Background: Activity dependent neuroprotective protein (ADNP) syndrome is one of the most common single-gene causes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disability, however, the phenotypes remain poorly described. Here we examine the sensory reactivity phenotype in children and adolescents with ADNP syndrome. Methods: Twenty-two individuals with ADNP syndrome received comprehensive clinical evaluations including standardized observations, caregiver interviews, and questionnaires to assess sensory reactivity symptoms. Relationships between sensory symptoms and age, sex, ASD, IQ, and adaptive behavior were examined. Genotype-phenotype correlations with the recurrent p.Tyr719* variant were also explored. Results: Sensory reactivity symptoms were observed and reported in all participants. A syndrome-specific phenotype was identified, characterized by high levels of sensory seeking across tactile, auditory, and visual domains. Tactile hyporeactivity, characterized by pain insensitivity, was reported in the majority of participants. Sensory symptoms were identified across individuals regardless of age, sex, IQ, adaptive ability, genetic variant, and most importantly, ASD status. No significant differences were identified between participants with and without the recurrent p.Tyr719* variant on any sensory measure. Conclusions: Sensory reactivity symptoms are a common clinical feature of ADNP syndrome. Quantifying sensory reactivity using existing standardized measures will enhance understanding of sensory reactivity in individuals with ADNP syndrome and will aid in clinical care. The sensory domain may also represent a promising target for treatment in clinical trials.


The aim of this study was to get a greater comprehension of social welfare secretaries' notion of "good parenting" and furthermore how this is expressed in evaluations of investigations regarding care of children. The empirics in this qualitative study were collected with the help of a vignette containing relevant questions. Moreover interview questions were answered at seven occasions. The interviewees were social welfare secretaries that worked with evaluations of care of children. The theoretical approach in the study was Yeheskel Hasenfelds theory on human service organizations along with grassroots bureaucracy that Roine Johansson's translated and interpreted based on Michael Lipsky's theory on street-level- bureaucracy. The result showed that good parenting according to social welfare secretaries is based on moral values that are reflected in society. In regards to how social welfare secretaries manage their room for action it is done differently in the context of freedom and limitations of the work involved.


A warm welcome is assured for a collection of eighteen essays by C.E.B. Cranfield entitled The Bible and Christian Life (T. & T. Clark [1985], E6.95. pp. 248, ISBN 0-567-29125-1 ). And what a good title it is, for most of these essays reveal both the author's penetrating and precise engagement with the biblical texts and his application of his findings to the ongoing life of the church and to the dilemmas and concerns of the individual Christian. There is a very fine exposition of 'The Christian's Political Responsibility according to the New Testament'; two essays on diakonia which stress the church's need to express and work out its concern for the poor and underprivileged; a short, but


Abstract Vascular access devices (VAD) represent high technology and are used frequently in infant, pediatric, adult, and geriatric populations for vascular infusion of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, blood products, biologic response modifiers, nutrition support, analgesics, ionotropics, antibiotics, and other medications, as well as for extraction of pleural fluid from patients with chronic effusions and for treatment with dialysis. Increasingly, these devices are migrating to the home setting as they are used in chronic care and as insurance requirements reduce access to prolonged hospital stays. Surveillance of infections in high risk patients such as those with cancer, cardiac conditions, or post-trauma convalescence is essential to avoid adverse events and to offer early treatment. VAD site and blood stream infections are common VAD complications, occurring in up to 50% of home care patients, usually during days 4–25 after hospital discharge. Our literature search for reports of remote home monitoring for support of VAD patients and their caregivers found none. The use of videoconferencing technology to assess VAD sites in the post-discharge environment would significantly enhance patient safety, facilitate continuity of care, and meet the Communicable Disease Center's stated need for the development of surveillance systems to monitor infections in home care settings. Low-cost Internet- or telephone-based videoconferencing technology that could be deployed easily and used during risk periods would be highly beneficial to patients and increase the cost-effective use of homecare nursing personnel. We report criteria-based protocols for remote assessment of VAD status, for monitoring VAD care procedures employed in the home, and for conducting VAD-care teaching of patients and their caregivers. In addition, we report an initial evaluation of the ability to assess VAD status using low-end videoconferencing technologies.


Engineered nanoparticles, such as super paramagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) offer significant benefits for the development of various diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Limitations of existing imaging methodologies in the study of NPs, such as the effects of fluorescent labelling and diffraction limited resolution, and the advantages that visualization of spatial localization can offer in studies, increases the demand for new and optimized imaging routines. Reflectance Confocal Microscopy (RCM) methods were optimized and Reflectance Structured Illumination Microscopy (R-SIM) was introduced, offering a two fold increase in resolution - particularly advantageous for NP quantification and localization studies. Analysis routines were developed to enable the automated quantification of NP presence within cells via the different methodologies. Correlative procedures were also established for imaging the same sample with different reflectance methods and TEM, maximizing the information attainable from a single sample and allowing comparisons between the techniques for specific applications. These aforementioned optimized techniques were then applied to the determination of NP uptake and trafficking in cancer cell lines, and, in combination with siRNA, to ascertain proteins that are involved in the uptake process. Studies were also performed to model the degradative process of SPIONs within cellular compartments. This thesis thus provided several important tools for the future assessment of the efficacy and safety of NPs for clinical use, enabling quantitative analysis of uptake route, sub-cellular localization and NP intracellular fate.


Observations were made of fluid balance and vasopressin concentrations throughout the oestrous cycle of normally cyclic female rats housed under a 12 h light: 12 h darkness regime. Plasma vasopressin concentrations were found to increase progressively during the light period, falling again during the night on all days of the cycle except pro-oestrus. On this day, peak vasopressin concentrations of 3.32 +/- 0.8 pmol/l were seen between 10.00 and 12.00 h, with lower concentrations of 1.74 +/- 0.22 pmol/l being seen between 18.00 and 19.00 h. Urine flow appeared to reflect the changes in plasma vasopressin concentrations, being significantly lower during the light phase, with a small increase being seen over this period on pro-oestrus. Pituitary vasopressin concentrations were highest between 09.00 and 10.00 h and fell progressively over each of the 4 days of the oestrous cycle. The changes in pituitary content were greater than could be accounted for in terms of the alterations in the plasma concentrations of vasopressin.


The effects of pop music on heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure at rest, during exercise on a bicycle ergometer and in the recovery phase were investigated. The psychological effects of the music were analysed by means of a question sheet and correlated with the physiological effects. The psychological effects of the music points to a reduction of monotony and of fatigue. During exercise, especially during low physical strain, there was a good correlation between the psychological and the physiological parameters. The significant decrease of the cardiovascular parameters in the recovery phase demonstrates, that emotional stimuli are influencing the heart rate not only at rest and work, but also in the recovery phase. The results of the psycho-physiological experiments give rise to the conclusion, that individual attitude to music doesn't primarily influence the effects of music on physiological reactions.


Administration of various doses of clonidine increased plasma growth hormone levels. Pretreatment with the alpha 2 adrenergic antagonists, yohimbine and 1-(2-pyrimidyl)piperazine, completely blocked clonidine's effect on growth hormone levels. Pretreatment with the 5-hydroxytryptamine3 (5-HT3) receptor antagonist, MDL-72222, the 5-HT1A/5-HT2 antagonist, spiperone, and the mixed beta adrenergic/5-HT1B antagonists, l-propranolol and CGP361A, did not attenuate clonidine-induced increases in growth hormone levels. In contrast, pretreatment with the non-selective 5-HT1/2 antagonist, metergoline, and the 5-HT1C/5-HT2-selective antagonist, mesulergine, reduced clonidine-induced increases in growth hormone levels 81 to 87% without affecting clonidine-induced decreases in locomotor activity. Two other 5-HT1C/5-HT2 antagonists, ritanserin and mianserin, also attenuated (47%) clonidine-induced increases in growth hormone levels. Pretreatment with the noradrenergic neurotoxin, DSP4, did not block clonidine's effect on growth hormone levels. Clonidine administration decreased locomotor activity in both the Fawn-Hooded and the Wistar rat strains to the same extent. On the other hand, clonidine administration failed to increase growth hormone levels in the Fawn-Hooded rat strain. These findings suggest that clonidine stimulates growth hormone secretion by activation of alpha 2 adrenergic heteroreceptors present on 5-HT nerve terminals which, in turn, enhance 5-HT activity via stimulation of postsynaptic 5-HT1C receptors to promote growth hormone releasing factor. Furthermore, either 5-HT1C receptors or alpha 2 adrenergic heteroreceptors or both are functionally sub-sensitive in the Fawn-Hooded rat strain relative to the Wistar rat strain.


The foreword is written by the co-editor of the first edition (published in 1992). He concludes with, "I recommend this book to everyone. I thought that the first edition .... was good but this is better." While I have not read the first edition, this iteration edited by Galvez-Jimenez is a beautiful text. There are a handful of colour plates at the front, with plenty of black and white figures throughout including photographs, stylized drawings, diagrams and tables. The paper is high quality, and the cover is eye-catching. This has the look and feel of a well produced reference book. Basic science and its relevance to Parkinson's disease is the focal point of the book. The first three chapters take up nearly one-quarter of the text, and deal with basal ganglia anatomy, physiology, and pathology. The respective authors convey their depth of knowledge in discussing the basic science of PD. The prose is of high quality, though I would not consider these first chapters to be light bedtime reading. Chapters dealing with genetics, alpha-synuclein, psychosis, sleep, autonomic dysfunction, and functional imaging are included. The chapter on surgical treatment (written by the editor himself) has wonderful figures on anatomy and surgical approaches referenced directly from Cooper's 1961 text on the medical and surgical treatment of parkinsonism. The breadth of this book extends to separate chapters devoted to the role of the pedunculopontine nucleus, the role of the thalamus in Parkinson's disease, and episodic and continuous gait disturbances in Parkinson's. Other forms of parkinsonism are briefly presented in the last third of the book, including chapters on progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal ganglionic degeneration, multiple system atrophy, and drug-induced parkinsonism. There is even a chapter on tauopathies and frontotemporal dementia. These chapters act as foils to Parkinson's disease, allowing us to compare and contrast the disorders. METAL-BASED NEURODEGENERATION: FROM MOLECULAR MECHANISMS TO THERAPEUTIC STRATEGIES. 2006. By Robert R. Crichton, Roberta J. Ward. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 227 pages. C$170 approx.


Numerous investigations of mobile radio communication have been conducted in environments such as urban, outdoor-to-indoor or indoor, only a few are in ruins. Within a running project, I-LOV, a study of a mobile radio propagation channel in urban search and rescue scenarios is conducted. Due to complex environment in ruins, great multipath interference can take place, which strongly impacts communication quality and localization accuracy. This paper focuses on the characterization of time dispersion in such scenarios at GSM 900, GSM 1800 and UMTS frequency bands. High resolution measurements have been performed under collapsed buildings and post-processing data analysis were executed. The mean delay and RMS delay spread has been investigated according to power delay profiles. The effect of frequency window function on impulse responses and delay spread is also researched.


The Last DAys of the Big Grassy Fork recounts newspaperman Hunter James's attempts to save his 100-year-old family farm and homestead from extinction. Wise, irreverent, pugnacious, and often hilarious, James fights back against the galloping urbanization of his beloved North Carolina piedmont. Interweaving current affairs and family history, James details the growth of the Winston-Salem area as a center of Moravian piety and later as the world's largest tobacco manufacturing center. This personal history shows he is not the only James to have had a difficult time fitting in with the neighbors' idea of progress; his family's trouble in the Piedmont began early. In 1904 his grandfather was flooded out of a brothel in his birthday suit, and he later scandalized the local Baptist church with drunken sermons, exposing the dark secrets of the congregation. James's unique sense of the absurd, and his willingness to play the fool, make for entertaining reading as each of his efforts at preservation fail miserably. He accidentally torches a neighbor's barn in an attempt to burn off his best pasture land, as was always done in the past; he squanders enormous amounts of money vainly trying to save his farm by becoming the piedmont's preeminent lord of the manor, vintner, wine snob, and horseman; and he finally seals his own doom when in alliance with his neighbors he inadvertently creates the "world's largest garbage pit." The book ends with an eloquent plea for a true Agrarianism in the modern South, for the need to strike a balance between the call for industrial expansion and the desire to preserve the land.


We study the dynamics of inter-regional economic disparities for a number of development characteristics, test the hypothesis of the new economic geography and connect the results with the prediction of the bell curve describing spatial concentration over time. The results of our analysis suggest that the concentration of economic activity continues in Russia and that the pace of the interregional divergence is rather high. These findings bring us to the conclusion that the country rests at the left side of the bell-shaped relationship between interaction costs and spatial distribution. Both the western and eastern regions experience centripetal tendencies; however, despite predictions, no essential redistribution of the production factors and outputs from the East to the West is revealed. In other words, first nature (the East's natural resources and raw materials, which are highly valued in the global market) is balanced by second nature (the West's better infrastructure and large markets). The significant factors in spatial concentration and total productivity growth are density, the size of and access to markets and the diversity of the economy. Insensitivity to the diversification is specific to the eastern regions of Russia. There are also sectorial peculiarities: population density and proximity to markets negatively influences; due to the immobility of supply. External markets have no significant effect on construction. Due to fierce competition, sectorial specialization decreases both productivity and the rate of concentration. These results of the estimates are in accordance with the predictions of the new economic geography. One of the practical ideas suggested by this analysis is the conclusion that in the near future, we will observe further concentration of economic activity and interregional divergence in Russia. The forces behind the agglomeration economy and regional disparities are market-based (increasing returns to scale and imperfect competition), and they are beginning to play a major role in the country in the transition and in the post-transition period. Despite the active regional policy and the massive redistribution efforts undertaken by the central government, regional disparities continue to grow. The new economic geography theory describes the mechanisms of agglomeration and provides suggestions for the pro-dispersion forces to countervail centripetal tendencies. Translated into the language of the practical recommendations, they include essential improvement of transport and communication infrastructure, radical decreases in trade cost and the elimination of regional institutional barriers, as well as an active social policy supporting lagging regions.


Objective: Few community interventions following stroke enhance activity, participation or quality of life. We tested two novel community interventions designed to promote self-directed rehabilitation following stroke. Design: This was a randomized, controlled parallel group 2×2 trial. Setting: Community. Participants: Maori and Pacific New Zealanders, >15 years old, randomized within three months of a new stroke. Interventions: A DVD of four inspirational stories by Maori and Pacific people with stroke and a 'Take Charge Session' – a single structured risk factor and activities of daily living assessment, designed to facilitate self-directed rehabilitation. Main measures: Primary outcomes were Health-related Quality of Life (Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) scores of the Short Form 36 (SF-36)) 12 months from randomization. Secondary outcomes were Barthel Index, Frenchay Activities Index, Carer Strain Index and modified Rankin score. Results: One hundred and seventy-two people were randomized with 139 (80.8%) followed up at 12 months post randomization. The effect of the Take Charge Session on SF-36 PCS at 12 months was 6.0 (95% confidence interval (CI) 2.0 to 10.0) and of the DVD was 0.9 (95% CI −3.1 to 4.9). Participants allocated to the Take Charge Session were less likely to have a modified Rankin score of >2 (odds ratio (OR) 0.42, 95% CI 0.2 to 0.89) and their carers had lower (better) Carer Strain Index scores (−1.5, 95% CI −2.8 to −0.1). Conclusion: A simple, low-cost intervention in the community phase of stroke recovery aiming to promote self-directed rehabilitation improved outcomes.


Introduction: Carfilzomib is a second-generation irreversible proteasome inhibitor that has been shown to improve overall survival in patients with relapsed and/or refractory multiple myeloma (RRMM). Carfilzomib may exert cardiovascular adverse events (CVAEs), although related mechanisms, prognostic markers and precipitating factors have not been fully characterized. In the prospective randomized phase 3 CANDOR study, comparing daratumumab in combination with carfilzomib and dexamethasone (DaraKd) versus Kd alone, a lower rate of cardiac failure events was observed in the DaraKd arm. The aim of this study was to assess whether treatment with daratumumab may ameliorate carfilzomib-related cardiovascular toxicity.
 Patients and Methods: This is an ongoing, prospective, observational study on the effects of Kd with or without daratumumab on cardiac function of patients with RRMM. All patients attended an initial visit, which included recording of medical history and cardiotoxicity risk factors (age ≥65 years, obesity, smoking, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes mellitus, previous anthracycline use, previous chest or mediastinum radiotherapy and current myocardial disease). At baseline, cardiac ultrasound was performed and images were acquired for standard echocardiographic analysis and for speckle tracking offline analysis. As in ENDEAVOR study, carfilzomib was administered at 20 mg/m2 on days 1 (C1D1) and 2 (C1D2) of cycle 1 and at 56 mg/m2 thereafter, with dexamethasone 40 mg on days 1, 8 & 15 of 28-day cycles (Kd regimen). In the DaraKd regimen, daratumumab was administered at a weekly dose of 16 mg/kg, iv, for cycles 1-2, every 2 weeks for cycles 3-6 and every 4 weeks thereafter, while Kd was given at the dose described previously. A follow-up cardiac ultrasound study, as described above, was performed on the last day of cycle 6 (C6D16) or earlier if carfilzomib interruption was indicated. Patients were followed for a median of 10 months for carfilzomib-related CVAEs [hypertension (HTN), heart failure (HF) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS)].
 Results: In this preliminary report, we evaluated 25 patients with relapsed or refractory MM who received either DaraKd or Kd in the everyday clinical practice; 11 patients received DaraKd and 14 received Kd. Patients' mean (±SD) age was 67.8±7.6 years and 60% were men. The two treatment groups did not significantly differ in baseline characteristics including age, gender and prevalence of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, smoking, diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular disease (p>0.1 for all). In the DaraKd group, we did not observe any significant change of markers of left and right ventricular systolic function; however, these markers deteriorated in the Kd group. Specifically, in the Kd group, among left ventricular (LV) systolic function markers, average LV ejection fraction (LVEF) decreased from 59.6±4.8 to 56.6±5.4% (p=0.026) and LV global longitudinal strain (GLS) from -22.5±2.9 to -19.4±3.1 (p=0.007). Similarly, among right ventricular (RV) function markers, tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) decreased from 23.8±3.6 to 20.4±2.8 mm (p=0.020) and RV free wall longitudinal strain from -31.9±3.4 to -28.2±4.3 (p=0.012). A significant group interaction (p<0.05 for all) was observed for changes in all these 4 markers. No difference between groups was observed in changes of markers of LV diastolic or left atrial function. In regard to CVAEs, more events occurred in the Kd group (in 5 out of 11 patients, 45%, including 2 HF and 3 HTN grade 3 events) as compared to the DaraKd group (4 out of 14 patients, 28.6%, including 2 ACS, 1 HF and 2 HTN grade 3 events; one patient had two events, ACS and HTN, both of grade 3).
 Conclusion: The combination of daratumumab with Kd is associated with preserved post-treatment cardiac systolic function as compared to the Kd regimen in patients with RRMM, who had received 1-3 prior lines of therapy. This was associated with a lower CVAE rate, even in this small group of patients. The clinical significance and the mechanisms mediating this possible protective cardiovascular action of daratumumab merits further investigation, given the high activity of DaraKd in patients with relapsed or refractory MM.

 Terpos: Amgen: Honoraria, Research Funding; Genesis pharma SA: Honoraria, Other: travel expenses , Research Funding; Janssen: Honoraria, Research Funding; Takeda: Honoraria, Other: travel expenses , Research Funding; Celgene: Honoraria; Sanofi: Honoraria; BMS: Honoraria. Stamatelopoulos:Amgen: Honoraria, Research Funding. Gavriatopoulou:Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Amgen: Consultancy, Honoraria; Genesis Pharma: Consultancy, Honoraria; Karyopharm: Consultancy, Honoraria; Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria. Dimopoulos:Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Personal fees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; BMS: Consultancy, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Personal fees; Celgene: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Personal fees, Speakers Bureau; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Personal fees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau; Amgen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Membership on an entity's Board of Directors or advisory committees, Other: Personal fees, Research Funding, Speakers Bureau. Kastritis:Pfizer: Consultancy, Honoraria; Takeda: Consultancy, Honoraria; Janssen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding; Genesis Pharma: Consultancy, Honoraria; Amgen: Consultancy, Honoraria, Research Funding.


It has long been postulated that complicated problems can usually be solved with simple solutions. While this is not always the case, one might, at least, ask for a simple framework to guide a team through a technically difficult issue. When one private oil & gas operator was faced with the common industry challenge of Parent/Child well interactions in an unconventional, dry-gas shale, a collaborative team applied a simple workflow in the form of the scientific method. The iterative workflow provided a simple approach to utilize common data, clearly calculate economic risk and ultimately reveal major performance indicators of offset well development.
 The study area focuses on the northeast region of Pennsylvania, specifically in the dry gas window of the Marcellus Shale. More specifically, five counties in Pennsylvania (Bradford, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Wyoming and Lycoming) are studied after the operating company moved into full time development and started offsetting older appraisal wells. The impact from these offset events were varied ranging from parents and children losing reserves to parents and children gaining reserves. However, value loss was more common. As this risk grew, management charged the technical team and service partners with the goal of empirically mitigating offset frac interference to 1) protect the Parent well's original completion and 2) maximize a Child well's completion effectiveness.
 To accomplish these goals, the team employed the scientific method to observe offset events, measure the impact to reserves and experiment with mitigation techniques. To date, the team has cataloged > 70 offset events, classified over 350 frac hits and tested one mitigation technique. In addition to an offset frac workflow, this paper will highlight statistical correlations of high value variables and detail an economic Monte Carlo Simulator to quantify the risk of a parent/child event.


This study was conducted to determine the effects of some environmental factors on birth weight (BW) in Anatolian Buffalo calves born in the scope of the project of improvement of Anatolian Buffalo in public hand supported by General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies reared in Amasya province of Turkey. A total of 228 heads calves born between 2014 and 2015 were constituted the study material. Sex of calf, maternal age, birth season and location were assessed as affecting factors on BW. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical package program. Average BW was determined as 29.3 ± 0.43 kg. The effects of calf sex, maternal age and birth season on BW were detected to be statistically significant. The average BW of the male calves (32.2 ± 0.57 kg) was found to be higher than those of the female calves (26.0 ± 0.50 kg). BW of calves born in autumn had the lowest value. In addition, BW was tented to increase with advanced maternal age.


A brief summary of SLU library resources available to Alumni, as well as medical information resources that are freely available to the public


Several studies have shown the disruptive effects of non-competitive N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists on neurobehavioural development. Based on the neurodevelopment hypothesis of schizophrenia, there is growing interest in animal models treated with NMDA antagonists at developing stages to investigate the pathogenesis of psychological disturbances in humans. Previous studies have reported that perinatal treatment with phencyclidine (PCP) impairs the development of neuronal systems and induces schizophrenia-like behaviour. However, the adverse effects of prenatal exposure to PCP on behaviour and the function of NMDA receptors are not well understood. This study investigated the long-term effects of prenatal exposure to PCP in mice. The prenatal PCP-treated mice showed hypersensitivity to a low dose of PCP in locomotor activity and impairment of recognition memory in the novel object recognition test at age 7 wk. Meanwhile, the prenatal exposure reduced the phosphorylation of NR1, although it increased the expression of NR1 itself. Furthermore, these behavioural changes were attenuated by atypical antipsychotic treatment. Taken together, prenatal exposure to PCP produced long-lasting behavioural deficits, accompanied by the abnormal expression and dysfunction of NMDA receptors in postpubertal mice. It is worth investigating the influences of disrupted NMDA receptors during the prenatal period on behaviour in later life.


A new tetramer oligostilbenoid possessing tetrahydrofuran ring, malaysianol C (1), was isolated from the acetone extract of the stem bark of Dryobalanops lanceolata, together with four known oligostilbenoids nepalensinol E (2), ϵ-viniferin (3), laevifonol (4), and ampelopsin F (5). The structures of isolated compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectral evidence. The antibacterial activity of the isolated compounds was evaluated using resazurin microtitre-plate assay, whereas the cytotoxic activity was tested using MTT assay. The plausible biogenetic routes of the isolated compounds are also discussed.


The research dealt with the evaluation of the influence of selected lactic acid bacteria belong to Lactobacillus genus on rye bread quality. The 720 type rye flour served for preparing the leaven with 300% efficiency. Lactic acid bacteria Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis, and Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis were added into the leaven at the various amounts of 1, 2, 3 cmand then they were subject to fermentation for 24 and 48 h. The control sample (0) was composed of spontaneously fermenting leaven. Sourdough and subsequently dough was made of the leaven. Lactic acid bacteria, acetic acid bacteria, and yeast counts were determined in the dough. Produced breads were subject to sensory assessment by means of evaluating the following physicochemical features: 100 g bread volume, acidity and hardness of bread crumb, as well as baking loss was calculated. Enriching the sourdough with starter cultures affected the increase of lactic and acetic bacteria as well as yeast counts in the dough made using sourdough fermenting for 24 hours, regardless of the quantity and type of a culture applied. The largest bread volume recalculated onto 100 g was achieved when Lactobacillus plantarum NCAIMB.01149 strain was added into shorter-fermenting sourdough as well as after application of Lactobacillus brevis Lb2 strain for longer-fermenting sourdough. Compared to the control, those breads had also lower baking loss. The increase of bread crumb acidity was mostly influenced on by the addition of Lactobacillus brevis Lb2 and Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis Lb9 strains, after sourdough fermentation lasting both 24 and 48 hours. Breads containing these cultures achieved also the largest sum of scores in sensory assessment testing. Applied bacterial strains had no remarkable effects on bread crumb hardness. Worse crumb hardness was shown by breads produced from short-fermenting sourdough.


Speech perception is uniquely human, so applying theories about human psycholinguistic systems to computer speech recognition may improve performance. In the natural model, computations are performed by brains using data from ears. Thus, perhaps effective speech recognition can be performed by a brain-like machine learning algorithm receiving ear-like inputs. It is theorized that human listeners translate speech sounds into the lip and tongue movements that produced them perhaps a speech recognizer that could relate sound to articulation would perform well. This project aims to employ Hierarchical Temporal Memory (HTM), a brain-like algorithm, in identifying ear-transformed audio with the help of X-ray articulation data. An experimental architecture was developed, but reliable HTM results were not obtained.


Imogolite is usually formed by means of a three-step process involving the use of large amounts of water with long crystallization times and low yields, preventing large-scale synthesis. These drawbacks can be overcome by synthesis in the presence of fluoride, an approach which has been demonstrated to be suitable for the synthesis of other phyllosilicates. In the present study, the nature of the Al and Si sources, the Al/Si molar ratio, the volume of H2O for the redispersion of the gel after desalination, the F/Si molar ratio, as well as the crystallization temperature and time have been varied to investigate their role in the crystallization of imogolite. The structural properties of the as-synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, and 29Si, 27Al, and 19F magic angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The results show that the imogolite nanotubes can be prepared with high yields (>55%) from AlCl3·6H2O and Na4SiO4 aqueous solutions with an Al/Si molar ratio of 2.5, addition of HF for a F/Si molar ratio of 0.1–0.2, and 4 days of crystallization at 98°C.


We have demonstrated an experimentally very simple and sensitive GRENOUILLE device for measuring the intensity and phase vs. time and spatio-temporal distortions of 100-fs to few-ps 1.5-microm pulses using the nonlinear-optical crystal Proustite. We show that the dispersive and nonlinear-optical characteristics of Proustite are critical for achieving very simple and reliable measurements of such pulses from fiber lasers and optical parametric amplifiers.


In recent decades, the potential for factual disagreement among convicting jurors has emerged as a prevalent constitutional claim. In United States v. Gipson, 553 F.2d 453 (5th Cir. 1977), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit became the first federal court to reverse a conviction under the Constitution on this basis. Following Gipson, criminal defendants raised a variety of challenges alleging the potential for juror disagreement over the facts constituting the crime. Courts also sometimes reversed guilty verdicts based on these arguments, often citing Gipson. However, the Gipson decision remained controversial. Some courts simply rejected its holding. Others distinguished it on questionable grounds. Even among judges and commentators who agreed with the premise that the Constitution mandates some level of factual agreement among convicting jurors, many noted the difficulty of articulating principles to define the level of factual specificity at which convicting jurors must concur. Recognizing the lower courts' need for guidance, the Supreme Court addressed a factual divergence problem for the first time in Schad v. Arizona, 501 U.S. 624 (1991), but offered little illumination. The Court ultimately rejected Schad's claim. However, the Justices were sharply divided; a four-Justice plurality, with Justice Scalia concurring in the judgment, ruled against Schad, while four others were prepared to rule in his favor. Moreover, although all of the Justices conceded that factual nonconcurrence among criminal jurors could sometimes violate the Constitution, none of the opinions offered a clear vision of when and why trial courts should require factual agreement. This article outlines a general approach for evaluating and remedying factual non-concurrence claims in criminal cases. The problem with patchwork guilty verdicts stems from the doubt that a factual disagreement may reflect about whether the defendant committed any prohibited act. However, not all factual disagreements are sufficiently material to cast doubt on the defendant's guilt. The article provides guidelines that can help determine when a factual disagreement is material. The article also explains how trial courts can remedy potential nonconcurrenc problems through verdict questions and special instructions.


The effects of a somatostatin analogue, SMS 201‐995 on hepatic haemodynamics were studied in rats with dimethylnitrosamine‐induced cirrhosis. An intravenous infusion of 1, 2 or 4μg kg−1 body wth−1 SMS 201‐995 produced a rapid and sustained decrease in portal pressure, portal venous flow and liver blood flow without significantly altering arterial blood pressure or pulse. The reductions in portal pressure, portal venous flow and liver blood were accompanied by an increase in splanchnic vascular resistance. Portal venous resistance was not affected. Subcutaneous injection of 2μg kg−1 body wt SMS 201‐995 produced a gradual decrease in portal pressure, the maximum reduction occurring 18 min after administration. This reduction in portal pressure was sustained for a further 20 min. The results suggest that SMS 201‐995 may be of value in the control of bleeding oesophageal varices. Furthermore, the prolonged duration of action of SMS 201‐995 following its subcutaneous administration suggests that the analogue may be useful in the long‐term management of portal hypertension in patients with cirrhosis.


Five experiments were conducted with Large White poults to determine the effect of methionine and other sulfur-containing compounds on the incidence and severity of dermatitis and on growth and feed efficiency to three or four weeks of age. The poults were housed in battery brooders with wire screen floors in four experiments" and in floor pens with litter in one experiment. Male turkeys were used in four experiments and female turkeys in one experiment. Either a corn-soy diet or a cornstarch-soy diet was used as the basal diet in the various studies. A high incidence of foot-pad dermatitis was observed in poults fed the basal diets unsupplemented with methionine. A high incidence of a dermatitis on the upper part of the beak was also observed in poults maintained in battery brooders but not in floor pens. Adding methionine to the diets significantly lowered the incidence and severity of dermatitis, but cystine and potassium sulfate failed to modify dermatitis. Some foot-pad dermatitis was still observed in poults fed levels of methionine more than adequate to meet the requirements for optimum growth and feed efficiency. The incidence and severity of foot-pad dermatitis generally increased with age during the experiment among poults fed methionine-supplemented diets. Although methionine deficiency is a major cause of foot-pad dermatitis in poults, other environmental or dietary factors also appeared to be involved in the development of the condition. The methionine requirement for optimum growth, feed efficiency, and prevention of dermatitis was approximately 0.6% or 2.1 g. per mcal. of metabolizable energy (M.E.). This is higher than the present recommendation of the National Research Council. With corn-soybean meal diets the requirement for total sulfur amino acids is approximately 1.05% or 3.7 g. per mcal. of M.E.


This paper presents a new music manipulation method that can change the timbre and phrases of an existing instrumental performance in a polyphonic sound mixture. This method consists of three primitive functions: 1) extracting and analyzing of a single instrumental part from polyphonic music signals, 2) mixing the instrument timbre with another, and 3) rendering a new phrase expression for another given score. The resulting customized part is re-mixed with the remaining parts of the original performance to generate new polyphonic music signals. A single instrumental part is extracted by using an integrated tone model that consists of harmonic and inharmonic tone models with the aid of the score of the single instrumental part. The extraction incorporates a residual model for the single instrumental part in order to avoid crosstalk between instrumental parts. The extracted model parameters are classified into their averages and deviations. The former is treated as instrument timbre and is customized by mixing, while the latter is treated as phrase expression and is customized by rendering. We evaluated our method in three experiments. The first experiment focused on introduction of the residual model, and it showed that the model parameters are estimated more accurately by 35.0 points. The second focused on timbral customization, and it showed that our method is more robust by 42.9 points in spectral distance compared with a conventional sound analysis-synthesis method, STRAIGHT. The third focused on the acoustic fidelity of customizing performance, and it showed that rendering phrase expression according to the note sequence leads to more accurate performance by 9.2 points in spectral distance in comparison with a rendering method that ignores the note sequence.


The ability of teacher librarians worldwide to develop and maintain school library programmes has
been severely constrained by a number of factors ranging from inadequate budgetary allocations, lack
of support from principals and other key stakeholders such as Ministry of Education personnel.
However, even with limited funding and support, some teacher librarians have used ingenious
strategies to develop and maintain their library programmes. This literature review synthesizes
international research obtained from peer-reviewed journals, theses and professional papers on the
personal attributes that a teacher librarian should possess in order to influence the development of a
school library programme and the types of relationships the teacher librarian need to have with key
stakeholders to be successful. The literature examined spanned a time period mostly from 2000-2018.
The literature review found that leadership, collaboration, communication and interpersonal skills
were the dominant skills a teacher librarian should possess in order to develop and maintain a school
library programme alongside a good relationship with the school community.


Activation of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) is an important factor in the pathogenesis of various cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases. Here, we report that the gender-specific inflammatory response is preferentially down-regulated by PARP in male animals. Female mice produce less tumor necrosis factor-α and macrophage inflammatory protein-1α in response to systemic inflammation induced by endotoxin than male mice and are resistant to endotoxin-induced mortality. Pharmacological inhibition of PARP is effective in reducing inflammatory mediator production and mortality in male, but not in female, mice. Ovariectomy partially reverses the protection seen in female mice. Endotoxin-induced PARP activation in circulating leukocytes is reduced in male, but not female, animals by pharmacological PARP inhibition, as shown by flow cytometry. Pretreatment of male mice with 17-β-estradiol prevents endotoxin-induced hepatic injury and reduces poly(ADP-ribosyl)ation in vivo. In male, but not female, animals, endotoxin induces an impairment of the endothelium-dependent relaxant responses, which is prevented by PARP inhibition. In vitro oxidant-induced PARP activation is reduced in cultured cells placed in female rat serum compared with male serum. Estrogen does not directly inhibit the enzymatic activity of PARP in vitro. However, PARP and estrogen receptor α form a complex, which binds to DNA in vitro, and the DNA binding of this complex is enhanced by estrogen. Thus, estrogen may anchor PARP to estrogen receptor α and to the DNA and prevent its recognition of DNA strand breaks and hence its activation. In conclusion, the gender difference in the inflammatory response shows preferential modulation by PARP in male animals.


The objective of this review was to investigate iron homeostasis, hepcidin regulation, systematic and local iron overload and the interaction between obesity and iron homeostasis. Human hepcidin is a new mediator of innate immunity and iron regulatory hormone. The synthesis of hepcidin is up regulated by inflammation, obesity or iron overload, whereas; it is down regulated by iron deficiency anemia, iron transport across the placenta, hypoxia and erythropoietic activity. Iron supplementation increased hepatic iron and serum hepcidin, leading to increase fasting glucose due to insulin resistance and hemochromatosis. Obesity is associated with low-grade of inflammation, systemic iron deficiency and hypoferremia. Iron overload in adipose tissue (AT) increases systemic insulin resistance and iron handling by AT macrophages may have relevance insulin sensitivity. It could affect the pathogenesis of metabolic syndrome, obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and will affect major tissues involved in glucose and lipid metabolism.


Radial-velocity follow-up of stars harbouring transiting planets detected by TESS is expected to require very large amounts of expensive telescope time in the next few years. Therefore, scheduling strategies should be implemented to maximize the amount of information gathered about the target planetary systems. We consider myopic and non-myopic versions of a novel uniform-in-phase scheduler, as well as a random scheduler, and compare these scheduling strategies with respect to the bias, accuracy and precision achieved in recovering the mass and orbital parameters of transiting and non-transiting planets. This comparison is carried out based on realistic simulations of radial-velocity follow-up with ESPRESSO of a sample of 50 TESS target stars, with simulated planetary systems containing at least one transiting planet with a radius below $4R_{\oplus}$. Radial-velocity datasets were generated under reasonable assumptions about their noise component, including that resulting from stellar activity, and analysed using a fully Bayesian methodology. We find the random scheduler leads to a more biased, less accurate, and less precise, estimation of the mass of the transiting exoplanets. No significant differences are found between the results of the myopic and non-myopic implementations of the uniform-in-phase scheduler. With only about 22 radial velocity measurements per dataset, our novel uniform-in-phase scheduler enables an unbiased (at the level of 1\%) measurement of the masses of the transiting planets, while keeping the average relative accuracy and precision around 16\% and 23\% respectively. The number of non-transiting planets detected is similar for all the scheduling strategies considered, as well as the bias, accuracy and precision with which their masses and orbital parameters are recovered.


The role of ribosome biogenesis in erythroid development is supported by the recognition of erythroid defects in ribosomopathies in both Diamond-Blackfan anemia and 5q- syndrome. Whether ribosome biogenesis exerts a regulatory function on normal erythroid development is still unknown. In the present study, a detailed characterization of ribosome biogenesis dynamics during human and murine erythropoiesis shows that ribosome biogenesis is abruptly interrupted by the drop of rDNA transcription and the collapse of ribosomal protein neo-synthesis. Its premature arrest by RNA polI inhibitor, CX-5461 targets the proliferation of immature erythroblasts. We also show that p53 is activated spontaneously or in response to CX-5461 concomitantly to ribosome biogenesis arrest, and drives a transcriptional program in which genes involved in cell cycle arrest, negative regulation of apoptosis and DNA damage response were upregulated. RNA polI transcriptional stress results in nucleolar disruption and activation of ATR-CHK1-p53 pathway. Our results imply that the timing of ribosome biogenesis extinction and p53 activation are crucial for erythroid development. In ribosomopathies in which ribosome availability is altered by unbalanced production of ribosomal proteins, the threshold of ribosome biogenesis down-regulation could be prematurely reached and together with pathological p53 activation prevents a normal expansion of erythroid progenitors.


The scientific and commercial progress in the area of polymer blends and composites during the past two decades has been tremendous and blending can be implemented more rapidly and economically than development of new polymers. In the current study Reclaimed EPDMand Recycled PP has been melt blended in a Brabender plasticorder in different ratios and the blend with optimized resultswas selected, aswell as Recycle polypropylene/ ReclaimEthylene propylene Diene monomer coconut pith composites have been prepared and developed for cost effective foot wear applications. A comparative study of composites in presence and absence ofMA-g- EPDM was carried out and the effectiveness of the properties was determined. Coconut pith in different ratios was added into Reclaimed EPDM/ Recycled Polypropylene blends along with MA-g-EPDM and other additives. Morphology, thermal and Physico mechanical properties of Recycled polypropylene (RPP) / Reclaimed EPDM coconut pith composites were investigated. Physico mechanical and thermal properties were improved by the addition ofmaleic anhydride and coir pith.Morphological analysis shows that the compatibility between coconut pith Recycled PP and reclaimed EPDM has been improved by the addition of Maleic anhydride grafted EPDMas a compatibilizer and hence can be used as a lowcost filler for foot wear soling application.


INTRODUCTION
Sudden, often positive emotions are typical triggers for cataplexy in patients with narcolepsy-cataplexy (NC). Cataplexy during sexual intercourse and orgasm (orgasmolepsy) has been previously reported, but its frequency and characteristics are poorly known.

AIM
To assess frequency and features of loss of muscle tone during sexual intercourse in a series of patients with NC, other sleep-wake disorders, and healthy controls.

METHODS
Review of sleep questionnaires (including the Stanford Cataplexy Questionnaire) of 75 subjects (29 with NC, 26 with other sleep-wake disorders, and 20 healthy controls), followed by an interview with specific focus on muscle loss during sexual activity in suspicious cases.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Cataplexy during sexual intercourse and orgasm (orgasmolepsy).

RESULTS
Orgasmolepsy was reported by three NC patients (two female, one male), one male patient with behaviorally induced insufficient sleep syndrome (BIISS) and cataplexy-like symptoms, and none of the healthy controls. In the two female NC patients, orgasmolepsy occurred by each sexual intercourse, and the male patient reported orgasmolepsy only when in a relationship involving emotional commitment and trust. In the patient with BIISS and orgasmolepsy, cataplexy-like symptoms involved unilaterally upper or lower limbs in association with negative emotions or sports activities.

CONCLUSIONS
Cataplexy during sexual intercourse is a distinct feature of NC, which can, however, be reported rarely also by patients with other sleep-wake disorders. Insufficient arousal may favor the occurrence of cataplexy and cataplexy-like symptoms, including orgasmolepsy. Hypocretin deficiency and reward dysregulation in narcolepsy may further facilitate this phenomenon and contribute to its repetitive occurrence.


In an earlier paper we interpreted the resolution of the 2005 WTO dispute on GIs as a stalemate and suggested a shift of the balance of power in favor of the pro-GI coalition. Since then, international negotiations continue to be stalled. The record of GIs as a tool for the promotion of rural development shows that few non-European GIs have been registered. The case of Morocco illustrates the difficulties faced by a government eager to use GIs as a development instrument. International recognition of GIs is difficult. The TTIP might not resolve institutional and doctrinal GIs problems.


Research on American secondary cities has largely focused on so–called "rust belt" cities and has found that they tend to have economic stagnation, racialization, and urban decay in their urban cores occurring after economic crises. Most urban research on Canadian cities has, by contrast, focused on the country's largest cities, Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver, and has found that urban cores are getting richer, less diverse, and undergoing infrastructural improvements. We examine each model by looking at four secondary Atlantic Canadian cities (Halifax, Moncton, St. John's, and Charlottetown) that all faced major economic crisis in the 1990s to see whether these models can explain the sociospatial changes occurring in them. Analysis of 1996 and 2006 Canadian Census data finds unlike "rust belt" cities or changes seen in larger Canadian cities, there is no clear sociospatial concentration of change. Rather, change is seen through "hot spots" of economic and physical characteristics of neighborhoods.


Over the last 20 years, noninvasive ventilation (NIV) strategies have been used with increasing frequency. The ease of use of NIV makes it applicable to patients presenting in a variety of types of respiratory distress. In this review, the physiology of positive pressure ventilation is discussed, including indications, contraindications, and options for mask type and fit. Characteristics of patients who are most likely to benefit from NIV are reviewed, including those in respiratory distress from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbation and cardiogenic pulmonary edema. The literature for other respiratory pathologies where NIV may be used, such as in asthma exacerbation, pediatric patients, and community-acquired pneumonia, is also reviewed. Controversies and potential future applications of NIV are presented.


According to World Bank Report, female population in Malaysia was reported at 49.3% in 2016. Women play prominent role in today world because they carry variety of roles in the family, community and society levels. In the 1st Malaysia Plan (1966-1970), Malaysia government has incorporated women in the development of the country. Following the 5th Malaysia Plan (1986-1990) and the adaptation of National Policy Women in 1989, the role of women in development have been increasingly reflected. It is undeniable that women made significant contribution in the business industry; however gender inequality still exists in the labour force around the world. Nevertheless, the women's position in the labour market is much more disadvantageous than that of men. Women have smaller chances to be employed, starts a business or advancing in the career ladder. A total sample of 213 open and distance learning (ODL) learners in several private and public education institutions in Malaysia were collected in this study. This study aims to investigate the learners' perception on the factors affecting women's career advancement using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The results of this study would be able to assist educators to fulfill their responsibilities to help all learners to develop their abilities and skills to create supportive industry environment for women. The results showed all the factors; character, lack of support, treatment and family issues in this study has significant impact on the respondents' perception. Meanwhile, educators will be able to review the course curriculum to better prepare graduates for the realities of gender empowerment in the workplace.


This study was conducted to know the influence of human resource management to financial performance through learning organization as an intervening variable in case study on Public Accountant Firms in Surabaya. Financial performance became one of the most important variable that could measure the performance of public accountant firms. Another variables such as Human resource management played a role in creating the financial performance in the public accountant firms. On the other hand, human resource management application could not be separated from the support of learning organization that was in the public accountant firms. The data analysis technique used in this study was partial least squares to describe the relationship between variables. The results showed that human resource management and learning organization positively  and significanthy affected the financial performance public accountant firms in Surabaya.


The hormonal control of glycogen synthase and phosphorylase interconversion was investigated in hepatocytes isolated from lean and genetically obese (fa/fa) rats. In cells from obese animals, the inactivation of synthase by 4 beta-phorbol 12 beta-myristate 13 alpha-acetate (PMA), phospholipase C, vasopressin and the alpha 1-adrenergic agonist phenylephrine was markedly impaired, and the property of PMA to counteract phosphorylase activation by phenylephrine was attenuated. The maximal response of phosphorylase activation to phenylephrine and vasopressin was increased in obese-rat hepatocytes, but the sensitivity to these hormones was similar to that in lean-rat hepatocytes. These observations indicate that the defect in protein kinase C that we reported previously in heart of insulin-resistant fa/fa rats [van de Werve, Zaninetti, Lang, Vallotton & Jeanrenaud (1987) Diabetes 36, 310-319] is probably also expressed in liver.


Unlike existing single-stage AC/DC converters with uncontrolled intermediate bus voltage, a new single-stage AC/DC converter achieving power factor correction (PFC), intermediate bus voltage output regulation, and output voltage regulation is proposed. The converter is formed by integrating a boost PFC converter with a two-switch clamped flyback converter into a single power stage circuit. The current stress of the main power switch is reduced due to separated conduction period of the two source currents flowing through the power switch. A dual-loop current mode controller is proposed to achieve PFC, and ensure independent bus voltage and output voltage regulations. Experimental results on a 24-V/100-W hardware prototype are given to confirm the theoretical analysis and performance of the proposed converter.


There are many of industrial plasticizers materials used to improve mechanical properties of polypropylene. In this study chlorophyll, natural pigment is used. Its eco – friend and not toxic material, extracted from plants. The chlorophyll, natural pigment is extracted and mixed with polypropylene with following weight percentages (0.0, 0.1, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1.0), then extruded as a sheet by screw extrusion machine. The mechanical properties of specimens are examined by mechanical testing, such as (Tensile test, Impact test).
The results showed improvements in mechanical properties of polypropylene plasticized by chlorophyll. Where it gives ultimate tensile strength of (32.64, 33.972, 44.63, 40.633, 33.306, and 45.962) Mpa, the modulus of elasticity of (439.27, 1040, 1195.63, 700, 1785, and1525) Mpa, the maximum elongation % at fracture of (24.46, 16.182, 19.632, 61.584, 17.587, and 12.121) mm/mm %, and impact strength of (0.1, 0.2, 0.25, 0.355, 0.24, and 0.2) Joule, respectively with each chlorophyll addition weight percent wt%.
The polypropylene blend consisting chlorophyll of 0.5 wt % presents significant improvements of mechanical properties, high ductility,  and impact strength, suitable ultimate strength, and modulus of elasticity.


Soil management is a very important action for agriculture in general, and also for producing biofuel feedstock. However, part of the soil is contaminated with heavy metals, particularly in C-E Europe, due to previous heavy industry. Therefore, the restoration action is necessary, to reclaim the contaminated land for agricultural purposes. Soil contamination by heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd), copper and mercury has become a big concern particularly in metal plating plants, mining sites and surrounding areas as well as residential area and farmlands in the river downstream region neighbouring these facilities. In some cases, heavy metals in soils leach into river water and then diffuse onto farmlands with irrigation, resulting in relatively low levels of heavy metals being spread into wider areas rather than being localized in high concentrations. Therefore, a remediation process is necessary. Thus, recently, weed species, possessing high adaptability to environment, have been pointed out as a suitable plant for soil remediation. Although research on phyto-remediation using weeds has just begun and there are many issues which need to be resolved, this remediation technique is expected to become a valuable technology for the alleviation of heavy metal contaminated soils in the near future. The paper will present a remediation plan, taken Camelina sativa as an example of selected weed, and as case-studies, Rovinari and Copsa-Mica, two heavily polluted areas in Romania. The proposed plan involves 5 steps which includes heavy metals accumulation abilities of weeds, goal and approach for the restoration of metal pollution soils by use of weeds/camelina, cleean up the remediation area: control the introduced weeds before re-using the area as a farmland. The work has started in 2013 and the research is still on going, as part of ITAKA project. This paper will present preliminary results based on selected plan. The paper concludes with an invitation to our colleagues from USAMV - Faculty of Land Reclamation and Environmental Engineering to join our research for a smart agriculture management.


A short research guide designed for a library instruction session for theatre history students researching any topic in theatre history.


Development of carbon fibers from alternative precursory materials through new production processes is a recent topic of active research. In such a research, the maximum available tensile strength, i. e. the tensile strength which will be achieved after elaboration to suppress defect formation during production process, is the matter of great concern. We have developed a method for determining this strength through the tensile test on a single fiber after introducing an artificial notch. In the present paper, this method has been refined. By using the refined method, the distribution of the maximum available tensile strength at various radial positions has been measured for a polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fiber. The difference between the maximum available tensile strength and the strength predicted using other methods such as those based on the fracture toughness and the fiber-length dependence of the tensile strength has also been discussed. Copyright © 2018 VBRI Press.


ABSTRACT In the last twenty years, the 'international migration of professionals' from Greece has increased. This paper is based on an extensive survey of Greek professionals who work or have worked in another country. It is the first ever research on the topic in Greece and the first one in the international literature to include participants who are currently abroad or have repatriated. The aim of the paper is threefold. First, it presents the main characteristics of this phenomenon. Second, to explain why Greece, alongside other peripheral countries, suffers from migration of its professionals: in contrast to a dominant view insisting on an allegedly abundant supply of highly skilled labour, it is argued that the phenomenon is primarily due to their low demand in the Greek labour market. Third, to argue that such migration can have positive implications for a country, not only when these people return but also when they stay abroad.


An analysis is presented of the driving point impedance of the elements in a flat array of infinite vertical height but finite horizontal width. It is assumed that each of the elements is fed by a separate amplifier, having infinite internal impedance, and that the amplifiers can be phased to direct the beam at various positions in space. The radiating elements considered are infinitely long wires spaced on half-wavelength centers and half-wave dipoles spaced on half-wavelength centers, each backed by a conducting ground plane spaced one-quarter wavelength from the elements. Values of driving point impedance are computed for the 61 elements in arrays 30 wavelengths wide. Values of the driving point impedance near the center of the array are found to agree closely with the values computed for infinitely wide arrays while the driving-point impedance of elements near the edge of the array are found to deviate considerably from the values at the center.


Transmission system operators are governed by operational security standards that are applied in real time. During system disturbances, the system operators must rely on the installed protection and control equipment, prior to human intervention. New power electronic solutions bring rapid and repeatable responses to disturbances, which will help system operators to guarantee a stable system. Last year, ALSTOM completed the world's first competitively bid STATCOM to support the voltage on National Grid's 400 kV network that supplies London and the Southeast from the north of the UK. It is rated /spl plusmn/75 MVAr and forms part of a static VAr system (SVS) with a total rating of 0 to 225 MVAr. This paper describes the reasons for its size, location, its chain-link configuration and gives examples of its operating performance. The paper also describes the features that allow this STATCOM to deliver much more than reactive compensation in support of a wider transmission service objective, as system conditions require.


Uncanny! I stared at Dad's eyes through the gas mask and remembered our handshake. A deal is a deal. With pounding heart, I walked into the soggy, wet mouth of the dead whale. It's uncanny ...turning into a dung beetle, catching someone else's tattoos, being in bed with a ghost who tickles, seeing a flying dog.


The unexpected death of a child is one of the most challenging losses as it fractures survivors' sense of parenthood and other layers of identity. Given that not all the bereaved parents who have need for support respond well to available treatments and that many have little access to further intervention or follow-up over time, online interventions featuring therapeutic writing and peer support have strong potential. In this article we explore how a group of bereaved mothers experienced the process of participating in an online course in therapeutic writing for the integration of grief. Our research questions were: How do parents who have lost a child experience being part of an online course in therapeutic writing? What are the perceived benefits and challenges of writing in processing their grief? We followed an existential phenomenological approach and analyzed fieldwork notes (n = 13), qualitative data from the application and assessment surveys (n = 35; n = 21), excerpts from the journals of some participants (n = 3), and email correspondence with some participants (n = 5). We categorized the results in three meaning units: (1) where does my story begin? The "both and" of their silent chaos; (2) standing on the middle line: a pregnancy that does not end; (3) closures and openings: "careful optimism" and the need for community support. Participants experienced writing as an opportunity for self-exploration regarding their identities and their emotional world, as well as a means to develop and strengthen a bond with their children. They also experienced a sense of belonging, validation, and acceptance in the online group in a way that helped them make sense of their suffering. Online writing courses could be of benefit for bereaved parents who are grieving the unexpected death of a child, but do not replace other interventions such as psychotherapy. In addition to trauma and attachment informed models of grief, identity informed models with a developmental focus might enhance the impact of both low-threshold community interventions and more intensive clinical ones. Further studies and theoretical development in the area are needed, addressing dialogical notions such as the multivoicedness of the self.


Introduction: Injection is a usual procedures in nursing which can cause pain and this pain can lead to anxiety, discomfort and reduce the trust of the patients for the nurse�s abilities. As promoting patient's comfort is among the nursing duty, this study was designed to compare the effect of Emla cream and cold compress on reducing the Enoxaparin injection site. Materials and Methods: This clinical trial with cross over planning study was performed on 53 inpatients at different wards of Yazd Shahid Sadughi Hospital with the order of administrating subcutaneous injection of 60mg Enoxaparine selected by convenient sampling method. EMLA cream, cold compress and control (routine intervention) were used for each case in three stages with 24 hours intervals. Site pain intensity was measured immediately after the injection by VAS and was analyzed using Fridman, Man Withney, Kruskal Wallis test by using the SPSS16 software. Results: The mean of the severity of pain was 3/88±1/91without any interventions, 2/01±1/93 using Emla cream and 1/54±1/50 using of cold compress .There was a significant difference between the three methods (p


Due to global warming & rising energy cost, it has become the need of society to develop new techniques for pollutant emission & reduction of fuel consumption. This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent research on the energy-saving technology for minimizing the specific fuel consumption up to a certain level. The development, application and performance of hybrid hydraulic excavation system were analysed. These developed model system can be optimized by simulation techniques to improving the energy efficiency and decreasing the fuel consumption. A specific research activity has been initiated in this field to define a non-linear mathematical model and a dynamic analysis technique for a system in which hydraulic system is blended with a linkage system. So that it can evaluate the fuel consumption of a hydraulic excavator during the various operations occurred.


BACKGROUND
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) prophylaxis remains underutilized, particularly in cancer patients. We explored clinical predictors of prophylaxis in hospitalized cancer patients before the onset of acute VTE.

METHODS
In the SWiss Venous ThromboEmbolism Registry, 257 cancer patients (61 +/- 15 years) with acute VTE and prior hospitalization for acute medical illness or surgery within 30 days (91% were at high risk with Geneva VTE risk score > or =3) were enrolled.

RESULTS
Overall, 153 (60%) patients received prophylaxis (49% pharmacological and 21% mechanical) before the onset of acute VTE. Outpatient status at the time of VTE diagnosis [odds ratio (OR) 0.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.18-0.53], ongoing chemotherapy (OR 0.51, 95% CI 0.31-0.85), and recent chemotherapy (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.32-0.88) were univariately associated with the absence of VTE prophylaxis. In multivariate analysis, intensive care unit admission within 30 days (OR 7.02, 95% CI 2.38-20.64), prior deep vein thrombosis (OR 3.48, 95% CI 2.14-5.64), surgery within 30 days (OR 2.43, 95% CI 1.19-4.99), bed rest >3 days (OR 2.02, 95% CI 1.08-3.78), and outpatient status (OR 0.38, 95% CI 0.19-0.76) remained the only independent predictors of thromboprophylaxis.

CONCLUSIONS
Although most hospitalized cancer patients were at high risk, 40% did not receive any prophylaxis before the onset of acute VTE. There is a need to improve thromboprophylaxis in cancer patients, particularly in the presence of recent or ongoing chemotherapy.


Four systematic reviews (SRs) and 6 retrospective cohort studies provided evidence for the clinical effectiveness of transcatheter mitral valve repair (TMVR) versus open heart conventional surgical mitral valve repair or replacement (SMVR) in patients with primary or secondary mitral regurgitation (MR). No relevant evidence regarding the cost-effectiveness of TMVR versus SMVR in patients with primary or secondary MR was identified; therefore, no summary can be provided.
There was evidence indicating a statistically significant difference in favour of TMVR over SMVR regarding the odds of post-procedure bleeding, need for permanent pacemaker implantation, 30-day readmission, and a shorter duration of hospitalization.
There was evidence suggesting a statistically significant difference in favour of SMVR over TMVR regarding the odds of recurrent MR, the need for reoperation, and mortality rate (i.e., during hospitalization, at 1 year, and > 3 years). Also, compared with TMVR, the likelihood of residual MR grade > 2 or freedom from MR grade ≥ 2 or ≥ 3 at 4 years was statistically significantly lower or higher, respectively, with SMVR.
Evidence regarding the comparative clinical effectiveness of TMVR versus SMVR concerning stroke, acute kidney injury (AKI), cardiogenic shock, and death during hospitalization was conflicting and inconclusive.
There was no evidence of a significant difference between the 2 interventions regarding overall mortality or mortality at 5 years, overall survival, freedom from cardiac death at 4 years, cardiac arrest, acute myocardial infarction (MI), and respiratory or vascular complications.
A major limitation of the evidence was that it derives from studies of low or unknown quality and risk of bias, Furthermore, all the findings are confounded by differences in patient selection, which reflect the approved indications for the interventions but prevent a direct comparison between the TMVR and SMVR groups.


Secondary teachers face a plethora of advice on why and how to integrate science with the arts for mutual benefit. Diverse rationales for this integration are matched by wide variation in recommended programs. However, there is limited research on what exactly teachers learn, or need to learn, over time beyond the life of any particular approach or topic, to succeed. In this paper we contribute insights into this issue by analysing, in the light of relevant literature, participant teachers' learning after four years experience of a standalone, two-day annual program that aimed to integrate science and the arts in a whole-school approach. Our case study entailed interviews with the principal and key participant teachers, observational notes on program enactment, and participation in teacher planning and review meetings. We found that: (a) participant teachers perceived multiple benefits from this curricular innovation; (b) the integration was enabled by a design-based learning framework, and (c) diverse conditions were needed for this innovation to be sustained, with implications for other forms of program integration.


BACKGROUND
 Roadside observational studies play a fundamental role in designing evidence-informed strategies to address the pressing global health problem of road traffic injuries. Paper-based data collection has been the standard method for such studies, although digital methods are gaining popularity in all types of primary data collection.

 OBJECTIVE
 This study aims to understand the reliability, productivity, and efficiency of paper vs digital data collection based on three different road user behaviors: helmet use, seatbelt use, and speeding. It also aims to understand the cost and time efficiency of each method and to evaluate potential trade-offs among reliability, productivity, and efficiency.

 METHODS
 A total of 150 observational sessions were conducted simultaneously for each risk factor in Mumbai, India, across two rounds of data collection. We matched the simultaneous digital and paper observation periods by date, time, and location, and compared the reliability by subgroups and the productivity using Pearson correlations (r). We also conducted logistic regressions separately by method to understand how similar results of inferential analyses would be. The time to complete an observation and the time to obtain a complete dataset were also compared, as were the total costs in US dollars for fieldwork, data entry, management, and cleaning.

 RESULTS
 Productivity was higher in paper than digital methods in each round for each risk factor. However, the sample sizes across both methods provided a precision of 0.7 percentage points or smaller. The gap between digital and paper data collection productivity narrowed across rounds, with correlations improving from r=0.27-0.49 to 0.89-0.96. Reliability in risk factor proportions was between 0.61 and 0.99, improving between the two rounds for each risk factor. The results of the logistic regressions were also largely comparable between the two methods. Differences in regression results were largely attributable to small sample sizes in some variable levels or random error in variables where the prevalence of the outcome was similar among variable levels. Although data collectors were able to complete an observation using paper more quickly, the digital dataset was available approximately 9 days sooner. Although fixed costs were higher for digital data collection, variable costs were much lower, resulting in a 7.73% (US $3011/38,947) lower overall cost.

 CONCLUSIONS
 Our study did not face trade-offs among time efficiency, cost efficiency, statistical reliability, and descriptive comparability when deciding between digital and paper, as digital data collection proved equivalent or superior on these domains in the context of our project. As trade-offs among cost, timeliness, and comparability—and the relative importance of each—could be unique to every data collection project, researchers should carefully consider the questionnaire complexity, target sample size, implementation plan, cost and logistical constraints, and geographical contexts when making the decision between digital and paper.


Abstract: This paper presents the findings of an investigation of the challenges Australian manufacturers are currently facing. A comprehensive questionnaire survey was conducted among leading Australian manufacturers. This paper reports the main findings of this study. Evidence indicates that product quality and reliability (Q & R) are the main challenges for Australian manufacturers. Design capability and time to market came second. Results show that there is no effective information exchange between the parties involved in production and quality control. Learning from the past mistakes is not proving to have significant effects on improving product quality. The technological innovation speed is high and companies are introducing as many as 5 new products in a year. This technological speed has pressure on the Q & R of new products. To overcome the new challenges, companies need a Q & R improvement model.


The problem of searching the set of keys in a file to find a key which is closest to a given query key is discussed. After "closest," in terms of a metric on the the key space, is suitably defined, three file structures are presented together with their corresponding search algorithms, which are intended to reduce the number of comparisons required to achieve the desired result. These methods are derived using certain inequalities satisfied by metrics and by graph-theoretic concepts. Some empirical results are presented which compare the efficiency of the methods.


There has been a marked increase in the number of women in the labor force generally since 1950, when only 18% of women with children worked outside the home and only 12% of women in the work force had preschool-age children. By 1988 these figures had increased to 66% and 57%, respectively. The fastest-growing segment has been women with children less than 1 year of age. In 1950 only 22% of families had two wage earners, whereas the figure for 1988 was 62%. The reasons for this change include a decrease in the average effective male wage by approximately 25% over the last 15 years and the growing necessity for women in the work force to preserve the middle-class status to which many families have become accustomed. The types of jobs for women are largely unchanged, with the No. 1 occupation being secretary, followed by elementary school teacher, bookkeeper, cashier,


Abstract The Castores and probably the Santa Rosa plutons of north-west Isla Navarino, southern Chile, have been emplaced by in situ diapirism into metasedimentary rocks of the Upper Jurassic (?)–Lower Cretaceous Yaghan Formation. For the former, this model is consistent with the concentric foliation paralleling the margin of the pluton and the foliation and stratification planes in the metamorphic aureole. Only the southern part of the Santa Rosa Pluton is preserved, and it has some structures similar to those of the Castores Pluton, which can also be interpreted as produced by an inflating diapir. The main intrusive rocks of these plutons are quartz-monzodiorites and quartz-diorites with synmagmatic foliation. They were preceded by minor bodies of hornblende gabbros, and followed by dykes and small bodies of non-foliated granodiorites. Non-foliated to weakly foliated granodiorites, forming the centre of the Castores Pluton, probably represent a younger intrusive pulse. Twelve K–Ar mineral dates from 10 specimens of plutonic rocks, interpreted as near crystallization ages, span the period 80–90 Ma. These dates do not show the sequence of intrusion of the different rock-types, which may suggest that all of them were intruded and cooled in a short period of time. The timing of emplacement of these plutons in relation to tectonism is difficult to determine; however, a post-tectonic emplacement for at least the Castores Pluton, is proposed.


Purpose: The aim of this study was to explore how woman entrepreneurs in a developing country context such as Botswana create their own entrepreneurial ecosystems that support their business-venturing activities. Design/methodology/approach: This qualitative research collected data via in-depth interviews from a purposive sample of 11 women who owned established enterprises in Gaborone, Botswana. Findings/results: Firstly, woman entrepreneurs in Botswana displayed entrepreneurial behaviours, skills and characteristics, an ability to overcome marginalisation and a positive attitude towards failure. Secondly, the entrepreneurial ecosystems created by women included social capital ties, human capital development, alternative funding mechanisms, access to local and international markets and inclusion of digital technology as part of the ecosystem. The woman entrepreneurs were influenced by the entrepreneurial institutional conditions in Botswana. Lastly, the findings showed the significance of changes to each component of the entrepreneurial ecosystem across the stages of the entrepreneurial journey. Practical implications: In a context of limited entrepreneurial resources, woman entrepreneurs should build their own ecosystem by leveraging the existing social networks and collaborating with local and international stakeholders. Government should design tailor-made entrepreneurial programmes and foster public and private partnerships to support the advancement of woman entrepreneurs. Lastly, ecosystem players including private institutions should collaborate to support women-owned entrepreneurial ventures. Originality/value: This study adopted an alternative view that woman entrepreneurs can be the key drivers of the entrepreneurial ecosystem. This system must be built up from the level of the women entrepreneurs to better understand their specific stance and also the context in which they operate.


Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to sleep disruptions due both to hormonal changes (causing a shift in circadian rhythms, Pieters et al., 2015) and to school and extra-curricular commitments leading to sleep restriction (Carskadon, 2011). Sleep quantity, in turn, has been independently linked to low response inhibition as well as externalizing behaviors (Lowe et al., 2017; Gregory & Sadeh, 2012). This study aims to build upon these findings by testing the hypothesis that decreased inhibition will mediate the relationship between low quantity of sleep and externalizing behaviors. A representative sample of adolescents in Chicago, Illinois was recruited to participate in a larger study of stress processes. Ninety-four of the participants were randomly selected from the larger study to also take part in a 4-day actigraph watch collection to track sleep quantity. Regression analyses identified associations between sleep quantity and inhibition and externalizing symptoms, whereas there were no associations identified between sleep quantity and inhibition. Results of mediational analyses wherein inhibition was tested as a mediator of the effects of sleep quantity on externalizing symptoms were not significant. Yet, the findings of this study can inform prevention and intervention strategies for at-risk youth as well as guide future research on risk and protective factors.


First principles phase diagram calculations were performed for the wurtzite-structure quasibinary systems AlN–GaN, GaN–InN, and AlN–InN. Cluster expansion Hamiltonians that excluded, and included, excess vibrational contributions to the free energy, Fvib, were evaluated. Miscibility gaps are predicted for all three quasibinaries, with consolute points, XC ,TC , for AlN–GaN, GaN–InN, and AlN–InN equal to 0.50, 305 K , 0.50, 1850 K , and 0.50, 2830 K without Fvib, and 0.40, 247 K , 0.50, 1620 K , and 0.50, 2600 K with Fvib, respectively. In spite of the very different ionic radii of Al, Ga, and In, the GaN–InN and AlN–GaN diagrams are predicted to be approximately symmetric. © 2006 American Institute of Physics. DOI: 10.1063/1.2372309


BACKGROUND
We tested the hypothesis that carvedilol inhibits clinical progression in patients with mildly symptomatic heart failure due to left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction.

METHODS AND RESULTS
Patients (n = 366) who had mildly symptomatic heart failure with an LV ejection fraction (LVEF) < or = 0.35, had minimal functional impairment (defined as the ability to walk 450 to 550 m on a 6-minute walk test), and were receiving optimal standard therapy, including ACE inhibitors, were randomized double-blind to carvedilol (n = 232) or placebo (n = 134) and followed up for 12 months. The primary end point was clinical progression, defined as death due to heart failure, hospitalization for heart failure, or a sustained increase in heart failure medications. Clinical progression of heart failure occurred in 21% of placebo patients and 11% of carvedilol patients, reflecting a 48% (P = .008) reduction in the primary end point of heart failure progression (relative risk, 0.52; CI, 0.32 to 0.85). This effect of carvedilol was not influenced by sex, age, race, cause of heart failure, or baseline LVEF. Carvedilol also significantly improved several secondary end points, including LVEF, heart failure score, NYHA functional class, and the physician and patient global assessments. Carvedilol reduced all-cause mortality but had no effects on the Minnesota Living With Heart Failure scale, the distance walked in 9 minutes on a self-powered treadmill, or cardiothoracic index. The drug was well tolerated.

CONCLUSIONS
Carvedilol, when added to standard therapy, including an ACE inhibitor, reduces clinical progression in patients who are only mildly symptomatic with well-compensated heart failure.


Two brothers showed the typical clinical and radiographic changes of Morquio's disease, but with absence of keratosulfaturia. Marked variability of expression characterizes the findings in this condition, which we believe represents one of a heterogeneous group of heritable connective tissue disorders, manifested primarily by universal platyspondyly and variable mucopolysacchariduria. Longitudinal study of large numbers of cases and an international scheme of diagnosis and classification is recommended.


PURPOSE
This study seeks to compare functional modifications of the plasma membrane induced either by water radiolysis (80 kV X-rays) or by visible light in the presence of the photosensitizer photofrin II. The two methods generate different kinds of free radicals and other reactive species such as singlet oxygen. Their effect on the electrical properties of the plasma membrane is investigated.

METHOD
The patch-clamp technique (whole-cell and inside-out configuration) was applied to the plasma membrane of an epithelial cell line (opossum kidney (OK) cells).

RESULTS
Generation of the reactive species gave rise to a decay of the membrane potential, to an inactivation of K+-channels, and to an increase of the leak conductance of the membrane. All three effects were strongly involved in photomodification of the membrane. Following X-ray exposure (doses up to 1000 Gy) on the other hand, the decay of the membrane conductance caused by inactivation of ion channels was predominant, while the increase of the leak conductance and the depolarization were comparatively minor responses.

CONCLUSION
Photomodification of the plasma membrane by visible light in the presence of the membrane-active sensitizer photofrin II is of considerably greater consequence for the electrical properties of the membrane, compared with exposure to ionizing radiation of the membrane and its aqueous environment. The differences are thought to reflect the types of reactive species produced by the two methods and their site of generation.


Introduction: Decompilers are useful tools for software analysis and support in the absence of source code. They are available for many hardware architectures and programming languages. However, none of the existing decompilers support modern AMD GPU architectures such as AMD GCN and RDNA. Purpose: We aim at developing the first assembly decompiler tool for a modern AMD GPU architecture that generates code in the OpenCL language, which is widely used for programming GPGPUs. Results: We developed the algorithms for the following operations: preprocessing assembly code, searching data accesses, extracting systemvalues, decompiling arithmetic operations and recovering data types. We also developed templates for decompilation of branching operations. Practical relevance: We implemented the presented algorithms in Python as a tool called OpenCLDecompiler, which supports a large subset of AMD GCN instructions. This tool automatically converts disassembled GPGPU code into the equivalent OpenCL code, which reduces the effort required to analyze assembly code.


Inspired by the intensive studies of graphene, scientists have put extraordinary efforts in exploring properties and phenomena involving noncarbon graphene‐like two‐dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, particularly those only consisting of single layers or few layers. Experimentally, many graphene‐like 2D structures have been fabricated from a large variety of layered and nonlayered materials. These graphene‐like structures have already shown exceptional properties, which will offer new breakthroughs and innovative opportunities in nanomaterials science. Theoretically, density‐functional theory (DFT) computations offer a powerful tool to investigate the electronic structure (principally the ground state) of nanomaterials, to predict their intrinsic properties, assist in characterization, and rationalization of experimental findings, as well as explore their potential applications. By DFT computations, many graphene‐like materials have been explored and designed, and fantastic properties are disclosed. In this review, we present the recent computational progress in discovering the intrinsic structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of several important and representative graphene‐like 2D nanomaterials, as well as identifying their potential applications. The highlighted graphene‐like structures include layered van der Waals (vdW) materials (h‐BN, MoS2, α‐MoO3, and V2O5), graphitic‐like ZnO, MXenes (metal carbides or carbonitrides), the not‐yet‐synthesized B2C, SiC2, BSi3, arsenene and antimonene, and single‐layer coordination polymers ([Cu2Br(IN)2]n (IN = isonicotinato), Fe‐phthalocyanine, and nickel bis(dithiolene)). WIREs Comput Mol Sci 2015, 5:360–379. doi: 10.1002/wcms.1224


Agricultural policies are widening the scope to contribute to environmental objectives, such as the Green Deal, Paris Climate Agreement and sustainable development goals. This leads to new monitoring and data needs. To fulfil these data needs, it is crucial to explore the opportunities and limitations of new technologies. This paper analyses the information flows within the agricultural sector and its potential to contribute to future information needs. Farmers act within a network of commercial and governmental organisations. The information exchange with these organisations could increasingly occur through digital means, but in reality, there is still a lot of data transfer on paper or in PDF format. This implies information loss. Digital information flows provide a wealth of information for policy evaluation and monitoring and have the potential to reduce transaction costs. Combining data from different sources (open data like earth observation data, data from on-farm sensor networks, accountancy data like invoices and data from food chain platforms) concerning a single farm is an even bigger challenge than the transfer from paper to digital. Based on these observations a list of requirements for a future solution for information transfer is defined. Based on these requirements, this paper presents the design of a System for Information Transfer to Reduce Administrative burdens (SITRA) to combine data from different sources and give farmers control who can access these data. SITRA will address farmers ' needs to reduce the growing administrative burden placed on them by governments and the food chain sustainability and food safety schemes, especially if data would be stored in a digital farm locker and a farmer could voluntary give his consent through an authorisation mechanism to share specific data with his business partners, paying agency, statistical organisation and Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN, an EU monitoring system for the Common Agricultural Policy). A platform that provides such data lockers could also provide benchmark facilities and a tool for common (open source) maintenance of coding systems. The paper proposes some follow-up activities to test this design. As a pilot, organic farmers that participate in the Dutch Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) will be recruited to co-develop and test the design principles of the system. Given trust issues around data management, the design of the governance and business model of the system are key issues in the follow-up. This group is chosen as organic certification and FADN are the most data-intensive monitoring and evaluation tools in the CAP. The Farm to Fork communication proposes to enlarge the organic sector to 25% of the agricultural area. A new organic control regulation, based on a risk assessment approach is about to be implemented. The Farm to Fork communication also proposes to link the FADN much more with the Farm Advisory System and to extend it to a Farm Sustainability Data Network.


This article submits for discussion the findings of a research conducted in 2013 about the good practices that supports the training of university teaching professionals. We used as a research method the survey based research. Without representing a panel sample, the selected subjects in the two samples belong to a small population, represented by university teachers that participated in the training program. The analysis targeted both participants present at the various organised events regarding training and exchange of experiences, as well as other specialist's categories that could have informed themselves regarding the project products, regarding educational resources initiated and executed during the project. The respondents of the two research phases are 604 teachers from 48 universities and, respectively 600 respondents from 49 universities. The purpose of the paper is to measure the impact degree of the main activities of the training program organized on a national level that aim to perfect the didactic competences of university teachers that participated. The methodological design of the research is structured around the following questions: What are the most relevant events presented in the project judging on the utility brought to the participants? What is the main motivation of the teachers' participation at the training courses? How do participants evaluate the e-learning portal used as a supplementary source of information? The obtained results indicate the fact that the training courses brought significant and obvious value. The second component that could produce favourable effects is the e-learning and informing. Other two event categories - national conferences and summer academies - have received similar evaluations and came third place. Regarding the participation motivation of teachers at the training courses, the following reasons were listed: program accreditation by the Ministry of Education, development of teachers' competences, the innovative aspect of the training program.


The use of RFID (radio frequency identification) tags in logistic warehousing systems has been analysed. The research was carried out at the RFID measuring station at Wroclaw University of Technology. The test results for 125 kHz tags in dynamic write and read tags in one or several variants are presented. The applications presented in the article are universal and apply in widely understood logistic systems. In particular, they define the area of their use in logistic storage systems, in particular the identification of tagged and conveyed craft units, forklift trucks / stackers, or manually. Test results may improve the reliability of the automatic identification subsystem in logistic storage systems.