The Boyongan and Bayugo porphyry copper-gold deposits are part of an emerging belt of intrusion-centered gold-rich deposits in the Surigao district of northeast Mindanao, Philippines. Exhumation and weathering of these Late Pliocene-age deposits has led to the development of the world's deepest known porphyry oxidation profile at Boyongan (600 m), and yet only a modest (30–70 m) oxidation profile at adjacent Bayugo. Debris flows, volcanic rocks, and fluviolacustrine sediments accumulating in the actively extending Mainit graben subsequently covered the deposits and preserved the supergene profiles.

At Boyongan and Bayugo, there is a vertical transition from shallower supergene copper oxide minerals (malachite + azurite + cuprite) to deeper sulfide-stable assemblages (chalcocite ± hypogene sulfides). This transition provides a time-integrated proxy for the position of the water table at the base of the saturated zone during supergene oxidation. Contours of the elevation of the paleopotentiometric surface based on this mineralogical transition show that the thickest portions of the unsaturated zone coincided with a silt-sand matrix diatreme breccia complex at Boyongan. Within the breccia complex, the thickness of the unsaturated zone approached 600 m, whereas outside the breccia complex (e.g., at Bayugo), the thickness averaged 50 m. Contours of the paleopotentiometric surface suggest that during weathering, groundwater flowed into the breccia complex from the north, south, and east, and exited along a high permeability zone to the west. The high relief (>550 m) on the elevation of the paleopotentiometric surface is consistent with an environment of high topographic relief, and the outflow zone to the west of the breccia complex probably reflects proximity to a steep scarp intersecting the western breccia complex margin.

Stable isotope paleoaltimetry has enabled estimation of the elevation of the land surface, which further constrains the physiographic setting during supergene oxidation. Isotopic measurements of oxygen in supergene kaolinite from Boyongan suggest that local paleometeoric water involved in weathering had a δ18O composition of approximately −5.7 per mil. At the latitude of the southern Philippines, this value corresponds to Pleistocene rain water condensing at elevations between 750 and 1,050 m above contemporary sea level, providing a maximum estimate for the surface elevation during weathering of the porphyry systems.

Physiographic reconstructions suggest that the deep oxidation profile at Boyongan formed in an environment of high topographic relief immediately east of a prominent (>550 m) escarpment. The high permeability contrast between the breccia complex and the surrounding wall rocks, coupled with the proximity of the breccia complex to the escarpment, led to a depressed groundwater table and a vertically extensive unsaturated zone in the immediate vicinity of Boyongan. This thick vadose zone and the low hypogene pyrite/copper sulfide ratios (0.6) at Boyongan promoted in situ oxidation of copper sulfides with only modest (<200 m) supergene remobilization of copper. In contrast, higher hypogene pyrite/chalcopyrite ratios (2.3) at Bayugo led to greater acid production during weathering and more complete leaching of copper above the base of oxidation. This process promoted significant (600 m) lateral dispersion of copper down the paleohydraulic gradient into the diatreme breccia comple, ultimately leading to the formation of an exotic copper deposit.


The development of general strain theory (GST) has led to a renewed focus on the influence of negative life experiences on antisocial behavior. Although a number of studies have generated an impressive array of support for the theory, several avenues remain open for research. In this article, we examine how a specific noxious stimuli, peer rejection, relates to delinquency/crime, and the degree of shared relation among peer rejection and delinquency/crime. Using data from a national sample of 413 children and adolescents, analyses indicated two highly stable trajectories of peer rejection and three trajectories of delinquency/crime, that peer rejection and delinquency/crime were not strongly related in general, but a joint analysis of their relationship revealed that high peer rejection was related to high delinquency/crime among males but not among females. Implications and directions for future research are highlighted.


This paper proposes a reconfigurable planar metamaterial that can be switched between capacitive and inductive responses using local changes in the electrical conductivity of its constituent material. The proposed device is based on Babinet's principle and exploits the singular electromagnetic responses of metallic checkerboard structures, which are dependent on the local electrical conductivity. Utilizing the heating-induced metal-insulator transition of vanadium dioxide (VO2), the proposed meta-material is designed to compensate for the effect of the substrate and is experimentally characterized in the terahertz regime. This reconfigurable metamaterial can be utilized as a switchable filter and as a switchable phase shifter for terahertz waves.


Abstract Objective: Increasing prevalence of overweight and obese people in England has led policymakers to consider regulating the use of price promotions on foods high in fat, sugar and salt content. In January 2019, the government opened a consultation programme for a policy proposal that significantly restricts the use of price promotions that can induce consumers to buy higher volumes of unhealthy foods and beverages. These proposed policies are the first of their kind in public health and are believed to reduce excess purchasing and, therefore, overconsumption of unhealthy products. This study summarises evidence relating price promotions to the purchasing of food and drink for home consumption and places it in the context of the proposed policy. Design: Non-systematic review of quantitative analyses of price promotions in food and drink published in peer-reviewed journals and sighted by PubMed, ScienceDirect & EBSCOhost between 1980 and January 2018. Results: While the impact of price promotions on sales has been of interest to marketing academics for a long time with modelling studies showing that its use has increased food and drink sales by 12–43 %, it is only now being picked up in the public health sphere. However, existing evidence does not consider the effects of removing or restricting the use of price promotions across the food sector. In this commentary, we discuss existing evidence, how it deals with the complexity of shoppers' behaviour in reacting to price promotions on foods and, importantly, what can be learned from it in this policy context. Conclusions: The current evidence base supports the notion that price promotions increase purchasing of unhealthy food, and while the proposed restriction policy is yet to be evaluated for consumption and health effects, there is arguably sufficient evidence to proceed. This evidence is not restricted to volume-based promotions. Close monitoring and proper evaluation should follow to provide empirical evidence of its intended and unintended effects.


BACKGROUND
Recently, studies had shown that incretin-based therapies could reduce the levels of pro-inflammatory markers. The data on the effects of incretin-based therapies on serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in type 2 diabetes (T2DM) were inconsistent.

OBJECTIVE
The objective of the study was to assess the effects of incretin-based therapies on hs- CRP in patients with T2DM by meta-analysis.

METHODS
We searched PubMed, EMBASE, the Cochrane Collaboration Library, and Web of Science to identify the eligible randomized clinical trials until August 2019. The pooled standard mean differences (SMD) were calculated by random-effects model using STATA 11.0.

RESULTS
Twenty-five studies with 28 randomized controlled trials were finally included into the meta-analysis. Meta-analysis revealed a significant reduction in hs-CRP following treatment with incretin-based regimens compared to controls (SMD = -0.452, p < 0.001). Subgroup analysis of different class of incretinbased drugs showed that therapy with both dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors (DPP-4Is, SMD = -0.338, p = 0.026) and glucagonlike peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1 RAs, SMD = -0.544, p = 0.003) caused significant reductions in hs-CRP. Besides, there was a significant reduction in hs-CRP with an intervention duration more than 24 weeks (SMD = -0.465, p = 0.001), while no significant difference with < 24 weeks. Meta-regression analyses showed that better glycemic control and more body mass index (BMI) decline were associated with hs-CRP reduction after incretin-based therapies.

CONCLUSIONS
This meta-analysis suggests that incretin-based therapies, both GLP-1 RAs and DPP-4Is, can cause a significant reduction in hs-CRP in patients with T2DM, which is related to long intervention duration, better glycemic control, and more BMI decline.


The commonly used classification systems of hip dislocation are based on the direction of the dislocation and the presence of associated lesions. However, no rating system can reliably predict the patient's outcome and prognosis based on the initial presentation and classification. In general, patients with anterior dislocations have the best prognosis. Other factors affecting the prognosis are the associated injuries and more importantly the delay between dislocation and reduction.


Background Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) and mental illness during pregnancy have long-lasting and potentially serious consequences, which may have been exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Aims To investigate how the UK COVID-19 lockdown policy influenced the identification of DVA and depressive symptoms during pregnancy in health services in South-East London in Spring 2020, using eLIXIR (Early-Life Data Cross-Linkage in Research) maternity and mental routine healthcare data. Method We used a regression discontinuity approach, with a quasi-experimental study design, to analyse the effect of the transition into and out of the COVID-19 lockdown on the rates of positive depression screens, DVA recorded in maternity and secondary mental health services, and contact with secondary mental health services during pregnancy. Results We analysed 26 447 pregnancies from 1 October 2018 to 29 August 2020. The rate of DVA recorded in maternity services was low throughout the period (<0.5%). Within secondary mental health services, rates of DVA dropped by 78% (adjusted odds ratio 0.219, P = 0.012) during lockdown, remaining low after lockdown. The rate of women screening positive for depression increased by 40% (adjusted odds ratio 1.40, P = 0.023), but returned to baseline after lockdown lifted. Conclusions Rates of DVA identification in secondary mental health services dropped during and after lockdown, whereas overall rates of DVA identified in maternity services were concerningly low. Healthcare services must adopt guidance to facilitate safe enquiry, particularly in remote consultations. Further research is vital to address the longer-term impact on women's mental health caused by the increase in depression during the lockdown.


We have established conditions under which cultured embryonic myocardial cells are highly sensitive to the autonomic agents norepinephrine and acetylcholine and have determined that the most important factors affecting this sensitivity involve the application protocol. Using cells 3-5 days in culture, isolated from ventricles of 13-day chick embryos, the ED50 for noerpinephrine was 800 pM and that for acetylcholine was 370 pM. These cells were more than 2 orders of magnitude more sensitive than 13-day embryonic hearts freshly isolated, but not dispersed. Intracellular recording of the membrane actions of norepinephrine and acetylcholine on these cultured cells showed changes in pacemaker slope similar to those seen in freshly isolated hearts. These data demonstrate that preparation of ventricular muscle as isolated cells in culture does not necessarily result in the loss of sensitivity to autonomic agents. On the contrary, the isolated cells show the highest sensitivity to norepinephrine and acetylcholine that has been reported for the myocardium.


Leptin and Nitric Oxide Production Against Ischemic Neuronal Injury To the Editor: We read with great interest the article by Dr Zhang and colleagues1 dealing with neuroprotective effects of leptin against ischemic injury in the brain. The results of their study demonstrated that leptin significantly protected primary cortical neurons against death induced by oxygen-glucose deprivation in cultured rat cortical neurons. The authors also indicated that intraperitoneal administration of leptin dose-dependently reduced infarct volume induced by middle cerebral artery occlusion in the mouse brain. The authors proposed that leptin might be neuroprotective against ischemic neuronal injury, and that the extracellular signal-related kinase (ERK) 1/2 signaling pathway could play a critical role in leptin-mediated neuroprotection. Recently, it has been shown that nitric oxide (NO) may actively participate in neuroprotection and neurogenesis in cerebral ischemia. Khan et al2 demonstrated the cerebrovascular protective efficacy of various NO donors in rats after experimental stroke. Evidence indicates that leptin has an important role in the regulation of NO production. It was shown that leptin attenuated cardiac contraction in rat ventricular myocytes, possibly through an increased NO production.3 In a study we presented previously, a relationship between membrane fluidity (a reciprocal value of membrane microviscosity) of erythrocytes and leptin was investigated by means of an electron paramagnetic resonance method.4 The decreased membrane fluidity of erythrocytes might cause a disturbance in the blood rheologic behavior and the microcirculation, which could contribute, at least in part, to the pathophysiology of circulatory disorders. We demonstrated that leptin increased the membrane fluidity of erythrocytes and improved the rigidity of cell membranes in humans via the NOand cGMP-dependent mechanism.4 One hypothesis is that leptin may actively participate in the improvement of the rheologic behavior of erythrocytes and the microcirculation by increasing NO production, which would be a defense against vascular complications in circulatory disorders. In the separate series of the study, we also showed that the relaxing effect of leptin on blood vessels was partially mediated by the NO-dependent pathway.5 In this context, we speculate that leptin-induced NO could have a crucial role in the neuroprotective effect against ischemic neuronal injury. Therefore, we would like to know whether NO signaling might be related to the leptin-effect in the study of Dr Zhang and colleagues. It would be necessary to assess more precisely the functional interactions between leptin and NO, and their contribution to the treatment of ischemic stroke.


The main objective of this study was to access the perceived attractiveness in the freight forwarding industry. The research sought to find out the level of attractiveness in Nairobi. This study was greatly motivated by the fact that the freight forwarding industry in Kenya has not been considered as a serious business sector and was mainly associated with individual players known as "briefcase agents", yet this is an important industry that has experienced continued entry and exit, therefore the research sought to find out the real reason behind the perceived attraction into the industry. Questionnaires were administered to operations manager of the various freight forwarding firms. Out of total of 70 freight forwarding firms that composed the total sample 39 responded, representing a response rate of 56%. Data collected was presented using tables and analyzed using descriptive statistics. Proportions, percentages were used for data analysis. The major findings were that the freight forwarding industry operates within the six competitive forces that affect the industry profitability and thus determining its attractiveness, these forces entry of new competitors, the threat of substitutes, the bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, government and rivalry among the existing competitors are embodied within the industry and each plays a major role. The collective strength of these six competitive forces determines the ability of firms within the freight forwarding industry to earn return on the capital invested General conclusion is that even though attractiveness is relative, not absolute, it is always generally appraised from the standpoint of a particular company . A company with perceptive understanding of industry key success factors can gain sustainable competitive advantage by training its strategy on industry key success factors and devoting its energies to being better than rivals on one or more of these factors. Recommendations made were to create ways in which the delayance of clearance of cargo can be limited and various documentation reduce to fewer, educate the public more on the freight forwarding business and lastly automation of this sector should be greatly encouraged to greatly enhance the efficiency in this sector.


At JAEA, as the Japan Domestic Agency (JADA) for ITER, a MAMuG (multi-aperture multi-grid) accelerator has been developed to perform the required R&D for the ITER neutral beam (NB) system. As a result of countermeasures to handle excess heat load to the ion source by backstreaming positive ions, H− ion beam current was increased to 0.32 A (the ion current density of 140 A m−2) at a beam energy of 796 keV. This high power beam acceleration simulated the ITER operation condition maintaining the perveance (H− ion current density/beam energy3/2) of the ITER accelerator. After the high power beam operation, the pulse length was successfully extended from 0.2 to 5 s at 550 keV, which yielded a 131 mA H− ion beam as an initial test of the long pulse operation. A test of a single-aperture single-gap (SINGAP) accelerator was performed at JAEA under an ITER R&D task agreement. The objective of this test was to compare two different accelerator concepts (SINGAP and MAMuG) at the same test facility. As a result, the MAMuG accelerator was defined as the baseline design for ITER, due to advantages in its better voltage holding and less electron acceleration. In three-dimensional beam trajectory analyses, the aperture offset at the bottom of the extractor was found to be effective for compensation of beamlet deflection due to their own space charge. It has been analytically demonstrated that these compensated beamlets can be focused at a focal point by adopting the aperture offset at the final grid of the accelerator.


Abstract. Context. The time spent to produce nursing records, to become aware of the policy of the institution, to use standardized nursing language, as well as the tools available (printed or electronic tools) may directly interfere on quality of nursing records. Objective. To identify and analyze the literature data on factors that affect the quality of nursing records and the use of standardized language. Methods. Literature review was conducted in the databases CINAHL, PubMed and SciELO. For selecting the texts for review, abstracts and available full texts, in Portuguese or English, about the subject were read. Result. This review allowed to evidence that the quality of nursing care is directly related to the quality of professionals' records. Additionally, appropriate use of standardized language combined with electronic tools is helpful for nurses and their teams on the care provided. Conclusion. In the near future, standardized electronic documentation will allow remote and recurring access to data among different health professionals and organizations. Relevance to clinical practice. This fact can improve patient care, as well as it can assist the development of clinical protocols and researches. Improvement of nursing records is still a challenge for nurses.


We develop a theory for the three-terminal nonlocal conductance in Majorana nanowires as existing in the superconductor-semiconductor hybrid structures in the presence of superconducting proximity, spin-orbit coupling, and Zeeman splitting. The key question addressed is whether such nonlocal conductance can decisively distinguish between trivial and topological Majorana scenarios in the presence of chemical potential inhomogeneity and random impurity disorder. We calculate the local electrical as well as nonlocal electrical, and thermal conductance of the pristine nanowire (good zero-bias conductance peaks), the nanowire in the presence of quantum dots and inhomogeneous potential (bad zero-bias conductance peaks), and the nanowire in the presence of large disorder (ugly zero-bias conductance peaks). The local conductance by itself is incapable of distinguishing the trivial states from the topological states since zero-bias conductance peaks are generic in the presence of disorder and inhomogeneous potential. The nonlocal conductance, which in principle is capable of providing the bulk gap closing and reopening information at the topological quantum phase transition, is found to be far too weak in magnitude to be particularly useful in the presence of disorder and inhomogeneous potential. Therefore, we focus on the question of whether the combination of the local, nonlocal electrical and the thermal conductance can separate the good, bad, and ugly zero-bias conductance peaks in finite-length wires. Our paper aims to provide a guide to future experiments, and we conclude that a combination of all three measurements would be necessary for a decisive demonstration of topological Majorana zero modes in nanowires -- positive signals corresponding to just one kind of measurements are likely to be false positives arising from disorder and inhomogeneous potential.


A long term field trial regarding crop rotations, application of fertilizer and pesticides was established in 1998
at the Julius Kuhn-Institute experimental field in Dahnsdorf. The experimental field is located in the state of
Brandenburg (Germany) about 50 km from Berlin. The long-term field trial consists of two crop rotations: (A)
peas – winter barley – winter rye – white clover (for some years fallow) - winter barley – winter rye and (B)
continuous cropping of winter rye. In both crop rotations the experimental treatments are: 1) no fertilizers - no
pesticides, 2) no fertilizers - pesticides, 3) fertilizers - no pesticides and 4) fertilizers – pesticides. Weeds are
counted in autumn or spring; in the treatments with herbicide application also before herbicide application.
Both weed species and number are determined. The influence of the crop rotation regarding the weed
infestation was strongest for treatment 1) and declined with fertilizer and pesticide use. The crop rotation (A)
generally showed lower Vicia spp. infestation, while the continuous cropping of winter rye (B) promoted Vicia
spp.. The infestation was very different throughout the years. The numbers per m² ranged from 0 up to 144.8 in
treatment (B) (continuous cropping of winter rye) with no fertilizers and no pesticides (1).


Therapeutic blockade of co-inhibitory immune receptors PD-1 and CTLA-4 has revolutionized oncology, but treatments are limited by immune-related adverse events (IRAEs). IRAE Colitis (irColitis) is the most common, severe IRAE affecting up to 25% of patients on dual PD-1 and CTLA-4 inhibition. Here, we present a systems biology approach to define the cell populations and transcriptional programs driving irColitis. We collected paired colon mucosal biopsy and blood specimens from 13 patients with irColitis, 8 healthy individuals, and 8 controls on immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), and analyzed them with single-cell/nuclei RNA sequencing with paired TCR and BCR sequencing, multispectral fluorescence microscopy, and secreted factor analysis (Luminex). We profiled 299,407 cells from tissue and blood and identified 105 cell subsets that revealed significant tissue remodeling in active disease. Colon mucosal immune populations were dominated by tissue-resident memory (TRM) ITGAE-expressing CD8 T cells representing a phenotypic spectrum defined by gene programs associated with T cell activation, cytotoxicity, cycling, and exhaustion. CD8 TRM and effector CD4 T cells upregulated type 17 immune programs (IL17A, IL26) and Tfh-like programs (CXCL13, PDCD1). We also identified for the first time an increased abundance of two KLRG1 and ITGB2-expressing CD8 T cell populations with circulatory cell markers, including a GZMK TRM-like population and a CX3CR1 population that is predicted to be intravascular. These two populations were more abundant in irColitis patients treated with dual PD-1/CTLA-4 inhibition than those receiving anti-PD-1 monotherapy. They also had significant TCR sharing with PBMCs, suggesting a circulatory origin. In irColitis we observed significant epithelial turnover marked by fewer LGR5-expressing stem cells, more transit amplifying cells, and upregulation of apoptotic and DNA-sensing programs such as the cGAS-STING pathway. Mature epithelial cells with top crypt genes upregulated interferon-stimulated pathways, CD274 (PD-L1), anti-microbial genes, and MHC-class II genes, and downregulated aquaporin and solute-carrier gene families, likely contributing to epithelial cell damage and absorptive dysfunction. Mesenchymal remodeling was defined by increased endothelial cells, both in irColitis patients and specifically in patients on dual PD-1/CTLA-4 blockade. Cell-cell communication analysis identified putative receptor-ligand pairs that recruit CD8 T cells from blood to inflamed endothelium and positive feedback loops such as the CXCR3 chemokine system that retain cells in tissue. This study highlights the cellular and molecular drivers underlying irColitis and provides new insights into the role of CTLA-4 and PD-1 signaling in maintaining CD8 TRM homeostasis, regulating CD8 T recruitment from blood, and promoting epithelial-immune crosstalk critical to gastrointestinal immune tolerance and intestinal barrier function.


In this action research study conducted within my sixth grade High Ability Learner (HAL) classroom, I investigated the current mathematics attitudes of my students and how these attitudes correlated to personal mathematics achievement and identified intelligence domains. I discovered that most of my nineteen students held a negative attitude toward the subject of mathematics. Consistent low ratings were also found in the logical/mathematical domain of most of my students' ALPS Multiple Intelligence Profiles. Regardless of this dominant affective data (indicating little mathematics interest or potential from student perspectives) surprisingly, most of my sixth grade HAL students scored above the 90 percentile on the mathematics portion of their most recent Terra Nova nationalized testing report. As a result of this action research, I clearly see the need for gifted students to be shown important connections between mathematics and its utility outside the context of school academia. By supplementing our school's gifted education curriculum with activities that actively engage students in mathematical interpretation and creative problem solving, I hope to nurture an intrinsic interest in mathematics as a vital part of my students' overall development.


Introduction: Dry needling is a therapeutic procedure using the insertion of thin needles through the skin into myofascial trigger points (MTrPs), muscular or connective tissue with the aim to reduce pain intensity. The objective of this systematic review is to analyze the literature for the efficacy of the dry needle technique in pain reduction in conditions of musculoskeletal pain caused by MTrPs.
Reference Sources: Web of Science, Scopus and EBSCOhost database were searched for studies and e-books published from January 2010 to December 2018.
Studies Selection: We included randomized controlled studies, prospective and longitudinal studies, and case studies which analyzed the efficacy of dry needling for musculoskeletal pain reduction.
Data Extraction Method: The studies, which satisfied criteria for inclusion were further analyzed. The primary instrument of the evaluation was pain intensity analyses.
Results: Dry needling treatment is efficient in pain intensity reduction in patients who suffer musculoskeletal pain and is more efficient compared to sham dry needling treatment. In addition, different techniques of dry needling are efficient in the treatment of myofascial pain syndrome.
Conclusion: Based on systematic review of the literature, dry needling, independently or as an addition to other intervention, is recommended for treatment of musculoskeletal pain conditions caused by myofascial trigger points. Various techniques of dry needling treatment are almost equally efficient in myofascial pain intensity reduction.


The IZA and the hypothetical pure-silica zeolite structures are investigated theoretically to identify optimal dielectric materials for semiconducting device applications. The dielectric constant, k, and the bulk modulus, B, are computed as second order energy-derivatives using a classical model. Six zeolites within the IZA database (JSR, IRR, OBW, BOZ, OSO, and NPT) exhibiting both ultra low-k (2.27, 2.33, 2.34, 2.37, 2.39, and 2.49, respectively) and relatively large bulk modulus are suggested as promising candidates. Finally, many hypothetical zeolite structures are predicted to outperform the aforementioned six structures, enhancing the pool of structures that can be used for low-k dielectric materials.


Translanguaging is an emergent concept in bi/multilingualism and language education. It refers to discursive practices where multiple languages are used by plurilingual individuals as an integrated linguistic repertoire ( Garcia and Li Wei 2014 ). This study focuses on the use of translanguaging in a group discussion in a Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) classroom at a Japanese university, where Japanese students and one Arabic student talked in three Japanese and English as a Lingua Franca (ELF). The study examined why (the function) and how (the process) the participants translanguaged from Japanese to ELF in this particular context. During a forty-minute discussion, the participants spoke in Japanese most of the time, and ELF was used for less than ten minutes in total, especially between a Japanese and an Arabic speaker. Based on Gumperz (1982) and Klimpfinger (2007) , four functions of translanguaging were identified: (1) addressee specification, (2) assertion, (3) clarification and (4) appealing for linguistic assistance. The process of translanguaging was also examined in relation to turn-taking structure. The results show that the use of response tokens in ELF and meta-linguistic comments functioned as cues for translanguaging. In so doing, the participants co-constructed a translanguaging space.


Based on the expectancy-value theory, cultural microsystem model, and family systems theory, this study aimed to understand (a) the extent to which Latinx older siblings' support predicted the high school science motivational beliefs of their younger adolescent sibling, and (b) whether these relations varied based on older siblings' familism values and gender. This study included data on 104 Latinx adolescents in 9 th grade and their older siblings. Quantitative regression analyses indicated that older siblings with high familism values were more likely to provide higher support. Older siblings' support did not predict science self-concept or task value for all youth; however, this relation was significant when the older sibling's familism values were high. Older sibling gender was unrelated to any indicators in this study. These findings suggest that familism values may play a significant positive role in Latinx sibling dyads, with older siblings who are more connected to their family serving as a significant resource to promote science motivation among their younger siblings.


Abstract Over the past 30 years, image-guided placement of gastrostomies and cecostomies for gastrointestinal decompression has developed into a safe and effective treatment for symptomatic bowel obstruction. Gastrostomies and cecostomies relieve patient symptoms, can prevent serious complications such as colonic perforation, and may bridge patients to more definitive treatment for the underlying cause of obstruction. This article will review the history of decompressive gastrostomies and cecostomies as well as the indications, contraindications, technique, complications, and outcomes of these procedures.


Opinions are now divided on whether the the Federal National Mortgage Association (or 'Fannie') and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (or 'Freddie') should remain in their present form, putting a lot of taxpayers'money at risk. The bailing–out role now played by the Federal Reserve has been sternly criticised and it has been questioned whether this should be allowed to go on and on in the foreseeable future, transforming US capitalism into social capitalism. The event has also affected the UK capital market, with serious erosion of market capitalisation. But, is the UK home market an innocent bystander in the whole scheme of things? That is is the subject of this article.


Abstract A model has been developed that correlates the anode temperature profile with the dynamic melting rate in gas metal arc welding. The components of this model are the electrode melting rate, the temperature dependent resistivity of the electrode, and the arc voltage. The differential equations describing the dynamic behaviour of the electrode extension were derived from the mass continuity and energy relations. The temperature of the electrode extension was determined by analysing conductive heat transfer and Joule heating effects. Onedimensional solutions for the temperature and heat content were used to obtain the dynamic melting rate equation. The purpose of the present paper is to provide quantitative analyses, concentrating on the thermal behaviour and the electrical characteristics of the arc welding system, to aid in achieving a fundamental understanding of the process, and to develop a dynamic model that can be used in adaptive control. The model is tested by comparison with experimental results.


: Berberine was evaluated for antitumor activity against malignant brain tumors. In addition, studies on combination of berberine with 1,3-bis(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea (BCNU) were done. Several experimental approaches were used. In vitro studies were performed on a series of 6 human malignant brain tumor cell lines and rat 9L brain tumor cells (gliosarcoma) by using a colony forming efficiency (CFE) assay. 9L was also evaluated by a sister chromatid exchange (SCE) assay. In addition, in vivo treatment of intracerebral 9L solid brain tumors was analyzed by CFE assay. Berberine used alone at a dose of 150 micrograms/ml showed an average of 91% cell kill (1.08 log kill) for the 6 malignant brain tumor cell lines. On the average, BCNU alone at a dose of 23 microM gave a 43% cell kill (0.24 log kill). Treatment with a combination of berberine and BCNU at 23 microM showed additive effects with an average of 97% cell kill (1.55 log kill). The relative number of SCEs for 9L cells was increased 2.7 times over background following in vitro treatment with 150 micrograms/ml berberine. Following in vivo treatment of animals harboring solid 9L brain tumors with 10 mg/kg of berberine, an 80.9% cell kill (0.69 log kill) was noted. This activity is equivalent to treatment with 1/3 LD10 dose of BCNU (4.44 mg/kg). In vivo combination treatment with berberine and BCNU showed additive cytotoxicity. Using a BCNU-resistant 9L subline (9L-2), treatment with berberine in combination with BCNU also demonstrated additive cytotoxicity. In conclusion, our results indicate that berberine has potent antitumor activity against human and rat malignant brain tumors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


GREAT is a finite-state toolkit which is devoted to Machine Translation and that learns structured models from bilingual data. The training procedure is based on grammatical inference techniques to obtain stochastic transducers that model both the structure of the languages and the relationship between them. The inference of grammars from natural language causes the models to become larger when a less restrictive task is involved; even more if a bilingual modelling is being considered. GREAT has been successful to implement the GIATI learning methodology, using different scalability issues to be able to deal with corpora of high volume of data. This is reported with experiments on the EuroParl corpus, which is a state-of-the-art task in Statistical Machine Translation.


This is a report on a study of 96 students aged 17 and 18 at two of our local schools. Each student completed a questionnaire, underwent a simple examination of the spine and a measurement of the passive stretch in the hamstring muscles, and had a lateral X-ray of the dorsal and upper lumbar spine. An overall X-ray evidence of Scheuermann's Disease was detected in 60% of males and 23% of females. The possible significance of these results is discussed.


This paper presents the design, and control of a sensorized microgripper using VCM (voice coil motor). In order to increase the sensitivity of the sensorized microgripper, shape design and determination of sensor position are performed using finite element analysis. Micro EDM (electric discharge machine) and wire cutting technique are employed to fabricate the microgripper. Empirical model of the microgripper is achieved to analyze the performance and to control the position and gripping force. By using this identification model, both the perfect tracking controller (PTC) for the position control, and the adaptive zero-phase error tracking controller (ZPETC) for the force control are implemented. The effectiveness of the proposed model-based control method is verified by both simulation and experimental studies. Simulation and experimental results show that the proposed control method can be effectively applied to improve the motion tracking performance. Especially, in case of force control to grip and manipulate soft materials such as biomaterials and tissues, the proposed controller can be very useful to prevent the invasion of the target material by excessive force.


ENETS consensus recommendations for the standards of care in neuroendocrine neoplasms (NEN) concerning follow-up and documentation are considered in this review. The documentation of patients with NEN should include the most relevant data characterizing an individual patient from the first contact with his/her physician/hospital until his/her last presentation during follow-up. It is advocated that follow-up occurs in specialized NEN centers with regular NEN tumor boards with expert panels. The follow-up should be in accordance with the ENETS consensus guidelines from 2011 and 2016, the present and coming WHO classification and ENETS/UICC recommendations for TNM staging. The recommendations for follow-up in patients with thymic, bronchopulmonary and gastroenteropancreatic NEN are given in Table 1. However, it should be stressed that evidence-based studies for follow-up are largely missing.


This paper presents a survey on security and privacy issues in big data and NoSQL. Due to the high volume, velocity and variety of big data, security and privacy issues are different in such streaming data infrastructures with diverse data format. Therefore, traditional security models have difficulties in dealing with such large scale data. In this paper we present some security issues in big data and highlight the security and privacy challenges in big data infrastructures and NoSQL databases.


Basis-theoretical principles for atmosphere in worship services deduced from 1 Corinthians 11:17-14:40 This article emphasises the central position that the worship service occupies in the life of the believer, but more to the point: the believer as a whole. The atmosphere is therefore vital. This is researched by an exegetical study of 1 Corinthians 1-14. The atmosphere in the worship service should be such that the worshipper meets God with the necessary awe and respect. The service must also create an atmosphere of love, warmth, friendliness and joy. All attenders must be invited and feel welcomed at the service. The atmosphere must further en- courage and create room for everybody to participate and use their specific gifts. If the atmosphere in the worship service is adjusted to what it should (and can!) be, the worship service will come closer to its purpose and will become even more of a meeting of the whole person of the believer with the omnipotent God and with every aspect of the fellow believers and the world.


This position paper argues for the establishment of a "Rosetta Stone" that maps behavioral signatures of population behavior to meaningful social categories. We propose a method for accomplishing this through the deployment of behavioral tracking combined with survey questionnaires. The goalis to identify salient patterns of behavioral activity and ask subjects to "explain" these patterns through their survey responses. As a case study, we provide analyses regarding calling patterns related to emergencies, such as bombings and hurricanes.


Cisplatin (cis-dichlorodiammineplatinum-II) is a new class of platinum coordination compounds showing a potent antitumor activity, but it also produces adverse effects on renal function. In this study, cisplatin nephropathy and renal accumulation of platinum were analyzed in rats after acute chronic treatment. A single intraperitoneal dose of cisplatin (6 mg. per kg.) induced marked focal necrosis in the proximal and distal tubules with a maximal lesion on day 7. The tubular damage was localized mainly in the corticomedullary region, where the concentration of platinum was the highest within the kidney. Repeated treatment with cisplatin (1 mg. per kg., intraperitoneally, twice weekly) for 11 weeks resulted in massive tubular basement membranes. Some glomeruli appeared fibrotic, indicating that chronic treatment with cisplatin could cause irreversible renal damage. The results indicated that the toxicity of platinum was probably a major factor for cisplatin nephropathy.


Polymers have been extensively utilized in the design of nanometer-sized delivery vehicles of chemotherapeutics for clinical cancer therapy. Polymeric nanoparticulate delivery vehicles, with chemotherapeutics being either conjugated or encapsulated, have been developed into a variety of different architectures, including polymer-drug conjugates with linear or branched polymers, micelles, and polymersomes. This review describes the progress that has been made in the field of polymeric nanomedicine that brings the science closer to clinical realization of nanopolymeric therapeutics for its application in cancer treatment.


Molecular modeling has been used to assist in the design of a new structure directing agent (SDA) for the synthesis of the AlPO(4) form of STA-2, bis-cliazabicyclooctane-butane (BDAB). This is incorporated as a divalent cation within the large cages of STA-2, as determined via a combination of solid-state (13)C and (15)N MAS NMR, supported by (14)N and (1)H-(15)N HMQC solution NMR and density functional calculations. As prepared AlPO4 STA-2 containing cationic SDA molecules achieves neutrality by the inclusion of hydroxide ions bridging between 5-fold coordinated framework Al atoms. Synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction data of the dehydrated as-prepared form indicates triclinic symmetry (Al(12)P(12)O(48)(OH)(2)center dot BDAB, P1, a = 12.3821(2) angstrom, b = 12.3795(2) angstrom, c = 12.3797(3) angstrom, alpha = 63.3585(8)degrees, 63.4830(7)degrees, gamma = 63.4218(7)) with the distortion from rhombohedral R (3) over bar symmetry resulting from the partial order of hydroxide ions in bridging Al-OH-Al sites within cancrinite cages. Upon calcination in oxygen, the organic SDA is removed, leaving AlPO(4) STA-2 with a pore volume of 0.22 cm(3) g(-1) (R (3) over bar, Al(36)P(36)O(144), a = 12.9270(2) angstrom, c = 30.7976(4) angstrom). Dehydrated calcined AlPO(4) STA-2 has two crystallographically distinct P and Al sites: (31)P MAS NMR resolves the two distinct P sites, and although 27AI MAS NMR only partially resolves the two Al sites, they are separated by MQMAS. Furthermore, 2D (27)Al -> (31)P MQ-J-HETCOR correlation spectroscopy confirms that each framework Al is linked to the two different P sites via AI-O-P connections in a 3:1 ratio (and vice versa for P linked to different Al). The (27)Al and (31)P resonances are assigned to the crystallographic Al and P sites by calculation of the NMR parameters using the CASTEP DFT program for an energy-minimized AlPO(4)(SAT) framework.


The use of dimethylaminocinnemaldehyde (DMAC) as a fingerprint development reagent was first proposed in the 1970s as a solution-dipping technique to target the urea constituent of fingerprints. However, in operational trials, the quality of developed fingerprints was poor. This was attributed to diffusion of urea with time, and the technique was not pursued. More recently, the use of DMAC fuming and the use of sheets impregnated with DMAC solution have been proposed as alternative fingerprint development processes for porous surfaces, in particular for thermal papers. This study reports an analysis of the DMAC development process using impregnated paper sheets and compares its effectiveness to other techniques proposed for thermal papers. The study concludes that the DMAC transfer process primarily targets amino acids in the fingerprint, but that these may be less persistent than the constituents targeted by ninhydrin and DFO; consequently, the effectiveness decreases more rapidly as the fingerprints age. Overall, the most effective process for thermal papers if it is not necessary to retain the text is an ethanol pre-dip followed by DFO.


Forestry management can shape the structure of habitat types and have important biological consequences on the composition of biodiversity. This study focused on Momotus lessonii and Eumomota superciliosa, two potential bioindicators of local and wide scale tropical forest alterations. The study took place in the Karen Mogensen Wildlife Refuge (Costa Rica), a protected area characterized by two main forest habitats where the two species coexist, i.e., primary moist and second-growth dry forest. A distance sampling method was used to obtain density estimates for each species. A spot mapping approach showed an apparent partitioning of the two species at the site. The Kilometric Abundance Index (KAI) and statistical analyses revealed significant differences between the two habitats, i.e., E. superciliosa tended to be more abundant and preferred the dry forest, whilst M. lessonii favored moist environments. The development of arid and semi-arid environments characterized by open areas will probably lead to a numerical increase in E. superciliosa with a consequent expansion, while the decline of moister and homogeneously forested environments will likely affect negatively M. lessonii. We argue that these birds will act as bioindicators of local and global environmental changes, and their monitoring will enable appropriate forest management decisions for conservation purposes.


The Lewisian-like rocks occur in the Moines in three zones as sheets up to 150 m thick and intimately interlayered with Moine schists and psammites. They include metagabbro, amphibolite, migmatite, marble and laminated hornblende schist, the latter occurring mainly at the margins of the bodies and is a tectonite derived from the other rock types during the interlayering within the Moines. The Lewisian sheets are demonstrated to be pieces of the pre Moinian basement tectonically emplaced within the Moine cover during the first of three phases of folding which affected the area. Two northerly zones areinterpreted as the cores of fold nappes having roots to the northwest of the area while the southerly zone is at the base of a thrust sheet, and marks the continuation of the Sgurr Beag slide in The Saddle area.


In the past decade in Cyprus, the jasmine flower has become the symbol of Nicosia, the island's divided capital, and subsequently of a revolution within the Turkish-Cypriot community. As symbol of Nicosia, the jasmine flower evoked a purer time when the city had not yet been "tainted" by an influx of poor workers from Turkey into areas of the walled city that had been abandoned by Turkish-Cypriots. As such, the flower also came to stand for Turkey's purported colonization of the island and Turkish-Cypriots' rebellion against it. And because the jasmine came to represent a city that had once been multicultural and a call for a re-valuing of the local, it was easy enough for the Jasmine Revolution to be translated into a semblance of bicommunalism. But as we show here, rather than a multicultural nostalgia, the nostalgia expressed by the symbol of the jasmine is for a period when Turkish-Cypriots lived in enclaves, a period of deprivation but also of solidarity.


Due to an estimated cost benefit of day surgery, an increase of day surgical procedures may help to reduce the costs in the Austrian health care system. This report contains an analysis of data and methods to calculate the costs of day surgery and inpatient treatment in Austria. Thus, varicose vein surgery was chosen as an example to examine several data sources in terms of their applicability. For the first approach, meta data from the Austrian "Dokumentations- und Informationssystem fur Analysen im Gesundheitswesen" was used. Generated lump sums from hospital reimbursement, total costs that occurred in the departments and number of patients were considered in an equation. For the second approach, we used data from individual hospitals in Austria both for the surgery itself and for nursing. The third approach contained the adaptation of international cost data from the UK by an adjustment for inflation and prices for Austria. The calculated costs differ between 859 and 4,664 Euros for day surgery and 1,720-2,330 Euros for an inpatient treatment. The main strength of the first approach is that it can be done relatively quickly, whereas the validity of the calculated costs is problematic. The use of hospital data takes more time, though the quality of the data is much better and the costs are closer to "true" costs. A weakness of this approach is that individual costs (e.g. for nursery) are not available for a specific intervention. Furthermore, these costs are hospital specific and a generalisation for other hospitals in Austria is not possible. The fast availability of international reference costs is a main strength, but the costs are from a different health care system and thus makes their transferability highly questionable. The calculation by using hospital data seems to provide the most valid results. However, to draw a conclusion for Austria, data from a representative sample of hospitals is required. Thereby, a reference costs database could be established to make these data available for further research in the future.


Shortened dipole antennas based on rectangular dielectric blocks play an important role in ultrahigh field magnetic resonance imaging (UHF-MRI) radio frequency (RF) coil design. However, the generally assumed direct contact with the subject is difficult to maintain in typical in vivo settings. We have previously observed that certain dielectrically shortened dipole antennas can produce a substantially altered transmit field distribution with a very low transmit efficiency when the block and the sample are physically separated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine a) why certain designs of dielectrically shortened dipole antennas can produce an inefficient transmit field when the block and the sample are physically separated and b) how this depends on key parameters such as rectangular block geometry, dielectric constant, loading geometry, and RF feeding. In this work, two main types of quasi-transverse dielectric modes were found in different rectangular block geometries and interpreted as T E 11 δ z (MR efficient) and T E 1 δ δ y (MR inefficient), and their impact on in vivo MRI experiments involving the human head, calf, and wrist was explored. This study shows, for the first time, why certain antennas preserve their transmit field efficiency despite physical separation from the sample. We conclude that the proposed approach has the potential to provide new insights into dipole antenna design for UHF-MRI.


To evaluate the performance of arterial stiffness in patients with COPD and arterial hypertension. 58 patients with a mean age of 57.6±6.3 years were examined. The patients were divided into 3 groups: group 1, n=20, patients with combination of hypertension and COPD; group 2, n=20, patients with hypertension; group 3, n=18, patients with COPD. The groups were similar in for age, sex, duration of hypertension and COPD. Applanation tonometry and pulse wave velocity were made by SphygmoCor. Patients of group 1 showed the improvement of central systolic blood pressure in compassion with group 2 (131.8±4.8 mmHg vs 120.9±8.4 mmHg, p=0.047) and compared to a group 3 (96.8±9.7 mmHg, p=0.000042). Patients with a combination of hypertension and COPD had elevated central pulse pressure of 46.8±4.1 mmHg vs 34.4±9.6 mmHg in group with isolated hypertension (p=0.0002) and against 28.3±8.5 mmHg in group with isolated COPD (p=0.0029). In patients with hypertension and COPD, Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV) in the carotid-femoral segment was 11.2±0.5 m/sec vs 6.9±1.6 m/sec (p=0.00002) and it was 7.3±1.4 m/sec (p=0.0064) in patients with isolated hypertension and COPD. PWV was strongly correlated with the presence of COPD (γ=0.58, p=0.000023) and hypertension (γ=0,34, p=0.0025) by Gamma correlation method. The combination of hypertension and COPD (β=0.42, p=0.00019), age (β=0.39, p=0.0002) and the level of aortic pulse pressure (β=0.54, p=0.001) were marked as independent factors of PWV increasing according to multiple regression analysis. The presence of COPD in patients with hypertension leads to an increasing of arterial stiffness.


Tenderness is the main attribute of meat, wich influences consumer acceptability. Protease enzyme(like papain, bromelin and ficin) are known to be used for improving tenderness of meat trough degredation of the protein. Biduri plant (Ccalotropis gigantea) contains protease enzyme in its latex or the young tissue (0-20 cm plant tip). After isolation of crude enzyme using ammonium sulphate, the enzyme was the applied to tenderise meat at concentrations 0; 0.25; 0.5; 0.75 and 1.0%. The result showed that concentration of protease enzyme affected to meat tenderness that determined by compression test and tensile strenght. The enzyme (0.5%) was enough to tenderise meat indicated by descreasing its compression test value to 201, 160 N 9 from control of 228,582 N) and tensile stenght value to 4.618 N (from control 9.588 N)


On 1 May 2004, Europe changed. This date marks both a beginning and an end. The enlargement of the European Union signals the beginning of a new phase in the history of Western Europe, and, for the new members from Eastern Europe, the end of a long period of exclusion and separation. Commentaries on this epochal event usually focus on 'hard' institutional factors such as political rearrangements, legal coordination and economic readjustments, etc. I will focus more on the 'soft' cultural and human factors; what I consider to be the intangibles and imponderables of a new, emerging Europe. I am convinced that culture really matters in social life.


BACKGROUND
Changes in the concentration of extracellular matrix components in body fluids may reflect the degree of kidney fibrosis. The aim of our study was to evaluate fibronectin (FN) and type IV collagen (COL IV) concentrations in blood serum and urine, and to refer these values to immunoreactivity in renal biopsy material.

MATERIAL/METHODS
Our research involved 37 children with glomerulonephritis (GN) aged 4-15 and 18 healthy children. The patients were divided into 3 groups according to the histopathological diagnosis of GN: I - minimal change GN (MCGN, n=17), II - lupus nephritis (LN, n=7), III - other types of GN (n=13).

RESULTS
Significantly higher COL IV concentrations in serum and urine were noted in the patient group in comparison to the controls, but no differences in FN concentrations. The highest values of serum and urine COL IV were observed in the LN patients. Positive correlation was found between serum and urine COL IV and its renal content in the LN group.

CONCLUSIONS
The results indicate that serum and urine COL IV rises in children with GN, above all in the course of LN. This also reflects changes in renal COL IV content.


One of the challenges of working with students across a college campus is achieving consistency with instruction. Student writers learn varied methods for revision and receive different (and often ineffective) kinds of feedback on their writing. When peer tutors work with these writers, they often have to start with the basics and teach them how to edit and revise. They have to show them what tools exist to help them become independent writers. One of the ways that tutors bridge the gap between what students learn in the classroom and what they learn in the writing center is through their use of a writing handbook.


The report discusses the attitude of the Lithuanian policy-makers (parliament, president, government) towards differentiated integration during the period from Lithuania's accession into the EU in 2004 till 2020. On the basis of quantitative and qualitative analysis of official speeches, documents and parliamentary debates, it concludes with several observations. First, the salience of differentiated integration in Lithuania has been limited with a notable exception of ending opt-outs from eurozone and the Schengen area, also to some extent the promotion of closer relations between the EU and its eastern partners. The assessment of 'different-speeds' and 'different-tiers' Europe is negative, though both models seem to be often confused in political discourse. Meanwhile, attitude towards mechanisms and concrete instances of differentiated integration is more nuanced and pragmatic, often depending on costs and benefits and political sensitivities of Lithuania joining them.


The study aimed to compare dissolution profiles of five generics of a BCS class I drug (Doxycycline Hyclate) with innovator Doxycycline Hyclate and also to compare the quality of different brands of Doxycycline Hyclate 100 mg capsules, collected from various retail pharmacies in the local market of Pakistan under biowaiver conditions. Assessment of physical parameters which include uniformity of weight and disintegration test was done according to British Pharmacopeia (BP) 2007 requirements. Chemical assay was carried out using a validated UV spectrophotometric method.


Reading comprehension is one of the most useful lifetime skills that go beyond the classroom setting. Students who have excellent reading comprehension can succeed inside and outside the school. Relative to this, the study aimed to find out the possible impact of Project REACH (Reading Empowerment Asserting Connection at Home) on the reading comprehension skills of Grade 9 students of Alaminos Integrated National High School, A.Y. 2021-2022. This study was descriptive correlational for it aimed to accurately and systematically describe a population, situation, or phenomenon and at the same time it investigated relationships between variables without the researcher controlling or manipulating any of them. It aspired to find out the significant difference between the mean pre-test and post-test scores of Grade 9 students in English and the significant relationship between the Project REACH and reading comprehension skills of Grade 9 students in English. Eighty percent (80%) or one hundred and sixty (160) of the two hundred (200) Grade 9 students of Alaminos Integrated National High School who have undergone the Project REACH pilot implementation since the school year 2020-2021 were the respondents and the study covered the Fourth Quarter period of the academic year 2021-2022. The researcher utilized a teacher-made pre-test and post-test based on the particular reading skills, as well as a researcher-made survey questionnaire to test the students' perception of the Project REACH components. Statistical treatments used in the study were frequency count, percent distribution, mean, standard deviation, paired sample t-test, and Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Coefficient (Pearson r). The result showed that among all the reading skills, only Getting the Main Idea is associated with the Project Reach's Assessment, r=.258, when tested at P<.01. However, when tested at P<.05, it was found that Drawing Conclusions has a very weak association with Project REACH's Content, r=.164 while Noting Details is associated with Project REACH's Procedure, r=.184., Thus, partially rejecting the null hypothesis. Since the study reveals that there is the partial relationship between the level of reading comprehension skills of Grade 9 students and the Project REACH components, the school may continue supporting and improving the implementation of Project REACH, as well as involving all the learners in this kind of reading program and to religiously follow its mantra, "no child will be left behind". Keywords: reading, reading comprehension, reading skills, Project REACH, reading materials.


We propose a new method for disparity assisted stereo optical flow estimation. This method is based on the linearization of the round-about compatibility constraint, which converts a stereo optical flow estimation problem to a single channel optical flow estimation problem. An over-determined system of optical flow equations can then be constructed for estimating the flow fields. The total least squares, instead of the traditional least squares is used to solve the estimation problem. We also investigate the extension of the locally constant flow model across the time domain. The experiments presented demonstrate that the proposed technique performs very well.


We investigate fast methods that allow to quickly eliminate variables (features) in supervised learning problems involving a convex loss function and a $l_1$-norm penalty, leading to a potentially substantial reduction in the number of variables prior to running the supervised learning algorithm. The methods are not heuristic: they only eliminate features that are {\em guaranteed} to be absent after solving the learning problem. Our framework applies to a large class of problems, including support vector machine classification, logistic regression and least-squares.
The complexity of the feature elimination step is negligible compared to the typical computational effort involved in the sparse supervised learning problem: it grows linearly with the number of features times the number of examples, with much better count if data is sparse. We apply our method to data sets arising in text classification and observe a dramatic reduction of the dimensionality, hence in computational effort required to solve the learning problem, especially when very sparse classifiers are sought. Our method allows to immediately extend the scope of existing algorithms, allowing us to run them on data sets of sizes that were out of their reach before.


The purpose of this thesis was to increase the efficiency of the Positron Emission Tomography (PET) tracer development process. Since many neuroimaging agents fail due to undesirably high non-specific binding (NSB) to brain tissue, we aimed at estimating the extent of NSB as early as possible, preferably before radioactive labeling and extensive animal testing. To this purpose we have developed, optimized and evaluated several in vitro assays with respect to their ability to predict brain tissue binding and, in particular, NSB in PET. A major goal of this thesis was the implementation of a miniaturized assay for the prediction of NSB in order to meet the demand for maximal efficiency, i.e. high throughput and minimal consumption of reagents, samples and animal tissue. Since octanol/water distribution coefficients (logDoct) are routinely measured in almost every research organization, we investigated whether logDoct is also useful for the prediction of brain tissue binding. In this context, we have developed a filter-based logDoct assay (Carrier Mediated Distribution System=CAMDIS) to overcome the drawbacks of the traditional shake flask technique, i.e. tedious phase separation and high consumption of reagents. Strategies have been developed to correct for drug adsorption to the assay construct in order to warrant both high throughput and high quality of the data. Even though the CAMDIS logDoct values were in excellent agreement with literature shake flask data, our results indicated that octanol is only a poor surrogate for tissue binding, as shown by the poor correlation between logDoct and the unbound fraction of drug in brain (fu,brain) available through equilibrium dialysis. The latter is the current industrial standard method for the measurement of tissue binding, however the technique is hampered by high consumption of animal tissue and low throughput. Apart from logDoct, another, more complex membrane surrogate system, namely the Parallel Artificial Membrane Permeation Assay (PAMPA), has found entry into many laboratories. We investigated whether the fraction of drug retained by the PAMPA barrier proves useful for the prediction of tissue binding. Since the default PAMPA setup at Roche was inappropriate in this respect, we optimized PAMPA towards better predictive power and compatibility with mass spectrometric analysis. Provided that PAMPA was conducted under optimized conditions (pH 7.4, brain polar lipids, without solubilizers), the membrane fraction was in much better agreement with tissue binding as compared to logDoct. Nevertheless, the predictive power was still unsatisfactory reflecting the fact that reverse micelles rather than lipid bilayers constitute the permeation barrier as revealed by NMR experiments. Since neither CAMDIS nor PAMPA yielded sufficiently reliable NSB estimates, we developed a miniaturized label-free Lipid Membrane Binding Assay (LIMBA) allowing for the measurement of brain tissue/water distribution coefficients at minimal consumption of brain homogenate. LIMBA was highly predictive for the binding of drugs and molecular imaging probes to brain tissue and therefore provides a viable alternative to the equilibrium dialysis technique. LIMBA thus allows for more efficient optimization of potential PET tracers and should reduce the attrition rate in the late and particularly expensive stages in the PET tracer development process.


ABSTRACT Chicken anemia virus (CAV) is a small circular single-stranded DNA virus with a single promoter-enhancer region containing four consensus cyclic AMP response element sequences (AGCTCA), which are similar to the estrogen response element (ERE) consensus half-sites (A)GGTCA. These sequences are arranged as direct repeats, an arrangement that can be recognized by members of the nuclear receptor superfamily. Transient-transfection assays which use a short CAV promoter construct that ended at the transcription start site and drive expression of enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) showed high basal activity in DF-1, LMH, LMH/2A, and primary theca and granulosa cells. The estrogen receptor-enhanced cell line, LMH/2A, had significantly greater expression than LMH cells, and this expression was significantly increased with estrogen treatment. A long promoter construct which included GGTCA-like sequences downstream of the first CAV protein translation start site was found to have significantly less EGFP expression in DF-1 cells than the short promoter, which was largely due to decreased RNA transcription. DNA-protein binding assays indicated that proteins recognizing a consensus ERE palindrome also bind GGTCA-like sequences in the CAV promoter. Estrogen receptor and other members of the nuclear receptor superfamily may provide a mechanism to regulate CAV activity in situations of low virus copy number.


Saliva is a complex body fluid that comprises secretions from the major and minor salivary glands, which are extensively supplied by blood. Therefore, molecules such as proteins, DNA, RNA, etc., present in plasma could be also present in saliva. Many studies have reported that saliva body fluid can be useful for discriminating several oral diseases, but also systemic diseases including cancer. Most of these studies revealed messenger RNA (mRNA) and proteomic biomarker signatures rather than specific non-coding RNA (ncRNA) profiles. NcRNAs are emerging as new regulators of diverse biological functions, playing an important role in oncogenesis and tumor progression. Indeed, the small size of these molecules makes them very stable in different body fluids and not as susceptible as mRNAs to degradation by ribonucleases (RNases). Therefore, the development of a non-invasive salivary test, based on ncRNAs profiles, could have a significant applicability to clinical practice, not only by reducing the cost of the health system, but also by benefitting the patient. Here, we summarize the current status and clinical implications of the ncRNAs present in human saliva as a source of biological information.


Despite the established role for PI3Ks in cell migration, the PI3Ks involved in lymphocyte chemotaxis are poorly defined. In this study, we report that p110γ-deficient T cells, but not B cells, show reduced chemotactic responses to the lymphoid chemokines, CCL19, CCL21, and CXCL12. As B cell and T cell chemotactic responses were both sensitive to the general PI3K inhibitors, wortmannin (WMN) and LY294002, we explored whether B cell responses were affected in mice lacking p110δ, a major PI3K isoform in lymphocytes. B cells deficient in p110δ showed diminished chemotactic responses, especially to CXCL13. Adoptive transfer experiments with WMN-treated wild-type B cells and with p110δ-deficient B cells revealed diminished homing to Peyer's patches and splenic white pulp cords. WMN selectively inhibited CXCR5-dependent B cell homing to Peyer's patches. These observations establish that p110γ and p110δ function in lymphocyte chemotaxis, and show differential roles for PI3K family members in B and T cell migration.


The Natura 2000 network is the cornerstone of EU Biodiversity Strategy aimed at halting the loss of biodiversity and services natural and semi-natural ecosystems provide to human populations. The Member States are mainly responsible to implement conservation strategies through management plans and conservation measures, but in many cases the level of development and execution of these instruments is very low due to scarce financial resources, and management effectiveness is rarely achieved. This paper presents first insights from Life+ Making Good Natura (MGN) project and highlights costs and benefits associated to 2 out of 21 Natura 2000 study sites in Italy in order to define the basis for a new governance approach relied on the qualitative and quantitative valuation of ecosystem services (ES) and suitable for reaching management effectiveness. To date, the habitat cover of the agro-forest sites and socio-economic data for the core area and a buffer zone of 20 km, gathered through questionnaires to management authority, have been analyzed. After mapping and assessing the most important ES for each site based on spatial data and on the information from the questionnaires, meetings with local public and private stakeholders were organized in order to discuss the identified ES and their social and economic importance for the area. Preliminary results suggest that quantification of costs related to the Natura 2000 network is a crucial point within a systematic approach to environmental accountability that allows to measure and assess management bodies' management strategy effectiveness and efficiency and to redefine Natura 2000 sites conservation priorities. Furthermore, in a general context of stagnant and uncertain funding for biodiversity conservation, also the need of defining a wide range of governance and management tools, referring to the policy mix instruments, seems urgent.


Previous studies have demonstrated that protease treatment of zona‐free mouse eggs impairs sperm‐egg interaction (Boldt et al.: Biol Reprod 39:19–27. 1988) and causes modification of a 94 kD egg plasma membrane protein (Boldt et al., Gamete Res 23:91–101, 1989), In this report, the ability of eggs to recover penetration ability following protease treatment was examined. Zona‐free mouse eggs were isolated and treated with either trypsin or chymotrypsin (1 mg/ml, 20 min), then cultured for 0, 3, or 6 hr before insemination. Eggs cultured for 3 or 6 hr displayed significantly higher penetration levels than eggs inseminated immediately after protease treatment, indicating a recovery of penetration ability during the 3 or 6 hr incubation period. The recovery of penetration ability was not blocked by inclusion of cyclohexamide (50 μg/ml) during the 3 or 6 hr culture period, indicating that protein synthesis was not required for recovery of fusion ability. Cell surface radiolabeling studies with 125I revealed that a 94 kD cell surface protein was lost immediately following trypsin or chymotrypsin treatment but was found on the egg surface after the 3 or 6 hr recovery period. Recovery of the 94 kD egg surface protein occurred in the presence of cyclohexamide, and metabolic radiolabeling studies with 35S‐methionine confirmed that synthesis of a 94 kD protein was blocked by cyclohexamide. These results suggest that the recovery of penetration ability after protease treatment of zona‐free eggs is due to recovery of the 94 kD cell surface protein, providing further evidence for the involvement of the 94 kD protein in sperm‐egg interaction. © 1992 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Dear Friends and Readers, This is always a pleasure to introduce the new issue of our Journal. This time we start from the article that confirms the importance of rare diseases problem – not only in terms of economy, but concentrating on pro‑ fessional education. Healthcare workers often have in‑ sufficient knowledge on rare diseases that may lead to delay in making a diagnosis and providing appropriate care. The fifth area of the Europlan entitled: "Gather‑ ing The Expertise On Rare Diseases At European Lev‑ el" includes education, development and exchange of knowledge and experience in the field of rare diseases. This area was ranked high priority in rare diseases, be‑ cause it determines appropriate and fast diagnosis and high level of healthcare. In the present review me and Prof. Grzegorz Kopec summarize European Union rec‑ ommendations on the implementation of education systems in the member states. We also show the imple‑ mentation of the programme in the Jagiellonian Uni‑ versity Medical College. The Steering Committee of the project funded by European Union entitled "De‑ velopment of the European Network in Orphan Car‑ diovascular Diseases" together with the  authorities of Jagiellonian University Medical College, Faculty of Medicine decided to establish a unique educational program on rare diseases for medical students. Scien‑ tists and tutors affiliated at the Jagiellonian University as well as partner Universities and organizations took part in the project. We welcome you to read the whole text and to share with us your remarks and suggestions concerning the education of students and medical pro‑ fessionals in the field of rare diseases.


Objectives Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a rare disease carrying a risk of death and chronic heart failure.It is unknown if women with PPCM have a family history of heart failure. We investigated the prevalence of heart failure and hypertension in first-degree relatives to women with PPCM. Methods A cohort of 61 women with PPCM was identified through the nationwide Danish registers from 2005 to 2014, and each individual diagnosis of PPCM was validated through review of patient records. We excluded 13 women due to lack of data on relatives. In a case–control design, the 48 remaining women were matched (on age, year of childbirth, parity and number of siblings) to 477 birth-giving Danish women without heart failure. We obtained information on first-degree relatives (parents and siblings) through the National Danish Registers. Results The cohort of 48 women with PPCM had a mean age of 31 years (SD 6). The prevalence of heart failure in any first-degree relative was higher in women with PPCM, compared with controls (23% vs 10%, p=0.011). A first-degree relative with any cardiovascular diagnosis was not more frequent in women with PPCM versus controls (77% vs 70%, p=0.280), but for siblings only, any cardiovascular diagnosis was more frequent in siblings to women with PPCM (29% vs 16%, p=0.026). Conclusion Having a first-degree relative with heart failure was significantly more frequent in a cohort of validated PPCM cases than in controls, supporting the notion of shared aetiology between PPCM and other forms of heart failure.


India has grown to be a powerhouse in providing Information Technology (IT) Services to myriad clients all over the world. This sector has shown that it has what it takes to move beyond pure cost arbitrage and up the value chain. Despite the successes of this sector and its prowess in providing world-class solutions, there is empirical evidence which suggests that the domestic user industry remains woefully underserved for its IT requirements. This study theorises that this is due to the tax-break based incentives provided to the Information Technology Service providers, which have resulted in an environment where servicing the domestic IT users, especially the Micro and Small Scale Enterprises, becomes non-remunerative.Therefore, domestic industry's use of Information Technology happens without any government aid or incentive. On the contrary, current government policies result in a number of missed opportunities, rendering Indian businesses uncompetitive. In this paper, we analyse the impact of export oriented tax incentives on the domestic sector and attempt to identify a few policy mechanisms that could obviate their negative effect.


OBJECT
The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is currently recognized as the preferred target for deep brain stimulation (DBS) in patients with Parkinson disease (PD). If there is agreement in the literature that DBS improves motor symptoms significantly, the situation is less clear with respect to the side effects of this procedure. The goal of this study was to correlate the coordinate values of active electrode contacts with the amplitude of residual clinical symptoms and side effects using a mathematical approach.

METHODS
In this study the investigators examined a cohort of 41 patients with PD who received clinical benefits from DBS after stimulating electrodes had been implanted bilaterally into the STN. The combined scores of residual clinical symptoms plus side effects, including speech disturbance, postural instability, and weight gain, were fitted by using either inverted ellipsoidal exponefitials or smooth splines. These analyses showed evidence of lower combined scores for stimulating contacts at an x coordinate approximately 12.0 to 12.3 mm lateral to the anterior commissure-posterior commissure (AC-PC) line and at a z coordinate approximately 3.1 to 3.3 mm under the AC-PC line. There was insufficient evidence for a preferred y coordinate location.

CONCLUSIONS
The authors propose a "best" therapeutic ellipse area that is centered at an x, z location of 12.5 mm, -3.3 mm and characterized by an extension of 1.85 mm in the x direction and 2.22 mm in the z direction. Therapeutic electrode contacts located within this area are well correlated with the lowest occurrence of residual symptoms and the lowest occurrence of side effects independent of STN anatomical considerations. The lack of a significant result in the y direction remains to be explored further.


By using a stereographic projection of the unit sphere of magnetization vector onto a complex plane for the equations of motion, the effect of an external magnetic field for integrability of the system is discussed. The properties of the Jest solutions and the scattering data are then investigated through introducing transformations other than the Riemann surface in order to avoid double-valued functions of the usual spectral parameter. The exact multisoliton solutions are investigated by means of the Binet-Cauchy formula. The results showed that under the action of an external magnetic field nonlinear magnetization depends essentially on two parameters: its center moves with a constant velocity, while its shape changes with another constant velocity; its amplitude and width vary periodically with time, while its shape is also dependent on time and is unsymmetric with respect to its center. The orientation of the nonlinear magnetization in the plane orthogonal to the anisotropy axis changes with an external magnetic field. The total magnetic momentum and the integral of the motion coincident with its z component depend on time. The mean number of spins derivated from the ground state in a localized magnetic excitations is dependent on time. The asymptotic behavior of multisoliton solutions, the total displacement of center, and the phase shift of the jth peak an also analyzed. [S0163-1829(99)07121-0].


Raheleh Ganjali Farnaz Khoshrounejad Mohammad Reza Mazaheri Habibi Zhila Taherzadeh Reza Golmakani Sayyed Mostafa Mostafavi Saeid Eslami 1Department of Medical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; 2Department of Health Information Technology, Varastegan Institute for Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; 3Neurogenic Inflammation Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; 4Department of Emergency Medicine, Doctor Shariati Hospital, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; 5Pharmaceutical Research Center, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran; 6Department of Medical Informatics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands Introduction: Adolescent and young adult periods are characterized by increased risktaking, impulsive behavior, and nonadherence issues, which makes it equally challenging for patients and their health care professionals. Health information technology (IT) has the potential to empower patients. Objective: Determine the effects and features of IT-based interventions for self-management of adolescents and young adults in kidney transplant recipients. Materials and Methods: A comprehensive survey was done on Medline and Scopus in September 2018. Eligible studies included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasiexperimental studies focused on automated IT-based interventions. Studies contained information about adolescent and young adult kidney transplant recipients aged under 25, all published in English. The articles were combined with each other based on the classification of outcomes, the type of interventions, and their impact. The studies were categorized based on the impact of interventions as positive and statistically significant, with no effect, or a combined effect (both positive significance and without effect). Results: In this review, of a total of 2,242 retrieved articles, collected from Scopus and PubMed databases, 5 studies met the full-text inclusion criteria. Interventions were performed using computerized systems (3 studies), smartphone application/personal digital ass (PDA) (1 study), and multiple components (1 study). These studies evaluated 15 outcomes, including 7 care process and 8 clinical outcomes. In 6 of 15 outcomes (40%), interventions had a statistically significant positive effect. Conclusion: IT-based interventions such as mobile health/personal digital assistant(PDA), computer systems and multi-component have the potential to improve self-management in adolescents and young adult kidney transplant recipients (care process outcomes). It is recommended to conduct complementary research to examine the effect of IT-based selfmanagement interventions on clinical outcomes in kidney transplant recipients.


In 1999-2001, the U.S. Geological Survey installed and sampled 27 shallow wells in the ricegrowing area in southwestern Louisiana as part of the Acadian-Pontchartrain Study Unit of the National WaterQuality Assessment Program. The purpose of this report is to describe the quality of water from shallow wells in the rice-growing area and to relate that water quality to natural and anthropogenic activities, particularly rice agriculture. Ground-water samples were analyzed for general ground-water properties and about 150 waterquality constituents, including major inorganic ions, trace elements, nutrients, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), pesticides, radon, chlorofluorocarbons, and selected stable isotopes. Dissolved-solids concentrations for 17 wells exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency secondary maximum contaminant level of 500 milligrams per liter (mg/L) for drinking water. Concentrations for major inorganic ions, trace elements, and pesticides generally were less than the maximum contaminant levels for drinking water. Two major inorganic ions, sulfate and chloride, and two trace elements, iron and manganese, had concentrations that were greater than the secondary maximum contaminant levels. Three nutrient concentrations were greater than 2 mg/L, a level that might indicate contamination from human activities, and one nutrient concentration (that for nitrite plus nitrate as nitrogen) was greater than the maximum contaminant level of 10 mg/L for drinking water. The median concentration for DOC was 0.5 mg/L, indicating naturally-occurring DOC conditions in the study area. Thirteen pesticides and 7 pesticide degradation products were detected in 14 of the 27 wells sampled. Bentazon, 2,4-D, and molinate (three rice herbicides) were detected in water from four, one, and one wells, respectively, and malathion (a rice insecticide) was detected in water from one well. Low-level concentrations and few detections of nutrients and pesticides indicated that ground-water quality was affected slightly by anthropogenic activities. Quality-control samples, including field blanks, replicates, and spikes, indicated no bias in ground-water data from collection or analysis. Radon concentrations for 22 of the 24 wells sampled were at or greater than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed maximum contaminant level of 300 picocuries per liter. Chlorofluorocarbon concentrations in selected wells indicated the apparent ages of the ground water varied with depth and water level and ranged from about 17 to 49 years. The stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen in water molecules indicated the origin of ground water in the study area was rainwater that originated near the study area and that few geochemical or physical processes influenced the stable isotopic composition of the shallow ground water. The Spearman rank correlation was used to determine whether significant correlations existed between physical properties, selected chemical constituents, the number of pesticides detected, and the apparent age of water. The depth to ground water was positively correlated to the well depth and inversely correlated to dissolved solids and other constituents, such as radon, indicating the ground water was under unconfined or semiconfined conditions and more dilute with increasing depth. As the depth to ground water increased, the concentrations of dissolved solids and other constituents decreased, possibly because the deeper sands had a greater transmittal of ground water, which, over time, would flush out, or dilute, the concentrations of dissolved solids in the natural sediments. The apparent age of water was correlated inversely with nitrite plus nitrate concentration, indicating that as the apparent age increased, the nitrite plus nitrate concentration decreased. No significant correlations existed between the number of pesticides detected and any of the physical or chemical properties of the ground water.


This paper uses data that spans different pricing regimes to estimate the aggregate agricultural supply response to price and non-price factors in Zimbabwe. The autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach to cointegration employed here gives consistent estimates of supply response in the presence of regressor endogeneity and also permits the estimation of distinct estimates of both long-run and short-run elasticities when exogenous variables are not integrated of the same order. The results confirm that agricultural prices in Zimbabwe are endogenous and the exogenous variables are not integrated of the same order hence use of the autoregressive distributed lag approach was worthwhile. The paper finds a long-run price elasticity of 0.18, confirming findings in the literature that aggregate agricultural supply response to price is inelastic. This result means that the agricultural price policy is a somewhat blunt instrument for effecting growth in aggregate agricultural supply. The provision of non-price incentives must play a key role in reviving the agricultural sector in Zimbabwe.


How do digital algorithms govern our daily lives and how do they do so without us consciously noticing? We leave behind digital footprints in our day-to-day use of devices. This offers valuable data which can be used for big data analysis and prediction, and fed into recommendation engines and personalised ads. Not only are private companies hungry for the chance to monetise our data, governments are also keen to tap into the potential of the digital for better policing, security, and governance. In the digital world, we are placed in a regime of constant surveillance. This project looks behind the screen and opens up the blackbox of technology to investigate what algorithms are, how they operate, and how they evade our human perception through the machinic speeds of micro-temporal processing. Clocks, Algorithms, and Biopower The main subject of the dissertation focuses on the temporal dimensions of twenty-first-century media and traces how bodies are subjected to biopolitical control through time-related technologies. The history of clocks and computing is evoked to provide a material understanding of algorithms through their mechanical counterparts, and to demonstrate how time has been used as a disciplinary tool. Clocks gave rise to a logic of quantification and measurement, a logic which has historically been co-opted into a regime of labour and slave management. This has been examined in light of plantation labour in times of American slavery and in English factories during the Industrial Revolution. Time measurement provides quantification of labour with scientific precision, generating a rhythm that shapes bodies subjected under its control, whose worth may be measured through the value of productivity and output. If clocks were seen as key to the imposition of clock discipline, how do twenty-first-century media, with their mode of beyond-human time mediation, impose power on the population? The works of Michel Foucault and his contemporaries are analysed to show how the theories of discipline and biopower could be updated for the digital era. The technological and chronological dimensions of biopower are highlighted through the proposed concept of 'techno-chrono-biopolitics'. How does biopower express itself today from the assemblage of codes, apps, and devices? Which bodies are most susceptible to the new logics of microtemporal algorithms? The digital brings about new forms of surveillance and control and introduces new rhythms of work in a 24/7, always-online, on-demand culture. Against the ephemerality and invisibility that define our wireless internet, the work turns the focus back to bodies and the material dimension of technologies. From clock-use in colonisation and slavery to tracking algorithms on the Apple Watch and Quantified Self devices, the project traces the relations of how technology mediates time and inaugurates regimes of biopower.


The gastric barrier could be considered an active tissue involved in many synthetic and metabolic functions, as the immunological defense, by activating mucosal immune system. Barrier integrity results from a balance between protective and aggressive endogenous factors and from their interaction with exogenous factors (steroidal or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, dietary nitrates, nitrites and/or NaCl, stress, Helicobacter pylori infection, food allergens and contaminants, metals, chemicals, radiation, smoking and alcohol intake). Nutrients represent the most important exogenous factors affecting gastric barrier because of the impact on people's everyday life. We report evidence from the literature about nutrients affecting gastric barrier and we investigate the possible effect that nutrients can play to determining or maintaining a gastric barrier dysfunction.


AbstractIncreasing the productivity of solar stills has been the focus of intensive research. Many introduced developments, however, require complex components and entail notable increases in cost and land requirements. Developing a compact, productive, and easy-to-operate system is a main challenge. This paper describes a sustainable modification of the solar still that significantly enhances its productivity without forsaking its basic features. A simple amendment in the form of a slowly rotating drum is introduced allowing the formation of thin water films that evaporate rapidly and are continually renewed. The performance of this system was compared against a control without the introduced drum. Throughout the experiment, the new system gave considerably higher yield than the control with an average increase in daily productivity of 200%. Moreover, during sunshine hours, the increase in yield could surpass 6–8 times that of the control. Important parameters such as ease of handling, material availabil...


Since fires can develop from endogenous smouldering combustion processes deep inside packed beds, especially domestic refuse beds, it is a major task in early fire detection to detect the indications of such combustions as early as possible. Since it is believed that the surface temperature distribution of the bed is affected by the heat and mass transfer from a source of endogenous combustion deep within the bed, the measurement of the surface temperature using IR-Thermography (IRT) has been supposed to be the most promising technique in early combustion detection. The present work thus deals with the heat and mass transfer from endogenous sources of combustion in packed beds, particularly domestic refuse beds, in order to predict the temperature distribution inside and at the surface of these beds and thus, to allow for an assessment of IRT based early combustion detection systems. An IR-thermographically measurable surface temperature increase will only be achieved by sufficient heat transfer from the source of combustion. Experimental procedures and mathematical modelling have shown that the heat transfer by conduction and radiation is ineffective and therefore, no indication will be obtainable from the surface temperature distribution. A more satisfactory increase in the surface temperature is given as soon as additional heat is transferred by the diffusion of gaseous combustion products. As a result, the heat transfer by convection from the hot combustion gases is theoretically analysed, in particular the way in which the gases flow from the combustion to the surface of the bed. The results obtained show that the gas flow is initiated and maintained by buoyancy and thus the gas tends to flow vertically towards the surface with minimal collateral diffusion. It was also shown that heterogeneous polydispersed beds can be treated as homogeneous monodispersed beds as long as average values for the characteristic bed properties can be obtained. Based upon that, a mathematical continuum model was derived by which the temperature distribution inside and at the surface of the bed could be predicted. The theoretically obtained results and their implications were then experimentally verified, confirming that heat is predominantly vertically transferred by the gaseous combustion products. The two final sets of experiments were undertaken in a 27 m3 batch of a representative sample of domestic refuse and a batch of wood chips. Comparing the experimental results with the mathematical predictions, a certain deviation becomes apparent, which is attributed to the not exactly one-dimensional condition inside the bed and especially to the effect of condensation and re-evaporation of the water content of the combustion gas, which has not been included in the model. The temperature of hot spots at the surface, that have the size of only a few square-centimetres, increased to the dew point temperature of the combustion gas, i.e. 65 °C to 85 °C, within the first hour after ignition but remained almost constant at this level for several hours. About 30 minutes before the combustion proceeded to the surface, their temperature increased rapidly but not their size. The rapid temperature increase was attributed to the condensation and re-evaporation ceasing because the entire bed had heated up to a temperature at which these effects no longer occur.All results obtained, especially for the surface temperature development, allow for an assessment of IRT based early combustion detection systems. Whilst, on one hand, sources of endogenous combustion are principally detectable from the surface temperature distribution, on the other hand, the reliable detection of the very small hot spots requires a spatial resolution of the system, which is up to ten times higher than recent state-of-the-art systems can provide.


This article explains the risk factors involved in a business. In each type of business, there are certain risk factors for the implementation of anything in the business. The type of risks involved can depend upon many factors. It also depends on the type of business an organisation is doing. But it is very important that the risk analyst does all the analysis of the risks that might arise in future and must take necessary actions in order to avoid those risks. The risk analyst can also try to reduce the impact of the risks on the business. Therefore, it is very important that the risk analyst should have the knowledge of how to analyse risk and then can act upon them.