study is to assess which types of questions are more effective in testing the cognitive skills from the point of view of undergraduate medical students. Methods: The study is conducted on 250 undergraduate students who were admitted to the 1st year program at Kasturba Medical College, Manipal. A preformed proforma containing few questions regarding essay and multiple choice questions is given to them to fill. The results are analyzed using simple statistics methods. Results: The 59.5% students prefer multiple choice questions (MCQs) over essay question. 20.8% don't prefer MCQs and 19.5% were neutral. 24.1% prefer essay questions over MCQs. 46.2% don't prefer essay questions and 29.5% were neutral. Cocnlusion: From the results of our study it is evident that even students think that both types of questions should be there for their assessment because each type of questions has their advantages and disadvantages.


In this paper, simulation study was conducted to investigate the effect of spatial heterogeneity of multiple porosity fields on oil recovery, residual oil and microemulsion saturation. The generated porosity fields were fed into UTCHEM for simulating surfactant flooding in heterogeneous two-layered porous media. From the analysis, surfactant flooding was more sensitive than water flooding to the spatial distribution of multiple porosity fields. Residual oil saturation in upper and lower layers after water flooding was about the same with the reservoir heterogeneity. On the other hand, both residual oil and microemulsion saturation in the two layers after surfactant flooding became more equal as porosity distribution standard increased. Spatial heterogeneity of multiple porosity fields had only a small effect on residual oil saturation and recovery factor. The variation of recovery factor due to the reservoir heterogeneity was under 4.2%.


Abstract Background: Hospitals are required to have antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs), but there are few models for implementing ASPs without the support of an infectious disease (ID) specialist, defined as an ID physician and/or ID pharmacist. Objective: In this study, we sought to understand ASP implementation at hospitals that lack on-site ID support within the Veterans' Health Administration (VHA). Methods: Using a mandatory VHA survey, we identified acute-care hospitals that lacked an on-site ID specialist. We conducted semistructured interviews with personnel involved in ASP activities. Setting: The study was conducted across 7 VHA hospitals. Participants: In total, 42 hospital personnel were enrolled in the study. Results: The primary responsibility for ASPs fell on the pharmacist champions, who were typically assigned multiple other non-ASP responsibilities. The pharmacist champions were more successful at gaining buy-in when they had established rapport with clinicians, but at some sites, the use of contract physicians and frequent staff turnover were potential barriers. Some sites felt that having access to an off-site ID specialist was important for overcoming institutional barriers and improving the acceptance of their stewardship recommendations. In general, stewardship champions struggled to mobilize institutional resources, which made it difficult to advance their programmatic goals. Conclusion: In this study of 7 hospitals without on-site ID support, we found that ASPs are largely a pharmacy-driven process. Remote ID support, if available, was seen as helpful for implementing stewardship interventions. These findings may inform the future implementation of ASPs in settings lacking local ID expertise.


Interoperable medical devices (IMDs) face threats due to the increased attack surface presented by interoperability and the corresponding infrastructure. Introducing networking and coordination functionalities fundamentally alters medical systems' security properties. Understanding the threats is an important first step in eventually designing security solutions for such systems. Part 1 of this two-part article provides an overview of the IMD environment and the attacks that can be mounted on it.


A housewife, then aged 48 years, was investigated in August, 1951, at a cottage hospital for polyarthritis. Associated raised E.S.R., leucopenia, proteinuria, rash, and prolonged swinging fever suggested a diagnosis of S.L.E. She was transferred to another hospital for more detailed investigation. No L.E.-cell phenomenon was found and a final diagnosis five months after onset was rheumatoid arthritis with a urinary tract infection. Treatment with chloramphenicol, phenylbutazone, and analgesics was recommended. For the next eight months she followed an upEand-down course characterized by arthritis, tachycardia, fever, and a raised E.S.R. which ended in her readmission. After two months, during which no L.E.-cell phenomenon was discovered, she was again discharged with the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis and treatment with mepacrine, 300 mg. daily, had been instituted. This treatment was popular about that time. Response was swift and maintained. Six months later (July, 1953) she had no arthritis, was much increased in weight, and had no subjective complaints. The raised E.S.R., proteinuria, and leucopenia remained substantially unchanged. In September, 1953, mepacrine was discontinued. During the intervening years she has been seen regularly and has kept very well. Proteinuria had been noticed to persist throughout but no other tests were followed. In March, 1961, she relapsed with polyarthritis, fever, and raised E.S.R. As an out-patient her blood was examined for the L.E.-cell phenomenon and found positive on the first test. Admission confirmed this finding. Treatment with hydroxychloroquine sulphate (" plaquenil sulphate "), 200 mg. thrice daily, produced a rapid remission of symptoms, and at the date of writing (October, 1961) she remains subjectively well and is continuing with chloroquine in reduced dosage.


In humans, neurosecretory chromaffin cells control a number of important bodily functions, including those related to stress response. Chromaffin cells appear as a distinct cell type at the beginning of midgestation and are the main cellular source of adrenalin and noradrenalin released into the blood stream. In mammals, two different chromaffin organs emerge at a close distance to each other, the adrenal gland and Zuckerkandl organ (ZO). These two structures are found in close proximity to the kidneys and dorsal aorta, in a region where paraganglioma, pheochromocytoma and neuroblastoma originate in the majority of clinical cases. Recent studies showed that the chromaffin cells comprising the adrenal medulla are largely derived from nerve-associated multipotent Schwann cell precursors (SCPs) arriving at the adrenal anlage with the preganglionic nerve fibers, whereas the migratory neural crest cells provide only minor contribution. However, the embryonic origin of the ZO, which differs from the adrenal medulla in a number of aspects, has not been studied in detail. The ZO is composed of chromaffin cells in direct contact with the dorsal aorta and the intraperitoneal cavity and disappears through an autophagy-mediated mechanism after birth. In contrast, the adrenal medulla remains throughout the entire life and furthermore, is covered by the adrenal cortex. Using a combination of lineage tracing strategies with nerve- and cell type-specific ablations, we reveal that the ZO is largely SCP-derived and forms in synchrony with progressively increasing innervation. Moreover, the ZO develops hand-in-hand with the adjacent sympathetic ganglia that coalesce around the dorsal aorta. Finally, we were able to provide evidence for a SCP-contribution to a small but significant proportion of sympathetic neurons of the posterior paraganglia. Thus, this cellular source complements the neural crest, which acts as a main source of sympathetic neurons. Our discovery of a nerve-dependent origin of chromaffin cells and some sympathoblasts may help to understand the origin of pheochromocytoma, paraganglioma and neuroblastoma, all of which are currently thought to be derived from the neural crest or committed sympathoadrenal precursors.


Occupancy models are popular for estimating the probability a site is occupied by a species of interest when detection is imperfect. Occupancy models have been extended to account for interacting species and spatial dependence but cannot presently allow both factors to act simultaneously. We propose a two-species occupancy model that accommodates both interspecific and spatial dependence. We use a point-referenced multivariate hierarchical spatial model to account for both spatial and interspecific dependence. We model spatial random effects with predictive process models and use probit regression to improve efficiency of posterior sampling. We model occupancy probabilities of red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and coyote (Canis latrans) with camera trap data collected from six mid-Atlantic states in the eastern United States. We fit four models comprising a fully factorial combination of spatial and interspecific dependence to two-thirds of camera trapping sites and validated models with the remaining data. Red fox and coyotes each exhibited spatial dependence at distances > 0.8 and 0.4 km, respectively, and exhibited geographic variation in interspecific dependence. Consequently, predictions from the model assuming simultaneous spatial and interspecific dependence best matched test data observations. This application highlights the utility of simultaneously accounting for spatial and interspecific dependence.


The detection of potentially threatening nuclear materials is a challenging homeland security problem. This research reports on the application of a novel statistical relational learning algorithm, Higher Order Naïve Bayes (HONB), to improve the detection and identification of nuclear isotopes. When classifying nuclear detection data, distinguishing potentially threatening from harmless radioisotopes is critical. These also must be distinguished from the naturally occurring radioactive background. This research applied Higher Order Learning to nuclear detection data to improve the detection and identification of four isotopes: Ga67, I131, In111, and Tc99m. In the research traditional IID machine learning methods are applied to the area of nuclear detection, and the results compared with the performance of leveraging higher-order dependencies between feature values using HONB. The findings give insight about the performance of higher-order classifiers (described in [2]) on datasets with small numbers of positive instances. In the initial study, Naïve Bayes was compared with its higher-order counterpart, Higher Order Naïve Bayes. HONB was found to perform statistically significantly better for isotope Ga67 when using a preprocessing methodology of discretizing then binarizing the input sensor data. Similar results were seen for different amounts of training data for I131, In111, and Tc99m. HONB was also found to perform statistically significantly better for isotopes I131 and Tc99m when the preprocessing involved normalization, discretization then binarization. This study shows that Higher Order Learning techniques can be very useful in the arena of nuclear detection.


Background: National guidelines recommend antihypertensive treatment to lower the risk of secondary strokes in both hypertensive and normotensive patients. The degree to which blood pressure (BP) is treated and controlled among stroke survivors in the US has not been systematically investigated. In this analysis of a nationwide database, we assessed recent patterns, predictors, and prognoses of antihypertensive drug use among survivors of a stroke. Methods: We reviewed prevalence and control of hypertension among adults with a history of stroke (based on self report) who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999 to 2004 with mortality follow-up through December 31, 2006. Logistic regression was used to determine predictors of poorly-controlled BP (>140/90) and non-treatment. Cox models were used to examine the association between antihypertensive use vs. all-cause mortality, adjusting for confounders. Results: Among 9,145 participants aged ≥40 years, 490 reported previous stroke, corresponding to 4,755,372 (4%) of US adults. Of those with previous stroke, 72% had known hypertension, 47% had poorly controlled hypertension, and 8% had undiagnosed hypertension. Compared to those not taking antihypertensive medications, those on treatment were more likely to be significantly older, male, black non-Hispanic, diabetic, with elevated levels of BP, total cholesterol, and body mass index. In multivariable analyses, age (OR per year 1.05, 95% CI 1.02-1.09), female sex (OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.14-1.79), Hispanic ethnicity (OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.24-2.49) and diabetes (OR 2.12, 95% CI 1.50-2.99) were associated with poorly controlled BP, while subjects who had a previous myocardial infarction (OR 0.66, 95%CI 0.45-0.97), drank alcohol (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.42-0.90) or were overweight (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.49-0.78) were less likely to have poorly controlled BP. Among those with poorly controlled BP, hypercholesterolemia (OR 1.30, 95% CI 1.07-1.57) and male sex (OR 1.33, 95% CI 1.06-1.63) were predictors of non-treatment, whereas current smoking (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.32-1.92) or overweight (OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.32-2.78) were linked to treatment. Those on antihypertensive medications had lower rates of all-cause mortality but this result did not reach significance (adjusted HR 0.87; 95% CI 0.33-2.32), and was not influenced by baseline BP or number of antihypertensive agents. Conclusion: Rates of antihypertensive therapy and BP control among stroke survivors in the United States are poor. One in two stroke survivors has poorly controlled hypertension. Several medical and lifestyle modification factors could be potential targets of intervention to bridge this evidence-practice gap.


of paper presented at Bird Strike Committee USA/Canada Meeting, Lake Mary and Sanford, Florida, August 18–21, 2008. Florida BASH: An Integrated Management Approach from the Ground Up Marty Daniel, Charles Kara, John Fontenot, Jerry Hairston, Bernice Constantin, Anthony Duffiney, and John Dunlop USDA Wildlife Services, 2820 East University Avenue, Gainesville, FL 32641 USA Florida harbors numerous bird and mammal species because of its rich diversity of both natural and man-made habitats that provide ample food, water, and cover throughout the year. This diversity has led to numerous wildlife/aircraft strikes resulting in significant monetary losses for the U.S. Air Force (USAF). Despite diminishing budgets, recurrent turnover of base personnel,, and shifting priorities, Wildlife Services has worked successfully with USAF personnel to develop a heightened awareness of BASH issues and effective, proactive BASH programs at three air bases in Florida. Emphasizing the use of accurate data along with proper analysis to form science-based recommendations facilitates collective efforts from members of the Bird Hazard Working Group (BHWG), which promotes a cooperative climate for success. As a result of data collected during comprehensive wildlife hazard assessments, Integrated Wildlife Hazard Management Plans (IWHMP) have been developed and implemented.. The IWDMP consists of three approaches: (i) management of the resources being negatively affected (ii) management of wildlife associated with the damage and (iii) physical separation of the two. While some of the methods described here are unique to the Florida programs, most are applicable elsewhere. This presentation outlines the successes and learning experiences of the BASH programs at Eglin, Tyndall, and Homestead Air Force Bases.


The excessive demand for universities in metropolitan areas as a result of location premiums and regulated admissions quotas diminishes the competition between universities and the incentive to enhance educational performance to attract more students. Cases in point are the lower graduate employment rates (a measure of educational performance) of universities in metropolitan areas compared to those in non-metropolitan areas despite higher quality students. Additionally, the graduate employment rates of non-metropolitan universities are influenced by educational input factors such as an increase in the percentage of courses taught by full-time faculty, while those of metropolitan universities are contingent merely on enrollees' entrance scores. Ergo, a structure that revitalizes the competition between universities and encourages them to improve their educational services must be established in order to enhance the quality of higher education.


ABSTRACT In the present experimental study, the efficiency of permeable reactive barriers (PRBs) containing organic material mixed with zero-valent iron, fly ash or red mud to remove heavy metals from leachates was assessed. Upflow laboratory column experiments were carried out to assess system efficiency in terms of Cu, Zn, Ni and Mn removal. The initial concentration of each metal ion in the feed was 50 mg/L. X-ray diffraction as well as scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectrometry were used to identify new mineral phases and to identify metal removal mechanisms. Results and analyses show that sorption and precipitation of metals as sulphides, hydroxides and other hydrated phases are the dominant metal removal mechanisms.