BACKGROUND
Morphine consumption after a given surgical procedure can vary considerably. Studies show that single nucleotide polymorphism involving the nucleotide position 118 at exon 1 of the mu-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) may play a role in mediating the effects of opioids. This study was performed to correlate the A118G polymorphism at OPRM1 with morphine consumption in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty.

METHODS
Post-operative pain was relieved by patient-controlled analgesia (PCA). The analgesic effect was evaluated using a visual analogue scale. Side-effects, such as sedation, nausea and vomiting, and pruritus, were recorded systematically. The genotypes were determined by sequencing polymerase chain reaction-amplified DNA. The differences in demographics and consumed morphine from the PCA device between the different genotypes were tested using one-way analysis of variance. The prevalence of side-effects from morphine and sex distribution were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test.

RESULTS
One hundred and forty-seven patients were included in the study. Twenty-seven patients who required rescue analgesia were excluded; these patients did not differ demographically or genetically from the 120 who completed the study. Of the latter, 74 were A118 homozygous (AA), 33 were heterozygous (AG) and 13 were G118 homozygous (GG). Group GG consumed significantly more morphine (40.4 +/- 22.0 mg) than group AA (25.3 +/- 15.5 mg) and group AG (25.6 +/- 11.7 mg) during the first 48 h post-operatively. The groups did not differ with respect to reported pain, age, sex, weight and adverse effects.

CONCLUSIONS
G118 homozygotes have a poorer response to morphine for post-operative pain control than A118 homozygotes or heterozygotes. The genotype may thus influence the post-operative response to pain and cause differences in the amounts of analgesic consumed by patients after total knee arthroplasty.


The workplace is cited as a promising setting for physical activity (PA) promotion, but workplace PA interventions tend not to specifically target men. The aim of this article was to review the literature on workplace PA interventions for men and to identify key issues for future intervention development. Articles targeting PA at the workplace were located through a structured database search. Information on intervention strategies and PA outcomes were extracted. Only 13 studies (10.5%) reviewed focused on men, of which 5 showed significant increases in PA. These studies used generic, multicomponent, health promotion strategies with a variety of timeframes, self-report PA measures, and PA outcomes. The systematic review identified that evidence on the effectiveness of workplace PA interventions for men is equivocal and highlighted methodological concerns. Future research should use reliable and valid measures of PA and interventions that focus specifically on men's needs and PA preferences.


Industrial-scale software is commonly very large and complex, making it difficult and time-consuming to develop. In order to manage complexity in software, developers break systems into smaller components which can be developed independently. Software contracts were first proposed several decades ago; they are used to explicitly specify the interfaces between software components to ensure that they work together correctly. Software contracts specify both the responsibility of a client using a service and of the component providing the service. The advantage of contracts is that they formalise what constitutes correct interactions between software components. In addition, they serve as documentation, as well as a basis for test cases, and help clarify correct use of inheritance. However, despite their usefulness, software contracts are still not widely used in mainstream software engineering. In this work, we aim to develop a new software contract tool which we hope will help increase the use of software contracts. We start our work by evaluating existing software contract technologies and uncover a range of inconsistencies and shortcomings. We find that there are disagreements surrounding even some of the most basic aspects of software contracts. Using the lessons learned from our analysis of existing tools, we design a new contract tool, PACT. We describe in detail the formal semantics and typing of PACT and develop a first implementation of our tool. Finally, we discuss the advantages of PACT over existing tools, including its rigorous separation of interfaces and implementations, its rich inheritance semantics, and its support for flexible and expressive definition of contracts.


This paper reports on original work that will determine opportunities for the development of mobile location-based services for different user groups. Location-based services (LBS) employ knowledge of the user's location to enable the provision of new or enhanced services to a user via a wireless device (e.g. mobile phones, PDAs). The Valued LBS research project focuses on what users are trying to do, what information they need, and how you add value by providing them with information that is location or time relevant the right information at the right time and in the right way. In the reported study, a user-centred approach was developed to identify particular contexts in which location-relevant information would be perceived as 'valued' by users. Value, in this case, is assigned to new information which is useful and relevant enough to justify the resources needed to access it and its benefit over other existing sources. A series of interviews (semi-structured and structured) were conducted using a scenario-based technique. The participants were required to describe their 'location' map (where they go, modes of travel) and then to detail the different types of day they have (with respect to the travelling that takes place). The two busiest types of day were then investigated in detail. Participants described the day along a timeline e.g. 6am – 6am which was broken down into hour segments. They identified the times when they travel or change location. In the semi-structured interviews they were asked to rank the importance of these journeys and in the structured interviews they were asked to rate each of these journeys, in terms of the likelihood of something going wrong and the consequence if it were to go wrong for them. The data formed a chronological structure that the interviewer then worked from for the final stage of questioning which involved interviewees explaining the cognitive processes involved in the planning and execution of each journey. This enabled an understanding of how their information needs vary throughout the day. As a result, the study was able to ascertain where there are high and low requirements for information for that individual and hence estimate the potential to provide value.


The work is devoted to the results of the treatment of 535 patients with diverticula of the duodenum, associated diseases being found in 15% of cases. The clinical picture is dependent on the relationship of the diseases: which of them is the leading one at the moment, are they concomitant or competing. The author comes to the conclusion that planned operation of full volume is necessary and expedient. The conclusion is supported by good immediate and late results.


The renal action of guanabenz, a centrally acting antihypertensive drug, was evaluated in anesthetized New Zealand genetically hypertensive rats and in normotensive Sprague-Dawley rats using clearance techniques. In high doses (1 mg/kg/hr), the drug lowered systemic blood pressure in the hypertensive rats without reducing glomerular filtration rate. Mean urine flow increased from 2.42 +/- 0.34 to 36.52 +/- 4.52 microliters/min per 100 g b.wt. while fractional water excretion increased from 0.34 +/- 0.05 to 4.36 +/- 0.50%. The renal and hemodynamic actions of the drug were sustained throughout the experiment. In a lower dose (10 micrograms/kg/hr), guanabenz reduced blood pressure in the hypertensive rats to an extent similar to that of the higher dose but had only a moderate effect on kidney function. Renal elimination of water, sodium and potassium increased slightly and glomerular filtration rate remained unchanged. Infusion of the vehicle alone did not cause significant changes in the hemodynamic and renal excretory functions. In the normotensive rats, receiving the high dose of the drug, mean urine osmolarity declined nearly 10-fold from 2466 +/- 136 to 290 +/- 37 mOsl while total solute excretion doubled. Infusion of the vehicle alone did not cause significant changes in the hemodynamic and renal excretory functions. The drug appears to have a primary action on the renal tubular handling of water and sodium. It may inhibit the secretion of antidiuretic hormone or block the antidiuretic hormone-stimulated cAMP-dependent increase in water permeability of the collecting tubules through its alpha 2-adrenoceptor agonistic effect. Natriuresis may have resulted in part from a lowered sympathetic tone to the kidneys.


Sequential extraction by Tessier et al; 1979 was used to study the geochemical fractionation of the following heavy metals; cadmium, chromium, Nickel, lead and zinc in the sediments collected at the point of discharge of Iyalaro stream into Lagos Lagoon to understand their mobility and bioavailability. The highest percentage (%) of all heavy metals studied were observed in the oxidisible fraction; Cd (40.3) %, Cr (35.9) %, Pb (42.6) %, Zn (41.8) % except Ni (42.6) % which was observed at residual / lithogenous (crystal lattice or silicates bound) fraction of the sediment. High Cr (31.2) % contribution was also observed in the residual fraction, this is an indication that rock / soil weathering / formation is also playing meaningful contribution to the presence of Ni and Cr in the studied area. Sequential extraction for the speciation of elements among the geochemical phases in this study indicated that most of the metals studied were in exchangeable, carbonate bound, reducible (Fe-Mn oxides) and oxidisable (organic matter/sulphide bound) fractions which are potentially available fractions, and contributed by anthropogenic activities. The order of reducing availability of the studied heavy metals were as follow; Zn (93.2) % >Pb (81.6) % > Cd (73.1) % > Cr (68.8) % > Ni (57) %. Therefore, under favourable biogeochemical processes for remobilization of the studied metals from the sediment, the studied metals can get the water body heavily polluted, impact food chain and become an environmental risk.


The increasing demand for wearable devices ultimately requires the development of energy storage devices with wide structural versatility, lightweight and high energy density. Although various flexible batteries have been developed based on two-dimensional and one-dimensional platforms, truly weavable batteries with high capacity and elongation capability have not been materialized yet. Herein, we report weavable lithium ion batteries (LIBs) with high capacity by developing fibrous all-in-one electrode threads based on nanosized hybrid active layers with a biological gluing inner layer and a membrane shell. The thread consists of four distinct concentric structures, a carbon fiber core as a current collector, a conductive biological gluing layer, nanohybrid active materials, and a porous membrane layer. Nanosized LiFePO4/C-rGO and Li4Ti5O12/rGO are used for cathode and anode threads, respectively. This unique all-in-one structure combined with an inline coating approach ensures flexibility and mechanical stability with a high linear capacity of 1.6 mA h cm−1. These features all together allow for various assembly schemes such as twisting and hierarchical weaving, enabling fabric LIBs to show 50% elongation via encoded structural deformation.


At California Polytechnic State University, in the Construction Management Department there is a need for a lesson plan which teaches students the concepts of earned value analysis as it applies to construction projects. As many construction management students from Cal Poly go into industry and take part in complex projects, it will be beneficial to understand project management tools such as earned value. Earned value analysis focuses on two critical components, time and money and how they relate to each other and compare to the original estimate throughout the duration of a project. Comparing the estimated values to actual values during construction provides variables to calculate the schedule performance index and cost performance index. These indexes give an accurate estimate as to if the project is ahead or behind schedule and over or under budget. Understanding how to calculate these values will allow for timely action by the project team to keep projects on schedule and on budget.


The aim of this study was to phenotypically and genotypically characterize two new neurological mouse mutants arising from the Harwell ENU Mutagenesis Programme. GENA 201 and 202 mice are siblings. Heterozygous mice show poor grip strength and have a dominantly inherited phenotype. Homozygotes show compromised hind limb movement resulting in a more severe phenotype. Histopathology data from 15 days old GENA201 and 202 homozygotes showed a significantly reduced dorsal column in thoracic spinal cord sections. To identify the mutant gene underlying the GENA201 and 202 phenotypes, mutant backcross progeny were genotyped with a panel of markers spanning the genome. Both GENA 201 and 202 mutations were localised to a 5Mb region on chromosome 6 suggesting they are allelic. A point mutation (T>C transition in exon 5) was identified in the glycyl tRNA synthetase gene in both mouse lines, which charges tRNA with glycine. Glycyl tRNA synthetase mutations have been identified in two hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies, Charcot Marie Tooth 2D and distal spinal muscular atrophy type V, thus the gene plays a role in neurological diseases. GENA 201 and 202 mutants are therefore interesting animal models that could provide new insights in the understanding of new biological pathways involved in hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies. To investigate the possible functional impact of the mutation, a protein assay was carried out. No loss of glycyl tRNA activity was observed by comparing Gar C201RI+ with wild type littermates. However, a reduction in activity was observed in Gar C207R/C201R mice compared to wild type and Gar C201RI+ littermates suggesting that the possible molecular mechanisms of pathology for the GarsC201R mutation might be some loss of function. In addition to GENA 201 and 202 lines, the BHV7 mouse line was also characterised. BHV7 heterozygote mice are significantly lighter than wild types and show an ataxic gait with retropulsion. Histopathology data from 6 month old BHV7 mutant mouse brain also revealed cerebellar defects characterized by loss of Purkinje cells. BHV7 is of potential interest for the study of ataxia. Genotyping of BHV7 mutants localised the mutation to a 26 Mb interval on chromosome 3. The two mutations are valuable additions to the scientific community and may be useful in the better understanding of the genetic basis of neurodegenerative diseases.


This thesis contributes new knowledge to the field of arts therapies and their
relevance in the treatment of depression in adults.
The global burden of depression means that available treatments do not address all
areas within the complexity of the condition and arts therapies may potentially
present a relevant alternative by offering opportunities for non-verbal expression and
exploration of creativity. Literature up to date does not offer comprehensive enough
description of arts therapies practice and therefore establishing of credible evidence
has not been possible. This thesis addresses the gap by exploring the nature of arts
therapies practice and its value in the treatment of depression.
The research consists of two phases: phase 1 provides a description of arts therapies
practice with depression in the UK based on data collected from 395 survey
respondents, while phase 2 evaluates group brief art therapy for adults experiencing
mild to moderate depression. The project employs mixed methodologies within a
creative research design incorporating surveys, interviews, arts-based inquiry and a
pilot clinical study to examine multiple perspectives and offer findings meaningful to
diverse audience.
This project establishes that depression is a common condition among arts therapists'
clients while some of the practitioners consider work with depression their main area
of professional interest. It further finds that the therapists address depression
through the use of humanistic, psychodynamic and integrative approaches and
discovers that certain areas of the therapy process have particular relevance in the
treatment of depression (e.g. time, group work, motivation, reconnecting).
The pilot clinical study concludes with decrease of depression levels and increase of
subjectively perceived wellbeing in all participants immediately after nine sessions of
art therapy and in the follow-up. Participants' experiences, researcher's observations
and arts-based reflections on the therapy process highlight the potential value of arts
therapies in areas relating to, among others: connection and sharing, awareness of
others and self, sense of achievement, self-expression and regain of meaning. The
findings are integrated in the final discussion, which proposes a set of concepts
particularly relevant to the treatment of adult depression through arts therapies.
This research provides the first comprehensive description of arts therapists' work
with depression in the UK and confirms the potential of this practice to be effective,
which is relevant to health professionals and may lead to increased involvement of
arts therapies in mainstream healthcare. The particular value of this project lies in
shaping the basis for further explorations in the form of larger RCTs as well as
demonstrating relevance and superiority of creative research designs in evaluating
arts therapies.


Introduction: There is a lack of consistency in approaches to bereavement support provision and evaluation. This study identified outcomes for adult bereavement support in palliative care, involving a workshop with people from professional and lived experience backgrounds, providing a view on what support interventions should look like.
Aims: The aims of the workshop were to gather stakeholder views on the purpose and impacts of bereavement support and what outcomes should be used in the design and evaluation of bereavement interventions and services.
Methods: Stakeholders were divided into three groups and asked to identify and discuss how support services should help bereaved service users and what good bereavement support looks like. Key themes were identified from the written and verbal content of the consensus day.
Findings: Three main themes emerged from the data; informal support and self-management; the aims and purpose of formal bereavement service support and the timing, accessibility and quality of support.
Conclusion: Workshop findings align with public health models of bereavement care and recent service standards, identifying core support functions and aspirations for bereavement services. Finding the best mechanisms and modalities for meeting these, in the context of the late/post-pandemic period, presents both challenges and opportunities.


This article reviews recent advances and existing challenges for the application of wearable bioelectronics for patient monitoring and domiciliary hospitalization. More specifically, we focus on technical challenges and solutions for the implementation of wearable and conformal bioelectronics for long-term patient biomonitoring and discuss their application on the Internet of medical things (IoMT). We first discuss the general architecture of IoMT systems for domiciliary hospitalization and the three layers of the system, including the sensing, communication, and application layers. In regard to the sensing layer, we focus on current trends, recent advances, and challenges in the implementation of stretchable patches. This includes fabrication strategies and solutions for energy storage and energy harvesting, such as printed batteries and supercapacitors. As a case study, we discuss the application of IoMT for domiciliary hospitalization of COVID 19 patients. This can be used as a strategy to reduce the pressure on the healthcare system, as it allows continuous patient monitoring and reduced physical presence in the hospital, and at the same time enables the collection of large data for posterior analysis. Finally, based on the previous works in the field, we recommend a conceptual IoMT design for wearable monitoring of COVID 19 patients.


Alpha-synuclein SNCA has been implicated in the etiology of Parkinson's disease (PD); however, the normal function of alpha-synuclein protein and the pathway that mediates its pathogenic effect is yet to be discovered. We investigated the mechanistic role of SNCA in the nucleus utilizing isogenic human-induced pluripotent stem cells-derived neurons from PD patients with autosomal dominant mutations, A53T and SNCA-triplication, and their corresponding corrected lines by genome- and epigenome-editing. Comparisons of shape and integrity of the nuclear envelope and its resistance to stresses found that both mutations result in similar nuclear envelope perturbations that were reversed in the isogenic mutation-corrected cells. Further mechanistic studies showed that SNCA mutation has adverse effects on the nucleus by trapping Ras-related nuclear protein (RAN) and preventing it from transporting key nuclear proteins such as, DNMT3A, for maintaining normal nuclear function. For the first time, we proposed that α-syn interacts with RAN and normally functions in the nucleocytoplasmic transport while exerts its pathogenic effect by sequestering RAN. We suggest that defects in the nucleocytoplasmic transport components may be a general pathomechanistic driver of neurodegenerative diseases.


Industry 4.0 has placed an emphasis on real-time decision making in the execution of systems, such as semiconductor manufacturing. This article will evaluate a scheduling methodology called Evolutionary Learning Based Simulation Optimization (ELBSO) using data generated by a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) for scheduling a Stochastic Job Shop Scheduling Problem (SJSSP). ELBSO is embedded within Ordinal Optimization (OO), where in the first phase it uses a meta model, which previously was trained by a Discrete Event Simulation model of a SJSSP. The meta model used within ELBSO uses Genetic Programming (GP)-based Machine Learning (ML). Therefore, instead of using the DES model to train and test the meta model, this article uses historical data from a front-end fab to train and test. The results were statistically evaluated for the quality of the fit generated by the meta-model.


A mature teacher who continuously seeks improvement should be recognised as a professional who has autonomy in conducting their job and has the autonomy to engage in a professional community of practice (Hyslop-Margison and Sears, 2010). In other words, teachers' engagement in professional development activities should be driven by their own determination rather than extrinsic sources of motivation. In this context, teachers' self-determination can be defined as a feeling of connectedness with their own aspirations or personal values, confidence in their ability to master new skills, and a sense of autonomy in planning their own professional development path (Stupnisky et al., 2018; Eyal and Roth, 2011; Ryan and Deci, 2000). Previous studies have shown the advantages of providing teachers with autonomy to determine personal and professional improvement. Bergmark (2020) found that giving teachers the opportunity to identify areas of improvement based on teaching experience expanded the ways they think and understand themselves as teachers and how they can improve their teaching. Teachers who plan their own improvement showed a higher level of curiosity in learning and trying out new things. Bergmark (2020) also shows that a continuous cycle of reflection and teaching improvement allows teachers to recognise that the perfect lesson does not exist. Hence, continuous reflection and improvement are needed to shape the lesson to meet various classroom contexts. Moreover, Cheon et al. (2018) found that increased teacher autonomy led to greater teaching efficacy and a greater tendency to adopt intrinsic (relative to extrinsic) instructional goals. In developed countries, teacher autonomy is present and has become part of teachers' professional life and schools' development plans. In Finland, for example, the government is responsible for providing resources and services that schools request, while school development and teachers' professional learning are integrated into a day-to-day "experiment" performed collaboratively by teachers and principals (Niemi, 2015). This kind of experience gives teachers a sense of mastery and boosts their determination to continuously learn (Ryan and Deci, 2000). In low-performing countries, distributing autonomy of education quality improvement to schools and teachers negatively correlates with the countries' education outcomes (Hanushek et al., 2011). This study also suggests that education outcome accountability and teacher capacity are necessary to ensure the provision of autonomy to improve education quality. However, to have teachers who can meet dynamic educational challenges through continuous learning, de Klerk & Barnett (2020) suggest that developing countries include programmes that could nurture teachers' agency to learn in addition to the regular content and pedagogical-focused teacher training materials. Giving autonomy to teachers can be challenging in an environment where accountability or performance is measured by narrow considerations (teacher exam score, administrative completion, etc.). As is the case in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, teachers tend to attend training to meet performance evaluation administrative criteria rather than to address specific professional development needs (Dymoke and Harrison, 2006). Generally, the focus of the training relies on what the government believes will benefit their teaching workforce. Teacher professional development (TPD) is merely an assignment for Jakarta teachers. Most teachers attend the training only to obtain attendance certificates that can be credited towards their additional performance allowance. Consequently, those teachers will only reproduce teaching practices that they have experienced or observed from their seniors. As in other similar professional development systems, improvement in teaching quality at schools is less likely to happen (Hargreaves, 2000). Most of the trainings were led by external experts or academics who did not interact with teachers on a day-to-day basis. This approach to professional development represents a top-down mechanism where teacher training was designed independently from teaching context and therefore appears to be overly abstract, unpractical, and not useful for teachers (Timperley, 2011). Moreover, the lack of relevancy between teacher training and teaching practice leads to teachers' low ownership of the professional development process (Bergmark, 2020). More broadly, in the Jakarta education system, especially the public school system, autonomy was never given to schools and teachers prior to establishing the new TPD system in 2021. The system employed a top-down relationship between the local education agency, teacher training centres, principals, and teachers. Professional development plans were usually motivated by a low teacher competency score or budgeted teacher professional development programme. Guided by the scores, the training centres organised training that could address knowledge areas that most of Jakarta's teachers lack. In many cases, to fulfil the quota as planned in the budget, the local education agency and the training centres would instruct principals to assign two teachers to certain training without knowing their needs. Realizing that the system was not functioning, Jakarta's local education agency decided to create a reform that gives more autonomy toward schools and teachers in determining teacher professional development plan. The new system has been piloted since November 2021. To maintain the balance between administrative evaluation and addressing professional development needs, the new initiative highlights the key role played by head teachers or principals. This is based on assumption that principals who have the opportunity to observe teaching practice closely could help teachers reflect and develop their professionalism. (Dymoke and Harrison, 2006). As explained by the professional development case in Finland, leadership and collegial collaboration are also critical to shaping a school culture that could support the development of professional autonomy. The collective energies among teachers and the principal will also direct the teacher toward improving teaching, learning, and caring for students and parents (Hyslop-Margison and Sears, 2010; Hargreaves, 2000). Thus, the new TPD system in Jakarta adopts the feature of collegial collaboration. This is considered as imperative in Jakarta where teachers used to be controlled and join a professional development activity due to external forces. Learning autonomy did not exist within themselves. Hence, teachers need a leader who can turn the "professional development regulation" into a culture at schools. The process will shape teachers to do professional development quite autonomously (Deci et al., 2001). In this case, a controlling leadership style will hinder teachers' autonomous motivation. Instead, principals should articulate a clear vision, consider teachers' individual needs and aspirations, inspire, and support professional development activities (Eyal and Roth, 2011). This can also be called creating a professional culture at schools (Fullan, 1996). In this Note, we aim to understand how the schools and teachers respond to the new teacher professional development system. We compare experience and motivation of different characteristics of teachers.


Correspondence Searat Ali, School of Business, Faculty of Business and Law, University ofWollongong, Northfields Ave,WollongongNSW2522, Australia. Emails: firstname.lastname@example.com Abstract We investigate whether corporate governance has differential effects on downside and upside risk. Intuitively, strong corporate governance should decrease the downside risk but increase the upside risk. However, using a large panel of 1164 non-financial Australian firms from 2001 to 2013, we find that strong corporate governance relates negatively not only to downside risk but also to upside risk. These findings are robust to alternative risk-taking and corporate governance proxies and alternative sample specifications.We also show that our main results are unaffected due to endogeneity bias by using firm and industry-year fixed effects, lagged independent variables, generalized method of moments and entropy balancing estimation techniques. In additional analyses, we document that our main results are homogeneous across different industries and for firms with varying levels of boardroom gender diversity. However, we find that our main results are driven by firms with lower ownership concentration aswell as by older andmoremature firms. Finally, we document that while reducing risk-taking (downside and upside risk), corporate governance reduces firm value. From a regulatory perspective, these findings raise questions on the design ofmonitoring-focused corporate governance recommendations and have implications for risk management.


Abstract. In recent years, redundancy in parallel manipulators has been studied broadly due to its capability of overcoming some of the drawbacks of parallel manipulators including small workspaces and singular configurations. Internal redundancy, first introduced for serial manipulators, refers to the concept of adding movable masses to some links so as to allow to control the location of the centre of mass and other dynamic properties of some links. This concept has also been referred to as variable geometry. This paper investigates the effects of internal redundancy on the dynamic properties of a planar parallel manipulator while performing a family of trajectories. More specifically, the 3-RRR planar manipulator, where a movable mass has been added to the distal link, is allowed to trace trajectories with rounded corners and different radii. The proposed method uses the manipulator's dynamic model to actively optimise the location of the redundant masses at every point along the trajectory to improve the dynamic performance of the manipulator. Numerical examples are shown to support the idea.


Quantum information platforms made great progress in the control of many-body entanglement and the implementation of quantum error correction, but it remains a challenge to realize both in the same setup. Here, we propose a mixture of two ultracold atomic species as a platform for universal quantum computation with long-range entangling gates, while providing a natural candidate for quantum error-correction. In this proposed setup, one atomic species realizes localized collective spins of tunable length, which form the fundamental unit of information. The second atomic species yields phononic excitations, which are used to entangle collective spins. Finally, we discuss a finite-dimensional version of the Gottesman–Kitaev–Preskill code to protect quantum information encoded in the collective spins, opening up the possibility to universal fault-tolerant quantum computation in ultracold atom systems.


The (111)-p-Cu2O/(0001)-n-ZnO heterostructure was successfully fabricated using low-temperature electrodeposition method on Au(111)/Si(100) substrate. The ZnO film deposited at positive current density was composed of aggregates of isolated hexagonal columnar grains, and the interface between ZnO and Cu2O layer was clearly observed. (0002)-oriented continuous ZnO layer deposited on the (111)-Cu2O layer at negative current density, but the metallic Cu layer was formed between ZnO and Cu2O layers by reducing Cu2O to Cu during ZnO deposition. The Cu2O/isolated-ZnO heterostructure showed ohmic feature, and (111)-Cu2O/Cu/(0002)-ZnO heterostructures showed an excellent rectification with rectification ratio of 85.


Mucoadhesion defined as attachment of synthetic or natural materials to mucosal tissues has been widely exploited in pharmaceutical forms. This multi-author book provides an up-to-date account of current research on mucoadhesive materials and drug delivery systems. The introductory section describes the structure and physiology of various mucosal surfaces (oral, nasal, ocular, gastrointestinal and vaginal mucosa). This is followed by chapters on the various methods used to study mucoadhesion and to characterise mucoadhesive properties of various dosage forms. The final section will summarise information on traditional and novel types of mucoadhesive materials, such as chitosan, thiomers, and liposome-based formulations. This book is unique as there is currently no modern book considering mucoadhesion - all other existing books on the topic are either narrowly focused or more than 10 years old. Furthermore, each contributor offers specialist perspectives from a variety of global locations in both industrial and academic research centres.


Physicians are required to make determinations that affect the health and well-being of their patients on a daily basis. None of these judgements may have as profound an impact as the decisions rendered for athletes who have suffered a concussion. Concussions occur with regularity in sports and vary in severity and appropriate management. Guidelines should be followed and used as a tool to allow safe return to competitive endeavors in the athletic arena. Following guidelines will decrease the likelihood of worsening the condition with potentially fatal consequences.


Over the past three decades, phononic crystals (PnCs) have attracted scientific interest by demonstrating a variety of unique manipulations of sound and elastic wave propagation, through control of wave dispersion by Bragg scattering. The high freedom in the choice of materials and designs of PnC systems and the wide available frequency range provide researchers with a vast playground in physics and applications. The field started with studies in the sonic and the ultrasonic frequency range, with applications in acoustic metamaterials, sound shielding, sound absorption, medical imaging, microelectro-mechanical systems, surface acoustic waves, acoustooptics, and optomechanics. Concepts have then been extended to nonlinear physics and non-reciprocal acoustics. Recently, the downsizing of PnCs has broadened the research area toward higher frequencies and has enabled the manipulation of heat conduction in solids. The new concept of thermocrystal opens a new possibility of the PnC assisted by material science and nanofabrication technology1. Following fundamental advances in topological insulators made in solid state physics, topological phononics now promotes protection against radiation loss and spurious scattering. This special topic aims at providing a comprehensive overview of the most recent advances in research and applications of PnCs at various frequencies, from sound to heat.


The PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway is an important signaling axis that is perturbed in majority of cancers. Biomarkers such as pS6RP, GLUT1, and tumor FDG uptake are being evaluated in patient stratification formTOR pathway inhibitors. In the absence of a clear understanding of the underlyingmechanisms in tumor signaling, the biomarker strategy for patient stratification is of limited use. Here, we show that no discernible correlation exists between FDGuptake and the corresponding Ki67, GLUT1, pS6RP expression in tumor biopsies frompatients with head and neck cancer. Correlation between GLUT1 and pS6RP levels in tumors was observed but elevated pS6RP was noticed even in the absence of concomitant AKT activation, suggesting that other downstreammolecules of PI3K/AKT and/or other pathways upstream of mTOR are active in these tumors. Using an ex vivo platform, we identified putative responders to rapamycin, an mTOR inhibitor in these tumors. However, rapamycin did not induce antitumor effect in the majority of tumors with activated mTOR, potentially attributable to the observation that rapamycin induces feedback activation of AKT. Accordingly, treatment of these tumors with an AKT inhibitor and rapamycin uniformly resulted in abrogation of mTOR inhibition-induced AKT activation in all tumors but failed to induce antitumor response in a subset. Phosphoproteomic profiling of tumors resistant to dual AKT/mTOR inhibitors revealed differential activation of multiple pathways involved in proliferation and survival. Collectively, our results suggest that, in addition to biomarker-based segregation, functional assessment of a patient's tumor before treatment with mTOR/AKT inhibitors may be useful for patient stratification. Cancer Res; 73(3); 1118–27. 2013 AACR.


Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common type of leukemia in developed countries. CLL is diagnosed with absolute B lymphocyte count (B-ALC) >5000/micrL sustained for at least 3 months, morphologically mature-appearing small lymphocytes, and flow cytometry showing the typical immunophenotype of CLL cells. Different prognostic parameters are used to differentiate between low-and high-risk patients, which would affect treatment decisions. Rai and Binet staging systems are the two most commonly used in practice. There has been a significant change in how we manage patients in CLL over the last 5 years. We have shifted away from chemoimmunotherapy toward novel agents such as BTK, PIK3, and BCL-2 inhibitors, which are not only more efficacious but are also safer and better tolerated. New prognostic models are being developed, and it appears that minima residual disease (MRD) directed therapy will become the norm in the future. Many clinical trials are looking at various combinations of novel therapies, with a defined period of treatment based on MRD analysis, to enable patients to have a period of treatment-free remission instead of continuous therapy. In this chapter, we summarize the latest updates in CLL management.


With the emergence of low-latency non-volatile memory (NVM) storage, the software overhead, incurred by the operating system, becomes more prominent. The Linux (monolithic) kernel, incorporates a complex I/O subsystem design, using redundant memory copies and expensive user/kernel context switches to perform I/O. Memory-mapped I/O, which internally uses demand paging, has recently become popular when paired with low-latency storage. It improves I/O performance by mapping the data DMA transfers directly to userspace memory and removing the additional data copy between user/kernel space. However, for data-intensive applications, when there is insufficient physical memory, frequent page faults can still trigger expensive mode switches and I/O operations. To tackle this problem, we propose CO-PAGER, which is a lightweight userspace memory service. CO-PAGER consists of a minimal kernel module and a userspace component. The userspace component handles (redirected) page faults, performs memory management and I/O operations and accesses NVM storage directly. The kernel module is used to update memory mapping between user and kernel space. In this way CO-PAGER can bypass the deep kernel I/O stacks and provide a flexible/customizable and efficient memory paging service in userspace. We provide a general programming interface to use the CO-PAGER service. In our experiments, we also demonstrate how the CO-PAGER approach can be applied to a MapReduce framework and improves performance for data-intensive applications.


There are apocryphal stories of a game played amongst federal prosecutors whereby the prosecutors take turns presenting their best case for bringing forth an indictment against the Pope. The vast nature of Title 18 of the U.S. Code presents plenty of crimes for participants to select. However, one version of the game prohibits a prosecutor from selecting 18 U.S.C. § 1343—the wire fraud statute—because of the vast potential applicability of the law, with even preparatory acts often falling within the statute's purview. Indeed, a Pope was indicted in March 2009 for his role in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Getzendanner noted: "[t]he mail and wire fraud statutes enable the federal government to prosecute virtually anyone who uses either of the ubiquitous means in furtherance of a fraudulent scheme." The primary restrictions on the use of mail fraud and wire fraud are a combination of lack of resources and prosecutorial discretion.
Through the late 1980s, the scope of potential liability under both wire fraud and mail fraud expanded. However, the expansion into incorporation of certain intangible rights under the statute has received criticism, including the argument that the scope of the statute allows for "federal involvement of matters of little federal concern." The broad nature of the wire fraud and mail fraud statutes make the law potentially applicable to a wide variety of instances, including the possible application to employees and/or executives of major daily fantasy sports (DFS) companies such as FanDuel and DraftKings. We analyze the wire fraud statute and so-called "tipping"—gaining access to, or the provision of, non-public information—that may be helpful in winning DFS contests.


Tumor-infiltrating immune cells and their prognostic value have been analyzed in various malignancies. Although tissue microarray (TMA) has been used in some of these studies, it is still questionable whether this technique can represent the results of infiltrating CD8+ cells obtained from whole-tissue sections (WTS). The aim of this study was to assess and compare the density of tumor-infiltrating CD8+ cells in ovarian cancer using TMA and WTS. CD8+ lymphocytes were immunohistochemically stained on WTS and TMA cores from 37 ovarian cancer patients and quantified using the image analysis software HistoQuest. Four different areas were selected on the WTS, namely (i) tumor; (ii) stroma; (iii) mixed; and (iv) dense, whereby dense represented areas of most abundant CD8+ cells. On the TMA, (i) the whole TMA cores and (ii) areas containing only epithelial tumor tissue were analyzed. The Pearson correlation and principal component analysis was used to estimate the correlation of results from different techniques. CD8+ lymphocytes showed highly correlated measurements between tumor, mixed, and dense areas. Moderate correlations were found between each of these 3 measurements and stroma. CD8+ cell counts from WTS showed moderate correlation with TMA cell counts. Consistently, principal component analysis showed 3 clusters (i) tumor, dense, mixed; (ii) stroma; and (iii) TMA areas. Taken together, when the prognostic impact of tumor-infiltrating CD8+ cells in ovarian cancer is investigated with TMA technique, a moderate correlation with WTS results has to be considered.


There is an extensive applied mathematics literature developed for problems in the biological and physical sciences. Our understanding of social science problems from a mathematical standpoint is less developed, but also presents some very interesting problems. This lecture uses crime as a case study for using applied mathematical techniques in a social science application and covers a variety of mathematical methods that are applicable to such problems. We will review recent work on agent based models, methods in linear and nonlinear partial differential equations, variational methods for inverse problems and statistical point process models. From an application standpoint we will look at problems in residential burglaries and gang crimes. Examples will consider both "bottom up" and "top down" approaches to understanding the mathematics of crime, and how the two approaches could converge to a unifying theory.


From the times of the Roman legion to the thunderous roar of the Soviet T-34 tanks, wars have shaped and literally drawn the boundaries of humanity. Although wars in contemporary times are less frequent than a few centuries ago, modern wars are more lethal and destructive. It is
this singular feature -large scale destruction- that sets wars apart from other forms of conflict. Wars have been waged in various intensities and degrees and by diverse actors, but have traditionally been seen as the domain of states. In medieval times, wars were the "sports" of kings.
Conceptually, war is defined as an armed conflict involving at least two nation-states. How does this characterization of war explain the types of conflicts that imperil a state's national interest and well-being without the use of force? How does this definition reconcile itself with the almost "war-like" threats posed by non-state actors? How does a state defend itself against foreign penetration and dissemination of information detrimental to its political stability and survival? This paper addresses these issues and argues that the traditional definition of war is too narrow. Wars are fought on many fronts and may not
necessarily involve the use of armed violence. Globalization has brought to the fore new challenges to state sovereignty and security. Issues such as trade wars and the spread of pandemic diseases do not fall under the traditional understanding of "war" but are no less lethal
and destructive. This calls for a broader definition of war to encompass dimensions of non-militarized conflicts and means of engagement.


Abstract
In this chapter, we "occupy the earth" with an overview of the anti-fracking discourse(s) of diverse local initiatives converging as a global movement opposed to fracking. By mapping the discourse(s) of the anti-fracking movement, the articulation of the problems and solutions associated with fracking raise questions not only about the environment but draw attention to a crisis of democracy and the critical need for social and environmental justice. With the help of a multiple theoretical framework we draw on insights about environmental movements and their democratizing potential; conceptualizations about power and (counter) discourse; and depictions of the environmental justice movements in the United States. Toward this end, we analyze the framing of the anti-fracking movement: the many local voices engaging in political struggles to sustain their communities, places and ways of life, and the global movements' forum for collective solidarity, recognition, and civic action. Shedding light on the multiple frames employed by movement members, we discuss the implications and potential embodied in this widening debate.


Sanergy has offered reliable, non-sewered sanitation services in Nairobi, Kenya through the implementation of container-based, urine-diverting dry toilets. However, there remains a large volume of untreated faecal waste in urban informal settlements due to poorly managed pit latrines. With limited space in the settlements to bury old pits and dig new ones, management of faecal sludge requires manual pit emptying and safe discharge. Sanergy piloted the Mtaa Fresh project in the settlement of Mukuru Kwa Njenga, establishing a waste transfer station where manual pit emptiers could safely and reliably dispose of pit latrine contents. The most important factors in the successful implementation of this station were, first, the relationship established between Sanergy and the pit emptiers and, second, Sanergy's commitment to iterating as new insights emerged. The relationship with the emptiers impacted the location, design, and adoption of the site, and aided in the formalization of a pit emptiers' community-based organization. The commitment to iterating enabled Sanergy to respond to learnings gained from the emptiers. Additional factors that ensured the success of Mtaa Fresh included the implementation of full-time staff, security when the site is closed, support from local authorities, and an expansion to improve management of faecal sludge and trash. Improvements trialled during the expansion aim to minimize operation and maintenance costs, but sustainability will still rely on government support and external funding.


During the worst years of apartheid, the most popular show on television in South Africa - among both blacks and whites - was "The Cosby Show". Why did people living under a system built on the idea that blacks were inferior and threatening flock to a show that portrayed African Americans as comfortably mainstream? Starring Mandela and Cosby takes up this paradox, revealing the surprising impact of television on racial politics. The South African government maintained a ban on television until 1976, and, according to Ron Krabill, they were right to be wary of its potential power. The medium, he contends, created a shared space for communication in a deeply divided nation that seemed destined for civil war along racial lines. At a time when it was illegal to publish images of Nelson Mandela, Bill Cosby became the most recognizable black man in the country - and, Krabill argues, his presence in the living rooms of white South Africans helped lay the groundwork for Mandela's release and ascension to power. Weaving together South Africa's political history and a social history of television, Krabill challenges conventional understandings of globalization, offering up new insights into the relationship between politics and the media.


Clustering analysis is an important method to research the Web user's browsing behavior and identify the potential customers on Web usage mining. The traditional user clustering algorithms are not quite accurate. In this paper, we give two improved user clustering algorithms, which are based on the associated matrix of the user's hits in the process of browsing website. To this matrix, an improved Hamming distance matrix is generated by defining the minimum norm or the generalized relative Hamming distance between any two vectors. Then, similar user clustering are obtained by setting the threshold value. At the last step of our algorithm, the clustering results are confirmed by defining the clustering's Similar Index and setting sub-algorithm. Finally, the testing examples show that the new algorithms are more accurate than the old one, and the real log data presents that the improved algorithms are practical.


This is a guide to finding Data and Statistics from a variety of sources, as well as some guidance on how to find help working with raw data.


We propose photobleaching-assisted near-field optical spectroscopy to obtain the absorption properties of nanomaterials. We used bis(3-sulfopropyl)-5,5′,6,6′-tetrachloro-11′-dioctylbenzimidacarbocyanine (C8S3) double-wall tubular J-aggregates for demonstrating this method. We photobleached the J-aggregate by photoirradiation. We obtained the absorption spectrum of the J-aggregates by subtracting the transmission spectra observed before and after the photobleaching. The spectrum showed an intense asymmetric peak near 595 nm, which was assigned to the J-bands. These features were well reproduced by theoretical model calculations. We estimated the oscillator strength per molecule from the observed absorbance, and we found that the determined oscillator strength is comparable to that of the monomer. These results indicate that the proposed method is applicable for obtaining near-field absorption spectra of nanomaterials in a semi-quantitative manner.


Purpose: Trust and commitment are the central tenets in building successful long-term relationships in the online retailing context. In the absence of physical interaction between the buyer and the seller, how websites can gain the trust of the buyers and deliver on the promises made have become central issues in online customer relationship management. This paper aims to re-examine the commitment-trust theory (CTT) of relationship marketing in the online retailing context. It seeks to theorize the antecedents and consequences of commitment and trust in the online context and identify how CTT can be adapted in a digitized business environment. Design/methodology/approach: Modified constructs and their measures are developed to understand the antecedents and the outcomes of commitment and trust. Survey data from British online customers (n ¼ 651) are used to test CTT hypotheses with structural equation modelling. Findings: The study suggests a significant modification to the traditional CTT model in the online environment. Privacy and security features of the website along with shared values are the key antecedents of trust, which in turn positively influences relationship commitment. Behavioural intentions of customers are consequences of both trust and commitment. The relationship termination cost has a negative impact on customer commitment. Research limitations/implications: The paper identifies interesting differences between the original work by Morgan and Hunt and the findings presented, but basically concludes that the commitment-trust theory applies to online retailing. Originality/value: Contributions of this study in re-examining the CTT model of relationship marketing in an online context are manifold. This paper proposes a modified model to understand the role of consumer trust and commitment in a digitized environment. The modified constructs and measures truly reflect the dynamism of online business. The extended CTT model can provide better insight into managing customer relationships in online retailing.


This paper develops a methodology for collaborative human-robot exploration that leverages implicit coordination. Most autonomous single- and multi-robot exploration systems require a remote operator to provide explicit guidance to the robotic team. Few works consider how to embed the human partner alongside robots to provide guidance in the field. A remaining challenge for collaborative human-robot exploration is efficient communication of goals from the human to the robot. In this paper we develop a methodology that implicitly communicates a region of interest from a helmet-mounted depth camera on the human's head to the robot and an information gain-based exploration objective that biases motion planning within the viewpoint provided by the human. The result is an aerial system that safely accesses regions of interest that may not be immediately viewable or reachable by the human. The approach is evaluated in simulation and with hardware experiments in a motion capture arena. Videos of the simulation and hardware experiments are available at: https://youtu.be/7jgkBpVFIoE.


Objective: A case of basilar bifurcation aneurysm associated with unilateral moyamoya disease (MMD) treated by stentassisted coiling (SAC) following bypass surgery is reported. Case Presentation: The patient was a 41-year-old man with a basilar bifurcation aneurysm associated with left unilateral MMD. Treatment was indicated because the aneurysm showed a gradual increase in size. The left middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory was revealed to have reduced cerebrovascular reactivity although the area was supplied through collateral channels from the left posterior cerebral artery (PCA). A left superficial temporal artery (STA)-MCA anastomosis was performed first, and SAC was performed after 3 month interval. DSA performed 1 year after the endovascular procedure showed progressive occlusion of the aneurysm although the immediate angiographic result was dome filling. Conclusion: An aneurysm associated with MMD located in a major vessels may be treated effectively with a combination of bypass surgery and SAC.


The genus Desmanthus includes tropical and temperate species, with a center of origin in the Caribbean basin. Ecotypes range from 2m high Q. viroatus shrubs to the prostrate fi. deoressus. Adaptation ranges from heavy clays to coarse sands and from semi-arid to wet equatorial rainfall zones. High-quality, palatable forage is characteristic, although poor acceptance by cattle of germplasm on acid, infertile soils has been observed. Age or physiological stage at defoliation affects regrowth potential. Some accessions of perennial shrubs have been called annuals due to failure to regenerate following defoliation. Collections of Desmanthus include almost 300 accessions at CSIRO, over 150 accessions at CIAT, plus collections at ILCA, CARDI, and the USDA. Forage potential includes pastures, protein banks and cut-and-carry systems. However, identification of appropriate germplasm for specific sites and determination of defoliation management for sustained, productive use have not been adequately determined. This lack of information limits commercial use of Desmanthus germplasm.


Objective To describe the changing trends in modes of delivery, in a single large urban Irish population over the past 10 years. Study design A retrospective review of the modes of all deliveries in the three Dublin Maternity Hospitals from 1999 to 2009 was performed. The annual rates of spontaneous vaginal delivery, forceps, ventouse deliveries, and caesarean section in the three hospitals were calculated. The rates of the different modes of delivery were then analysed to ascertain if a trend existed. Results During the 10 year study period there were a total of 255,295 deliveries. During this time period the caesarean section rate has increased from 16.98% (n=3681) in 1999 to 24.4% (n=6480) in 2009 (p<0.05). The operative vaginal delivery rate, has increased from 13.5% in 1999 to 17.4% in 2009. The rate of forceps delivery has remained relatively unchanged (5.34% in 1999 vs 5.87% in 2009), while the ventouse delivery rate has increased significantly from 8.16% (n=1770) in 1999 to 11.54% (n=3063) in 2009. Of note, the rate of spontaneous vaginal delivery has decreased significantly over the past 10 years from 69.5% (n=15,072) to 58.17% (n=15,440) in 2009. Conclusion Obstetrics over the past 10 years in the Dublin Maternity Hospitals has seen a dramatic increase in the Caesarean section rate and a lesser increase in the overall operative vaginal delivery (rate. This has led to a consequent significant decrease in the spontaneous vaginal delivery rate. The reasons for the increase in caesarean section rate in our cohort are multifactorial.


Introduction. Graduate assistantships provide students with financial assistance and the opportunity to gain professional experience. Doctor of physical therapy (DPT) students face increasing student loan debts, and graduate assistantships are one method to provide financial support and opportunities for professional involvement. Responsibilities of graduate assistants (GAs) typically include teaching, research, and/or administrative activities as assigned by their faculty supervisor. The purposes of this study were to 1) explore the perceptions of GAs and their faculty supervisors about entry-level DPT graduate assistantship responsibilities and experiences and 2) develop a conceptual framework to describe the graduate assistantship experience in a physical therapist education program. Previous authors have demonstrated that GAs face challenges if there is a lack of clear expectations, training, or mentorship. However, with effective training and faculty supervision, GAs can receive valuable professional experience. In addition, GA faculty supervisors may benefit from increased research productivity and assistance with teaching responsibilities. There is limited research about the experiences of GAs and the faculty supervisors in health care professions, and no research about physical therapist education was found. Methods. There were a total of 33 subjects: nine full-time physical therapy faculty members and 24 entry-level DPT students. In this qualitative study, subjects completed a demographic form and participated in a focus group interview with peers. Guiding questions focused on the following: reasons for becoming a GA/faculty supervisor, fairness of compensation, description of assigned roles and responsibilities involved with graduate assistantships, the benefits and challenges of being a GA/faculty supervisor, and future recommendations. Descriptive statistics and the constant comparative method were used for data analysis. Themes and concepts were generated and a conceptual framework was developed. Results. Participants described GA responsibilities that included teaching, research, and/or administrative activities. All participants agreed that the financial compensation for GAs was fair and, despite some challenges, the graduate assistantship experience was beneficial for both students and faculty. Examples of benefits for students included increased knowledge about teaching and research, improved communication/time management skills, and a collegial relationship with faculty. Faculty benefits included increased productivity, training in new technology/computer skills from GAs, and gratification related to growth of the GA. Concepts with accompanying themes included the following: factors for a successful experience (supportive structure and relationship building), transitions in roles and relationships (changing roles and evolving relationships between the GA and the faculty supervisor), and influences on professional development (doing and becoming). Discussion and Conclusion. The graduate assistantship experience can be beneficial for students and faculty. The conceptual framework illustrates how the concepts contribute to a successful experience and facilitate professional development of both students and faculty. These findings may assist faculty in effectively mentoring GAs and help encourage physical therapist educators to develop GA positions and establish training programs for both students and faculty.


Cysteine protease-inhibiting proteins of the cystatin superfamily can inhibit the replication of certain viruses and bacteria. The inhibitory centre of human cystatin C, the most widely distributed human cystatin, comprises three peptide segments. The present work describes the synthesis and antibacterial activity of 27 new peptidyl derivatives or cyclopeptides based upon the aminoterminal segment Arg 8 -Leu 9 -Val 10 -Gly 11 . Fourteen of the new compounds displayed antibacterial activity against from 1 up to 9 of 17 clinically important bacterial species tested. Antiproteolytic activity of a compound was usually not required for its antibacterial capacity. Peptidyl diazomethanes generally had a very narrow antibacterial spectrum, inhibiting only Streptococcus pyogenes, whereas cyclopeptides and peptidyl derivatives of the general structure X-Arg-Leu-NH-CH(iPr)-CH 2 -NH-Y had a much wider spectrum. The most potent of these substances displayed approximately equal minimal inhibitory and bactericidal concentrations of about 20 μg/ml for both Staphylococcus aureus and S. pyogenes and were devoid of antiproteolytic activity. Several of the new substances could protect mice against lethal intraperitoneal challenge with S. pyogenes. Though their target remains to be disclosed, the group of substances here reported might be promising for the development of antibacterial drugs and the discovery of novel principles of action.


Aims and objectives. To examine cognitive function and its relationships to demographic characteristics and social support among elders in central China.
Background. Cognitive decline is prevalent among elders. Few studies have explored the relationship between social support and cognitive function among elders.
Design. A cross-sectional, descriptive correlational study.
Methods. A quasi-random, point of reference sample of 120 elders residing in central China was recruited for study. Instruments used included a: Socio-demographic Questionnaire, the Multidimensional Scale on Perceived Social Support and the Mini-Mental State Examination. Hierarchical multiple regression was performed to examine the relationships among demographic variables, social support and cognitive function.
Results. Age, education and social support accounted for 45•2% of the variance in cognitive function. Family support was the strongest predictor of cognitive function. Elders who had higher educational levels and more family support had better cognitive function.
Relevance to clinical practice. Community healthcare providers should consolidate social support among elders in China and use family support interventions to reduce or delay cognitive decline, especially among those of increased age who are illiterate.
Conclusion. Elders who had higher educational level and more family support had better cognitive function levels. Interventions that include family support are needed to improve cognitive function among elders in China.


We search for runaway former companions of the progenitors of nearby Galactic core-collapse supernova remnants (SNRs) in the Tycho-Gaia astrometric solution (TGAS). We look for candidates for a sample of ten SNRs with distances less than $2\;\mathrm{kpc}$, taking astrometry and $G$ magnitude from TGAS and $B,V$ magnitudes from the AAVSO Photometric All-Sky Survey (APASS). A simple method of tracking back stars and finding the closest point to the SNR centre is shown to have several failings when ranking candidates. In particular, it neglects our expectation that massive stars preferentially have massive companions. We evolve a grid of binary stars to exploit these covariances in the distribution of runaway star properties in colour - magnitude - ejection velocity space. We construct an analytic model which predicts the properties of a runaway star, in which the model parameters are the properties of the progenitor binary and the properties of the SNR. Using nested sampling we calculate the Bayesian evidence for each candidate to be the runaway and simultaneously constrain the properties of that runaway and of the SNR itself. We identify four likely runaway companions of the Cygnus Loop, HB 21, S147 and the Monoceros Loop. HD 37424 has previously been suggested as the companion of S147, however the other three stars are new candidates. The favoured companion of HB 21 is the Be star BD+50 3188 whose emission-line features could be explained by pre-supernova mass transfer from the primary. There is a small probability that the $2\;\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$ candidate runaway TYC 2688-1556-1 associated with the Cygnus Loop is a hypervelocity star. If the Monoceros Loop is related to the on-going star formation in the Mon OB2 association, the progenitor of the Monoceros Loop is required to be more massive than $40\;\mathrm{M}_{\odot}$ which is in tension with the posterior for HD 261393.


Purpose: Blunt thoracic aortic injury (BTAI) has a high mortality rate, and the occurrence of clinical complications is high. Several studies have reported the efficacy of thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for BTAI. This study aimed to clarify the use of TEVAR for BTAI. Methods: We analyzed 10 cases of TEVAR for BTAI from July 2011 to December 2020 at our hospital. Five of 10 cases of BTAI were caused by road traffic accidents, while five were caused by falls from a height. Results: The mean patient age was 59.3 years. When arriving at our hospital, seven of 10 patients were in shock. Nine of 10 cases of BTAI were at the aortic isthmus. With respect to BTAI severity, five of 10 patients were categorized as grade IV. Ps of non-survivors were extremely low. All patients underwent TEVAR. The mean surgical duration and volume of intraoperative blood loss were 77.5 minutes and 234 ml, respectively. Conclusion: The results of TEVAR for BTAI at our institution support previous reports, which show excellent clinical results. To further improve the outcomes, we must clarify the adaptation of nonoperative management (delayed repair), the optimal timing of invasive treatment, and the importance of long-term follow-up.


In the mouse, estrogen and progesterone are required to prime the uterus for decidual cell reaction (DCR) in response to an intraluminal stimulus and, once DCR is induced, progesterone is required to maintain DCR. However, some evidence indicates that certain nonprogestational steroid hormones may also be involved in regulating DCR. The present study determined whether androgen plays any role in DCR. Adult CD1 mice were ovariectomized and treated with a regimen of estradiol and progesterone to prime the uterus for DCR and to maintain DCR. Sesame oil was injected into the uterine lumen to induce DCR on Day 5 of the treatment. DCR was determined by deciduomal weight-the difference between the wet weights of oil-injected and noninjected uterine horns. Testosterone, given at 1 mg/day during Days 3-5, could not replace progesterone in priming the uterus for DCR. However, the same dose of testosterone given during Days 6-8 maintained DCR. Alkaline phosphatase activity, a bio-marker for DCR, was present in the deciduoma maintained by either progesterone or testosterone, although the distribution of this enzyme activity was more intense in the antimesometrial pole in progesterone-maintained deciduoma. A nonaromatizable androgen, 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), was also effective in maintaining DCR, and this action of DHT was blocked by an androgen receptor antagonist, hydroxyflutamide. The relative potency of DHT in maintaining DCR was similar to that of progesterone. However, the regression of the deciduoma appeared to be advanced in DHT-treated mice. Ovariectomy on Day 6 of pregnancy resulted in resorption of the conceptus and regression of the decidua within 48 h. Treatment with DHT at the time of ovariectomy could not prevent fetal resorption, but it delayed the regression of decidua, as indicated, in part, by the presence of granulated metrial gland cells. In summary, androgen cannot prime the uterus for DCR, but it can maintain DCR once it is induced. The physiological significance of this finding remains to be determined.


In this paper we present an overview on the development of a large vocabulary continuous speech recognition system for Khmer language. Methods and tools used for quick language resources collection for the development of an ASR system for a new under-resourced language are presented. Face with the problem of lack of text data and the word error segmentation in language modeling, we investigate how different views of the text data (word and sub-word units) can be exploited for Khmer language modeling. We propose to work both at the model level (by making hybrid vocabularies with both word and sub-word units) as well as at the ASR output level (by using a simple N-best list voting mechanism). For acoustic modeling, we use basic linguistic rules to automatically generate pronunciation dictionaries based on grapheme and phoneme. An experimental framework is setup to evaluate the performance of each modeling units. Index Terms-ASR, Khmer, word and sub-word units, acoustic modeling, language modeling.


Multimodality is a fact of human communication, increasingly our ways to communicate change and humans do interact with machines (be it a mundane ATM transaction, the calling of an automised call center, or the setting/disarming of a residential alarm system). However, these interactions are mostly limited to single input and output schemes, thus loosing a lot of additional information a human communication partner would sense, Multimodality was perceived to exactly tackle this point. This paper describes a framework and approach to operate multimodal interaction mechanisms in both the fixed as well as the mobile environments. The paper describes a scheme that facilitates the dynamic binding and release of user-interface devices (such as screens, keyboards, etc.) to support multimodal interactions in mobile environments and to enable the user to 'make use' of any possible user interface device available (and allowed), thus supporting the individuals changing communication environment. The principles and basic functionality of an adaptive multimodal human interface-device binding engine are outlined.


Recent technological advances have opened up several distributed real-time applications involving battery-driven embedded devices with local processing and wireless communication capabilities. Energy management is the key issue in the design and operation of such systems. In this paper, we consider a single-hop networked real-time embedded system where each node supports both dynamic voltage scaling (DVS) and dynamic modulation scaling (DMS) power management techniques to tradeoff time for energy savings. In this model, we address the problem of scheduling periodic complex tasks where each task consists of several precedence constrained message passing sub-tasks. Our contributions towards this problem are twofold. First, we analyze the system level energy-time tradeoffs considering both the computation and communication workloads by defining a novel energy gain metric. We then present static (centralized) and dynamic (distributed) energy gain based slack allocation algorithms which reduce the total energy consumption, while guaranteeing the ready time, deadline and precedence constraints. We compare the performance of the proposed algorithms with several baseline algorithms through simulation studies. Our results show that the proposed algorithms perform significantly better than the baseline algorithms for the simulated conditions. Finally, we identify several interesting energy-aware research problems in the area of networked real-time embedded systems.


This book describes the subject of electrodynamics at classical as well as quantum level, developed as an interaction at a distance. Thus it has electric charges interacting with one another directly and not through the medium of a field. In general such an interaction travels forward and backward in time symmetrically, thus apparently violating the principle of causality. It turns out, however, that in such a description the cosmological boundary conditions become very important. The theory therefore works only in a cosmology with the right boundary conditions; but when it does work it is free from the divergences that plague a quantum field theory.


Boronic acid is known to form DD·AA, DA·AD, and AA·DD type complexes. In this article, the ability of phenyldiboronic acid to associate with hydrogen bond acceptors (1,8-naphthyridine, 5,6,11,12-tetraazanaphthacene, 2,8a-dihydropyrano[2,3-b]pyran and 4aH-[1,4]dioxino[2,3-b][1,4]dioxine) has been analyzed in light of density functional theory. Stabilization energy and thermochemical analysis predict the feasibility of formation of DD·AA type complexes between phenyldiboronic acid and N–/O–hydrogen bond acceptors. The gas and solvent phase calculations showed that the stabilization energy varies with the size of the association geometry. IR and NMR studies revealed the weakening of the O–H bond during complexation. Complexes with as many as three boronic acids and four hydrogen bond acceptors are studied and are predicted to be stable.


Runt-related transcription factor 2 ( RUNX2 ) plays important roles in osteoblast differentiation, tooth development and chondrocyte maturation; hence its involvement in craniofacial development is paramount. Mutation in RUNX2 is implicated with cleidocranial dysplasia; a bone development disorder, while single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in RUNX2 is associated with Class II/D2 malocclusion. Although genetic factor has been associated with the incidence of malocclusion; very limited study was conducted to determine the association of certain genes with the incidence of malocclusion in Malaysia. Thus, this preliminary study aimed to determine the presence and association of RUNX2 SNP (rs6930053) in Class II malocclusion patients. Genomic DNA was extracted from unstimulated saliva of 31 Class I (control samples) and 30 Class II malocclusion patients. Cephalometric measurements were performed prior to saliva samples collection. The DNA was amplified using the specific primers for marker rs6930053 and the genotyping was done by sequencing. Chi-square test was used to determine differences in allele and genotype frequencies. Significant difference was detected in allele ( p =3.04X10 -6 ) and genotype ( p =4.06X10 -6 ) frequencies between control (Class I) and Class II malocclusion. This result suggested there was a genetic association between RUNX2 (rs6930053) with Class II malocclusion ( p =3.04X10 -6 , OR= 6.59; 95% CI=2.88~15.08). We provided preliminary observation that RUNX2 SNP (rs6930053) might contribute to Class II malocclusion in our local population. Further studies involving larger number of samples and other DNA markers of RUNX2 gene should be developed in order to understand the exact role and mechanism of RUNX2 in different classes of malocclusions and how this polymorphism affects the malocclusion cases in Malaysian population. Keywords: Class II malocclusion; rs6930053; SNP; RUNX2


We report a mode-locked Vertical-External-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (VECSEL) that exhibits 13.7 nm of tuning around a centre wavelength of 1042 nm. The wavelength tuning is achieved by incorporating an uncoated, 25 μm thick, fused silica etalon into the cavity of the laser at Brewster's angle. The etalon is then tilted with respect to the cavity axis. The etalon has a calculated free spectral range of 14 nm at normal incidence. The repetition rate of the laser is measured to be 1.88 GHz. The pulse duration, averaged over the tuning range, is 1.9 ps corresponding to a mean time bandwidth product of 0.46. For a sech2 pulse this is 1.46 times larger than the transform limit. The average power of the laser does not fall below 2.6 mW and, over the tuning range, averages 3.5 mW. With appropriate amplification, such a laser would be highly suited to the generation of heralded single photons in photonic crystal fibre.


Standard in vitro fertilization (IVF) protocols are characterized by the administration of exogenous follicle stimulation hormone (FSH) which is widely adopted regimen for controlled ovarian stimulation (COS) in normogonadotrophic women. In daily clinical practice, the ovarian response to these protocols are optimal in about 85% of patients, with more than 3 mature oocytes recruited. In about 12-15% of cases, however, an initial low response is seen, leading to an increase in the daily dose of FSH, resulting in a higher total FSH consumption (e.g. >2500 IU) (Alviggi et al., 2013). These observations lead to the development of the concept of "hypo-response" to COS to identify normogonadotrophic women who have normal estimated ovarian reserves but require high amounts of FSH to obtain an adequate number of oocytes retrieved (De Placido et al., 2005, Ferraretti et al., 2004, Devroey et al., 2009). These women seem to be distinct from classical poor responders because they have normal ovarian reserve, but show an unexpected sub-optimal response when stimulated with standard regimens. Conversely, specific adjustments of classical protocols seem to optimise ovarian response (De Placido et al., 2005).
On the basis of the current literature, it is possible to argue that hypo-response could be related to genetic characteristics. More specifically, several lines of evidence indicate that this clinical condition may be related to polymorphisms of the genes of gonadotropins and their receptors (Alviggi et al., 2009b, Alviggi et al., 2013).

Doctoral research: objectives and sessions

The aim of this research project was to exploit the effects of polymorphisms of gonadotropins and their receptors on ovarian response:
• The Session A, developed in the first year, is devoted to the results of retrospective analysis concerning the role of FSH-R receptor polymorphism (rs6166). This findings were recently published in a peer review journal (Alviggi et al., 2016b).
• The Session B, developed in the second year, is devoted to the results of a prospective analysis in which eight polymorphism of gonadotropins and their receptors were evaluated. Our findings regarding Italian population were recently published in a peer review journal. (Conforti et al., 2017). The preliminary results about all population included were recently published as a supplement in Human Reproduction Journal (Alviggi et al., 2016c).
• The Session C developed in the third year of research is devoted to a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of available worldwide literature data regarding the effect of gonadotropin and their receptors polymorphism on COS. This analysis includes 33 studies and involves more than 4,000 observations. This systematic review was accepted for submission by Human Reproduction Update editorial board which represent the most eminent journal in Obstetrics and Gynaecology (Journal Citation Reports Thomson Reuters)


Aalto University, P.O. Box 11000, FI-00076 Aalto www.aalto.fi Author Merja Mattila Name of the doctoral dissertation The Interaction between an Enterprise System and a Knowledge-Intensive Project Organization – A Case Study of Project Staffing Publisher School of Economics Unit Department of Information and Service Economy Series Aalto University publication series DOCTORAL DISSERTATIONS 59/2012 Field of research Information Systems Science Abstract Knowledge-intensive project organizations compete in an increasingly dense global web of customers and suppliers. In this global web, organizations seek new ways to deliver projects and services more efficiently. One way to increase efficiency is restructuring in order to become more customer oriented through flattening organizational structure and distributing work across the globe. This kind of decentralized organization relies heavily on distributed teams and several IT tools, such as global Enterprise Systems (ES, and their primary form Enterprise Resource Planning, ERP) and different collaboration devices. In this dissertation I take an exploratory approach on the interaction between a knowledgeintensive project organization and an enterprise system. In the case study I follow how a large project organization transforms from a silo organization into a more integrated matrix model. This case study extends over a period of two and a half years. During the same period, the company implements new ES functionalities in order to support its strategic change relating to a new operating model. I demonstrate the interaction between the ES and the organization by using a part of the new operating model, a project staffing process, as an example of organizational processes that are supported by new enterprise system functionalities. The project staffing process exploits traditional HR data such as competence catalogues and employees' workload data to optimize resource use. By applying grounded theory I investigate research questions that emerged from the empirical data. Despite the growing literature regarding the interplay between the enterprise system and organization, this complex interaction is not thoroughly understood. I employ theories and models relating to neo-institutional theory, organizational change, sociomateriality, human and machine agencies, affordances, loose coupling, system usage, boundary objects and boundary spanning. In the four research papers forming the body of this thesis I provide new perspectives on the interplay between the enterprise system and knowledge-intensive project organization in managing resources in project business. The main contribution of my study is that the knowledge-intensive project organization sets special challenges for the assimilation and use of new ES functionalities. Particularly, the complexity of the company's professional services and projects creates different managerial implications and organizational responses within the company. In addition, the new HR-related ES functionalities set some specific challenges for the system assimilation and use in the knowledge-intensive project organization.Knowledge-intensive project organizations compete in an increasingly dense global web of customers and suppliers. In this global web, organizations seek new ways to deliver projects and services more efficiently. One way to increase efficiency is restructuring in order to become more customer oriented through flattening organizational structure and distributing work across the globe. This kind of decentralized organization relies heavily on distributed teams and several IT tools, such as global Enterprise Systems (ES, and their primary form Enterprise Resource Planning, ERP) and different collaboration devices. In this dissertation I take an exploratory approach on the interaction between a knowledgeintensive project organization and an enterprise system. In the case study I follow how a large project organization transforms from a silo organization into a more integrated matrix model. This case study extends over a period of two and a half years. During the same period, the company implements new ES functionalities in order to support its strategic change relating to a new operating model. I demonstrate the interaction between the ES and the organization by using a part of the new operating model, a project staffing process, as an example of organizational processes that are supported by new enterprise system functionalities. The project staffing process exploits traditional HR data such as competence catalogues and employees' workload data to optimize resource use. By applying grounded theory I investigate research questions that emerged from the empirical data. Despite the growing literature regarding the interplay between the enterprise system and organization, this complex interaction is not thoroughly understood. I employ theories and models relating to neo-institutional theory, organizational change, sociomateriality, human and machine agencies, affordances, loose coupling, system usage, boundary objects and boundary spanning. In the four research papers forming the body of this thesis I provide new perspectives on the interplay between the enterprise system and knowledge-intensive project organization in managing resources in project business. The main contribution of my study is that the knowledge-intensive project organization sets special challenges for the assimilation and use of new ES functionalities. Particularly, the complexity of the company's professional services and projects creates different managerial implications and organizational responses within the company. In addition, the new HR-related ES functionalities set some specific challenges for the system assimilation and use in the knowledge-intensive project organization.


Article history: Received on: 03/06/2016 Revised on: 27/06/2016 Accepted on: 19/07/2016 Available online: 26/09/2016 The objectives of the present research work are to improve the solubility and dissolution rate of bosentan. Solid dispersions of bosentan were prepared by fusion method by using two selected hydrophilic meltable carriers vis à-vis gelucire 50/13 and poloxamer 188. Sylysia 350 was used as an adsorbent. Solid dispersions were evaluated for solubility, phase solubility, flowability, compressibility, Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Solubility studies showed 8 and 10 fold increase in solubility for gelucire 50/13 and poloxamer 188 based solid dispersions respectively. The Gibbs free energy ΔGtr° values were all negative for gelucire 50/13 (0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 % w/v) and poloxamer 188 (0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1 % w/v) indicating spontaneous nature of solubilisation. FT-IR and DSC spectra showed that drug and carriers are compatible with each other. Solid dispersions exhibiting highest solubility were compressed into immediate release tablets by using sodium starch glycolate as superdisintegrant. In vitro dissolution studies, exhibited more than 90 % drug dissolution in 1 h. Gelucire 50/13 and poloxamer 188 plays a significant role in enhancement of drug solubility and dissolution. The adsorbent, sylysia 350 may be used to impart good flow and compressibility to solid dispersions. Among the two carriers, poloxamer 188 exhibited better solubility and dissolution enhancement potential.


The integration of Global Positioning System (GPS) with an inertial measurement unit (IMU) has been widely used in many applications of positioning and orientation. The performance of a GPS-aided inertial integrated navigation system is mainly characterized by the ability of the IMU to bridge GPS outages. This basically depends on the inertial sensor errors that cause a rapid degradation in the integrated navigation solution during periods of GPS outages. The inertial sensor errors comprise systematic and random components. In general, systematic errors (deterministic) can be estimated by calibration and therefore they can be removed from the raw observations. Random errors can be studied by linear or high order nonlinear stochastic processes. These stochastic models can be utilized by a navigation filter such as, Kalman filter, to provide optimized estimation of navigation parameters. Traditionally, random constant (RC), random walk (RW), Gauss-Markov (GM), and autoregressive (AR) processes have been used to develop the stochastic model in the navigation filters. In this technical note, the inertial sensor errors are introduced and discussed. Subsequently, a six-position laboratory calibration test is described. Then, mathematical models for RC, RW, GM, and AR stochastic models with associated variances for gyros and accelerometer random errors are presented along with a discussion regarding ongoing research in this field. Also, the implementation of a stochastic model in a loosely coupled INS/GPS navigation filter is explained.


Statistical and probabilistic reasoning enlightens our judgments about uncertainty and the chance or beliefs on the occurrence of random events in everyday life. Therefore, there are scientists working with Probability and Statistics in various fields of knowledge, what favors the formation of scientific network collaborations of researchers with different backgrounds. Here, we propose to describe the Brazilian PhDs who work with probability and statistics. In particular, we analyze national and states collaboration networks of such researchers by calculating different metrics. We show that there is a greater concentration of nodes in and around the cites which host Probability and Statistics graduate programs. Moreover, the states that host P & S Doctoral programs are the most central. We also observe a disparity in the size of the states networks. The clustering coefficient of the national network suggests that this network and regional differences especially with respect to states from South-east and North is not cohesive and, probably, it is in a maturing stage


This Guide provides all necessary information on the event "International Library Staff Week", at Koc University - Suna Kirac Library, 26-30 March 2018


Recent research suggests that population coverage of Papanicolaou smear taking in Australia has been inadequate. General practitioners have been encouraged to carry out audits of their own work in this field to improve both the quantity and quality of smears. The author outlines audit methods developed, and the results obtained in his practice.


In this study, changes in chemical and sensorial quality of hot smoked Atlantic bonito (Sarda sarda, Bloch, 1838) during the storage at 4±1°C and 17±3°C were investigated. In addition, biochemical composition and yield after processing were determined. The values for moisture, crude protein, crude fat, ash and salt were found as 67.71, 14.55, 12.87, 1.76 and 0.70% for fresh bonito, while 57.13, 20.55, 13.97, 3.69 and 3.33% for smoked bonito, respectively. The yield after smoking was calculated as 78.02%. Total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N), thiobarbutiric acid (TBA) and total trimethlyamine (TMA) of smoked bonito increased significantly during storage at both temperatures while sensory scores decreased (P<0.05). According to sensory values, samples showed 4 days shelf life at 17±3°C and 10 days at 4±1°C. TVB-N values supported sensory analysis results and samples spoiled on 4 th day of storage at 17±3°C temperature and 11 th day of storage at cold storage conditions (4±1°C). TMA and TBA results were within the acceptable levels throughout the storage period for all analyzed samples. Therefore, TVB-N was found as a reliable parameter to measure chemical changes and determine quality of fish samples. This study shows that smoked bonito packed in aluminium foil can be stored at 4±1°C for 10 days.


Eclampsia is the third commonest cause of maternal mortality after haemorrhage and infection. The morbidity and mortality in eclampsia is related to the number of convulsions. The control of convulsions is, therefore, important in reducing maternal morbidity and mortality. Teaching hospitals in Southern Africa contributed to the multicentre Collaborative Eclampsia Trial, which provided the overwhelming evidence for the superiority of magnesium sulphate as the drug of choice for eclampsia. While other parts of the world have put this evidence into practice, this trend has not yet become uniform in Africa. This paper seeks to encourage African governments, teaching hospitals, the pharmaceutical industry and the regional Cochrane Collaboration Centre in South Africa to co-operate in order to facilitate the practice of evidence-based medicine in this aspect of maternal health in the region.


In this paper, we present a new mechanical model for biped locomotion, composed of three linear pendulums (one per leg and one for the whole upper body) to describe stance, swing and torso dynamics. In addition to a double support phase, this model has different actuation possibilities in the swing hip and stance ankle which produce a broad range of walking gaits. Without the need for numerical time-integration, closed form solutions help to find periodic gaits which could simply scale in certain dimensions to modulate the motion online. Thanks to linearity properties, the proposed model can potentially provide a computationally fast platform for model predictive controllers to predict the future and consider meaningful inequality constraints to ensure feasibility of the motion. Such a property comes from describing dynamics with joint torques directly and therefore, reflecting hardware limitations more precisely, even in the very abstract template space. The proposed model produces human-like torque and ground reaction force profiles, and thus, compared to point-mass models, it is more promising for the generation of dynamic walking trajectories. Despite being linear and lacking many features of human walking like center of mass excursion, knee flexion and ground clearance, we show that the proposed model can explain one of the main optimality trends in human walking, i.e. the nonlinear speed-frequency relationship. In this paper, we mainly focus on describing the model and its capabilities, comparing it with human data and calculating optimal human gait variables. Setting up control problems and advanced biomechanical analysis remains for future works.


One hundred and three lambs (26 Chios-Awassi (CA) and 77 Awassi (AA)) were used to evaluate the effect of crossbreeding on growth performance, body dimensions and carcass characteristics. At weaning, 8 CA and 8 AA male lambs were randomly selected to examine carcass traits. Crossbred CA lambs were heavier at birth than their AA counterparts, while average daily gain (ADG) and weaning weights were not affected by genotype. CA lamb genotype had greater diagonal body length, hip height and heart girth than AA lambs. Hot and cold carcass weight, dressing percentage, body length, leg length, maximum shoulder width, and width behind shoulder were greater in CA lambs compared with AA lambs. AA lambs had significantly heavier fat tail and leg cut weights, while shoulder cut weights were heavier in the CA lambs. CA lambs had greater rib fat depth and tissue depth thickness than AA lambs. Longissimus muscle area was significantly greater in CA than in AA lambs. In conclusion, CA lambs had greater birth weights, body dimensions and dressing percentage than AA lambs. Additionally, aside from the tail and leg cuts, carcass components were heavier in CA crossbred lambs. Keywords: Carcass characteristics; crossbreeding; weaning weight