Abstract Social reproduction and women's unpaid reproductive labour are integral both to capitalist production and class relations, and to international and national political economies. Based on an original theoretical framework that combines a Thompsonian historical materialist class approach, a Marxist-feminist social reproduction approach and a feminist political economy approach to the everyday, this article suggests that productive and reproductive work should be analysed as an integrated process and everyday experience of social life, and in relation to each other. This argument is then applied to the case of Turkey to indicate the interplays between the productive and reproductive realms at the national political economy level and the significant role of the state in shaping the reciprocal relationships of production and reproduction. Building on an ethnographic extended case study of women garment workers carried out over 14 months, it then analyses the interrelatedness of production and reproduction at the everyday level, within women's daily experiences and from their own perspectives. Overall, the article argues that the relations and socio-material conditions of production and reproduction are constitutive of each other at the macro and micro political-economic levels and should be analysed from a comprehensive, relational approach in their historical and geographical context and in dialogue with the everyday.


Security is an essential requirement in mobile ad hoc network (MANETs). Compared to wired networks, MANETs are more vulnerable to security attacks due to the lack of a trusted centralized authority and limited resources. Attacks on ad hoc networks can be classified as passive and active attacks, depending on whether the normal operation of the network is disrupted or not. In this paper, we are describing the all prominent attacks described in literature in a consistent manner to provide a concise comparison on attack types. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first paper that studies all the existing attacks on MANETs.


It is commonly maintained that Belgium held less appeal for intellectuals in exile between the two wars than the Netherlands or France. This phenomenon has not been studied in Belgium extensively enough to fully verify or explain it. We do know, however, that a relatively smaller number of Jews were deported from Belgium during the occupation than from the Netherlands or France. Would it be fair to hypothesize, then, that Jewish intellectuals were safer there, or in any event had a better chance of surviving, than in neighbouring countries? Could more survival strategies be deployed in Belgium than elsewhere? My focus in this paper is on Hans Handovsky (1888-1959), a German chemist of Austrian Jewish origin, who emigrated to Ghent in 1934 and returned to Heidelberg in 1957. By examining his letters to the two Flemish writers August Vermeylen and Fernand Toussaint van Boelaere, we can shed light on how he managed to survive the German occupation. We show how the assistance of non-Jewish intellectuals could contribute to saving a Jewish intellectual.


Mozart's Ghosts traces the many lives of this great composer that emerged following his early death in 1791. Crossing national boundaries and traversing two hundred years-worth of interpretation and reception, author Mark Everist investigates how Mozart's past status can be understood as part of today's veneration. Everist forges new paths to reach the composer, examining a number of ways in which Western culture has absorbed the idea of Mozart, how various cultural agents have appropriated, deployed, and exploited Mozart toward both authoritarian and subversive ends, and how the figure of Mozart and his impact illuminate the cultural history of the last two centuries in Europe, England, and America. Modern reverence for the composer is conditioned by earlier responses to his music, and Everist argues that such earlier responses are more complex than allowed by a simple "reception studies" model. Closely linking nine case studies in an innovative cultural and theoretical framework, the book approaches the developing reputation of the composer from death to the present day along three paths: "Phantoms of the Opera" deals with stage music, "Holy Spirits" addresses the trope of the sacred, and "Specters at the Feast" considers the impact of Mozart's music in literature and film. Mozart's Ghosts adeptly moves the study of Mozart reception away from hagiography and closer to cultural and historical criticism, and will be avidly read by Mozart scholars and students of eighteenth-century music history, as well as literary critics, historians of philosophy and aesthetics, and cultural historians in general.


The floorings used in residential buildings are resistive towards carrying the voltage and due to which the voltage induced in human body does not get discharged by just coming in contact with the flooring. The Present work focuses on using the conductive materials in floorings so that the person coming in contact with it will get benefit of earthing in residential buildings itself instead of going outside for getting in contact with earth. Electronics firms adopt the conductive or static dissipative type of flooring system to reduce impacts of electrostatic charge. Static charge in human body goes on increasing because of electronic gadgets and appliances and even small movement on floor. There are different conductive materials available in market used in various industries which can also be used for residential buildings for benefits.


Alternative splicing (AS) is one of the major post-transcriptional regulation mechanisms that contributes to plant responses to various environmental perturbations. Darkness and heat are two common abiotic factors affecting plant growth, yet the involvement and regulation of AS in the plant responses to these signals remain insufficiently examined. In this study, we subjected Arabidopsis seedlings to 6 h of darkness or heat stress and analyzed their transcriptome through short-read RNA sequencing. We revealed that both treatments altered the transcription and AS of a subset of genes yet with different mechanisms. Dark-regulated AS events were found enriched in photosynthesis and light signaling pathways, while heat-regulated AS events were enriched in responses to abiotic stresses but not in heat-responsive genes, which responded primarily through transcriptional regulation. The AS of splicing-related genes (SRGs) was susceptible to both treatments; while dark treatment mostly regulated the AS of these genes, heat had a strong effect on both their transcription and AS. PCR analysis showed that the AS of the Serine/Arginine-rich family gene SR30 was reversely regulated by dark and heat, and heat induced the upregulation of multiple minor SR30 isoforms with intron retention. Our results suggest that AS participates in plant responses to these two abiotic signals and reveal the regulation of splicing regulators during these processes.


BACKGROUND
In Taiwan, regulatory bodies mandate that preceptor training programs comprise six mandatory topics used by all teaching hospitals. These programs have little empirical justification. This study explores the training needs of preceptors from the viewpoints of both preceptors and preceptees.

METHOD
Investigators used qualitative methods to conduct 17 focus group interviews with 63 preceptors and 24 preceptees from five hospitals in Taiwan. A constant comparative method was used to analyze the data and extract themes and subthemes from participants' experiences.

RESULTS
Seven themes were extracted from both preceptor teaching experiences and preceptee learning experiences. Analysis of the empirical data showed that the six mandated topics do not meet the needs of preceptors. This study also documented the concept of "nurses eating their young" for the first time in Taiwan.

CONCLUSION
The findings of this study may serve as a reference for redesigning preceptor training programs in Taiwan.


SALIVARY mucocoele is a collection of saliva in a cavity lined by granulation tissue (Hedlund and Fossum 2007) that occurs following disruption of a salivary gland or its duct. Neoplasia, sialoliths, trauma and glandular foreign bodies have been reported as causes of mucocoeles in dogs (Trumpatori and others 2007). Mucocoeles most frequently affect the sublingual salivary gland (Spreull and Head 1967, Weber and others 1986, Smith 2005), but mucocoeles affecting the parotid and zygomatic gland have been reported (Schmidt and Betts 1978, Bellenger and Simpson 1992).The zygomatic salivary gland is a globular or pyramidal structure that lies in the rostral orbit lateral to the part of the maxilla that contains the roots of the upper molar teeth. It is surrounded by fat and has a thin, poorly developed capsule (Evans 2003).

Bellenger and Simpson (1992) cited trauma secondary to dental procedures, abscess drainage and tumour removal as causes of four mucocoeles in a case series of 60 dogs, although the type of dental procedure was not recorded. Only one zygomatic salivary mucoceole was diagnosed in this case series, and the affected animal was euthanased due to an underlying aggressive aetiology. Schmidt and Betts (1978) reported two cases of zygomatic salivary mucoceole in dogs and reviewed an additional two cases, all secondary to non-specific trauma. A single case of zygomatic salivary mucocoele has been reported in a cat, although the causal factor was not elucidated (Speakman and others 1997).

This short …


Cell phones have become an integral part of everyday life. As cell phone usage has become more widespread, concerns have increased regarding the harmful effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation from these devices. The current study was undertaken to investigate the effects of the emitted radiation by cell phones on testicular histomorphometry and biochemical analyses. Adult male Wistar rats weighing 180–200 g were randomly allotted to control, group A (switched off mode exposure), group B (1‐hr exposure), group C (2‐hr exposure) and group D (3‐hr exposure). The animals were exposed to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation of cell phone for a period of 28 days. Histomorphometry, biochemical and histological investigations were carried out. The histomorphometric parameters showed no significant change (p < .05) in the levels of germinal epithelial diameter in all the experimental groups compared with the control group. There was no significant change (p < .05) in cross‐sectional diameter of all the experimental groups compared with the control group. Group D rats showed a significant decrease (p ˂ .05) in lumen diameter compared with group B rats. There was an uneven distribution of germinal epithelial cells in groups B, C and D. However, there was degeneration of the epithelia cells in group D when compared to the control and group B rats. Sera levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD), which are markers of reactive oxygen species, significantly increased (MDA) and decreased (SOD), respectively, in all the experimental groups compared with the control group. Also sera levels of gonadotropic hormones (FSH, LH and testosterone) significantly decreased (p < .05) in groups C and D compared with the control group. The study demonstrates that chronic exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic radiation of cell phone leads to defective testicular function that is associated with increased oxidative stress and decreased gonadotropic hormonal profile.


The Battle of Marawi which continued from 23 May 2017 to 23 October 2017, took place in Marawi city, the capital of Lanao del Sur province in the Philippines. As an aftermath of the terror attack, the town was left in ruins with 95% of the structures within the four square kilometers of the main battle area heavily damaged or completely collapsed. 3,152 buildings were utterly destroyed, and 2,145 buildings were partially or heavily damaged due to the five-month heavy bombardment during the battle. Government estimates have placed the number of displaced residents at 200,000. These people are in urgent need of housing. However, it is almost impossible for them to get loans from commercial banks due to the credit risk. In this study, we are proposing a sustainable model which will assist the residents in rebuilding or renovating their houses with a unique model of financing, which adapts to a waqf and zakat system. This paper proposes a sustainable model which refers to the practices implemented in the history of the Muslim world, namely waqf model that existed during Ottoman times in the 18th century and onwards known as Waqf to Release the Indebted Prisoners to suggest an innovative solution based on waqf to cover a Non-Performing Loans. The study also investigates earlier text on debt from Al-Majalla Book IV: Transfer of Debt as well as existing fatawa on the implacability of the model without contradicting the rules of Shariah.


You can tell a field is reaching maturity when its first textbook is written. One of the challenges in writing a textbook on such a leading-edge and active topic as evolutionary robotics [17], is sorting through the wealth of new ideas and current research and determining what material is sufficiently established to include and what is still in the realm of speculation, yet to withstand proof or refutation. Invariably, some exciting new ideas are left out in the process, but Stefano Nolfi and Dario Floreano make a good job of this task. It is especially helpful that the authors are themselves pioneers in the field, and their own groundbreaking work helped shape its progress and achievements. The result is a well-written and well-balanced book, containing both theoretical principles and experimental support, as well as practical advice from over 10 years of experience. This is one of those books from which you learn much more than you initially set out to—in many places it digresses to elaborate on by-topics and other fields, providing an overall well-rounded account of evolutionary design of physical robotic control systems, with the two-wheeled Khepera robot as its main pedagogical platform. The entry cost for outsiders is low, and I would certainly use this book for teaching the topic in a graduate-level course. Here I will outline the main topics covered by the book and add some high-level criticism where I believe certain important assumptions can be challenged. These notes are equally directed at the field as the book itself reflects the state of the art. Specifically, I will challenge the overwhelming focus on evolution of brain rather than brain and body, or robot as a whole, as evolution does in nature. Second, I will challenge the presumption that evolution in physical reality is critically important over evolution in physical simulation (this is far from settled [7, 15]). Third, and most importantly, I question the ability of current evolutionary robotics techniques to scale to solve more complex tasks. Scaling is at the crux of success of evolutionary methods and cannot be taken for granted, as the history of AI has taught us more than once before [16]. The spirit conveyed by the subtitle of this book—the biology, intelligence, and technology of self-organizing machines—captures the essence of an exciting new paradigm of machine design by self-organization. But the authors quickly regress to a much narrower view of design of robot controllers:


Background: The long-term implications of components separation for the lateral oblique and rectus muscles remain unknown. The authors hypothesized that recreation of the tendinous insertion of the linea alba through components separation results in expansion of the rectus muscle with potential atrophy of the external obliques. Methods: The authors conducted a retrospective study analyzing preoperative and long-term postoperative computed tomographic scans for consecutive patients undergoing bilateral components separation at a single institution over a 5-year period. Standardized measurements (area, width, and thickness) were recorded for the rectus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique, and transversus abdominis at the L3-L4 level on axial imaging. Results: Twenty-eight patients with a mean time to follow-up computed tomographic scan of 17.4 ± 1.6 months were reviewed. After reconstruction of the linea alba, the right and left rectus muscles significantly increased in area (right, 38.8 ± 6.3 percent; left, 35.7 ± 6.6 percent; p < 0.0001) and width (right, 51.8 ± 9.9 percent; left, 39.9 ± 7.4 percent; p < 0.0001) while decreasing in thickness (right, –17.8 ± 7.8 percent; left, –12.8 ± 5.0 percent; p ⩽ 0.02). The right and left external oblique muscles significantly decreased in area (right, –10.7 ± 4.7 percent; left, –8.92 ± 4.01 percent; p ⩽ 0.03). In contrast, the internal oblique (right, 21.6 ± 4.9 percent; left, 16.4 ± 4.5 percent; p ⩽ 0.001) and transversus abdominis (right, 23.0 ± 4.7 percent; left, 24.2 ± 6.2 percent; p < 0.0001) muscles increased significantly in area following surgery. Conclusions: Reestablishing the midline with components separation results in expansion of the rectus muscle, atrophy of the external oblique muscle, and presumed compensatory hypertrophy of the internal oblique and transversus abdominis muscles. Future studies are needed to determine the functional implications of these changes. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Therapeutic, IV.


We explore the origins of the intergenerational association in entrepreneurship using Swedish adoption data that allow us to quantify the relative importance of prebirth and postbirth factors. We find that parental entrepreneurship increases the probability of children's entrepreneurship by about 60%. For adoptees, both biological and adoptive parents make significant contributions to this association. These contributions, however, are quite different in size. Postbirth factors account for twice as much as prebirth factors in our decomposition of the intergenerational association in entrepreneurship. We investigate several candidate explanations for this large postbirth factor and present suggestive evidence in favor of role modeling.


This work analyses the capability of the application of self-sensing film adhesives for assessing the structural integrity of typical aeronautical bonded joints without altering its mechanical behavior. Tests have been carried out on carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites (CFRP) although the method has been also validated on aluminum substrates, showing that different types of strain and damage are detected depending on the characteristics of the joined materials. In both cases, the structural health monitoring of the bonded joints has been achieved. The developed technologies are based on the addition of carbon nanotubes (CNT) to the film adhesives in order to provide electrical conductivity to the different interfaces. The high conductivity and relative large aspect ratio of CNT result in percolation thresholds around 0.1% weight of carbon nanotubes in the adhesive. The CNT network formed in the adhesive offers significant potential to develop sensing for damage detection and health monitoring using direct-current measurements. Loads applied over the nanodoped adhesives produce damage (i.e. cracks, delaminations,…) appearance and/or damage progression in the material, that modifies the integrity of carbon networks and increases the electrical resistivity of the adhesive. Two different methods have been developed to deposit CNTs on film adhesives: innovative inkjet printing methods and mask methods. In both cases the CNTs used were stabilized in water solution to use a solvent that did not damage the behavior of the adhesive. Then, the CNT solution was incorporated in the nanoreinforcement with controlled geometries over the films, providing local and controlled sensitivity to the bonded joints and giving information of the location of the damages, their characteristics and their propagations in an accurate way. doi: 10.12783/SHM2015/270


The UK television industry operates in a highly turbulent environment characterised by the rapid changes in; regulation, technology, audience behaviour and new media consumption. This competitive environment makes it difficult for television companies to identify strategies for growth and may indeed place their very survival at risk.

This paper investigates the future of the non-terrestrial television broadcasters (NTBs) in the UK and examines how they can maintain and develop their position as major outlets for television consumption over the next five years.

Empirical data was collected using a scenario planning methodology which is widely known for its value in addressing environmental uncertainty by illustrating the future as having a limited number of possible. A range of experienced industry practitioners participated in the development of four future scenarios, based on the degree of technological convergence and the number of television gatekeepers present in the industry. Having evaluated the implications of each scenario, and identified a number of early indicators that would signpost which was most likely to come about, the participants suggested three strategic options that non-terrestrial television broadcasters might adopt to compete effectively. These strategies included; investing in and owning original and exclusive content; forming strategic partnerships with other media companies; making significant investment in channel brands.

Key Words: UK Television Industry, Non-Terrestrial Broadcasters, Scenario Planning, Competitive Strategy.


Mechanical and rheological properties of mushrooms in groups selected on account of shape, size and the time of cropping were investigated. Strength tests, hysteresis tests and creep tests of mushrooms compressed between two parallel plates were carried out. Values of the index WP of the work of deformation inputs, modulus of elasticity EC and stress σobl were calculated. Susceptibility to creeping through calculation of the number of days to doubling of the strain value based on MacLeod equation was determined. Anisotropy of mechanical properties was reported, depending on the direction of loading and the size of a mushroom. Modulus of elasticity EC has a value of 0.5 MPa at the load in the axial direction and 0.3 MPa in the radial direction not depending on the size of a mushroom. Diversity of the value of index Wp from 7 J·kg -1 at the load in the axial direction to 3 J·kg -1 the radial direction. Increase of pressures admissible for the axial direction may the reason for limiting the time of storage of this raw material to several days.


Automatized arithmetic can interfere with numerical judgments, and semantic misalignment may diminish this interference. We gave 92 adults two numerical priming tasks that involved semantic misalignment. We found that misalignment either facilitated or reversed arithmetic interference effects, depending on misalignment type. On our number matching task, digit pairs (as primes for sums) appeared with nouns that were either categorically aligned and concrete (e.g., pigs, goats), categorically misaligned and concrete (e.g., eels, webs), or categorically misaligned concrete and intangible (e.g., goats, tactics). Next, participants were asked whether a target digit matched either member of the previously presented digit pair. Participants were slower to reject sum vs. neutral targets on aligned/concrete and misaligned/concrete trials, but unexpectedly slower to reject neutral versus sum targets on misaligned/concrete-intangible trials. Our sentence verification task also elicited unexpected facilitation effects. Participants read a cue sentence that contained two digits, then evaluated whether a subsequent target statement was true or false. When target statements included the product of the two preceding digits, this inhibited accepting correct targets and facilitated rejecting incorrect targets, although only when semantic context did not support arithmetic. These novel findings identify a potentially facilitative role of arithmetic in semantically misaligned contexts and highlight the complex role of contextual factors in numerical processing.


We argue that there is a continuum between completely manual and completely automated management of networks and distributed applications. The ability to visualize the status of the network and applications inside a data center allows human users to rapidly asses the health of the system - quickly identifying problems that span across components and solving problems that challenge fully autonomic and machine-learning based management systems. We present a case study that highlights the requirements on visualization systems designed for the management of networks and applications inside large data centers. We explain the design of the Visual-I system that meets these requirements and the experience of an operations team using Visual-I.


Abstract. Phaeocystis antarctica is an important phytoplankter of the Ross Sea where it dominates the early
season bloom after sea ice retreat and is a major contributor to carbon
export. The factors that influence Phaeocystis colony formation and the resultant Ross
Sea bloom initiation have been of great scientific interest, yet there is
little known about the underlying mechanisms responsible for these
phenomena. Here, we present laboratory and field studies on Phaeocystis antarctica grown under
multiple iron conditions using a coupled proteomic and transcriptomic
approach. P. antarctica had a lower iron limitation threshold than a Ross Sea diatom
Chaetoceros sp., and at increased iron nutrition (> 120 pM Fe') a shift from
flagellate cells to a majority of colonial cells in P. antarctica was observed, implying
a role for iron as a trigger for colony formation. Proteome analysis
revealed an extensive and coordinated shift in proteome structure linked to
iron availability and life cycle transitions with 327 and 436 proteins
measured as significantly different between low and high iron in strains
1871 and 1374, respectively. The enzymes flavodoxin and plastocyanin that
can functionally replace iron metalloenzymes were observed at low iron
treatments consistent with cellular iron-sparing strategies, with
plastocyanin having a larger dynamic range. The numerous isoforms of the
putative iron-starvation-induced protein (ISIP) group (ISIP2A and ISIP3) had
abundance patterns coinciding with that of either low or high iron (and
coincident flagellate or the colonial cell types in strain 1871), implying
that there may be specific iron acquisition systems for each life cycle
type. The proteome analysis also revealed numerous structural proteins
associated with each cell type: within flagellate cells actin and tubulin
from flagella and haptonema structures as well as a suite of calcium-binding
proteins with EF domains were observed. In the colony-dominated samples a
variety of structural proteins were observed that are also often found in
multicellular organisms including spondins, lectins, fibrillins, and
glycoproteins with von Willebrand domains. A large number of proteins of
unknown function were identified that became abundant at either high or low
iron availability. These results were compared to the first metaproteomic
analysis of a Ross Sea Phaeocystis bloom to connect the mechanistic information to the
in situ ecology and biogeochemistry. Proteins associated with both flagellate and
colonial cells were observed in the bloom sample consistent with the need
for both cell types within a growing bloom. Bacterial iron storage and
B12 biosynthesis proteins were also observed consistent with chemical
synergies within the colony microbiome to cope with the biogeochemical
conditions. Together these responses reveal a complex, highly coordinated
effort by P. antarctica to regulate its phenotype at the molecular level in response to
iron and provide a window into the biology, ecology, and biogeochemistry of
this group.


A model which possesses both spatial and time dependence is the Markov chain Markov field (see X. Guyon, 1995). Here inference about the parameter for spatio-temporal interaction of a special case of a Markov chain Markov field model is considered. A statistic which is minimal sufficient for the interaction parameter and its asympotic distribution are derived. A condition for stationarity of the sufficient statistic process and the stationary distribution are given. Likelihood based inference such as estimation, hypothesis testing and monitoring are briefly examined.


Bluetooth plays a major role in expanding global spread of wireless technology. This predominantly happens through Bluetooth enabled mobile phones, which cover almost 60% of the Bluetooth market. Although Bluetooth mobile phones are equipped with built-in security modes and policies, intruders compromise mobile phones through existing security vulnerabilities and limitations. Information stored in mobile phones, whether it is personal or corporate, is significant to mobile phone users. Hence, the need to protect information, as well as alert mobile phone users of their incoming connections, is vital. An additional security mechanism was therefore conceptualized, at the mobile phone's user level, which is essential in improving the security. Bluetooth Logging Agent (BLA) is a mechanism that has been developed for this purpose. It alleviates the current security issues by making the users aware of their incoming Bluetooth connections and gives them an option to either accept or reject these connections. Besides this, the intrusion detection and verification module uses databases and rules to authenticate and verify all connections. BLA when compared to the existing security solutions is novel and unique in that it is equipped with a Bluetooth message logging module. This logging module reduces the security risks by monitoring the Bluetooth communication between the mobile phone and the remote device.


Sinkholes are a serious hazard in the Dead Sea area. They started appearing in the area in the last two decades due to the dramatic drop in the Dead Sea's water level and soon became a major problem for commercial and industrial development. Sites with large, open sinkholes and collapse features have been identified throughout a wide region (white squares in Figure 1). The most alarming cases are sinkholes that have occurred recently in resort areas, on and around Highway 90, and at Israeli and Jordanian potash plants. Several geophysical methods have been employed to investigate and predict the occurrences; these include seismic, geoelectric, EM, microgravity, and now micromagnetics.


A 38 cm (15 inch) long metal hydride bed fabricated using 11.4 cm (4.5 inch) O.D., standard schedule 316/316L stainless steel pipe was fitted with 22 strain gauges to measure tangential and longitudinal stress resulting from hydride absorption and desorption cycling. Tests were conducted using two different LaNi4.25Al0.75 metal hydride fill-levels in the bed. Tests conducted with hydride filled to two-thirds (1.75L) of the 2.63L total bed volume resulted in a maximum stress less than one-third of the pipe's ASME Code allowable, for hydride absorption up to a hydrogen-to-metal ratio (H/M) of 0.86. After 15 absorption/desorption tests and hydride passivation, examination of the bed interior revealed a significant decrease in particle size and increase in hydride height. The second fill level had 0.4L of fresh hydride added to the bed's cycled hydride material, and 56 absorption/desorption tests, up to a gas loading of 0.83 H/M performed. Second fill tests resulted in maximum stresses less than 40 percent of the ASME Code allowable. Post-test bed radiographs showed a further increase in the apparent hydride fill height, and internal component deformation.


It is highly expected that partially shaded condition (PSC) occurs due to the moving clouds in a large photovoltaic (PV) generation system (PGS). Several peaks can be seen in the P-V curve of a PGS under such PSC which decreases the efficiency of conventional maximum power point tracking (MPPT) methods. In this paper, an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is proposed based on particle swarm optimization (PSO) for MPPT of PV modules. After tuning the parameters of the fuzzy system, including membership function parameters and consequent part parameters, to obtain maximum power point (MPP), a DC/DC boost converter connects the PV array to a resistive load. ANFIS reference model is used to control duty cycle of the DC/DC boost converter, so that maximum power is transferred to the resistive load. Comparing the proposed method with PSO alone method and firefly algorithm (FA) alone shows its efficacy and high speed tracking of MPP under PSC. Due to the fact that these optimization algorithms have online applications, the convergence time of the algorithms is very important. The simulation results show that the convergence time for the proposed ANFIS-based method is lower than 0.15 second, while it is nearly three second for PSO and FA methods.


In this paper, a new approach is proposed for tracking maneuvering target by improving the basic SIR algorithm. We proposed a dynamic model for maneuvering target. If changes of target model are larger than a predetermined threshold, then the target model will be updated. Practical results show that our proposed approach considerably improves accurate tracking of a maneuvering object. We will compare our proposed approach with the basic SIR algorithm in tracking a single maneuvering aircraft. Results of our proposed algorithm are also illustrated in tracking different maneuvering targets on few real-world case study videos.


Wireless network is very susceptible to different types of attack. The main attack is Sybil attack, which allows forming other attacks on the network. Security is very important to the wireless network. In wireless sensor network, to verify node identities by cryptographic authentication but this is not easy because sensor node which contains limited resources. Therefore the current research is going on how to handling the situation of different traffic levels and transmission power for security. KeywordsSensor network, Sybil attack, denial of service, RSSI, TDOA


Evaluation of drug-drug interaction (DDI) involving circulating inhibitory metabolites of perpetrator drugs has recently drawn more attention from regulatory agencies and pharmaceutical companies. Here, using amiodarone (AMIO) as an example, we demonstrate the use of physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling to assess how a potential inhibitory metabolite can contribute to clinically significant DDIs. Amiodarone was reported to increase the exposure of simvastatin, dextromethorphan, and warfarin by 1.2- to 2-fold, which was not expected based on its weak inhibition observed in vitro. The major circulating metabolite, mono-desethyl-amiodarone (MDEA), was later identified to have a more potent inhibitory effect. Using a combined "bottom-up" and "top-down" approach, a PBPK model was built to successfully simulate the pharmacokinetic profile of AMIO and MDEA, particularly their accumulation in plasma and liver after a long-term treatment. The clinical AMIO DDIs were predicted using the verified PBPK model with incorporation of cytochrome P450 inhibition from both AMIO and MDEA. The closest prediction was obtained for CYP3A (simvastatin) DDI when the competitive inhibition from both AMIO and MDEA was considered, for CYP2D6 (dextromethorphan) DDI when the competitive inhibition from AMIO and the competitive plus time-dependent inhibition from MDEA were incorporated, and for CYP2C9 (warfarin) DDI when the competitive plus time-dependent inhibition from AMIO and the competitive inhibition from MDEA were considered. The PBPK model with the ability to simulate DDI by considering dynamic change and accumulation of inhibitor (parent and metabolite) concentration in plasma and liver provides advantages in understanding the possible mechanism of clinical DDIs involving inhibitory metabolites.


Purpose: Zajac and Westphal (1995; 2004) found that US companies have transitioned from corporate (or managerial) to agency (or shareholder) logic. This study examines the institutional logic embedded with New Zealand's discourse on executive remuneration, and how it influences the decision-making of remuneration committees. Design/methodology/approach: Data are collected from 33 semi-structured interviews with 5 executives, 16 non-executive directors, 7 consultants, and 5 representatives of issuers (who produce codes of best practice). The interviews focused on executive remuneration in New Zealand publicly listed companies. Findings: Non-executive directors draw on a multitude of rationales to justify or legitimise their decisions regarding executive remuneration. The rationales include: agency, consultant, fairness, human resources, market, motivation, pay-for-performance, and responsibility. However, the market rationale dominated the discourse on executive remuneration. The majority of nonexecutive directors, executives, and consultants interviewed argued that one executive's remuneration should be comparable to another executive's remuneration. Research limitations/implications: Both the agency and corporate logics have been institutionalised in New Zealand. However, the dominant remuneration rationales fit with the corporate logic, rather than the agency logic. Practical implications: As the remuneration rationales are taken-for-granted they offer nonexecutive directors considerable flexibility in deciding how and how much to remunerate executives. Shareholders and regulators need to be aware of this flexibility. 2 Originality/value: This study develops and tests a theoretical framework for understanding how institutional logics can influence organisational decision-making. Type: Research paper


Introduction: Mammographic density is a strong predictor of breast cancer. Menopause has a significant effect on breast pattern and has been documented to have more important influence on the decline in mammographic densities than age. The aim of this study was to describe the breast parenchymal density patterns in postmenopausal women in Ibadan and correlate these with their socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics.
Methodology: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of 196 postmenopausal women who had two screening views done on each breast in the Radiology Department of the University College Hospital Ibadan. Data was pulled from completed questionnaire by patient who had mammogram during the period under review. The report of the mammograms were matched with patients' socio-demographic characteristics and entered into R statistical package for analysis.
Results: The mean age of the women was 55.0±6.8 years while their mean age at menopause was 48.4±4.6 years. The combined BI-RADS 1 and 2 breast parenchymal patterns which are associated with low risk of breast cancer, were found in 82.1% of the women. The mean difference in age at first birth between women with BI-RADS 1 and 2 and BI-RADS 3 and 4 was statistically significant P=0.035. Body mass index, family and personal history of breast cancer also showed correlation with breast parenchymal pattern, though not statistically significant.
Conclusion: The low prevalence of dense breast pattern in this study is consistent with previous findings of relatively lower prevalence of breast cancer in African women. The clustering of low mean age at birth of first child, low mean age at menopause and multi-parity, in association with the low mammographic density in majority of the women in this study further corroborates the relatively reduced risk of breast cancer in our studied population.


As mobile phones reach the remote corners of the world, they bring with them a sense of great optimism. Hailed as a technology that can transform the lives of the people who are able to access them, mobile phones have the potential to play a positive role in the lives of many of the world's poor. Such claims are often reported alongside striking statistics on the uptake of mobile phones in the developing world. Already, over two thirds of the world's mobile phones are in developing countries. In Nigeria, new subscribers are signing up for mobile phone services at a rate of almost one every second, and Nokia estimates that by the end of 2012 over 90 percent of sub-Saharan Africa will have mobile coverage.This dissertation presents an empirical investigation of the role of mobile phones in Rwandan society and economy. The material draws on two summers of field work in sub-Saharan Africa, several thousand interviews with mobile phone owners, and roughly ten terabytes of data on mobile phone use that I obtained from Rwanda's largest telecommunications operator. In the first chapter, I analyze the distribution of mobile technology within the Rwandan population, drawing attention to disparities in access to and use of mobile phones between rich and poor, and between men and women. The analysis highlights three sets of results. First, comparing the population of mobile phone owners to the general Rwandan population, I find that phone owners are considerably wealthier, better educated, and more predominantly male. Second, based on self-reported data, I observe statistically significant differences between genders in phone access and use; for instance, women are more likely to use shared phones than men. Finally, analyzing the complete call records of each subscriber, I note large disparities in patterns of phone use and in the structure of social networks by socioeconomic status. The second chapter focuses on the economic implications of the spread of an early form of mobile money in Rwanda, and provides empirical evidence that this electronic currency is used to transmit funds to individuals affected by catastrophic shocks. Contrasting two stylized models of prosocial behavior, this analysis provides insight into why people help each other in times of dire need. The findings are based on the analysis of interpersonal interactions occurring immediately before and after a destructive earthquake in Rwanda. The observed pattern of transfers is not consistent with a model of pure charity or altruism, but better fits a model of risk sharing in which individuals mutually insure each other against uncorrelated income shocks.The third and fourth chapters present methodological contributions, and serve to illustrate how mobile phone data can be used to observe and understand the behavior of populations in developing countries, at a level of detail typically unobserved by social scientists. Chapter 3 develops a method for measuring levels and patterns of internal migration. After formalizing the concept of inferred mobility , I compute this and other metrics for 1.5 million Rwandans, and provide novel quantitative evidence consistent with qualitative findings by other scholars. Chapter 4 describes a new method for using mobile phone data to predict the socioeconomic status of an individual. The approach uses mixed methods and three distinct sources of data: anonymous call records; a government Living Standards and Measurement Survey; and a set of phone surveys I conducted in 2009 and 2010. The chapters in this dissertation develop theory and methods for understanding how mobile technologies influence economic and social behavior, and how new sources of data can be used to provide insight into patterns of human interaction. Taken together, the empirical results indicate that phones have had a positive impact on the lives of some people but, absent intervention, the benefits may not reach those with the greatest need. The ultimate goal of these studies is to better understand how information and communications technologies are changing, and can be used to improve, the lives of people worldwide.


Neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in muscle-invasive bladder cancer was introduced several years ago. Despite the evidence supporting its use in clinical practice, only a minority of patients who undergo radical cystectomy receive preoperative chemotherapy. In addition, recommendations and methods to detect patients who would benefit the most from NAC are still unclear. The European Association of Urology (EAU) guidelines panel on muscle-invasive and metastatic bladder cancer recommends the use of cisplatin-based NAC for T2-T4a, cN0 M0 bladder cancer if the patient has a performance status ≥2 and if the renal function is not impaired, but the American Urological Association, for example, does not have any guideline recommendations on this topic at all. In this review we describe the current literature supporting NAC in association with radical cystectomy in muscle-invasive urothelial carcinoma of the bladder. Evidence acquisition was made searching the Medline database for original articles published before 1st February 2014, with search terms: "neoadjuvant chemotherapy", "radical cystectomy", and "invasive bladder cancer".


The aims of this Article is analyzing the health care system in Ukraine and compare the budget allocated for this sector with total Gross Domestic Production (GDP) of the Country. We present through this research the financial payments and compensation of Employees in health sector compared with other sector workforces compensation, in addition to evaluating the budget of the departments of health sector. It's clear that developed countries supporting health sector to develop their economic investment, due to the health care of individuals leads to more prosperity of the country  According to the legislation adopted by parliament, in Ukraine the health care sector in the responsibility of the ministry of the health, following the centralized system depending on the national budget, under this system all the tasks and costs will be implemented. Its been noted that  the most  negative aspects in health sector in Ukraine is bureaucracy , In spite of increasing the budget allocation for the ministry of health by ( 16.2%) in 2014 comparing with 2013, but it was  not reached the national demands. The results of this research are: 1-           The unbalanced of health sector employees compensation comparing with other sectors in Ukraine that's affected their performance and violating the policies. 2-           Health care system in Ukraine is in need to be reformed in term of management and financial aspects and finding new mechanisms to implementation. 3-           Reorganizing the health care sector structure in Ukraine by increasing allocating budget.


Acquire necessary skills in preparing for Microsoft certification and enhance your software development career by learning the concepts of C# programming
Key Features
Prepare for the certification using step-by-step examples, and mock tests with standard solutions

Understand the concepts of data security for secure programming with C#

Learn to scale and optimize your application codebase using best practices and patterns
Book Description
Programming in C# is a certification from Microsoft that measures the ability of developers to use the power of C# in decision making and creating business logic. This book is a certification guide that equips you with the skills that you need to crack this exam and promote your problem-solving acumen with C#.

The book has been designed as preparation material for the Microsoft specialization exam in C#. It contains examples spanning the main focus areas of the certification exam, such as debugging and securing applications, and managing an application's code base, among others. This book will be full of scenarios that demand decision-making skills and require a thorough knowledge of C# concepts. You will learn how to develop business logic for your application types in C#. This book is exam-oriented, considering all the patterns for Microsoft certifications and practical solutions to challenges from Microsoft-certified authors.

By the time you've finished this book, you will have had sufficient practice solving real-world application development problems with C# and will be able to carry your newly-learned skills to crack the Microsoft certification exam to level up your career.
What you will learn
Explore multi-threading and asynchronous programming in C#

Create event handlers for effective exception handling

Use LINQ queries for data serialization and deserialization

Manage filesystems and understand I/O operations

Test, troubleshoot, and debug your C# programs

Understand the objectives of Exam 70-483 and apply common solutions
Who this book is for
The book is intended to the aspirants of Microsoft certifications and C# developers wanting to become a Microsoft specialist. The book does not require the knowledge of C#, basic knowledge of software development concepts will be beneficial


A survey of regenerative strategies in the eucalypts, including lignotuber development, was undertaken by extensive field observations, seedling trials and trials of cultivated individuals over a 12-year period. Four broad regenerative strategies were identified, viz. obligate seeders, lignotuber sprouters, stem sprouters and combination sprouters. These four regenerative strategies are based on the ability to develop a lignotuber and the regeneration strategy after whole-crown destruction. These regenerative strategies do not wholly correspond to the tree, mallee, mallet, marlock and shrub habit categories commonly applied to eucalypts. The obligate seeders include many more terminal taxa than have been previously documented as mallet taxa, with 78 western obligate seeders (the 'true' mallets) and nine eastern obligate seeders listed herein. Obligate seeders do not possess a lignotuber and are killed by crown-destructive events, and as such are relatively short-lived in most natural environments. A further 16 taxa are also known to be non-lignotuberous, but these are capable of producing epicormic regrowth from the trunk following crown destruction and are defined as stem sprouters. The remaining two regenerative strategies include taxa that are both lignotuberous and able to regenerate vegetatively following disturbance events. The persistent and conjecturous mallet-marlock-moort distinction is rejected, this study showing it to be dependent on stand density. Data presented indicate no significant difference in germination time or maturation time between western obligate-seeder taxa and closely related sprouter taxa. The conservation status of obligate-seeder taxa is discussed. Nomenclatural issues regarding the taxonomic distinction between obligate-seeder and resprouter sister taxa are discussed. A census of regenerative strategies for all recognised eucalypt taxa is included as an accessory publication on the web.


Drs E. G. Freshney, S. McCourt & E. B. Selwood write: The key to the undoubtedly complex structures of the south-west England region lies in a full understanding of the stratigraphic sequences, which are only now being resolved. Unfortunately Hobson & Sanderson's interpretation (1975 this Journal 131, 337–52) is based on stratigraphy which is not soundly conceived. Their proposition that there are major recumbent folds in the Boscastle area, while almost certainly true in principle, is nonetheless erroneous in the case of the folds actually described. A considerable part of the evidence for the folding is based on a misinterpretation of the stratigraphy, which is summarized in Table 1 (details of the geological evidence are given in Supplementary Publication No. SUP 18015 (9 pages), deposited with the British Library at Boston Spa, Yorkshire, U.K. and The Geological Society library). The fold reconstructions of Hobson & Sanderson depend on the equation of the Barras Nose Formation and the Trambley Cove Formation, but the strong stratigraphical and palaeontological evidence that these are separate and distinct formations indicates that the reconstruction is untenable. The acquisition of consistent data on fold facing and sense of overturning in rocks below the Crackington Formation is very difficult, owing to the paucity of reliable sedimentary structures and the intense dismemberment of the folds. Thus any attempt using such data to construct folds which do not agree with fairly reliable stratigraphical evidence must be regarded with caution. Hobson & Sanderson's structural synthesis (1975 fig. 9) indicates major


The purpose of this study was to demonstrate that the choice of sample weights when defining the target population under poststratification equating can be a critical factor in determining the accuracy of the equating results under a unique equating scenario, known as rater comparability scoring and equating. The nature of data collection under rater comparability scoring is such that it results in a very high correlation between the anchor and total score in the new form but only a moderate correlation in the reference form. I demonstrated, using data collected under a rater comparability scoring situation, that this difference in the anchor-total correlation in the new and reference forms can have a predictable impact on the equating results based on different sample weights (i.e., the equating results are most accurate when the reference form sample is defined as the target population, least accurate when the new form sample is defined as the target population, and somewhere in the middle when the new and reference form samples are equally weighed when defining the target population).


OBJECTIVES
The objective was to evaluate the test characteristics of clinical examination (CE) with the addition of bedside emergency ultrasound (CE+EUS) compared to CE alone in determining skin and soft tissue infections (SSTIs) that require drainage in pediatric patients.

METHODS
This was a prospective study of CE+EUS as a diagnostic test for the evaluation of patients 2 months to 19 years of age evaluated for SSTIs in a pediatric emergency department (ED). Two physicians clinically and independently evaluated each lesion, and the reliability of the CE for diagnosing lesions requiring drainage was calculated. Trained pediatric emergency physicians performed US following their CEs. The authors determined and compared the test characteristics for evaluating a SSTI requiring drainage for CE alone and for CE+EUS for those lesions in which the two physicians agreed and were certain regarding their CE diagnosis (clinically evident). The performance of CE+EUS was evaluated in those lesions in which the two physicians either disagreed or were uncertain of their diagnosis (not clinically evident). The reference standard for determining if a lesion required drainage was defined as pus expressed at the time of the ED visit or within 2 days by follow-up assessment.

RESULTS
A total of 387 lesions underwent CE+EUS and were analyzed. CE agreement between physicians was fair (κ = 0.38). For the 228 lesions for which physicians agreed and were certain of their diagnoses, sensitivity was 94.7% for CE and 93.1% for CE+EUS (difference = -1.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI] = -3.4% to 0%). The specificity of CE was 84.2% compared to 81.4% for CE+EUS (difference = -2.8%; 95% CI = -9.7% to 4.1%). For lesions not clinically evident based on CE, the sensitivity of CE was 43.7%, compared with 77.6% for CE+EUS (difference = 33.9%; 95% CI = 1.2% to 66.6%). The specificity of CE for this group was 42.0%, compared with 61.3% for CE+EUS (difference = 19.3%; 95% CI = -13.8% to 52.4%).

CONCLUSIONS
For clinically evident lesions, the addition of ultrasound (US) did not significantly improve the already highly accurate CE for diagnosing lesions requiring drainage in this study population. However, there were many lesions that were not clinically evident, and in these cases, US may improve the accuracy of the CE.


A burgeoning aging population, the desire of elders to "age in place," and changes in family structure that leave elders with limited family supports have generated great interest in assisted living. Many baby boomers have the means to afford assisted living either for themselves or their aging family members. Additionally, in an effort to contain skyrocketing Medicaid expenditures, policy makers are interested in alternatives to nursing home care. As the number of assisted living facilities soars, calls for regulation are growing. Nurses have much to contribute to the formation of federal, state, and local assisted living policies. In particular, knowledge of regulatory issues and the agenda-setting process can enhance nursing's influence in assisted living policy making. This article describes the issues surrounding policy making for assisted living with an eye toward promoting the role of nurses in this important policy area.


To reduce the signaling cost of paging in mobile communication, sequential paging schemes are proposed by partitioning a location area into several paging areas such that each area is paged sequentially. Necessary conditions for the optimal partition of cells with delay bound are examined by considering the mobiles location probability at each cell. The Optimal Cell Partitioning (OCP) is proposed based on the necessary conditions and the fathoming rule which trims off the unnecessary solution space and expedite the search process. Two Heuristics, BSG and BNC are also presented to further increase the computational efficiency in real-world paging scheme for the next generation mobile systems. The effectiveness of the proposed paging schemes is illustrated with computational results. The Heuristic BSG that performs the search in the most promising solution group outperforms the best existing procedure with the 6-69% gain in paging cost in problems with 100 cells.


Nowcasts of the surface velocity field in Monterey Bay are made for the period August 1–9, 1994, using HF radar observations blended with results from a primitive equation model. A spectral method called normal mode analysis was used. Objective spatial and temporal filtering were performed, and stream function, velocity potential, relative vorticity, and horizontal divergence were calculated over the domain. This type of nowcasting permits global spectral analysis of mode amplitudes, calculation of enstrophy, and additional analyses using tools like empirical orthogonal functions. The nowcasts reported here include open boundary flow information from the numerical model. Nowcasts using no open boundary flow information, however, still provide excellent results for locations within the observation footprint. This method, then, is useful for filtering high-resolution data like HF radar observations, even when open boundary flow information is unavailable. Also, since the nowcast velocity gradient fields were much less noisy than the observations, this may be an effective method for preconditioning high-resolution observation sets for assimilation into a numerical model.


Background: Although most individuals experience successful weight loss following Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB), weight regain is a concern, the composition of which is not well documented. Our aim was to evaluate changes in body composition and handgrip strength as a measure of functional status in participants from a previous 1-year post-RYGB longitudinal study who had undergone RYGB approximately 9 years prior. Methods: Five women from an original larger cohort were monitored pre-RYGB and 1.5 months, 6 months, 1 year, and 9 years post-RYGB. Body composition was assessed at all time points using dual energy x-ray absorptiometry and multiple dilution. Handgrip strength was measured using a digital isokinetic hand dynamometer (Takei Scientific Instruments, Ltd, Tokyo, Japan). Results: Mean time to final follow-up was 8.7 years. Lean soft tissue (LST) loss over the ~9-year period was on average 11.9 ± 5.6 kg. Compared with 1-year post-RYGB, 9-year LST was 4.4 ± 3.0 kg lower (P = .03). Fat-free mass decreased over the 9-year period by 12.6 ± 5.8 kg. Mean fat mass (FM) decreased from 75.4 ± 22.6 kg pre-RYGB to 35.5 ± 21.5 kg 1 year post-RYGB but then trended toward an increase of 8.6 ± 7.0 kg between 1 year and 9 years post-RYGB (P = .053). Loss of LST was correlated with loss of handgrip strength (r = 0.64, P = .0005). Conclusion: The continued loss of lean mass associated with decreased handgrip strength occurring with long-term trend toward FM regain post-RYGB is concerning. The loss of LST and functional strength carries particular implications for the aging bariatric population and should be investigated further.


Clostridium difficile remains the leading cause of antibiotic‐associated diarrhoea in hospitals worldwide, linked to significant morbidity and mortality. As a strict anaerobe, it produces dormant cell forms – spores – which allow it to survive in the aerobic environment. Importantly, spores are the transmission agent of C. difficile infections. A key aspect of sporulation is the engulfment of the future spore by the mother cell and several proteins have been proposed to be involved. Here, we investigated the role of the SpoIID, SpoIIM and SpoIIP (DMP) machinery and its interplay with the SpoIIQ:SpoIIIAH (Q:AH) complex in C. difficile. We show that, surprisingly, SpoIIM, the proposed machinery anchor, is not required for efficient engulfment and sporulation. We demonstrate the requirement of DP for engulfment due to their sequential peptidoglycan degradation activity, both in vitro and in vivo. Finally, new interactions within DMP and between DMP and Q:AH suggest that both systems form a single engulfment machinery to keep the mother cell and forespore membranes together throughout engulfment. This work sheds new light upon the engulfment process and on how different sporeformers might use the same components in different ways to drive spore formation.


We develop a highly efficient quasi-phase-matched adhered ridge waveguide (QPM-ARW) in LiNbO3 as a nonlinear material, and demonstrate tunable wavelength conversion without spectral inversion (SI) and parametric tunable dispersion compensation for a single-mode fiber (SMF) link. The QPM-ARW module with a second harmonic generation efficiency of 700 %/W achieves tunable wavelength conversion with a wavelength-tuning range of at least 25 nm through cascaded sum- and difference-frequency generation (SFG-DFG) process in which the signal and pumps are located symmetrically around the phase matching wavelength. The power penalty of the wavelength conversion is less than 0.6 dB for 43-Gb/s nonreturn-to-zero on-off-keying (NRZ-OOK) signals. We then apply the tunable wavelength conversion without SI to the parametric tunable dispersion compensation scheme, and achieve successful optical tunable dispersion compensation in 43-Gb/s NRZ-OOK transmissions over 53.2-km SMF.


Abstract
 This paper analyses the determinants of maritime transport costs for intra-Latin American trade over a period of 6 years (1999–2004). The data refer to yearly disaggregated (five-digit level Standard International Classification) containerised maritime trade flows on 277 trade routes. With this data-set, a transport costs equation is estimated using linear regression analysis in a panel data framework. The first contribution to the literature is to exploit the greater variability present in the data and to control for unobservable heterogeneous effects. The second is to investigate the role of distance as a determinant of international maritime transport costs in comparison to the location within the liner services network and the potential impact of being peripheral in the liner shipping network. Finally, the work analyses influence of open registries on the variability of maritime transport costs. To the authors' knowledge, this has not been done previously. Three groups of explanatory variables are considered. Firstly, time variant variables: use of open registries and trade imbalance. Secondly, variables related to liner shipping network structures: number of liner services; shipping opportunities; deployed ships and deployed TEUs. Finally, product-related variables such as volume of shipment, value of product and special characteristics of the cargo (i.e. refrigerated cargo). The results allow the quantification of the effects of explanatory variables on international maritime transport costs and to compare the obtained elasticities with previous cross-section analyses. In particular, estimating the impact of the use of open registries on maritime transport cost is a new contribution in this field that could provide policy-makers with valuable information to be used in the implementation of economic policies.


The Mojave Desert is characterized by a unique biodiversity and is an area of particular interest for the development of renewable energy facilities, which could impact habitat quality and population connectivity. To begin understanding current habitat connectivity in a Mojave Desert endemic, we examine population genetic characteristics of the Mohave ground squirrel, Xerospermophilus mohavensis. We use microsatellite and mitochondrial data to examine the spatial distribution of genetic variation and to infer regional demographic history and connectivity across the species' range. We also examine the demographic history of individual populations and assess the degree to which X. mohavensis may be hybridizing with its sister species, Xerospermophilus tereticaudus. We find that populations of X. mohavensis group into three regionally defined genetic clusters with admixture among the groups. Patterns of regional genetic subdivision and inferred patterns of colonization are consistent with what would be expected from the location and timing of the historic lake and river systems of the region. On a more recent timescale, most X. mohavensis populations do not appear to have experienced genetic bottlenecks, as would be expected from known population declines. Finally, we find that hybridization between X. mohavensis and X. tereticaudus is limited, and thus, not a source of introgression into the threatened species. The patterns of diversity and regional connectivity that we describe here for the Mohave ground squirrel are a first step in determining critical conservation areas for endemic Mojave Desert fauna.


The ground state hyperfine splitting of positronium, , is sensitive to high order corrections of QED. A new calculation up to O( ) has revealed a 3.9 discrepancy between the QED prediction and the experimental results. This discrepancy might either be due to systematic problems in the previous experiments or to contributions beyond the Standard Model. We propose an experiment to measure employing new methods designed to remedy the possible systematic errors which may have affected the previous experiments. Our experiment will provide an independent check of the discrepancy. The prototype run has been performed and a result of = 203.3804 0.0022 (stat., 11 ppm) 0.0081 (sys., 40 ppm) GHz has been obtained. Compensation magnets to obtain O(ppm) magnetic field uniformity has been developed. The final run will start soon and a measurement with a precision of O(ppm) is expected within a few years.


Introduction/Background - This study is a retrospective investigation of the career paths/patterns of interior designers over a 21-year period, between 1977 and 1998. The aim of the study was to document major influences and trends in their career development. In particular, the effects of global changes that contributed to career change were examined. It is important that educational institutions prepare new graduates for the reality of the rapidly changing workplace, while providing experienced design practitioners and post-graduates with research that may increase their understanding of careers possible with an Interior Design education.

Research Design - Little documented research exists concerning the career development patterns of graduate Interior Designers/Architects. Thus, this applied research project was designed to contribute new knowledge in this important area. The research and analysis was primarily a qualitative/interpretive use of life history, supplemented by a survey questionnaire that was used to gather preliminary qualitative information from a comparative sample of Canadian and Australian interior design graduates.

Key Findings - Seventeen trends in career development were identified, confirming the importance of the "building block" years-one to five. Additionally, as global change affects careers significantly, the need for career counselling in the profession was confirmed.


Acute renal failure (ARF) is rarely reported after bowel preparation with sodium phosphate. We report a patient with mild Crohn disease (in remission), without history of renal disease, and with normal baseline renal function, who developed ARF 14 days after bowel preparation for colonoscopy with oral sodium phosphate. A renal biopsy showed multifocal calcium phosphate deposition in the renal tubules against a background of diffuse chronic tubulointerstitial injury. Review of the literature suggested 2 distinct patterns of ARF in the context of sodium phosphate bowel cleansing. One pattern is characterized by ARF, which develops a few hours or days after sodium phosphate administration, as a component of a systemic syndrome associated with severe hyperphosphatemia and hypocalcemia. Correction of these electrolyte abnormalities was frequently associated with rapid recovery of renal function. The cause of ARF in this context was not clear because the favorable outcome negated the need for renal biopsy. In the second pattern, exemplified by the current patient, ARF was identified incidentally. These patients did not have any features of an acute syndrome immediately after sodium phosphate administration and presented much later (usually weeks) with mild, nonspecific symptoms. At the time of presentation, the serum calcium and phosphate levels were normal. The renal biopsies in each of these patients showed nephrocalcinosis as the possible cause of ARF. The renal failure improved at least partially in most of these patients, but persisted in rare cases.


Simple Summary: Collecting data, particularly data on animal behavior, on-site at abattoirs, can be hindered by a series of challenges. These challenges are summarized and recommendations are offered for those planning similar studies. Particular emphasis is placed on examining interactions between dogs, handlers and sheep in animal-processing facilities because this is a significantly under-researched area in the literature. There is significant merit in collecting data via video-recording software, but the subsequent potential for hardware issues and sampling difficulties must be recognized and addressed. Abstract: The competing needs of maintaining productivity within abattoirs, and maintaining high standards of animal welfare, provide fertile grounds for applied research in animal behavior. However, there are challenges involved in capturing useful behavioral data from the supply chain (from paddock to processing plant). The challenges identified in this report are based on a review of the scientific literature as well as field study observations. This article describes those challenges as they relate to collecting behavioral data on livestock-herding dogs, humans and livestock as they interact in abattoirs, and provides insights and recommendations for others embarking on animal studies in confined spaces, as well as in commercial settings. Direct observation of livestock behavior permits animal-welfare assessments and evaluations of the efficacy of operations in unfamiliar and high-pressure contexts, such as abattoirs. This brief report summarizes the factors that must be considered when undertaking in situ studies in abattoirs. There is merit in passive behavioral data-collection using video-recording equipment. However, the potential for hardware issues and sampling difficulties must be anticipated and addressed. Future research directions and recommendations to avoid such issues are discussed. This information will be highly beneficial to future abattoir studies focusing on efficiency and animal welfare at commercial abattoirs. Furthermore, it may also be relevant to any analyses involving large cohorts of animals in a confined environment.


The growing popularity of powerful mobile devices such as smart phones and tablet devices has resulted in the exponential growth of demand for video applications. However, due to the large video data size and intensive computation, mobile video applications require frequent embedded memory access, which consumes a large amount of power and limits battery life. In this paper, we present a low-cost self-recovery video storage system by investigating meaningful data patterns hidden in big video data, by introducing data mining techniques to the hardware design process. We propose a two-dimensional data-pattern approach to explore horizontal data-association and vertical data-correlation characteristics. Such data relationship discovery and pattern identification enable a new dimension for the hardware design space and bring self-recovery ability to memories in the presence of bitcell failures. Based on the identified optimal data patterns, we present a low-cost and efficient SRAM design to enable data self-recovery at low voltages. A 45nm 32 kb SRAM is implemented that delivers good video quality at near-threshold voltage (0.5 V) with negligible area overhead (7.94 percent).


Local spices were collected from seven major markets across Ghana, compiled and identified by their Scientific, Common and Local names, properties, part used and area found. Seven fresh pork sausages prepared using differing compositions of these spices were sensorily evaluated in a pre-trial and four selected and further evaluated in triplicate to determine their acceptability. A 10 member panel assessed the external appearance of uncooked products, internal colour, aroma, taste and the overall acceptability of cooked products. The data was analysed as a completely randomized block design using the nonparametric analysis as employed in Friedman's method and Wilcoxon's signed rank test. A total of fourteen local spices were collected. A 1.52% level of inclusion of the different composite spice mixes in the products was acceptable. The prekese based product was significantly judged the most acceptable (P=.05) while the dawadawa based product the least acceptable. In conclusion, preparing Ready to use composite-spice mixes from local spices to promote comminuted meat processing among meat handlers is feasible but must be done safely in order to keep the health value of the meat products.


Background
Prolonged or unnecessary antibiotic use is associated with adverse outcomes in infants. Antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs) aim to prevent these adverse outcomes and optimize antibiotic prescribing. However, data evaluating ASP coverage of nurseries are limited. The objectives of this study were to describe the characteristics of nurseries with and without ASP coverage and to determine perceptions of and barriers to nursery ASP coverage.

Methods
The 2014 American Hospital Association annual survey was used to randomly select a level III neonatal intensive care unit from all 50 states. A level I and level II nursery from the same city as the level III nursery were then randomly selected. Hospital, nursery, and ASP characteristics were collected. Nursery and ASP providers (pharmacists or infectious disease providers) were interviewed using a semistructured template. Transcribed interviews were analyzed for themes.

Results
One hundred forty-six centers responded; 104 (71%) provided nursery ASP coverage. In multivariate analysis, level of nursery, university affiliation, and number of full-time equivalent ASP staff were the main predictors of nursery ASP coverage. Several themes were identified from interviews: unwanted coverage, unnecessary coverage, jurisdiction issues, need for communication, and a focus on outcomes. Most providers had a favorable view of nursery ASP coverage.

Conclusions
Larger, higher-acuity nurseries in university-affiliated hospitals are more likely to have ASP coverage. Low ASP staffing and a perceived lack of importance were frequently cited as barriers to nursery coverage. Most nursery ASP coverage is viewed favorably by providers, but nursery providers regard it as less important than ASP providers.


In the classical meldable heap data type we maintain an item-disjoint collection of heaps under the operations find-min, insert, delete, decrease-key, and meld. In the usual definition decrease-key and delete get the item and the heap containing it as parameters. We consider the modified problem where decrease-key and delete get only the item but not the heap containing it. We show that for this problem one of the operations find-min, decrease-key, or meld must take non-constant time. This is in contrast with the original data type in which data structures supporting all these three operations in constant time are known (both in an amortized and a worst-case setting).To establish our results for meldable heaps we consider a weaker version of the union-find problem that is of independent interest, which we call Boolean union-find. In the Boolean union-find problem the find operation is a binary predicate that gets an item x and a set A and answers positively if and only if &khgr; ε A. We prove that the lower bounds which hold for union-find in the cell probe model hold for Boolean union-find as well.We also suggest new heap data structures implementing the modified meldable heap data type that are based on redundant binary counters. Our data structures have good worst-case bounds. The best of our data structures matches the worst-case lower bounds which we establish for the problem. The simplest of our data structures is an interesting generalization of binomial queues.


: Six patients with contact dermatitis to propolis are reported (3 women, 3 men; mean age 57 years). All three men had eczema on their hands and had acquired their sensitization in the course of bee keeping. The women had been sensitized by propolis contained in ointments of various kinds. Upon patch testing all six patients reacted to propolis and four also to Peruvian balsam. While ten flavonoids were test-negative, a cinnamic acid ester (1.1-dimethylallyl-3',4'-dihydroxy cinnamic acid ester) isolated both from propolis and from poplar buds was positive in two out of three patients; this may be the major allergen.


Using murine tumor-draining lymph node (TDLN) cells, we investigated the polarization effect of 4-1BB (CD137) during CD28 costimulation in generating antitumor T cells. Costimulation of TDLN cells through the newly induced 4-1BB molecules, CD3, and CD28 using monoclonal antibodies significantly enhanced cell proliferation. The greater cell yield with 4-1BB signaling appeared to be related to the inhibition of activation-induced cell death. Activation of TDLN cells through 4-1BB in addition to CD3/CD28 signaling shifted T-cell responses toward a type 1 cytokine pattern because 4-1BB ligation plus CD3/CD28 stimulation significantly augmented type 1 cytokine (e.g., IFN-gamma) and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor secretion. By contrast, type 2 cytokine (e.g., interleukin 10) secretion by the activated TDLN cells was significantly reduced. The in vivo antitumor reactivity of TDLN cells activated through 4-1BB in conjunction with CD3/CD28 pathways was examined using an adoptive immunotherapy model. The number of pulmonary metastases was significantly reduced and survival was prolonged after the transfer of anti-CD3/anti-CD28/anti-4-1BB-activated TDLN cells compared with an equivalent number of cells activated without anti-4-1BB. The antitumor effect through 4-1BB involvement during CD28 costimulation was dependent on IFN-gamma production and abrogated after IFN-gamma neutralization. By contrast, interleukin 10 neutralization resulted in significantly enhanced tumor regression. These results indicate that costimulation of TDLN cells through newly induced 4-1BB and CD3/CD28 signaling can significantly increase antitumor reactivity by shifting T-cell responses toward a type 1 cytokine pattern while concomitantly decreasing type 2 responses.


OF INSC THERAPY ON MOTOR FUNCTION RECOVERY by TRINH UYEN NGUYEN (Under the Direction of Franklin D. West) ABSTRACT Most stroke survivors suffer from severe motor disabilities, including impaired manual dexterity and gait in the paretic limb. A novel stem cell therapy, induced pluripotent stem cellderived neural stem cells (iNSCs), has been shown to differentiate into neural cells and integrate into the stroked brain to reduce infarct size and improve motor recovery in rodents. However, there is a need to test iNSC therapy in a gyrencephalic brain more similar in composition to that of humans, such as the pig brain. In this study, we used computer-based quantitative gait analysis to determine the efficacy of hiNSC transplantation in a pig MCAO ischemic stroke model. Pigs underwent spontaneous recovery within 12 weeks following stroke and saline injection. hiNSCtreated pigs showed less deficits in temporal gait parameters, including swing and stance time and limb support phase times, compared to vehicle-only pigs after 1 week. Together, our findings show that intraparenchymal injection has a minimal effect on motor function and that hiNSC therapy is a promising rehabilitative strategy for improved gait recovery after stroke.


Abstract Conclusion: Bone conduction implants are useful in patients with conductive and mixed hearing loss for whom conventional surgery or hearing aids are no longer an option. They may also be used in patients affected by single-sided deafness. Objectives: To establish a consensus on the quality standards required for centers willing to create a bone conduction implant program. Method: To ensure a consistently high level of service and to provide patients with the best possible solution the members of the HEARRING network have established a set of quality standards for bone conduction implants. These standards constitute a realistic minimum attainable by all implant clinics and should be employed alongside current best practice guidelines. Results: Fifteen items are thoroughly analyzed. They include team structure, accommodation and clinical facilities, selection criteria, evaluation process, complete preoperative and surgical information, postoperative fitting and assessment, follow-up, device failure, clinical management, transfer of care and patient complaints.


We compare Gamma and Linda, two of the most prominent coordination languages based on generative communication via a shared data space. In Gamma computation is obtained by applying multiset rewriting rules, reminiscent of the way chemical reactions happen in a solution. On the other hand, Linda permits interprocess communication by means of the creation and consumption of shared data. Also a non-blocking input operator is allowed: it terminates indicating if the required datum has been consumed or it is not actually available. We first recall two simple calculi based on Gamma and Linda coordination models. Even if both the languages are Turing powerful, we show that their expressive power is not comparable; in particular, we prove that there exists no program distribution preserving encoding of one language in the other that respects at least the input-output behaviour. 1991 Mathematics Subject Classification: 68N99, 68Q1


Service-oriented architecture (SOA) plays an important role in the next generation computing models for scientific and commercial applications. But difficulties in the development and maintenance of grid services slow down the spread of service-based applications. A model-driven aspect framework (MDAF) is proposed in this paper to facilitate the development of grid services, which benefits from the combination of model-driven architecture and Aspect-oriented programming. The UML output in XMI format derived from a CASE tool is used as the input of the framework to generate a suite of source code files and related settings. The design and implementation of MDAF are built on AspectJ along with several open source toolkits, including Eclipse, Velocity and Ant. Finally a case study of a full text search application developed with MDAF is presented to demonstrate the advantages of grid service development with MDAF. MDAF enables a better separation of business logic and grid specific details at both model and code levels, which makes it easy to develop, test and maintain Grid service based applications


The 1960s saw the birth of what is now called "scientometrics". One of the queries that arose then related to citations of previous literature. Was recent literature cited proportionately more than older literature? Studies by Price, along with that reprinted here, seemed to indicate that the answer was "yes". This "immediacy effect", as it was labelled, could be measured in quantitative terms, but how to do so required some thought. For example, what was the best form of index for representing immediacy, and what errors were involved in estimating the effect? Discussions of the usage of past literature could have practical implications for libraries. One question, therefore, was what implications, if any, citation studies had for the provision of journals to library users. On the scientometrics side, there were such questions as why an immediacy effect occurred and to what extent it could be discerned in different subject areas. This article surveys attempts to examine questions like these over the period from the 1960s to the present day, updating an article published in Journal of Documentation in 1967.


We construct a new family of simple gl2n-modules which depends on n 2 generic parameters. Each such module is isomorphic to the regular U(gl n )-module when restricted the gl n -subalgebra naturally embedded into the top-left corner.


From about 5500 cal BC to soon after 5000 cal BC, the lifeways of the first farmers of central Europe, the LBK culture (Linearbandkeramik), are seen in distinctive practices of longhouse use, settlement forms, landscape choice, subsistence, material culture and mortuary rites. Within the five or more centuries of LBK existence a dynamic sequence of changes can be seen in, for instance, the expansion and increasing density of settlement, progressive regionalisation in pottery decoration, and at the end some signs of stress or even localised crisis. Although showing many features in common across its very broad distribution, however, the LBK phenomenon was not everywhere the same, and there is a complicated mixture of uniformity and diversity.
This major study takes a strikingly large regional sample, from northern Hungary westwards along the Danube to Alsace in the upper Rhine valley, and addresses the question of the extent of diversity in the lifeways of developed and late LBK communities, through a wide-ranging study of diet, lifetime mobility, health and physical condition, the presentation of the bodies of the deceased in mortuary ritual. It uses an innovative combination of isotopic (principally carbon, nitrogen and strontium, with some oxygen), osteological and archaeological analysis to address difference and change across the LBK, and to reflect on cultural change in general.


: A procedure using aldehydes, OsO4, Ca++ and uranyl acetate was selected for study of the fixation of Mycobacterium leprae in skin biopsies of leprosy patients. The ultrastructural pattern of recognized normal M. leprae cells fixed by the above procedure was characterized, and was found to be similar to that of other acid-fast bacteria fixed by the same procedure, except for the geometry of the membrane profile. Under such fixation conditions, this profile is always asymmetric in in vitro-cultured normal Nocardia asteroides, M. aurum and M. tuberculosis, whereas in skin biopsies no M. leprae cells with asymmetric membranes have been found so far. The implications of this observation for the interpretation of the ultrastructure of damaged M. leprae cells found in skin biopsies are discussed.


The most complex problems in the use of neuroleptics for schizophrenia are the frequency of nonresponders, the severity of extrapyramidal side effects and tardive dyskinesia, especially in chronic treatment, the persistence of treatment-refractory symptoms, such as negative symptoms. All these problems are more frequent and severe in children and adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia. The classic neuroleptics act on the postsynaptic dopaminergic receptors, especially the D2 receptors, situated in various areas of the Central Nervous System. More recently, the so-called dopaminergic hypothesis of schizophrenia has been criticized and other neurotransmitter systems have been involved, particularly serotonin. The more recently synthesized neuroleptics, with combined action on dopamine and serotonin receptors, have been called atypical neuroleptics; the atypical neuroleptics currently used in clinical practice are clozapine and risperidone. These anti-psychotic drugs are known to be clinically more effective, especially on negative symptoms, have a lower incidence of extrapyramidal side effects, produce significant improvements in some refractory patients. A large number of the studies concern adults; the studies on young populations are much fewer and less rigorous. The aim of this critical review is to describe clinical use of atypical neuroleptics clozapine and risperidone in children and adolescents with early-onset schizophrenia.


INTRODUCTION
Allergic Ocular Diseases (AODs) like Atopic Keratoconjunctivitis (AKC) and Vernal Keratoconjunctivitis (VKC) are chronic forms of ocular allergy that can cause severe visual complications. Pathogenesis of AODs is uncertain and treatment has been a challenge for ophthalmologists. Tacrolimus, a 23-member cyclic macrolide lactone derived from [streptomyces tsukubaensis] now in ointment form has been successfully used in AODs.

AIM
To study the therapeutic effect of 0.1% Tacrolimus eye ointment in patients with Allergic Ocular Diseases (AODs).

MATERIALS AND METHODS
This prospective observational study was conducted on 36 patients with severe AOD and moderate cases not responding to conventional treatment. They were treated with 0.1% tacrolimus eye ointment twice daily for minimum three months in addition to conventional treatment and observed for a period of 6 months. Symptoms and signs after treatment were evaluated. Grades of clinical signs were assessed based on slit lamp clinical photographs; development of possible complications was assessed and analysed by Wilcoxon signed rank test.

RESULTS
Mean age of patients was 9.3±4.3 years and mean duration of AODs was 3.1±1.8 years. The scores on both the four point scales for signs and symptoms decreased significantly (p<0.0001) after 1 month of 0.1% Tacrolimus eye ointment treatment. Itching was the first symptom to show dramatic relief and conjunctival hyperaemia was the first sign to show improvement. 88.88% of patients were successfully weaned off topical steroids in 6 months into Tacrolimus treatment. Even in patients unresponsive to 0.1% topical Cyclosporine, symptoms and signs scores decreased significantly (p<0.0001). The most common adverse reaction was a transient burning sensation (36.11%).

CONCLUSION
Topical 0.1% Tacrolimus eye ointment was found to be a safe and effective treatment in cases of AODs and also worked as steroid sparing and replacing agent. It was also found effective in patient's refractory to topical Cyclosporine.


Over the past year, many of us learned about the discussions between the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) regarding the development of joint accreditation standards. This represented a major rapprochement between two physician accreditation bodies that have been separated ideologically for decades. Many of us were discouraged, however, when these discussions apparently stalled. Further concern arose in response to a recent proposal by the AOA to create a new competency-based educational model that calls for an integration of medical school and graduate medical education, thereby shortening the training process. This could have resulted in primary care physicians being trained in as few as five years. The AOA described this as a change to address many of the concerns voiced by the ACGME, including the physician workforce shortage, increased need for primary care, and medical student debt burden.

As we entered 2014, there was a looming feeling of division between the AOA and the ACGME. So what a welcome surprise on February 26, 2014, when email inboxes around the country were buzzing with excitement about announcements from both the ACGME and AOA that they had reached a historic agreement to create a single graduate medical education accreditation system.

As program directors, we will be navigating many transitions and will be facing many implementation challenges ahead. We must remember that these challenges are necessary to assure consistent high quality educational programs. Considering that the fate of GME funding continues to be uncertain, yet the need for physicians continues to grow, the graduate medical education community must treat training programs and all residency positions as "national resources," as Dr. Nasca suggested during his CEO address at the 2014 ACGME Annual Education Conference. A single accreditation system will help us to be more united in our role as fierce advocates and stewards of residency training.

This action could not come at a more opportune moment in family medicine. As the country struggles with solutions to the crisis in health care, our specialty is working hard to clearly define the role and value of family medicine, through efforts such as the Future of Family Medicine 2.0 project. The specific solutions and definitions may not be crystalized at this time, however, the absolute requirement of unity is clear. We need to unite and speak with one clear voice as decisions and policies are made locally, regionally, and nationally.

As program directors, we have long recognized that quality physicians come from both pathways. Our increased application numbers are in part due to the greater numbers of osteopathic students as new schools are created and current schools increase their class sizes. Osteopathic schools have a solid tradition of graduating higher percentages of primary care physicians than do the allopathic schools. A single accreditation system can help free us of the politics that distracted us from our daily reality of training a quality primary care workforce.

We look forward to embarking on this historic journey. Many program directors and students are anxiously anticipating the decision regarding the future of the AOA and National Residency Matching Program matches and can only hope for their timely unification as well. The news of a single accreditation system is a positive step toward training a workforce that provides comprehensive, cost effective, and patient-centered care for modern times.


BACKGROUND
Few epidemiological investigations of invasive cervical cancer have been conducted in Sub-Saharan African populations.

METHODS
Using information collected as part of the hospital-based World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborative Study of Neoplasia and Steroid Contraceptives, we examined potential risk factors for invasive cervical cancer among Kenyan women. In all 112 women with histologically confirmed invasive cervical cancer diagnosed at the Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi, Kenya, between June 1981 and September 1988 and 749 control subjects were included in the present analyses. All women were interviewed regarding their medical and reproductive history, methods of birth control, and history of sexual relationships and sexually transmitted infections. Multiple logistic regression procedures were used to derive maximum likelihood estimates of adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI).

RESULTS
After adjusting for age, several factors were found to be associated with invasive cervical cancer. These include multiple sexual partners, early age at first sexual intercourse (OR = 1.9 and 2.6 for women reporting first intercourse at age 16-17 years and < 15 years, respectively, compared to women with first intercourse > or = 18 years), history of abnormal vaginal discharge (OR = 13.8, 95% CI: 8.3-23.0), and history of gonorrhoeal infection (OR = 3.2, 95% CI: 1.6-6.2). Low educational attainment and multiparity were also associated with the risk of invasive cervical cancer. Although the Papanicolaou smear has been extensively used as a screening method for cervical cancer in many countries, only three cases and four controls reported ever having a Papanicolaou smear (2.6% cases and 0.5% of controls).

CONCLUSIONS
As has been observed in other parts of the world, cervical neoplasia in Kenya appears to be a late consequence of venereally transmitted carcinogenic agents.


According to Food and Drug Administration data, transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI) is the third most frequent cause of transfusion-associated death in the United States and is characterized by an acute respiratory distress syndrome-like clinical picture following transfusion of plasma-containing blood components. It may be underdiagnosed due to unfamiliarity of clinicians with the syndrome. This report describes the largest series to date, 46 cases, occurring between 1992 and 1998. The male-to-female ratio was approximately 1:1. The mean age at diagnosis was 54 years. The most frequent presenting symptom or signs were acute respiratory distress, hypotension, and hypertension. Antibodies to human leukocyte antigens or granulocytes were identified in 61 percent of cases, with 50 percent associated with antibodies in a donor whose blood had been transfused to a patient developing TRALI. Clinical recovery occurred in 87 percent of patients, but TRALI contributed to deaths in 13 percent. Clinicians need to recognize and diagnose this syndrome in order to respond with appropriate interventions. Immunohematology 2000;16:157–159.