Background and Purpose. Stroke remains the leading cause of disability in the United States. The purposes of this study were to examine whether quantitative measures of muscle strength and power in the involved lower extremity predict functional limitations and to evaluate the contributions of behavioral factors to mediating disability and quality of life in people who have survived a stroke. Subjects and Methods. A cross-sectional study design was used, and measurements of muscle impairment, lower-body function, disability, quality of life, and behavioral factors were obtained for 31 community-dwelling volunteers who had experienced a single ischemic stroke in the past 6 to 24 months. Results. Stepwise regression models including impairment and behavioral measures were strong predictors of function, disability, and quality of life. Involved-extremity muscle strength and power and self-efficacy were independently associated with function, whereas depression and self-efficacy were strong predictors of disability and quality of life. Discussion and Conclusion. The findings warrant future studies to determine whether interventions that address muscle strength and power, depressive symptoms, and low self-efficacy effectively improve function, reduce disability, and enhance quality of life in people who have survived a stroke.


Nearly 91% of organic pollutants in Hong Kong leachate could be effectively removed by the UASB (upflow anaerobic sludge blanket) process followed by the fenton coagulation. The COD (chemical oxygen demand) of leachate was lowered from an average of 5620 mg/L to 1910 mg/L after the UASB treatment at 37 degrees C, and was further lowered to 513 mg/L after fenton coagulation. The remaining refractory residues could be further removed by photochemical oxidation with the addition of H2O2. The BOD/COD ratio was greatly increased from 0.062 to 0.142, indicating the biodegradability of organic residues was improved. The photochemical oxidation for the fenton-coagulation supernatant was most effective at pH 3-4, with the addition of 800 mg/L of H2O2, and UV radiation time of 30 minutes. The final effluent contained only 148 mg/L of COD, 21 mg/L of BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) and 56 mg/L of TOC (total organic carbon).


ABSTRACT Reactivation of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) from latency into the lytic phase of its life cycle allows the virus to spread among cells and between hosts. Valproic acid (VPA) inhibits initiation of the lytic cycle in EBV-infected B lymphoma cells. While VPA blocks viral lytic gene expression, it induces expression of many cellular genes, because it is a histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor. Here we show, using derivatives of VPA, that blockade of EBV reactivation is separable from HDAC inhibition. Valpromide (VPM), an amide derivative of valproic acid that is not an HDAC inhibitor, prevented expression of two EBV genes, BZLF1 and BRLF1, that mediate lytic reactivation. VPM also inhibited expression of a viral late gene, but not early genes, when BZLF1 was exogenously expressed. Unlike VPA, VPM did not activate lytic expression of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus. Expression of cellular immediate-early genes, such as FOS and EGR1, is kinetically upstream of the EBV lytic cycle. VPM did not activate expression of these cellular immediate-early genes but decreased their level of expression when induced by butyrate, an HDAC inhibitor. VPM did not alter expression of several other cellular immediate-early genes, including STAT3, which were induced by the HDAC inhibitors in cells refractory to lytic induction. Therefore, VPM selectively inhibits both viral and cellular gene expression. VPA and VPM represent a new class of antiviral agents. The mechanism by which VPA and VPM block EBV reactivation may be related to their anticonvulsant activity. IMPORTANCE Epstein-Barr virus, (EBV), a human tumor virus, establishes a life-long latent infection. Reactivation of EBV into the lytic phase of its life cycle allows the virus to spread. Previously, we showed that EBV reactivation was blocked by valproic acid (VPA), an inhibitor of cellular histone deacetylases (HDACs). VPA alters the expression of thousands of cellular genes. In this study, we demonstrate that valpromide (VPM), an amide derivative of valproic acid that is not an HDAC inhibitor, prevented initiation of the EBV lytic cycle. VPA induced lytic reactivation of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), but VPM did not. Unlike VPA, VPM did not activate cellular immediate-early gene expression. VPM is a new type of antiviral agent. VPM will be useful in probing the mechanism of EBV lytic reactivation and may have therapeutic application. Epstein-Barr virus, (EBV), a human tumor virus, establishes a life-long latent infection. Reactivation of EBV into the lytic phase of its life cycle allows the virus to spread. Previously, we showed that EBV reactivation was blocked by valproic acid (VPA), an inhibitor of cellular histone deacetylases (HDACs). VPA alters the expression of thousands of cellular genes. In this study, we demonstrate that valpromide (VPM), an amide derivative of valproic acid that is not an HDAC inhibitor, prevented initiation of the EBV lytic cycle. VPA induced lytic reactivation of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV), but VPM did not. Unlike VPA, VPM did not activate cellular immediate-early gene expression. VPM is a new type of antiviral agent. VPM will be useful in probing the mechanism of EBV lytic reactivation and may have therapeutic application.


Rating scales of various sorts are very useful for both clinical and research purposes. However, they vary greatly regarding their reliability, validity, and utility. This article provides a guide for people who need to evaluate scales, either to incorporate them into their own research or clinical activities, or to determine if the results of studies which use scales are meaningful. The different types of reliability and validity are discussed and guidelines are offered to evaluate how well these were assessed. Finally, other aspects of scales which can affect their usefulness, such as completion time, training, and scoring ease, are discussed.


There is increasing interest in the study of dysprosium oxide nanoparticles (nDy2O3) for biomedical applications due to their fluorescence and paramagnetic properties. However, the fate of nDy2O3 and their effects on natural biological systems are a growing concern. This study assessed the toxicity of nDy2O3 on Escherichia coli for concentrations between 0.02 and 2 mg L−1, exposed to three concentrations of NaCl (8500, 850, and 85 mg L−1) and three glucose concentrations (35, 70, and 140 mg L−1). The ranges of these variables were selected to cover manufacturer recommendations of analytical methodologies for toxicity assessment, environmental and industrial nDy2O3 effluent concentrations, and metabolic activity. Two array-based toxicity techniques were used to evaluate the 27 combinations of conditions. Fluorescent dyes (Live/Dead) and respirometric assays were used to measure the undisturbed cell membrane (UCM) and remaining respiration percentage (RRP), respectively. Respirometric tests showed a higher toxic effect than Live/Dead test assays, indicating that metabolic processes are more affected than the physical structure of the cell by exposure to nDy2O3. After exposing the bacteria to concentrations of 2.0 mg L−1 uncoated nDy2O3 for 2 h at 85 mg L−1 NaCl and 140 mg L−1 glucose, the RRP and UCM decreased to 43% and 88%, respectively. Dysprosium ion (Dy+3) toxicity measurement suggested that Dy+3 was the main contributor to the overall toxicity.


Urban development planning efforts are challenged to enhance coevolving spatial and socioeconomic systems that exist and interact at multiple scales. While network and simulation sciences have created new tools and theories suitable for urban studies, models of development are not yet suitable for local and regional development planning. A case study of the City of Roanoke, Virginia, grounded network development theories of scaling, engagement, and collective perception function, as well as network forms. By advancing urban development network theory, frameworks for urban simulation like agent-based models take more coherent shape. This in turn better positions decisionmaking and planning practitioners to adapt, transform, or renew local network-oriented development systems, and conceptualize a framework for computational urban development planning for regions and localities.


The purpose of this study is to assess changes in subjective and objective function from pre- to post-knee arthroplasty (KA) using a combined classifier technique. Twenty healthy adults (50–80 years) and 31 KA patients (39–81 years) were studied (4 weeks pre- and 6 months post-KA). Questionnaire measures of subjective pain, joint stability, activity and function were collected. Objective functional assessment included goniometry, ultrasound imaging and 3-D motion analysis/inverse modelling of gait and sit–stand. An optimal set of variables were used to classify function using the Cardiff Dempster–Shafer theory (DST) method. Out of sample accuracy of the classifiers ranged between 90% and 94% for segregating healthy individuals and pre-KA patients. Post-KA subjective function improved with 74% classified as healthy. However, there was minimal improvement in objective measures (23% classified as healthy). The novel use of Cardiff DST segregated KA patients from healthy individuals and estimated changes in function from pre- to post-surgery. KA patients had improved pain and function post-operation but objective knee joint measures remained different to healthy individuals.


This paper estimates the degree of the exponential-function misvaluation, its variation with given product price level, and its expected growth rate. The paper examines whether other mathematical functions, such as linear, quadratic and cubic functions, conform to the discounting and compounding processes of individual decision makers. Using subjects familiar with the exponential function discounting formula, this study finds that individuals undervalue the compound interest discounting formula given by the exponential function and overvalue the simple interest discounting formula given by the linear function. These findings can be attributed to the overreaction, overconfidence, mental accounting and narrow-framing behaviors discussed in psychology.


In situ electrochemical activation as a new pretreating method to adjust electrocatalytic performance attracts extensive attention. However, the activation mechanisms of electrocatalysts are still ambiguous. Herein, we propose a facile modulation strategy of in situ cathodic activation of FePx based on W-incorporation (W-FePx/IF) for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). The activated W-FeOx with obvious surface reconstruction demonstrates the role of W-incorporation for driving the cathodic activation of FePx, which suggests the larger surface area and more active sites. In fact, W incorporation can not only accelerate the cathodic activation process but also act as the adsorption sites for Had to form the synergistic effect with FeOx for water dissociation. The obtained W-FeOx/IF exhibits greatly enhanced HER activity featuring decreased overpotential from 237.7 to 154.0 mV at 100 mA cm-2, which may be ascribed to W-FeOx with double catalytic active sites after cathodic activation. Additionally, the modulation effects of cathodic activation can be exactly achieved by changing electrochemical parameters such as CV cycles. W-FeOx/IF also shows excellent long-term stability for at least 100 h at 100 mA cm-2. This modulation engineering based on metal doping is expected to provide inspiration for the understanding of the cathodic activation process for efficient electrocatalysts.


Rapidly induced, sustained hyperglycaemia in rats caused a sharp, transient increase in cerebral glucose gain (defined as the rate at which glucose enters the brain from the circulating blood and is retained for metabolic or other purposes). This initial increase in gain during hyperglycaemia took place whether or not exogenous insulin was injected. However, if animals were not given insulin the increase in cerebral glucose gain was not sustained as the period of hyperglycaemia was prolonged, but decreased steadily until, after 20 min, it was similar to that found in animals with normal concentrations of glucose in the blood. The effect of the injection of insulin was to cause the initial sharp increase in the cerebral gain of glucose to be sustained (though at a somewhat lower level) during periods of hyperglycaemia lasting up to at least 60 min. Insulin did not act by blocking the efflux of glucose from the brain nor did it stimulate cerebral glucose metabolism indirectly by reducing the supply of ketone bodies to the brain. The concentration of glycogen in the brains of hyperglycaemic animals was almost doubled by insulin, but this increase in glycogen content only accounted for a small part of the extra glucose gained by the brains. Anaerobic glycolysis in the brain was not altered by insulin. It was concluded that insulin caused the cerebral cells to use more glucose not only to form glycogen but, to a much greater extent, to synthesize other substances, probably mainly the non-essential amino acids.


It is well known that it is possible to achieve adaptation for "free" in function estimation under a global loss. It is unclear, however, why and how the adaptability is achieved. In this article we show that adaptability is achieved through information pooling. It is first shown that separable rules, which figure prominently in wavelet and other orthogonal series methods, lack adaptability; they are necessarily not rate-adaptive. A sharp lower bound on the cost of adaptation for separable rules is obtained. We then derive a tight lower bound on the amount of information pooling required for achieving global adaptability. Moreover, in a sharp contrast to the separable rules, it is shown that adaptive nonseparable estimators can be superefficient at every point in the parameter spaces. The results demonstate that information pooling is the key to increase estimation precision and achieve adaptability and even superefficiency.


The setting of priorities is an integrated part of social-work politics in Sweden as well as internationally. This article explores Swedish social services and how politicians on the political boards wish to make priorities and what these priorities involve. The use of regression analyses also reveals which circumstances are of importance for allocative precedence and the impact different distributive principles have. It is hard to detect clear-cut patterns of circumstances that guide the judgements in any one direction. The results show that political affiliation overall is not a determining factor for attitudes towards how priorities are made. Another result is a manifest area bias, suggesting that respondents tend to see to the interests of their own professional domain, a result most visible among the politicians involved with Care for the Elderly and Disabled (CED). Yet, with regard to allocative principles, political colour seems to matter. Conservative politicians, as expected, agree with the principles of economy and of capacity to benefit, while the socialist block, less expectedly, seems to embrace the principle of deservingness.


The steady-state behavior of open queuing systems with Poisson arrival processes in light traffic, that is, as the arrival rate tends to zero, is considered. Expressions are provided for the derivatives with respect to the arrival rate of various quantities of interest (such as moments of steady-state sojourn times and queue lengths), evaluated at an arrival rate of zero. These expressions are obtained using the regenerative structure of the queuing system and a change-of-measure formula based on likelihood ratios. The derivatives, which can be used in interpolation approximations, can be evaluated analytically in simple cases and by simulation in general. >


As a practitioner of the short poem for 34 years, I have been and remain on the lookout for other practitioners. By putting on an editorial hat and placing a callout for 1 to 5-line poems via the Australian Poetry e-newsletter, I've hearteningly found numerous practitioners. It's been a rewarding experience for me and now it may be for you, dear reader. "Make your next poem different from your last" is a quote attributed to Robert Frost and it is quality, difference and variety I've sought to honour in my selection. Poets continue to see the world from their own perspective, through their own history, environment and sifting process while keeping in mind what's universal. What has caught their attention, engaged their senses, thinking and powers of observation they've found necessary to reveal via poems. The poems in this selection look inward and outward, span the world and are domestic, they record the "voices" of the child and the elder. The short poem has its appeal – it's lean, exacting, pithy – wit, wisdom, wordplay and wonder whittled into a dart aimed to hit the bullseye which is you, dear reader. I don't want to kill the short poem by defining it. Via the formatting of the poems I've given the poems breathing space – as composer Erik Satie knew, the spaces between the notes are as important as the notes. I'll leave you the space to wander and wonder amongst the poems.


Bruce Nauman (b. 1941) is one of the most innovative, provocative and influential artists working today. His pioneering explorations of sculpture, performance, sound, video and installations - always questioning the role of the artist - have broken new ground and inspired innumerable artists' careers. Confronted with what to do in his studio soon after graduating, Nauman had the simple but profound realization that 'If I was an artist and I was in the studio, then whatever I was doing in the studio must be art. At this point art became more of an activity and less of a product.' Exploring Nauman's relationship to the place where he creates his strikingly original works, Bruce Nauman: The True Artist retraces back to the artist's youth in Fort Wayne, Indiana, his graduate work at the University of California, Davis, through to the present day. Nauman's continual search for new means and sources of expression have led him to experiment with a very wide variety of medium (photography, performance, sculpture, installations, video, neon sign, and sound) as well as to explore the relationship between words and images. Nauman's apotheosis as one of the world's most highly lauded artists came as he was ranked No. 1 in the world by Artfacts.net in 2006, and he was the sole US representative in the American Pavilion at the 2009 Venice Biennale. Peter Plagens, best known to the general public for his work as art critic at Newsweek, has known Nauman for over forty years, and in his own words describes this book as 'about my trying to get at the real truth of Bruce Nauman's work'. They first met in 1970, when their studios were a block apart in Pasadena, California, and they played basketball together every Sunday. Since then Plagens has pursued a real understanding of his friend's art and in this book presents it from his uniquely insightful perspective, including chronicling as it happened the creation of works in Nauman's studio in Galisteo, New Mexico, and the organization, installation and reception of his exhibitions. Throughout, Plagens is a savvy and engaging guide to the work, using his own attempts to puzzle out the meaning of the pieces, and the artist's conversations about them, to offer the reader a vivid, personal and enlightening take on one of the key figures in contemporary art.


We use a frequency-shifted feedback technique with a high-gain fiber amplifier operating at λ=1083 nm to produce a multifrequency light beam that covers a controllable spectral range. It is ideal for optically pumping a gas of metastable He because it spans the Doppler width, and its high efficiency has implications for many applications. Measurements confirm that eight times fewer atoms are left in the unchosen states with multifrequency light.


Author(s): Buckle, A. P.; Fenn, M. G. P. | Abstract: The commensal rodent pest species have spread from their ancestral homes in Asia to inhabit many natural ecosystems worldwide. The introduction of these exotics has often had a significant effect on endemic plant and animal species but their impact has, perhaps, been most severe on off-shore and oceanic islands where nesting birds, insects, terrestrial molluscs, reptiles and amphibians are all vulnerable. Conservationists have used a variety of control approaches either to reduce or eliminate the pressure of competition and predation exerted by introduced rodents on island populations of endangered species. Successful projects have involved a sequence of carefully-planned operations. Firstly, an assessment of the nature and scope of the rodent threat is undertaken to permit the development of a control programme with the maximum chance of success. A second element is the estimation of the likely impact of intended control operations on non-targets in these highly sensitive environments. A pilot study may be required prior to the third and final stage, that of implementation and then monitoring the effect of the programme on target pests, sympatric non-targets and the species that are the object of the conservation effort. The anticoagulant rodenticide brodifacoum (trade names 'Klerat' and 'Talon') is used in conservation projects worldwide. This paper puts forward general principles for adoption when employing this compound for conservation and exemplifies the approach advocated with descriptions of a number of projects undertaken for the benefit of a variety of endangered species.


Instead of offering an academic alternative to the exclusionary rule, this article provides a guideline for moving past the rule. The exclusionary rule was chiefly created to deter violation of Fourth Amendment rights, but has been criticized for what many consider to be its draconian and odious remedy. The article argues that movement away from this rule is justified and that the change should be effectuated in state courts. First, the article examines the genesis of and policy behind the exclusionary rule, the major limitations and exceptions that have been developed to avoid the rule's distasteful effects, and the studies and data that have been accumulated concerning the rule's success, or lack thereof, in reaching its policy goals. This is followed by a discussion of the propriety of using the state courts as laboratories for change and experimentation within the framework of the federal system. Following that, the article offers a blueprint for one trial judge in one county in one state to institute the change. This blueprint is presented in the form of a hypothetical criminal case in which the prosecutor concedes that an illegal search and seizure occurred, and that the fruits of the crime were seized in violation of the Fourth Amendment, but argues that the evidence should be admitted anyway, not only because it is probative, but also because excluding it would not further the deterrence goal of the exclusionary rule. Two exchanges in this hypothetical criminal proceeding are offered. The first is between the lawyers and the trial judge during a pre-trial suppression hearing, while the second takes place between the lawyers and a three-judge appellate panel after the trial court admitted the evidence and the defense appealled. Following this dual-exchange blueprint, the article concludes with the argument that the movement beyond the exclusionary rule is not only justified but also possible, and that state courts are the proper venue in which to make the change.


We give a categorical semantics to the call-by-name and call-by-value versions of Parigot's λμ-calculus with disjunction types. We introduce the class of control categories, which combine a cartesian-closed structure with a premonoidal structure in the sense of Power and Robinson. We prove, via a categorical structure theorem, that the categorical semantics is equivalent to a CPS semantics in the style of Hofmann and Streicher. We show that the call-by-name λμ-calculus forms an internal language for control categories, and that the call-by-value λμ-calculus forms an internal language for the dual co-control categories. As a corollary, we obtain a syntactic duality result: there exist syntactic translations between call-by-name and call-by-value that are mutually inverse and preserve the operational semantics. This answers a question of Streicher and Reus.


We study the $\Gamma$-limit of Ambrosio-Tortorelli-type functionals $D_\varepsilon(u,v)$, whose dependence on the symmetrised gradient $e(u)$ is different in $\mathbb{A} u$ and in $e(u)-\mathbb{A} u$, for a $\C$-elliptic symmetric operator $\mathbb{A}$, in terms of the prefactor depending on the phase-field variable $v$. This is intermediate between an approximation for the Griffith brittle fracture energy and the one for a cohesive energy by Focardi and Iurlano. In particular we prove that $G(S)BD$ functions with bounded $\mathbb{A}$-variation are $(S)BD$.


Anti-corruption agencies (ACAs) have been established in many Asian countries to tackle the problem of corruption. However, with the exceptions of the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau in Singapore and the Independent Commission Against Corruption in Hong Kong, many Asian ACAs have been ineffective. What criteria should be used to evaluate their effectiveness? After analyzing the functions of the ACAs in India, Hong Kong, Macao, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand, this article recommends that their performance should be benchmarked according to 22 indicators. It concludes that benchmarking provides an ACA with an objective method for evaluating its performance by comparing it with the performance of more effective ACAs. Benchmarking also enables an ACA to improve its performance by introducing reforms to remove the weaknesses exposed by comparison with more effective ACAs in other countries.


Officers of the 21st Century will need to cope with quite different working environments and cultures to their predecessors. Topical and highly publicised issues, such as piracy and the criminalisation of the seafarer, which affect their careers, will continue in the short term. However, both the technical and non-technical skills of the officers will need to be developed in directions not seen hitherto. Technology affecting shipboard equipment is progressing dramatically, as cited elsewhere in this conference's papers, yet it becoming increasingly apparent that non-technical skills and human factors are being integrated on a more formal basis within an officer's formal training.
The recent IMO Diplomatic Conference in Manila debated proposed amendments to the existing STCW'95 Convention relating to mandatory Human Factors training. For the first time we may have to get used terms such as 'leadership' and 'teamwork' incorporated into such legislation. In response, one might ask the question "How can leadership and teamwork competence be measured?" Clearly therefore, interpersonal skills will form a significant part of this requirement.
This paper will examine the various personal and inter-personal qualities required by the individual whom is to become the 'Officer of the 21st Century'.


Wisden Cricketers' Almanack has become known as 'cricket's bible', and in 2013 it celebrates its 150th anniversary. Many of its traditions are of great significance to all fans of the sport, and its annual nomination of the Cricketers of the Year is cricket's equivalent of the Oscars. Beginning in 1889 with the honouring of Six Great Bowlers of the Year, the Almanack's announcement of the Cricketers of the Year has been a hotly debated highlight of the cricket season ever since. For the first few years the number of cricketers chosen annually varied between one and nine, but the number soon settled at five. The key criterion for selection is 'excellence in and/or influence on the previous English cricket season', and no cricketer can be chosen twice. So with a new five chosen every year Wisden has, through its contemporary rather than retrospective judgement, built cricket's most authoritative 'hall of fame'. It is the oldest accolade in cricket, and the 2013 edition of the Almanack, raises the total number of Cricketers of the Year to 570. Wisden Cricketers of the Year is the first ever book about all the cricketers who have been honoured by Wisden. Written by Simon Wilde, cricket correspondent of the Sunday Times, and containing photographs of all 570 players, this book explains why each was chosen. Philip Bailey's statistics complete the comprehensive package. Published as part of Wisden's 150th anniversary celebrations, Wisden Cricketers of the Year is a handsome, large-format volume and an essential addition to the library of anyone interested in cricket, past and present.


The objective of this article is to promote the adoption of farmland preservation strategies that minimize the conflicts between urban land uses and dairy agriculture land use. In order to accomplish this, a survey was developed and implemented which contributes knowledge and understanding of dairy farmers' perceptions. Farm consultants can use the results to develop strategies to address urban/agriculture conflicts.


Eutrophication is an event that occurred when the lakes have a high growth rate of phytoplankton and causing deterioration of water quality. In this work, we use Carlson's Trophic State Index (CTSI) to evaluate the situation of eutrophication of Mae Kuang Reservoir for the first time. Three parameters, i.e., total phosphorus, chlorophyll-a, and water transparency were used to calculate CTSI. The results showed that the reservoir has started to eutrophic. In June and October, the ranges of the CTSI were 49.26–59.60 and 49.07–56.04, respectively, which indicated a low eutrophic state of the reservoir. However, in this primary eutrophic condition, the water quality was not bad, and the living organisms can survive. The CTSI is a valuable and simple alternative method for monitoring and estimating lake ecosystems' eutrophic status.


A novel deposition way of nickel film for crystallization amorphous silicon film is introduced. Electroless nickel planting is a convenient and inexpensive way to deposit nickel without using the electric field or any large facility. A 200 nm nickel film is deposited on the glass substrates and then a 300nm a-Si film is deposited on the nickel film with a horizontal electric field assisted to enhance amorphous silicon crystallization. The bi-layer film is annealed at 500°C for several hours in the nitrogen atmosphere. The crystallized Si thin films were characterized by Raman spectroscopy, Field emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS). The Raman demonstrates that the a-Si has been crystallized. Furthermore the FE-SEM shows the lateral crystalline morphology, the length of grain is up to 5µm and the EDS reveals the nickel distribution in the MILC and MIC area.


Metacognition allows us to explicitly represent the uncertainty in our perceptions and decisions. Recent theories suggest that we use predictive models of our environment to optimise these introspective processes, but extant accounts disagree about the role prediction plays: some accounts suggest that we should have more sensitive subjective insight for predictable events, while others stress that metacognition should be enhanced for surprising prediction errors. Here two experiments compare these accounts. Participants performed actions to generate visual outcomes that could move in expected or unexpected directions. Across both experiments, signal detection analyses revealed enhanced metacognition for unexpected outcomes. A combination of reverse correlation and computational modelling suggested this advantage arose because metacognitive processes are more sensitive to unexpected information. These results are consistent with higher order inference models of introspective awareness and point to a mechanism that may optimise diverse aspects of cognition and behaviour in an unstable world.


Situated in the heart of the Mekong River basin, the biodiversity of Cambodian freshwaters is high, with around 475 fish species. Fisheries have shaped Cambodian culture, including traditional diets. Fish and other aquatic animals are the main and culturally preferred animal-source foods in a population vulnerable to food insecurity and malnutrition. The food culture of consuming fish with the bones and head is nutritionally valuable, providing high-quality nutrients. The objective of this study was to assess the consumption of fish and other aquatic animals among mothers and their young children, with details on species, types of processing, and parts consumed. We interviewed 100 mothers in Prey Veng Province, Cambodia, on fish and other aquatic animals consumed by themselves and their children (one child per mother) during the preceding rainy season. To support recall of fish consumption, we used 157 cards with pictures of fish and other aquatic animal species and 11 cards with processed fish. Our results showed that species diversity in mothers' diets was higher than that of their children; on average, mothers and children consumed 69 and 14 species of fish, eight and one species of other aquatic animals, respectively, in the preceding rainy season. On average, mothers reported they knew of 113 fish species and 14 other species available in their surrounding environments. Consuming fish with the head and bones is common among mothers but not children. Our study showed that the rich biodiversity of aquatic animals in the Mekong River is reflected in the food culture of mothers, but not in children. Consequently, children in their most critical period, do not harness the nutritional benefits from the rich aquatic biodiversity. We suggest policymakers recommend feeding young children with a larger diversity of aquatic animals and promoting fish processing to allow young children to benefit from the rich aquatic diversity and their nutrient-rich parts.


Faced with the challenges of healthcare reform, skills and new capabilities are needed to support the reform and it is of crucial importance in Africa where shortages affects the health system resilience. Edwards et al provides a good example of the challenge of implementing a mentoring program in one province in a sub-Saharan country. From this example, various aspects of strengthening the capacity of managers in healthcare are examined based on our experience in action-training in Africa, as mentoring shares many characteristics with action-training. What practical lessons can be drawn to promote the strengthening so that managers can better intervene in complex contexts? Deeper involvement of health authorities and more rigorous approaches are seriously desirable for the proper development of health capacity strengthening programs in Africa.


Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)%%%%Atherosclerosis is a chronic disease that happens mostly in aged people, and recently studies have showed many similarities between Hutchinson Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS) cells and aging cells, implicating dysfunctions of lamin A/C in aging process and atherosclerosis, as HGPS is caused by a mutated form of lamin A/C. Blood flow in arteries is generating shear stress that is mostly applied on endothelial cells that align along inner blood vessel wall. At the same time, endothelial cells are also under stretch by periodic arterial pulses. Considering the fact that atherosclerosis is prone to developing at arterial branches with disturbed shear and increased stretch, it is highly possible that laminar flow and proper stretch force are regulating endothelium to function appropriately. In this thesis, the investigation of what effects laminar flow or cyclic stretch can bring to endothelial cells was conducted, and examination of lamin A/C expression under mechanical forces were elaborated and incorporated with cell senescence. Results showed that laminar shear stress and stretch force can regulate lamin A/C expression in different patterns, which were impaired in senescent cells.


This research project is both an update of the analysis on carbon emissions trajectories proposed by Le Guenedal et al. (2020) and a companion study of the climate risk measures defined by Le Guenedal and Roncalli (2022). While Le Guenedal et al. (2020) use carbon intensities, we extend the track-record projection approach by considering absolute carbon emissions. In particular, we propose a carbon budget approach that incorporates novel metrics for measuring the carbon emissions reduction targets and the relative positioning with respect to the net zero emissions (NZE) scenario. Indeed, current carbon emissions data are not sufficient to build portfolio alignment. The purpose of this paper is then to define net zero carbon metrics, which are necessary to enhance the disclosure and the debate on corporates' emissions (Créhalet, 2021; Le Meaux et al., 2021). These carbon metrics can be divided into two families. The static measures are NZE duration, NZE gap, NZE slope and NZE budget. They can be computed using a target scenario or the linear trend model. The dynamic NZE measures incorporate the past trajectory and the future scenarios of carbon emissions. For instance, we break down the carbon budget by error and revision time contributions. We also propose a velocity measure of the carbon emissions trend and two main dynamic NZE measures that are necessary to assess the performance of an issuer compared to the NZE scenario: the zero-velocity scenario and the burn-out scenario. These different measures can then be used to define the PAC framework, that analyzes the participation, ambition and credibility of issuers' NZE policies. Finally, we apply this framework to the CDP database. Empirical results show that net zero carbon emissions are challenging for many issuers for two reasons. The first is that some issuers have a lack of ambition concerning their NZE scenario. The second is that some targets are not compatible with past trends.


Abstract This contribution deals with a comparison of one AI based data mining tool and two traditional approaches utilized to collect and interpret data for prospect generation. Traditional prospect generation methods, like manual web search or using purchased data from external providers may involve high costs and efforts and are subject to failures and waste through outdated and untargeted data. In contrast, AI based methods claim to provide better results at lower costs. Based on a real case, the authors compare effects of these three prospect generation methods. AI based data mining tools compensate for some weaknesses of other methods, especially because they do not need pre-defined selection criteria which might bias the results. In addition, they involve less effort from the researcher. However, the results in generating concrete prospects may be still weaker than with traditional methods if web crawling activities are influenced by underlying databases. For academic research in the field of prospect generation, this study provides a fact-based comparison of approaches. Implications for businesses include the advice to combine methods rather than to rely on a single approach. The time available for research and the complexity of the target market have an influence on the selection of the prospect generation approach.


Abstract The 2016–17 European outbreak of H5N8 HPAIV (Clade 184.108.40.206b) affected a wider range of avian species than the previous H5N8 outbreak (2014–15), including an incursion of H5N8 HPAIV into gamebirds in England. Natural infection of captive-reared pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) led to variable disease presentation; clinical signs included ruffled feathers, reluctance to move, bright green faeces, and/or sudden mortality. Several birds exhibited neurological signs (nystagmus, torticollis, ataxia). Birds exhibiting even mild clinical signs maintained substantial levels of virus replication and shedding, with preferential shedding via the oropharyngeal route. Gross pathology was consistent with HPAIV, in gallinaceous species but diphtheroid plaques in oropharyngeal mucosa associated with necrotising stomatitis were novel but consistent findings. However, minimal or modest microscopic pathological lesions were detected despite the systemic dissemination of the virus. Serology results indicated differences in the timeframe of exposure for each case (n = 3). This supported epidemiological conclusions confirming that the movement of birds between sites and other standard husbandry practices with limited hygiene involved in pheasant rearing (including several fomite pathways) contributed to virus spread between premises.


This study details the macromolecular changes in cartilage involving proteoglycan molecules in an animal model of rheumatoid arthritis. In experimental chronic immune synovitis, fluorescein‐conjugated mouse IgG and three monoclonal antibodies (MAbs 2G2, 2E9, and 6C9) portraying differing fine antigenic specificity for rabbit cartilage proteoglycan monomer were utilized to detail alterations in cartilage proteoglycan. In normal and IgG immune animals, fluorescein isothiocynate (FITC)‐conjugated MAbs 2G2 and 2E9 stained cellular/pericellular (C/PC) region intensely. FITC‐MAb 2G2 stained cartilage interterritorial matrix as well. FITC‐MAb 6C9 stained only C/PC area lightly but did not stain matrix. A marked decrease in staining intensity with FITC‐MAb 2G2 was noted in cartilage sections derived from animals with immune synovitis. A corresponding increase in staining of cartilage was noted with FITC‐MAb 6C9. The augmented staining of articular cartilage with FITC‐MAb 6C9 was most prominent in femoral condyle tissue sections, which corresponded to the cartilaginous area, with the greatest severity in gross pathology. There was a slight augmentation of staining with FITC‐MAb 2E9, especially in the C/PC area of medial/femoral cartilage. In addition, the animals with immune synovitis showed abortive cartilage repair exemplified by the presence of chondrocyte cloning (up to 20 cells) which correlated with increased FITC‐MAb 2G2 staining. The differential MAb staining patterns of cartilaginous tissues obtained utilizing FITC‐conjugated monoclonal antibodies with known fine antigenic specificity indicates a modulation of proteoglycans involving predominantly core protein epitopes in the articular cartilage of animals with chronic immune synovitis.


Objective. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Lipid-lowering therapy is reportedly underused in patients with RA. Longitudinal cohort studies comparing use of lipid-lowering medications in patients with RA versus the general population are lacking. Methods. Cardiovascular risk factors, lipid measures, and use of lipid-lowering agents were assessed in a population-based inception cohort of patients with RA and a cohort of non-RA subjects followed from January 1, 1988, to December 31, 2008. The National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Adult Treatment Panel III (ATPIII) guidelines were assessed at the time of each lipid measure throughout followup. Time from meeting guidelines to initiation of lipid-lowering agents was assessed using Kaplan-Meier methods. Results. The study population included 412 RA and 438 non-RA patients with ≥ 1 lipid measure during followup and no prior use of lipid-lowering agents. Rates of lipid testing were lower among patients with RA compared to non-RA subjects. Among patients who met NCEP ATPIII criteria for lipid-lowering therapy (n = 106 RA; n = 120 non-RA), only 27% of RA and 26% of non-RA subjects initiated lipid-lowering agents within 2 years of meeting the guidelines for initiation. Conclusion. There was substantial undertreatment in both the RA and the non-RA cohorts who met NCEP ATPIII criteria for initiation of lipid-lowering agents. Patients with RA did not have as frequent lipid testing as individuals in the general population.


An MOS depletion device model that is compatible with SPICE circuit simulation program and based on device physics is described. The depletion device is modeled by an equivalent circuit consisting of various well-characterized semiconductor devices, for example, the enhancement MOS device and the JFET. IT has the advantages of both the existing physical and empirical models. The model is applicable to immediate circuit simulation and device fabrication. Derivation of the model along with its parameters for the Gaussian impurity distribution is given. Implementation of circuit simulation with SPICE is demonstrated. More accurate results compared to the empirical model are obtained.


Overfishing is the classic tragedy of the commons. So far, governments have pursued a variety of solutions to incentivize sustainable commercial fishing practices, realizing only mixed results. After describing the costs associated with implementing overfishing controls, I propose a new method of regulating commercial fishing: the price cap. This Article explains the theory of how price caps can incentivize sustainable fishing, analyzes the implementation costs associated with price caps, and compares price caps to existing overfishing regulations. Because each fishery is unique, no single method will produce the greatest benefit at the lowest cost in all fisheries. Accordingly, I analyze the factors that might make a fishery a better or worse candidate for the implementation of price caps.


This study focuses on stereotypes about Germany, its culture and people, held by learners of German in a big public university in Malaysia. It examines not only the stereotypical representations of the target language country but also assesses its favourability and salience, which has not been done previously. The findings revealed that the students' stereotypes about Germany were varied and diverse. Also, they were overwhelmingly positive. The top three salient categories of images about Germany were related to technology, famous personalities – for the most part football players and scientists – and cars. The findings also indicated that very few references had been made to German culture and to its great cultural figures. The results of the present study suggest that students could benefit from a wider and deeper exposure to German culture in the language classroom.


In today world of banking, banks are facing a lot of stiff competition both from within the sector and outside. The customers are now more informed and their demands vary in complexity and time. This intense competition has resulted in little or no differentiation among the products being offered due to product imitation thus no bank can claim a substantive competitive edge over another. Service quality is therefore very Key in order to create and sustain worthy relationships with customers and also to keep abreast with their changing needs and behaviour. Many commercial banks have therefore adopted relationship marketing in order to remain competitive. The purpose of this study was to establish the effects of relationship marketing on the commercial banks' performance in Kenya. The study aimed at understanding how customer care management, employee empowerment and information technology affects the performance of commercial banks in Kenya, it adopted a descriptive survey research conducted among the commercial banks in Kenya. The study obtained data from 95 relationship managers from the five (5) commercial banks that were purported to have had a relatively richer experience in relationship marketing due to their large size and customer base. Collection of primary data was through self-administered questionnaires with closed and open-ended questions. Secondary data included bank publications, journals, and periodicals. Quantitative and qualitative data analysis was employed to analyze the data collected. A research model was used in predicting the relationship between relationship marketing and performance of commercial banks in Kenya. The findings indicated a strong relationship between relationship marketing and banks performance as all the variables were significant in explaining the relationship. The study thus concludes that relationship marketing as measured by customer care management, employee management and adoption of information technology has enhanced bank performance and thus the three pillars of relationship management are Key if a bank has to perform. This is in line with Gillespie and Hennessey (2007) who argued that good relationship management as a result of relationship marketing leads to committed and loyal customers, thus increasing the purchases, which in turn increase the profits of the company.


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Nitrate reductase-deficient barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) mutants were assayed for the presence of a functional molybdenum cofactor determined from the activity of the molybdoenzyme, xanthine dehydrogenase, and for nitrate reductase-associated activities. Rocket immunoelectrophoresis was used to detect nitrate reductase cross-reacting material in the mutants. The cross-reacting material levels of the mutants ranged from 8 to 136% of the wild type and were correlated with their nitrate reductase-associated activities, except for nar 1c, which lacked all associated nitrate reductase activities but had 38% of the wild-type cross-reacting material. The cross-reacting material of two nar 1 mutants, as well as nar 2a, Xno 18, Xno 19, and Xno 29, exhibited rocket immunoprecipitates that were similar to the wild-type enzyme indicating structural homology between the mutant and wild-type nitrate reductase proteins. The cross-reacting materials of the seven remaining nar 1 alleles formed rockets only in the presence of purified wild-type nitrate reductase, suggesting structural modifications of the mutant cross-reacting materials. All nar 1 alleles and Xno 29 had xanthine dehydrogenase activity indicating the presence of functional molybdenum cofactors. These results suggest that nar 1 is the structural gene for nitrate reductase. Mutants nar 2a, Xno 18, and Xno 19 lacked xanthine dehydrogenase activity and are considered to be molybdenum cofactor deficient mutants. Cross-reacting material was not detected in uninduced wild-type or mutant extracts, suggesting that nitrate reductase is synthesized de novo in response to nitrate.


of the original article: No single theory so far proposed gives a wholly satisfactory account of the origin and maintenance of bird-song dialects. This failure is the consequence of a weak comparative literature that precludes careful comparisons among species or studies, and of the complexity of the issues involved. Complexity arises because dialects seem to bear upon a wide range of features in the life history of bird species. We give an account of the principal issues in bird-song dialects: evolution of vocal learning, experimental findings on song ontogeny, dialect descriptions, female and male reactions to differences in dialect, and population genetics and dispersal. We present a synthetic theory of the origin and maintenance of song dialects, one that accommodates most of the different systems reported in the literature. The few data available suggest that large, regional dialect populations are genetically differentiated; this pattern is correlated with reduced dispersal between dialects, assortative mating by females, and male-male exclusion. At the same time, "subdialects" may be formed within regional dialects. Subdialect clusters are usually small and may represent vocal mimicry among a few adjacent territorial males. The relative importance of genetic and social adaptation may contribute to the emergence of subdialects; their distinctiveness may be correlated with the degree of polygyny, for example. Thus, subdialect formation is linked to one theory of the evolution of repertoire size, but data are too fragmentary to examine this idea critically. Sensitive periods, social interaction, and song acquisition: The dialectics of dialects?


Fracture toughness dependence of sintered hydroxyapatite (HA) bioceramics on the sintering time was studied. The nanocrystalline and highly pure Hydroxyapatite powders produced by wet chemical precipitation method were used as starting material. After uniaxial and cold isostatic pressing, the green HA samples sintered at temperatures ranging from 1000 °C to 1300 °C with different sintering time. Dense compacts with grain sizes in the nanometer to micrometer range were processed. The average grain size of HA compact sintered at 1000 °C was around 500 nm. Grain size increased to 3 µm when the compacts were sintered at higher temperature. The average microhardness value of sintered HA decreased with an increased in grain size. Indentation fracture toughness for HA compacts of 700 nm grain size was 1.41±0.4 MPa.m1/2 which is similar to fracture toughness of human cortical bone.


Only limited information is available in the literature on the role of soil mineral surfaces in the sorption of hydrophobic organic pollutants. This knowledge gap is addressed through the assessment of biphenyl sorption to kaolinite, illite and bentonite; using the batch equilibration technique with incubations lasting 6 or 21 days at 28 ± 2°C in the dark [RT1]. Sorption of biphenyl onto kaolinite followed the Freundlich sorption isotherm, whereas linear sorption isotherms were observed on illite and bentonite [RT2]. The biphenyl sorption partition coefficient on kaolinite ranged from 0.1 to 9.1 cm3.g-1 after 6 days and no sorption was observed after 21 days. This could have been caused by a completely reversible sorption or a loss of binding capacity after 21 days [RT3]. The respective values of the biphenyl sorption partition coefficient on illite and bentonite ranged from 20.3 ± 0.3 to 120 ± 8 cm3.g-1.Sorption equilibrium on the internal clay surfaces was reached after 6 days, as indicated by the sorption data for illite and bentonite [RT4]. Access of biphenyl molecules to the internal clay surfaces is a function of the ionic strength of soil solution and the soil organic matter is the dominant site for biphenyl sorption after 6 to 21 days.

 Key words: Biphenyl, sorption, kaolinite, illite, bentonite.


In the last decade the development of thoracoscopic approach for early stage lung cancer resections has seen a significant increase, mostly because of the improvement in technology. Some organizations (1) even recommend it in their guidelines. Yet in striking contrast with modern evidence-based practice, such enthusiasm is only underpinned by mostly small, retrospective trials comparing video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) to open thoracotomy. By contrast, Bendixen (2) and colleagues' randomised controlled trial offers an objective assessment in terms of postoperative pain and quality of life (QoL), further consolidating previous evidence. Previous papers compared different type of VATS with different open approaches, thus affecting the quality of the results. Interestingly Bendixen and colleagues compare VATS with anterior thoracotomy, which is considered to be the least invasive open approach. Whilst, intuitively, sparing the latissimus dorsi is likely to be better than posterolateral thoracotomy, demonstrating the advantage of VATS over anterior thoracotomy is a further positive point in this study.


We present a proposal for a versatile cold-atom-based quantum simulator of relativistic fermionic theories and topological insulators in arbitrary dimensions. The setup consists of a spin-independent optical lattice that traps a collection of hyperfine states of the same alkaline atom, to which the different degrees of freedom of the field theory to be simulated are then mapped. We show that the combination of bi-chromatic optical lattices with Raman transitions can allow the engineering of a spin-dependent tunneling of the atoms between neighboring lattice sites. These assisted-hopping processes can be employed for the quantum simulation of various interesting models, ranging from non-interacting relativistic fermionic theories to topological insulators. We present a toolbox for the realization of different types of relativistic lattice fermions, which can then be exploited to synthesize a majority of phases in the periodic table of topological insulators.


Modern technology is fast altering and enhancing all aspects of our lives. The cloud computing is a game changing phase of IT that provides more than one benefits. There are some significant issues to be solved in effective deployment of the cloud computing for agriculture sector. Agriculture is the embodiment of large amount of ancient knowledge. The growth and sharing knowledge has resulted in better productivity and efficiency. Creating a increasing volume of agricultural products based on better productivity, in order to meet the worldwide increasing need of food products, represents a difficult core goal in agricultural policy of most states. This study presents the results of an empirical exploration forecasting the increasing of agricultural productivity in India. According to the research results, this study states a positive relationship between the forecasting and increasing agricultural productivity based on Internet Communication Technology.


We analyze the classical and quantum dynamics of the driven dissipative Bose–Hubbard dimer. Under variation of the driving frequency, the classical system is shown to exhibit a bifurcation to the limit cycle, where its steady-state solution corresponds to periodic oscillation with the frequency unrelated to the driving frequency. This bifurcation is shown to lead to a peculiarity in the stationary single-particle density matrix of the quantum system. The case of the Bose–Hubbard trimer, where the discussed limit cycle bifurcates into a chaotic attractor, is briefly discussed.


Human development should be seen as a broad, emancipatory and social process, rather than the mere expansion of individual choices or 'capabilities'. In post-colonial nations, a strong 'human development enabling' state is necessary to build basic human capacity, such as in health, education, shelter and nutrition; and then to promote popular participation. This requirement can be seen in a range of historical experience and is reflected in the declaration on the right to development. A wider view of human development, deepening democracy with active state-civil society partnerships, might be seen as a social democratic project in a neoliberal era.


Recently, the sizes of deep neural networks and training datasets both increase drastically to pursue better performance in a practical sense. With the prevalence of transformer-based models in vision tasks, even more pressure is laid on the GPU platforms to train these heavy models, which consumes a large amount of time and computing resources as well. Therefore, it's crucial to accelerate the training process of deep neural networks. In this paper, we propose a general network expansion method to reduce the practical time cost of the model training process. Specifically, we utilize both width- and depth-level sparsity of dense models to accelerate the training of deep neural networks. Firstly, we pick a sparse sub-network from the original dense model by reducing the number of parameters as the starting point of training. Then the sparse architecture will gradually expand during the training procedure and finally grow into a dense one. We design different expanding strategies to grow CNNs and ViTs respectively, due to the great heterogeneity in between the two architectures. Our method can be easily integrated into popular deep learning frameworks, which saves considerable training time and hardware resources. Extensive experiments show that our acceleration method can significantly speed up the training process of modern vision models on general GPU devices with negligible performance drop (e.g. 1.42× faster for ResNet-101 and 1.34× faster for DeiT-base on ImageNet-1k). The code is available at https://github.com/huawei-noah/Efficient-Computing/tree/master/TrainingAcceleration/NetworkExpansion and https://gitee.com/mindspore/hub/blob/master/mshub_res/assets/noah-cvlab/gpu/1.8/networkexpansion_v1.0_imagenet2012.md


The olive alperujo (OA) corresponds to the solid waste generated in the olive oil extraction process using the two-phase centrifugation method. OA is produced in large quantities (800 kg OA/ton olives processed) and is characterized by its high moisture content, organic matter, and low pH. In Chile, the olive oil industry is recent, and one of its main challenges is to be able to manage OA to reduce the impact caused by its disposal. In this sense, its valorization as biogas by means of anaerobic digestion is an economically attractive option. For this, it is previously necessary to evaluate the biomethane potential (BMP) of the raw OA using batch assays. This study was focused on evaluating the factors that most affect the methane yield (MY) when using OA as substrate in BMP tests. First, a sweep analysis (Plackett–Burman) was applied to determine those factors that, according to the literature, would have an influence on the BMP tests. Among the factors studied, the most significant were preincubation, OA concentration, and agitation level. Subsequently, a 23 factorial experimental design was applied to evaluate the effect of these factors on MY at different levels. Results show that the OA concentration was the most significant factor affecting MY.


In The Genizah Psalms David M. Stec presents an edition of the Hebrew text of MS 798 of the Antonin Collection together with an English translation, introduction, commentary and analysis of language.


An organic cathode material based on a copolymer of poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) containing pyridine and hydroquinone functionalities is described as a proton trap technology. Utilizing the quinone to hydroquinone redox conversion, this technology leads to electrode materials compatible with lithium and sodium cycling chemistries. These materials have high inherent potentials that in combination with lithium give a reversible output voltage of above 3.5 V (vs Li0/+) without relying on lithiation of the material, something that is not showed for quinones previously. Key to success stems from coupling an intrapolymeric proton transfer, realized by an incorporated pyridine proton donor/acceptor functionality, with the hydroquinone redox reactions. Trapping of protons in the cathode material effectively decouples the quinone redox chemistry from the cycling chemistry of the anode, which makes the material insensitive to the nature of the electrolyte cation and hence compatible with several anode materials. Furthermore, the conducting polymer backbone allows assembly without any additives for electronic conductivity. The concept is demonstrated by electrochemical characterization in several electrolytes and finally by employing the proton trap material as the cathode in lithium and sodium batteries. These findings represent a new concept for enabling high potential organic materials for the next generation of energy storage systems.


As the scaling of silicon complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor devices becomes more and more challenging, both innovative device structures and new materials with high carrier mobility are needed to continue improving device performances. A metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor with germanium channel currently receives a resurgence of interest as a possible candidate for next-generation high mobility devices because germanium offers much higher mobility for both electrons and holes in comparison with silicon. While germanium solid-state device provides outstanding electrical benefits, it also offers significant challenges in thermal management and raises a major concern over the effect of on-chip hot spot on the reliability and performance of germanium chips. Current thermal management technologies, with a major focus on chip-level global cooling, offer very few choices for on-chip micro-scale hot spot cooling. The inherent thermoelectric properties of single crystal germanium support development of a novel thermal management strategy for micro-scale hot spot cooling which relies on thermoelectric self-cooling by electric current flowing into the back of the germanium chip. In this paper, the concept of germanium self-cooling for on-chip micro-scale hot spot is proposed and investigated. 3-D thermal-electric coupling simulations are used to evaluate the hot spot cooling performance on a germanium chip with a wide range of system parameters, including applied current, doping concentration, hot spot heat flux, micro-cooler size, and germanium chip thickness. The results suggest that localized thermoelectric self-cooling on the germanium chip can effectively reduce the temperature rise resulting from micro-scale high heat flux hot spots and shows a great promise as a novel on-chip cooling solution.


The majority of patients with nonmetastatic rectal cancer are candidates for an aggressive multimodality approach with curative intent. Preoperative staging is critical in determining which patients should be offered neoadjuvant therapy. Available staging tools include digital rectal examination, transrectal ultrasound, computed tomography, positron-emission tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging scans. Magnetic resonance imaging has emerged as the most accurate staging modality in experienced centers. Multidisciplinary preoperative patient evaluation, better staging techniques, neoadjuvant chemoradiation, acceptance of shorter distal rectal margins, and transanal excision of T1 N0 rectal tumors in close proximity to the anal sphincter have resulted in decreased rates of abdominoperineal resections. Total mesorectal excision has been adopted as the standard surgical approach because of a reduction in rates of pelvic relapse. Preoperative and postoperative radiation therapy was shown to decrease the local recurrence rate, but not overall survival, in patients with resectable rectal cancer. The addition of chemotherapy to radiation was consistently shown to improve local control, and in some trials, improved overall survival. Neoadjuvant combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy are superior to adjuvant combined-modality therapy because of higher rates of sphincter preservation, less toxicity, and lower local recurrence rates. For patients with stage II or III disease, neoadjuvant continuous-infusion 5-fluorouracil (5-FU), concurrently with pelvic radiation, followed by postoperative 5-FU-based chemotherapy, remains the standard multimodality approach. Ongoing trials are testing the integration of newer cytotoxic agents such as capecitabine, oxaliplatin, irinotecan, and biologic agents such as cetuximab and bevacizumab to chemoradiation.


This paper compares two approaches to the study of sound inventories, one phonological and the other phonetic. The first maintains that speech sounds tend to be organized by a principle of feature economy, according to which languages maximize the combinatory possibilities of a few phonological features to generate large numbers of speech sounds. The other holds that sound systems are organized by a principle of maximal dispersion, according to which speech sounds tend to be maximally dispersed in perceptual space. A comparison of these two principles with respect to the UPSID-92 data base of phoneme inventories provides strong support for the first.


Words prime semantic and conceptually related associates and concepts. This article documents a novel route of priming disparate meanings relevant to consumer behaviors. Reading processes use word sound, not spelling, to activate word meaning in memory. Reading a homophone (e.g., "bye")--a word with identical pronunciation as another word but with different spelling and meaning--activates meanings and concepts related to the complementary homophone (e.g., "buy"). Homophone priming occurs when a secondary process fails to suppress activated meanings associated with the complementary homophone, which may influence meaning-relevant consumer behaviors downstream. Two experiments (with replications) demonstrate this effect occurs when consumers experience diminished cognitive resources, which reduces the ability to suppress complementary homophone meanings. This research identifies word sound as an associative link between otherwise unrelated concepts that can result in priming of judgments and behavior. Importantly, these results are difficult to predict from a purely semantic or associative priming perspective.


Androgenetic alopecia is an important and common cause for baldness. Despite recent advances, the drug therapy of this condition remains unsatisfactory. Surgical hair restoration is the only permanent method of treating this condition. Introduction of recent techniques such as follicular unit transplantation have improved the cosmetic results and patient satisfaction. This article discusses the latest trends in hair restoration surgery.


Throughout the twentieth century, the teaching of letterpress was organised through training centres in technical colleges and art and design schools. This paper is developed from research that seeks to plot all existing institutions with functioning letterpress workshops within the UK & Ireland. The Guide to Educational Courses for the Printing Industry produced by the Printing and Publishing Industry Training Board in 1969, together with a list believed to be compiled by Beatrice Warde held in the Charles Pickering Archive at London College of Communication, itemise a total of 110 colleges. The research seeks to identify which workshops remain, and the nature of their use. We have, at present, located 40 workshops that exist within their original institutions or are to be found within later incarnations. The majority have evolved through a series of educational and technological changes. The research involves systematically visiting all workshops: identifying and cataloguing the type, equipment and presses. The development of this catalogue will enable the constuction of a national record of all the equipment and typefaces within further and higher education. The research seeks to document the layout of the workshops through orthographic drawings that serve as a physical representation of the space. This primary field research enables us to open a dialogue with staff responsible for contemporary practice. Today nearly all of the apprentice trained compositors working as technical staff responsible for the letterpress workshops have retired. We have entered a period where letterpress practice continues with a resurgence of interest, but is not in the hands of anyone who has learnt their trade through the apprenticeship tradition. A younger generation of staff have appropriated college workshop spaces to reinvigorate letterpress values informed by their own educational experience of design.


It is very common that a microcontroller is used in a safety relevant system to acquire data from sensors, process the data and then control actuators. With the shrink of technology every few years it becomes ever more common to use digital serial interfaces and high speed PWM links for both inputs and outputs. The microcontroller vendors have responded to the need for functional safety in the CPU cores by lock-stepping them and adding ECC to buses and memories. They are also implementing highly flexible and complex timer peripherals to be able to automate much of the real-time processing of the digital signals. However these timers are becoming significantly large, and many have their own embedded sequence engines or microkernels, which although powerful, often lack the rigorous diagnostic mechanisms required to reach ASILD. Currently the only solution is to use an application level measure to detect timer failures, but the large quantity of signals can lead to a substantial CPU load just for the monitoring tasks. This paper describes how a new I/O Monitoring peripheral can be used to 'lockstep' digital input and output signals, using two redundant or diverse timer peripherals. It will outline the problems, the current state of the art, and the proposed new solution, together with some typical use-cases of braking, electrical power steering and airbag. Language: en


ABSTRACT Research on Asian American substance use has, to date, been limited by monolithic conceptions of Asian identity, inadequate attention to acculturative processes, and a dearth of longitudinal analyses spanning multiple developmental periods. Using five waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, this study addresses these limitations by longitudinally investigating disparities in substance use from early adolescence into mature adulthood among Asian American ethnic groups, including subjects identifying as multiple Asian ethnicities and multiracial Asians. The conditional effects of acculturation indicators (e.g. nativity generation, co-ethnic peer networks, co-ethnic neighbourhood concentration) on the substance use outcomes were also examined. Results indicate significant variation across Asian ethnicities, with the lowest probabilities of substance use among Chinese and Vietnamese Americans, and the highest among multiracial Asian Americans. Acculturation indicators were also strongly, independently associated with increased substance use, and attenuated many of the observed ethnic disparities, particularly for multiracial, multiethnic, and Japanese Asian Americans. This study argues that ignoring the diversity of Asian ethnicities masks the presence of high-risk Asian American groups. Further, results indicate that, among contemporary Asian Americans, substance use is strongly positively associated with acculturation to U.S. cultural norms, and generally peaks at later ages than the U.S. average.


The present study investigated the relationship between anosognosia for cognitive, functional and psychopathological disorders in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and vascular dementia (VD). Ten patients with probable Alzheimer's disease and 10 patients with probable vascular dementia were matched for age, education, illness duration and dementia severity. Cognitive, functional and psychopathological characteristics of the patients were assessed by means of different self-rating scales. The same questionnaires were submitted to patients' caregivers, blind to the patients' answers. Anosognosia was defined as the positively signed difference between patients' and caregivers' ratings. Three anosognosia indices for each domain investigated were obtained. We found lack of insight to be a common and consistent feature of AD and VD. However, unawareness for cognitive and functional domains was more severe in AD than in VD. Furthermore, in AD patients anosognosia for cognitive, functional and psychopathological domains dissociated from one another, as shown by lack of significant correlations between the three indices. Conversely, in VD patients these three anosognosic domains were closely related, indicating a generalised unawareness. These findings suggest that heterogeneity of anosognosic deficits may help differentiate AD from VD.


Array-jet impingement is typically used in gas turbine blade near-wall cooling, where high rates of heat dissipation is required. The accumulated crossflow mass flux results in significant reduction in jet effectiveness in the downstream rows, leading to reduced cooling performance. In this paper, a jet impingement system equipped with U-shaped ribs (hereafter referred as "diverter") was used for diverting the crossflow away from the jets emanating from the nozzle plate. To this end, a baseline configuration of array-jet impingement onto smooth target surface is considered, where the normalized jet-to-jet spacing (x/dj = y/dj) was 6 and the normalized jet-to-target spacing (z/dj) was 2. Crossflow diverters with thickness t of 1.5875 mm and height h of 2dj (= z) were installed at a distance of 2dj from the respective jet centers. Detailed heat transfer coefficients have been calculated through transient liquid crystal experiments carried out over Reynolds numbers ranging from 3500 to 12,000. It has been observed that crossflow diverters protect the downstream jets from upstream jet deflection, thereby maximizing their stagnation cooling potential. An average of 15–30% enhancement in Nusselt number is obtained over the flow range tested. This benefit in heat transfer came at a cost of increased pumping power to maintain similar flow rate in the system. At a given pumping power, crossflow diverters yielded an enhancement of 9–15% in heat transfer compared with the baseline case.


Nowadays development of internet and its public using in recent years influences the
Physical, structure, economic, social and city's culture dimensions and also the
complexity of the town show the importance and necessity of the use of cyberspace
(the Internet) in the process of Planning an Urban Management Program due to the
diversity of topics and. its access, Cyberspace (the Internet) has had a variety of
impacts on the global scale. In the electronic and virtual development process of city,
attention to the identity and sense of place and also avoiding of place lessens feeling
in the urban planning is essential. Thus, the influences of technology in the social
interaction and sense of place of man, is indicated as the most important problem and
aim of this research, which in this research the situation of sense of place and its
relationship with the amount of Internet use, in the Regions of 1, 6 and 9 ¬ Mashhad
are reviewed and evaluated in the base of social status (education level, family
size,...), economic (income, employment and housing conditions). Research methods
were descriptive- analytical which is in the base of document and library study
and field observations. This data and information's of those situations were obtained
by using interviews and questionnaires and field observations. In addition data
analysis has been done by statistical software. For evaluation and ranking areas in the
case of understanding cyberspace dating services, APEC and CPSS models were
used. Studies show that the increasingly use of internet have influences on the social
consequences, like: neighborhood traffic, correlation between neighbors, lack of
social links between neighborhoods, social isolation and reduce of the people public
meetings, such as parks and streets, poor social belonging, reduce walking and
finally decrease the sense of place .Using models (APEC and CPSS) for
understanding the cyberspace and e-neighborhood literacy of the studied area
indicate that: Region 6, Amirabad neighborhood with the mean of (1/616), Koye
karmandan with the mean of (1/896) have an undesirable extent, in the region 1 Ab
Kooh neighborhood with the mean of (2/126) is a little desirable and Sajad Boolvar
neighborhood (2/554) and in the region 9 Hashemieh neighborhood (2/278) and Reza
Shahr with mean of (2/273) have a desirable situation.


The Fisk-Vanderbilt Masters-to-Ph.D. Bridge Program is a model for substantially increasing the number of underrepresented minority students earning doctoral degrees in the physical sciences. The program presently leads the nation in master's degrees in physics for African-Americans, and is one of the top ten producers of physics master's degrees among all U.S. citizens. The program is on pace to become the nation's top producer of underrepresented minority Ph.Ds. in physics, astronomy, and materials science. We summarize the main features of the program, including two of its core strategies: Partnering a minority-serving institution and a major research university through collaborative research, and using the master's degree as a pathway to the Ph.D. We discuss our methods for recognizing and selecting for unrealized potential in students during the admissions process, and for cultivating this potential to develop successful scientists and leaders.


This book examines the textual and material forms used to shape remembrance in the century stretching from the Elizabethan Settlement to the English Civil War. Whether situated in churches or circulating in more flexible, mobile works—manuscript and printed memorials, portraits, needlework, bequests, or antique "rarities"—funeral monuments were ubiquitous in post-Reformation England. Removing these objects from parochial and antiquarian fields of enquiry, I reimagine monuments as pervasively involved with other commemorative works and texts, not least literary works by our most canonical writers. Insofar as this interdisciplinary study considers the sacred and secular aspects of remembrance as they influence artifacts, texts, and the individuals who created and experienced them, it is aligned with scholarship in historical phenomenology. I make use of the flexibility of this approach not only to accommodate history and theory, but also to join the three critical strands of inquiry—religion, materiality and gender—that combine within and mutually structure the project. Adapting a new materialist view of subjectivity as 'embedded and embodied,' I situate remembrance between subject and object, life and death, to explore the intertwining of subjects and objects in the dynamic systems of exchange in which early modern men and women experienced loss and recollection.


Objective The aims of this study were to investigate a simple method for assessing anterior-posterior jaw relationships via cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) images taken in the natural head position (NHP) relative to the nasion true vertical plane (NTVP), and measure normative data in Korean adults with normal profiles. Methods Subjects were selected from patients presenting for third molar extraction and evaluated as having normal profiles by three examiners. The CBCT images of 80 subjects (39 males, 41 females) were taken in the NHP according to Solow and Tallgren's method. Linear measurements of the A-point, B-point, and Pog were calculated relative to the NTVP. Student's t-test was used to assess sexual differences in these measurements. Results The mean linear measurements of the A-point, B-point, and Pog relative to the NTVP were 0.18 mm (standard deviation [SD], 4.77 mm), −4.00 mm (SD, 6.62 mm), and −2.49 mm (SD, 7.14 mm) respectively in Korean males, and 1.48 mm (SD, 4.21 mm), −4.07 mm (SD, 6.70 mm) and −2.91 mm (SD, 7.25 mm) in Korean females respectively. There were no statistically significant differences between Korean males and females (p < 0.05). Conclusions Three-dimensional CBCT analysis using the NTVP is a simple and reliable method for assessing anterior-posterior skeletal relationships.


ZHAO,SIHUI. Analysis of Cis-acting Regulatory Motifs Involved in Alternative Splicing. (Under the direction of Dr. Steffen Heber). Alternative splicing is an important posttranscriptional process in eukaryotes. It dramatically expands the proteome and contributes essentially to the regulation of gene expression. Cis-acting regulatory motifs play a pivotal role in the regulation of alternative splicing. Many human diseases involved with aberrant (alternative) splicing are caused by mutations of splicing regulatory motifs. However, due to the short, degenerate and contextdependent nature, the prediction of cis-acting splicing motifs is a very challenging task. In this dissertation, we focus on discovery of splicing signals from sequences. This may help to reveal the integrated splicing code and to understand the regulation of gene expression in the resolution of exon level. In chapter one, we review the up-to-date research development in alternative splicing and its regulation, as well as the experimental and computational approaches in genome-wide alternative splicing analysis. We describe a large-scale data analysis experiment to discover AS motifs in chapter two. We applied a computational framework to re-analyze a dataset containing about 2,500 cassette exons and skipping rates for regulatory motifs. The alternative spliced events were clustered by their expression profiles to find co-regulated genes. Rather than using a fixed cutoff as cluster boundary, we used systematic sampling to sample sequence clusters and eliminated redundant motifs predicted from overlapping clusters. We conclude that these predicted motifs may be promising candidates responsible for AS regulation by comparison to known motifs and by positional bias. In chapter three, we describe a new approach to discover short and degenerate AS motifs. We implemented a two-step approach incorporating skipping rates in motif discovery. In the simulation study, we show that this approach is especially suitable to discover short and highly degenerate motifs. Analysis of cassette exons in Central Nervous System tissues produced 15 motifs which are associated with the variation of skipping rates. We discover that Nova and hnRNP A1 binding sites are involved with AS regulation, as well as about ten novel motifs. Moreover, co-operation between predicted motifs are also revealed. In chapter four, we give the present status of SPRED, a database of cis-acting regulatory splicing elements. The motifs in SPRED are compiled from literature. They are all experimentally validated. The web interface is publically accessible and accompanied with query and similarity search tools. The goal of SPRED is to provide a comprehensive motif dictionary to facilitate the research in AS and its regulation. Finally, we give the conclusions in chapter five. We also give the perspective for future study and briefly review the potential challenge. Analysis of Cis-acting Regulatory Motifs Involved in Alternative Splicing


It has been proposed that the insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) can act as autocrine and/or paracrine growth promoters in breast cancer. To investigate this hypothesis, we infected early passage MCF-7 cells with a retroviral vector containing the coding sequence for the IGF-II preprohormone along with a constitutive cytomegalovirus promoter sequence. These cells do not normally express IGF-I or IGF-II. After infection with the retroviral vector, several single cell clones were analyzed. Seven of nine isolated clones expressed very high levels of IGF-II mRNA. Biologically active IGF-II protein was easily detectable in the medium conditioned by the IGF-II-expressing clones, and IGF receptors were down-regulated in these. All IGF-II-expressing clones showed marked morphological changes in anchorage-dependent culture, growing in large clumps and as free-floating colonies. The cells also cloned in soft agar in the absence of estrogen, while the wild-type MCF-7 cells and control cells infected with an irrelevant DNA sequence showed none of these properties. alpha IR-3, an antibody that blocks the type I IGF receptor, inhibited the growth of IGF-II-expressing clones in serum-free medium. This model demonstrates that IGF-II can serve as an autocrine growth stimulant in breast cancer epithelial cells and that IGF-II overexpression may be capable of mediating malignant progression in human breast cancer.


The portrayal of the working classes has always been an element of British popular film from the comic music hall stereotypes in the era of Gracie Fields and George Formby in the 1930s to the more gritty realism of the "Angry Young Man" films that emerged in the 1950s and 1960s. Curiously, in the last thirty years, the portrayal of the working classes in popular film has become somewhat less sharply drawn and more indistinct. In an odd way, these changes may parallel criticisms directed toward politicians about a declining sense of working-class unity and purpose in the wake of the Margaret Thatcher and post-Thatcher eras.


The effect of surface structure on the optical and electronic properties of nanomaterials Trevor D. Hull Surface passivation of semiconductor quantum dots is essential to preserve their efficient and robust light emitting properties. By using a lattice matched (mismatch = 0.5%) lead halide perovskite matrix, we achieve shell-like passivation of lead sulfide QDs in crystalline films, leading to efficient infrared light emission. These structures are made from a simple one-step spin coating process of an electrostatically stabilized colloidal suspension. Photoluminescence and transient absorption spectroscopy indicate rapid energy transfer between the perovskite matrix and the QDs, suggesting an interface with few trap states. In addition to housing the efficient infrared QD emitters, lead halide perovskites themselves have good carrier mobilities and low trap densities, making these solution-processable heterostructures an attractive option for electrically pumped light emitting devices. The highest performing quantum dots for visible light applications are CdE (E=chalcogenide) core/shell heterostructures. Again, surface passivation plays a huge role in determining the brightness and robustness of visible QD emitters. Multilayer shell passivation is usually used to produce the highest quantum yield particles. Surface trap states are shown to be detrimental to luminescence output, even in thick-shelled particles. Spherical quantum wells allow for thicker shells and with good surface passivation, show promising reduction of biexciton auger recombination, as measured by a time correlated single photon counting (TCSPC) microscope. TCSPC methods were used to diagnose and identify QD architectures for LED applications and explore fundamental recombination dynamics using photon antibunching measurements, and statistical analysis of blinking traces. Introducing new surfaces onto graphitic substrates can be a useful for introducing new electronic properties, patterning device-specific geometries, or appending molecular catalysts. Metal nanoparticles were used to act as a catalyst for the gasification and etching of graphite and graphene. Several methods of controlling the initiation, propagation, and density of these trenches were explored. Patterning defects helped control where initiation occurred, while faceting existing defect sites could also enable more facile initiation and control the direction at the beginning of etching, due to the wetting mechanism of particle movement. Patterning the metal also was shown as a promising avenue to limit unwanted gasification and promote etching in specific, patterned regions. Surface functionalization using reactive gases was performed and characterized with outlook for future experiments.


Retelling violence can heal. It can also hurt. Post-Second World War exigency silenced numerous victims of sexual violence. The legacy of this 'silence' and the brutality of the crimes remain divisive in Asia. Yet, when breaking silence, victims pay a martyr's price. Their trauma appropriated for wider agendas. Personal suffering commodified as national pain. Scarred bodies and psyches used as criminal evidence. In the hands of others, memories take on currency beyond personal pain and outside circles of healing. In courts, testimonies become valued only for probative worth and legal weight. Politicians use trauma as diplomatic leverage. Restitution claims monetise scales of suffering. No simple formula exists for trauma's emotional arithmetic. Sharing experiences can provide relief, even release. However, this article shows that, in crying shame, survivors also pay a steep cost for speaking out. For some, it may be better to keep silent.


One of the important objectives of business data visualization for decision making is to assist the user in their cognition and recall of prominent features and patterns of data. In this study, we extend Chernoff faces to full-featured animated figures to represent multi-dimensional data. A prototype has been developed that allows the user to easily assign data attributes to figural features as well as superimpose the data values. Once these settings have been made and the temporal dimension assigned, the animation is rendered through Poser and the video is embedded within the user interface. The figural animation contains VCR-type controls allowing the user to examine any particular data point or play any portion of the video at various speeds. A series of tests are being designed to determine if the application enhances the user' s ability to recall and display patterns in data.


Special criteria of malignancy are evident in vulvar cytology which are completely different from the well-known features of cervical cytology. These criteria are well suited to improve the efficiency of vulvar cytology. Cytology and the full utilization of all other diagnostic procedures should lead to the early detection of precancerous and cancerous lesions of the vulva.


BACKGROUND
A major portion of the catechins in green tea is not absorbed in the small intestine. Bacteria in the colon convert nonabsorbed catechins into simpler phenolic compounds, which may also be absorbed. During the production of black tea, most catechins are polymerized to complex molecules called thearubigins. Little is known about the microbial degradation of these complex polyphenols, but hippuric acid has been identified as a major excretion product associated with black tea consumption.

OBJECTIVE
To investigate whether green tea and black tea have the same metabolic fate in humans.

DESIGN
Seventeen healthy male volunteers were studied with a randomized, full-crossover design. Each intervention period lasted 4 d, ie, a 2-d run-in period with a low-polyphenol diet followed by a 2-d treatment period. Volunteers consumed a daily dose of 6 g green tea solids, 6 g black tea solids, or 360 mg caffeine. Intervention periods were separated by a 10-d washout period. Twenty-four-hour urine samples were collected during the second day of each treatment period. Hippuric acid was analyzed with HPLC-tandem mass spectrometry.

RESULTS
The mean excretion of urinary hippuric acid during black tea and green tea consumption was 3.75 +/- 0.28 mmol/24 h and 4.22 +/- 0.28 mmol/24 h, respectively (95% CI for the difference: -0.37 to +1.30 mmol/24 h). The hippuric acid excretion during the control treatment was much lower (1.89 +/- 0.28 mmol/24 h; P < 0.0001, compared with both black tea and green tea).

CONCLUSION
The ingestion of either green tea or black tea results in a major increase in the excretion of hippuric acid into urine.


Modified lipoproteins have been suggested to modulate the expression of matrix-degrading proteases in the vascular wall. Since oxidized high density lipoprotein (HDL) has been found in atheromatous plaques and receptors for modified HDL are present on endothelial cells, we investigated the role of native and oxidized HDL3 on the expression of 35 proteases and their inhibitors in human endothelial cells using microarray analysis. Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-1, -2, -10, -13 and -14, tissue inhibitor of MMP (TIMP)-1, -2 and -3, cathepsin B and D, and cystatin C were expressed under basal conditions, of which MMP-10 and cystatin C expression have not been described before in endothelial cells. Native HDL3 increased MMP-1 and MMP-14 expression and decreased MMP-13 expression, whereas oxidized HDL3 increased PAI-1 and MMP-1 expression. The expression pattern was confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR. In summary, a large repertoire of matrix-degrading proteases is expressed in endothelial cells, an expression that can be modulated by native and oxidized HDL3.


The classic solar cell model assumes that the photo-generated current is a constant, independent of the cell's output voltage. Experimental data of CdTe solar cells, however, show that the photocurrent collection efficiency decreases with the increase of the cell's output voltage. In this work, we proposed a theoretical model for the CdTe thin-film cell, which assumes that the loss of photocurrent in the CdTe absorber is primarily due to the minority carrier recombination in the neutral region and at the back contact. By solving the neutral region's diffusion equation, with proper boundary conditions, we have obtained the analytical expressions of the photocurrent collection efficiency and the cell's J-V performance. Our theoretical results agree well with the experimental data. According to our theoretical model, the CdTe thin-film solar cell has an optimized p-doping level. A higher doping density may not be always good for a CdTe solar cell due to the reduced depletion width and decreased photocurrent at normal operation voltage, although the higher doping density can improve the open-circuit voltage by increasing built-in voltage.


This article is a contribution to the occasional series dealing with major books that have influenced the authors. Previous contributors include Stewart Macaulay, John Griffith, William Twining, Carol Harlow, Geoffrey Bindman, Harry Arthurs, Andre‐Jean Arnaud, Alan Hunt, Michael Adler, Lawrence O. Gostin, John P. Heinz, and Roger Brownsword.