Abstract Background: While the faecal immunochemical test for haemoglobin (FIT) is an important screening tool to detect gastrointestinal bleeding, false-negative cases resulting from the enterobacterial degradation of haemoglobin (Hb) have emerged. When faecal Hb tests have given false-negative results, it is considered that digestive bleeding diseases can be detected by measuring faecal transferrin (Tf), which is less susceptible to enterobacterial degradation. This study evaluated the benefit of measuring both Hb and Tf as markers of blood in the faeces during a large-scale colorectal cancer screening trial in Japan. Methods: We screened 12,255 participants, i.e., 8223 men and 4032 women, for faecal Hb and Tf using a Discrete Clinical Chemistry Analyser NS-Plus C15 system. Results: Among the 1232 participants with positive test results for blood, 417 were detected based solely on Tf, which increased the positive rate from 6.7% to 10.1%. The Hb and Tf concentrations were not correlated directly, thereby suggesting that Tf can detect a positive group that differs from that detected based on Hb. The positive rate for Tf alone was significantly higher in women (4.9%) compared with men (2.7%) (p<0.0001), which may be explained by the significantly higher constipation complaint rate in the Tf-positive group compared with the haemoglobin-only-positive group (p=0.0069). Conclusions: The results of this large-scale colorectal cancer screening study suggest that analysing both Hb and Tf using an NS-Plus system should be beneficial for subjects who are missed by conventional Hb testing alone.


The paper is focused on problems of evaluation of effectiveness of investment projects, building and operation of an agricultural biogas stations. It deals with significance of biogas production in the area of agriculture. Biomass from which biogas is produced is one of important renewable energy sources. A part of introduction is devoted to creation of term-creating base from economic and environmental literary resources, a definition of the term "investment", connected "investment decision making", and particular realization phases of the investment project. In the chapter Materials and methodology, dynamic technologies of investment effectiveness evaluation are introduced and used profitability indicators are delimited. A practical part is focused at first on basic characteristics of the evaluated biogas stations, on a way of their financing and achieved cost-revenue relation. The mass centre of the paper is the evaluation of operation and management of the selected biogas stations in the monitored period 2010 2013. Effectiveness of the investment is evaluated by the help of dynamic indicators of investment effectiveness. All four used indicators show very favourable values of the station ́s operation from the effectiveness point of view. The found out profitability indicators also confirmed a positive development of economy in all evaluated stations. It holds fully in use of non-reversible investment subsidy in a range 25 – 37 % of expended costs which the agricultural enterprises obtained from the Rural Development Programme. In case of building of stations without the mentioned financial subsidy the parameters of effectiveness slightly decreased.


The sanitation situation in the remote Villages in the Delta Egypt is becoming not only huge Environmental crises but also a crucial health problem. The problem lies in the rising of G.W.T due to the old used systems of disposal (bottomless cesspool "trench"), the waste water is mixing with the G.W.T and causing its rising to the extent that it floods the streets in some cases. One of the solutions that was considered was stabilization ponds, another was Extended Aeration (activated sludge). As new concept the Japanese university introduced Down Hanging sponge as an experienced solution for the task. For many years, decision makers for sanitation in Egypt built their decision upon initial cost only, neglecting the other long term costs like running cost and operation and maintenance and other factors affecting the treatment processes. Then, when fundamentals of Value Engineering science were introduced, thinking began to change. Now after the development of Environmental Engineering science, other factors that may affect the decision-making process, like sustainability, surrounding impact, the assessment, manipulation of environment. Moreover, other social factors were neglected like people habits and what effect that could have on them in daily life. Their ability to manage every system in case of decentralization, the contribution of Different stake holders that effect the management of every system especially in decentralization, those factors could be essential in any study. This study focuses on these new parameters and to translate them into numerical values to help the decision makers to make a better judgment and to reach the most practical decision needed for sanitation and water treatment in small villages in Egypt. The study of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is becoming urgent and more relying on management techniques such as risk analysis, creating weight score matrices for different variables surrounding the Environment of the different treatment plants in each case depending on the location, the cultural habits of inhabitants, Socio economic impact assessment, Sociological impacts, Ethical considerations. Keywords—Decentralization, Down Hanging Sponge (D.H.S), Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Extended Aeration Amro S. Kandil Eng. & Msc.in Construction Engineering Arab academy for Science & Technology Egypt Walid Abd ElAzim Associate Prof of sanitation Eng. University of Alexandria Egypt. Ahmed ElGendy Prof. of sanitation Eng. American University in Cairo Medhat Abd Elmooty Prof.of sanitation Eng. University of Alexandria Egypt (E.A), Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), Life cycle impact Assessment (LCIA), Risk Assessment Analysis, and Stabilization Ponds (SPO).


Endometriosis is characterized by the presence of endometrial-like tissues located outside the uterine cavity. The expression of focal adhesion genes including FN1 gene increased in endometriosis. Epigenetic factors play a role in the alteration of expression that lead to the pathological conditions. This study aimed to analyze the mRNA expression and promoter methylation level of FN1 gene as an epigenetic mechanism in endometriosis. Forty of the total samples from endometrial patients and normal were used. The DNA and RNA were isolated, DNA was converted using sodium bisulfite procedure, amplified by MSP method. Promoter methylation level was determined by intensity of the bands that arose in gel electrophoresis using ImageJ software. The RNA was reverse transcribed into cDNA and was amplified using RT-qPCR. The mRNA expression level of FN1 gene was higher in endometrial endometriosis compared to normal, but not significant statistically (p=0,63). There was a significant difference methylation level of FN1 gene in endometrial endometriosis compared to normal endometrium (p=0.022). There was positive correlation between promoter methylation level to its mRNA expression in endometrial endometriosis (r=0.080; p=0.736). DNA methylation alteration in promoter FN1 gene was not to be caused by the increasing of mRNA expression.


firstname.lastname@example.com Kanda University of International Studies, Japan Tablet computers are a growing trend in education that has been gaining momentum since the introduction of the Apple iPad in 2010. This paper presents a case study at a Japanese university that investigated the integration of iPads into an existing English language curriculum. It reports on the experience of teachers and students using this particular tablet for several learning tasks in a Freshman English course. The tablets were used as a presentation tool, digital handout, Internet browser, transcription recorder, and media playback device. Data gathered from the study describe benefits and drawbacks of using tablet computers in the Japanese university EFL context. In addition, teacher and student views on using tablets in class activities were gauged. The researchers used direct observations, video recordings of student use, and survey data from teachers and students. It also details the mobile applications that were used for the classroom tasks. While the iPads showed promise in collaborative projects involving media, connectivity, unfamiliarity, and incompatibility issues limited their effectiveness. Although only a few iPads were available for the study, the issues and results are considered from the perspective of tablet technology in general. Furthermore, the lessons learned here might provide additional insights into the broader implementation of mobile devices in language learning environments.


We study the capacity investment strategy of a manufacturer who sells his product on a live-streaming shopping platform. The manufacturer first decides the production capacity, then the platform decides her commission, and finally the manufacturer sets the retail price. The platform has an informational advantage about the product demand due to proximity to the market and accessibility to the sales data of similar products. The manufacturer without a direct access to the demand information tries to infer it from the commission decision of the platform, which results in a signaling game. Interestingly, the manufacturer may strategically install a strictly higher capacity than any demand to be realized. The overcapacity also benefits the manufacturer by driving down the commission charged by the platform when observing a small market potential due to the signaling effect.


The wide spreading of the new generation of smartphones, with significant improvements in terms of image acquisition and processing power, is opening up the possibility of new approaches for skin lesion monitoring. Mobile Teledermatology appears nowadays as a promising tool with the potential to empower patients to adopt an active role in managing their own skin health status, while facilitates the early diagnosis of skin cancers. The main objective of this work is to create a mobile-based prototype for skin lesions analysis with patient-oriented features and functionalities. The presented self-monitoring system collects, processes and storages information of skin lesions through the automatic extraction and classification of specific visual features. The algorithms used to extract and classify these features are briefly described, as well as the overall system architecture and functionalities.


As the rate of doctor-patient encounter is low during adolescence, it is justified to administer vaccines within the school health system. indeed, the first results of the HBV vaccination are extremely encouraging. In Switzerland, it is recommended to immunize adolescents 11 to 15 against diphtheria, tetanus, HBV and meningococcus C. Vaccination against varicella is recommended for those who display no history of varicella. This vaccine, along with adjustment immunizations should be done by primary care physicians. All pediatricians, general practitioners and gynecologists should take every opportunity to check adolescents' vaccination status and immunize them according to what they found.


Moxifloxacin is a novel fourth generation fluoroquinolone with broad spectrum of antibacterial activity. The study was conducted to evaluate the safety of Moxifloxacin (5.0 mg/kg) after repeated intramuscular administration at 24 h interval for 14 days in male and female wistar rats. Hematological (Haemoglobin, RBC, WBC, MCV, MCH, MCHC, HCT and DLC), blood biochemical parameters (AST, ALT, ALP, Total Bilirubin, Total Serum Protein, Serum Albumin, Globulin, Serum Creatinine, Urea, Uric acid and Blood glucose) and histopathological examination of various tissues were carried out in the present study. Male and female animals of any group did not reveal any clinical symptoms and mortality attributable to the 14 days intramuscular administration of Moxifloxacin. The data were compared by unpaired two tail t` test using Graph Pad Prism (Version 4.00). All above hematological and blood biochemical parameters were found to fluctuate within normal range during treatment period and the mean values were not significantly differ (p < 0.05) from corresponding control values. Moreover, no gross or microscopic changes were found in the liver, kidney, heart, spleen, stomach, intestine and joint cartilages of the treated wistar rats. Results indicate that daily administration of Moxifloxacin for 14 days seems to be safe and well tolerated in rats.


Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a highly malignant tumor with few biomarkers to guide treatment options. Carbohydrate antigen 19.9 (CA19.9), the most frequently used biomarker for PDAC, is not sensitive and specific enough for the detection of the disease. This study aimed to evaluate serum periostin (POSTN) and CA242 as potential diagnostic biomarkers complementing CA19.9 in detecting pancreatic cancer. Blood samples were from 362 participants, including 213 patients with different stages of PDAC, 75 patients with benign pancreatic disease, and 74 healthy individuals. All samples were randomly divided into a training set and a validation set. Carbohydrate antigen 19.9, CA242, POSTN, as well as carcinoembryonic antigen, were measured by ELISA or automated immunoassay. The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed that the performance of CA19.9 in the validation group were improved by the marker panel composed of CA19.9, POSTN, and CA242, to discriminate early stage PDAC not only from healthy controls (area under the curve [AUC]CA19.9 = 0.94 vs AUCCA19.9 + POSTN + CA242 = 0.98, P < .05) but also from benign conditions (AUCCA19.9 = 0.87 vs AUCCA19.9 + POSTN + CA242 = 0.90, P < .05). In addition, POSTN retained significant diagnostic capabilities to distinguish PDAC CA19.9‐negative from healthy controls (AUCPOSTN = 0.87) as well as from benign conditions (AUCPOSTN = 0.84) in the whole set. This study suggested that POSTN and CA242 are potential diagnostic serum biomarkers complementing CA19.9 in detecting early pancreatic cancer.


: Connective tissue destruction is a major characteristic of chronic rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Attempts at repair and fibrosis are also seen. This process is accompanied by local cellular and humoral inflammatory reactions. Production of large amount of collagenase and prostaglandin (PGE2) are demonstrated in vivo and can account for the pathogenesis. Long term cultures of adherent synovial cells from patient with RA produce also large amounts of collagenase and PGE2. Collagenase and PGE2 levels can be stimulated with a soluble factor (MCF), a monokine produced by monocyte-macrophages in culture. MCF production is modulated by cellular elements (T lymphocytes), by humoral elements (Fc fragments of immunoglobulin, immune complexes, antigens, lectins), by elements of the matrix (collagen). MCF appears to belong to the category of the interleukin 1. This factor also affects cell replication, collagen synthesis, hormonal response (to PGE2 and PTH). The monocyte-macrophages in this system appear to be the key between the immune and non-immune systems. Studies of MCF (one of the monocyte-macrophage products) will help the understanding of the pathogenesis of chronic inflammation such as RA and the designing and screening of new drugs potentially useful in destructive diseases.


The current analysis aims to research the impact of ICT usage on students' achievement in the 2018 PISA assessment. The Program for International student assessment, measures the achievement of 15-year-olds in mathematics, science and reading literacy across a large number of world economies. Kosovo has participated in the PISA assessment in 2015 for the first time and for the second time in 2018. The current study will look at the achievement of over 4000 Kosovar students in reading literacy, mathematics and science and analyze trends of ICT usage among students. More specifically the analysis focused on understanding trends of ICT and internet usage of Kosovar students, such as using computers for chatting, research information, reading literacy news, learning something new, and reading emails among others. Furthermore, the study explores gender differences in usage trends, to explore if gender plays a role in such trends. Finally, the study researches the impact on performance of gender, internet access and access to computers to complete homework.  The result of the current analysis provides that access to internet and having access to computers at home links to higher achievement in all PISA scales. An additional finding of this study is that Kosovar students tend to use technology and internet mainly to chat with friends, and significantly less for reading emails, learning for something new or for doing homework. Female students reported lower internet presence compared to male students, but in the meantime were the ones who outperformed in the reading literacy and science scales, suggesting that higher online presence mainly for chatting hinders learning and achievement.


The paper examines the consequences of changes in economic regime on the self-employed in Lusaka and attendant political dynamics. The focus is on urban vendors, particularly youth. The paper discusses how economic restructuring involves new regimes of spatial regulation and new strategies of urban management that have resulted in intensified political tensions and struggles. These struggles arise from the interaction between externally driven agendas and local political dynamics. The paper argues that the relationships between the state and vendors, while long-standing, are today more antagonistic than ever before, in the context of economic liberalization, structural adjustment programs (SAP), poverty strategy reduction programs (PSRP), and highly indebted poor countries initiative (HIPC). This is demonstrated, firstly, with reference to recurrent controversies between urban regulatory authorities and vendors over access to, control over, and use of market and public space. Occurrences of state imposed removals and relocations of vendors and their responses are discussed. Secondly, political tensions have also emerged from shifts in (state and donor driven) strategies for market management. Tracing the history of market management forms in Lusaka and the legacy of political party influence in the markets, the paper describes how the decentralization of market management has increased conflicts between different interests within the markets and reinforced the role of political interest groups, rather than democratizing social relations in the markets. Such top-down shifts in forms of market management have sometimes triggered major clashes in the markets.


OBJECTIVE
The present study intended to examine the social representation of the doctor-patient relationship in a sample of patients and doctors in Bogota.

METHODS
The sample consisted of 34 subjects: 17 patients (9 male and 8 female) and 17 general practitioners (10 male and 7 female) who were attended or worked, respectively, under the state's obligatory health plan. The techniques used for collecting information were in-depth interview and association web; these were applied to all subjects in the study.

RESULTS
The results showed that the doctors' social representation was centred on offering a professional and human service which is in constant danger due to patient-imposed barriers and health system capacity. Patients' centred their social representation on the doctors' ability to offer a professional and human service allowing them to improve their quality of life. Patients perceived that doctors who were negligent or dehumanised presented the greatest barrier to them obtaining the necessary implements to manage and improve their quality of life.

CONCLUSIONS
Doctors and patients' social representation were similar regarding what they wanted to give and obtain; however, they conflicted regarding whom they perceived as being responsible for not being able to succeed in accomplishing their objectives.


Medium voltage power supplies for applications such as electrostatic precipitators are used in industrial plants to remove particles from fumes. Current solutions based on silicon devices rely on high-voltage transformers to reach the required output voltage levels. New wide band gap materials such as silicon carbide have higher electric breakdown voltage, and thus fewer devices are required in series to withstand the output voltage. Owing to the faster switching speed of silicon carbide devices further demands are put on the serialisation method. In this study, a cascaded series-connection method using only a single external gate signal is analysed in detail, guidelines to size the resistor–capacitor–diode-snubber are proposed and its applicability is experimentally demonstrated. The circuit is tested with four series-connected devices in a double pulse test at 2400 V and current levels of 250–800 mA to show the load dependence. The serialisation technique is tested in a boost converter operating in discontinuous conduction mode but is limited to 1200 V due to an oscillating state occurring after zero current crossing. Finally, the technique is tested at 2400 V and 10 kHz in a synchronous boost converter, which demonstrates the proposed design guidelines.


The interaction of the solar wind with the Earth's magnetic field produces geomagnetic activity, which is critically dependent on the orientation of the interplanetary magnetic field (IMF). Most solar wind coupling functions quantify this dependence on the IMF orientation with the so-called IMF clock angle in a way, which is symmetric with respect to the sign of the By component. However, recent studies have suggested that the sign of By is an additional, independent driver of high-latitude geomagnetic activity, leading to higher (weaker) geomagnetic activity in Northern Hemisphere (NH) winter for By > 0 (By < 0). In this paper we quantify the size of this explicit By effect with respect to the solar wind coupling function, both for northern and southern high-latitude geomagnetic activity. We show that high-latitude geomagnetic activity is significantly (by about 40%–50%) suppressed for By < 0 in NH winter and for By > 0 in Southern Hemisphere winter. When averaged over all months, high-latitude geomagnetic activity in NH is about 12% weaker for By < 0 than for By > 0. The By effect affects the westward electrojet strongly, but hardly at all the eastward electrojet. We also show that the suppression of the westward electrojet in NH during By < 0 maximizes when the Earth's dipole axis points toward the night sector, that is, when the auroral region is maximally in darkness.


Foreign investment into China has surged since the 1990s and become a topic of keen interest for both scholars and the media. While China has encouraged this investment with the goal of catching up technologically, close analysis reveals that only a small share of its foreign investment comes from the United States and other nations with the technology China seeks. Instead, inward foreign direct investment flows predominantly from Hong Kong and a few Caribbean nations. Two key factors behind this: China's tax policy toward foreign investment and its "industrial" policies to encourage development and growth. Specifically, preferential tax treatment for foreign investment leads many Chinese businesses and households to "round-trip" investments; and policies requiring joint ventures between Chinese and foreign high-tech companies—while benefiting China enormously—discourage investment by multinationals from advanced countries.


CHRONIC pancreatitis in childhood is a rare disease as judged by the paucity of reports in the literature. Standard texts 1 describe it but briefly. The disease does not present a typical clinical picture, although there are some symptoms which may be found in most cases. Severe epigastric pain is common, and clinically detectable ascites may occur, although it is rare. While in acute pancreatitis an elevated serum amylase level is a diagnostic point, 2 the persistence of an elevated serum amylase level in chronic pancreatitis is unusual. The lack of a typical clinical picture probably accounts for a number of cases which undoubtedly remain undiagnosed. This report presents a case of chronic pancreatitis in an 8 year old boy whose primary complaint was marked ascites and who maintained a persistently elevated serum amylase level for six months after the clinical picture had returned to normal. REPORT OF A CASE


Abstract.
 During the past 50 years, 3800 field experiments yielding over 5200 treatment series were conducted in Australia examining yield responses to applied N, P, K, or S fertiliser applications to cereal, oilseed and pulse crops. The experiments all had accompanying soil test data. These data were entered into multiple Microsoft Access® database templates and then consolidated into a single national online MYSQL® database. A web application (named the BFDC Interrogator) was also developed to rapidly access the national database (BFDC National Database) and construct soil test calibrations between percentage of the maximum grain yield achieved (hereafter called percentage relative yield) and soil test values recorded for specified ranges of regional or national experiments. Search parameters were applied to define soil test calibrations. These included farming system (dryland or irrigated), year of experiment, soil type, crop type, soil test, depth of soil sampling and soil test units. Other data filters based on site metadata, such as method of nutrient placement, can be applied to enable more definitive calibrations. The calibrations are used to derive critical soil test values at 80, 90 and 95% relative crop yield with 95% confidence limits. However, the soil test criteria at 90% relative crop yield with 70% confidence limits have been chosen as the single calibration and reliability standard for all crops and soil tests. Corresponding yield increase (t/ha)–soil test relationships for an applied nutrient can also be accessed. The BFDC National Database and BFDC Interrogator can now be accessed online by trained, registered users. This paper describes the methodologies that underpinned the progressive development of this tool. Through the commitment of the grains and fertiliser industries, it is anticipated that the calibrations will be used to improve decision support systems used to generate fertiliser recommendations for Australian cropping industries.


The remote procedure call (RPC) paradigm has been a favorite of programmers who write distributed programs because RPC uses a familiar procedure call abstraction as the sole mechanism of remote operation. The abstraction helps to simplify programming tasks, but this does not mean that the resulting program's RPC-based flow of control will be anything close to ideal for high performance. The purpose of our research is to provide a source-level transformation framework as an alternative way to implement an RPC-based distributed program, so that the code can be optimized through program analysis techniques.


The diameter of vascular conduits increases towards the stem base. It has been suggested that this profile is an efficient anatomical feature for reducing the hydraulic resistance when trees grow taller. However, the mechanism that controls the cell diameter along the plant is not fully understood. The timing of cell differentiation along the stem was investigated. Cambial activity and cell differentiation were investigated in a Picea abies tree (11.5 m in height) collecting microsamples at nine different heights (from 1 to 9 m) along the stem with a 4 d time interval. Wood sections (8–12 μm thick) were stained and observed under a light microscope with polarized light to differentiate the developing xylem cells. Cell wall lignification was detected using cresyl violet acetate. The first enlarging cells appeared almost simultaneously along the tree axis indicating that cambium activation is not height-dependent. A significant increase in the duration of the cell expansion phase was observed towards the tree base: at 9 m from the ground, xylem cells expanded for 7 d, at 6 m for 14 d, and at 3 m for 19 d. The duration of the expansion phase is positively correlated with the lumen area of the tracheids (r2=0.68, P < 0.01) at the same height. By contrast, thickness of the cell wall of the earlywood did not show any trend with height. The lumen area of the conduits down the stem appeared linearly dependent on time during which differentiating cells remained in the expansion phase. However, the inductive signal of such long-distance patterned differentiation remains to be identified.


Measuring and comparing performance, cost, and other features of advanced communication architectures for complex multi core/multiprocessor systems on chip is a significant challenge which has hardly been addressed so far. This document outlines the top-level view on a system of benchmarks for Networks on Chip (NoC), which intends to cover a wide spectrum of NoC design aspects, from application modeling to performance evaluation and post-manufacturing test and reliability. For performance benchmarking it describes requirements and features for application programs, synthetic micro-benchmarks, and abstract benchmark applications. Then, it proposes ways to measure and benchmark reliability, fault tolerance and testability of the on-chip communication fabric. This paper introduces the main concepts and ideas for benchmarking NoCs in a systematic and comparable way. It will be followed up by a report that will define a benchmark framework and the syntax of interfaces for benchmark programs that will allow the community to build-up a benchmark suite.


Background The global prevalence of myelomeningocele has been reported to be 0.8–1 per 1,000 live births. Early closure of the defect is considered to be the standard of care. Various surgical methods have been reported, such as primary skin closure, local skin flaps, musculocutaneous flaps, and skin grafts. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical characteristics of myelomeningocele defects and present the surgical outcomes of recent cases of myelomeningocele at our institution. Methods Patients who underwent surgical closure of myelomeningocele at our institution from January 2004 to December 2013 were included in this study. A retrospective chart review of their medical records was performed, and comorbidities, defect size, location, surgical procedures, complications, and the final results were analyzed. Results A total of 14 patients underwent surgical closure for myelomeningocele defects. Twelve cases were closed with direct skin repair, while two cases required local skin flaps to cover the skin defects. Three cases of infection occurred, requiring incision and either drainage or removal of allogenic materials. One case of partial flap necrosis occurred, requiring secondary revision using a rotational flap and a full-thickness skin graft. Despite these complications, all wounds eventually healed completely. Conclusions Most myelomeningocele defects can be managed by direct skin repair alone. In cases of large defects, in which direct repair is not possible, local flaps may be used to cover the defect. Complications such as wound dehiscence and partial flap necrosis occurred in this study; however, all such complications were successfully managed with simple ancillary procedures.


Two anthracene-based dyes (MPA-H and MPA-E) with aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and photosensitization characteristics were prepared to obtain solid-state luminophores by photoinitiating the photopolymerization of acrylic monomers with iodonium salt under visible light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The photoinitiating activities of MPA-H/iodonium salt and MPA-E/iodonium salt were evaluated in the photopolymerization of acrylic monomers under 405, 460, and 520 nm LED sources. The aggregation-induced enhanced emission of MPA-H and MPA-E occurred during photocuring. MPA-H and MPA-E showed potential as fluorescent molecular probes to monitor the progress of free radical photopolymerization.


Creating electronic communities is a critical venture in the digital economy. However, fraud and misrepresentation have led to widespread skepticism and distrust of electronic communities. We develop an evolutionary model to explore the issue of trust within an electronic community from a dynamic process perspective. This model emphasizes large populations, continuous change in community memberships, and imperfect information and memory. As the term trust is often used in the context of individual interaction, at a group level we propose using the term health to measure the sustained competitive advantages of honest members over cheaters throughout the evolution of a community. We find conditions under which an electronic community is healthy and attracts outside population. We find that many factors, such as information dissemination speed, honest players' payoffs and possible losses, new community members' initial trust status, and the replacement rate of community members, all affect the health of an electronic community, and that some of them also affect a community's size. We then discuss the implications of our research for e-community practices.


We read with interest the review article on necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in full-term neonates.1 Although the author mentioned various risk factors that are associated with NEC in term neonates, we call your attention to some of the more recent data we have published on this topic. First of all, NEC in term infants is a rare event, at least in this part of the world. The incidence quoted as 5–25% of NEC infants came from the studies published in the 1970s and 1980s. We published more recent figures derived from a detailed population-based study on the incidence and aetiology of NEC in full-term neonates born in New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory in Australia.2 The incidence in our region was 0.05 per 1000 live births which was similar to the crude estimation (0.06 per 1000) in > 2500 g infants based on the CDC hospital diagnosis information in the United States. With regards to risk factors, one important message is missing in this article. There is a great difference in aetiological factors between full-term and premature infants. Earlier institutional studies suggested the association of congenital diseases in term infants.3 The major finding in our recent regional study was that about two-thirds of the 29 NEC neonates had an underlying congenital disease, which included congenital heart lesions in 35% and endocrine lesions in 17%. This contrasts with prematurity being the major underlying risk factor in premature infants, who have an inherent gastrointestinal immaturity and other illnesses associated with prematurity. The role of T-cryptantigen screening in the management of NEC was discussed in this review. We would like to caution that the literature on antigen screen was derived primarily from the preterm population. NEC aetiological factors appear very different between the preterm and term infants. The mortality of our series is low and both deaths were not associated with haemolysis (circulatory collapse with panhypopituitarism and the other due to congenital anomaly). Furthermore, in the largest series of T-cryptantigen reported in preterm infants (27 antigen positive cases in 200 NEC infants) we have not been able to demonstrate reduced mortality since the introduction of routine screening,4 so the benefit of screening is yet to be proven in preterm infants, let alone in term infants. The author's suggestion of exploring cytokine modulation therapy in the prevention of NEC in term infants is unlikely to be effective given the different aetiological factors, in particular the high incidence of associated congenital diseases in term infants. Furthermore, with the rarity of disease and low mortality in term neonates, even if we restrict the preventive therapy to high-risk term neonates such as infants with congenital heart disease it is extremely difficult to justify the expenditure involved. For example, during our study period of 6.5 years with over 539 000 live births, we would expect about 1300 cases born with major heart defects based on National Perinatal Statistics Unit data.5 Only 10 of these developed NEC! In short, NEC in term and preterm infants are very different in many aspects and the knowledge derived from preterm infants may not be applicable in term infants.


Floods account for a majority of disasters, especially in South Asia, where they affect 27 million people annually, causing economic losses of over US$1 billion. Climate change threatens to exacerbate these risks. Risk transfer mechanisms, such as weather index insurance (WII) may help buffer farmers against these hazards. However, WII programs struggle to attract the clients most in need of protection, including marginalized women and men. This risks re-enforcing existing inequalities and missing opportunities to promote pro-poor and gender-sensitive development. Key questions, therefore, include what factors constrain access to WIIs amongst heterogeneous communities, and how these can be addressed. This paper contributes to that end through primary data from two WII case studies (one in India, the other in Bangladesh) that identify contextual socio-economic and structural barriers to accessing WII, and strategies to overcome these. More significantly, this paper synthesizes the case study findings and those from a review of the literature on other WII initiatives into a framework to promote a systematic approach to address these challenges: an important step forward in moving from problem analysis to remedial action. The framework highlights actions across WII product design, implementation and post-implementation, to minimize risks of social exclusion in future WII schemes.


Argumentation is key to understanding and evaluating many texts. The arguments in the texts must be identified; using current tools, this requires substantial work from human analysts. With a rule-based tool for semi-automatic text analysis support, we facilitate argument identification. The tool highlights potential argumentative sections of a text according to terms indicative of arguments (e.g. 'suppose' or 'therefore') and domain terminology (e.g. camera names and properties). The information can be used by an analyst to instantiate argumentation schemes and build arguments for and against a proposal. The resulting argumentation framework can then be passed to argument evaluation tools.


Breast cancer stem cells are regulated by cell intrinsic pathways as well as by elements in the tumor microenvironment. New evidence suggests that an important interaction between the interleukin (IL)-8 receptor CXCR1/2 and HER2 is involved in this regulation. Simultaneous targeting of these pathways provides a novel therapeutic approach. Clin Cancer Res; 19(3); 511–3. ©2012 AACR.


This thesis explores the production, use and preservation of instructional fitness media made in the U.S. between the 1910s and 1980s. While film historiography has expanded to include many non-theatrical, 'orphan' works since the mid-1990s, home exercise—an enormously popular genre of the moving image—has received scant attention from media scholars and preservationists. This is primarily a material history of a genre that has been disseminated on a variety of home-viewing formats since the 1920s, many of which have become obsolete and may soon become inaccessible. Primarily drawing upon contemporary advertisements, reviews and trade publications, as well as conversations with archivists, producers, distributors and collectors, this study seeks to expose the forgotten early iterations of the home exercise genre while also exploring the less-discussed material aspects of the more famous recent examples.


Objective: The government of Indonesia has mandated the use of the Hospital Information System (HIS) since 2013. Previous research has revealed the various factors of success and failure of HIS implementation in Indonesia. This variation is due to the uniqueness and characteristics of each hospital. Therefore, this review aims to provide a clearer picture of Indonesia's HIS implementation's main factors. Methods: This review included literature in the area of interest. i.e., the HIS implementation in Indonesia, which was published from 2009 to 2019. The literature was searched within the Indonesian and international databases through their websites. The article selection was conducted by two researchers independently, using these two inclusion criteria, i.e.,1) original and peer-reviewed research, 2) research investigating HIS's implementation involving a case study at a hospital in Indonesia, 3) articles are in the national language (Bahasa Indonesia) and English, 4) full-text versions are accessible by the researchers. The selection process from the two researchers resulted in a Kappa value of 0.882. The content approach was used to review the literature searched. The Hot-fit (Human-Organization-Technology) concept was applied as a theoretical framework of the review process. Results: Fifty-two articles were identified. Through the selection process, 33 articles fitted the criteria for review. The findings show more success stories than failure factors in the HIS implementation in Indonesia. An essential lesson that can be learned from this review is that the organization's role is crucial in assuring HIS implementation's success by conducting adequate planning, monitoring, and evaluating the HIS implementation. Conclusion: The provision of technology and the organization's support that meets the user's demands and expectations is crucial to assure HIS's implementation benefit.


The aim of the present study is to describe and analyze the attitude of local government officials to traffic safety and to their roles in the decisions being made with regard to traffic safety measures. The purpose is also to give an overall picture of the decision-making processes in connection with specific traffic safety measures in two municipal authorities. The study has been divided into two parts. The first part was an interview study in which twenty local government officials in eleven municipal authorities were subject to in-depth interviews. The second part consists of case studies of the planning and decision-making processes with regard to traffic safety matters in two municipal authorities, where the source material in each case consists of written documentation.


The aims of the Electric Utility Management Project (EUMP) are to improve the performance of the Palestinian power sector through development of new transmission and distribution systems and institutional strengthening of Palestinian Energy Authority (PEA) and regional distribution companies. Negative environmental impacts include: increase in erosion during site preparation and the excavations of foundations; increased erosion along slope areas; compacting of the soil; pollution caused by waste produced during construction; interference with natural drainage and flow of perennial and seasonal rivers; destruction of vegetation in the area to be cleared for installations of substations and in the corridor to be developed under the power line; loss of sensitive habitats; relocation of residents and their dwellings; loss of access to land; disruption to traffic and pedestrian access; presence of non-resident labor and their temporary camps; public and occupational safety; loss of agricultural land; and loss of crops, harvests and fruit trees. Mitigation measures includes: (i) separate and remove or maintain the integrity of the topsoil (A horizon) to at least a depth of 20 cm. The separate removal, storage, and replacement of the topsoil and subsoil (lower horizons) ensure the preservation of the edaphic characteristics of the soil profile, and hence continued soil productivity; (ii) increasing the water retention capacity of soils, decreasing the volume and speed of superficial run-off and training of slopes (through installation of support structures); (iii) after completion of the construction phase, affected soils, should be ploughed and ripped; (iv) construction sites, warehouses and temporary base camps should be kept clean, in order to avoid possible fires; (v) although vegetation can be removed mechanically, it is preferable to use manual labor, especially near the riverbanks and steep slope areas; and (vi) no clearance of vegetation will be permitted within a minimum distance of 15 m from the highest level reached by the waters in rivers and other watercourses.


The Interaction Research Studio was the only external organisation to deliver workshops at the BBC STEM Careers Event as part of its School Report programme. The workshops assisted groups of school children to build their own My Naturewatch wildlife cameras.


The main results of a research study into the management of slide collections in university teaching hospitals are described. The collections of both departments of medical illustration and medical libraries are surveyed and the recommendation is made that increased and more widespread co-operation is desirable between departments of medical illustration, medical libraries and professionally interested individuals to improve the effectiveness of centralized medical slide collections.


The power generation characteristics of electroactive acrylic elastomer (EAE) were studied by experiments based on theoretical analysis. The generator mode theory fundamentals of EAE were discussed and studied. A power conversion control system for EAE was designed. The experimental results show that energy generated as nearly incompressible elastomer layers increase in area and decrease in thickness when EAE stretched, and power generated when EAE relaxed. The voltage of generation increased with the bias voltage increasing. The experimental results accorded with analytical model and lay the foundation for generator of EAE.


One-stage light gas gun is used to study the dynamic mechanical properties of reinforced concrete (SFRC) subjected to shock loading. The material of projectile is the same as of the target. The stress-time curves are recorded by three manganin pressure transducers embedded in the targets beforehand. The data of experiment are analyzed by self-designed program using the path line principle of Lagrangian analysis method. With the stress records, complete histories of particle velocity, density (and thus strain) and specific internal energy can be obtained at any point within the gaged region of the material. Moreover, the numerical constitutive relations of RC are obtained and the strain rate ranges from 104 to 105 per second. The result of experiment indicates that the stress-strain curves of SFRC present stagnant-return properties. And some other dynamic properties can be gained, such as rate dependent, waveform dissipation etc.


Transaction costs are the costs to protect property rights. Institutions are shaped in order to control transaction costs in society. Studies have been developed to measure transaction costs both at the macro and microeconomic levels. Entry costs, i.e., the cost to start up a new business are considered a proxy for business environment quality, being also interpreted as a proxy to transaction cost measurement. This paper presents new elements in order to amplify the potential of research in business environment, particularly business entry costs. It stresses the limitation related to two theoretical points: first, the near decomposability of one complex transaction, and second, the complementarity between ex-ante and ex-post transaction costs, both related to the methodology adopted to measure business entrance costs.


Abstract. In this paper, we present an integrated strategy to comprehensively evaluate the feature relevance of point cloud and image data for classification of trees and vehicles in urban scenes. First of all, point cloud and image data are co-registered by backprojection with available orientation parameters if necessary. After that, all data points are grid-fitted into the raster format in order to facilitate acquiring spatial context information per pixel/point. Then, various spatial-statistical and radiometric features can be extracted using a cylindrical volume neighborhood. Classification results as labeled pixels can be acquired from the classifier, and after appropriate refinements we obtain the objects of trees and vehicles. Compared to other methods which have assessed the classification and relevance simultaneously using a single classifier, we first introduce AdaBoost classifier combined with contribution ratio to provide both classification results and measures of feature relevance, and then utilize Random Forest classifier to evaluate and compare the feature relevance from a more independent viewpoint. In order to confirm the accuracy and reliability of classification and feature relevance results, we consider not only characteristics of the classifiers itself, but also errors of data co-registration and alterable parameters. We apply the procedure to two different datasets. In the dataset requiring co-registration a-priori, the AdaBoost classifier even achieves a great accuracy of 96.99% for trees and 83.45% for vehicles. The quantitative results of feature relevance assessment highlight the most important features for classification of tree covers and vehicles, such as NDVI, LiDAR intensity, planarity and entropy. By comparative analysis of the two independent approaches, the reliable and consistent feature selection for classification of trees and vehicles from LiDAR and image data could be validated and achieved, being unrelated to the classifiers.


ABSTRACT A spatiotemporal model has been developed to simulate the spread of anthracnose, initiated by infected seed, in a lupin field. The model quantifies the loss of healthy growing points of lupin in all 1-m(2) subunits of a field throughout a growing season. The development of growing points is modeled as a function of temperature using a 1-day time step, and disease-induced compensatory growth is accounted for. Dispersal of spores is simulated explicitly using Monte Carlo techniques. Spread of spores occurs during rainfall events on a 1-h time step. The distance traveled by spores is partially dependent on wind speed and is generated by adding the values selected from half-Cauchy distributions. The direction of travel of the spores is influenced by wind direction. The model has been employed to produce a theoretical assessment of damage from disease in two environments at five levels of seed infection. It was calculated that in a susceptible lupin cultivar with a 0.01% initial seed infection, anthracnose would cause approximately 15% loss of healthy growing points in a high rainfall environment in Western Australia. In a low rainfall environment, similar damage would be unlikely even with a much higher (1%) level of seed infection.


Among the α-particle emitting radionuclides, 211At is considered to be a promising radionuclide for targeted cancer therapy due to its decay properties. The range of alpha particles produced by the decay of 211At are less than 70 µm in water with a linear energy transfer between 100 and 130 keV µm−1, which are about the maximum relative biological effectiveness for heavy ions. It is important to note that at the present time, only a few of cyclotrons routinely produce 211At. The direct production method is based on the nuclear reactions 209Bi(α,2n)211At. Production of the radionuclide 211At was carried out using the MC-50 cyclotron at the Korea Institute of Radiological and Medical Sciences (KIRAMS). To ensure high beam current, the α-beam was extracted with an initial energy of 45 MeV, which was degraded to obtain the appropriate α-beam energy. The calculations of beam energy degradation were performed utilizing the MCNPX. Alumina-baked targets were prepared by heating the bismuth metal powder onto a circular cavity in a furnace. When using an Eα, av of 29.17 MeV, the very small contribution of 210At confirms the right choice of the irradiation energy to obtain a pure production of 211At isotope.


1Division of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea; 2Department of Pathology and Translational Genomics, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea; 3Samsung Genome Institute, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea; 4Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Samsung Advanced Institute for Health Sciences and Technology, Sungkyunkwan University, Seoul, Korea Background: This study explored the efficacy of lenalidomide plus rituximab for patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) including cases of secondary central nervous system (CNS) involvement and transformed follicular lymphoma (FL) in real-world context because of anti-tumor effect and blood–brain barrier permeability of lenalidomide. Methods: Twenty-four patients including relapsed or refractory DLBCL (n = 21) including seven patients with secondary CNS involvement and transformed FL (n = 3) were retrospectively analyzed. Results: Based on the best response, the complete response (CR) rate was 21% (5/24) and the overall response rate (ORR) was 38% (9/24). However, as all cases of transformed FL (n = 3) did not respond, all responders had DLBCL, and the CR and ORR rates of DLBCL were 24% (5/21) and 43% (9/21), respectively. The median number of treatment cycles was only two (range: 1–7) due to frequent occurrence of early progression, and 18 patients died and the cause of death was disease progression. The response rate was not significantly different among patients with and without secondary CNS involvement. The median post-treatment overall and progression-free survival were 7.3 and 1.8 months, respectively. Hematologic toxicities were common adverse events, but most hematologic toxicities were manageable. There were no serious infectious complications or treatment-related mortality. Conclusion: Lenalidomide plus rituximab might be a salvage therapy for relapsed or refractory DLBCL, especially in case of secondary CNS involvement. However, the addition of other agents should be considered to prolong the duration of response.


INTRODUCTION
Serum transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) level is increased in type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and certain diabetic complications are mediated by this cytokine. Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) is a prediabetic condition, and confers a risk for the development of certain diabetes-specific complications. However, no data is available regarding the alteration of TGF-β in IGT subjects. Therefore, we aimed to investigate TGF-β levels in otherwise healthy subjects with IGT.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
Thirty IGT subjects and 30 subjects relatively matched for age, sex and body mass index with normal glucose tolerance were enrolled. Subjects with overt diabetes, cardiovascular, renal or inflammatory disease, or on any medication were excluded. Relevant laboratory examinations were performed by routine methods. Assessment of TGF-β was made by a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. IGT and control subjects were compared for their clinical and laboratory parameters.

RESULTS
Serum TGF-β levels were found to be similar in IGT and normal glucose tolerance subjects (p 〈 0.05). No statistically significant correlation was found between TGF-β and other laboratory parameters, either in IGT subjects or in the whole study population.

CONCLUSIONS
Serum TGF-β is not elevated in otherwise healthy subjects with IGT. The results of our study imply that the presence of IGT alone is not sufficient to induce TGF-β elevation; and for the alteration of TGF-β, worsening of metabolic risk factors may be required.


An experiment was conducted in two insect-prone areas viz., Bangladesh Sugarcrop Research Institute (BSRI), Pabna and Regional Sugarcrop Research Station (RSRS), Thakurgaon to study the influence of weather on sugarcane mealybugs and their natural enemies during the 2013-14 cropping season. A positive linear relationship was observed between mealybugs infestation with and relative humidity 51% (R2=0.514) but a negative correlation was found with temperature and rainfall.  The infestation was higher at Thakurgaon than at Pabna during almost entire cropping season but a little higher at Pabna in November. At Pabna, the lowest infestation (6.30%) was recorded in May and the highest (34.71%) in November. At Thakurgaon, the lowest infestation (7.48%) was found in May and the highest (29.30%) in September. Results revealed that per cent loss in weight of sugarcane was 4.76 to 36.50 at 10% and 100% infestation level in Pabna. On the other hand, 6.57 to 33.55% loss of cane weight was caused at 10% and 100% infestation level in Thakurgaon. The results proved that, as expected, weight loss generally increases with a stronger level of infestation. Different natural enemies viz., parasitic wasps, ladybird beetles, hover flies, brown lacewings, spider, Cryptochaetum sp. were found to be abundant in the study plot during the month of June to August.


Attempts to understand the personal characteristics of others, in interactions with them, are complicated by the fact that one tends to find what one expects. This happens not only because processing of information is selective, but also because expectancies cause one to act in ways that elicit behavior interpretable as confirming those expectancies, even when the expectancies might have been mistaken. Studies provide ample evidence of such self-fulfilling prophecies in social interaction and are beginning to spell out the crucial steps in the process for confirming expectancies. Such studies help link the psychology of first impressions to the psychology of long-term relationships by showing how expectancies are sustained or modified through behavioral sequences that are partially determined by initial expectancies.


Heparan sulphate (HS) is an important component of the extracellular matrix and the vasculature basal laminar which functions as a barrier to the extravasation of metastatic and inflammatory cells. Cleavage of HS by endoglycosidase or heparanase activity produced by invading cells may assist in the disassembly of the extracellular matrix and basal laminar, and thereby facilitate cell migration. Heparanase activity has previously been shown to be related to the metastatic potential of murine and human melanoma cell lines [Nakajima, Irimura and Nicolson (1988) J. Cell. Biochem. 36, 157-167]. To determine heparanase activity, porcine mucosal HS was partially de-N-acetylated and re-N-acetylated with [3H]acetic anhydride to yield a radiolabelled substrate. This procedure prevented the masking of, or possible formation of, new heparanase-sensitive cleavage sites as has been observed with previous methods of radiolabelling. Heparanase activity in a variety of tissues and cell homogenates including human platelets, colonic carcinoma cells, umbilical vein endothelial cells and rat mammary adenocarcinoma cells (both metastatic and non-metastatic variants) and liver homogenates all degraded the substrate in a stepwise fashion from 18.5 to approximately 13, 8 and finally to 4.5 kDa fragments, as assessed by gel-filtration analysis, confirming the substrate as suitable for the detection of heparanase activity present in a variety of cells and tissues. A rapid quantitative assay was developed with the HS substrate using a novel method for separating degradation products from the substrate by taking advantage of the decreased affinity of the heparanase-cleaved products for the HS-binding plasma protein chicken histidine-rich glycoprotein (cHRG). Incubation mixtures were applied to cHRG-Sepharose columns, with unbound material corresponding to heparanase-degradation products. Heparanase activity was determined for a variety of human, rat and murine cell and tissue homogenates. The highly metastatic rat mammary adenocarcinoma and murine lung carcinoma cell lines had four to ten times the heparanase activity of non-metastatic variants, confirming the correlation of heparanase activity with metastatic potential. Human cancer patients had twice the serum heparanase levels of normal healthy adults. The assay will be valuable for the determination of heparanase activity from a variety of tissue and cell sources, as a diagnostic tool for the determination of heparanase potential, and for the development of specific inhibitors of heparanase activity and metastasis.


This research aims to identify the contribution of fatwa (Islamic instructions of rules) from DSN-MUI in developing the theories and practices of the Islamic economics in Indonesia. The research method used is qualitative, which consists of 116 fatwa DSN-MUI as the main subjects of study. The collected data had been analyzed using content analysis method by creating inimitable and valid data inferences related to its context. The results show that DSN-MUI is the only institution mandated by the law to establish fatwa on Islamic economics and finance, and to provide the provisions of Islamic law toward the Islamic financial institutions in carrying out their activities. Since its establishment in 1998, the roles of DSN-MUI are enormous in laying the foundations of the development of Islamic economics in Indonesia. Until the end of 2017, DSN-MUI has issued 116 fatwa on Islamic economics and finances. Even, DSN-MUI has a very important and strategic role in developing and applying sharia values in the economic field. MUI's important and strategic roles are shown from its position as a pioneer in socialization, internalization, and triggering the Islamic economic growth in Indonesia.


The article reflects the experience in the work of the manual therapy consulting-room at the Smela town hospital named after N. A. Semashko in Chernigov Province from November 1985 to December 1987 inclusive. The author presents the results of treatment of 906 outpatients. The optimal number of the manual therapy procedures during the first course was six. The procedures took place every other day. Manual therapy was administered together with massage, exercise therapy, electrophysical procedures, traction and fixation elements. The results of the treatment were good in 85.8%, satisfactory in 11.5% and bad in 2.7% of the cases.


As of 1st of April 2013 the REIT legislation of South Africa was implemented. The South African REIT structure was developed to follow international best practice. The need to convert to a REIT structure in South Africa was driven by a number of problems arising from the management structure, investor accountability, dividend pay-out policies and taxation of Property Loan Stocks and Property Unit Trusts.The South African scenario is an exceptional case, as of the top 9 global REIT markets South Africa, USA, France and the United Kingdom are the only countries that allow for conversion of listed property companies to REIT status. From these countries that allow REIT conversion South Africa is the only country that represents the developing world economies.This research examines the impact of the Implementation and conversion of Property Loan Stock (PLS's) and Property Unitut Trust (PUT's) companies to REITS on shareholder wealth. The paper examines 32 conversion of property listed firms into REITs on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. The research employs an event study which examines a) the announcement of the introduction of the REIT structure by the Johannesburg Stock Exchange and b) the announcement of individual firms to convert to REITs.This research is important as it will provide information on the impact of legislative changes to the South African Property Stocks industry. The introduction of new legislation changed the regulation of property stocks. The new REIT structure effectively changed the operating requirements of property stocks. It is therefore important to assess the link between the elimination of income tax and the increase of dividend pay-out requirements in relation to the change in shareholder wealth.


The lecture makes the case for a positional and contextualized understanding of the political economy of nationalist populism. Study of the origins of nationalist populist backlash in advanced democracies has identified a range of (often competing) explanations – from (various aspects and sources of) economic insecurities to sociocultural worries and hatreds. But we have yet to fully identify possible economic culprits or understand how they conspire with or contradict one another or more cultural or political conditions. Brian Burgoon provides such identification and understanding by outlining two key moves to improve understanding of the political economy of populism. He first describes the features and origins of economic experiences most relevant to spurring radical backlash: positional deprivations that combine over time with between-group economic suffering and insecurity. He then shows how such positional economic suffering and other economic conditions not only affect populist backlash directly but also indirectly, by shaping and interacting with socio-cultural and political developments that are often assumed to be separate from economic experience.


We performed field study of Rooks' repellence by sonic repellent within 2016-2017 in Kulunda Steppe (Altai Krai). We studied the impact of sonic device equipped with alarm/stress Rooks calls and evaluated degree of bird response towards them. We suggested that use of specie-specific stress or alarm calls with high degree of domestic relevance scare birds even from the roosting and feeding habitats.


The modern prestressed concrete bridges have the characteristics of large-span, high concrete strength, reinforced volume prestress and linear shape complexity. The structure bearing capacity and durability are considerable impacted by concrete creep, such as stresses redistribution and deflections increase. Some of the prediction concrete creep models that are being widely used at present are briefly introduced in this paper. Based on the analysis of existing research achievement, for the aim of improving the calculation accuracy of creep effects in bridge structures, several main problems that should be paid attention to in concrete creep analysis are pointed out from four aspects: (1) in design stage, the reasonable creep prediction model should be selected in accord with the local building materials and environment conditions; (2) during the analysis of creep effects, the initial stresses state and the stresses redistribution should be attended; (3) the reliability of prestress loss calculation should be considered in analysis of concrete creep effects; (4) the differences between normal construction materials and that of new types should be taken into account in concrete creep analysis.


The rate of alloimmunization to platelet‐specific antigens associated with platelet glycoproteins (GPs) IIb‐IIIa and Ib/IX was studied in 293 multiply transfused thrombocytopenic patients. Antibodies to platelet‐ specific antigens were measured with a solid‐phase assay using platelet GP IIb‐IIIa or Ib/IX as the antigenic targets. Nine patients were found to have antibodies to platelet GP IIb‐IIIa, and no patients had antibodies to platelet GP Ib/IX. In six of these nine patients, the specificity of the antibody was shown by using GP IIb‐IIIa from donors with different platelet‐specific antigen phenotypes. In the remaining three patients with antibodies to platelet GP IIb‐IIIa, no specificity could be identified. These patients had autoimmune thrombocytopenia in association with lymphoma. The alloimmunization rate to platelet‐ specific antigens associated with GP IIb‐IIIa was 2 percent, whereas the rate of alloimmunization to HLA antigens was 23 percent. Of the patients alloimmunized to HLA antigens, 9 percent also had antibodies to platelet‐specific antigens. A poor response to HLA‐identical platelet transfusions was observed only in those patients with positive assays in the solid‐phase test. These results suggest that the incidence of antibodies to platelet‐specific antigens carried on GP IIb‐ IIIa is low. Platelet‐specific antibodies may be found more frequently in patients alloimmunized to HLA antigens than in those not so alloimmunized.


The influence of the fiber/matrix interlayers on the mechanical properties of T800-HB fiber (a kind of carbon fiber) (the fibrous is three-dimensional four-directional braided) reinforced silicon carbide (SiC) matrix composites has been evaluated in this paper. The composites were fabricated through PIP process, and SiC layers were deposited as fiber/matrix interlayers by the isothermal CVD process. Fiber/matrix debonding and relatively long fiber pullouts were observed on the fracture surfaces. The mechanical properties were investigated using three-point bending test and single-edge notched beam test. The T800-HB/SiC composites exhibited high mechanical strength, and the flexural strength and fracture toughness were 511.5MPa and 20.8MPa•m1/2, respectively.


Emerging diseases are the second death cause in the world. That entails a great loss of both human and animal lives as well as economic resources. A key process in the emergence of many diseases is the pathogen jump from a reservoir host to a new host, called host jump. Despite the importance of host jumps to understand disease epidemiology and evolution, very little is known on the factors that affect the success of this process. The aim of this project is to identify such ecological and genetic factors. To achieve this purpose, Rabies virus (RABV) has been used as a model as it can infect a wide range of hosts. The project is divided into three main parts: i) phylogenetic analysis of the RABV population and estimation of virus host jump frequency, ii) construction of a data base containing information about ecological and genetic factors potentially involved in host jumps, and iii) identification of the factors involved in host jumps. Firstly, 3,665 RABV nucleoprotein sequences from 48 hosts were compiled in order to reconstruct the virus phylogeny. A Maximum Likelihood tree was inferred from these nucleoprotein sequences and NST analyses were computed. The results obtained from these analyses showed that the RABV population is genetically structured according to host species. Subsequently, RABV host jumps were modelled as a stochastic diffusion process among a set of discrete states (host species) using the Bayesian Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method. The model was divided into internal nodes and external nodes, so we could distinguish between the successful host jumps that have remained through the RABV evolutionary history (internal nodes) and the unsuccessful host jumps, or spill-over jumps, that appear only temporarily in the virus evolutionary history (external nodes). Secondly, information regarding 16 different host ecological factors from the utilized 48 host species was gathered from diverse publications and public databases. To do so, we created a tool that allowed us to efficiently access all that information by using SPARQL queries. Three host and viral genetic variables that were calculated from either the viral nucleoprotein or the hosts' cytochrome b sequences were included. All 19 factors considered in this database had enough variability to be treated as potentially predictors of the host jump process. Collinearity analyses (Principal Component Analysis) were performed in order to detect self-correlations between factors, which resulted in a final set of 16 potential predictors. Finally, since RABV populations were genetically structured according to the host, statistical analyses (Generalized Lineal Models) were performed using the host jump and spillover frequencies as response variables and the 16 independent factors as predictor variables. These analyses identified three factors as main predictors of successful host jumps: host genetic diversity, virus genetic diversity and number of ecosystems inhabited by each host. Similar analyses yielded four factors as good predictors of spill-over jumps: host population density, overlap between the geographic distribution of the reservoir and the receptor hosts, RABV prevalence and host genetic diversity. In conclusion, the results presented in this project provide evidence that even though ecological factors are important in the host jump process, genetic factors are decisive in the success of this jump. Moreover, this project highlights the importance of studying both successful hosts jump and spill-over processes as two different but complementary processes and empathizes the importance of considering the combined effect of all factors that could be involved in these processes.


The aesthetics of a product's shape has become an important factor to increase the value of mature products. However, such emotional quality regarding the customer's need is difficult to capture due to its subjectivity. To address this issue, we have previously proposed shape generation methods that help the customers to externalize their image of product aesthetics into a shape. The previous methods enable one to generate design samples that fit the customer's conscious image of a product shape based on his/her fixed sensitivity. However, customers also have latent sensitivities of which they are not aware. In this paper, we propose a shape generation system that enables the user to exchange design solutions and viewpoints with others. The aim of sharing solutions is to evoke the latent sensitivities by showing the unexpected viewpoints of others. To generate design samples, we improve the previous system in which the users generate design samples based on favored features to which they pay attention. We conduct a shape generation experiment using the proposed system to verify the effectiveness of exchanging solutions and viewpoints with others. We compared the effectiveness of self-solutions, which are generated without the exchange, with co-solutions, which are generated with the exchange. The result suggests that the cosolutions are more likely to be effective as to their preference and unpredictable quality. We observed certain effective patterns in the design process : All co-solutions generated by referring to unpredicted topological shapes produced effective results. Using such shapes, the subjects are able to discover new viewpoints for the target design concept. The stated metaphorical viewpoints of others also help to introduce such new viewpoints.


BACKGROUND
Essential tremor (ET) is one of the most common movement disorders. Treatment is based primarily on pharmacological agents. On this basis, although primidone and propranolol are well-established treatments in clinical practice, they could be ineffective in 25% to 55% of patients and can produce serious adverse events (AEs) in a large percentage of individuals. For these reasons, evaluating treatment alternatives for ET may be a worthwhile pursuit. Alprazolam has been suggested as a potentially useful agent for treatment of individuals with ET, but its efficacy and safety are uncertain.

OBJECTIVES
PrimaryTo assess the efficacy and safety of alprazolam in the treatment of individuals with ET. SecondaryTo examine effects of alprazolam treatment on the quality of life of people with ET.

SEARCH METHODS
We carried out a systematic search without language restrictions to identify all relevant trials. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), MEDLINE (January 1966 to September 2015), EMBASE (January 1988 to September 2015), the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (1999 to September 2015), ClinicalTrials.gov (1997 to September 2015) and the World Health Organiza tion (WHO) International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) (2004 to September 2015). We handsearched grey literature and examined the reference lists of identified studies and reviews.

SELECTION CRITERIA
We included all randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of alprazolam versus placebo or any other treatment. We included studies in which ET was diagnosed according to accepted and validated diagnostic criteria. We excluded studies that included patients presenting with secondary forms of tremor or reporting only neurophysiological parameters for the pur p ose of assessing outcomes.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS
Two review authors independently collected and extracted data using a data collection form. We assessed risk of bias and the body of evidence. We used inverse variance methods for continuous outcomes and measurement scales. We compared differences between treatment groups as mean differences. We used Review Manager software for management and analysis of data.

MAIN RESULTS
We included in this review one trial that compared alprazolam versus placebo (24 participants). It was judged to have high overall risk of bias. We graded the overall quality of evidence as very low. Compared with those given placebo, participants treated with alprazolam showed a significant reduction in tremor severity (mean difference (MD) -0.75, 95% confidence interval (CI) -0.83 to -0.67). Nine alprazolam-treated participants (75%) developed AEs, mainly represented by sedation (50%), constipation (17%) and dry mouth (9%). No participants in the alprazolam group and no p articipants in the placebo group discontinued treatment and dropped out of the study.

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS
Currently available data reveal evidence insufficient for assessment of the efficacy and safety of alprazolam treatment for individuals with ET.


Magnetotransport experiments on Weyl semimetals are essential for investigating the intriguing topological and low-energy properties of Weyl nodes. If the transport direction is perpendicular to the applied magnetic field, experiments have shown a large positive magnetoresistance. In this work we present a theoretical scattering matrix approach to transversal magnetotransport in a Weyl node. Our numerical method confirms and goes beyond the existing perturbative analytical approach by treating disorder exactly. It is formulated in real space and is applicable to mesoscopic samples as well as in the bulk limit. In particular, we study the case of clean and strongly disordered samples.


Arrhythmia is an abnormal heart rhythm, a common clinical problem in cardiology. Long-term or severe arrhythmia may lead to stroke and sudden cardiac death. The electrocardiogram (ECG) is the most commonly used tool to diagnose arrhythmia. However, the traditional diagnosis relies on experts for manual interpretation, which is time-consuming and laborious. In recent years, many automatic arrhythmia detection methods have emerged due to advancements in deep learning. These methods can reduce manual intervention and improve diagnostic efficiency. However, extracting useful features from raw ECG signals for arrhythmia detection is still challenging due to the low frequency of ECG signals and noise distribution. In this paper, we propose a novel hidden attention residual network (HA-ResNet) for automated arrhythmia classification. In this model, the one-dimensional ECG signals are first converted into two-dimensional images and fed into an embedding layer to obtain the relevant shallow features in ECG. Then, a hidden attention layer combining Squeeze-and-Excitation (SE) block and Bidirectional Convolutional LSTM (BConvLSTM) is used to further capture the deep Spatio-temporal features. We evaluate our HA-ResNet on two public datasets and achieve F1 scores of 96.0%, 96.7%, and 87.6% on 2 s segments, 5 s segments, and 10 s segments, respectively, which significantly outperform the existing state-of-the-art approaches. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness and generalization of our method.


We propose a special solution of Einstein equations in the general Vaidya form representing a dynamical black hole having horizon cross-sections with toroidal topology. The concrete model enables us to study for the first time dynamical horizons with toroidal topology, its area law, and the question of matter flux inside the horizon, without using a cut-and-paste technology to construct the solution.


Active stock trading by individual investors is hard to explain, as investors who trade more actively tend to perform worse. We investigate to what extent gambling motives can explain excessive and speculative trading. We use five different proxies for gambling motives, ranging from fairly innocent, such as aspiring a small chance to become rich, to quite severe, namely compulsive gambling. We find that especially compulsive gambling can explain frequent trading by individual investors well, in addition to indicators for recreational gambling (e.g., in casinos). Further, investors driven by gambling motives tend to be in a significantly worse financial situation. JEL Classification: G11; G02; L83


Cloud computing is an emerging evolutionary computing model that provides highly scalable services over highspeed Internet on a pay-as-usage model. However, cloud-based solutions still have not been widely deployed in some sensitive areas, such as banking and healthcare. The lack of widespread development is related to users' concern that their confidential data or privacy would leak out in the cloud's outsourced environment. To address this problem, we propose a novel active data-centric framework to ultimately improve the transparency and accountability of actual usage of the users' data in cloud. Our data-centric framework emphasizes "active" feature which packages the raw data with active properties that enforce data usage with active defending and protection capability. To achieve the active scheme, we devise the Triggerable Data File Structure (TDFS). Moreover, we employ the zero-knowledge proof scheme to verify the request's identification without revealing any vital information. Our experimental outcomes demonstrate the efficiency, dependability, and scalability of our framework.


An approach of control design using fuzzy estimators (FEs) is proposed for quantum systems with uncertainties. Two types of quantum control problems are considered: 1) control of a pure-state quantum system in the presence of uncertainties and 2) control design of quantum systems with initial mixed states and uncertainties. For the first type of tasks, a partial feedback control scheme with an FE is presented to design controllers. In this scheme, an FE is trained to estimate the quantum state for feedback control of a quantum system, and controlled projective measurement is used to assist in controlling the system. For the second type of quantum control tasks, a probabilistic fuzzy estimator (PFE) is trained to estimate the quantum state for control design of a quantum system with an initial mixed state, and a corresponding control algorithm is proposed to design a control law that drives the system from the mixed state to a target pure state. Two examples of two-spin-1/2 systems are also presented and analyzed to demonstrate the process of control design and potential applications of the proposed approach.


Abstract A multiple linear regression analysis of the ERA-40 dataset for the period 1979–2001 has been used to study the influence of the 11-yr solar cycle on atmospheric temperature and zonal winds. Volcanic, North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), ENSO, and quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) signatures are also presented. The solar signal is shown to be readily distinguishable from the volcanic signal. The main solar signal is a statistically significant positive response (i.e., warmer in solar maximum) of 1.75 K over the equator with peak values at 43 km and a reversed signal of similar magnitude at high latitudes that is seasonally dependent. Consistent with this is a statistically significant zonal wind response of up to 6 m s−1 in the subtropical upper stratosphere/lower mesosphere that is also seasonally dependent. The wind anomalies are westerly/easterly in solar maximum/minimum. In addition, there is a statistically significant temperature response in the subtropical lower stratosphere that shows similar...


Seabird populations are a valuable and accessible indicator of marine health: population changes have been linked with fish stock levels, climate change, and pollution. Understanding the development of particular colonies requires detailed data, but manual collection methods are labour intensive and error prone. Our work is concerned with development of computer vision algorithms to support autonomous visual monitoring of cliff-nesting nesting seabirds, and collection of behavioural data on a scale not feasible using manual methods.

This work has been conducted at the University of Lincoln (UK), in collaboration with the Centre for Computational Ecology and Environmental Science (CEES) at Microsoft Research Cambridge. Our work has been ongoing for around 12 months, and focussed on robust image processing techniques capable of detecting and localising individual birds in image and video data. In our case, we are using data captured from a population of Common Guillemots (Uria aalge) resident on Skomer Island (UK) during the summer of 2010. This work represents a unique adaptation of computer vision technology, and we present a discussion of current and future technical challenges, processing techniques which we have developed, and some preliminary evaluation and results. In particular, we consider techniques based on feature based detection of birds and their body parts using gradient image features.


The adsorption behaviors of glycine on diamond(001) are systematically investigated by first-principles calculations.We have considered all possible adsorption configurations without a surface dangling bond and give a quantitative analysis for the relationship between the deviation of carbon bond angle and adsorption energy. We found that a smaller distortion of carbon covalent bond angle results in a more stable adsorption structure, and the most stable adsorption has a benzene-ringlike structure with the highest adsorption energy of 5.11 e V per molecule and the minimum distortion of carbon covalent bond angle.


European roaming rates are not set by market forces because when a competitive market did not evolve in Europe, European legislators stepped in to set rates by legislative fiat. This paper argues that legislators' tendency to set rates cautiously led to high wholesale prices that undermined smaller operators' ability to put roaming-free offers into the market. Operators with larger footprints are less constrained by wholesale pricing since more roaming traffic is kept on-net. In this context, the outright abolition of retail roaming charges without wholesale backstops bestows a competitive advantage on larger operators. The paper notes the experience of the US where roaming persists for all operators but retail customers can avoid roaming charges subject to significant cut off limits. The effective wholesale roaming rate in the US is estimated at just above 1 eurocent per minute for voice while rates are observable for national roaming in Europe of 1 eurocent for voice, and 0.2 eurocent for data and 0.2 eurocent for SMS events. It is proposed that such rates would be appropriate for wholesale roaming in Europe and that these rates would facilitate pan-EU retail offers such as those observable in the US. Unlike the US, European operators charge each other termination rates to carry calls from other networks. This creates another barrier to pan-EU retail offers and creates tensions (and transfers) from low cost termination markets to high cost termination markets. This inconsistency of approach must be addressed if the elimination of intra-EU roaming is to be possible. It is suggested that low but consistent termination rates would be required to go with the low wholesale roaming rates and that these rates would need the speed and consistency of application delivered through a Regulation. The extension of retail caps to international calls and SMS is unwarranted and may have adverse effects on network valuation. Such a major policy initiative would benefit from a public consultation.


This paper presents an original variable gain PI (VGPI) controller for speed control of a direct torque neuro fuzzy controlled (DTNFC) induction motor drive. First, a VGPI speed controller is designed to replace the classical PI controller in a conventional direct torque controlled induction motor drive. Its simulated performances are then compared to those of a classical PI controller. Then, a direct torque neuro fuzzy control (DTNFC) for a voltage source PWM inverter fed induction motor drive is presented. This control scheme uses the stator flux amplitude and the electromagnetic torque errors through an adaptive NF inference system (ANFIS) to generate a voltage space vector (reference voltage) which is used by a space vector modulator to generate the inverter switching states. In this paper a modified ANFIS structure is proposed. This structure generates the desired reference voltage by acting on both the amplitude and the angle of its components. Simulation of the DTNFCinduction motor drive using VGPI for speed control shows promising results. The motor reaches the reference speed rapidly and without overshoot, load disturbances are rapidly rejected and variations of some of the motor parameters are fairly well dealt with.


Background We previously showed that the long-acting beta agonist (LABA) salmeterol as inhalation powder or metered-dose inhaler improves lung-function parameters assessed by impulse oscillometry (IOS) in 2- to 5-year-old children with reversible-airway disease within 15 minutes. Objective We studied 12- to 45-year-olds with mild persistent asthma in order to compare the onset and extent of peripheral airway effects following the first dose and after 4 weeks dosing with two inhaled corticosteroid (ICS)/LABA combinations: fluticasone propionate/salmeterol 115/21 and budesonide/formoterol 160/4.5. Methods Thirty subjects with mild persistent asthma using only an as-needed short-acting beta-agonist (albuterol) who had at least a 40% change in integrated low-frequency reactance postalbuterol were selected and randomized to receive either fluticasone propionate/salmeterol or budesonide/formoterol (15 subjects each). We collected three to six IOS replicates at baseline, at 5, 20, 40, 60, 120, and 240 minutes postdose at randomization, and after 4 weeks of twice-daily dosing. Blinded investigators calculated IOS frequency-dependent resistance and reactance (R5–R20 and AX), indicative of small-airway dysfunction, and also estimated the peripheral airway resistance (Rp) and peripheral airway compliance (Cp), using a respiratory-impedance model. Results At randomization visits, onset of action was detected as early as 5 minutes (t-test, P < 0.05) after fluticasone propionate/salmeterol by Cp, and within 5 minutes after budesonide/formoterol by R5–R20, AX, Rp, and Cp. However, after 4 weeks of dosing, only Rp was significantly different (from 60 to 120 minutes) after fluticasone propionate/salmeterol, while R5–R20, AX, Rp, and Cp were not significantly different within 240 minutes after budesonide/formoterol. Conclusion These two ICS/LABA combinations initially improved the peripheral airway function of 12- to 45-year-old asthmatics significantly in about 5 minutes or less, as measured by R5–R20, AX, Rp, and/or Cp. After regular dosing for 4 weeks, pre- to postdose differences in these parameters had diminished significantly due to improved predose status of peripheral airways. Single dosing with ICS/LABA combinations in mild persistent asthma improves small-airway function, and the effect is maintained over a 12-hour interval by regular use for 4 weeks.


Acute myocardial infarction with ST-segment elevation (STEMI) is rare in adolescents and its pathogenesis is unclear. Growing evidence shows an association between the prothrombotic state and acute STEMI. Prothrombotic genetic factors may be involved in the pathogenesis of STEMI. We present a case of an adolescent with acute STEMI who had multiple prothrombotic gene polymorphisms: in the beta fibrinogen, methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase and cholesteryl ester transfer protein genes, as well as genotypes in plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and human platelet antigen type-1. He had normal coronary arteries with catheterinduced spasm and was treated with a calcium antagonist and aspirin.


With an emphasis on problem solving, this book introduces the basic principles and fundamental concepts of computational modeling. It emphasizes reasoning and conceptualizing problems, the elementary mathematical modeling, and the implementation using computing concepts and principles. Examples are included that demonstrate the computation and visualization of the implemented models. The author provides case studies, along with an overview of computational models and their development. The first part of the text presents the basic concepts of models and techniques for designing and implementing problem solutions. It applies standard pseudo-code constructs and flowcharts for designing models. The second part covers model implementation with basic programming constructs using MATLAB, Octave, and FreeMat. Aimed at beginning students in computer science, mathematics, statistics, and engineering, Introduction to Elementary Computational Modeling: Essential Concepts, Principles, and Problem Solving focuses on fundamentals, helping the next generation of scientists and engineers hone their problem solving skills.


Ribonucleotide reductase (RNR) is the enzyme responsible for de novo synthesis of deoxyribonucleotides, needed for both synthesis and repair of cellular DNA. The RNRs known so far are divided into three distinct classes; I, II and III. The conventional class I enzyme is composed of two separate subunits. The larger R1 subunit contains the active site, whereas the smaller R2 subunit contains a system specialized in forming, transporting and stabilizing a tyrosyl free radical. Recently a new class Ic RNR was discovered in the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis. It differs from the conventional class Ia and b RNRs in that it has a phenylalanine at the otherwise conserved tyrosyl radical harboring residue in its R2 subunit. Additionally the metal cluster shows some unusual aspects, of which the most striking perhaps is that the most red-ox active form is a mixed Mn-Fe cluster, instead of the normal Fe-Fe counterpart. In this work several biochemical and biophysical methods were used to study activation and inhibition mechanisms in RNR from various class I species. The results from studying the oxygen activation confirm the role of the iron ligand E238 as a key residue for controlling the outcome of the reaction in E. coli protein R2. The finding of a stable sulfinyl radical after reconstitution of the R2 Y177F/I263C variant from mouse indicates that sulfinyl radicals may possibly be considered as stabilized forms of very short-lived thiyl radicals, proposed to be important in the radical chemistry of RNR. The investigation of the role of the proposed radical transfer pathway during chemical reduction of the iron/radical center shows that no specific pathway is required for the reduction of protein R2 from mouse. The results from inhibition studies of C. trachomatis demonstrate that the same mechanism of inhibition functions on this new class Ic RNR, however less efficiently than in class Ia and b.


: There is as yet no specific treatment for viral hepatitis, and in an uncomplicated course no further action apart from moderate bedrest is necessary. The patient should however, be isolated in a special ward. In fulminant hepatic failure the benefit of glucocorticoid therapy is still controverted and appears to depend on an early beginning. Treatment with HBsAg-rich human serum in fulminant hepatitis B is still under evaluation. In chronic active hepatitis the administration of azathioprine in combination with glucocorticoids is highly effective, and it appears to be irrelevant whether HBsAg is present in plasma or not; however, the best results have been achieved in "lupoid" hepatitis. The use of transfer factor, laevamisol or thymosin to suppress T-cell action on antibody production of the B-cells cannot yet be finally evaluated with respect to its effectiveness in chronic active hepatitis. Prevention is of major importance in solving the problems involved in hepatitis B infections. Recent experience with active immunization using HBsAg-rich sera or purified formalin inactivated HBsAg preparations suggest the possibility of successful vaccination against hepatitis B in the near future, but the precondition for obtaining sufficient quantities of vaccine is to find suitable culture media for the virus.


In this paper, we construct a Q-operator as a trace of a representation of the universal R-matrix of U q (sl 2 ) over an infinite-dimensional auxiliary space. This auxiliary space is a four-parameter generalization of the q-oscillator representations used previously. We derive generalized T-Q relations in which three of these parameters shift. After a suitable restriction of parameters, we give an explicit expression for the Q-operator of the 6-vertex model and show the connection with Baxter's expression for the central block of his corresponding operator.


This work presents results that show how direct digital synthesis (DDS) techniques can be extended to produce frequency modulated (FM) waveforms as well as many types of digitally modulated waveforms, such as PSK or QAM. We show how digitally modulated waveforms can be efficiently synthesized from tables of pre-computed samples. This work also reports on the implementation of these algorithms in a software radio system.