Turbulent mixing is present in many pulp and paper processes. It is a particularly important factor in the design and improvements of the paper machine headbox, influencing the final paper structure. During this project, experimental methods to quantify the effect of fibers on turbulent suspension flows have been developed, and then used for studying turbulent mixing in fiber suspensions. A technique that uses microprobes to measure passive scalar mixing of salt for the characterization of turbulent fluctuations in a fiber suspension flow has been developed: Conductivity micro-probes have been built and turbulence measurements have been performed in simple jet and wake flows, studying turbulent mixing between the two streams of pulp suspension, of which one has been doped with salt. A relatively new technique to measure fluid velocity non-intrusively in opaque fluids has also been tested. The technique makes use of ultrasonic pulses to obtain velocity information through the Doppler-shift of reflected pulses. The main efforts reported on in the thesis are focused on method design and development as well as method evaluation.


Italian-born American physician Salvador E. Luria (1912–1991) was one of the founding fathers of bacterial genetics and molecular biology. Trained at the laboratory of the distinguished histologist Giuseppe Levi at the University of Turin and then in Rome with the school of physics Enrico Fermi, Luria was forced by the racial laws to emigrate to the United States. In 1943, together with the emigre German physicist Max Delbruck, he elaborated the 'fluctuation test' showing that the adaptive mechanisms of bacteria to virus (bacteriophages) attacks were attributable to the Darwinian principle of natural selection. For these pioneering research, and for founding the 'phage group', a sort of Mecca of the first molecular biologists, he obtained in 1969 the Nobel Prize for medicine. Politically engaged, Luria conduced in open contrast with American governments various battles for civil rights and pacifism.

Keywords:

bacterial genetics;
phage group;
Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory;
molecular biology


Policies to prevent respiratory virus transmission in health care settings have traditionally divided organisms into Droplet versus Airborne categories. Droplet organisms (for example, influenza) are said to be transmitted via large respiratory secretions that rapidly fall to the ground within 1 to 2 meters and are adequately blocked by surgical masks. Airborne pathogens (for example, measles), by contrast, are transmitted by aerosols that are small enough and light enough to carry beyond 2 meters and to penetrate the gaps between masks and faces; health care workers are advised to wear N95 respirators and to place these patients in negative-pressure rooms. Respirators and negative-pressure rooms are also recommended when caring for patients with influenza or SARS-CoV-2 who are undergoing "aerosol-generating procedures," such as intubation. An increasing body of evidence, however, questions this framework. People routinely emit respiratory particles in a range of sizes, but most are aerosols, and most procedures do not generate meaningfully more aerosols than ordinary breathing, and far fewer than coughing, exercise, or labored breathing. Most transmission nonetheless occurs at close range because virus-laden aerosols are most concentrated at the source; they then diffuse and dilute with distance, making long-distance transmission rare in well-ventilated spaces. The primary risk factors for nosocomial transmission are community incidence rates, viral load, symptoms, proximity, duration of exposure, and poor ventilation. Failure to appreciate these factors may lead to underappreciation of some risks (for example, overestimation of the protection provided by medical masks, insufficient attention to ventilation) or misallocation of limited resources (for example, reserving N95 respirators and negative-pressure rooms only for aerosol-generating procedures or requiring negative-pressure rooms for all patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection regardless of stage of illness). Enhanced understanding of the factors governing respiratory pathogen transmission may inform the development of more effective policies to prevent nosocomial transmission of respiratory pathogens.


Knowledge of Medicare beneficiaries with high medical expenditures can help identify target populations for intervention and strategies to reduce overall Medicare expenditures. Using 100% Medicare fee-for-service claims, we examined characteristics and spending patterns of high spenders among Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes (DM) . We defined high spenders as those whose expenditures in a year were in the top 10% of beneficiaries with DM. We identified 7,321,228 high spenders in 2015 and followed them through 2017. We grouped high spenders in 2015 into three groups: those who died during 2015-2017 (group 1) , were alive and a high spender in all 3 years (group 2) , and alive but a high spender for 1/2 years (group 3) . We used regression models to identify factors associated with each group. In 2015 high spenders accounted for 48% of all medical expenditures in Medicare beneficiaries with DM. Of the high spenders, 34% were in group 1, 20% in group 2, and 46% in group 3. High spenders in group 1 had a mean annual expenditure of $110,429 and were more likely to be male, be older, have dual eligibility for Medicaid, and have a higher number of comorbid conditions compared with groups 2 and 3. Over 60% of the expenditures in group 1 were spent on either acute inpatient care (39%) or on skilled nursing facility (23%) . Groups 2 and 3 had mean annual expenditures of $83,2 and $42,527, respectively. High spenders in group 2 were more likely to be male, be older, have dual eligibility for Medicaid, and have a higher number of comorbid conditions compared with group 3. Compared to those in group 3, high spenders in group 2 spent a higher proportion on hospice (13.3% vs. 7.9%) and inpatient care (16.7% vs. 9.9%) , but less on acute inpatient care (19.5% vs. 31.3%) . High-spender Medicare beneficiaries with DM had different characteristics and spending patterns. Future studies could identify modifiable factors and develop strategies to lower Medicare expenditures among high spenders with DM.

 Y.Wang: None. P.Zhang: None.


This study investigates the effect of poems as language teaching materials on the discourse competence of English as a second language learners (ESL) learners. Discourse competence is one of the sub-skills of English speaking skills which has further been divided into two sub-skills called 1) organizing a coherent conversation and 2) then maintaining it. It was a quasi-experimental study consisting of a control group (CG) and an experimental group (EG) from the faculty of social sciences, University of Malakand, Pakistan. They were the students of the third semester and were taught English as a minor course. Before the commencement of the experiment, the students of both groups were subjected to a speaking type pre-test. Immediately after the pre-test, the control group was taught through traditional teaching materials whereas; the treatment group was treated with poems as teaching materials. Moreover, observation field notes were employed to find out the reasons behind the performance of the students of both groups. After a six-week experiment, a post-test similar in nature to the pre-test was dispensed among the groups. The scores of the respondents of both groups were compared by using independent samples t-tests. The outcomes indicated that the learners in the treatment group scored significantly higher on the post-test than the learners in the comparison group. The observation field notes further displayed that the students of the treatment group were actively involved in the language learning process. Moreover, they associated the text of poetry with their, socio-cultural, and personal lives. Additionally, they enjoyed greater autonomy due to ambiguity and universality in the texts of the poems. The study suggests that poems should be utilized as teaching materials in ESL classrooms.


The smart grid offers a wide array of opportunities to improve efficiency of the electricity grid via load management policies. This chapter reviews the current state of knowledge in the economics literature as it relates to time-varying pricing and to behavioral interventions, which together comprise a large portion of regulators' policy choice set. The authors present evidence that consumers respond to financial incentives, but that these are not the only determinants of behavior. For example, consumers are often uninformed and inattentive, and exhibit a tendency to respond to non-monetary incentives as well as monetary. The authors conclude that time-varying pricing is an effective and essential policy instrument, while instruments designed to boost customer attentiveness and allow households to become better informed about their energy use play an important complementary role. Smart meters are crucial in making such a policy package feasible. The power of randomized experimental designs, which underlie much of the evidence that is presented, is also discussed. The authors highlight important areas for future research, and recommend that such future research efforts continue to leverage randomized designs.


Parallel performance has been a challenging topic in streamline visualization for large unstructured flow datasets on parallel distributed-memory computers. It depends strongly on domain partitions. Unsuitable partitions often lead to severe load imbalance and high frequent communications among the domain partitions. To address the problem, we present an approach to flow data partitioning taking account of flow directions and features. Multilevel spectral graph bisection method is employed to reduce communication and synchronization overhead among distributed domains. Edge weights in the corresponding adjacent matrix is defined based on an anisotropic local diffusion operator which assigns strong coupling along flow direction and weak coupling orthogonal to flow. Meanwhile, the distributions of seed points and flow features such as vortex structure are also considered in partitioning so as to obtain good load balance. The experimental results are given to show the feasibility and effectiveness of our method.


At the beginning of the 1980s, Taiwan appeared bereft of support from even its closest ally, the United States. Yet only 10 years later its political leadership was confident enough to embark upon a dramatic course of democratization, and economically it was a fully-fledged "little tiger", with official foreign exchange holdings and growth rates among the highest in the world. But will the rate of political change get out of hand? Will the economy be able to cope with new competition from other countries in Asia? Will demands for indepdence from the mainland made by some political groups provoke renewed confrontation with the People's Republic? This study looks back at developments in the domestic political system, the economy and external relations over the past decade, and forward to the rest of the 1990s.


In the toad Bufo calamita, among-population variation of size follows roughly a converse Bergmann cline, but populations exist that do not fit this pattern. We propose that latitudinal body size variation is a byproduct of adaptive covariation among the life-history traits juvenile growth rate, longevity and lifetime fecundity. We choose five populations (two in Andalusia, two in Catalonia and one in Rhineland-Palatinate) representing a variation of adult size from 39 mm to 95 mm snout–vent length, a latitudinal gradient from 37 to 50° and an altitudinal gradient from sea level to 420 m. Skeletochronology was used to estimate the age-related life-history traits of 313 toads and their lifetime pattern of growth. At southern latitudes, toads matured and reproduced earlier than those at northern latitudes, but had a reduced potential reproductive lifespan due to lower longevity. Age-adjusted adult size depended mainly on the size achieved between metamorphosis and first hibernation or aestivation, which in turn was influenced by local factors. We propose that first-year size corresponds to the duration of the aboveground activity period, temperature during the activity period and the type of shelter sites and hibernacula available in the habitat. After attaining sexual maturity, the growth rates did not differ among populations. Interactions of multiple environmental factors during the first year of life determine age at maturity, adult size and size variation among populations. Local body size and potential reproductive lifespan covary to optimize lifetime fecundity throughout the geographical range. The presence of a small-sized population in southern Spain does not fit the pattern predicted by a converse Bergmann cline, but is compatible with the hypothesis that body size variation among B. calamita populations may be the evolutionary byproduct of optimized lifetime fecundity.


The Corona Virus Disease 2019 has a great impact on public health and public psychology. People stay at home for a long time and rarely go out. With the improvement of the epidemic situation, people began to go to different places to check in. To maintain public mental health, it is necessary to propose a point‐of‐interest (POI) prediction model which can mine users' interests. However, the current techniques suffer from lower precision during prediction and the practical value is poor, which is due to the sparse data of users' check‐in. Faced with this challenge, we propose an attention‐based bidirectional gated recurrent unit (GRU) model for POI category prediction (ABG_poic). We regard the user's POI category as the user's interest preference because the fuzzy POI category is easier to reflect the user's interest than the POI. This method can alleviate the data sparsity, and protect users' location privacy. Since users' preferences are variable, we utilize a bidirectional GRU to capture the dynamic dependence of users' check‐ins. Furthermore, since the neural network is similar to a "black box" in feature learning, the decision‐making stage is opaque. Thus, we combine the attention mechanism with bidirectional GRU to selectively focus on historical check‐in records, which can improve the interpretability of the model. Considering the time impact on users' check‐in, we utilize the time sliding window in the ABG_poic model. Experiments on two data sets demonstrate that our ABG_poic outperforms the comparison models for POI category prediction on sparse check‐in data.


Anomaly detection is a fundamental problem in computer vision area with many real-world applications. Given a wide range of images belonging to the normal class, emerging from some distribution, the objective of this task is to construct the model to detect out-of-distribution images belonging to abnormal instances. Semi-supervised Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN)-based methods have been gaining popularity in anomaly detection task recently. However, the training process of GAN is still unstable and challenging. To solve these issues, a novel adversarial dual autoencoder network is proposed, in which the underlying structure of training data is not only captured in latent feature space, but also can be further restricted in the space of latent representation in a discriminant manner, leading to a more accurate detector. In addition, the auxiliary autoencoder regarded as a discriminator could obtain an more stable training process. Experiments show that our model achieves the state-of-the-art results on MNIST and CIFAR10 datasets as well as GTSRB stop signs dataset.


In the present work, natural biomass and chemical materials were applied as the heteroatom resources for modifying the Porous Graphene (PG) structure by pyrolysis method at 900 oC. The physical and chemical characterizatons were performed by means of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), Raman Spectroscopy, N2 Adsorption-Desorption, and X-ray Photo-electron Spectroscopy (XPS). Furthemore, the behavior of the prepared materials was investigated by Cyclic Voltammetry (CV) and Rotating Disk Electrode (RDE). The obtained results indicated that doping of heteroatoms into the graphene framework was possible using a low-cost and environment-friendly biomass material as well as chemical sources. Moreover, one-step quarternary and tersiary co-doped graphene could be acheived using natural biomass. The prepared electrocatalysts using grape leaves and sulfur trioxide pyridine complex exhibit higher electrocatalytic performance as exampled which conducted the electrocatalyst in 4e- pathway and showed high stability in methanol solutions during the process, confirming their considerable potential to Oxygen Reduction Reaction (ORR) as an electro-catalyst. Moreover, the onset potential of Gl300G-900 and GSP 900 (0.93 V vs RHE) is almost equal to the Pt/C 20 wt % (0.99 V vs RHE). These optimal prepared cathodes (Gl300G-900 and GSP 900) in the Microbial Fuel Cell (MFC) test lead to considerable power densities of 31.5 mW m-2 and 30.9.mW m-2, which are close to 38.6 mW m-2 for the Pt/C 20 wt % cathode.


Tadpole-shaped single-chain nanoparticles (TSCNPs) are useful soft building blocks for nanotechnology composed of a flexible polymer chain tethered to an intramolecularly folded single-chain nanoparticle. We disclose herein valuable structure-size relationships for a priori TSCNP design depending on tail length, which are validated by experimental data from multiple TSCNP systems, allowing, for the first time, the prediction of TSCNP size before synthesis.


Pelagic fish declines and increased abundance of gelatinous zooplankton are increasingly common in physically and ecologically disturbed estuaries. This dissertation investigates the ecology and trends of three alien hydromedusae (Maeotias marginata, Blackfordia virginica, and Moerisia sp.) and striped bass Morone saxatilis in Suisun Marsh in the upper San Francisco Estuary. Chapter one examines the ecology and long term (1981-2005) trends of M. marginata medusae using by-catch data from an otter trawl survey. Maeotias marginata increased in abundance with its greatest spatial occurrence and abundance after 1992. Salinity and temperature were significant predictors of medusae abundance with moderate salinity and high temperature resulting in their highest abundance. Water transparency was related to medusae abundance, but had a smaller effect. Medusae fed primarily on pelagic invertebrates, although benthic / epibenthic prey and larval fishes were also found in the gut contents. Chapter two reports the environmental relationships and abundance of three hydromedusae from a two year (February 2004 to January 2006) plankton study. Moerisia was the most abundant species, followed by M. marginata and B. virginica. Salinity and temperature had the largest effect on predicted occurrence and abundance although turbidity and dissolved oxygen were significant at times. Maeotias marginata was captured at the lowest salinity and temperature and was the first and last species captured each year. Moerisia was captured in samples with slightly higher salinity, but similar temperatures as M. marginata. Blackfordia virginica was captured in moderate to high salinity. Chapter three investigates the seasonal trends in striped bass young-of-year (YOY) abundance (1980 to 2005) and their environmental relationships, habitat use, and prey relationships. Striped bass YOY declined in deep water sites, but not in shallow tidal marsh sites. Environmental conditions were poorly correlated with striped bass abundance in all seasons. Prey species declined similarly in all depth groups. The declining abundance of mysids and adult copepods were correlated with the YOY decline in deep water sites only. Increased mean YOY length and seasonal recruitment shifts after the decline of mysids, suggests additional affects of changing prey abundance.


This paper presents an efficient real-time knowledge base architecture for multi-agent based patient diagnostic system for chronic disease management, basically, the early detection of Inflammation of urinary bladder and Nephritis of renal pelvis origin diseases. The model integrates information stored heterogeneous and geographically distributed healthcare centers. The paper presents two main contributions. First, a proposed multi-agent based system for mining frequent itemsets in distributed databases. Second, the implementation of this model on distributed medical databases in order to generate hidden medical rules. The proposed model can gather information from each department or from different hospitals, and using the cooperative agents it analyzes the data using association rules as a data mining technique. The proposed model improves the diagnostic knowledge and discovers the diseases based on the minimum number of effective tests, thus, providing accurate medical decisions based on cost effective treatments. It can also predict the existence or the absence of the diseases, thus improving the medical service for the patients. The proposed multi-agent system constitute an effort toward the design of intelligent, flexible, and integrated large-scale distributed data mining system.


We have proposed speculative locking (SL) protocols to improve the performance of distributed database systems (DDBSs) by trading extra processing resources. In SL, a transaction releases the lock on the data object whenever it produces corresponding after-image during its execution. By accessing both before and after-images, the waiting transaction carries out speculative executions and retains one execution based on the termination (commit or abort) mode of the preceding transactions. By carrying out multiple executions for a transaction, SL increases parallelism without violating serializability criteria. Under the naive version of SL, the number of speculative executions of the transaction explodes with data contention. By exploiting the fact that a submitted transaction is more likely to commit than abort, we propose the SL variants that process transactions efficiently by significantly reducing the number of speculative executions. The simulation results indicate that even with manageable extra resources, these variants significantly improve the performance over two-phase locking in the DDBS environments where transactions spend longer time for processing and transaction-aborts occur frequently.


This essay discusses transnational dimensions of the Indigenous musical film The Sapphires, based on the true story of an Aboriginal all-girls soul band that entertained American troops in the Vietnam War. It suggests that there are strong resonances between the film's story of four young Indigenous women who affirm their Indigenous identity while negotiating their way across national and cultural borders and contemporary Indigenous filmmakers operating in Australia's rapidly internationalizing mainstream screen industry. It argues that while the original Sapphires' adopted the American musical genre of soul as a means of breaking free from colonial forms of social restriction and racism, The Sapphires appropriates the film genre of the musical to tell the story of this all-girls group in ways that transpose the musical into an Indigenous cultural realm.


Background: Women appear to be increasingly susceptible to snoring and sleep disorders breathing during pregnancy. However pregnant women with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) are less likely to be assessed or to receive a diagnosis. Objective: the aim of this report was to evaluate the prevalence of common symptoms of OSAHS in pregnant women and secondarily to seek a link with Pregnancy-induced blood hypertension and intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR). Method: An observational study of 120 pregnant women who responded to a predetermined questionnaire 24 hours after giving birth in a maternity. Results: the mean age was 28±5,6 years, the mean parity was 1.88±1,1 and the average duration of pregnancy was 39.33±1,6 weeks. IUGR, Pregnancy-induced blood hypertension and gestational diabetes mellitus was identified in 4.2%; 2.5% and 1.7% of participants, respectively. No women had developed eclampsia or pre-eclampsia. The most 3 frequently reported sleep-related symptoms were nycturia (84.2%), poor sleep quality (55%) and sleep onset insomnia (38.3%). Snoring occurred in 17.5%of the patients while 98,2% of them did not snore before pregnancy. The prevalence of this symptom was significantly higher in eldest women (p significantly correlated with IUGR (0.045) but not with Pregnancy-induced blood hypertension or premature birth. Obesity was significantly more frequent among women with daytime sleepiness or snoring. Conclusion: OSAHS in pregnancy seems to have important fetal outcomes. Pregnant women should be assessed for symptoms of OSAHS and suspected cases should be offered polysomnography.


The origin and physiologic significance of the electroencephalogram are not very well understood in spite of the fact that it has become a useful, and in many respects a reliable, clinical test. It is reasonable to assume that at least the more rapid of the "brain waves" either are action potentials or by some process of integration are derived from action potentials of ganglion cell groups and fiber tracts. Some clinical evidence points in this direction, and records taken from the exposed cortex of laboratory animals by Bremer and his associates,1among others, showed a marked response of rapid activity following sensory stimulation. Adrian has shown that activity originating in the motor cortex initiates impulses in the pyramidal tract both with the animal at rest and during convulsive attacks. In his paper with Moruzzi2he established three basic facts: ... that in the anesthetized animal there is usually a


The supporting mechanism for overburden strata supported by artificial pillars is a complex issue. A calculation method for the size optimization of an artificial pillar in a deep area based on Protodyakonov's ground pressure theory was proposed. In this study, the sizes of artificial pillars in different mining sections in a specific mine were calculated. In addition, the stability of these artificial pillars and the supporting effect for the overburden strata in the gob areas were studied. First, the size parameters of the artificial pillars in different mining sections were determined. Second, the supporting mechanism and stability of the artificial pillars were studied by means of numerical calculation. A regular pattern in which a larger gob area span corresponds to greater settlement of the overburden strata were found. The overburden strata are stable based on the distribution condition of the plastic zone. Finally, field measurements were performed, revealing continuous increases in both the pressure borne by the artificial pillars in two middle sections at the primary stage and the settlement displacement of the overburden strata. After reaching a certain level, the increasing trend slowed and finally plateaued. The maximum stress of the artificial pillar at a depth of -430 m was 0.78 MPa, and its maximum relative settlement of the overburden strata was 4.4mm. Similarly, the maximum stress of the artificial pillar at a depth of -460 m was 0.43 MPa, and its maximum relative settlement of the overburden strata was 2.7 mm. The study results showed that the designed artificial pillars are capable of supporting the overburden strata with good stability in the mining process and can effectively prevent the destruction of surrounding rocks and overburden strata in the gob area for the purpose of supporting the mine.


We argue that diagrams are not just a communicative tool but play important roles in the reasoning of biologists: in characterizing the phenomenon to be explained, identifying explanatory relations, and developing an account of the responsible mechanism. In the first two tasks diagrams facilitate applying visual processing to the detection of patterns that constitute phenomena or explanatory relations. Diagrams of a mechanism serve to guide reasoning about what parts and operations are needed and how potential parts of the mechanism are related to each other. Further they guide the development of computational models used to determine how the mechanism will behave. We illustrate each of these uses of diagrams with examples from research on circadian rhythms


Background Plasma-based circulating cell-free tumor DNA (ctDNA) genomic profiling by next-generation sequencing (NGS)is an emerging diagnostic tool for pancreatic cancer (PC). The impact of detected genomic alterations and variant allele fraction (VAF) in tumor response to systemic treatments and outcomes is under investigation. Methods Patients with advanced PC who had ctDNA profiled at time of initial diagnosis were retrospectively evaluated. We considered the somatic alteration with the highest VAF as the dominant clone allele frequency (DCAF). ctDNA NGS results were related to clinical demographics, progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS). Results A total of 104 patients were evaluated. Somatic alterations were detected in 84.6% of the patients. Patients with ≥ 2 detectable genomic alterations had worse median PFS (p < 0.001) and worse median OS (p = 0.001). KRAS was associated with disease progression to systemic treatments (80.4% vs 19.6%, p = 0.006), worse median PFS (p < 0.001) and worse median OS (p = 0.002). TP53 was associated with worse median PFS (p = 0.02) and worse median OS (p = 0.001). The median DCAF was 0.45% (range 0-55%). DCAF >0.45% was associated with worse median PFS (p<0.0001) and median OS (p=0.0003). Patients that achieved clearance of KRAS had better PFS (p=0.047), while patients that achieved clearance of TP53 had better PFS (p=0.0056) and OS (p=0.037). Conclusions Initial detection of ctDNA in advanced PC can identify somatic alterations that may help predict clinical outcomes. The dynamics of ctDNA are prognostic of outcomes and should be evaluated in prospective studies.


Coccolithophores are unicellular marine phytoplankton, which produce intricate, tightly regulated, exoskeleton calcite structures. The formation of biogenic calcite occurs either intracellularly, forming 'wheel-like' calcite plates, or extracellularly, forming 'tiled-like' plates known as coccoliths. Secreted coccoliths then self-assemble into multiple layers to form the coccosphere, creating a protective wall around the organism. The cell wall hosts a variety of unique species-specific inorganic morphologies that cannot be replicated synthetically. Although biomineralisation has been extensively studied, it is still not fully understood. It is becoming more apparent that biologically controlled mineralisation is still an elusive goal. A key question to address is how nature goes from basic building blocks to the ultrafine, highly organised structures found in coccolithophores. A better understanding of coccolithophore biomineralisation will offer new insight into biomimetic and bioinspired synthesis of advanced, functionalised materials for bone tissue regeneration. The purpose of this review is to spark new interest in biomineralisation and gain new insight into coccolithophores from a material science perspective, drawing on existing knowledge from taxonomists, geologists, palaeontologists and phycologists.


Howard University traditionally has educated leaders to focus on underserved minorities in the inner city. The magnitude of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, which disproportionately affects poor and disenfranchised minority groups in the United States, underscores the need for specially prepared nurse educators, administrators, and clinicians who will serve high-risk populations. In response to this need, a three-course subspecialty, which follows the paradigm of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention, was initiated within the existing master's program at Howard University College of Nursing. The subspecialty is open to all graduate students and, with faculty permission, qualified undergraduate students. Enrollment patterns indicate an unmet need for the subspecialty.


This thesis illustrates the relationship between body and space in the process of identity construction amongst groups of young men of migrant origins between 16 and 21 practicing capoeira and parkour in Turin's public spaces. Urban spaces in contemporary Turin, Italy, are contested sites where competing images of society, politics and citizenship are (re)produced and negotiated. While at a national level, widespread xenophobic discourses define immigrants and their children as alien bodies in Italian cities, Turin leaderships and cultural entrepreneurs aiming to attract visitors and capital investments have based the city's urban renewal on an image of multiculturalism and inclusiveness. The intersection of such discourses shapes the manifold ways through which immigrant bodies, and identities, become valorised, pathologised and essentialised in Turin. Based on fourteen months of ethnographic research conducted with a multi-method qualitative approach, this study explores how participants negotiated identity and processes of inclusion/exclusion in Turin, through engaging with capoeira and parkour. The analysis of participants' embodied and emplaced identity negotiations enacted through capoeira and parkour addressed the shifting articulations of race/body/marginality, and the relationship between physical culture(s), spaces and subjectivity within the rebranding urban landscape of early 21st century Turin. The exploration of participants' contested practices of diasporic cosmopolitanism and (contingent) citizenship provided insightful perspectives to address the changing meanings, and stakes of multiculturalism, citizenship and social justice in contemporary European societies. The critical analysis of capoeira and parkour also interrogated the ambivalent nature of participants' negotiations in a historical global context, marked by ubiquitous bio-political health imperatives and individualizing moralities of self-fashioning. The study findings therefore contribute to a scholarship aiming to recognize and articulate global processes within local sites of inequalities and negotiations, in exploring how contemporary identities are constructed and (re)produced within the spaces of our cities.


The paper investigates a novel and effective approach for real-time analysis of crowd congestion (density) in a physical space monitored by surveillance cameras. A region of interest (ROI) is specified in the space and partition of the ROI into an irregular array of sub-regions (blobs) automatically carried out, to each of which a congestion contributor is computed. The method then exploits the short-term responsive background (STRB) model for blob-based dynamic congestion detection, and uses the long-term stationary background (LTSB) model for blob-based 'zero-motion' (static congestion) detection. A global feature analysis is adopted for scene scatters characterisation; and finally, the combination of the local and global analysis gives the accurate scene congestion rating. Besides, this scheme is adapted to perform the task of moving object presence detection with success. Extensive tests and field trials validate both the accuracy and robustness of the approach.


In this paper, the peristaltic flow of a Jeffrey fluid in an asymmetric channel has been investigated. Mathematical modeling is carried out by utilizing long wavelength and low Reynolds number assumptions. Closed form expressions for the pressure gradient, pressure rise, stream function, axial velocity, and shear stress on the channel walls have been computed numerically. Effects of the Hartmann number, the ratio of relaxation to retardation times, time-mean flow, the phase angle and the gravity field on the pressure gradient, pressure rise, streamline, axial velocity, and shear stress are discussed in detail and shown graphically. The results indicate that the effect of Hartmann number, ratio of relaxation to retardation times, time-mean flow, phase angle, and gravity field are very pronounced in the peristaltic transport phenomena. Comparison was made with the results obtained in the presence and absence of magnetic field and gravity field.


Introduction: Staphylococcus aureus are among the most important and several pathogens in human infections. The objectives of this study are to evaluate the efficacy of the coagulase test in the detection of Staphylococcus aureus in the laboratory and to identify the factors associated with Staphylococcal infections.
Methods: It is a prospective study of 69 strains of Staphylococci in a period of six months from January 2019 to June 2019 in the University Hospital of Befelatanana.
Results: Among of the 69 strains of Staphylococci, 47 (68%) were represented by Staphylococcus aureus. Concerning the prediction performance of the catalase test, It has a sensitivity of 93.6%, a specificity of 100%, a positive predictive value (PPV) of 100% and a negative predictive value (NPV) of 88%. Concerning the associated factors, the men (71.1%) (p=0.46; NS), the patients aged 60 and over (76.5%) (p=0.63; NS), in resuscitation department (93.3%) (p=0.01) and with suppuration (100%) (p=10-3) were the most affected by Staphylococcus aureus.

Conclusion: Coagulase test can replace the standard gold test for the detection of Staphylococcus aureus. In case of doubt, the bacteriological characteristics and the factors associated with Staphylococcal infections may be helpful in the diagnosis of Staphylococcus aureus infection.


Two selected sites in the Riyadh metropolitan area were surveyed for the presence of human pathogenic parasites in treated municipal wastewater (TMWW). A total of 100 samples were collected from both sites at two different seasons, the winter and summer reason. The most common parasites seen were the larvae and adult of Strongyloides sp. There were few Ascaris lumbricoides ova, some of which were embryonated and possibly infective, while the highest frequency of Ascaris ova (100 +/litre) was found at site 2 h, the highest frequency of Strongyloides sp. larvae (36-72/litre) and Strongyloides sp. adult (100 +/litre) were found at sites 2 W and 1 W respectively. The variation between sites and seasonal fluctuations showed a significant difference in parasite per litre. High atmospheric temperatures in the Riyadh area seem to be lethal to most intestinal pathogens similarly the absence of protozoal cysts in the TMWW could be attributed to certain treatment processes and other environmental factors. Data obtained from this study will be valuable in planning for the control of parasitic diseases in particular and public health pathogens in general.


In a chronic canine model of pulmonary emphysema, we studied the interaction between left ventricular (LV) mechanics and pulmonary disease during severe hypoxemia. The hypoxemia was similar to that which may occur during a severe exacerbation of chronic obstructive lung disease. In six dogs with papain-induced emphysema and in seven dogs without emphysema, LV mechanics were examined when a hypoxic gas mixture was inspired to reduce PO2 to about 35 mmHg (hypoxic study) and during nonhypoxic conditions (room air study). In both groups, LV diastolic compliance was reduced during the hypoxic study by a similar amount. This finding could not be explained in terms of ventricular interdependence. Our analysis suggested that hypoxia decreased diastolic compliance (i.e., increased LV diastolic stiffness) by impairing LV relaxation. The primary effect of hypoxia was to decrease the extent to which LV relaxation occurred for a given end-diastolic pressure, while the rate of LV relaxation was decreased just slightly. This study indicates that severe hypoxemia because of respiratory failure may impair myocardial relaxation leading to a decrease in LV filling.


This paper is centred around two Dutch infernal journeys written in the eighteenth century: Johannes Buma's Reis door de Elizeesche Velden ( Travel through the Elysian Fields , 1753) and Simon Van Leeuwen's Den Hollandschen Droomer in het Ryk van Pluto ( The Dutch Dreamer in Pluto's Realm , 1729). More specifically, both texts are scrutinized in the light of the literary-historical evolution from traditional infernal journeys (such as the ones in Vergil's Aeneis and Dante's Inferno ) to modern ones, as described by Vervaeck (2006) among others. By analysing the various dimensions of these two infernos, I will argue that they are not just historically, but also generically located on the transition between these two phases. With satirical exposure as a common thread, the tradition of the infernal journey is modernized in the process of profanation (hell becomes mundane) and infernalization (earth becomes hellish).


In this paper, methods of fault location are discussed in electrical traction single-end direct power supply network systems. Based on the distributed parameter model of the system, the position of the short-circuit fault can be located with the aid of the current and voltage value at the measurement end of the electrical traction line. Furthermore, the influence of the transient resistance, the position of the locomotive, locomotive load for fault location are also discussed. MATLAB simulation tool is used for the simulation experiments. Simulation results are proved the effectiveness of the proposed algorithms.


This paper considers a fundamental thermoacoustic test rig developed by Noiray ("Linear and nonlinear analysis of combustion instabilities, application to multipoint injection systems and control strategies", PhD thesis, École Centrale Paris, 2007) and models it with an entirely analytical approach. The test rig is treated as a system of two coupled elements: an acoustic resonator and a flame with oscillating rate of heat release. We describe the acoustics of the combustion rig in terms of modes, and derive a governing equation for one such mode. This turns out to be the equation for a damped harmonic oscillator, forced by the heat release rate from the flame. In order to model the heat release rate, and in particular its nonlinear aspects, we develop a generalised nτ-law with amplitude-dependent coefficients and multiple time-lag. The coefficients are determined from Noiray's measured flame describing function. Stability predictions are made by evaluating the sign of the damping coefficient in the governing equation. These predictions are in excellent qualitative agreement with the measured stability behaviour. Finally, the physical mechanisms of the amplitude-dependence are explored.


Contemporary information systems development (ISD) takes place in a dynamic environment; it is generally acknowledged as a complex activity. It has been proposed that ISD projects should be viewed as a complex adaptive system (CAS) and that these projects are better understood through the application of CAS. Distributed participatory design (DPD) is an approach to contemporary ISD where different, geographically dispersed stakeholders, often called the crowd, participate voluntarily and typically unaffiliated with the development organisation in the development and design of information systems in distributed design teams which are mostly online on Internet, web-based, and social media platforms. Going beyond individual methods, techniques, and practices, the objective of this research is twofold as we answer the two research questions: how are DPD projects in crowdsourced ISD managed and performed in their entirety and how does CAS theory provide plausible explanations and contribute to an understanding of contemporary ISD? For this purpose, we present a case of DPD in crowdsourced ISD in an intergovernmental, not-for-profit environment in the context of a DPD project which engaged Pacific Youth in the development of a digital game where we applied CAS theory to better understand and gain insights for ISD theory and practice.


Abstract Senator Ted Cruz's campaign for the Republican presidential nomination again raised the question whether persons who receive citizenship at birth to American parents abroad are natural born and eligible to the presidency. This article uses Supreme Court decisions and previously overlooked primary source material from the Founders, the First Congress and English and British law to show that they are not natural born under the doctrinal or historical meaning of the term. The relevant constitutional distinction is between citizenship acquired by birth or by naturalization, not at birth or afterward. It argues further that a living constitutional theory cannot justifiably interpret the term more broadly because derivative citizenship statutes have long discriminated on grounds including race, gender, sexual orientation, and marital and socioeconomic status. The Supreme Court upholds them even though they would be unacceptable if applied to citizens because they merely discriminate against aliens. Moreover, many who assert presidential eligibility or other constitutional privilege for children born to American parents abroad intend to favor traditionally dominant groups or rely on political theories of bloodline transmission of national character that the Supreme Court used to justify its infamous decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford. No justifiable living interpretation can incorporate such discrimination or discredited political theories in qualifications for the highest office in the land. The article examines the meaning of the term "natural born" in the broader context of similar discrimination in English and British law from which American law developed. It acknowledges the difficulty of reconciling centuries of derivative nationality law and practice with our highest constitutional ideals of equal protection of the law. It concludes by identifying threshold requirements for and a possible approach to developing a justifiable living constitutional interpretation of natural born derivative citizenship.


Background: Anther development affects the reproduction of flowering plants. Halophyte Elaeagnus angustifolia can bear fruits when grown in saline soils. However, no fruits are born in non-saline soils. The possible reasons and differences in E. angustifolia under two conditions were elucidated. Results: We examined features including pollen vitality and germination, in situ pollen germination after natural and hand pollination, anthers after pollen release, and the transcriptome in anthers. No significant difference was observed in pollen vitality or stigma receptivity in E. angustifolia in non-saline vs. saline habitats. However, no pollen tubes were present in styles, and pollen grains were abundant in E. angustifolia anthers under non-saline conditions. Notably, many pollen tubes formed in styles of E. angustifolia after hand pollination in the non-saline habitat. And the differentially expressed genes in anthers from saline vs. non-saline habitats were mainly related to phytohormones, cell wall secondary thickening, transcription factors and ion transport. Conclusions: E. angustifolia fail to form fruits in non-saline habitats due to poor anther pollen release. The induction and coordinated upregulation of genes related to anther cell wall formation and JA biosynthesis likely contribute to anther dehiscence in E. angustifolia in saline habitats, whereas anther dehiscence is blocked in plants grown in non-saline habitats.


A case of primary pleural non-Hodgkin lymphoma in a 2.5-year-old girl is reported. The patient had pleural involvement as the initial and only manifestation of the disease. Histopathalogic examination showed lymphoblastic lymphoma of T-cell origin. The child received the modified LSA2-L2 protocol. During the maintenance treatment, she had an isolated central nervous system relapse and died of neutropenic sepsis. To the authors' knowledge this represents the first case report of primary pleural lymphoma in the childhood period.


In this study, the authors conduct the performance evaluation and resource allocation for two-way multiple-input multiple-output-based device-to-device (D2D) communications overlaying a cellular network. The considered system model comprises of a base station, a mobile user, and a pair of D2D users, where each of them is equipped with multiple antennas and employs transmit/receive zero forcing. Based on overlaying approach, both D2D and cellular communications take place bidirectionally by employing analogue network coding with a best selected D2D user as two-way relay for the cellular links. The authors analyse the outage performance of cellular and D2D systems in a Rayleigh fading environment. They also deduce asymptotic outage behaviour of cellular system and highlight the achievable diversity order. In addition, they derive the expressions of ergodic sum rate for both the systems. Above all, they provide a selection algorithm for the best relaying D2D user and describe feasible range of power splitting factor to maximise the data rate of cellular system for a given data rate of D2D system. Numerical and simulation results validate the authors' theoretical findings and illustrate the performance gains of the considered scheme under various antenna configurations.


Different synthesis methods of a given material will lead to different mesoscopic architectures, which in turn would strongly influence the catalytic performance. Therefore, morphology control is thought to be helpful for creating high-performance catalysts. Here, a series of well-defined α-Fe2O3 crystals with different morphologies, including hexagon, rod, and diamond, have been prepared and investigated for the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with NH3, which is of major environmental interest for air pollution control. We report that the {001} surface of the hexagon-shaped Fe2O3 catalyst is very active for NO removal. From temperature-programmed desorption measurements, we find that the NH3 reactant adsorbed strongly on the {001} surface. In contrast, other high-index ferric oxide facets, including {012}, {−210}, {01−4}, {110}, and {1−10}, exhibit the weakly adsorbed state of NH3. Density functional theory calculations show that the {001} surface has a high surface energy of 1.4 J m−2, which should account for the observed SCR kinetics. A link between the experimentally observed activity trend and the exposed facets of ferric oxides has been established.


Rapid population growth and the need to mitigate the impact of rainfall-runoff has made groundwater conservation a significant environmental issue in Indonesia9s Ciliwung Watershed. The availability of recharge wells in developed areas is essential for groundwater conservation and runoff reduction. Selection of suitable locations for the construction of recharge wells depends on a combination of factors such as topography, soil layers, land use, and climatology. This study of land suitability for recharge well development in the Ciliwung Watershed, an area of heterogenous land use, employed GPS-based weighted data on technical geology, soil type, soil hydrology group, groundwater level, slope, average rainfall, and land use. Mathematical simulations were performed to develop a land suitability map. The findings indicate that only 2% of the total area (in Cisarua, Bogor) is ideal for the construction of recharge wells, and that 48% of existing recharge wells in the Jakarta area are situated in a suitable zone. The results provide a basis for technical recommendations for future construction of recharge wells in the Ciliwung Watershed.


In recent years, companies have set up new arrangements that allow work to be done via cyberspace and increase the level of virtuality. This article presents the results of an empirical study designed to test the relationship between the various components of the virtuality of work arrangements and the strength of workers' affective commitment to the organization. An online survey was carried out and data from management consultants was collected and analyzed using multiple linear models. Our results indicate that geographic and temporal factors negatively impact workers' affective commitment, while technology, work practices, organization and cultural factors have a positive impact.


The success of salt tolerance breeding programs employing traditional screening and selection has been limited in the past decades. This study was designed to characterize the genetic diversity within a subset of barley germplasm using microsatellite markers under different adaptations to salt conditions. Twenty-five microsatellites (SSR) representative of the barley genome, were used in 30 barley accessions and cultivars. A total of 59 alleles were generated, the mean number of alleles per locus was 2.4 and the PIC was 0.22. The four genomic Locus Bmac0030, Bmag0125, EBmac0701 and EBmac0871 were sufficient to differentiate the diversity of all genotypes since they generated a high number of allele with high PIC values. Cluster analysis UPGMA based on SSRs data clearly the most differentiate genotypes according to their Salinity tolerance and the PCA recorded 58.8 % of the total variance. Five markers pairs were found to be associated with salinity and showed linkage disequilibrium with r values higher than 0.05. Association analysis along with specific significant alleles of grain yield showed a significant association of the marker Bmag749 (2H, 176 bp) with salinity. Our results shown a small sample and limited markers were used in this study and the results need to be confirmed using linkage mapping with a large association population. However, the results are credible because many of the loci that were identified were associated with traits that were common with previous reports of linkage or association mapping. These will be useful for molecular marker assist selection and molecular design breeding.


Let R be a subring of the rationals. We want to investigate self splitting R-modules G that is Ext R(G; G) = 0 holds and follow Schultz [22] to call such modules splitters. Free modules and torsion-free cotorsion modules are classical examples for splitters. Are there others? Answering an open problem by Schultz [22] we will show that there are more splitters, in fact we are able to prescribe their endomorphism R-algebras with a free R-module structure. As a byproduct we are able to answer a problem of Salce [21] showing that all rational cotorsion theories have enough injectives and enough projectives.


—This paper investigates the characteristics of the shadowed fading observed in off-body communications channels at 5.8 GHz. This is realized with the aid of the κ – μ /gamma composite fading model, which assumes that the transmitted signal undergoes κ – μ fading, which is subject to multiplicative shadowing. Based on this, the total power of the multipath components, including both the dominant and scattered components, is subject to non-negligible variations that follow the gamma distribution. For this model, we present an integral form of the probability density function (PDF) as well as important analytic expressions for the PDF, cumulative distribution function, moments, and moment generating function. In the case of indoor off-body communications, the corresponding measurements were carried out in the context of four explicit individual scenarios, namely: line of sight (LOS), non-LOS walking, rotational, and random movements. The measurements were repeated within three dif- ferent indoor environments and considered three different hypothetical body worn node locations. With the aid of these results, the parameters for the κ – μ /gamma composite fading model were estimated and analyzed extensively. Interestingly, for the majority of the indoor environments and movement scenarios, the parameter estimates suggested that dominant signal components existed even when the direct signal path was obscured by the test subject's body. In addition, it is shown that the κ – μ /gamma composite fading model provides an adequate fit to the fading effects involved in off-body communications channels. Using the Kullback–Leibler divergence, we have also compared our results


This paper examines the effects of auctioning quota licenses when market power exists. The overall conclusion is that with oligopolistic markets, quotas, even when set optimally and with quota licenses auctioned off, are - unlikely to dominate free trade. Moreover, auction quotas only strictly dominate giving away licenses which are competitively traded if the quota is quite restrictive. When there is a foreign duopoly or oligopoly and domestic competition it is shown that such sales of licenses does not raise revenues unless they are quite restrictive. An oligopoly example is explored to study the role of product differentiation, demand conditions and market conditions in determining the value of a license and the welfare effects of auctioning quotas. In this example, auction quotas are always worse than free trade. Finally, when there is a home duopoly and foreign competition, the price of a quota license is shown to be positive when the home and foreign goods are substitutes but to be zero when they are complements.


This book contains a collection of articles by Thompson and coauthors with the stated purpose of describing the latest sampling designs and counting (estimation) techniques for reliably estimating occupancy, abundance, and other population parameters of rare or elusive plants and animals. It is written primarily for the field ecologist who has some background in population monitoring and survey sampling but who has not kept current of new developments in sampling and estimation concepts targeted specifically at rare and elusive species. After reading this book, you will have a good appreciation of general difficulties associated with monitoring rare species but also many ideas to accomplish the task. In general, each chapter follows a similar pattern of presenting an overview of theoretical developments followed by examples of field applications that elucidate these concepts. Given the potential to fill the book with equations, the authors succeeded in minimizing biometric jargon and keeping most of the book's material within reach of any professional wildlife biologist. There are a few chapters that require some quantitative training or a more persistent reader but, by including examples of field applications, even the most challenging chapters still offer insightful advice. The examples encompass a wide array of species in a diversity of ecosystems; thus, it is likely that after reading this book you will come away with good ideas for monitoring your favorite rare or elusive species. Each chapter has an extensive bibliography allowing interested readers to easily delve into more detail about specific topics. As an added bonus, contact information for all contributing authors and reviewers is included, which will no doubt serve as an important resource for those who adopt the methodology espoused in this book. The book is divided into 5 parts. Part 1 consists of 4 chapters that, combined, provide an introduction to the unique difficulties of monitoring rare and elusive species and background on key concepts developed to address these difficulties (e.g., spatially clustered populations, double-sampling, and detection probabilities). Chapter 2 is one of the more enjoyable in the book primarily because the author does an excellent job of explaining basic concepts while maintaining a relaxed writing style. The chapter reads as if an experienced colleague is providing a career's worth of advice over beer at a local tavern. Many examples are discussed of both successful and failed monitoring protocols that help elucidate key features of a successful monitoring program. Having failures as examples is a rarity in the published literature and, in this case, is very valuable for learning. Chapter 3 focuses on the problem of monitoring populations where individuals may or may not be available for sampling. This issue is a spin-off of the broader issue of detection probability. The authors assume that readers are familiar with concepts like ''distance sampling'' and ''robust design.'' Those who are not may find this chapter a bit opaque, though the main point is that probability of being available for sampling has profound importance for properly monitoring many species. Chapter 4 weighs in on the debate of using population indices as surrogates for estimates of population size. Predictably, the authors argue strongly and successfully against indices and, in so doing, provide further justification for understanding basic sampling principles and incorporating them into a properly designed protocols. Part 2 focuses on the first stage of a 2-stage monitoring plan, that being selecting appropriate sampling units within the geographical range of the population of interest. It contains 3 chapters all of which focus on a variant of adaptive sampling. For those unfamiliar with this relatively recent development in sampling, chapter 5 serves as an outstanding introduction. This chapter reviews the basics of adaptive sampling, challenges associated with implementing it, and questions to be addressed to determine if this technique is appropriate for particular situations. This chapter also presents 3 case studies that illustrate the application of adaptive sampling and define future needs to make adaptive sampling procedures more useful. Chapters 6 and 7 give details on variants of adaptive sampling (i.e., 2-phase adaptive


It is important to understand characteristics of human behaviors in real world settings for society design, because human is a major element of society and human factor is a dominant driving force of real world social behavior. This paper describes an example of applying an interview-based Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA) incorporating with content analysis for eliciting cognitive competencies for disaster nursing. CTA is a methodology from cognitive systems engineering to examine human cognition in real world context by such as field observation, process tracing, interview, and questionnaires and content analysis is a methodology originated in social science to analyze text contents. The result of this study indicates that this interdisciplinary method is more effective for examining human behaviors than a single disciplinary method and is a promising approach for society design. Keywords– cognitive task analysis, cognitive competency, cognitive systems engineering, society design


Mild infections with two isolates of E. maxima showed significant (p<0.05) shank depigmentation and fecal dropping scores. The fecal scores of the uninfected controls were normal, whereas those of the infected groups were watery and/or bloody mucoidal. The first sign of depigmentation due to coccidial infection with E. maxima was at D+5 for chickens inoculated at 2 or 6 weeks of age and D+7 and D+14 for chickens infected at 4 weeks or at 4 days, respectively. By the 35 th day pi, the infected birds had not regained pigmentation comparable to those of uninfected birds. The effect of infections with the two isolates of E. maxima on four different ages of broiler chickens revealed that feces of the older infected broiler chickens were more watery and contained more blood than those of the younger infected broiler chickens (4 days old). Death resulting from coccidiosis was greatest at D+6 and D+7 among birds infected at 2 weeks or 4 weeks of age and ranged from 10 to 15%. Other mortalities in birds inoculated at 4 or 6 weeks of age were as a result of complications with Air sacculitis and Infectious Bursal Disease (Gumboro). Keywords: E. maxima , fecal scores, pigmentation, chickens, pigmentation


The SYRMEP collaboration is developing a tomographic imaging project with synchrotron radiation in the energy range 15-35 keV, using a photostimulable phosphor image plate and a high efficiency silicon pixel detector. We present here the preliminary studies which have been carried out in order to define the optimum working parameters and to evaluate the performances of the whole system. Simulation programs have been developed to determine the required angular resolution of the alignment system, and to select the optimal energy to visualize mammographic details while delivering the minimum dose. Images of custom test objects have been acquired in order to evaluate the spatial and contrast resolution of the two detectors. The delivered dose is comparable to the dose delivered in conventional planar mammography.


The method of using ultrasonic heating to aid high precision moulding of micro features has been studies. The study developed a method of using ultrasonic vibration to heat the polymer and hot embossing high precision micro features. A commercial ultrasonic welding machine is converted to provide the heating of polymer and mold then into precision micro features for study of ultrasonic heating and the microflow of polymer under ultrasonic agitation. A stainless steel microporous mold of 200µm thick with through holes of 50µm and 200µm in diameter were used. Using a frequency of 35kHz, the microflow behavior of PC (Polycarbonate) and PE (Polyethylene) in the microchannels were investigated. The differing properties of microflow for these two types of polymer give indication on the theoretical and practical agreement on prediction of microflow under ultrasonic energy.


In the highly competitive retail industry, an understanding on the perceptions of shoppers is important in attracting and retaining loyal customers. This study compares the shoppers' perceptions on various image dimensions using KSL City and Plaza Pelangi in Johor Bahru, Malaysia as case studies. Plaza Pelangi is more established but faces high vacancy rate and competition from KSL City. The latter is relatively new and needs to capture the shoppers market from Plaza Pelangi. A total 200 questionnaires were distributed using random sampling. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test, Paired-Samples T Test, Chi Square Test, One Way ANOVA were used. There was no significant difference between the overall preferences towards both shopping centers. However, there were significant differences according to demographic groups (race, age and marital status). Majority of the image dimension attributes were rated higher in KSL City compared to Plaza Pelangi. KSL City needs to improve the ease in locating merchandise and appoint higher quality tenants. KSL should strive for more inclusive shopper demographic groups. Plaza Pelangi needs to improve its physical dimension in terms of layout and facility dimension by undergoing upgrading works. Plaza Pelangi also needs to recruit more food and beverage outlets as well as entertainment outlets.


A numerical model and two physical models were used to investigate shoreline erosion problems at Buhne Point (Humboldt Bay), California. Initially, a numerical tidal circulation model was utilized to determine the tidal current field adjacent to Buhne Point. Maximum flood and ebb tidal currents were identified and used as test conditions for the physical models. A 1:100-scale physical model of central Humholdt Bay was used to determine the local wave climate in the vicinity of Buhne Point from hindcast data propagated through the Humboldt Bay entrance for various water levels and tidal flow conditions. The wave and tidal information obtained from these models was used in a 1:50-scale physical model to simulate shoreline changes at Buhne Point, and to develop a shoreline stabilization plan for the site. An optimum plan was developed to insure that the beach fill would not erode. The plan entailed a 510-m-long groin and a 259-m-long shore-connected breakwater. It was constructed at Buhne Point in 1984 and has functioned as intended to this point, as predicted by the model investigations.


Notwithstanding forceful crusade and delay research endeavors forever manageability of HIV patients in our surroundings, jungle fever and helminthiasis co-contamination in HIV/AIDS tainted pregnant ladies stay main considerations adding to dreariness and mortality of HIV positive pregnant lady, expands the danger of creating frailty, conveying a low birth weight baby and unexpected labor. This examination was accordingly intended to research the degree of co-disease of helminth and jungle fever parasite in HIV/AIDS tainted pregnant ladies on antiretroviral treatment (ART) in chose Hospital in Abuja Metropolis. An aggregate of 250 blood and feces test were gathered aseptically from HIV positive pregnant ladies on ART. The blood and feces test were investigated for the presence and pervasiveness of the jungle fever parasite and helminths. There was no huge distinction (p>0.05) in the pervasiveness of jungle fever and helminthiasis in HIV positive and HIV negative subjects. This examination uncovered that 180 (72%) of the investigation populace (250) had jungle fever alone, 100 (40%) had helminths and 50 (17.85%) were co-contaminated with the two parasites. The commonness of jungle fever, helminths, and co-disease in the investigation populace differs inconsequential (p>0.05) among the age gathering. Age bunch between 25-29 years and 30-34 years recorded the most elevated commonness. Likewise, with increment in CD4 check from 1-200 and 801-1000, the examination additionally recorded an unimportant reduction in jungle fever, helminths, and co-disease predominance. Discoveries from this examination can fill in as a guide for HIV general wellbeing administrators and also utilized in planning a novel program to draw out the life expectancy of HIV patients. Jungle fever and HIV, two of the most lethal sicknesses within recent memory, are as yet a significant general well-being hazard in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The two illnesses are inescapable, yet their dissemination significantly covers in SSA. Therefore, intestinal sickness and HIV coinfection (MHC) are basic in the area. Jungle fever, a protozoan parasitic illness, represented 216 million cases and 445,000 passings in 2016, around 90% of cases and passings happening in SSA, while HIV, a viral sickness, represented 36.7 million cases and around 1 million passings in 2016. SSA additionally has a lot of worldwide HIV trouble (around 70%). The two infections influence the most unfortunate portion of a populace, made defenseless by the absence of admittance to quality instruction, data, and state benefits, all traits of SSA. Essentially, intestinal sickness and HIV could be supposed to be exacerbated and fortified by destitution by influencing youngsters who might have in any case enter the labor force and add to the neighborhood economy. The endemicity of jungle fever and HIV in SSA has produced such a great amount of enthusiasm for the investigation of the two sicknesses as of late, due to conceivable medication drug communications in MHC patients getting jungle fever and HIV therapy associatively, just as their effect on the control of either infection. Together, jungle fever and HIV represent more than 2 million passings all around the world consistently. Youngsters (particularly those <5 years old) and pregnant ladies are at the most serious danger of jungle fever dismalness and demise, and ladies and juvenile young ladies are the most helpless against HIV contamination. Pregnant ladies and their unborn children are at specific danger of MHC around 1 million pregnancies are confounded by MHC consistently in SSA, putting the life of the pregnant lady and her baby in danger. Antagonistic pregnancy results related to MHC incorporate low birth weight, preterm conveyance, higher paces of neonatal mortality, placental jungle fever contamination, extreme frailty, slow gestational turn of events, decreased exchange of maternal antibodies (that present assurance against different irresistible infections) from mother to youngster, and sometimes expanded danger of mother–kid transmission of HIV. Studies had neglected to exhibit any important collaboration among jungle fever and HIV, however, an ongoing report gave one that was synergistic and bidirectional, prompting an exponential expansion in the antagonistic functions brought about by either contamination. Studies recommend the impact of MHC is more prominent in patients with cutting edge and stifled invulnerable capacity. Intestinal sickness and HIV associate in various manners naturally, jungle fever in HIV-contaminated patients prompt an expansion in viremia and a decrease in CD4+ T-cell tally, conceivably exacerbating the clinical standpoint of HIV-tainted people and advancing HIV transmission, and MHC people are bound to hold parasites at a high thickness clinically, HIV adds to more successive and more serious jungle fever, usually iron deficiency and cerebral intestinal sickness, and expanded danger of intrinsic disease, while intestinal sickness builds the illness movement of HIV to AIDS immunologically, jungle fever and HIV connect with the host's insusceptible framework, prompting complex actuation of safe cells and resulting firmly controlled creation of cytokines and antibodies; and restoratively, HIV contamination can impede the viability of antimalarial therapy, increment unfavorable functions, and select for parasites with drug-safe transformations.


Carotenoids are one of the major food bioactives that provide humans with essential vitamins and other critically important nutrients that contribute to the maintenance of human health. This review provides a summary of the most current literature data and information on most recent advances in dietary carotenoids and human health research. Specifically, it addresses the occurrence and distribution of carotenoids in different dietary sources, the effect of food processing and impact of gastrointestinal digestion on the bioaccessibility, bioavailability and bioactivities of dietary carotenoids. Emphasis is placed on the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of carotenoids and their optical/geometric isomers and ester forms, and the molecular mechanisms behind these actions. A particular focus is also on the modulatory ability of carotenoids on biomarkers related to low-grade inflammation, immune response and gut health.


Bisphenol A (BPA) sensing was investigated based on electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements of an electropolymerized molecularly imprinted polymer (E-MIP) film. The E-MIP film is composed of varying ratios of BPA–terthiophene and carbazole monomer complex deposited onto indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates via anodic electropolymerization using cyclic voltammetry (CV). Subsequently, the interfacial properties of these films were studied using the non-Faradaic EIS technique. The same technique was then used to measure the presence of templated BPA which is a known endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC). Analyses of the EIS results were performed using equivalent circuits in order to model the electrical and impedance properties through the interface. A linear calibration curve was established in the range 0–12 mM concentrations of the analyte. Moreover, the selectivity of the films against bisphenol AF and diphenolic acid was demonstrated. The E-MIP sensor may have advantages in environmental m...


Melanoma is rapidly increasing in incidence throughout the world. Early stages are curable with surgical approaches with excellent prognosis. However, a substantial proportion of patients progress to metastatic disease with survival rates of less than 5% making melanoma the culprit for over 65% of all skin-cancer related deaths. Novel agents targeting the immune system and the signaling pathways of melanoma are generating new promise, but chemotherapy remains an important therapeutic alternative, despite low response rates. The resistance of melanoma to chemotherapy is in part due to DNA repair mechanisms that allow cells to survive alkylation damage. Several novel agents targeting the abrogation of DNA repair pathways alone and in combination with cytotoxic agents have been developed with varying measures of success. In this dissertation, we first identified the epigenetic silencing of the DNA mismatch repair (MMR) gene MLH1 as a determinant of response and survival for melanoma patients treated with alkylator-based chemotherapy (dacarbazine/ temozolomide). We then determined the safe dosage of the epigenetic agent decitabine that can be administered in combination with temozolomide. The safety, tolerability and efficacy of the combination of decitabine and temozolomide were evaluated in a Phase II population. We finally determined the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic effects of treatment with the combination of decitabine and temozolomide in the blood and tumor tissues of metastatic melanoma patients.


Following decades of international negotiations and agreements, the world's multi-trillion-dollar public procurement market appears to be maturing into a free, open international market. To reach that point, nations must lower a broad array of barriers to trade in procurement. As the U.S. experience demonstrates, purchasing agencies, laboring under the constraints of domestic preferences, may effectively seek to promote free trade. At the same time, a variety of international organizations, from the World Trade Organization to Transparency International, have developed tools and instruments - including model codes and explicit nondiscrimination agreements - that ease barriers to trade in procurement. To accelerate the erosion of these barriers, this Article suggests assessing progress in four potentially overlapping steps: nondiscrimination, a political decision; harmonization, an effort to coordinate the international instruments; rationalization, an effort to enhance the efficiency of regimes launched under the international instruments; and, institutionalization, an integration of the evolving international procurement norms into the legal fabric of the nations entering the international free market in procurement.


Cooperative Law No. 17/2012 is the last law on cooperative legalized by the Legislative Assembly. The law is legalized on 30 October 2012 as the Substitute of Cooperative Law No.25/1992. Cooperative Law No. 17/2012 is reviewed judicially by six cooperatives and two individuals. Judge of the Constitutional Court in the decision stated Cooperative Law No.17 is invalid. Due to the decision, Cooperative Law No. 25/1992 is valid as Cooperative Law for temporary until a new cooperative law is legalized. By the cancelation of Cooperative Law No. 17/2012, the law cannnot be used as the basis of cooperative in Indonesia. The status of the cooperative management that are not from the cooperative members after the decision of Constitutional Court No. 28/PUU-XI/2013 do not have the right to be the cooperative management because the Cooperative Law No. 25/1992 that becomes the temporary Cooperative Law states that management can be choosen from the cooperative members. Government should really make a cooperative regulation for the improvement of cooperative and not only for the interest of government. Cooperative members should be the pole to improve the potentials possessed so that cooperative members that will become the management improve the cooperative in the future.


: Thirty fresh samples of uterine leiomyoma were disaggregated in collagenase (200kU/L) and cultured for 3-10 days with incubator. Of 30 cases, 27 cases of uterine leiomyoma obtained karyotypes and the rate of successful cultured was 90%, 9 cases showed abnormal karyotypes. Structural changes were frequently seen. Breakpoint of chromosome were 12q13-15 (7 cases), 14q24 (6 cases), 7q31-32 (3 cases). Specific chromosomal rearrangements were t(12;14) (q13-15; q24) and del (7) (q31-32). Our data suggested that chromosome 12q13-15, 14q24, 7q31-32 may be related to the proliferation of uterine leiomyoma.


Purpose: To develop an accurate feature based 3D‐3D deformable registration method for patient‐specific motion model used in external beam radiation treatment of lungcancers based on a 4D computed tomography (4DCT) image set by utilizing unique features of the bifurcations of tubular organs.Method and Materials: Each 4DCT set consisted of 10 phases of 3DCT volumes during one breath cycle. A 3D tubular organ segmentation was first performed on each of the phases to extract the centerlines of bronchial trees, estimate radius of bronchial trees and automatically detect the bifurcation points by applying learning algorithm with specially designed filters. A novel deformable registration method was applied to minimize the distances of the corresponding bifurcation points between a target phase and a reference phase (e.g., between 0% phase and 50% phase) to capture the transformation between different phases. The results were evaluated by using volume and distance based estimators. Results: The learning method was trained and tested with positive and negative examples. The generalization error of the learning method was estimated using bootstrapping with the mean error rate 4.6%. The detailed quantitative and qualitative registration results are shown in the supporting materials. The mean distance estimator yielded results ranging from 1.93 mm to 4.46 mm between the corresponding points between the 0% phase images and the 50% phase images after the deformable registration. The root‐mean‐square error ranged from 1.99 mm to 5.13 mm. Conclusions: A novel and accurate 3D‐3D registration method based on the bifurcations of the tubular organs was developed to capture the transformation between the 3D CTimages in the 4D computed tomography (4DCT) image sets. These preliminary results show that the proposed method is robust, fast and accurate for the deformable registration of the tubular organ in the lung.


Wide-area measurement system can retrieval the real time dynamic and static information of the large scale power system under the same time reference, helping to resolve the problems of the dynamic analysis and control for an interconnected power system, especially the low-frequency oscillation. However, communication delay is a non-ignorable factor for the stability of wide-area control. In this thesis, the dynamic model for interconnected power system considering the time delay was established; it also optimized the controller parameters based on particle swarm optimization. Simulation of large and small disturbance to a typical four-generator two-area testing system indicates that wide-area robust controller has a strong capability of damping area oscillation and good robustness even at the long wide-area signal time delay.


The present research aims is examining the Internet application as a new tool for tax collection and its related services and also it explores satisfaction degree of tax payers. The field study has been undertaken in data collection, standard questionnaires with 0.94 reliability have been distributed among tax payers (firms) in Markazi province of Iran and after their gathering, the structural equation model by LISREL software has been used in statistical analysis. The research results show that the first hypothesis saying that on-line tax return convenience causes higher satisfaction among tax payers is not supported and other four hypotheses are supported.


Hypomania FollowingCognitiveTherapy DEAR SIR, We read with interest the report of the development of hypomania following cognitive therapy (Journal, January 1986, 148, 103—104. However, we feel that there is a more parsimonious explanation of this event. This case appears typical of a bipolar affec tive disorder developing in middle life. The use of cognitive therapy is purely coincidental and there are no more grounds for attributing an aetiological role to this than to her filling in of numerous ques tionnaires. Extrapolation from a single case remains perilous and this hazard is not reduced when the authors outnumber the patient †̃¿ four to one' or by the inclusion of a graph.


This work aims at estimating and comparing the power limits of ΔΣ and charge-redistribution successive-approximation register (CR-SAR) analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), in order to identify which topology is the most power-efficient for a target resolution. A power consumption model for mismatch-limited SAR ADCs and for discrete-time (DT) ΔΣ modulators is presented and validated against experimental data. SAR ADCs are found to be the best choice for low-to-medium resolutions, up to roughly 80 dB of dynamic range (DR). At high resolutions, on the other hand, ΔΣ modulators become more power-efficient. This is due to the intrinsic robustness of the ΔΣ modulation principle against circuit imperfections and non-idealities. Furthermore, a comparison of the area occupation of such topologies reveals that, at high resolutions and for a given dynamic range, ΔΣ ADCs result more area-efficient as well.


&NA; Background: Cross‐sectional and retrospective surveys suggest that nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) contribute to the metabolic and morphologic alterations observed in patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Objectives: To assess the risk of developing body habitus changes (BHCs) and metabolic abnormalities in protease inhibitor (PI)‐naive HIV‐1‐infected patients treated with two NRTIs, and the risk associated with each of these drugs. Design: Prospective cohort study. Patients and Methods: The BHCs occurring in 335 patients treated with two NRTIs were evaluated every 3 months. The laboratory tests included determination of CD4 cell counts and the measurement of HIV RNA, serum glucose, cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. Cox proportional hazard models were used to describe the factors associated with the development of BHCs. Results: During a median exposure of 747.5 days, 46 patients (13.7%) developed BHCs: nine fat accumulation alone, 12 fat loss alone, and 25 combined fat loss and accumulation in different body regions. Fat loss alone occurred after a significantly longer median duration of treatment than the other two forms (p = .004). The risk of developing any BHC was significantly higher in female patients (p < .0001). Fat loss was the prevalent alteration in males. Hypertriglyceridemia was observed in 76 patients (22.7%), hypercholesterolemia in 35 (10.5%), and hyperglycemia in 48 (14.3%). The adjusted risk of developing hypertriglyceridemia was higher in the stavudinetreated patients (p = .04) and in those who had previously received ART (p = .02). The only independent factor associated with the development of hypercholesterolemia was to be ART experienced at baseline (p = .02), whereas age was associated with the development of hyperglycemia (p = .0096). Conclusions: Treatment with NRTIs may be responsible for the same morphologic alterations as those observed in patients treated with PIs. Moreover, altered triglyceride levels are also frequently observed. The different timing of presentation and gender distribution of BHCs suggest that multiple pathogenetic mechanisms are involved.


Background: In the past 15 years clinical laboratory science has been transformed by the use of technologies that cross the traditional boundaries between laboratory disciplines. However, during this period, issues of quality have not always been given adequate atten-tion. The European Molecular Genetics Quality Network (EMQN) has developed a novel external quality assessment scheme for evaluation of DNA sequencing. We report the results of an international survey of the quality of DNA sequencing among 64 laboratories from 21 countries. Methods: Current practice for DNA sequence analysis was established by use of an online questionnaire. Participating laboratories were provided with 4 DNA samples of validated genotype. Evaluation of the results included assessing the quality of sequence data, variant genotypes, and mutation nomenclature. To accommodate variations in mutation nomenclature, variants indicated by participants were scored for compliance with 3 acceptable marking schemes. Results: A total of 346 genotypes were analyzed. Of these, 19 (5%) genotyping errors were made. Of these, 10 (53%) were false-negative and 9 (47%) were false-positive results. A further 27 (8%) errors were made in naming mutations. Results were analyzed for 3 indicators of data quality: PHRED quality scores, Quality Read Length, and Quality Read Overlap. Most laboratories produced results of acceptable diagnostic quality as judged by these indicators. The results were used to calculate a consensus benchmark for DNA sequencing against which individual laboratories could rank their performance. Conclusions: We propose that the consensus benchmark can be used as a baseline against which the aggregate and individual laboratory standard of DNA sequencing may be tracked from year to year. that assessment (EQA) 1 for 3 criteria (correct assign-ment and the mutation effect) for each allele. The total score for each the


"Threshold-based forward guidance" (TBFG) is a state-contingent commitment to hold the policy rate at the zero lower bound until macroeconomic variables breach particular "thresholds". Though such guidance has been implemented in practice, little is known about how this policy works in theory. This paper fills that gap by studying threshold-based guidance as a tool to improve outcomes at the zero bound within a general equilibrium framework. Policymakers have rarely advocated using TBFG to provide stimulus, in part reflecting skepticism about their ability to commit credibly to time inconsistent behavior. We show that TBFG can be used to provide temporary stimulus, while also limiting the time inconsistency of policy promises. We also show that existence of a unique equilibrium requires the policymaker to specify how the thresholds should be interpreted, as well as their values. The optimal design of the threshold conditions depends on the relative importance of those shocks that induce a trade-off between stabilizing output and inflation and those that do not. With an appropriate choice of thresholds, TBFG outperforms forward guidance based purely on calendar time and comes close to mimicking outcomes under optimal commitment policy.


Abstract. The purpose of the EUNADICS-AV (European Natural Airborne Disaster
Information and Coordination System for Aviation) prototype early warning
system (EWS) is to develop the combined use of harmonised data products from satellite, ground-based and in situ instruments to produce alerts of airborne hazards (volcanic, dust, smoke and radionuclide clouds), satisfying the requirement of aviation air traffic management (ATM) stakeholders (https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/723986, last access: 5 November 2021). The alert products developed by the EUNADICS-AV EWS, i.e. near-real-time (NRT) observations, email notifications and netCDF (Network Common Data Form) alert data products (called NCAP files), have shown significant interest in using selective detection of natural airborne hazards from polar-orbiting satellites. The combination of several sensors inside a single global system demonstrates the advantage of using a triggered approach to obtain selective detection from observations, which cannot initially discriminate the different aerosol types. Satellite products from hyperspectral ultraviolet–visible (UV–vis) and infrared (IR) sensors (e.g. TROPOMI – TROPOspheric Monitoring Instrument – and IASI – Infrared Atmospheric Sounding Interferometer) and a broadband geostationary imager (Spinning Enhanced Visible and InfraRed Imager; SEVIRI) and retrievals from ground-based networks (e.g. EARLINET – European Aerosol Research Lidar Network, E-PROFILE and the regional network from volcano observatories) are combined by our system to create tailored alert products (e.g. selective ash detection, SO2 column and plume height, dust cloud, and smoke from wildfires). A total of 23 different alert products are implemented, using 1 geostationary and 13 polar-orbiting satellite platforms, 3 external existing service, and 2 EU and 2 regional ground-based networks. This allows for the identification and the tracking of extreme events. The EUNADICS-AV EWS has also shown the need to implement a future relay of radiological data (gamma dose rate and radionuclides concentrations in ground-level air) in the case of a nuclear accident. This highlights the interest of operating early warnings with the use of a homogenised dataset. For the four types of airborne hazard, the EUNADICS-AV EWS has demonstrated its capability to provide NRT alert data products to trigger data assimilation and dispersion modelling providing forecasts and inverse modelling for source term estimate. Not all of our alert data products (NCAP files) are publicly disseminated. Access to our alert products is currently restricted to key users (i.e. Volcanic Ash Advisory Centres, national meteorological services, the World Meteorological Organization, governments, volcano observatories and research collaborators), as these are considered pre-decisional products. On the other hand, thanks to the EUNADICS-AV–SACS (Support to Aviation Control Service) web interface (https://sacs.aeronomie.be, last access: 5 November 2021), the main part of the satellite observations used by the EUNADICS-AV EWS is shown in NRT, with public email notification of volcanic emission and delivery of tailored images and NCAP files. All of the ATM stakeholders (e.g. pilots, airlines and passengers) can access these alert products through this free channel.


Abstract The genus Marmosa contains 15 currently recognized species, of which nine are referred to the subgenus Marmosa, and six to the subgenus Micoureus. Recent revisionary research based on morphological data, however, suggests that the subgenus Marmosa is more diverse than the currently accepted taxonomy indicates. Herein we report phylogenetic analyses of sequence data from the mitochondrial cytochrome-b gene representing 12 of the 14 morphologically defined taxa recently treated as valid species of Marmosa (Marmosa) in the aforementioned revisionary work. These data provide a basis for testing the monophyly of morphologically defined taxa in the subgenus Marmosa, and they afford the first opportunity to assess phylogenetic relationships among the majority of species currently referred to the genus. Ten of 11 species of Marmosa (Marmosa) represented by multiple sequences in our analyses were recovered as monophyletic. In contrast, our samples of M. mexicana were recovered as two deeply divergent haplogroups that were not consistently associated as sister taxa. Among other results, our analyses support the recognition of M. isthmica and M. simonsi as species distinct from M. robinsoni, and the recognition of M. macrotarsus and M. waterhousei as species distinct from M. murina. The validity of three other species long recognized as distinct (M. rubra, M. tyleriana, and M. xerophila) is also clearly supported by our results. Although cytochrome-b sequence data are not consistently informative about interspecific relationships in this study, we found strong support for several clades, including (1) the subgenus Micoureus; (2) a group comprised of Marmosa macrotarsus, M. murina, M. tyleriana, and M. waterhousei; (3) a group comprised of M. robinsoni and M. xerophila; and (4) a group comprising all of the species in the subgenus Marmosa that occur north and west of the Andes (M. isthmica, M. mexicana, M. robinsoni, M. simonsi, M. xerophila, and M. zeledoni). Our discovery of the latter clade suggests that the Andes may have played a major role in the early diversification of this speciose radiation of small Neotropical marsupials.


Oak decline is a complex phenomenon that oak forests are faced with it across the world and Iran. Shalam forested area located in north of Ilam province was selectedto determine the role of topographicand some edaphic factors in tree mortality happened in Persian oak forests. The study region was divided into 20 homogeneous topographic units. Within each homogeneousunit,three 0.1-haplots were randomly-systematically established for measuring the rate of tree mortality and oneprofile was prepared for characterization ofsome physical and chemical soil characteristics (texture, moisture content, TNV%, OC% and N for each soil layer, and soil depth). In each plot,diameter at breast height (DBH), maximum and minimum crown diameters, crown dieback percent, origination and form of trees and shrubs for all species and site variables weremeasured. Results showed that 15.7% of forest stock had reduced while 97.65% of it belonged to Persian oak species. The results of multiple linear regression and RDA showed that tree mortality was significantly affected by elevation and aspect, but not by slope. The highestrate of tree mortality was observedin high elevation and south and west aspects. Also the results of multiple linear regression and RDA showed that tree mortality was significantly affected by soil depth and texture. So, the highestrate of tree mortality was observed in soils with less depth, less sand% and more silt%. It was concluded that topography and soil have effective role in tree mortality and its expansion across Zagros forests. Identifying the critical conditions in terms of topography and soil in these forests can help and be useful in the management of tree dieback .


Summary. The author studied the presence of multiple forms of the main extracellular protease ALP in three strains of Aspergillus fumigatus that differed in geographical origin, and in mutants of one of these strains with disrupted genes coding for the main proteases ALP and MEP. The pattern of multiple proteolytic bands after isoelectric focusing was, in all three wild strains, nearly the same and was not changed after inactivation of the MEP gene. However, in ALP‐deficient mutants all multiple forms also disappeared. The multiple forms observed must therefore be products of post‐translational processing of the protease ALP and not true isoenzymes (products of different genes of a gene family). Further experiments did not prove that phosphorylation and glycosylation were involved in the formation of the multiple forms under study.