Background: Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) often lead to sequelae of hearing loss. Tympanoplasty is one of the strategies to improve hearing function in patients with CSOM. Aim: To evaluate hearing threshold differences in pre and post tympanoplasty in patients with CSOM. Methods: Patients who undergo tympanoplasty (n = 21) were observed prospectively. Hearing threshold (air conduction, bone conduction, and threshold deviation) were assessed using pure tone audiometry before and 12 weeks after the surgery, at the frequency of 500 Hz, 1 kHz, 2 kHz, and 4 kHz. Results: Significant difference between pre and post tympanoplasty was shown at all frequencies in air conduction (AC), while similar results are shown at 2 kHz and 4 kHz frequencies in bone conduction (BC). There is also an increase in the mean hearing threshold between pre and post tympanoplasty. Conclusion: An average of 0-5 dB of AC enhancement in all frequencies were found after tympanoplasty. Nevertheless, further study is needed on hearing threshold improvement in various types


Abstract The organochlorine pesticide 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis (p-chlorophenyl)-ethane (DDT), is a well-known and widely dispersed "environmental estrogen" (World Health Organization Criteria no. 9; Geneva, Switzerland [1979]). Kelce et al. (Nature, 1995; 375:581–85) recently identified the DDT metabolite, 1,1-dichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethylene (DDE), has also recently been identified as a potent androgen receptor antagonist. The authors examined the relationship between serum levels of DDE and bone mineral density in 68 sedentary women who reported adequate dietary intake of calcium. Reduced bone mineral density was correlated significantly with age (r = -.36, p = .004), as well as with increases in the log of DDE levels in serum (r = -.27, p = .03). The authors also used multiple-regression analysis to examine the influence of other predictor variables on the relationship between log DDE and bone mineral density. The strongest model (p = .002) included log DDE (p = .018), age (p = .002), and years on hormone replacement therapy (p = .10) as predictor variables, and this model afforded prediction of 21% of bone mineral density variation. These results suggest that past community exposures to DDT may be associated with reduced bone mineral density in women.


Neonatal treatment of rats with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or the angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonist losartan induces irreversible renal histological abnormalities, mainly papillary atrophy, in association with an impairment in urinary concentrating ability. In the present study, sodium and potassium balance were assessed during high and low sodium intake and dietary potassium restriction in adult Wistar rats treated neonatally with enalapril (10 mg ⋅ kg-1 ⋅ day-1) from 3 to 24 days of age. During balance studies, neonatally enalapril-treated rats showed 1) normal adaptation to dietary sodium restriction, 2) sodium retention during dietary sodium loading, and 3) a transient, modest, renal potassium wastage during dietary potassium restriction. Renal clearance determinations under pentobarbital anesthesia showed elevated fractional excretions of sodium and potassium and osmolar clearance without changes in glomerular filtration rate or effective renal plasma flow in enalapril-treated compared with vehicle-treated rats. Thus, in addition to the impaired urinary concentrating ability, adult rats treated neonatally with enalapril demonstrated alterations in renal sodium and potassium handling, which may be related to the prevailing papillary atrophy.


The purpose of this report is to present information useful to grape growers and potential investors interested in constructing and operating wineries in North Carolina. The specific information relates to construction and operating costs and the profitability of processing grapes into wine in selected winery sizes. Data required to estimate costs and profitability were obtained from existing wineries, equipment manufacturers and published reports. Three basic winery operations were selected for detailed analysis. Output and product mix are varied for each of the three wineries. The three basic output levels of the three wineries are 20, 100 and 500 thousand gallons. Blending of bulk wines is used to generate three operating options. Actual costs of producing wines under assumed conditions ranged from $1.05 per fifth of pure scuppernong wine for the small winery to 88 cents per fifth for the medium and large wineries. Blending with bulk wines to double output lowered costs by 26 cents per fifth in the small winery but only 13 cents per fifth in the large winery. The medium winery operated at lower costs resulting from economies of size relative to the small winery and from tax advantages relative to the large winery. The out-of-state tax schedule was important in determining the costs and profitability of the three wineries. Internal rates of return were calculated at alternative wine prices. Rates of return above 10 percent (current cost of capital) were obtained for very selected operating conditions and the higher wine prices. It was not possible to determine if these wines could be marketed at the higher wine prices. Further analysis is needed in this area.


Using kernel density estimation we find that over the 1990s business
cycles in the United States and Great Britain the entire distribution
of after-tax (disposable) income moved to the right while inequality
declined. In contrast, Germany and Japan experienced less growth, a
rise in inequality, and a decline in the middle mass of their distributions,
that spread mostly to the right, much like in the United States
over its 1980s business cycle. Inequality fell within the older populations
of all four countries; inequality also fell within the younger populations
of the United States and Great Britain, but it rose substantially
in Germany and Japan.


CONTEXT
Research on health disparities in Appalachia has rarely compared Appalachia to other geographic areas in such a way as to isolate possible Appalachian effects.

PURPOSE
This study tests hypotheses that nonmetropolitan Appalachia will have higher levels of mental health professional shortage areas than other nonmetropolitan areas of the same states, but that these disparities will dissipate when accounting for social and economic differences.

METHODS
The study analyzed secondary data for nonmetropolitan counties (N = 618) in the 13 Appalachian states. Appalachian counties were identified from the Appalachian Regional Commission designations. Mental health professional shortages were identified from Health Resources and Services Administration data. Area Resource File data were used to measure county-level income, education, uninsurance, unemployment, race/ethnicity percentages, and urban influence codes. Logistic regression models tested whether Appalachia was significantly associated with shortage areas, and whether the Appalachian effect persisted after accounting for social and economic covariates.

FINDINGS
Seventy percent of Appalachian nonmetropolitan counties were mental health professional shortage areas, significantly higher than non-Appalachian, nonmetropolitan counties in the same states. The Appalachian effect did not persist after controlling for the full set of other variables; education and race/ethnicity emerged as significant predictors.

CONCLUSIONS
Appalachia location is associated with mental health professional shortages, but this effect is driven by underlying social differences, in particular by lower education. This method of identifying Appalachia for comparative purposes may be applied to many other health services research questions and to other defined geographic regions.


Endocrine therapy remains pivotal in the adjuvant therapy of premenopausal women with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. Ovarian ablation, used alone, is effective in delaying recurrence and increasing survival in such women. When added to chemotherapy, it is less clear that this technique is effective, perhaps because of the endocrine ablative effect of chemotherapy. Adjuvant trials comparing ovarian ablation with or without tamoxifen to CMF-type chemotherapy (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate, fluorouracil) suggest that the endocrine therapy is equivalent to or better than this chemotherapy in women whose tumors express estrogen and/or progesterone receptors. Endocrine therapy with ovarian ablation, tamoxifen, or the combination is also useful in the metastatic setting in premenopausal women.


Mass clinico-epidemiological screening of workers of senior ages (of 45 years of age and over) was carried out at one of the large industrial enterprises. As a result of the new data were obtained on the genuine prevalence and clinico-dynamic structure of neuropsychic disorders revealed in the test group of the capable population. The authors identified risk factors of the development of the indicated diseases, defined the characteristic features of social and work adaptation of the patients during work and their needs in different types of psychiatric assistance; elaborated the principles of the prophylaxis and early diagnosis of neuropsychic disorders in the senior age group of industrial workers as well as those of rehabilitation of such patients under the conditions where the treatment is brought nearer to the production site or carried out within the system of the general medical network rather than under the conditions of a dispensary. The programs of the primary and secondary prophylaxis tried and implemented at one of the large industrial enterprises of Tomsk on the basis of the Center for Mental Health Care made it possible to minimize temporary disability caused by neuropsychic disorders among the senior age workers, to raise the patients' output per man-hour and work quality, to decrease the number of patients' dismissals from the enterprise.


6-Hydroxydopamine (75 mkg), producing selective degeneration of dopaminergic neurons in the brain, was injected intraamniotically to every rat fetus on 13th or 17th day of mother pregnancy. The other experiment was performed, when 6-hydroxydopamine administered i.p. to newborn rats on 4th or 10th day of life. All rats were growing, and several dopamine-dependent behaviors were investigated in adult animals: open field, rotation behavior, anxiety in elevated plus maze, conditioned placed preference, differentiation of novel and known alleys of Y-maze, aggressive behavior in intruder-resident test, selfs-stimulation of lateral hypothalamus. Prenatal administration of 6-hydroxydopamine initiated rotations and stereotypy, decreased anxiety in elevated maze, reduced reinforcing properties of amphetamine in place preference test, disturbed differentiation of novel and known alley in Y-maze, high aggression and decreased self-stimulation in less degree that postnatal injection of neurotoxin. Therefore, the early postnatal period is more sensitive to neurotoxin action than prenatal period of development. This phenomenon is connected with critical periods of development of dopaminergic system in ontogeny.


First measurements of the azimuthal anisotropy of neutral pions produced in PbPb collisions at a center-of-mass energy of SNN = 2.76 TeV are presented. The amplitudes of the second Fourier component (ν2) of the π0 azimuthal distributions are extracted using an event-plane technique. The values of ν2 are studied as a function of the neutral pion transverse momentum (pT) for different classes of collision centrality in the kinematic range 1.6 < pT < 8.0 GeV/c within the pseudorapidity interval |η| < 0.8. The CMS measurements of ν2(pT) are similar to previously reported π0 azimuthal anisotropy results from SNN = 200 GeV AuAu collisions at RHIC, despite a factor of ∼14 increase in the center-of-mass energy. In the momentum range 2.5 < pT < 5.0 GeV/c, the neutral pion anisotropies are found to be smaller than those observed by CMS for inclusive charged particles.


A novel porous composite scaffold of nano-HA/poly (lactic-co-glycolic) (PLGA) was fabricated by solvent casting/particulate leaching method. Chondrocytes were isolated from the knee articular joints of a rabbit, and then seeded in the scaffolds. The cell-loaded scaffolds were cultured in vitro for 5 days before implantation. Full-thickness articular cartilage defects were created in rabbits, and filled with and without the cell-loaded nano-HA/PLGA scaffolds. The implants were harvested after in vivo incubation of 2 and 5 weeks. Cartilaginous tissues were observed at defects repaired with the cell-loaded scaffolds, while only fibrous tissues were found for the control groups. The repaired tissues were evaluated histologically by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Results revealed that nano-HA/PLGA composite scaffolds facilitated adheration of cells in vitro, and the nano-HA particles could prevented the scaffolds from collapsing and promoted the formation of cartilaginous tissue in vivo.


In 2013 former education secretary Michael Gove proposed changes to the history curriculum in England that sought to emphasise positive aspects of British history in an effort to fortify students' sense of national identity. His plans were met with widespread hostility and were subsequently rejected. Critics saw Gove's intended changes as a cynical attempt to use the teaching of history as a device for achieving political ends via the installation of paternalistic knowledge hierarchies consistent with neoliberal ideological imperatives. This article explores this claim and asks whether reflexivity can be used as a means of resisting political intrusions into spaces associated with the teaching and learning of history. After outlining the nuances of neoliberalism and reflexivity and the point at which these two phenomena intersect, this article will go on to argue for a greater degree of reflexivity in state sanctioned educational settings. With reference to the methodological approach of Michael J. Shapiro, this article concludes by offering practical suggestions as to how this aim can be achieved.


For the fourth time since World War II, national policymakers, in 1992, engaged in a major debate over reforming and regulating the U.S. health care system. One of the most debated issues involved the problem of the uninsured. While Congress and the President garnered national attention debating the issue, several states were already dealing with the issue of health insurance and their own uninsurance problems. Today, in the absence of activity at the federal level, the states have become the de facto leaders in health care reform. Since 1990, forty-six states have adopted small group insurance market reforms. Such reforms are designed to improve the availability of insurance coverage for employees of small firms, who make up the largest segment of the uninsured in the states. This article examines the factors that account for the sudden pop ularity of small group insurance market reforms, and the factors or char acteristics of the states that explain the extent of policies adopted. To examine these questions, a pooled cross-sectional time series model is employed. The results indicate the factors contributing to the adoption of small group health insurance market reforms are a state's regulatory envi ronment, a state's regulatory philosophy, state fiscal health, problem severity, and the activities of neighboring states. Implications of the find ings are also discussed.


Historically, the United States, Europe, and China have produced the most greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with the largest share (25%) coming from the electricity and heating sector. With declining growth rate projections and access to electricity services all near or at 100%, developed countries have increased their share of sustainable energy sources such as wind and solar power. Unlike the most developed nations, populations are expected to increase drastically throughout the developing world in the 21st century. Recent estimates indicate 97% of the world's population growth through 2030 (1.3 billion more people) will occur in the developing world. The countries of sub-Saharan Africa alone are projected to add over a billion people through 2050. Such population growth in developing countries will result in growing energy demand and thus growing emissions. The United Nations has underscored the importance of ushering in responsible and equitable energy pathways through their Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). With a set of goals emphasizing access to affordable and reliable power, access to modern energy services, and reducing poor air quality and GHG emissions, the SDGs aim to improve quality of life across key areas of concern. The aim of this dissertation is to identify and evaluate opportunities for avoiding continued increases in fossil fuel use in sub-Saharan Africa, which would in turn reduce and avoid emissions of greenhouse gases and criteria air pollution and reduce some associated costs.In Chapter 2 we analyze the energy, emissions, and consumer costs of power outages in sub-Saharan African countries. By modeling the fuel mix for the central electricity grid in each country and the diesel fuel needed to produce backup electricity during outages, we estimate the magnitude of these impacts in the region. We show that use of backup generators leads to higher fossil energy consumption (compared to the central grid) in all countries, even countries that already rely on fossil fuels for power generation at centralized plants. Furthermore, for all countries in the analysis, backup diesel generators result in increased mean emissions of at least three of the five pollutants analyzed, compared to the grid. Our analysis highlights the magnitude of potential avoided emissions and economic savings from increased grid reliability, and has implications for achieving Sustainable Development Goals. Increased reliability may not lead to decreases in generator ownership, but it is likely to lead to decreases in generator use, thus avoiding additional emissions and reducing costs for consumers.In Chapter 3 we assess the emissions, health, and economic outcomes of electrifying motorcycle taxis in Kigali, Rwanda. By modeling fleet demand using observed driving distributions, we are able to estimate travel of this unique subset of all motorcycles which form the basis for all estimates. Our analysis reveals that emissions of key pollutants already identified by government officials (NOx, CO, HCs) as well as the greenhouse gas CO2 and health risks from PM2.5 can be drastically reduced via motorcycle fleet electrification. While a reduction of primary and secondary PM2.5 exposure and thus deaths can be achieved with the electrification of motorcycles, such benefits are dependent on the marginal generating unit. Finally, the Levelized Costs of Driving analysis reveals that at least one of the electric motorcycle alternatives presented in this work is cost competitive over a five-year period, and cost competitiveness improves as vehicle life is extended.In Chapter 4 we extend the vehicle electrification analysis to assess the benefits and costs of bus electrification in Rwanda. We employ a Monte Carlo Analysis to assess how the emissions, health impacts, and non-infrastructure costs associated with diesel powered buses compare to those associated with their electric counterparts. We find that mean emissions of CO2, PM2.5, NOx, CO, and HC all decline significantly when travel provided by diesel buses is replaced with electric buses. However, we also observe increased emissions of SO2 with bus electrification due in part to the prevalence of heavy fuel oil and peat electricity generation. Despite this increased SO2, the health analysis reveals that electrification can result in less annual deaths from primary and secondary PM2.5 but not if peat is the marginal electricity generating unit. Our economic analysis shows that electric buses have greater present levelized costs but given a decrease in capital cost and longer lifetime, electric buses can reach parity with the diesel buses. The final analysis in this chapter compares the normalized emissions and costs of conventional motorcycles, electric motorcycles, conventional buses, and electric buses. We find that the electric buses offer the greatest emission reductions (per passenger-kilometer) while the diesel buses offer the cheapest levelized costs. This research highlights the important role public transit electrification could play in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals as countries commit to lower greenhouse gas and harmful air pollutant emissionsFinally, in Chapter 5 we discuss the important role developing countries will play in achieving global sustainability as their population, mobility, and electricity usage rise over the coming decades. We discuss the implications that reliable power and electrification efforts could have for the Sustainable Development Goals and urge developed nations to assist developing countries in implementing some of the technologies necessary for their completion. This thesis provides the framework for policy makers throughout SSA to assess the benefits and costs associated with modernizing their electricity systems.


The transition of visual-odometry technology from research demonstrators to commercial applications naturally raises the question: "what is the optimal camera for vision-based motion estimation?" This question is crucial as the choice of camera has a tremendous impact on the robustness and accuracy of the employed visual odometry algorithm. While many properties of a camera (e.g. resolution, frame-rate, global-shutter/rolling-shutter) could be considered, in this work we focus on evaluating the impact of the camera field-of-view (FoV) and optics (i.e., fisheye or catadioptric) on the quality of the motion estimate. Since the motion-estimation performance depends highly on the geometry of the scene and the motion of the camera, we analyze two common operational environments in mobile robotics: an urban environment and an indoor scene. To confirm the theoretical observations, we implement a state-of-the-art VO pipeline that works with large FoV fisheye and catadioptric cameras. We evaluate the proposed VO pipeline in both synthetic and real experiments. The experiments point out that it is advantageous to use a large FoV camera (e.g., fisheye or catadioptric) for indoor scenes and a smaller FoV for urban canyon environments.


In 2008, the National Library of Medicine (NLM) established the Disaster Information Management Research Center (DIMRC). Prior to 2008, NLM had a long history of involvement in providing health information for disaster management. Aware of this legacy and moved by the catastrophic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the NLM long range plan (Charting a Course for the 21st Century: NLM's Long Range Plan 2006–2016) called for creation of a center to show "a strong commitment to disaster remediation and to provide a platform for demonstrating how libraries and librarians can be part of the solution to this national problem". NLM was urged to "ensure continuous access to health information and effective use of libraries and librarians when disasters occur". In response to this charge, NLM has undertaken substantial efforts to ensure that medical libraries have plans for the continuity of their operations, librarians are trained to understand their roles in preparedness and response, online disaster health information resources are available for many audiences and in multiple formats, and research is conducted on tools to enhance the exchange of critical information during and following disasters. This paper documents the history, goals, initiatives, accomplishments and future plans of the Center.


: Despite a plethora of recommendations, protocols and dictums in the nursing literature, no research studies have defined the basic elements of preventive skin care for incontinent patients, and the prevalence of skin problems associated with incontinence is unknown. Yet the importance of skin care for incontinent elderly or immobilized patients has long been acknowledged. This literature review sought to determine current practices and principles for skin care of frail, elderly, dependent, incontinent patients. Protocols vary widely. And although there is mounting evidence that incontinence, particularly fecal incontinence, is a primary risk factor for pressure ulcer development, most preventive efforts focus on pressure relief, repositioning, and nutrition, rather than incontinence care. More clinical trials are needed in this area. The design and analysis of these trials should take into account the frequency and manner in which skin is cleansed, products used for skin care, risks and benefits of absorbent products and devices, the presence of infection, and patients' concomitant medical conditions and degree of immobility.


Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), the most common inherited cause of kidney failure, is caused by mutations in either PKD1 (85%) or PKD2 (15%). The PKD2 protein, polycystin-2 (PC2 or TRPP2), is a member of the transient receptor potential (TRP) superfamily and functions as a nonselective calcium channel. PC2 has been found to form oligomers in native tissues, suggesting that similar to other TRP channels, it may form functional homo- or heterotetramers with other TRP subunits. We have recently demonstrated that the homodimerization of PC2 is mediated by both N-terminal and C-terminal domains, and it is known that PC2 can heterodimerize with PC1, TRPC1, and TRPV4. In this paper, we report that a single cysteine residue, Cys632, mutated in a known PKD2 pedigree, constitutes the third dimerization domain for PC2. PC2 truncation mutants lacking both N and C termini could still dimerize under nonreducing conditions. Mutation of Cys632 alone abolished dimerization in these mutants, indicating that it was the critical residue mediating disulfide bond formation between PC2 monomers. Co-expression of C632A PC2 mutants with wild-type PC2 channels reduced ATP-sensitive endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release in HEK293 cells. The combination of C632A and mutations disrupting the C-terminal coiled-coil domain (Val846, Ile853, Ile860, Leu867 or 4M) nearly abolished dimer formation and ATP-dependent Ca2+ release. However, unlike the 4M PC2 mutant, a C632A mutant could still heterodimerize with polycystin-1 (PC1). Our results indicate that PC2 homodimerization is regulated by three distinct domains and that these events regulate formation of the tetrameric PC2 channel.


To alleviate the growing concern of energy waste in networked devices, we present PCube, a server-centric data center structure that conserves energy by varying bandwidth availability based on traffic demand. PCube not only supports a low-power mode for existing data centers offering full bisection bandwidth without hardware modification or re-wiring, but also provides an alternative for new data centers at a lower construction cost. The bandwidth demand could be dynamic and scalable in the optimal way when considering conserving the energy waste. To further reduce the cost, we take advantage of traffic locality, and propose Hybrid PCube, in order to offer different bandwidth to different servers. We use samples of traffic from a real-world production data center with full bisection bandwidth across thousands of servers, and evaluate our proposed algorithm using these collected samples. Our experimental results have shown convincing evidence that the proposed algorithm is able to substantially reduce energy costs incurred by networked devices in data centers.


In econometrics there is a long history of using continuous functions to force distributed lag coefficients to behave in an economically accepted way. For example, geometrically declining lags have often been used to model coefficients that we believe should be declining. Polynomial lags have been used to model lag coefficients expected to increase and then decrease. In this paper a more flexible way of imposing such prior information is investigated. Inequality constraints are used to impose knowledge about the relative magnitudes of coefficients without forcing them to lie on a smooth continuous curve. A Metropolis algorithm is used to get posterior density functions for the lag coefficients and functions of those coefficients for the Nerlove orange data and the Almon capital expenditures data.


New designing techniques are used recently during the design phases of buildings to adapt the environment and achieve human thermal comfort, one of these designing techniques is using energy simulation software's. However, architects need to understand the capabilities of these software's and its operation systems, when it comes to designing and modelling passive buildings. Moreover the validity of the design outcomes which is the main concern of this research. These energy simulation software's helps architects to estimate the building's energy efficiency in order to achieve human thermal comfort. This study will focus on studding and analyzing one of the well-known simulation software's used for building's energy simulations which is called "Design-Builder". The presented research will measure the accuracy of Design-Builder outcomes by comparing the accuracy of the thermal simulation in Design-Builder software to the results obtained from the experimental data. A Bookstore kiosk located in El-Sherouk city, Cairo, Egypt was chosen to be the study area of this research. The research will compare the simulation results of this Kiosk to the field's experimental measurements obtained from site visit. The results reveled that there is differences between the field measurements and the simulation ranged between 1 to 5°C. The study analyzed the causes of these differences and provided some proposals to improve Design-Builder software in order to provide more accurate data in simulating hot arid climates.


In digital archaeology, a large research area is concerned with the computer‐aided analysis of 3D captured ancient pottery objects. A key aspect thereby is the analysis of motifs and patterns that were painted on these objects' surfaces. In particular, the automatic identification and segmentation of repetitive patterns is an important task serving different applications such as documentation, analysis and retrieval. Such patterns typically contain distinctive geometric features and often appear in repetitive ornaments or friezes, thus exhibiting a significant amount of symmetry and structure. At the same time, they can occur at varying sizes, orientations and irregular placements, posing a particular challenge for the detection of similarities. A key prerequisite to develop and evaluate new detection approaches for such repetitive patterns is the availability of an expressive dataset of 3D models, defining ground truth sets of similar patterns occurring on their surfaces. Unfortunately, such a dataset has not been available so far for this particular problem. We present an annotated dataset of 82 different 3D models of painted ancient Peruvian vessels, exhibiting different levels of repetitiveness in their surface patterns. To serve the evaluation of detection techniques of similar patterns, our dataset was labeled by archaeologists who identified clearly definable pattern classes. Those given, we manually annotated their respective occurrences on the mesh surfaces. Along with the data, we introduce an evaluation benchmark that can rank different recognition techniques for repetitive patterns based on the mean average precision of correctly segmented 3D mesh faces. An evaluation of different incremental sampling‐based detection approaches, as well as a domain specific technique, demonstrates the applicability of our benchmark. With this benchmark we especially want to address the geometry processing community, and expect it will induce novel approaches for pattern analysis based on geometric reasoning like 2D shape and symmetry analysis. This can enable novel research approaches in the Digital Humanities and related fields, based on digitized 3D Cultural Heritage artifacts. Alongside the source code for our evaluation scripts we provide our annotation tools for the public to extend the benchmark and further increase its variety.


Objectives: To provide theoretical basis for the classification of medicinal moxibustion(藥灸劑) in Health Insurance Medical Benefit in Korea through investigating trend of judicial precedents on indirect moxibustion and usage of medicinal moxibustion in 󰡔Donguibogam󰡕. Methods: We analyzed statistical data of moxibustion from Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service and National Health Insurance Statistical Yearbook. We investigated major judicial precedents on indirect moxibustion to find out some trend and we searched the usages of medicinal moxibustion in 󰡔ZhenJiuDaCheng󰡕 and 󰡔Donguibogam󰡕. Results: According to recent judicial precedents, indirect moxibustion with equipment is no loner regarded as Korean Medical Procedure. In composition of 'Oriental Health Treatment', amount for acupuncture has gradually decreased instead, amount for moxibustion has increased steadily for 5 years. Medicinal moxibustion(藥灸劑) is often used as a form of indirect medicinal moxibustion with moxa in 󰡔Donguibogam󰡕. Argyi Folium, Moschus, Natrii Chloridium, Radix Preparata, Realgar and Olibanum are most frequently used for medicinal moxibustion in 󰡔Donguibogam󰡕. Medicinal moxibustions are composed of simple prescription or herb-pair or multiple prescription in 󰡔Donguibogam󰡕. Conclusions: In Health Insurance Medical Benefit in Korea, under the division of moxibustion, direct medicinal moxibustion and indirect medicinal moxibustion should be classified in addition.


Protein microarrays are powerful tools to quantify and characterize proteins in multiplex assays. They have great potential within clinical diagnostics and prognostics, as they minimize consumption of both analyte and biological sample. Assays that do not require labeling of the biological specimen, henceforth called label-free, are vital for ease of clinical sample processing. Here, we evaluate two label-free techniques, reverse-phase and sandwich antibody assays, using microarrays on high-performance porous silicon surfaces and fluorescence detection. In view of increasing interest in reverse microarrays, this paper focuses on analytical sensitivity of the reverse assays compared to the more complex but highly sensitive sandwich assay. Sensitivity, linear range, and reproducibility of the two assays were compared using prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in buffer. The sandwich assay displayed 5 orders of magnitude lower detection limit (0.7 ng/mL) compared to the reverse assay (70 microg/mL). PSA at 50 nM (1.5 microg/mL) in cell lysates was detected by the sandwich assay but not by the reverse assay, demonstrating again a far lower detection limit for sandwich microarrays. In independent assay runs of PSA spiked in female serum, the sandwich assay had good linearity (R2 > 0.99) and reproducibility (coefficient of variation < or =15%), and the detection limit could be improved to 0.14 ng/mL. Without further signal amplification, the sandwich assay would be our choice for PSA analysis of clinical samples using a microarray technology platform.


To the Editor. —In a previous issue of theArchives, Treece et al1reported the successful use of tetracycline hydrochloride for sclerosis of recurrent thyroid cysts with uniformly successful results.1One of us wrote an accompanying editorial.2Subsequently, it has been reported3that the first known use of an agent (tincture of iodine) to sclerose a thyroid cyst was in 1861.4 We have since used tetracycline for thyroid cyst sclerosis with salutary results in approximately 20 patients. However, on two occasions, we have each noted a patient who experienced extreme pain almost immediately in the area of injection that was relieved only by the administration of intravenous morphine sulfate or intramuscular meperidine hydrochloride. One patient had had several aspirations performed elsewhere with fluid reaccumulation. After she experienced the pain, she was examined almost immediately by ultrasound, which showed no residual cyst. Presumably, the tetracycline extravasated


The purpose of this study was to determine patient-reported outcomes of patients with mild to moderate developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) and femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) undergoing arthroscopy of the hip in the treatment of chondrolabral pathology. A total of 28 patients with a centre-edge angle between 15° and 19° were identified from an institutional database. Their mean age was 34 years (18 to 53), with 12 female and 16 male patients. All underwent labral treatment and concomitant correction of FAI. There were nine reoperations, with two patients requiring revision arthroscopy, two requiring periacetabular osteotomy and five needing total hip arthroplasty. Patients who required further major surgery were more likely to be older, male, and to have more severe DDH with a larger alpha angle and decreased joint space. At a mean follow-up of 42 months (24 to 89), the mean modified Harris hip score improved from 59 (20 to 98) to 82 (45 to 100; p < 0.001). The mean Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index score improved from 30 (1 to 61) to 16 (0 to 43; p < 0.001). Median patient satisfaction was 9.0/10 (1 to 10). Patients reported excellent improvement in function following arthroscopy of the hip. This study shows that with proper patient selection, arthroscopy of the hip can be successful in the young patient with mild to moderate DDH and FAI.


The genus capripoxvirus (CaPV), family Poxviridae, includes three virus species: goatpox virus (GPV), sheeppox virus (SPV) and lumpy skin disease virus (LSDV). CaPV causes disease outbreaks with consequent economic losses in Africa and the Middle East. LSDV has recently spread to Southeast Europe. As CaPVs share 96–97% genetic similarity along the length of the entire genome and are difficult to distinguish using serological assays, simple, reliable and fast methods for diagnosis and species differentiation are crucial in cases of disease outbreak. The present study aimed to develop a field-applicable CaPV differentiation method. Nanopore technology was used for whole genome sequencing. A local database of complete CaPV genomes and partial sequences of three genes (RPO30, P32 and GPCR) was established for offline Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (BLAST). Specificities of 98.04% in whole genome and 97.86% in RPO30 gene runs were obtained among the three virus species, while other databases were less specific. The total run time was shortened to approximately 2 h. Functionality of the developed procedure was proved by samples with high host background sequences. Reliable differentiation options for the quality and capacity of hardware, and sample quality of suspected cases, were derived from these findings. The whole workflow can be performed rapidly with a mobile suitcase laboratory and mini-computer, allowing application at the point-of-need with limited resource settings.


Up to date there is a narrow and broad interpretation of the term biological safety (BS) the world over. In the narrow sense it is defined as availability of international regulations applied to diagnostic, manufacturing, or experimental works with pathogenic biological agents (PBA) in accordance with specified levels of biological hazard and BS. In a broader context it has no national, conceptual, terminological or defying basis. Therewith, establishment of this framework has become the core issue of the study. Investigations have revealed that BS should conceptually cover the whole sphere of sanitary-and-epidemiological welfare as well as related fields such as veterinary-sanitary, phytosanitary provision, ecological safety, environmental conditions (occupational, socio-economic and geopolitical infrastructures, ecological system), and be exercised to prevent and control emergency situations (ES) of biological character. It is demonstrated that this type of ES differs from ES in the sphere of public health care of international concern which is formalized in IHR (2005), in the way that it is characterized by high socio-economic and geopolitical significance of the negative influence on human vital activities, comparable with national and international security hazard. Elaborated is the conceptual, terminological and defying toolkit of the BS broad interpretation (27 terms).


Blue green algae (BGA) are prokaryotic phototrophic organisms that can fix the atmospheric nitrogen biologically, and were directly applied as a biofertilizers in agricultural fields specifically Paddy field. Since they are having the ability to fix nitrogen, they are formulated with various adsorbents for the purpose of enhancing the crop growth along with maintaining the soil fertility and other soil factors responsible for productivity. The present study revealed that the formulations of blue green algae isolated from paddy fields of southern districts with different adsorbents like alluvial soil, sand, charcoal, and powdered paddy straw. All the adsorbents mixed with blue green algae showed significant growth when compared to the control plant. This determined that the adsorbent formulated mixed blue green algae enhanced the paddy plant growth under greenhouse condition.


Aims and objectives To study leadership factors and their associations with psychosocial work environmental among nursing assistants who are engaged in old age care and to analyse (i) differences in the assessment of leadership factors and the assessment of psychosocial work environmental in nursing homes and home help services and (ii) the association between the psychosocial work environment and factors that are related to leadership in nursing homes and home help services. Background Leadership factors are an important element of the psychosocial work environment in old age care. The physical distance between leaders and nursing assistants is larger in home help services than in nursing homes. Therefore, it is important to study leadership separately in nursing homes and home help services. Design Assessments from 844 nursing assistants in nursing homes and 288 in home help services (45 nursing homes and 21 home help service units) were analysed. Methods The data were analysed using linear regression. Age, gender, number of staff at the unit, number of years at the current working unit and educational level were controlled in Model 1. Summarised indexes that were based on all independent variables except the main independent variable were additionally controlled in Model 2. Results Psychosocial work environment was related to leadership factors, but stronger associations occurred more frequently in nursing homes than in home help services. Empowering leadership, support from superiors, the primacy of human resources and control over decisions were associated with higher assessments on all the variables that were related to the psychosocial work environment in both the nursing homes and home help services. Conclusions Organisational differences in conducting leadership in old age care must be considered. Some leadership characteristics are better prerequisites for creating and maintaining a positive psychosocial work environment for nursing assistants in nursing homes and home help services. Implications for practice Due to the differences in organisational settings, it is important to consider the differences in prerequisites in conducting leadership. To influence nursing assistants' performance and to increase quality in old age care in the long term, appropriate leadership is necessary.


In this study, the surfaces of the multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs) were treated by acrylic acid. The acid-treated MWNTs were functionalized and were characterized by Infrared spectroscopy. The MWNTs were opened at their ends by ultrasonic treating and UV irradiating. Different adding amounts of the opened MWNTs were filled to the epoxy resin, and their mechanical properties and thermal properties were measured by Instron, impact and differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), etc. The optimum adding amount of MWNTs to the epoxy resin is 2.0%, which is according to the parameters obtained from mechanical testing and Tg. The activation energy of the epoxy resin during curing can be calculated from infrared spectra according to the change of the epoxide band. The electrical conductivity of the MWNTs-filled composites was increased with proper (12.87%) amount of MWNTs adding, this is due to the networks constructed between MWNTs completely.


Wavelet transforms (WTs) have been widely used in still image compression, while MPEG-1 is a widely used video compression standard. In this paper, we investigate the effect of combining both techniques to produce a video stream with higher compression than MPEG-1 and with comparable picture quality. The proposed system maintains the MPEG-1 system without any internal modifications. The addition of the WT to MPEG-1 achieved a compression ratio improvement factor up to 1.5.


Introduction Low back pain (LBP) is the leading cause of disability globally. Occupational risk factors associated with LBP include heavy, repetitive lifting, and awkward and flexed postures. Studies suggest younger people may be at an increased risk of LBP compared to older individuals. Postural feedback as an early intervention may provide a viable preventative approach for reducing the risk of LBP in the workplace. Methods Thirty-four healthy, young participants were randomly allocated biofeedback (BF) or no biofeedback (NBF). Participants lifted a box weighing 13 kg at a frequency of 10 lifts per minute for up to 20 min. Real-time biofeedback on lumbar posture was provided using two wireless inertial sensors attached to the lumbar spine and sacrum. The BF group received an audible cue when lumbar flexion exceeded 80% maximum flexion. Three-dimensional motion analysis and ground reaction forces were used to estimate moments at the base of the spine and on the passive structures of the lumbar spine. Participants rated perceived exertion throughout the task using Borg's scale. Results Both the BF and NBF groups increased lumbar flexion over the duration of the lifting task, although the rate of change (slope) of peak lumbar flexion with BF was significantly less compared to NBF (p=0.009). Normalised bending moments resisted by passive structures of the spine were higher in the NBF group (0.7 Nm/kg) compared to the BF group (0.12 Nm/kg) at 20 min. The BF group demonstrated lower levels of perceived exertion. Discussion Real-time biofeedback provides a viable approach to increase spinal postural awareness during repetitive lifting tasks, helping to reduce loads on the passive structures of the lumbar spine. A simple wireless inertial system for monitoring posture has potential for use in the work environment, and further evaluations should be undertaken to determine the long-term effectiveness of this approach.


Recently, the demand for mental health services using information and communication technology (ICT) such as mobile communication and social network service (SNS) is increasing. Mobile health (m-Health) and health big data are expected to play a major role in driving the future healthcare paradigm. In particular, the value of applications utilizing smart devices including smartphone and wearable devices is increasing day by day. Mobile applications that can be applied to the patient to restore disease in the neuropsychiatric area can be easily provided, and clinicians can also use the clinic in patient diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment. In practical use, it is still a step in the process, so it is necessary to check the stability of the system that operates the data and prevent infringement and leakage of personal information that may occur later. In addition, it is necessary to establish the effectiveness and credibility based on the basis of practical use of mobile health (m-Health) and health big data. With technological advances being made day by day, mental health care workers should be aware of this trend and have an active interest.


Our previous work demonstrated a simultaneous induction of Hsp70 and nucleolin mRNA during the prereplicative stage of hepatocytes after partial hepatectomy [Ohmori, H. et al. (1990) Exp. Cell Res. 189, 227-232]. In the present study, changes of intracellular localization of these proteins were examined. Nucleolin, which mainly localized in the nucleus, increased with time and accumulated in the nucleolus around 12-18 h after partial hepatectomy. Hsp70 protein also increased slightly around 6-12 h after the operation. In accordance with this increase, immunohistochemical staining revealed that almost all nuclei of hepatocytes became Hsp70-positive, although Hsp70 was seen to be dispersed throughout the nucleoplasm and nucleolus at all times examined. Next, we isolated a cDNA clone of ribosomal protein (S-17) and examined its behavior. Induction of S-17 mRNA was observed to be essentially similar to that of nucleolin mRNA in regenerating rat liver, although inductions of histone H2A and H4 occurred at a later time, that is, in parallel with DNA synthesis. Furthermore, we observed a simultaneous induction of Hsp70 and nucleolin mRNA by serum-stimulation after serum-depletion in HeLa and IAR-20 (rat) culture cells. These results suggest that the induction of Hsp70, in addition to nucleolin, was not fortuitous but may be involved in the early events of liver regeneration.


To complete the requirements of a one-course project of the Masters of Education degree at the University of Lethbridge, I have chosen to design and build a website for the recently implemented Applied Math 30 program. The major objective of the Applied Math 30 website is to be a supplemental resource for students to utilize while they are part of a formal classroom setting. This website has not been designed as a replacement tool for students who wish to take this course via distance learning. A second objective is to develop a framework in which others may utilise and build upon for both this Applied Math 30 course, as well as other math programs throughout the province of Alberta. The website as it currently stands will be given to Alberta Learning so that it may be distributed to teachers and other educators to build upon or to use with their students.


This report presents a psychoacoustically derived computational model of the perceived distance between any two major or minor triads, the degree of activity created by any given pair of triads, and the cadential effectiveness of three-triad progressions. It also provides statistical analyses of the ratings given by thirty-five participants for the "similarity" and "fit" of triads in a pair, and the "cadential effectiveness" of three-triad progressions. Multiple regressions show that the model provides highly significant predictions of the experimentally obtained ratings. Finally, it is argued that because the model is based upon psychoacoustic axioms, it is likely the regression equations represent true causal models. As such, the computational model and its associated theory question the plausibility of theoretical approaches to tonality that use only long-term memory and statistical features, as well as those approaches based upon symmetrical geometrical structures like the torus. It is hoped that the psychoacoustic approach proposed here may herald not only the return of psychoacoustic approaches to tonal music theory, but also the exploration of the tonal possibilities offered by non-standard tunings and non-harmonic timbres.


Cyber-physical systems (CPS) greatly benefit by using machine learning components that can handle the uncertainty and variability of the real-world. Typical components such as deep neural networks, however, introduce new types of hazards that may impact system safety. The system behavior depends on data that are available only during runtime and may be different than the data used for training. Out-of-distribution data may lead to a large error and compromise safety. The paper considers the problem of efficiently detecting out-of-distribution data in CPS control systems. Detection must be robust and limit the number of false alarms while being computational efficient for real-time monitoring. The proposed approach leverages inductive conformal prediction and anomaly detection for developing a method that has a well-calibrated false alarm rate. We use variational autoencoders and deep support vector data description to learn models that can be used efficiently compute the nonconformity of new inputs relative to the training set and enable realtime detection of out-of-distribution high-dimensional inputs. We demonstrate the method using an advanced emergency braking system and a self-driving end-to-end controller implemented in an open source simulator for self-driving cars. The simulation results show very small number of false positives and detection delay while the execution time is comparable to the execution time of the original machine learning components.


Despite the promise of research conducted at the intersection of computer-assisted language learning (CALL), natural language processing, and second language acquisition, few studies have explored the potential benefits of using intelligent CALL systems to deepen our understanding of the process and products of second language (L2) learning. The strategic use of technology offers researchers novel methodological opportunities to examine how incremental changes in L2 development occur during treatment as well as how the longitudinal impacts of experimental interventions on L2 learning outcomes occur on a case-by-case basis. Drawing on the pilot results from a project examining the effects of automatic input enhancement on L2 learners' development, this article explores how the use of technology offers additional methodological and analytical choices for the investigation of the process and outcomes of L2 development, illustrating the opportunities to study what learners do during visually enhanced instructional activities.


of the document. Abstract: For the emergence of life, the abiotic synthesis of RNA from its monomers is a central step. We found alkaline, uncatalysed drying conditions in bulk and at heated air-water interfaces where 2´,3´-cyclic nucleotides polymerised, forming up to 10-mers within a day. The polymerisation proceeded at a pH range of 7-12 at temperatures between 40-80 °C and was marginally enhanced by K + ions. Among the canonical ribonucleotides, cGMP polymerised most efficiently. Quantification was performed using HPLC coupled to ESI-TOF by fitting the isotope distribution to the mass spectra. Our study suggests a polymerisation mechanism where cGMP aids the incorporation of the relatively unreactive nucleotides C, A and U. The 2´,3´-cyclic nucleotides are byproducts of prebiotic phosphorylation, nucleotide syntheses and RNA hydrolysis, indicating direct recycling pathways. The simple reaction condition offers a plausible entry point for RNA to the evolution of life on early Earth.


Due to the shift in consumer behaviour, the proportion of well informed, conscious consumers has been growing steadily, and functional foods with their capacity to protect health have been gaining more and more ground. To achieve market success in the field of functional foods, producers should be able to communicate information effectively concerning health issues and their newly developed product should indeed meet consumer expectations. The aim of our study was to identify and define the components of the dimensions of consumer attitudes in Hungary together with the barriers and motivators of health behaviour. Our research also examined how these factors influence consumer willingness to consume functional foods. Our surveys were carried out in focus groups of health-conscious (n=8) and not health-conscious (n=8) consumers. Our findings confirmed the adequacy of the international dual model, regarding the attitudes of Hungarian consumers towards functional food. Moreover, we also explored the most popular health food categories and sources of information on nutrition.


39 Background Therapy for acute stroke using rtPA was approved in Canada in February 1999. The Canadian Activase for Stroke Effectiveness Study Group was formed to study the use of rtPA in Canada in a 30-month post-marketing study. Purpose To both prospectively assess the safety of rtPA in the Canadian context and to examine whether the efficacy of rtPA for acute stroke, demonstrated in the NINDS trial, can be translated into effectiveness in routine clinical practice across Canada. Methods The CASES group is a collaboration among the Canadian Stroke Consortium (CSC), the Canadian Stroke Society, the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada, Hoffman-LaRoche Canada and physicians across the country. Centres across the country were registered and recruitment is ongoing. The study protocol has been approved by the research ethics board at each centre. Demographics, stroke risk factors, blood pressure, biochemistry, hematology, and CT scans are being collected. NIHSS and mRS scores are being collected prospectively. Outcomes will be monitored at discharge and at 3 months. Results In the first 20 months,72 centres are registered and 525 patients have been treated. The median NIHSS score is 14 (range 2–35). 30% of patients have minimal or no neurological deficit (NIHSS 0–1)and 47% are independent (mRS 0–2) at 90 days. The symptomatic hemorrhage rate is 4.0% (95%CI 2.5% to 6.0%). Multivariate analysis has failed to identify predictors of symptomatic ICH. The rate of protocol violations is 10%, the majority of which are time window violations. Based upon a phone survey of hospitals in Canada with CT scanners, the data set is 75% complete. Conclusions CASES is an ongoing prospective evaluation of the effectiveness of rtPA in acute stroke. The symptomatic hemorrhage rate is low (4.0%). Alteplase for ischemic stroke is safe and effective in Canada.


Human papovaviruses of the polyoma-SV40 subgroup are common infectious agents. The clinical picture of the primary infection of these viruses is unknown, but one of the viruses, the JC virus, is associated with and probably causes progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy. These viruses cause tumours and transform cells of several species of laboratory animals. Current results seem to rule them out as a major aetiollogical factor in human cancer. However, their relationship to human tumours requires further study, especially in immunologically compromised patients showing activation of a latent infection.


Abstract During 2015 and 2016, in the Kampinos National Park (KNP), monitoring was conducted for the population of black alder (Alnus glutinosa (L.) Gaertn.), which occupies 12.5% of the tree stands in the park and, after the Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), is the second most important species there. The aim of the observation was to obtain data about the current condition of alder in the National Park. Monitoring was carried out on eight plots designated throughout the park. Stands where alder was not the dominant species were omitted. On each plot, 20 trees were evaluated with a total of 160 plants assessed. The age of the tree stands analysed was 55–120 years. Monitoring was conducted by assessing the tree's crowns, based on the methodology of forest monitoring implemented by the National Environmental Monitoring. Based on the analyses, it was found that the average defoliation of alder in 2015 reached 28.1%, and 34.4% in 2016, with the differences being statistically significant. Among 70% of the specimens, there was no discoloration of the assimilation apparatus. There were significant differences in defoliation between research plots located inside the park and near its borders, which can be associated with the influence of anthropogenic factors. Based on the monitoring, it was found that the state of alder crowns in KNP is a warning or average, depending on the year of observation. Therefore, it is necessary to continue monitoring the state of alder crowns in KNP. On the basis of the study results, it was also found that the biosocial structure of the researched tree stands is formed correctly. The dendrometric measurements conducted show that the average diameter of the trees analysed, at breast height was 30.5 cm with an average height of 25.5 m. To analyse the changes in height and breast height, dendrometric measurements must be repeated in 2020. Monitoring will be continued in the following years to observe the changes.


Raw milk is often described as a major source of lactic acid bacteria for indigenous lactic starter. These indigenous starters contribute to the sensorial quality of cheese. Raw milk, rich in Lactoccocus lactis may therefore be very interesting for the cheese making. Currently, the most commonly used methods to differentiate lactic acid bacteria, and particularly the closely related phenotypes Lactococcus and Enterococcus, are based on DNA sequencing, but the cost and time required for these analytical methods hinder their use for rapid screening of raw material. The present study therefore proposes a simple alternative method to identify and discriminate against Lactococcus and Enterococcus, at the genus, but also at the species level, that is based on collecting near infrared spectra directly from bacterial colonies in Petri dishes. The infrared spectra of 280 strains of Lactococcus and Enterococcus cultured on solid media were collected by using a spectrometer with a wavelength range of 908 to 1684 nm and a remote probe. The best Classification And Regression Trees models for genus and species discrimination gave an excellent classification rate of 87% on an external validation set (30 strains). Loading line plots, with prominent bands at 900–960 and 1270–1390 nm, confirmed that the source of variation was due to changes in the polysaccharides.


If k is the mechanical restoring force per unit displacement of the fiber, the actual restoring force per unit displacement may readily be shown to be k − CX2, where C is the capacity of the fiber and X the field between the plates. The deflecting force due to a change of potential δV in the fiber is CXδV,so that the sensitivity S is S = CX/(k − CX2). If k is less than CX2 the instrument is unstable, and the fiber flies to either one plate or the other. The sensitivity becomes very large if k − CX2 is small; and in obtaining high sensitivity from the instrument, this condition is usually satisfied, even though the fact may not be realized. It is a bad condition since it results in large variations in S for small variations in either k or X. If we desire to restrict ourselves to the case k − CX2 = k/2, so that we draw upon the term CX2 to the extent of no more than doubling the sensitivity which we should obtain in its absence, S reduces to the very simple expression S = 1/X which, under a magnification of 100, gives a deflection of 1000 mm per volt for a field of one volt per cm between the plates. High sensitivity consistent with great constancy necessitates a small field between the plates and correspondingly small value of k. An instrument meeting the required conditions is described. As an illustration of the performance of the electroscope one experiment gave, with a magnification of 600, and a potential difference of 6 volts between plates, a sensitivity of 3500 eyepiece divisions per volt and a period so short that the fiber assumed a steady reading in less than 3/4 second after application of the potential. Moreover, the linearity of the calibration curve over the whole range of the eyepiece scale was so perfect that departures from linearity could not be observed within the limits of accuracy of the readings.


This paper proposes a tele-instruction system for ultrasound probe operation, based on shared Augmented Reality (AR) technology. Telemedicine, a strategy to diminish geographic gaps in the quality of medical service, is fashionable. However, existing medical-data transmission systems cannot convey the skills of physicians, so they cannot eliminate the problem of geographic gaps. This research developed a telemedicine system that transports physicians' skills over a shared AR space. The shared AR technology provides an environment where users can exchange spatial information, and facilitates smooth communication. This research concentrates on interfaces for physicians and technicians at the patient site. The proposed system provides intuitive and unrestricted interfaces for the physician and technician, using a data projector and an LCD tablet. At the patient site, instructions for the technician are projected directly onto the patient's body, using a data projector. The physician site allows the physician to send instructions on probe operation using an LCD tablet. This information is displayed as a "web-mark", which provides spatial information for ultrasound probe operation. Furthermore, the system sends environmental information about the patient to the physician, such as the technician's behavior and patient's posture, via an immersive display. The proposed system was tested with a physician using real tele-diagnosis. The results demonstrated the effectiveness of the proposed method in providing smooth communication in telemedicine.


This article discusses problems of clinical value of one of the most widespread gastroenterological forms of candidal digestive apparatus lesions--candidal dysbiosis of the bowels representing an interdisciplinary problem in its essence being at the turn of gastroenterology and clinical mycology. The article also shows the clinical and pathogenetic need in combined studies of helicobacteriosis of the stomach and candidosis of the bowels. It substantiates the approaches to the rational anti-mycotic therapy in the complex program of treatment for this category of patients.


This work provided a new way to look at photoelectrochemical cells and their performance. Although thought of as low efficiency, a the internal efficiency of a 9% global efficiency dye sensitized solar cell is approximately equal to an 18% efficient silicon cell when each is compared to their useful spectral range. Other work undertaken with this contract also reported the first growth oriented titania and perovskite columns on a transparent conducting oxide. Other work has shown than significant performance enhancement in the performance of dye sensitized solar cells can be obtained through the use of coupling inverse opal photonic crystals to the nanocrystalline dye sensitized solar cell. Lastly, a quick efficient method was developed to bond titanium foils to transparent conducting oxide substrates for anodization.


The degree and direction of sexual dimorphism across different species is commonly attributed to differences in the selection pressures acting on males and females. The extent of these differences is especially apparent in species that practise sexual cannibalism, where the female attempts to capture and eat a courting male. Here, we investigate the relationship between sexual dimorphism in size and leg length, sexual cannibalism and courtship behaviour in three taxonomic groups of orb-weaving spiders, using morphological data from 249 species in 36 genera. Females are larger than males in all three taxonomic groups, and males have relatively longer legs than females in both the Araneinae and Tetragnathidae. Across genera within each taxonomic group, male body size is positively correlated with both female body size and male leg length, and female body size is positively correlated with female leg length. Sexual size dimorphism is negatively correlated with relative male leg length within the Araneinae, but not within either the Tetragnathidae or the Gasteracanthinae. There was no negative correlation between sexual size dimorphism and relative female leg length in any taxonomic group. We argue that the relationship between sexual size dimorphism and relative male leg length within the Araneinae may be the result of selection imposed by sexual cannibalism by females.


The cellular response to hypotonic stimulation was studied with videometric methods in 266 proximal renal tubules dissected from Carassius auratus (goldfish). In hypotonic solutions (low NaCl), cells underwent rapid swelling followed by gradual shrinking toward isotonic volume (volume-regulatory decrease phase, VRD). Hypothermia (8 degrees C), increased extracellular potassium (15, 25, and 40 mM), quinine (0.1 mM), barium (0.5 mM), 4,4'-diisothio-cyanostilbene-2,2'-disulfonic acid (DIDS; 0.02 mM), acetazolamide (0.1 mM), decrements in extracellular bicarbonate, and increases in extracellular chloride impaired VRD. Ouabain (1.0 mM), furosemide (0.1 mM), and the chloride channel blocker 5-nitro-2-(3-phenylpropylalanine) benzoate (NPPB; 0.001 mM) had no effect. While VRD occurred in the absence of extracellular calcium influx, addition of the calcium ionophore A23187 (0.01 mM) in the presence of ethylene glycol-bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid (EGTA; 2.0 mM) impaired this process both in acidic and alkaline media. Trifluoroperazine (0.01 mM) reversibly inhibited VRD. The effect of this calmodulin inhibitor could not be overridden with the cationic ionophore gramicidin (0.5 microM). The data suggest that Carassius proximal renal tubular cells volume regulate in hypotonic solutions by the loss of KCl and osmotically obligated water. We postulate that the main efflux of potassium is through a calcium-gated potassium channel with its counter ion extruded through a calmodulin-regulated Cl(-)-HCO3- exchanger.


Physiologic autoantibodies, that is, those with an active physiologic role, are an important part of the normal human immune system and are essential in maintaining homeostasis. Evidence suggests that the body uses autoantibodies to prevent disease and to self-treat diseases once started. This suggests a potential therapeutic role for autoantibodies, or, even better, a way to use them to prevent disease. Their capacity to remove aged, damaged cells is well established. Immunoglobulin (Ig) G autoantibodies bind to senescent cell antigen (SCA), which is an altered band 3 anion exchanger protein found mainly on aged cells. Once bound, IgG triggers the removal of the senescent cells by macrophages. Band 3 is altered primarily by oxidation, which in turn generates SCA. These studies demonstrated that oxidation can generate neoantigens that the immune system will recognize. Band 3 isoforms are ubiquitous: they have been found in all mammalian cells and species so far examined. The innate immune response to band 3 membrane proteins, and their regulation of cellular lifespan and therapeutic potential will be presented. Examples of other potential innate and physiologic autoantibodies include neuroprotective antibodies to amyloidgenic toxic peptides and antibodies to oxidized LDL (OxLDL), which modify the natural progression of atherosclerosis.


Introduction: To evaluate the adverse drug reactions (ADRs) due to cancer chemotherapy in a tertiary care hospital in South India. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study. The data was obtained from patients who developed, at least, one ADR due to cancer chemotherapy during the period June 2014 to May 2015. The causality of the ADRs were evaluated by WHO-UMC causality assessment system and Naranjo's ADR probability scale, the severity of ADRs were assessed by Hartwig and Siegel ADR severity assessment scale, and preventability of ADRs were determined by the Schumock and Thornton ADR preventability assessment scale. Results: One hundred fourteen ADRs due to cancer chemotherapy were reported in 73 patients. Hyponatremia (20.2%), neutropenia (11.4%), infections of the lung (11.4%), leucopenia (9.6%) were the commonly suspected ADRs. Cisplatin (62.3%), carboplatin (18.4%), cetuximab (3.5%), gefitinib (2.6%) were the commonly suspected medications. As per the WHO-UMC causality assessment system 66(57.8%) ADRs were possible and 48(42.1%) were probable. Naranjo's ADR probability scale showed that 74(64.9%) ADRs were possible and 40 (35.1%) were probable. There was a very good agreement between the two scales (kappa=0.853). All ADRs were classified as level 4 severity barring one. None of the ADRs reported were preventable. Conclusion: Since 80% of the ADRs were suspected to be due to platinum containing anticancer drugs this provides a focus for further research on devising methods for prevention or early detection of ADRs. Prompt detection of ADRs is important to decrease morbidity and mortality. Key words: Adverse Drug Reaction, Cancer Chemotherapy, Causality assessment, Pharmacovigilance.


This systematic review will focus on the effects that yoga can have on the degree of depression. Depression is a common problem with serious consequences. It is therefore important to pay attention to this problem and continue to search for possible (preventive) treatments, besides the existing (preventive) treatments. People with a depression often have physical symptoms and dysfunctional thoughts. Yoga is in line with this, through exercises that develop and stimulate awareness of body and mind. The central question in this systematic review, is to what extent can yoga reduce the degree of depression. Studies were selected if they were primary studies, when there was a yoga intervention, when there was a psychological outcome measure, when the applied measurement instruments supported the psychological outcome measure, when the study was a randomized controlled trial and when a full text is present. Eventually 28 studies were included. Results can only be interpreted with great caution. They suggest that yoga can reduce the degree of a depression. Yoga can be applied preventively and possibly in addition to standard therapy. There are no results published in which yoga worsened the degree of a depression. To determine with more reliability whether yoga reduces the degree of depression there is more and specific research required, in which yoga and depression will primarily be studied and in which the results will be statistically analyzed.


Background and Hypothesis
     CF pulmonary exacerbations (PEx) are episodes of decline in respiratory function that can be triggered by a variety of mechanisms, including respiratory viral infections.  The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in school closures and home isolation policies and a potential reduction in exposure to other respiratory viruses.  The goal of this project is to study the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on CF PEx at the Riley Hospital for Children. We hypothesize that the incidence of PEx will be lower during the period of the COVID-19 lockdown from March 1 to May 15 in 2020 compared to the same time interval in 2019.

Methods
We performed a retrospective chart review of children with CF ages 2-12 (N=80) seen at Riley in 2019 and 2020 and collected data within the following timeframes: January 1 to March 15 2019 and 2020, and March 16 to May 15 2019 and 2020.  We collected data on baseline clinical features and details of each PEx event.  Data were analyzed with parametric and non-parametric descriptive statistic tests as appropriate; significance was set at P≤0.05.

Results
     The percent of PEx events in the study cohort was significantly lower in 2020 compared to 2019 for January 1 to March 15 (56% vs 42%, P=0.0116) and March 16 to May 15 (35% vs 14%, P<0.0001).  The percent of in-person PEx events was significantly lower during March 16 to May 15 in 2020 compared to 2019 (15% vs 1%, P=0.0066)

Conclusions and Potential Impact
     COVID-19 restrictions were associated with a decrease PEx events.  We speculate that this reflects a reduced exposure to respiratory viral infections in general. The decrease in in-person PEx events may reflect a shift towards telehealth during the COVID-19 restrictions.  These results provide a foundation for further research into triggers and prevention of CF PEx.


Schools in California have become increasingly diverse and the demographic composition of school populations has become heterogeneous in the language, nationality, and ethnicity of students. Using ethnographic and interactional analysis, the present article examines how California youth employ a variety of concepts associated with ethnicity to classify themselves and others. For youth who have peers from multiple national, ethnic, and linguistic backgrounds, the criteria of citizenship, national origin, language, and phenotype are negotiated interactionally for ethnic labeling. The article further suggests that ethnicity is not a simple category, but rather a concept that youth in a multiethnic context actively construct and co-construct with the help of associated notions. Finally, it is demonstrated that ethnic labeling in interviews may be a dispreferred practice for some interviewees due to its potential connection with racism and discrimination.


The isotopic composition and concentration of uranium and strontium in groundwater, combined with solute concentration data, provide important details regarding groundwater geochemical evolution and flow-pathways in the eastern Snake River Plain aquifer. The study was conducted in the vicinity of the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), Idaho, which has a long history of storing and disposing of radioactive waste, some of which has entered the aquifer. Uranium concentrations in INEEL groundwater range from 0.3 to 3.6 ppb, and 234 U/ 238 U atomic ratios range between 0.000085 and 0.000168 (activity ratios of 1.5 to 3.1). All of the samples have natural 235 U/ 238 U ratios, and 236 U was not detected; thus, the trends delineated by the 234 U/ 238 U ratios reflect natural variations in the aquifer. Groundwater nearest the valleys that provides focused recharge to the Snake River Plain aquifer from the northwest has high 234 U/ 238 U ratios when compared to values of regional groundwater flowing southwestward in the aquifer. Mixing of these water masses can account for the intermediate uranium isotope ratios of some of the samples; however, water-rock interaction must also be invoked to account for the observed trends in isotopic data. Uranium and 87 Sr/ 86 Sr isotope ratios are positively correlated and define a trend toward isotope ratios of the aquifer host rock. These relations indicate that dissolution and/or ion exchange are more important than alpha recoil or selective leaching in controlling 234 U/ 238 U ratios. As a result, 234 U/ 238 U ratios decrease along flow pathways toward the secular equilibrium values of the aquifer host rock. Uranium and strontium isotopic modification can be explained by incongruent dissolution of the host basalt. Lateral distributions of 234 U/ 238 U ratios indicate elongate zones of high 234 U/ 238 U ratios extending southward from the mouths of Birch Creek and the Little Lost River. These elongate zones are interpreted as preferential flow paths. Two isolated pockets of groundwater located in the central and western parts of the study area have lower 234 U/ 238 U ratios than the adjacent aquifer water. Both of these zones are interpreted to contain stagnant waters that are relatively isolated from flow in the regional aquifer due to lower permeability. Physical and chemical evidence strongly suggests that the stagnant zones are dominated by water from the Big Lost River that infiltrated via flood control ponds (spreading areas), playas, and the riverbed.


We use search engine results to address a particularly difficult cross-domain language processing task, the adaptation of named entity recognition (NER) from news text to web queries. The key novelty of the method is that we submit a token with context to a search engine and use similar contexts in the search results as additional information for correctly classifying the token. We achieve strong gains in NER performance on news, in-domain and out-of-domain, and on web queries.


Sponsors increasingly shift from large professional to community-based properties, as these can deliver an engaged audience and enable sponsors to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility (CSR). This research comprises two studies and shows that community-based sponsorship may improve CSR image and, in turn, self-congruity, a key determinant of consumer behavior. Study one investigates perceived sponsor-club fit, confirming attitude and corporate positioning similarity as relevant predictors. Importantly, CSR image similarity does not impact fit, suggesting sponsorship opportunities for organizations independent of their initial CSR image. Study two shows perceived sponsor CSR image to mediate the relationship between the perceptions of a community-based property's CSR image and consumers' self-congruity with the sponsor. While perceived sponsor-club fit and sponsorship awareness moderate the relationship between property and sponsor CSR image, attitudes toward CSR moderate the association between sponsor CSR and self-congruity. The paper concludes with implications and future research directions.


This guide is intended for students taking this class. The information provided will help you navigate the library and many resources for your projects.


In India, about 76% of electrical energy is generated using coal as fuel in thermal power plants.Presently in India,170 millions of tones of fly is being produced by the of thermal power plants, out of which a vast majority is fly ash having low lime content. Fly ash is a solid waste generated by thermal power plants where coal is used as fuel. As the need of power is increasing with a very fast rate for development purpose, the production of fly ash is increasing rapidly while generating electrical energy by thermal power plant. Disposal of this enormous amount of fly ash faces problem of huge land requirement, transportation, and ash pond construction and maintenance, which can be reduced by utilizing fly ash as a construction material for civil engineering structures. For increasing the use of fly ash as a construction material, it is required to enhance some properties by stabilizing raw fly ash with suitable stabilizer like lime or cement. Fly ash becomes an attractive construction material because of its self hardening characteristics for which available free lime is responsible. The variation of its properties depends upon the nature of coal, fineness of pulverization, type of furness and firing temperature. Fly ash is of two types; Class C and Class F. Class C fly ash contains high calcium content which is highly reactivity with water even in absence of lime. Class F ash contains lower percentage of lime. The main work carried out is to investigate the suitability of class F fly ash, containing CaO as low as 1.4%, modified with added lime as a construction material in different civil engineering fields. Large scale utilization of Fly ash in geotechnical constructions will reduce the problems faced by the thermal power plants for its disposal mostly because of its property closely related with the natural earth material. So assessment of the behavior fly ash at different condition is required before its use as a construction material in Civil engineering structure. For judging the suitability of any material for different geotechnical engineering works its consistency properties, compaction properties, strength parameters and settlement properties are the most important parameters to be evaluated. In this work an attempt was made to evaluate the above said geo-engineering properties of fly ash collected from NSPCL-RSP captive plant along with the fly ash treated with different proportion of lime. The overall testing program is conducted in two phase. In first phase the physical and chemical characteristics of the fly ash samples were studied by conducting Hydrometer analysis, UCS test, Permeability test and CBR test. In second phase of the test programme fly ash mixed with 1%, 2%,5% and 10% of lime. Lime added in percentage of dry weight of Fly ash. The geotechnical property of this lime stabilized fly ash sample were evaluated and compared with that of Fly ash. Based on the experimental findings the following conclusions are drawn:
 The fly ash consists of grains mostly of fine sand to silt size with uniform gradation of particles. The percentage of Fly ash passing through 75μ sieve was found to be 86.62%. Coefficient of uniformity (Cu) and coefficient of curvature (Cc) for Fly ash was found to be 5.88 & 1.55 respectively, indicating uniform gradation of samples. The specific gravity of particles is lower than that of the conventional earth materials.
 An increase in compaction energy results in closer packing of particles resulting in an increase in dry density where as the optimum moisture content decreases.
 Dry unit weight of compacted specimens is found to change from 1.142 to 1.255 kJ/m3 with change in compaction energy from 118.6kJ/m3 to 2483 kJ/m3, whereas the OMC is found to decrease from 30.2 to 24.2 %. This shows that fly ash sample responds very poorly to the compaction energy. With addition of lime maximum dry density decreases and optimum moisture content increases. Addition of lime results in filling the voids of the compacted fly ash thus increases the density.
 The failure stresses as well as initial stiffness of samples, compacted with greater compaction energies, are higher than the samples compacted with lower compaction energy. However the failure strains are found to be lower for samples compacted with higher energies. The failure strains vary from a value of 0.75 to 1.75%, indicating brittle failures in the specimen.
 A linear relationship is found to exist between the compaction energy and unconfined compressive strength.
 The UCS value is found to change from 32.764 to 47.271 kPa with change in compaction energy from 118.6kJ/m3 to 2483kJ/m3 indicating that the gain in strength is not so remarkable. It revealed from the test results that a linear relationship exists between the initial tangent modulus with unconfined compressive strength and deformation modulus.
 Increase in curing period of lime treated fly ash specimen show improvement in the UCS value. However the gain in strength with curing period is more in initial days of curing which tends to decreases with increase in curing period.
 With increase in compaction energy followed by curing period shows a significant increase in strength due to closer packing of particles. Besides, when lime is small in quantity, that's about 1%, the strength improvement is practically negligible, even if cured for long. With increased lime content the pozzolanic reaction peaks up producing adequate amount of cementitious compounds leading to visible increase in strength. As the lime percentage increases this facilitates the pozzolanic reaction that form cementiceous gel that binds the particles. This process is catalyst by increase in curing period. Increased duration of curing, leading to prolonged pozzolanic reaction and result in increase in strength.
 The unit cohesion and the angle of internal friction vary from 10.7 to 13.4kPa and 24.84 to 27.34 degree with the change in compaction energy from 118.6 kJ/m3 to 2483kJ/m3. Low value of angle of internal friction is due to lack of proper interlocking among particles as the fly ash mostly contains spherical particles with uniform gradation. There is negligible increase in cohesion component with compaction energy.
 The highest unsoaked and soaked CBR value are found to be 25.39% and 1.546% at compaction energy of 2483 kJ/m3.This indicates that CBR value of compacted ash is very susceptible to degree of saturation.
 The unsoaked CBR value is more than soaked CBR value. Even after 28 days of curing of samples with lime content of 10% the soaked CBR value do not show significant improvement over unsoaked CBR. This indicates that, relatively large amount of the lime is needed to bind all the fly ash particles together, leading to visible increase in strength.
 Permeability decreases with increase in either compactive energy or lime content. Permeability is basically a function of grain size and compactive effort. With increase in lime content, pozzolanic reaction occurs which result in blocking of the flow paths thus reducing the value of coefficient of permeability of the lime treated fly ash specimens.


Abstract Research on women's participation in rebel organizations often focuses on "frontline" fighters. But there is a dearth of scholarship about noncombat roles in rebel groups. This is surprising because scholarship on gender and rebellion suggests that women's involvement in rebel governance, publicity, and mobilization can have positive effects on civilian support for and participation in rebel organizations cross-nationally. Further, women often make up the critical infrastructure that maintains rebellion. A new conceptual typology of participation in rebellion identifies four dimensions along which individuals are involved in noncombat labor: logistics, outreach, governance, and community management. These duties are gendered in ways that make women's experiences and opportunities unique and, often, uniquely advantageous for rebel organizations. Women take on complex roles within rebellion, including myriad tasks and duties that rebels perform in conjunction with or in lieu of combat labor. An in-depth analysis of women's noncombat participation in the Provisional Irish Republican Army in Northern Ireland demonstrates this typology's purpose and promise. Attention to noncombat labor enables a more comprehensive analysis of rebel groups and of civil wars. Studying these activities through this framework expands our understanding of rebellion as a system of actors and behaviors that extends beyond fighting. Future scholarship may use this typology to explain variation in types of women's participation or the outcomes that they produce.


Many people consider the brain to be the ultimate computer. Much like computers, the brain receives input information from the environment via various sensory receptors. The brain then processes that input information, formulates goals, and transmits information to create output movements that seek to achieve those goals. Again similar to computers, the brain has limits in its ability to transmit information. These limits can be studied using information theory, the branch of applied mathematics that gave rise to modern day computing. Although many researchers have studied the limits of the nervous system in transmitting input sensory information, little effort has been applied towards linking information in neural populations to movement.

In this work, we created a novel method for estimating information transmitted by neural populations during a movement task using a limited number of trials per stimulus condition. Using this method, we found that the information transmitted by the population increased up to a limit, as the information required to be encoded by the task increased. We found that this limit was a function of the size of the population. Larger populations could transmit greater amounts of information. However, this relationship also appeared to reach a limit. Lastly, we found that the limit of information transmission is greater in a three-dimensional task compared to a two-dimensional task.

We also studied neural activity during a brain-computer interface where the task dimensionality changed. We found that neurons changed their tuning to identical targets depending on whether they were encountered in the 2D or the 3D context. We present evidence that the observed changes are a motor system analogue to the phenomenon of dynamic range adaptation, which has been observed throughout various sensory systems. The neurons in the population adapted their tuning models to better utilize their limited range of firing rates to transmit information about desired output movement. Overall, this work opens up opportunities for future research investigating the role of motor cortex in transmitting contextually-encoded information.


ABSTRACT This article discusses the development and implementation of a mobile GIS catch-and-release system for documenting large surface artifact scatters along the Doring River in South Africa. An integrated, cloud-based mobile GIS solution was built using a suite of ESRI ArcGIS applications with an aim to maximize the speed and breadth of techno-typological data capture, while minimizing data collection errors and post-processing requirements. The system was successfully implemented during the 2019 field season of the Doring River Archaeological Project. With the ability for project-specific customization and interchangeable hardware components, the system transcends geographic region and temporal focus. Moreover, the system accommodates connectivity limitations commonly faced by archaeologists seeking distributed database solutions. Other challenges embraced in the design include rotating personnel throughout a field season, scalability without large financial investment, and the ability to accommodate data collection needs of other components of the larger multi-disciplinary research project.


The number, site, severity and rate of accidents and the medical attention received has been measured for association and rugby football in the four northern counties of England during the 1970-1971 season. 696 out of 1601 (43%) association and 117 out of 232 (50%) rugby football clubs replied to the questionnaires. If all the clubs had replied an estimated 14078 injuries would have occurred in association and 3888 in rugby football. For soccer, the accident rate was 36.5 per 10,000 man-hours of play and for rugger 30.5. In soccer 65% of all injuries were to the lower limbs, but only 36% in rugger, which had a higher proportion of injuries to other sites compared with soccer. Fractures and dislocations were twice as common in rugger as in soccer. Concussion was also more common. In rugby football, the players are injured less often than in association football, but more seriously, as is shown by the fact that hospital treatment was needed by 29.8% of the soccer injuries, but 52.8% of those in rugby football. Similarly, a rugger injury needed on average 12 days off play, whereas one in soccer needed only 6 days off play. A bigger proportion of soccer injuries (73.8%) received rapid first aid than did rugger injuries (45.8%). Better first aid cover at matches and simple protective clothing for the legs of soccer players and shoulders of rugby players are suggested.


ABSTRACT Violent extremism is an ambiguous and politically loaded concept, and – at the national level – the parameters used to define it are usually framed by the state, powerful ruling elites, and members of the international community, either directly or indirectly through donor-funded projects. Although different types of violent extremism and extremist movements exist in Kenya, donors and the state often focus on religiously-inspired groups such as Al-Shabaab, the Islamic State, Al-Qaeda, and affiliated networks such as the Al-Muhajiroun, Al-Hijra, and Jaysh Al-Ayman. However, at a community level, participants in our body map workshops highlighted gang violence, police brutality, ethnically motivated violence, marginalisation, discrimination, and gender-based violence as priorities in defining violent extremism. We conclude that constructions of violent extremism at the local level are shaped by lived experiences of everyday insecurities influenced by gender, ethnicity, social status, location, and interactions with the state. To effectively address violent extremism in Kenya and beyond, its definition needs to be contextualised in ways that take into consideration local perspectives and everyday experiences of violence and insecurity.


Demand for more system functionality and computational resources are increasing exponentially. Available hardware technology can barely operate at higher frequencies and densities due to silicon and electron physical properties. This therefore drives the need to move towards parallel systems. Available programming languages are mainly designed with single CPU in mind and lose their competence when it comes to multicore systems that are already available. Dataflow programming and the CAL Actor Language (CAL) appears to be a promising solution. As part of the Ptolemy II project, CAL was invented for the specification of dataflow models. It increased the typical programming abstraction level to a higher abstraction level. This feature makes CAL an appropriate choice for system level specification and a method to achieve the desired computational performance in shorter time. There are existing CAL tools that can generate code for both hardware as well as software design. This feature makes CAL a potential solution for entire system development in the near future. It is notable that CAL has been recently adopted by ISO/MPEG as a specification language for MPEG-RVC (Moving Picture Experts Group - Reconfigurable Video Coding). The main aim of this thesis is to develop a method based on the existing tools that will enable CAL users to arbitrarily map functional units to hardware (FPGA fabric) or software (Processors) without any notion and knowledge of underlying interconnection and hardware design. Alongside this, the developed method is analyzed and a cost function and partitioning guidelines are presented at the end of this master thesis work.


The 'paradox of progress' is an empirical regularity that associates more education with larger income inequality. Two driving and competing factors behind this phenomenon are the convexity of the 'Mincer equation' (that links wages and education) and the heterogeneity in its returns, as captured by quantile regressions. We propose a joint least-squares and quantile regression statistical framework to derive a decomposition in order to evaluate the relative contribution of each explanation. The estimators are based on the 'functional derivative' approach. We apply the proposed decomposition strategy to the case of Argentina 1992 to 2015.